[WIP] Hi, beginner here, I'm stuck dealing with grass in my scene.

[TPoe]

I don't know where the idea that this more detailed scene is more complex to implement into a game comes from. You literally just need to make shadow sprite, and one that goes in front of the player's feet to imply they're in deep grass. You don't need to shade every space to make sure wherever they're standing looks perfect with the blades of grass that are there. Where does that idea even come from?

Anyway the newer version looks good, I suggest for a next step you take what you learned with the grass and apply it to other areas in the scene, such as the bushes in the back. Right now they're looking pretty noisy. If you apply the techniques from the grass (simple shapes, hue variation etc.) you'll have a much more harmonious scene. Look forward to seeing your improvement.

[Rydin]

You don't need to shade every space to make sure wherever they're standing looks perfect with the blades of grass that are there. Where does that idea even come from?

I appreciate you for keeping me in check TPoe I honestly need to be called out on my BS lol

Here's my angle:

If making a game for profit, one has to consider return on investment, diminishing returns, and just-noticeable differences.

Perhaps from a programming standpoint there is no tangible difference in workload between a sophisticated asset or a simple asset.

From the standpoint of time spent on the art, however, there is a difference. The typical player is going to have a threshold for what they notice. After a certain amount of detail it will take exponentially more time to make a noticeable difference the viewer will never notice. In other words, unless you're cooking a meal for chefs, nobody is going to notice anything extra unless it's missing or wrong. Finding that balance of just enough is key for efficiency. This is how the masters of the past did it. Just the right amount of pixels. Not a pixel more. Not a pixel less.

Less blades of grass = less time spent creating asset.
More blades of grass = more time spent creating asset.

When creating art for art's sake (this is my camp btw ) all of this conjecture is irrelevant. I'd argue catharsis is the highest purpose for this category. So time spent on an aesthetic piece becomes more of a measure of therapeutic dosage than an measure of economic viability.

Our time in this world is short. Will we use it to create art assets or art liabilities?


Arieth, what is your next step after this scene?