Faris .. Sword Combo

[hsn2555]

hey guys,
i'm finally done with my finals.


latest update :
last reply

therefore i posted this thread, it's about an issue i've been discussing with some dude xD.
faris is an arabic word which means knight.


previous sprites :

the rest can be located in here : http://www.wayofthepixel.net/pixelation/index.php?topic=8262.0

so here i'll be showing you some changes i've added to those previous sprites :

see at 3x or 4x.

well,the reason why i am turning to this style is that i find it simpler, yet funner, and easier to deal with.

crits pl0x

[hsn2555]

a quick mould

[PASSOUT]

I think theres a lighting issue, your using your darkest shade as the lighest shade for the brown. That doesnt really work. Also post the picture in it's lowest resolution, please.

[hsn2555]

ummmm .. i'll edit it after a while of sleep
here

[32]

If you're showing these at a higher res its important to try not leaving stray pixels all over the place, like the dark ones on the sword or the two light ones on the pants. HIS left arm is a bit far out from the body, try pulling it in a pixel or pushing his chest out.

You're AAing 45 degree lines, and not the angled lines that need it. Try reading through Helms ramble thread, basically he outlines that you're main intent is to fake resolution, and straight lines (this includes 45 degree lines, not sure if he mentions it in there though) are "infinite" resolution.

I would generally discourage the random pixel lines in at the top and bottom, but I assume that's all still WIP.

I like the change in style, he's got a ton more character now, his, uh, eyehole could be bigger though.

[ndchristie]

You're AAing 45 degree lines, and not the angled lines that need it. Try reading through Helms ramble thread, basically he outlines that you're main intent is to fake resolution, and straight lines (this includes 45 degree lines, not sure if he mentions it in there though) are "infinite" resolution.

I'd debate whether clouds have straight edges, or even crisp ones, so considering no segment is near 45 degrees for more than a few pixels, i have to counter-crit that diagnosis (sorry).

I suggest instead reading Ptoing's article on it, which talks more about the gentler lines and how to soften those, rather than what not to soften.

[32]

I was looking at the sand dunes actually, mostly it stood out to me because of the lack of AA on the lines that really needed it, and I figured I'd throw in the bit about 45 degree lines not really needing AA.

[hsn2555]

thanks guys,
but umm, since this is still a mould, i'll take my time AAing when i'm actually done with those basic shapes.
until i find a fit desert reference ,or a background that fits the sandy ground,
suggestions please

[Tourist]

Reference pic of Dubai, found using google image search for Persian desert:

http://www.solarnavigator.net/geography/geography_images/Dubai_Margham_desert_sand_dunes.jpg

I think it's a perfect fit in terms of shape.

Tourist

[ndchristie]

so the idea that the UAE is now in Persia...lol

I should mention that i like the new direction.  I would consider drawing the sword in a single color, either very light/white or very dark/black.  Color separation between the character and background is very well considered.  the sky takes us into an interesting realm just in the stylistic choices (some sort of mannerist or even decorative idea).

[Gil]

I agree that the clouds are rendered very pleasingly.

I love the new art style, it seems coherent, better use of the resolution, etc. I'd try to work a bit on the sky behind the clouds. Either you pull them together or you go more into the decorative style ndchristie mentions. Try to exploit the curvature of the clouds into almost pattern like entities.

[hsn2555]

Tourist
oh yea! that's one perfect reference pic, thanks alot man. i'll get it done and i'll post it asap.
and btw, dubai is in uae (united arabian emirates) not in persia.

ndchristie
lol,

the sword needs two colors for the motions i'm intending to add.
and yea, you reminded me. i might think about adding some minarets, or an arabian palace.

Gil
yea this style is like more (lget the party started). thanks for mentioning that, i'll redcorate the sky.

anyway guys, here is a horse for our knight ,kinda an arabian horse .i'll change its color but i want to get a proprer shape first.

see at 3x

as i'll be editing the (mockup) background.

[Tourist]

Ugh, blame Google, not me.  I searched for Persian desert and the first pic was that one.  I think Google confused Persia and Arabia because the page that has the picture mentions the Persian Gulf War in the paragraph following the image.  I mentioned the search terms in case you wanted to use them or something similar.

I'm glad you like the picture.

Tourist

[fil_razorback]

I love the way this is going.
I think you should try adding a bit of blue in the dune shadow tint and make the whole dunes less saturated so the character is easier to spot.
Nice horse too =)

[Tuna Unleashed]

there's some banding on the left side of the guy's head that doesn't look too pretty and the selout on the horse is pretty ugly too. otherwise i really like this.

[Gil]

I don't mind the banding really.

The horse is very stylized, I like it. Reminds me of Metal Slug 

[Pawige]

I think the new smaller sprite is a huge improvement on the old larger one, but I think it should be taken a bit further. I did an example edit to show you what I mean:



First of all, the saturation on a lot of your colors is maxed out, that often doesn't look very good unless you're going for the neon lights look. You'll usually want to tone it down to get a bit more gray in there, that also really helps when using colors for anti-aliasing, when the saturation is low you can use the same AA color for multiple other colors.
I assume the horse is mostly just a sketch at this point but the contrast issues are pretty severe. The mane and tail being so much darker than the outline make it look very odd. Also as was mentioned by Tuna the selout on the horse is awful. On a neutral background it looks like little spikes.
With the player character, I upped the contrast and tried to bring out the main shapes with larger, simpler areas of color. Not so sure what the shield was supposed to be so I made it metal. Maybe it's a hide shield though? I couldn't really tell. Also cleaned up the sword a bit. I like the silhouette a lot, didn't really touch that.

Edit: Yeah, don't take my "horse" anatomy as accurate, I didn't use a reference for it. Shading and colors still stand though.

[Quake]

Well, i do like Pawige's edit of the horse, but it looks more like a donkey haha..

I suggest you look at horses from the acquired area due to them being selected to have the best attributes etc

http://mobarakandish.com/asbiran/Ihb/index.htm
has loads of different breeds ^

They're all the same view as what you're doing, so i'd suggest to resize them down or something..

[hsn2555]

see at 3x
here is a new horse !

here is a new background


Tourist

yea thanks man ^.^

fil_razorback
thanks ,i tried adding some blue.

Tuna Unleashed
got it done. the banding doesn't cause a problem, it was meant to.

Gil
xD lol, metal slug has no horses

Pawige
i like your edit on the shading of the character ,its colors, and the hood's shading, but the pants has the close look.
i'm think of going with less colors style. but not at the moment
the sheild isn't supposed to be metal, it's like a prass wooden one .
and the horse o.O has become a donkey ,a fat donkey now.
i've made some changes you'd like to see.

Quake
thanks man ,i actually took a look at some pics.and i'm going for the arabian kind .

[hsn2555]

a marketplace !! a small kisok lol. i'm working on the salesman, and i'm thinking of a palmtree to be added next to the kisok.

[hsn2555]

[Silver]

روعة ماشاءالله
good stuff!
I like the background the most, the character design is also good, I like the new update.
Good luck and keep it up!

[Mathias]

I'd just like to say that everything is moving along well, but I regret that the obvious wisdom of Pawige's edit is sadly being ignored. He did wonders for your main char sprite, increasing the contrast - boosting visual interest quite a bit. He made it so much more readable, man! In comparing it to your current version, your version's inadequacies are exposed. I have a feeling you may be letting pride blind you a little, which happens to the best of us. Also, I'd like to state that when an experienced pixeller offers an edit like that, it can be daunting to implement because you're taking on the burden of then having to apply the edit's creator's skill to everything else, which may be impossible for you. I for one can't match pawige's level, so I can understand any hesitation. So then, you take what you can from it and hopefully learn and grow.

[hsn2555]

Silver
يعطيك العافيه اخوي ..
thanks alot man, glad you liked it

Mathias

hello mathias,
Nah man, you know that i'd not let such a thing blind me, i didn't even reach that level to do such a thing.
especially with pawige , i really appreciate his dropping-by and posting crits, because i know that those crits willl help me improving my work.
just to clear it out, i actually made some changes depending on his edit. but didn't post anything here.
the horse :
its hair, tail ,and shading (keep in mind that it's an arabian horse, so i didn't go with the shape he drew).
Faris :
the actual body's position ,the hood's shadows, adding that pixel for eyes to give him more character ,and some other parts .
he also convinced me to drop (get rid of) that neon effect ,which was more pleased.

you may notice the knight, with some other characters :



well, i've been working on the sprite for some time lately, but i really didn't feel like posting the updates ,especially here -__-
because i was posting some updates lately, but it was like i was posting for a wall , a dead wall x_x. not even a single feedback ? so i stopped keeping this thread up to date.
sorry, i really care about getting C&C, but it'd take me ages of waiting for someone to reply.i'm not ready to do that.

anyways,
here are some updates if anyone's interested (by any chance ).
enlarged the canvas, and a palmtree

animations sketches
idle ....................... run ................ attack

3x

[politopo]

IMHO You could move the belt a little in the idle pose.

[Tuna Unleashed]

that latest colour change you did with the greys is pretty nasty. I don't think that's what pawidge meant when he said to get more gray in there. also, with the standing position, the way his arms are hanging down looks rather unenthusiastic and combined with the angle of the shield would imply that he's thrusting his wrist out at a pretty awkward angle.
Mathias- ouch. but just so its perfectly clear that was a deadly combination of pride and laziness. im actually considering redoing it when I get around to it.

[Mathias]

Haha, tuna! That wasn't a shot at you at all, believe me. It was actually only meant for hsn2555's reference and possible enlightenment, but I see how you took it that way with my shifty hyperlinking - if I wanted to make that implication I would've linked to one of your posts. That phrase "destroy your art" has stuck with me since I read it. And it's good to know that you possess deadly combinations of pride and laziness now, that gives even more license to slap you around critiqueishly! I'm kidding.   . . . or am i  ,  garrrrharrrr


hsn - ok good to hear, sorry if I jumped the gun.

idle: He appears to be repeatedly shrugging his shoulders, not breathing like you're obviously targeting. Tiny sprites + subtle movement = skillful subpixelling (I hope your palette can accomodate it)
run: pretty nice, it looks a little jaggy though. I like the perspective trick on the buckler. Could the hood use some help? It's movement seems incomplete.
attack:  that must be his big attack, all that wind-up could be irritating to deal everytime you want to attack something. Does he have other quicker attacks?

[Lazycow]

Wow, I really like this attack animation! Very smooth!
But the running animation: I think he should move his arms in the same frequemce as his legs. (now it looks unnatural when he moves his arms so slow)

[Gil]

I don't know about that lazycow. I like a little quirk in animations.

[hsn2555]

thanks guys for the feedback

politopo
i'm remaking it

tuna
i've picked the actual grey for you

mathias
i like subpixelling, and of course he has other quicker attacks .let's just get the idle animation done

lazy
the shield's angles are changing due to its rotating

gil
i like tricks too x3

[Tuna Unleashed]

err.. thats not what i meant at all. anyway, the dude still has the awkward wrist problem and I think other parts of his body need some more subtle movements, things like shadows on his legs, head bobbing, and his weapons moving a bit with his arms.

[politopo]

you should move him more in the idle pose, now it looks like he is just lifting his shoulders, but you should move less his shoulders, and make him lift arms a little, ad perhaps move the head..., anyway keep improving!

[hsn2555]

[alkaline]

i think it still needs color fixing. your colors, particularly the head, are a little bland.

[Lazycow]

I don't know about that lazycow. I like a little quirk in animations.

Well, I took a closer look at the running animation and I have just realized that the frequency of the leg movement is the same as the frequency of the arm movement. embarrassing... But he hobbles! You might say of course that this adds some charm to the animation. Ok, but I think the animation is easier to read without. Here's an edit which tries to address that.


original - edit

[JosephSeraph]

You made me cry :'-C I thought it was FFV's Faris.
In the Breath animation... Move the rest of the body, 1 px up, then 1 px down =/
It really looks awkward.... I really like these sprites, tough. I think you could ad some light difference in the tones (do NOT SATURATE, these sprites are so sweetm, like they are)
Anyways, i am loving it

[hsn2555]

alkaline

i almsot forgot to darken the outline as pawige actually did.
and i like your edit, but it's more like a brass shine now.

Lazycow

i quite like your edit, fortunately those animations are sketches. i'll be working on them in a while.

JosephSeraph

oh no, you cried !
i actually never played ffv, and probably will not do. xD
let's see about moving some pixels.

alkaline's edit - greenish - original with darkened outlines - lighten colors

[hsn2555]

here's a combo ..

[Mathias]

I favor the alkaline one's edit, above.

The combo is pretty good. The footwork seems a little stiff. I'm not sure that much whole body movement is a good thing. It doesn't seem like an experienced swordsman would overthrust so much making himself almost look off-balance. Though, the exaggerated movement does add character. And in a game, that may be the most important thing.

[Lunarhiro]

The combo looks like he stabs with the shield hand first, then somehow switches to the other hand lol. But  I like it