[WIP] + [C + C] Floating Island

[Decroded]

can u explain the shape thing?
details like that are relevant when ur asking for critique.
if we don't know why something looks odd we don't know how to help without that kind of info.

edit: i thought the shapes were kinda cool but couldn't rly edit without understanding what the deal was.
there were just too many options like i was inclined to render a more realistic texture of dirt with rocks and roots but suspected it wouldn't be what u want.
i can say i thought the way the rendering is done in places makes seems to contradict the way the forms overlap each other which ruins the sense of depth.
and i thought the dark planes on the right side could use some desaturated ambient light to accentuate the forms (reducing as we get closer to the centre).

[TheUnknownVar]

The shape of this island is supposed to be like a man-carved shape; cut intentionally. I like sharp, square-ish edges on the island rock. The rock is supposed to be canyon rock, like the grand canyon or any other red or orange rock. The island itself is held together by a device from within, so a shape that would naturally hold together is not desired.

Does that help clear things up a bit?

Thanks for the advice... I've noticed it seems to be lacking depth, but I am somewhat inexperienced at creating depth.
I've been messing around with different desaturated light forms, but have not gotten a look for the island good enough to post an update.
Any examples form experienced artists are appreciated.

[Decroded]

here's a few unpolished ideas re the rock texture:
-->

progress:


its possible to make the grass more interesting but it already looks pretty good.

[TheUnknownVar]

WOW! That rock is amazing!
I'll definitely learn a lot from that example, thank you so much!

Also, what was the third picture titled "progress"?
It says the image you requested does not exist or is no longer available.

It may be a while, but I will eventually post an updated version of the island.

[Decroded]

ah shit fixed the broken link.
obviously now it shows the steps I took.
if I was gonna keep going I'd probably keep tweaking colours and try to smooth out some of the harsh texture lines.

[TheUnknownVar]

Alright, thanks!
I'll keep working on it!

[TheUnknownVar]

Here is an updated version based on Decroded's edit:


Thoughts anyone?
Also, thank you very much once again for the edits everyone, I've learned a lot!

[Decroded]

well I think it looks great but I could be biased haha.
probably can use a little extra smoothing like where the texture lines intersect a highlight, we would use a smoother shade.
also consider that receding areas don't get such strong highlights when u want to create depth.
its not too bad how you've got it but u might want to be a little more selective as its just waayy to easy to overhighlight things so practice a little restraint where u put highlights or they can lose their effect.

when u fill a screen with similar tiles one thing u may notice is that the brightness of the rock highlights compete for attention with the solid platform top which can affect gameplay.
Notice the solid bright line on the grass in my version which was designed to separate the platform from the background.
its not the only way to do it but thought I'd better point it out.

anyway imo its more efficient to move onto some other assets at this point and touch this up later to suit the rest of the scene.

[TheUnknownVar]

Thank you, I'll keep that all that advice in mind!
I have been working mostly on other things, so I will probably come back to this (as suggested) when I have more properties of the scene developed.
Thoughts are always welcome, but I will probably not post an edit for a decent amount of time.