Show Posts

This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.


Messages - Endpiece
Pages: [1] 2 3

1
Pixel Art / Re: [C+C] Metal Shading, Mega Drive Style?
« on: August 23, 2011, 04:33:02 pm »


So I've got some portrait sprites for the playable characters in this game, and I'd like for you guys to critique and fix them - where have I gone wrong in terms of colour combination, hues, values, etc? Colours per sprite are limited to 16, but most of the sprites don't have nearly that many.




2
Pixel Art / Re: Metal Shading, Mega Drive Style?
« on: July 06, 2011, 03:18:13 pm »


Top row: standard standing sprite, standard leaning sprite, short shadow/light ramp on leaning sprite, standing sprite with more gloss, the two heroes of the story (animation of the suit changes according to whoever's wearing it)

Bottom row: the sub-bosses, alongside a final (left) and beta (right) of the boss

3
Pixel Art / Re: Metal Shading, Mega Drive Style?
« on: July 04, 2011, 01:06:25 am »
I don't think dropbox is the best host for imagery. I can't even see it atm.  >:(

Reuploaded the images to Photobucket and edited an earlier post with updated sprites.

4
Pixel Art / Re: Metal Shading, Mega Drive Style?
« on: July 02, 2011, 04:06:16 pm »
Thanks for the critique.



Concerned about whether I'm 'doing it wrong' (both stances show different edits/attempts), and also the clarity of the characters. Top row are the new edits, bottom row is some different stuff.



Editing sprites against a plain background has its disadvantages compared to checking them against reference sprites and BGs - mostly clarity and palette spread. The Gunstar/Contra rips aren't mine, obviously.

5
Pixel Art / [C+C] Metal Shading, Mega Drive Style?
« on: July 01, 2011, 09:01:47 pm »
Working on design for an indie game. Aiming for Mega Drive graphics. Currently stumped - reread topic title as to why.



The red/brown suit and orange boots are supposed to 'look' metallic. I'm... not that great at rendering in high-resolution paintings, let alone spriting (unless it's GBC style...), so I ask for your critiques and fixes. I've tried looking at screenshots (Gunstar Heroes, Alien Soldier, Rocket Knight Adventures, Ranger X) but their greatness doesn't seem to have rubbed off on me.

Reference for design

Reference for game (at the moment mere technical demos)

6
Pixel Art / Re: [C+C] [WIP] Menu Design/Beat-Em-Up Mockup
« on: November 21, 2009, 01:19:30 am »
I think konjak (http://www.konjak.org/) works a lot like this, at least it's the kind of critique he often gives - do check his stuff out.

Yeah, I've seen a lot of his work beforehand, like Noitu Love 2 and Ivory Springs. I'll have another look at the animations, though. From the sound of it I won't have much room for filler animation, so I'll have to really emphasise the actual animation, before, during and after (anticipation-action-reaction?).

A question I wanna ask though is : Is it necessary to give an idle animation to such small characters? I mean, I'm not suspecting the decision, I'm actually asking because I have no idea myself, lol ???

It doesn't seem like it, but for some reason that's the animation I started out with. Mostly because I was confused as to what subpixelling actually was, but we've sorted that out. So now I'm going to try animating other movements for the characters (walking, fighting, taking damage, victory, etc) and see how I get on. An important thing for me to remember is that the personalities and mannerisms subtly (or not-so-subtly) affect the movements of the characters too.

Speaking of pompadours, I took another look at the sprites and decided to draw them out in 8 directions. It's a fair bit harder than I thought - I'm simplifying and adding to the designs as I work through them. And now I've hit a snag.



Eeek. Help?

Edit: I should probably add that I seem to go through various 'phases' of pixelart referencing. Some days I look at NGPC screenshots, for others it'll be Paul Robertson or Derek Yu, and right now I'm in the middle of a Metroid/Mother 3 fix. It's very possible it'll be something totally different tomorrow.

7
Pixel Art / Re: [C+C] [WIP] Menu Design/Beat-Em-Up Mockup
« on: November 20, 2009, 12:37:09 am »
You're talking about subpixel animation aaaaAND it's probably not what you want to do with these small sprites - work on animation that utilizes ease-in and ease-out of recognizable poses rather than millions of tweens and subtle animation.

Ease-in/out is where the animation goes like, 1-2-3---4---5---6---7-8-9, right? The last time I tried animating sprites for one of my games, I ended up doing it all Chuck Jone style - smearing from one pose to another!

I need to do animation for walking, talking, gesturing etc, and for that I'll have to make the animation smooth (as suggested) and the silhouettes clear. I think it'll be alright to keep subpixelling for the idle breathing animation though, right? Or I could do it like the old videogames where the player idles and the characters start pulling 'bored' poses. I think if the player comes across important NPCs, they'll be doing more than standing around, obviously.

I think I'll leave the issue until I get a bigger sheet of animated sprites, then we can discuss the matter better. You guys are awesome for critiques on animation in other threads, so I'm looking forward to that.

8
Pixel Art / Re: [C+C] [WIP] Menu Design/Beat-Em-Up Mockup
« on: November 19, 2009, 09:21:58 pm »
Warning: this topic has not been posted in for at least 30 days.
Unless you're sure you want to reply, please consider starting a new topic.


It's a valid concern, but I already have a thread. And making more than one just seems overkill, especially to get a question out of the way. That question being:



What's the style of animation called wherein the pixels may change colour, but the silhouette of the sprite stays the same? If I remember right its to simulate a more subtle form of movement (like breathing) with smaller resolutions, but (a) I can't remember the right term for it, and (b) I can't remember the particular 'rules' of it either, like when best not to do it, etc.



New HUD, also. I revised the engine. It's more like Monkey Island crossed with Phoenix Wright, now.

9
Pixel Art / Re: [C+C] [WIP] Menu Design/Beat-Em-Up Mockup
« on: October 01, 2009, 03:17:27 am »
Quote from: IvanX
Thought I'd give my 2 cents.
Shorter blade and tryed to define the eye more.

I should work on that eye thing. Thanks for the note on the blade!


I think it needs a more dynamic line of action. Hopefully my image explains what I mean.

I think I get it - the majority of the body in action conforms to the line of action, strengthening the pose. But shouldn't the line of action be running through the sword as well, or does said line only apply to people and not to the objects they're interacting with? I'm not sure, but I think as the hands are holding the sword (and the arms are bolstering the wrists), shouldn't they have more say in how the body is curved? Maybe he could be performing an upside-down U curve? I don't know, please elaborate for me on this!

Quote
Also I think if you add how the action is affecting things on his body it will add a good amount of action into the pose. For instance I raised his cape and messed his hair a bit. I gave him a bit more of a reach on his arms because generally when you slash a sword its not so close to your body and your guy kind of seem like was doing a stronger attack so I think it suits it better.

So there's a bunch of secondary reactions going on (hair, cape) owing to the monumentum of the sword being swung. That's actually pretty helpful. Thanks!

(Edit: does the cape in the first picture count as a secondary reaction, seeing as its billowing upwards, or not? Maybe not.)

Quote
I'm really liking how these guys are looking, the mock up in front of the building looks awesome though I think the recent image the forsground gets mixed up with the background too much. The second palette looked a lot better to me.

When you say the foreground, you mean the floor the guys are standing on, right? I really should fix that, even if it does mean another palette - it should look more like a proper footpath - with cracks in the floor, dirt and rocks, etc. With the trees and buildings it's a more streamlined background in terms of colours, which is nice - I'm not an expert on the 'guts' and mechanics of the Game Boy, but I'd assume a larger use of palettes at once wouldn't be all that beneficial.

10
Pixel Art / Re: [C+C] [WIP] Menu Design/Beat-Em-Up Mockup
« on: September 30, 2009, 08:01:44 pm »
Alright, putting on my 'serious question' face. I have Medieval Zuko here, both in idle stance (without sword, which I'll get to soon) and 'post-slash' stance.



1) He looks kind of 'static' in the second pose (I know he does in the first one, but the second is the one I'm concerned with at the moment). What can I do to make him look more alive, in-motion as it were?

2) Colour scheme. Zuko's general palette in the Avatar cartoon comprises of red and brown with a hint of gold. The general palette of a knight varies but isn't generally saturated (colours range from greys to faint hues to midtones). The reference picture supplied for Zuko doesn't have a colour scheme. What sort of colours should I give to this sprite to both (a) make him 'pop out', (b) still show him as a knight in shining armour, and (c) not have him confused with Conrad (also a red palette) mid-fight?

EDIT:


Pages: [1] 2 3