AuthorTopic: Sprites for my game...  (Read 9029 times)

Offline Dave

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Sprites for my game...

on: May 31, 2006, 11:22:17 pm
<--Hero dashing.  Couldn't animate it, 'cause I really don't know what program to use to do it.  And I couldn't get the transparency to work, apparently.  D:  Might post more later.  Critique, please. 
« Last Edit: June 01, 2006, 05:12:53 pm by Dave »

Offline G_Dragon

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Re: Sprites for my game...

Reply #1 on: June 01, 2006, 01:49:20 am
Hey Dave!

Firstly, I hope that you didn't save your only copy in jpeg. As you probably noticed, jpegs blur the colours together when compressing, which is a major no-no in pixel art.
You could probably bump up the brightness on the highlights, and darken the shadows. Otherwise the sprite doesn't have enough definition. As for animating, you can just draw each frame in a seperate part of the image and ask someone to put the frames together for you.

Offline Ayavaron

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Re: Sprites for my game...

Reply #2 on: June 01, 2006, 02:57:09 am
Actually, I happen to have something on my site available which should help you with animating. It won't help you with transparencies or anything   (for that, try GIMP or Paint.NET or something) but it will allow you to GIF together your sprites.

http://www.ayavaron.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2006/04/Animagic%2032Bit.zip

I hope that the program helps you. I like it a lot. It's a nice, simple, specialized program with a good UI.

Also. I like your sprite. It has a very nice, simplistic design to it. (This would be more suited to a stage enemy, but I still like it) Though, I noticed that your character has a ver weird-looking foot. It doesn't seem like you have the perspective quite right. Try sketching out (on paper) the geometry of the feet so you understand how the should act and look in particular poses.
I'm not much of an artist, but please trust me when I criticize your hard work.

Offline Dave

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Re: Sprites for my game...

Reply #3 on: June 01, 2006, 06:52:16 am
G_Dragon: Nah, that's not my only copy.  I have that, the whole sheet as a .bmp, and I have the object in my Games Factory file. 

Ayavaron: Thanks for the program, it helps. 

Thanks for the pointers, guys.  I'll redo my sheet, and come up with some new sprites soon.

Offline Dusty

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Re: Sprites for my game...

Reply #4 on: June 01, 2006, 07:32:47 am
If he's dashing I suggest perhaps using a more extreme showing of it by leaning his body over to maybe a near 45 degree angel. As it is now he's almost standing upright and it doesn't seem to suggest any type of speed associated with dashing.

Offline Dave

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Re: Sprites for my game...

Reply #5 on: June 01, 2006, 05:13:26 pm
<--Stopped, walking and dashing animations after some modification.  Flame flickers WAY faster than that, but that's the best I could do.  Ohh, and I completely suck at walk cycles, too.

Offline Ayavaron

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Re: Sprites for my game...

Reply #6 on: June 01, 2006, 11:19:18 pm
I noticed that you added a new darker shade. I suggest you make it darker and use it a little more in the upper part of the body.

Also, in the walk cycle, I recomend watching the tutorial found on this page. It is specific to a 3D animation program but the basics of the walking it teaches should be applicable for you too.
I'm not much of an artist, but please trust me when I criticize your hard work.

Offline Xion

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Re: Sprites for my game...

Reply #7 on: June 02, 2006, 05:08:37 am
Walk Cycle: Remember, Feet don't slide. They lift by bending, straighten out forward, and come back to the ground before falling behind as the other leg does the same. Also, the body moves during walk cycles; When one leg is perpendicular to the ground, the body rises, and when the legs are farthest apart, the body falls. Arms also swing in opposition to the corresponding leg.

As for the sprite itself, do you really want the chest to be that big? I mean, I guess it's part of the character design, but it really looks cumbersome. Also, the leg hilight could be a bit more thick than 1px, as well as the one on the arm and near shoulder...but not by too much.
Mmm...seems like alot of platform spriters seek their legs from oldskool megaman...
Not a bad thing, but there are much more fasionable (and more easily animated) legs out there. But I guess that's a character design as well, as it fits with the bigness of the rest of the character.
The colors could use some desaturation and variation as well.

Is his far arm going to be holding a weapon?

Offline Dave

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Re: Sprites for my game...

Reply #8 on: June 02, 2006, 06:17:28 am
Walk Cycle: Remember, Feet don't slide. They lift by bending, straighten out forward, and come back to the ground before falling behind as the other leg does the same. Also, the body moves during walk cycles; When one leg is perpendicular to the ground, the body rises, and when the legs are farthest apart, the body falls. Arms also swing in opposition to the corresponding leg.
I fixed that since posting that animation.  The feet still slide, 'cause it's more of a walk than a jog.  The Dash is for more speed.   ;)

As for the sprite itself, do you really want the chest to be that big? I mean, I guess it's part of the character design, but it really looks cumbersome. Also, the leg hilight could be a bit more thick than 1px, as well as the one on the arm and near shoulder...but not by too much.
Yeah, I should probably fix the highlights, too.  And the big chest is part of the design, as it was originally a giant robot, and that's where the cockpit would've been.  But I'll probably make some massive weapon that drains all the energy in one go that comes from there.  Probably a giant beam.

Mmm...seems like alot of platform spriters seek their legs from oldskool megaman...
Not a bad thing, but there are much more fasionable (and more easily animated) legs out there. But I guess that's a character design as well, as it fits with the bigness of the rest of the character.
Yeah, it comes from that, and from being an adaptation of the giant robot design it was originally.  I've found that giant robots look better, and more physically feasible, when the lower legs and forearms are bigger and sturdier.

Is his far arm going to be holding a weapon?
Right now I have projectile weapons on the near arm (vulcan in the forearm, holding a bazooka, etc.), but when I get to making melee weapons I'll put them in the far arm.

Offline Dusty

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Re: Sprites for my game...

Reply #9 on: June 02, 2006, 07:30:59 am
I fixed that since posting that animation.  The feet still slide, 'cause it's more of a walk than a jog.  The Dash is for more speed.   ;)

Unless he has wheels under his feet, even those who just walk instead of jog don't slide their feet. Their feet has to lift up and literally pull their body forward. Whether they're walking or jogging doesn't change those physics. I think that's what he was trying to say. The robot will have to pick up his foot and place it forward, when he does that the rest of his body will also move slightly up, then back down with the placement of his foot.