AuthorTopic: Tileset size  (Read 2523 times)

Offline drax013

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Tileset size

on: March 09, 2018, 06:45:07 pm
Hello all, it's been quite awhile since I was last on this forum.  :blind:

 My question for today is the size of the tiles for a game. I have made a mock up of 2 different size tile sets both with a slime entity as a reference for the game entity sizes.
Neither tile set is actually complete they are both just rough drafts. so it is not really the art work im looking for a critique on at the moment. should i consider shrinking the enemies and character? or stay with the bigger sizes?
tile set is 64x64
tile set is 128x128

Offline eishiya

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Re: Tileset size

Reply #1 on: March 09, 2018, 07:14:53 pm
At these large sizes, I feel like there's no point in using pixel art, you may as well go for "HD" art. Putting pixel polish into art this large is a big time sink with hardly any pay-off. Don't forget that the sprites also need to be animated, and each frame also needs pixel-polish if you do pixel art.

As for your actual tile size - you should choose what best serves your gameplay. Random people on the Internet with no idea what your goals and gameplay are can't really help you make that decision. For some games, large tiles and sprites work great! For some, smaller ones are a better fit.
For example, if you need to have a very large, fixed field of view for the game to accommodate your gameplay, it makes sense to use small tiles and pixel art. If only a small part of the world should be visible, or if you want the player to be able to zoom in/out, then high-res non-pixel art tiles are a better fit because they scale better. On the artwork side, if you plan to use skeletal rather than frame animation, HD art will give you better results than pixel art. Consider such factors in your decision.

Another thing to consider is that cosmetic tile size doesn't mean as much as you seem to think. A game with the same character and world scale as your 128x128 example could be made with 16x16 tiles as well, each cosmetic tile just would have less of the world in it. Instead of worrying about your tile size, try making some mockups sketched from scratch (without using any of your existing assets, which would bias you towards your existing scale) to determine the overall character, world, and gameplay scale that suits your game. After that, you'll be able to make an informed decision about appropriate sprite and tile sizes.
« Last Edit: March 09, 2018, 07:18:05 pm by eishiya »

Offline drax013

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Re: Tileset size

Reply #2 on: March 09, 2018, 07:21:01 pm
 Thank you for all the information, I am still learning about game makeup and its a bit confusing. I have an idea that when I did smaller sized tiles and entities didn't quite work for what I was trying to do so now I am trying to learn the best ways to make things bigger but still keep that pixely simplistic cute look.  I will do some more research on your recommendations  :)