[Feedback] Roboter sprites from a personal project

[SnuggleFloofles]

I'm new to pixel art and this forum alike, so hi there!
Since I'm currently working on character sprites for a pixel rpg game, I wanted to refrain from evaluating them without any other input and ask for a few of your opinions. There are a lot I've been working on for about a month now, one of which is this roboter dressed with golden gladiator armor.



I'm not entirely sure about the style yet, but it's supposed to have a rather cartoonish look to it, so that's that's what I tried to go for.
Anyway, thanks in advance for any replies and a nice day to anyone reading

[Chonky Pixel]

From the side it looks like the helmet is curved, and the glint on the front-facing version makes me think the light is coming from above left. So here's an idea for giving that helmet a little shape and volume.

You can think about this for other body parts too. It looks like you've done a lot of "copy + flip horizontal + paste" to construct your robot. If the light source is directional, this way of assembling pixel art won't give convincing results without some extra work. Think about where light is coming from and apply shading.

Just adding a glint will only get you so far. Being bolder with areas of shade and creating asymmetry with your lighting will round out your character and add solidity.

Edit: only the helmet has been edited. The earpiece on the right should probably be in shade as well, for example.

[MysteryMeat]

something about the colors makes that arm and waist thing read as part of a bright bubble jacket. I'd actually suggest trying that out as a simpler outfit option that will also help balance out his color scheme

[SnuggleFloofles]

First off, thanks for the replies! ^^

I tried out the advice you gave me to deepen out the shadows for the sprite and changed up the clothing a little, going with a different approach to the gladiator theme.



I pretty much like how the colors themselves turned out, but looking at the outfit, I'd rather overwork that again some time, but keep it roughly the same it was. I'm guessing the main mistake with the arm plates was that I rounded them all. Anyway, thanks for your advice!

[Chonky Pixel]

I would say that's an improvement. To me the character looks a bit more solid and less washed out.

I would like to see some bigger changes to the faceplate and shoes as well. The highlight colour on the face is so close to the surface colour that it's hardly visible except when really zoomed in. You could try darkening the main shade to allow the highlight to shine.

What is the line down the middle of the face supposed to represent? And are the faceplate and shoes supposed to be made of metal?

[SnuggleFloofles]

The line on the helmet is supposed to act like a serial number, which makes more sense, when you have to differentiate between multiple units of these robots.



Also it reminds me of this type of paint warriors would put on their faces.
[Edit]And regarding the material the face and shoes are made of, yeah, they were supposed to be made of metal and in hindsight that would clearly mean, the shading and all would have to be deepened a lot, but I'm not really sure, whether I  want to make it look that way. I know, there's always this spiel from people about their own style and whatnot and I really hope I'm not being too block-headed, but I don't really think it'd fit, you know?

[Chonky Pixel]

It's it a matter of style? This is an interesting question. I don't feel like I'm advocating a particular style, just talking about shading... I see it as more of a technique or a skill than a style.

If you want it to look like metal though, use whatever tricks you have at your disposal to make it look like metal. It will end up being in your style because you won't be happy with it until it is.

Personally I think the head and shoes just look a little unfinished, especially now after you made the rest of the figure look rich and detailed. The head especially looks like white plastic to me. But if this is the look you want then ignore me.

[MysteryMeat]

wanted to do a quick mockup of what I meant since I saw this thread again.

Meant to be one of these:
Spoiler

Works doubly so I feel since he's got the mohawk and the metal shoes lookin' like basketball sneakers here.

[SnuggleFloofles]

That's actually a really cool idea, Mystery Meat! Might just make it another outfit option down the line, so thanks! And thanks to you, as well, Chonky Pixel! Inspired me to look deeper into the shading and material I'm working with