[WIP][C&C] The Last Alchemist Artwork.

[RedSuinit]

A little bit of progress and a palette change.

[Decroded]

good start but I disagree with that perspective of the building.
for one thing its slower and more difficult to make a scene like that without inconsistencies.
but it makes the character look like a carboard cutout when his feet are parallel and there is no gap between him and the building.
u can make a gap but then consider u need to animate him moving upwards towards doorways and ladders and stuff (or they need to extrude from background).

easiest option is to lose perspective all together in favor of more tileable horizontal side planes.
or if u want perspective keep the bottom of the side plane horizontal and the top gets the perspective but this introduces limitations on the level design vs mixed perspectives (probably ok if u don't mix too much on screen at once.

try checking out shantae riskys revenge for some nice inspiration and nicely controlled perspectives for this type of game.

[RedSuinit]

good start but I disagree with that perspective of the building.
for one thing its slower and more difficult to make a scene like that without inconsistencies.
but it makes the character look like a carboard cutout when his feet are parallel and there is no gap between him and the building.
u can make a gap but then consider u need to animate him moving upwards towards doorways and ladders and stuff (or they need to extrude from background).

easiest option is to lose perspective all together in favor of more tileable horizontal side planes.
or if u want perspective keep the bottom of the side plane horizontal and the top gets the perspective but this introduces limitations on the level design vs mixed perspectives (probably ok if u don't mix too much on screen at once.

try checking out shantae riskys revenge for some nice inspiration and nicely controlled perspectives for this type of game.

Thank you for the feedback! I will definitely be checking that out!

[RedSuinit]

Decided to go with a completely straightforward perspective, and am trying to fill in the windows and doorway to get rid of the attention grabbing black. Really struggling with what to put in the windows... Tried curtains and shutters, but I can't get either to look right.

[RedSuinit]

Headed towards more of a Mediterranean style. Could anyone help me out with the shadows. Something just looks wrong.... I have no idea how to fix it. Ignore the oddly shaped window up top, I'm just experimenting with a bunch of different things, but I have no clue how to do shadows like that and am looking for some advice.

[RedSuinit]

I think I am starting to realize that I am not a very good pixel artist. This is taking me an incredibly long amount of time to do, and I feel like it's just plain bad.

[PixelPiledriver]

Ok, first off:

I think I am starting to realize that I am not a very good pixel artist.

Throw that in fucking trash. *klang*
Don't worry about it.
With this sort of outlook you will continue to struggle even if you become "good".
We all feel like this at some point or another, it's just a matter of getting back up.
Put a positive spin on it.
"I am starting to realize that I can still learn a lot about making pixel art".

Now:

This is taking me an incredibly long amount of time to do

Yep, art takes a lot of time.
Build up a callus for patience.
Grinding away is the bulk of the journey, so learn to enjoy it.
Yes there is methods and choices to speed things up, but nothing will ever change that time = stuff.

And:

and I feel like it's just plain bad.

I chalk this feeling up to a lack of process and foresight.
Everything you put on the canvas should be a tool for moving forward.
So if you don't think like that, learn to.

Theory is another way of alleviating art woes.
It helps you make choices on why you put what and where.
So what is your theory here?

What drawing program are you using?
Doing tile work without tile support certainly makes it much more of a chore.

Sorry no time for much pixel talk or edits.
Purely motivational speech here.
First get your head on straight.
Until you can do that not many good pixels are bound to pop out of it.

[Pusty]

Well I like it!
It just looks like a mixture of styles to me because you haven't finished it yet.
Besides that it looks good in my opinion

[RedSuinit]

Ok, first off:

I think I am starting to realize that I am not a very good pixel artist.

Throw that in fucking trash. *klang*
Don't worry about it.
With this sort of outlook you will continue to struggle even if you become "good".
We all feel like this at some point or another, it's just a matter of getting back up.
Put a positive spin on it.
"I am starting to realize that I can still learn a lot about making pixel art".

Now:

This is taking me an incredibly long amount of time to do

Yep, art takes a lot of time.
Build up a callus for patience.
Grinding away is the bulk of the journey, so learn to enjoy it.
Yes there is methods and choices to speed things up, but nothing will ever change that time = stuff.

And:

and I feel like it's just plain bad.

I chalk this feeling up to a lack of process and foresight.
Everything you put on the canvas should be a tool for moving forward.
So if you don't think like that, learn to.

Theory is another way of alleviating art woes.
It helps you make choices on why you put what and where.
So what is your theory here?

What drawing program are you using?
Doing tile work without tile support certainly makes it much more of a chore.

Sorry no time for much pixel talk or edits.
Purely motivational speech here.
First get your head on straight.
Until you can do that not many good pixels are bound to pop out of it.

Thanks, I needed that! Been feeling under the weather the last couple of days, and it's getting to me. Thank you so much!

The main thing about the time is that I feel like I should have more to show for ~10-12 hours worth of work.  But part of that is my inexperience, and the fact that I end up doing things 8-9 times over because it just doesn't meet my standards for "good". Haha.

What do you mean by "tile work without tile support"? I use CS6, but use very few of the tools outside of pencil, layers, etc.

Well I like it!
It just looks like a mixture of styles to me because you haven't finished it yet.
Besides that it looks good in my opinion

Thank you, I am glad that you like it! I'm not sure how to proceed with texture on the walls due to the greek villa feel that I am going for, the walls and windows are kind of plain, but I want this scene fro my game to be memorable, and really stand out since this is the first scene (outside of the opening sequence) that the player will see. I'm putting more pressure on myself than I really should be, but I want people to see this and go "Holy crap that looks incredible."

[PixelPiledriver]

What do you mean by "tile work without tile support"?

Try Pyxel or Pro Motion.

Here's an example of creating tiles in Pyxel.
Keep in mind the way he's building them is not a very good process.
It's better to create a rough scene and then break it down.
But it serves as a good demonstration.

I want to make you aware of these other options because not too long ago I didn't really care for tile work.
I'm a complete beginner when it comes to environments, entirely because I found the process to be very... blah.
Maybe you have a similar story and that's where a lot of your time sink and frustration is coming from.

Using Graphics Gale, it felt like a hassle to keep all my tiles in the scene up to date.
I would quickly get bored with copy pasting new versions of tiles already in use.
Example of me getting bored and dropping out once things started to expand on Graphics Gale.

After learning Pro Motion, I find tile work to be a lot of fun.
I can draw on large areas or small portions and everything is updated automatically.
This allows a lot of freedom to be creative and work on a bigger more scene complete scale.
Example of me having fun and building a much fuller image on Pro Motion.


Alternatively you could use Smart Objects in PS to achieve a similar work flow.
But I find it to be not as smooth.

but I want people to see this and go "Holy crap that looks incredible."

Yah, dial that down a bit.
Don't let your passion bleed into expectation.