I think this is an interesting topic PB, and one which I've given some thought about previously myself. I do think you've over-complicated the issue here somewhat, concisely:

Knowing what to leave out of an image or scene is as important an artistic and mechanistic consideration as what to put in.

The issue as I see it is of keeping focus where it's wanted. You've singled out fading to black here so I'll take that as an example; doing so in lieu of homogeneous detail promotes attention to the traversable area in-game in addition to providing welcome value contrast to background work that is often bright & colourful. 

There are other ways of manipulating visual priorities however, a few of which I've illustrated here.


If you want to talk realism (although I don't think this should be a priority necessarily); either photo or visual-perceptual, you can only focus on a relatively small amount of detail from a scene at any one time. The fovea can only distinguish both detail and colour in the very centre of your vision, the rest being extrapolated post-hoc. A similarly adaptive response also tailors the relative levels of detail you perceive in light and shade; you only get a full compliment of range in either one or the other that you happen to be focused on; examples of this phenomenon being contre-jour foreground silhouette and the 'white-out' of an exterior as seen from the window of an interior scene.

Applied in the context of game tiles, the previous would suggest to me that localised detail/interest is both more effective pictorially and also more realistic in an appropriate sense.     

Sweet mockup! lovely detailing and just generally interesting to look at

Some things I think you could improve:

• I liked the more colourful version better, darker & more of an attempt at moody shadows is great but try to keep some of that range.
• The new straight-right cast shadows aren't helpful imo; surely you should shade according to the two lamps?
• The furniture looks a little out-sized for the characters. (them some big-ass books )
• The table could do with more of a rim like the chair.
• The vase is very flat.

The characters, I think could be more dynamic, could better act up their roles with more attention paid to pose. Quick example below showcasing dramatic cape flare and pleading hands respectively as well as swapping out the chain thing which I thought was jarring with the the rest and also adding an awesome feather, just because .  


Edit:Clarification, spelling

No worries about me going overboard with pleasing everyone.  I am way too opinionated.  Trying to please people is my attempt to combat the side of me that wants to tell everyone they're idiots for not adoring my creative vision as it is right now.  

Awesome , I love the new water for it's pictorial qualities, if I do think indicating the shadow of the bank would be even nicer. The symbolic blue/purple worked ok; it's just I've seen an awful lot of it and reflections are really the only chance you get to show the sky from this kind of viewpoint. I Just don't want to argue you out of something you liked; I sometimes play devil's advocate when giving advice in an attempt to get people to more thoroughly examine their own decisions and hopefully help themselves. You have a great attitude to self improvement and some lovely work here.  

I preferred the lighter long grass, just a touch less contrast and I'd bring the darker short stuff up more in line with that. The 'cobbled' dirt is way nicer, cleaner than the dithered one also. I should have made clear that my example for the house wasn't a stylistic suggestion, just concerned with construction. I just like drawing simplified cute stuff to demonstrate concepts, I don't want to be too prescriptive  

'RPG Perspective' is often a bit of a fudge (notice some of my estimated linework had to be changed in the flats) But what I was trying to say is that when you've drawing something intended to occupy 3 dimensions; don't just draw the facade. How does it connect to the ground? Sketch a wireframe before rendering. You don't need to get silly about room division and where the TV will go (an element of Tardis syndrome is perhaps neccessary) but a grounding in reality is very important.    

If I've dumped too much on you at once here, sorry. I won't be able to keep up with forums and things for a while so I'm trying to purge myself of any advice now.

Please don't feel as though you have to appease anyone, We can can all only suggest what we like and reason why. I'd be happiest if you found a solution that you really liked

Great improvements/additions, although the long grass is still quite busy for me, and the short (grass) still very dark considering the fairly light and arid-looking dirt tile; consistency between traversable ground would help imo. I'd make the log bigger and possibly hollow to make absolutely clear what it is.   

The cottage is very well-kempt and angular for something you've come across in the forest, it's also a bit homogeneously blue-grey and white. I'd give it more symbolic yellowish thatch and more interesting footprint; curved edges give you the chance to render a bit and better sell the shape of the house as a whole.

In general I'd really milk every chance you get to demonstrate light & shade; shadow is dimensionality.

I took some liberties with my edit. Please note that it's not really intended as a blueprint for what you should do but more as a guide to help you produce work with more body and a better understanding of structure. after I sketched out the floorplan I found it was a very thin, pointy house so I've put up my process below.