WayForward Contest #2: Sprite modelling (updated rules)

[AdamTierney]

Hey guys,

The developer I work for (WayForward Technologies, creators of Shantae & Sigma Star Saga) is always on the lookout for new animation talent. Our last contest (animation) went over incredibly well (we picked up around 3 freelance animators). So we're going to do a few more contests if the mods here don't mind. I discussed it with Alex a bit so if everything looks fine, maybe one of the mods can move this topic to the challenges section. Each contest carries a $250 prize (judged by the WF staff). The first of the two contests is something everyone here should love - sprite modelling.

Below is Popeye. We're not doing a Popeye game, but he's a very recognizable and well-defined character.



To enter this contest, the artist has to complete two tasks:

1. Make a usable sprite of Popeye, with 15 colors (or less) 48x48 pixels in size (or less). Character should be in an idle pose, any style and perspective. Sprite will be judged on pixelling ability, color choice, detail, pose (hint: Don't copy the one above) and generally how well the Popeye character is transformed into pixel art.

2. Make a usable sprite of Popeye (again, 15 colors and 48x48 or less), this time in the same style, size and perspective as the sprites in the game Boktai (see example below). This sprite will be judged on essentially the same criteria, but with more of an emphasis on matching the style of that game.


Boktai reference:


Rules:

1) Each entrant must pixel both a free-style Popeye sprite and a Popeye sprite in the Boktai style/size/perspective. The idea behind requiring both is to test the artist's raw creativity and also their ability to work to a specific, pre-defined style.
2) Each sprite must not exceed a 48x48 size.
3) Each sprite can have a maximum of 15 colors (15 colors + 1 color BG or transparency).
4) If rules 2 or 3 are violated, and if there's time, the entrant has the option to correct either error and resubmit.
5) No animation whatsoever is alllowed (single-frame only).
6) All pieces of art must be posted in this thread and be accessible (no dead links) for consideration. You can post the file in any web-displayable image (gif preferred). If it doesn't show up for the judges, the art won't be considered.
7) No previously-created art may be used in this contest.
8 ) Multiple entries are allowed. If you end up pixelling multiple sprites, we'll consider all of them.

So that's it in a nutshell. Create two sprites, post em below, best combination according to WF's directors wins the cash. Post below and feel free to comment on everyone else's posts.

Deadline:

The initial deadline will be in a little over 2 weeks (February 17th). If popularity is big, we might extend it a week or so.

Prize:

The winner will receive $250 and a copy of Pro Motion Lite (the best pixel animation program available, in my opinion).

FAQ:
(I'll add to this as people post below)

1) Can we enter if we're under age? Of course. Again, just a contest. Unless you know of a specific reason why you might not be allowed to enter, the contest is open to everyone.
2) Can I post my sprite entries on my website? Of course. Post away.
3) Can mods submit? Of course. The contest is open to everyone except WayForward employees.
4) Can we submit collabs? Nope, sorry. One artist per entry.
5) Is it 16 colors per sprite or for both? 16 colors each (15 + transparency. Transparency color isn't allowed to be used as a color, too, so 15 in your sorite).
6) What do you mean by Boktai size & perspective? There are a lot of different sprites in Boktai. Intepret that as you want. You are only limited to the rules and words I've posted in this contest, however I chose the Boktai pic above based on how it typifies that style and size, so your chances will be better if the sprite is similar to that specific sprite in style, size and perspective.

- Adam

[istvan]

Just one queston about the first Popeye sprite; you say it's meant to be an idle pose, and that we're getting judged on the creativity of the pose. My problem is that there really ain't that much room for creativity as far as an idle pose goes for such a tight character. Excuse my 'aint,' I was feeling Popeye-ish

[AdamTierney]

That's a good point, and something I was thinking as I typed it. Because yeah a totally 'creative' and weird sprite might be an awful idle pose. So let's change it to the word 'personality'. It doesn't have to be a bizarre or unique pose, but it should have enough life in it that it's charming and engaging. And of course, if he's giving off a Popeye sorta vibe, that's perfect.

Here's a good example:



Fully usable idle, but oozing personality. And remember, for the free-style sprite it doesn't have to be a side-pose, perspective can be anything.

- Adam

[Lady Medusa]

Should we post bouth sprites in the same post or can we post one and edit the post where he's in?
(hope the question makes sense, my English isn't that good)

[istvan]

Heres my effort. I figured there was not much point spending ages on it because we simply wouldnt be given that option were this a real game.

Part 1 (Took me longest to decide on the simplicity of the shading):


Part 2 (Never played or heard of Boktai so it was a bit harder):


I like Popeye and this was a nice challenge, even if I dont come anywhere close to winning.

[Conzeit]

ha. IDK if there is much point to me doing it, but I think I'm going to enter.

[AlexHW]

popeye flexing his muscle..

will do a boktai one soon..

edit:

might do some more.. dunno..

edit2:

[Conzeit]

oh, by the way Itsvan, you better look up some more boktai screenshots, you didnt get the style, and the perspective is supposed to be a 45º Isometric, so check that out

oops. re-read the rules. I guess I wont do it after all.I wish Matt would consider me as a Model artist.c.c

I wish you all luck..and have fun with this one :p

hey Kon, is that second one your Boktai guy? I really like it

[istvan]

Thanks Camus. I had a lot of trouble finding any Boktai reference pics in google...

I'll make an edit when I find some more time.

[Conzeit]

why search for screens? search for sprites, that IS what you are doing after all

I got this in a "I'm feelin lucky" http://www.retrogamezone.co.uk/boktai.html

[istvan]

I didn't say I was searching for screens. I googled Boktai sprites and none of the sprite sheet links worked. Thanks for the link though, I had no idea the sprite looked like this from the screen we were given.

This is what I thought it looked like:


Looks like its back to the drawing board for me...

[AdamTierney]

"oops. re-read the rules. I guess I wont do it after all.I wish Matt would consider me as a Model artist.c.c"

Hey Camus, if you mean the 'No WayForward employees' part that only limits onsite salary folk. Feel free to enter, one and all.

- Adam

[Lady Medusa]

Boktai copy attempt


Don't have a custom one yet.

[vierbit]

Hi

First Post here on the board

see that nice little challenge here

my stuff:

1.

[AlexHW]

camus, yeah the second one is boktai style..
i like it too..



edit:

[Captain Blood]

I took a shot at the first one.  Ain't fully satisfied with it but it ain't too bad considering I'm a tad tipsy and can't focus properly.  Will most lilkely edit it when I'm more alert and can spot any problems.



Will take a shot at the Boktai version sometime in the week if I get a spare hour or so...


By the way Camus, nice sig lyrics. Was trying to remember where they was from as I was sure I'd sung those words.  Then it just started playing on Winamp random play as if by magic or some crap.

[PyroPiranha]

Well, here it is, half of my entry at least, will submit the Boktai in a few days, or hours depending on how it goes.  Heh.

[Grey Knight]

I thought I'd try this contest out since I used to watch Popeye.

Here is Popeye thinking:
   

Here is Popeye Boktai style:
   

I never played Boktai, but I did my best .


Grey Knight

[Dhaos]

Update:
-Fixed some likeness errors and tried to match boktai's style a bit more
Idle:

Boktai:

[Captain Blood]

Idle:

Well, damn.  I think that ones my favorite out of the whole lot.  Seems you did what I was trying to do (flat shaded, black outline cartoon look) but you did it so much better.

[Dhaos]

@Captain Blood: Thanks ^^ I had an entire project to practice the cartoony look awhile ago so I guess it payed off. Btw your sprite reminds me of a what a more modern version of popeye would look like: better cleaner details (sexy pant folds mmm....) with a speck of shading as well. *waits for you to make a boktai-esque one* *taps foot impatiently* =P

[Conzeit]

guys....I think you all are forgetting something.

The sample Boktai sprite is not the size Popeye would be, Django (the blonde kid) is still a child, while popeye is a grownup...so there's no reason to midgetize Popeye to make him Boktai style, there ARE adults in the Boktai series, and they are not the size of Django, they are more like.... around the 48x48 range

Dhaos: Man, I think you shouldnt worry so much, from what I gather of the rules, the normal sprie should be all out crazy and the best you can make him look (while being popeye), whereas the boktai one should conform to the style as much as posible, therefore they each have their own separate pallete and they probably should differ so that you can really show your most creative in the normal sprite.

I also really like your stance, it's the one with the most personality out of them all

[ahrimanes]

letss see what i can do

[Filax_666]

Here's a screen with an adult:

[ahrimanes]

hi there here my sprites:
POPEYE STANDING SPRITE,(MY STYLE"FREE")

POPEYE BOKTAI STYLE 1 adult

POPEYE BOKTAI STYLE 2 child, but i noticed that the size is bad, causes i wass thinking Django shorts wass his shoess  so i did another i show it down.

A LIL TEST 

POPEYE BOKTAI STYLE 3 ok this is the corect size of popeye to bee like Django.

just a 2x=
AND ANOTHER TEST


HOPE YOU LIKE MY SPRITES....... BYE BYE AND KEEP GOOD CONTEST MAKE ALOOOOOOTT PLEASE :

[Schu]

Ahoy!

Mine freestyle, getting ready to fisticuff:


Mine Boktai Popeye:


And just for the fun of it all:


I yam what I yam!
------
Schu

[AdamTierney]

16 colors (15 + transparency) is fine for each sprite. Doesn't have to be 16 colors across both.

Camus, I had Django's proportions in mind, which is why I posted a shot of him. Most of the non-boss characters in the game are about that size. I won't necesssarily discount a sprite done larger, but I'd please ask everyone from now on to refrain from intepretting the rules for other people. Please just go by what I wrote and if you have questions, post below and I'll answer you. If you follow the suggestions of someone else it could impact your chances.

- Adam

[ahrimanes]

I yam what I yam!
------
Schu

doess that have anithing to do whit me 

[AdamTierney]

Haha, sig coincidence aside, that's Popeye's catch phrase.

- Adam

[Opacus]

Here:

12 colours I believe, including transparacey.
I might try the Boktai style later.

[ahrimanes]

soo Adam, thanks for the. sing of coincidence.

you say the the correct zise sprite is that lil child, i did both zieses adult and child and i post them, i hope still have chances, do i ?

[flaber]

here is my entry:



boktai version:


comparisson with the boktai sprite:

not sure about the boktai style, but i tried to mimmick

who knows.. maby ill make a few more of these if i get a chance

[AdamTierney]

soo Adam, thanks for the. sing of coincidence.

you say the the correct zise sprite is that lil child, i did both zieses adult and child and i post them, i hope still have chances, do i ?

Because there was confusion, I won't consider size against the sprites. But the people entering from now on should go off just what I've posted.

[Panda]

Here are mine:



EDIT: Boktai one remade.



EDIT: Boktai one re-remade, with 2 poses

[Akira]

Freestyle:


Boktai Kid:


Boktai Adult:


Might do one of them boktai mockups sooner or later.

[Crazy Asian Gamer]

Akira: You improved so much man. 

Shu:

Mine freestyle, getting ready to fisticuff:

Tres Sexy.

[Faceless]

Got my Boktai sprites done, expect to see the other one soon.


Edit:
Yeah

Same-ish pose; OMG! >.>

[.TakaM]

two versions to submit:



(i couldnt quite decide which was better/matched the style more)

working on the freestyle sprite now

edit-
i think Ive finished my freestyle popeye sprite:

puzzle fighter style, I wanted to do something a little different from everyone else and i thought puzzle fighter's style with exagerated proportions would work well with popeye's design
here's the process gif:

i didnt save a few steps but.. eh...

[GOODNIGHTdestroyer]

these popeye sprites are all amazing. I feel like putting them all on a banner.

[AlexHW]

I have a question..

when you say usability, do you mean that it should be fit for a game, and should be designed with animation in mind? Because it also says to not excede 48x48 and we could potentially squeeze in popeye which would allow much more detail, but doing so would take away from usability since then his range of motion would diminish..
Care to expand upon this Adam?
I may want to redo some sprites if It is better to pack as much popeye into the image as possible because then you can add more details since the popeye is as big as it can be.

[crab2selout.png]

Love it, Taka! I'm a big fan of the chibi fighter style. One suggestion though, maybe get rid of the selctive outline where his hat connects to the forehead and replace with a light AA.

Really like your ISO version, too, Faceless. It feels like the ISO with the most personality so far and 'm impressed by how you fit the grimace in.

[.TakaM]

done

and just one thing, botkai is a planometric perspective, isometrics ugllier cousin... its really amazing how well botkai made planometric look

[AdamTierney]

That's interesting, I didn't know there was a term for it. I love planometric - it has the depth of iso without any loss of floor space or any floor distortion. Have any other games used it?

- Adam

[Schu]

Boktai is the 45-degree angle (axonometric or however it's spelled). Planometric is the mix of 60 and 30 degrees, which I can say is a really big pain when making tiles 'cause nothing lines up very well on a grid without excessive planning and thought xD

I don't think I've personally seen any other games using the 45-degree style but more of them would be cooler! Most seem to just use the standard isometric since it's a lot easier to tile.
-----
Schu

[Helm]

Although we use the term in game-making, isometric games are also axonometric. Just different axones Never heard of Planometric though, but I'll take schu's word.

[Faceless]

http://www.deyes.sefton.sch.uk/technology/Keystage4/axonometric_drawing.htm

[Conzeit]

Oh Adam. About the whole rules thing, honestly I never thought I was interpreting the rules, just doing research, you never specified do boktai style like THIS screenshot. you said Boktai, I looked up boktai and I said what I saw here.

I...dont know anyone else, but sometimes I think a little more precision or...rather restriction from the get go would be good, I tend to analyze everything and well...end up doing things like this :p

Ok this is the aproach I had with these.

when I looked up Popeye sketchs I saw 2 ways I could take this, a faithful to design and proportions somewhat tridimensionalized version OR a sprite that tries to be as inky as the sketches, but changes all the proportions while keeping the likeness

This is the "tridimensonalized" edition, in 48x48 32x32 16x16


Inky Ver, I sorta raymanized 'ol popeye here.




Boktai
  Adult, Cooking up child right now kay, that is it.

BTW, for creative enterprises like this, I belive one always does better with as varied refferences as one can get so...I thought I'd show this to u guys, even though it's a bit off Boktai style because it is a megaman char in Boktai http://www.megaman-sprites.com/sprites/Classic/boktai2/

Adam......I dont know exactly what you have in mind when you say pixel skill...do you expect certain elements like Selout when you say that?

MY GOD SCHU, leave something for everyone else to do , really really impressive freestyle, I feel like redoing my stuff after that monster you put there, but I've really got a lot of stuff to do

Faceless, I love how tridimensional your Boktai Popeye feels, that sort of perspective is really hard to do, I think sometimes even the Boktai spriters cant handle it, but you have it spot on

[flaber]

so. im confused.

on your first post it says

1. Make a usable sprite of Popeye.

You do mean as if he was being put into a game right? I chose the style, stance, etc, as if he was standing in his idle as if he was in a platformer. However, there are some others that get me to thinking, were we able to just free style it however, without having to make it as if it were in a game?

secondly.
do you want the child, or adult boktai??
I just want to double check, before time runs out. I pulled the sprite from your screenshot, and used that as reference.

sorry for the questions. just want to double check this all before the time runs out, and i find out that i did it wrong.

[Conzeit]

oh my god.......I apologize...I was going to go again interpreting the rules for flaber here....but I think I would just make it worse 

I'm just gonna quote the part of the rules that just wouldnt be there whitout my butting in c.c just in case flabs here missed it :p

6) What do you mean by Boktai size & perspective? There are a lot of different sprites in Boktai. Intepret that as you want. You are only limited to the rules and words I've posted in this contest, however I chose the Boktai pic above based on how it typifies that style and size, so your chances will be better if the sprite is similar to that specific sprite in style, size and perspective.

[.TakaM]

Boktai is the 45-degree angle (axonometric or however it's spelled). Planometric is the mix of 60 and 30 degrees, which I can say is a really big pain when making tiles 'cause nothing lines up very well on a grid without excessive planning and thought xD

I don't think I've personally seen any other games using the 45-degree style but more of them would be cooler! Most seem to just use the standard isometric since it's a lot easier to tile.
-----
Schu

Ive always been taught

and it looks like the link faceless provided says the same thing

[Schu]

Ah well, guess I read some stuff wrong. Seems to all be under axonometric anyway! But I digress. All these sprites are looking awesome. Very impressive! That angle isn't very easy but it's a neat challenge I hope more can enter!

[AdamTierney]

"You do mean as if he was being put into a game right? I chose the style, stance, etc, as if he was standing in his idle as if he was in a platformer. However, there are some others that get me to thinking, were we able to just free style it however, without having to make it as if it were in a game?"

No, you're correct. The usability will play a big role. We'll be looking at the sprites not only for art style and being on-model, but with regard to how usable it would be in a game. I didn't specify gametype or perspective, but yeah, just to reassure you, that will be a consideration.

"do you want the child, or adult boktai?? I just want to double check, before time runs out. I pulled the sprite from your screenshot, and used that as reference."

Since we have entries of both already, I won't choose one over the other. Both will be acceptable. I wish screenshots of other characters of the game hadn't been posted or suggested, as it would have simplified everything. But since they have been, I'm holding people only to the original specs which are 15 colors, 48x48 maximum res "in the same style, size and perspective as the sprites in the game Boktai."

- Adam

[ptoing]

Afaik the 30-60 angle view is also called "military perspective"

Ultima Online has the same perspective as Boktai, although way less sexy looking imo.
I bet there are other games as well that use it.

[Faceless]

Yeh Military is another term for Planometric.

[ahrimanes]

HEYYY ADAMMM   I DID A LITLE UP DATE ON MY ENTRIES BACK THERE SOO DONT FORGET TO TAKE A LOOK OK,
FOR FUTERS UPDATES I WILL USE THE SAME POST BACK THERE, IM PLANING ON DO SOME MORE SPRITES.

PLIZZ KEEP DOINGG SOO AWESOM CONTEST,, PD. I LOVE SHANTAE GBC,,,, IS THERE SHANTAE GBA? IF NOT, YOU BETHER DO :p

[AdamTierney]

Hey ahrimanes,

Shantae GBA was in production for a while but nothing lately. And yeah, we won't be formally judging until the day the contest ends. So whatever art is up then will b judged.


- Adam

[Mouthpiece]

Got my Boktai sprites done, expect to see the other one soon.


Edit:
Yeah

Same-ish pose; OMG! >.>

Awesome work man.  It's my favorite one.  Very nice.

[initial_reality]

Great entries so far

Here's mine:

Popeye freestyle (on his best shape lol):


Boktai adult


Im may do one in the Jango size later.

[Conzeit]

geez I just realized how much I fucked up this thing, not only with that size thing, but that monlogue I wrote for Dhaos.

I...just dont know what to say, eh-I really did think I was helping I can only say that people like me cant help themselves (not that I'd do it again c.c) so...we'd be better off if it was all more precise.

or maybe we should just hope that there is not such a thing as people like me.

[Akira]

hahah i'm sure there is no harm done camus. I actually found your posts with the reference sprites quite useful indeed. less drama and more pixels dude

[xegnma]

Howdy folks, I haven't been around in a while. In any case great contest thus far. Here are my entries:

Freestyle sprite against different color backgrounds.

EDIT 2/16/06: I refined my freestyle sprite somewhat; added a bit more definition
and detail to the arms and pipe. The changes make for a stronger "contender" I
believe.

EDIT 2/23/06: Freestyle...now with tatoo...



Boktai sprite against different color backgrounds.


And since practically everyone's done one, Popeye Boktai sprite "in game"


And a few WIP freestyle sprites in a slightly 'cleaner style'


Should be done with the second set of sprites before the deadline...
Time constraints won't allow for the completion of these WIPs, so just omit them
from consideration.

[Helm]

I really don't get why you people selout with black.

[Filax_666]

Although I don't stand a chance against most of the submissions, I couldn't miss such a great contest

So, here is my freestyle...
     

...a tiny one (I hope he's recognisable)...
     

...and the Boktai-style one...
     

I think I might do some more, but I'm not sure


I feel like leaving some C&C so, here goes:

@istvan: I like the simplicity of your free-style sprite, although he looks a bit gay to me (no offense). I'm still waiting for your new Boktai sprite

@Alex: You got some nice ones there, in a cool style. Your first Boktai one didn't seem to be in an 'idle pose', it looked more that he was jumping, but your second one has an awsome style (it's one of my Boktai favourites).

@vierbit: Welcome to Pixelopolis those are realy good! I think the colour choices are amazing, and you Boktai sprite is, in my opinion, the best of all! I'm hoping to see more works from you soon

@Captain Blood: You're 'Wolverine' at Pixel Joint, right? I realy love your work anyway, your sprite is amazing, those vivid colours simply fit perfectly the personality you showed in a very well pixeled pose! I'm still waiting for your Boktai one, which I'm sure will also be great!

@PyroPiranha: Your style is pretty nice but I think you should clean those edges...maybe using a lighter colour on the selout would help.

@Schu: I simply love yor freestyle Popeye! <3 You were able to pixel his personality so well and in a very clean style...it's defenitely my favourite of them all! The only thing that bugs me is your Boktai one...the prespective is correct but those legs and feet are so wrong! I don't know what to say in order to improve them but they look awfuly wrong to me

@Panda: Your sprites are lovely, I feel like looking at them for the whole day! Probably because the colours are so sweet...anyway, the pose is very good, gives the feeling that Popeye's ready for a fight, and that mean look would surely intimidate most of his enemies very good transposition of the characther's personality! The Boktai one is also nice, although I like the earlier face a lot more (the one on the first Boktai sprite).

@Akira: Yours are very good, as I expected. The freestyle is realy neat, but the Boktai ones look a bit weird...I'd suggest you to change the shape of the head, making the chin longer and maybe the cap a little bigger. Or just keep them like that, your style is realy cool (cool but weird, in a good way)

@Faceless: The cartoony style works very well in the Boktai one, and in the freestyle as well, but this last one (freestyle) should be more dynamic. Schu's one is a very good example of dynamism, you might want to take a closer look to it

@.TakaM: Your boktai one works nicely on the screen and it has a cool pose as well, but I think you should lighten the selout (eg.: on the pants, change black to a dark blue). It was very nice to see a feestile one that wasn't made for a sidescroller/platform game. Maybe Popeye's expression should a little meaner, if you get my point

I wish screenshots of other characters of the game hadn't been posted or suggested, as it would have simplified everything.

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disturb. If you wish, I might remove the screenshot...if you want that just tell me...


Well, I shall leave some more C&C later, since my computer juast started to freak out and I need to take a shower... c ya!


EDIT: Ready for another round of C&C?

@Camus: Well...I'm speechless. I was already expecting something truly original from you, but I wasn't prepared for something like this...those warm tones are very nice to watch, but I doubt a game would be this saturated (since Adam said the usability of the sprite will count alot, I think you should've done in a more convencional way...but I may wrong). I like the 'inky-raymanized' version alot more: it hasn't got the same impact the others do, but it has a nice, cartoony feel that I enjoy alot. On the Boktai ones, the kid looks better, to me, than the adult, since it has few outlines. Get rid of those black lines and I'm almost sure they'll look much better!

@xegnma: well, that's the kind of posing I wish I had achieved! Your Boktai sprite is especially dynamic, one of the best of all!


And that's it! I'm sorry for not having commented on everybody's sprites but this takes alot of time...

EDIT: Here is another freestyle, made using the "juice" base I just created:

     

[Conzeit]

I really don't get why you people selout with black.

Personally, because that's what boktai does.

[Zolthorg]

I really don't get why you people selout with black.

Personally, because that's what boktai does.

I'm seeing black outlines, not black sel-out?

[Toby]

Woah, people are really making some awesome interpretations here I hardly stand a chance, but you can't win if you don't give it a shot..

Here's the piece 1, a pretty typical pose for a platformer kinda sprite.



I'll be upbading the boktai-version as soon as I get it done..

[xegnma]

Made a few changes to my freestyle sprite...just letting y'all know

[God Slayer]

Howdy folks, I haven't been around in a while. In any case great contest thus far. Here are my entries:

Freestyle sprite against different color backgrounds.

EDIT 2/16/06: I refined my freestyle sprite somewhat; added a bit more definition
and detail to the arms and pipe. The changes make for a stronger "contender" I
believe.

Boktai sprite against different color backgrounds.


And since practically everyone's done one, Popeye Boktai sprite "in game"


And a few WIP freestyle sprites in a slightly 'cleaner style'


Should be done with the second set of sprites before the deadline...
Time constraints won't allow for the completion of these WIPs, so just omit them
from consideration.

Just wanted to note: Thats pretty godly, IMO. Loving the dynamic sprite.

Also: Camus, whats with your constant drama? You alsways seem to be in some 'issue'

[Toby]

Sorry to be a whiner, but could you please extend the deadline by a few weeks? I haven't started with the boktai-sprite yet and I'm leaving for a holiday on saturday and have no time to start working on the sprite at this moment. And I really would like to compete..

-- this possible?

[Omenith]

Great entries so far. Here are mine.


Tried a more cel-shaded approach inspired by the Cartoons. Beat em' up esque type idle pose.



I tried to stick with the style, colors, perspective and overall format of the boktai game sprites.

Edit:

Minor Enlargement and proportional adjustments!

Edit again:

Changed legs abit and misc.

Last one!:

Color adjustment and misc.

[Zolthorg]

Yes, but Camus is OUR drama queen :^)

[AdamTierney]

Toby, sure thing. Let's add one more week and wrap up on Feb 24th. Sound good to everyone?

- Adam

[viestituote]

Well that's good news. I just got my freestyle one done and was about to hurry the Boktai, but yea a week extra is good.

[Darion]

Have any other games used it?

Nox, but it is not neccesarily pixel-based.

These are cool, but some of them are too cartoonish.

[pixelaro]

Ehm know the time limit has passed but if i finish mine today will it be entered in the contest?

*** EDIT ***
Sorry, I'm blind...

[Conzeit]

Kal it's alright if you got a problem with me, but if people is just going to start attacking me in public because they dont like me I'm not gonna take it.

Anyone who has a problem with me, just PM me I swear I will honestly listen to your points.

[flaber]

Also: Camus, whats with your constant drama? You alsways seem to be in some 'issue'

.. hes fine. if u disagree with something he wrote, overlook it..

nice entries so far. kinda disapointed it got bumped back a week though. ohwell

[Faceless]

kinda disapointed it got bumped back a week though. ohwell

Here, here!
It was annoying, and from a game producer's perspective mystifying... I don't know if it's the intent of this contest, but the previous ones seem to have been geared toward aspiring game artists, and extending deadlines, whilst it clearly happens (Twilight Princess instantly comes to mind), I'm sure the idea is generally to avoid its happening. I think those who - for whatever reason - weren't able to produce anything in time shouldn't get any sort of allowance. I mean how long does a single framed sprite take to make anyway? I know mine each took no more than 25 minutes, and probably less.

[pixelaro]

Faceless and Flabber I disagree with you on that matter. I'm not so active here and only checks the challenge section once in a month or something. Didn't see this challenge until yesterday and therefore thought it was great to still be able to enter. Ain't saying that my entry alone is worth extending the deadline but it can bee that there are others like me out there.
And also he mentioned in his first post that

Deadline:

The initial deadline will be in a little over 2 weeks (February 17th). If popularity is big, we might extend it a week or so.

And the popularity has been quite good if you ask me. Just stating my opinion here.

[Schu]

Hnn yea, I know there's something odd with the boktai legs... I'm trying to render out his bubbly kneecaps but they just end up looking like oddly placed breast (scandalous!) Though I notice they seem to just shade it all dark on the lower part of the legs. Oh well, here's the pack again with a semi-update.

Freestyle:


Boktai:
v1 v2

Screentests for fun:
v1 v2
-----
Schu

[AdamTierney]

It's not about how long it takes to pixel a few sprites, it's about people being too busy and trying to find a window they can work on the contest. If you want to compare it to game production, we shift deadlines based on artist availability all the time.

- Adam

[hondo]

Well, I'm really glad this got extended.  Phew...

Okay, I'm in too.  Here's my Popeye and my Pokteye... hee hee hee. ^_^



Here's Pokteye on a background.



On a side note, I loved Boktai!  That game is excelent and the art is fantastic too.  I give it two thumbs up!   b ^_^ d

[Conzeit]

damn, I thought my child boktai looked a little crappy, so I went and made an edit.
it ended up looking much better than the other one...I may just make the adult one look like this one now :p

mockshot, ha!

 PS:I used his alternate hat, the sailor one.

[initial_reality]

I made a little Popeye:

[Captain Blood]

Looks very unlikely I'll have time to do the boktai sprite.  Too much crap going on right now.  Good luck to everyone else though.

[viestituote]

I too will be in quite a hurry tomorrow if I want to finish it. I'll try to make it during a train ride, I wonder how that will turn out.

Btw, I quite like .Takam's and Omenith's freestyle sprites, you better take fine-tuning seriously, you guys have good changes of winning! :O

[David]

10 + T

I should have a Boktai-inspired piece up soon.

[xegnma]

Looking at the overall quality of all the entries, I have to say, this is one of the best showcases of talent I've seen in a while.
Schu still has the best free style character sprite, but Camus is coming on pretty strong, especially where raw ingenuity is concerned. There is a range of diversity throughout. People are coming up with some nifty interpretations of the popeye character while still capturing his essence. As for myself, I did my best and my hopes are up, but with this calibre of quality output there's no telling for sure who will win. Best of luck to all, and may the best pixel-pusher win.

[David]

I'll probably change them again before tomorrow, but at least they're posted.

[Darion]

David wins. I think i'm going to do one.

[AdamTierney]

To update, people can enter anytime up until end of tomorrow. No further extensions. Either after midnight PST or early Saturday I'll comb through the entries and put them all on one sheet. On Monday, the other directors and I will each vote on our top 3 of each, we'll cross-reference and tally and see who wins. If there's no clear winner based on the votes, we'll narrow it down to the clear winners and then revote on them.

- Adam

[viestituote]

Ok I guess this is my final entry.
and

My aim with the Boktai one was to be honest to the perspective, which was a thing I don't think anyone here managed to do correctly. And frankly, I realized it was just too awkward for me as well to make look right. That planometric is very weird when you're used to see the world in that old game isometric way.

Oh well. I'll be off for a week now, will be back next sunday. viestituote@gmail.com is where you should contact me if you need to. Good luck to everybody, I'm really suprised of the level of the entries for this competition, some excellent pixel art of all flavours in here! :O

[Toby]

Pheewh! I made it just and just I got back from Spain this afternoon and took a few hours to finish ( or actually create from scratch ) the boktai version. So here's my input, all of it.




edit: I like how the kid-popey came out, better than I had intended in the beginning

[AlexHW]

thought id try a couple more with a more experimental feel:

[Grey Knight]

Is there a prize for 2nd and 3rd place?

GreyKnight

[David]

I made an alternate.

[AdamTierney]

Contest cutoff. No more entries. A winner will be selected and posted Monday.

"Is there a prize for 2nd and 3rd place?"

Maybe on the next contest but none was planned here. However it's no secret these contests are to scout talent for future WF games, and I think we used 3 or 4 people from the animation contest. So 2nd and 3rd place will probably be offered some GBA work. Not a prize, but it's kind of better than a prize.

- Adam

[pixelaro]

i know I'm a bum..  Had made these within the time limit but I was gone for the weekend. No excuse, I know. Well,l i said i would make some so I'll just post them here anyway.. =/



Fuck iiiit.. even if I know I never could have won.

[Toby]

i know I'm a bum..  Had made these within the time limit but I was gone for the weekend. No excuse, I know. Well,l i said i would make some so I'll just post them here anyway.. =/



Fuck iiiit.. even if I know I never could have won.

Dude, you're underestimating yourself. I hope Adam makes an exception on your part, because your sprites are awesome :) Functional, original and good capture of the essence of popey. You'd have good chances of winning to my mind. 

[AdamTierney]

I'll accept them. To try and make it fair, we won't be looking at the entries until at least noon tomorrow PST so if anyone else wants to slip one in before then, go for it.

- Adam

[.TakaM]

lol, OK i have to ask, what is the timeframe for when i can see the results of this competition?

[AdamTierney]

So we had some of the directors and art directors at WayForward vote today. Each voter selected 3 freeform sprites and 3 Boktai sprites. The artist with the highest number of votes between their two sprites wins, and that was:

Faceless - Congrats! Your sideview sprite got 4 votes and your Boktai sprite got 2 votes for a total of 6 votes between the two. You win the cash prize. Please PM me your mailing address and I'll have a check cut.

Alex actually got the highest number of overall votes (with 8 total) across 4 of his sprites, but comes in second with a combined total of 5 votes between both sprite types. Hondo tied Alex with a combination of 3 votes and 2 votes (for a total of 5). Here's a breakdown of the votes:

Faceless: 4 + 2 (6 combo)
Alex: 2 + 2 + 3 + 1 (5 combo)
Hondo: 3 + 2 (5 combo)
TakaM: 3 + 1 (4 combo)
Ahrimanes: 1 + 1 (2 combo)
Panda: 1 + 1 (2 combo)
Captain Blood: 2
Dhaos: 2
Istvan: 1
Omenith: 1
Pixelaro: 1
Schu: 1
Toby: 1

: Highest-rated freeform sprite (4 votes) by Faceless
: Highest-rated Boktai sprite (3 votes) by Alex

Thanks to everyone who entered! The entries were incredibly (but not surprisingly) well done. Very creative stuff and I'm always amazed just how much pixel talent is out there on the web.

- Adam

[.TakaM]

ah.. congratulations faceless. and great work everyone i had a great time in this competition

edit-
btw theres an error in faceless's numbers. [edit] fixed [/edit]

[Zach]

oh well

[Helm]

Zach, excellent style and colour selection. This are made to be animated.

Congrats, faceless!

[David]

Ouch, no votes.

[Faceless]

 
Woo!

I really didn't think I'd win this... there were some really nice entries.

[Toby]

Many congrats to faceless, I was actually pretty shure you might win all along, and this just goes to show :)

[Akira]

yeah in comparasion with the rest of the sprites mine look pretty medocre. Oh well, i'll just have to enter again next time

[Panda]

Heh, congrats faceless, I'm glad you won man

[Faceless]

Heh, congrats faceless, I'm glad you won man

Me too.

[Captain Blood]

Congrats, Faceless.

Been fun looking at everyones different styles and interpretations of such a famous character.

Bit confused that I got any points at all.  I thought it wouldn't be allowed without a Boktai.  Dunno where I got that from and I can't seem to find it on these pages but then only one of my eyes is working today anyway...

[hondo]

Hey, way to go faceless, and to the others who entered.  Good show by all I think.

Ha ha, looks like I took third again.  Or is that a tie for second?  Oh well, I'll close that gap one day ^_^

Congrats again!

[AdamTierney]

Tied for second. Although we already knew how much ass Hondo kicks from the last contest.

"Bit confused that I got any points at all.  I thought it wouldn't be allowed without a Boktai.  Dunno where I got that from and I can't seem to find it on these pages but then only one of my eyes is working today anyway..."

You wouldn't have been able to win without both, but I wanted to post which entries got votes just to let you guys know which ones we liked best and to make this less of a 'winner v. losers' thing. The voting was really varied among the judges, which says a lot about the quality of these sprites.

- Adam

[crab2selout.png]

Heheh, this one made me smile.

Really nice sprites, Camus. Probably not the easiest to see animated of the bunch here, but there's something real special about yours. Especially Rayman

<3 it

[Helm]

Now that the compo is over I can say that I thought Camus's sprites, while idiosynchratic, were really not at all working for me. extreme saturation, too much thick black, not enough distinction of surface (maily talking about the freestyle one, the boktai worked more). I'm not sure what Camus had on his mind. I know he can animate this style pretty solidly, and a lot of the weirdness of his approach pays off in motion, but the freestyle still shot just had me going '...what?'

A lot of people approached the style (like Dhaos, Faceless) with clean surfaces and special attention to detail and outlines of the parts, and I think it worked out great for them. I feel comic-style demands more constraint.

[Dhaos]

Congrats to faceless for a sprite(s) well done XD. There are a lot of awesome entries here, many to add to my collection muwahahaha...

[Schu]

Awesome work everyone and congrats to Faceless! Hope there will be more of these contests, as they are rather fun!
------
Schu

[AdamTierney]

Actually, I'm gonna write one up right now. Heh heh heh...

- Adam

[Faceless]

You haven't made one for any would be tilers out there... just a thought.

[AdamTierney]

Yup, that's the one. BG artist contest coming up.

- Adam

[Conzeit]

wow. I'm not even part of the picture.

I thought of the sprites I would like to animate....C.c I guess that's what I get for being so self centred.

it IS a shock to se none of my work recognized at all, but ultimately I'm just glad this is not everything I have to hang on anymore, like it was on the last contest, hopefully my life is going forward now like it seems to be, because the more time I spend here the more I feel I'm just not cut to live off of pixelart.

Crabs, Helm...I really apreaciate both your comments =D , because they are so godamn honest and supportive, each in their own way =).

heh...the lil mockshot is something I cooked up because I had procastinated playing Boktai2 for a while, so when the contest came up I started it up again, and when I got to the point where that quote appears it was just too perfect to not put popeye in there.

Honestly, I knew a "clean surface" freestyle entry much like most would have a better chance, but I just found that way too standard, overdone.

The closest I could come to that in my mind was something with wild varying with outlines which WAS in the Popeye sketches and I LOVED ultimately that became the raymanized version.

these two guys specially inspired me, first one's dynamism and the second one's face.

I still like my Raymanized entry because of the dynamic pose, but I did not exactly achieve what I wanted.

while it has elements of  wild varying with outlines, I lost focus because I made that secondary in the name of the pose and the size.

I'm specially shocked that not even the boktai guy got one good vote, I thought I had a good synthesis of all the variations of the style there.

Boktai guy and 3dish guy I thought had the best sprite version of popeye's face in the whole contest, but who knows how that comes trough for everyone else.

Helm, about the saturation...what can I say? it's popeye, it's saturday cartoon, I couldnt think anything else than bright colors all over the place, I could've done something eerie with the hues or something I guess, but that just doesnt seem popeye to me. Also, I made TWO freestyles, which one are you specifically refering to?

if you feel like making an edit at all I would be honored.

Damn, I also wouldnt have expected that freestyle to be the highest rated at all, I thought schu had us all beat if anything.

I wonder what's going on in those  heads of the judges :p

finally, Faceless I have to give it up to you, while I didnt see it coming, you didnt abuse of the space like most of us did, I could perfectly see popeye executing all his actions within the 48x48 box and in conjunction both your sprites are really solid....so you totally deserve the job, you ARE the most solid one out of all of us, you did beautifully in both regards.

Have fun, do great work, working with people like Matt is honestly the best prize I could ever think of.

[AdamTierney]

"I wonder what's going on in those heads of the judges :p"

Gee, thanks. At any rate, congratulations again to everyone who entered this contest because I didn't see a single sprite I disliked. The swelling of talent here lately is just amazing.

- Adam

[initial_reality]

Adam, maybe you could write a quick comment on those sprites which haven't got any votes.
I know my freestyle is unlikely to be in a game, but I thougth my boktai ones were good.
Thanks. Only a contest like that to put my lazy ass to work

Congratulations Faceless!

[AdamTierney]

Now that it's over I'd be happy to offer my comments to anyone who wants to hear them. I won't unless asked though (and I'd be happy to PM if you want). Apologies if a lack of votes made anyone feel down - I just felt a strong obligation to let other know how close they got, so that there's many winners here instead of just one, especially in cases like Alex where his sprites got so much attention.

Form's pretty solid on both of these and I like your color choices. I think the linework could be adjusted here and there (big Popeye's back leg is angular, the curve of his arm jumps a bit) and the color-to-linework seperation is a bit strong, mainly because your shading colors are pretty bright. I would try selecting colors that help blend your outlines or create a smoother joining between them and the lines. Other than that, they're very cute sprites.

- Adam

[Conzeit]

oh come on....I didnt mean it that way Adam. I guess for a change it came out wrong 

I just want to know their judging criteria, these guys certainly know what they are talking about, but I'm so far submerged in my abstract little ideas I cant imagine what they are judging on.

Adam, I'm gonna take you up on that offer, I'd really like to hear some C&C from you, that goes for  anyone else up to it too.

is anyone else up for some C&Cing too?

[Faceless]

I'm always up for crits.
And it would be nice to know exactly what I did right, and where I could have done better for future reference.

[AdamTierney]

Camus, your sprites were kind of heavy on the saturation, to the point of slight distraction from their detail. Otherwise they were pretty good. I think your child Boktai in particular was great and a nice style match to the reference. If I'd had more than 3 votes I probably would've given one to him.

Faceless, hard to say, your sprites just felt like Popeye. The posture, the detail, the colors, everything read really well. You used the space well and got all the essential details in there without maxing out the space to feel boxy at all. Your coloring was simple, but in this case I think it actually punctuated the detail in the sprite. If Nintendo themselves made a GBA Popeye game I would expect their sprite to look very much like yours.

- Adam

[Dhaos]

C&C from Adam? What a treat! I'd enjoy knowing what you thought about my entries. Also I'm not sure which (or which combo) of my entries scored 2 votes.

[AdamTierney]

Hey Dhaos,

Actually, I lost the sheet we voted on so I'm not sure which one it was. As for C&C yours were both very solid adaptations. You made good choices in style and detail selection. To critique, I'd say your poses could have been slightly stronger. When making sprites, you always want to keep the silhouette in mind - the more recognizable that shape, the more it means each detail in your piece is standing out. This is probably one of the reasons Faceless' entry got 4 votes - even if the character was completely blacked out, it's obviously Popeye. Yours wasn't bad in this regard, but it's a little more convoluted in the way his arms are on his hips, etc. Takes a little more time to figure out visually.

- Adam

[Darion]

I honestly did not see this coming. Yours definitely LOOKED like popeye, but I thought they would be interested in a style merge. Yours is defintely badass, though. Congrats

And Camus: Just see this as motivation. If you had won, you probably would not be as eager to improve.

[.TakaM]

crits @ me plz

[Panda]

Uhm, then I'll jump on this boat aswell, asking for C&C, heh.
Looking forwards to it.
Oh and another thing if I may ask, which one of the boktai ones I did, got voted (If you still remember that's it)? Just curious.

[Toby]

I'm up for crits too since you're willing to give them

[pixelaro]

me too

[David]

I'd love to hear what you think as well.

[Zach]

me too please

[Conzeit]

And Camus: Just see this as motivation. If you had won, you probably would not be as eager to improve.

? dont worry about me dude, I just like to talk a lot :p I've got lots of stuff going on other than this I have moved on.

[baccaman21]

I'm gonna give this a whirl even though comps over...

may as well... got nowt better to do...

[baccaman21]

The character popeye shown against different intensities of background color.

I hope you like it?

Oh... and before some says something... I know he should be smaller in the frame for the scope of the animated sequences... generally speaking I always do quick first pass on an idle that's usually bigger to get a feel for the character... then I'll do a modified scaled version based on what I've learn't.... call me weird but old habit die hard.

I'll get round to reducing him in scale soon.

[baccaman21]

cheers for the help ptoing... recognise the style?

I fudged the hands a bit... could do with a bit of a touch up. but overall I'm quite happy with that... not bad for 40 minutes?

I'll knock up an ISO/Boktai One later when I get a chance... although strictly speakling these old skool animated characters don't necessarily suit the iso format as they were designed to work 3/4 side on view... (easier to animate on those groovy old lightboxes [which reminds me... I wonder where I put mine?] hey ho!) Somewhere in this thread Adam comments that someone's sprite didn't work in silhohette... I'd like to say he's absolutley correct, particularly when it comes to animation... one has to be able to read the image regardless of the detail thats contained within it, there's also the notion of "negative space" the areas outside the image. Too much of one and not enough of the other and the graphic lose's that vital element. There's also the concept of mass and weight within those spaces, something an old colleague of mine who worked on the roger rabbit movie kept drumming into me... but it's very true... I'm getting off the point a bit here...

There's some great work demonstrated in these forums, and I for one I'm glad to see the art of the pixel isn't quite dead yet... long live the pixel pusher!

Anyway... enough diatribe from me. At some point I'm gonna do a proper introduction to everyone... when I get a chance...  is there anywhere on this forum where one can do that?

Thanks...

 

[ptoing]

yup

btw, if you click on an image it get's zoomed in and shift-click zooms it out again

[baccaman21]

Ok... here's the slightly reduced version of Popeye... should be enough space in the frame for him to move around.

[Turbo]

Haha, that's sweet. Just look at that face. And the bellay , awesome. The right forearm and hand could use a rework, maybe make the thumb jump out more and make the forearm look less flabby. You should look for examples of "selout" around the forum, to try to make the sprite look better in certain backgrounds. Some people like it, some not, but the info is helpful.
By your avatar and previous post, looks like you know a thing or two about art/pixelart. Feel free to share

[baccaman21]

Ok... sorted the hands out now... added wisp of smoke from pipe... and slight mod on the left leg and crotch area.

- with transparency - on black - on grey - on white
- on broken colour

Thanks for the comments Turbo.  and yes, I do know some stuff. I specialise in cartoony style character art and animation. Done my fair share of games proffessionally, I'm currently out of work and brushing up my skills having been a producer for the last 6 years. not to say I haven't been pushing pixels - just less than I used to.

Cheers.

[Gil]

Ive always been taught

and it looks like the link faceless provided says the same thing

To set things straight. Planometric view is a view where all vanishing points are infinite, meaning that all lines that are parallel will appear parallel on paper too. Most planometric drawings place the vertical ribs orthogonal to the surface, meaning they are 90° with the "under side of the paper". The other two directions tend to be 0, 30, 45 or 60 degrees. There's for example the 0°,45° called cavalier perspective (the one featured in most nes games, look in the background contest for examples). You've got perspectives with 30°,60° and 60°,30° like shown in Takam's example.

Another planometric perspective is the isometric perspective which is a perspective where one direction is orthogonal (straight lines up) and the other two equal, but mirrored, so this means that 30°,30° is isometric. The middle of the three planometric examples Takam gave is isometric too however, as it's 45°,45°.

All isometric views are also planometric, and so alot of so-called planometrics are also isometric. Isometric isn't always 30°,30°, it can be anything, and so the pixelart isometric view (26,...° or whatever) is a valid isometric perspective, and not a slightly altered bastardized perspective like some say...

[Ryumaru]

thought id show what i would have submitted but didnt.

got any comments for mine?

[baccaman21]

looks good Rymaru - captured the the heavy legs style... and those knobbly knees

Just 'finished'* this...



whatcha reckon?

[initial_reality]

I like this one better. He has a "I wanna punch someone" attitute.
While the other (open hands) is more like a wrestler.

I noticed you changed the design for the walk cycle,
it's great but I still prefer the other one.

[baccaman21]

I like this one better. He has a "I wanna punch someone" attitute.
While the other (open hands) is more like a wrestler.

You know something... I'm inclined to agree with you...

I noticed you changed the design for the walk cycle,
it's great but I still prefer the other one.

yeah I simplifiied the button configuration on his torso to make it easier to read (as well as animate) - plus I fattened his legs up as a bid to make him more like the images I was seeing off popeye all over the web (he seems to be very bottom heavy) - I also 'made more' of the peak of the hat too as I felt this wasn't present previously - and finally I altered the shoe color to balance up the color design between his neck scarf and shoes - in retrospect I think I prefer the brown shoes.

Hey ho... thanks for the feedback though. I've been thinking alot about popeye since doing this and it's struck me that surely the time is right for a Streets of Rage/Battletoads/ TMNT/Double Dragon style game using these characters. Popeye is so versatile a character to animate, particularly for whacked out combat moves once he's consumed a barrell load of the green stuff... (I'm talking spinach here guys)

I might do some more sequences... or possibly some of Bluto and Olive - just to round off the set... whatcha reckon?

[snake]

Aww, damn. If I had seen this before I would have entered, no question. Some exelent entrys none the less.






Lookin' mighty fine there.

I know it's closed. Still, want to give it a go.

[snake]

Don't know how strict double posting is here, but I'll try this and see what happens.

Anywhoo. Wasn't being very productive yesterday, so I thought I'd have a go at this.

First up, Boktai Popeye. Had a hell of a time trying to find the games actual colours. Popeye's colour are taken straight off Django and the cowboy-like guy. Also done, because I wanted to limit the colour to what the Gameboy Advance uses. I also noticed that Popeye is pretty tall and lanky. He just fits the box limitations. It was hart do duplicate the Thick border and bright colour style without the whole thing looking ugly.

Little mock up shot. I manipulated a gameplay shot, reused the background to erase the status bars and used it to add more background below. that way, I could get both characters in there. Took more time than it needed to... but what the heck.
(Here's the original, I could only find a low quality shot though... http://img.jeuxvideo.fr/photo/00195784.jpg )

Don't know what style this is in. I guess I thought of those cartoon theemed games like Mickey Mania. I didn't limit colour eather. I've used all 15 here.

Had fun with this. Hope I can enter the next one.

[Turbo]

Looking great snake, i like how the colors integrate on the game and create an "old" look for the character, like if it was on sun burnt paper (this applies to both sprites, less for the second but still there). I figure this would have a been a strong contender in the competition.
btw, no need to double post, just edit your original post using that "modify" button up there on the right.

[snake]

Well, some boards seem to prefer double posting, some don't. Well, now I know.
I suppose you're right about the old paper look. Just luck I guess. I wasn't sure if I wanted to use the colours off the Boktai sprites since it seemed to bright.