Background Blitz - 061212-03 (Extended (once again))

[loominous]

Sorry about the tardiness, but here's this round's topic:


"THAT'S IT, NEXT TIME I'M[/i] PICKING THE PICKNICK SPOT"


Guidelines:

Create a background that you think matches the above topic.
Use any resolution and colour amount that you like, as long
as it's feasible that the AGS engine could pull it off in some way.

Voting:

Voting will begin at 00:00 GMT (greenwich) the 4th, and end
at the same time the next day.

Please place one vote in the following categories

The categories:

Idea - The underlying idea to the background. Doesn't
necessarily have to coincide perfectly with the theme of the
week, just strike you as interesting/amusing/inspiring; a place
you'd really enjoy visiting within a game.

Atmosphere - How well the image manages to evoke a certain
feeling or mood.

Design - How well the elements in the image are designed,
such as landscapes, buildings, decorations, clouds, doorknobs,
etc.

Composition - How well the elements in the image work
together/are positioned in relation to each other.

Functionality - How well it would work when adding sprites, i
ncluding appropriate walking distances, a good angle for
character sprites, clever walkway solutions, easily understood
exits, etc.

Technique - How well the ideas are executed in form of
rendering.

Anyone is welcome to vote, and it would be great if all
participants could provide their own. You don't have to vote
in all categories, and if provide multiple names in a category,
then please be clear about which one is your pick.

Comments and work in progress pictures are highly encouraged.

Good luck!

--

The Entries (so far):

the vict0r:

I thought it might have been time to post something

zyndikate:

"But honey, the ridiculously suspicious-looking captain said that this was a nice spot to eat, drink and engage in fun activities!"

http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/6373/piratebarfinaldc1.png (background only)

Ok, My entry.. and I spent so much time on it I probably could just aswell made a one room game of it.

I didn't want to make the grass-picnic-like background, so I looked the word up in the dictionary too see if there was another way to use it, so I choosed the regular Pirate bar with alot of drinking and fist fighting for everyone.
The purpose was to make a real background that was ready for ingame use, also added cellshaded 2D characters so its shows how it would fit the background ingame, so they dont have any shadows.

It was fun and I learned alot!

EDIT: its looks kinda dark against the forum background color, try it on a dark background.

EDIT: Someone asked me to do a tutorial on how I make my backgrounds, I haven't started yet, but Ill use this one in the tutorial.

b]Penguin:[/b]

Kinda weird resolution and kinda undone entry ... is better than no entry! :3



I don't mind the first post collection of backgrounds at all, nor any critique.
Couple of very nice entries so far, hopefully more to come .

I have to show up every so often to show you punks that lots of colors and high definition aren't everything!Ã, 

Besides, even Satan has a picnic once in awhile!



14 colors, C-64 palette, C-64 double-wide pixels!

MashPotato:

Well, I won't be able to finish because I have to help my grandmother move, but here is what I have so far in all its terribleness...


The first church picnic in history, ill-fatedly situated in the Roman Colosseum:

b]Ildu:[/b]

Yup, it's too late for me . I don't even have a decent idea, let alone sketches or anything. So don't wait up on me .

EDIT: I just started working on an entry some 30min ago . I'm almost done with sketching, so I hope I'll have it done in time . Would it be problematic to give some 30-60 min extra time?

EDIT: I'm almost done .

Done. This entry doesn't deserve an introduction .



I know it's a friggin' lame idea and crappy altogether , but I guess it's not too bad for 2,5 hours of work. Notice that I had to use typefaces for lettering, because of the hurry. Uggo!

[/font]

edit: Extended

[Andail]

Nice theme, loomy. I might whip up something if I get the time

[vict0r]

I thought it might have been time to post something

Improved version:


Would be nice if you would update the main post with this loominous

[ildu]

Ooh, nice technique there, the victor . Make the tree fuller and the footmarks less prominent and you've totally got one of my votes . Sorry if that sounded patronizing - I know, this isn't the crits lounge .

[vict0r]

Wow! Thanks Maybe I'll make some edits.

But get some more entries here people!

[loominous]

I'm gonna gather the entries in the first post, for everyone's convenience, so unless it's against the forum rules, I as host wouldn't mind any comments/discussions, and would like to encourage good critique a la ildu.

[Andail]

Well actually, as Ildu said, this isn't the critics lounge. I don't want to sound conservative or so, and sure, a bit of encouragement is always welcome. However, c&c often side-tracks into discussions, and the thread will be cluttered up if people start arguing how a certain picture could have been made. In the critics lounge, people can back up their comments with paint-overs and detailed instructions. This is not the place for that. In the critics lounge, people must be prepared to recieve c&c, good or bad. This board can for some people be a sanctuary from that.
Cast your vote and include a concise motive.
Apart from that, including the contributions in the first post is a good idea.

[ildu]

I'm not sure if collecting the entries in the first post is wise, because

(1) The first post, the initiation/introduction/rules post, is cluttered up.
(2) I'm not sure, but doesn't it make the thread heavier to view?
(3) It adds some unnecessary length to the thread.
(4) It doesn't allow people to update their entries, unless you just copy the url.
(5) Textual introductions to the entries and the creator's own comments aren't shown (which is very important to me, because I love putting my own introductions in and reading the creators' own posts while viewing the bg in the right context).
(6) Possible delays may occur (although it's probably not a problem).
(7) It ruins the surprise (whenever I sense that there's a new entry in the blitz, I scroll the thread carefully in order to try to surprise myself with it in all of it's presentational glory [see (5)] - please don't take that away from me ).

As an alternative option, if bandwidth and introduction texts aren't an issue, I suggest that the host gathers the entries in the same post as in which the voting is announced to start. This way it'll neatly summarize and end the competition and in a way, it'll be secondary to the actual entries given by the creators in their own context.

[Darth Mandarb]

I think updating the first thread is a brilliant idea actually.

It allows people to see the entries without having to go through 10 pages of off-topic posts (non entries).

[MashPotato]

I like the gathering of the entries into one post idea, although I agree with Ildu that it probably be better to put them at the end rather than the beginning.  In addition to some of the reasons he gave, it would also allow voters to see all the entries at the same time while they are typing in the votes without opening a new window ^_^

[loominous]

Mash:

My thought was to add them all up in the voting post, along with the rules n whatnot, so they'd be at the "end" as well, and since they're already gathered, it'll only take a second to do it.

Ildu:

I forgot about the text, and it's now added.

It's just quotes from the posters, so the images are already downloaded, hence there's no additional bandwidth usage and if images are updated, while retaining the same name/location, the first post will feature the latest versions, though not any additional text (automatically anyway).

When the thread reaches two pages the followers of the thread will be taken to the next page anyway, so the bandwidth wouldn't be an issue, unless they consciously went back to the first page, so you'd be able to still be surprised, and those who like the gallery style can check out the first post. So as far as I can see both tastes are satisfied, but I'm interested in hearing more opinions.

Andail:

I see your point, and the idea was more to give some helping comments to those who seem like they would appreciate it, not some general critique. I myself am rarely keen on recieving critique on my work (except from a few sources), so I completely understand the sanctuary thought.

As far as discussions about images n such goes, I don't really see any problem with it since it would sorta be like discussing in an art gallery. I see no reason why one ought to walk around without uttering a word.

I can completely understand your objection if you had to wade through 20 pages with 4 entries spread out somewhere in there, but have a harder time when the entries are neatly lined up. And due to the interest/insight of the participants/viewers, there's potential for some very interesting (background related) discussions that probably wouldn't happen elsewhere. (yes, there's the technical discussion thread in the CL, but I don't think I'm alone in never viewing that one, and I prefer it when these discussions evolve more naturally).

[Shaque]

I'm not in any comps I guess, but can I show a few pics I've made?

Edit by Andail:
This thread is for the competition whose instructions you can read in the initial post. Please use the critics lounge for c&c on random pictures. Good luck

[ildu]

I'm not in any comps I guess, but can I show a few pics I've made?

Umm, no. Did you accidentally post in this thread? Remove the images or they'll be removed by a moderator.

On-topic: I still don't like the idea of having them in the first post. Just now, I saw that there were new pics in the thread, so I tried to scroll to the middle of the page without seeing the images in the first post or the new images, but I ended up somewhere at the bottom with the images above .

[loominous]

Shaque:

I might've been misleading before about criticism, but it was only meant for entries for the comp. The critique's lounge's what you're looking for.

Ildu:

You know that you can press the small "new" icon beside the thread link to hop directly to the new posts in a thread?

[voh]

Part of the fun of these compo's is scrolling and clicking through the pages. Though that might be my OCD talking.

[Andail]

Loominous; well, in the best of worlds, there need be no rules at all If all c&c were to be just constructive hints politely uttered while approvingly nodding your head, as in the hypothetical art gallery you mentioned, it would hardly be an issue! The thing is c&c is always "hot stuff", always subjective, and not always appreciated. You said it yourself.
It looked promising this time because Ildu is an artist you respect and who can deliver thoughtful and concise advice, but next time it may be Squalman on a bad day.
So my final word in this matter, re-post the picture in Critics lounge if you want critique. If you spot possibilites for improvements, you can even ask the artist if you may publish it on his behalf, and include your paint-over/pointers.

Now let's discuss this further in the sticky, and leave the thread for the contestors

[Buckethead]

Edit by Andail:
If you're not a moderator, please don't act like one.

[Daniel Thomas]

"But honey, the ridiculously suspicious-looking captain said that this was a nice spot to eat, drink and engage in fun activities!"

http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/6373/piratebarfinaldc1.png (background only)

Ok, My entry.. and I spent so much time on it I probably could just aswell made a one room game of it.

I didn't want to make the grass-picnic-like background, so I looked the word up in the dictionary too see if there was another way to use it, so I choosed the regular Pirate bar with alot of drinking and fist fighting for everyone.
The purpose was to make a real background that was ready for ingame use, also added cellshaded 2D characters so its shows how it would fit the background ingame, so they dont have any shadows.

It was fun and I learned alot!

EDIT: its looks kinda dark against the forum background color, try it on a dark background.

EDIT: Someone asked me to do a tutorial on how I make my backgrounds, I haven't started yet, but Ill use this one in the tutorial.

[Afflict]

@ everybody, I don't like the first post thing with all the entries.

@ zyndikate : WOW That is truly awesome my favorite thing is the glass bottle
with the tiny boat in it.

[Daniel Thomas]

So little entries