Platformer Sprites (WIP)

[Mr. Fahrenheit]

The detailed and busy background will definitely draw attention away from the sprites. If you need to keep the detailed background clean up the lines and desaturate it.

[PypeBros]

?

Yet, imho, your darkest BG layer is still too dark and might have to be linked to the level design so that it never clutters the playable area


(I assume that resolution mix is not intended and results from the quick-mockup nature of the posted picture)

[Mr. Fahrenheit]

Sorry, by background I meant the playing area tiles and stuff like that 

[Decroded]

...
(I assume that resolution mix is not intended and results from the quick-mockup nature of the posted picture)

As in this case, I find it hard to even look straight at something with mixed resolution.

[ericbloom]

Oh wow, that makes a world of difference, PypeBros. Thanks for illustrating Mr. Fahrenheit's suggestion.

The different resolutions are actually intentional. The intent is to create a more detailed background with simplified characters on top, kind of like an animated cartoon. Doubling the resolution for the background gave this effect. By the reception it sounds like this is a big no no.

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Going to edit this in as to not bump the post. Here's the now nicknamed "Treads" as he might exist in the game. The plan is to use him for any moment we might want a horizontal moving platform / wall of death / what have you.

[ericbloom]

A little hiatus, but here's some fun with subpixel animation. Learning pixel animation has a definite feature-creep to it:



One trick was to keep the central portion from moving at all, yet still conveying movement. This will let us use it as a moving platform on the central portion without worrying about pixel jitter.

[PypeBros]

One trick was to keep the central portion from moving at all, yet still conveying movement. This will let us use it as a moving platform on the central portion

dampers at work ?

Pixel-wise, it's a bit weird not to see those treads moving. This one is perfect for idle, but imho wouldn't work for moving platform.

Another thing about the two balancing cogs/wheels on the top. I'd rather see them balance (i.e. one's movement is countered by the other's) rather than move up/down syncrhonously

[ericbloom]

Yeah, currently it's just idling. Movement will have treads animating fully + smoke from the stacks.

Good idea about the support cogs. That's a missed opportunity to break up the uniformity.