Cels, for me it is great. Congrats, nice piece!

I was going to say I liked the style, but then I saw your reference, hehe

Well, I would say: You need a reference.

Even in traditional art, it is pretty common to do master copies, that way you can understand some of the subtleties of each artist, and get a little piece of what makes his/her art great. Just like Mega-Man.

But as you get better, try to start avoiding literal translations. That way you can maybe put the image you created into your portfolio.
Look at a real cloud, see if you can translate something that is not pixel art into pixels.

Compared to the reference, I would say you did highlights in the mountains that are far too repetitive (in angle and form) and that the mountains' colors are a bit too contrasty with the background. Maybe it also lacks some understanding of form for proper shading.

The contour of the mountains aren't too pleasing, and this is:
Partially because the lines are jagged (http://www.minddesk.com/wiki/index.php?title=Classic_Pixel-Art_Basics_Tutorial)
Partially because of tangents (it seems like the top of the rightmost mountain is exactly at the corner of the page, for instance)
Partially because the countour looks undecided in one point (first valley from right to left)

But these tips apply to other things in the image that aren't as unpleasing as the mountains, like jagged lines in the clouds.

I hope that helps!

Hello Xolotl

It is much easier to start with an orthographic view, a side walk cycle.

I would suggest you to rework your walk using this image as a reference. It's from the book Animator's Survival Kit.



Notice the foot angle, height of the whole body compared to the legs angle, the bending arms can make. Your little guy is too stiff.

One major thing I noticed is that it looks like he walks one step forward then one step back. He never lifts his right leg! The arms movement are more plausible (no need for the shoulder movement though).

Hey AWhiteRabbit.

Well, the first thing that struck me as odd are the colors.
A polar bear is usually of a warm-white color. Many times yellow, as usually juuust slightly darker in value than the snow.
A black bear would probably be more brownish and darker in value than yours.

The head is odd because the snout is too long for the perspective.

He is missing his paw and, because you are missing his paw, the elbow joint is maybe in an odd position.

You need some color variation in the trees. Wouldn't they be covered in snow?

Maybe also improve your composition by rearranging the elements in a less ordered fashion. Add some sky, maybe a moon or some branches in the foreground, remember to always keep the composition balance.

Hi r0ber7,

It really is flat, and that is because you are lacking the three dimensionality in your drawing, that is something the shading can't really fix, even the best shading.

My suggestion is: grab a pencil and paper, and watch these tutorials on youtube by proko: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EPNYWeEf1U&feature=c4-overview-vl&list=PL39135B8D190B7C97

See how the forms are based on basic primitives?

IMHO, you need to be able to depict those forms using shading on paper and only then try that with pixels.

Best regards,
cauli