Pixelation

Critique => Pixel Art => Pixel Art Feature Chest => Topic started by: Indigo on July 06, 2010, 05:25:50 am

Title: GR#042 - Green Forest - Mockup
Post by: Indigo on July 06, 2010, 05:25:50 am
I've been dabbling with this as of late.  Feel free to C+C along the way.

Current:
(http://www.danfessler.com/dump/forestmock6.png)

Progress:
(http://danfessler.com/dump/forestmock1.png)
(http://danfessler.com/dump/forestmock4.png)
(http://danfessler.com/dump/forestmock5.png)
(http://danfessler.com/dump/forestmock6.png)
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: xhunterko on July 06, 2010, 06:12:52 am
Looks delicious. Reminds me of Scot C's stuff.*

However, I'm almost afriad to ask what this is. Is this a platformer mockup? Or is it an Rpg battle background? If it is a platformer, I can't distinguish where the player is supposed to stand. I like the trunks. Though are you going to twist them? Might make them more interesting. But your background behind the initial trees seem a bit plain. Sure you've got at least two layers of trees back there.  But most forests, unless your on the edge of one, the trees go on forever.

And please excuse if this crit seems quite useless. My eyes may be fogged by the drool dripping from my mouth and hitting my laptop and it steaming up. It's, just, so, pretty.
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: Yami on July 06, 2010, 06:28:42 am
I wish I could make a simplistic background like the 4th picture for my game. I have a thread where I'm trying to find a style to match mine.

http://www.wayofthepixel.net/pixelation/index.php?topic=10574.0

How much more do you plan on rendering by the way?
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: alspal on July 06, 2010, 07:04:49 am
Do you mind embedding the images, makes it much easier to view.
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: Jon on July 06, 2010, 02:13:09 pm
Hi, do you do this with a tablet or just with your mouse? I am thinking about trying pixelling with a tablet.

Btw, great work so far.  :y:
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: Shikola on July 06, 2010, 04:28:33 pm
It bothers me a bit that the middle tree is textured, but the others aren't nearly as much. Sure, they might be in different perspectives, but I don't thing the left three should look that flat. :u
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: kamol on July 06, 2010, 04:40:39 pm
It bothers me a bit that the middle tree is textured, but the others aren't nearly as much. Sure, they might be in different perspectives, but I don't thing the left three should look that flat. :u

I guess that tree is still in progress, isn't it?
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: Dusty on July 06, 2010, 04:42:23 pm
I imagine that's merely the work-in-process, for the reasoning of the other trees not being textured.

The biggest concern I have with this piece is the background, as right now it confuses me. I can see you're going for a sort of backlit scene, but I think my problem has mostly to do with the placement and current shading of the background trees. You have quite a few trees in the "middle" and only one tree in the farthest. Along with that, it seems like you're placing the lightsource of the middle trees from behind, so giving them a sort of aura, and I think this adds to my confusion. Because of the furthest tree being the same shade as the light on the middle trees, it looks like each tree has an immediate tree behind it. Not to mention I'd imagine a backlit scene ending up with silhouettes instead?

I think I may have to wait to see what you pull off with it before I jump to conclusions, but right now it leaves me a little lost. There are also other things that come to mind with the above, and that's mainly the lightsource. The backlit scene would be contradictory(and I guess counterproductive) to the lightsource you have going on in the foreground. However, it's easy to dismiss such things because of priorities.

Right now I like how the background is giving me the vibe of something misty/enchanted instead of the typical atmosphere you'd find in an in-game forest.
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: xhunterko on July 06, 2010, 06:14:03 pm
*Scratch that, wrong artist.

I meant Goro Fujita. But still, one other thing is that I don't recall the sky changing color while being in a forest. But that's probably just a nitpick.
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: xiphirx on July 06, 2010, 06:26:04 pm
I love it so far  ;D
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: Olothontor on July 06, 2010, 06:39:51 pm
Very beautiful and provocative. The shades are perfect, and your distinction between background and foreground, I think, it spot-on. Well done.
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: Mathias on July 06, 2010, 07:09:00 pm
Will this be translated to tiles? For a game? Is this just the tip of the iceberg? What's the intent here, eh?

Great stuff. Love the soft colors. Textured tree resembles stone a bit, not bark so much. Could even be plates, like plated armor.


Dusty, maybe you're not taking into account volumetric fog/haze in the forest? Depth and lighting seem good to me.
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: Indigo on July 06, 2010, 07:40:32 pm
Thanks for all the great comments guys.  Its very much a WIP, so a lot of the issues talked about will certainly be addressed as I continue.

xhunterko:
its a platformer mockup.  I plan to do much more with the background, so dont worry too much about that yet :P

Jon:
I always pixel with a tablet.  I absolutely cannot pixel without one anymore.

Shikola:
I'll render those too - it's still a work in progress.

Dusty:
all your comments are due to the image simply not being finished.  those were all just really quick 2-second brush strokes to get things in the right places and whatnot.

Mathias:
Unfortunately there is no real intent with this at the moment.  Just art.  I think you're right about the texture of the tree.  Its something i've noticed, but put off in my mind.  Maybe I should address that issue.

Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: Gregori666 on July 06, 2010, 09:14:02 pm
Absolutely beautiful. I love the palette!!
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: EyeCraft on July 07, 2010, 03:09:57 am
Looking pretty SWEET!

Feels a bit too tinted to me, though, like I'm looking at the scene through green cellophane or something.

(http://i188.photobucket.com/albums/z212/gastrop0d/edits/forestmock5_ed.png)

Push in to the periphery hues a little more. I went with the cool ones for the background and warm ones for the foreground.
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: Mathias on July 07, 2010, 03:57:23 am
Yes, Eyecrizznaft, that's a mighty fine suggestion. I went ahead and superimposed yours and Indigo's pics so I could toggle back and forth to see the difference. Very good edit, even got some purples in the foreground. Curious to see what Indigo thinks. It does have it's pro's and con's but the pro's win, I think. Main con is that with the stronger hue shift now the eye is unduly drawn to to the bg more as a result, but worth it.
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: EyeCraft on July 07, 2010, 04:36:56 am
Yeah, I basically just grabbed the hue bar and went "to cyan we go!" It needs tweaking of the saturation and value of those far background colours to balance out the priority again, I think.

Also: Eyecrizznaft... awesome...  :lol:
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: PypeBros on July 07, 2010, 06:22:45 am
Delicious!

I wasn't such a huge fan of fade-to-black rocks, but I must admit that in this context, they do a wonderful job and nicely allow you to mirror blocks, which my top-left-shading wouldn't allow.

If anything, I'd point out that trees would have hard time to grow in such rocky grounds ... but maybe I'm mis-interpreting some chunk of dirt as rocks. I guess further texturing and refinement will tell.

Long to see how you'll bring it further to mastery ... very interesting.
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: Indigo on March 23, 2011, 05:07:36 am
(http://www.danfessler.com/dump/forestmock6.png)

I had some time to revisit this tonight.
Title: Re: really green forest mockup
Post by: Elk on March 23, 2011, 05:22:44 am
hey I remember this...looks more organic now, since I pointed that out back then that everything looked so straight :D

Very nice mood work!