More character art - not just any smith...

[Xadhoom]

Since my last post I have decided to keep the game in the good old 320x240 resolution. And here some preliminary character art for the local smith in the city our hero starts out in. Oh, did I mention the game takes place in a fantasy world...?
This is Grimosh, a nigh-on 3 meters tall Dimling. The Dimlings are a race of huge but somewhat dim-witted lion-men. Grimosh is a so-called low-lander; one of the Dimlings that have chosen to live together with the humans. Not the sharpest spoon in the drawer, Grimosh is an overall nice guy although he tends to be somewhat of a bully around his employees. And he will of course be animated in the final version.

EDIT: ADDED QUICK ANIMATION TEST
EDIT: ADDED UPDATED ANIMATION TEST

[Archangel (aka SoupDragon)]

* Archangel CAN'T DAMN WAIT FOR THIS GAME  :o

Even tho I only heard about it today *^_^*

[Scummbuddy]

I dont think the anvil quite matches your style.  But awsome new character
Edit* Sorry, I didnt read that.  I've seen text before, so I didnt read that.  I havent seen these great art pieces, so I looked at that and overlooked the text.  

[Xadhoom]

Hehe..as it says on the image, the anvil is only a placeholder. It is not the final model, it's only there to show that there is going to be an anvil. I spent like, tops, 15 seconds on that anvil.

[Trapezoid]

Incredible. I'd love to see some of you work animated...

[AlphaMole]

oooh.. very perdy.

Im wondering.. what is the tone of the story?
Serous?
Semi-serious?

I'd really like to see a serious fanacy game that doesnt fall into alot of cliches...

[Xadhoom]

Alphamole: I would say semi-serious. The story and world is going to be pretty serious, but the main character is going be a little silly. He's just so full of himself, that it is bound to get a little funny.

ADDED A QUICK ANIMTAION TEST OF GRIMOSH IN THE TOP POST

[Trapezoid]

That's great, but it would be a huge improvement if you added a little body movement to it. Like, when he strikes, he could shift forward a little bit.

[Archangel (aka SoupDragon)]

Hey Xad, I've just thought; if you need someone to write some MIDIs for your game, well, I'd be more than happy to do it ^_^. If you want a reference just ask eVOLVE (he rants about me way more than I deserve...).

Like Trap said, I think it needs to look less like the arm is just being rotated, and more like the whole body is involved. Shoulders and whatnot.

[Soft, Gooey, Delicious.]

nice

[Xadhoom]

Thanks for the crits, guys. Body movement, check. Shoulder involvement, check. I'll get right too it.
Archangel: Wow, that's very nice of you! Do you have some midis somewhere on the net so I can get a taste of your style?

[Xadhoom]

Added another animation test, incorporating some of the crits.

[Jimi]

Just one thing about your wicked art: His legs look a little like they are crossed.

[Zmir]

Me likes

[Scummbuddy]

I think more inbetweens are needed, but it looks very good!

I'm glad you made the body move in the second shot.

[Archangel (aka SoupDragon)]

Xad: I added you to my msn, because it's easier to send files that way, if that's ok. I'm apolloice@hotmail.com

[Adamski]

Holy cow. I don't browse the critics forum much because i have to fight the urge to reply to many a topic with the phrase 'holy cow' and not giving any critique whatsoever.

So, to recap: Holy cow, I also look forward to seeing and hearing anything else about your project, Xadhoom, as it certainly looks great!

It's times like these that I wish I could do the whole art shebang...

[Vraven]

Totally awesome, of course, but if you wanted to be ultra-cool you would make his mane (or at least the bangs of it) shake/jiggle a bit when he moved, hm?

[Privateer Puddin']

I think his legs are a problem, the back one is the one nearest to us, but doesnt look like that because its black and the other one has light from the, thingy hes hitting

[Xadhoom]

Everybody, thanks again, your crits are a big help.
- Legs look crossed, check. Yeah, that's right, they do! I don't rightly know what's gone wrong down there, but I'll look into it.
- Mane shaking with the imapct, check. Great idea!

[Nacho]

Hey! Nice Grimosh. I thought you were talented when i first saw your "heavily modified Guybrush"... Now I am sure you are! But now i´m not sure the dress of the main character will fit on a fantasy world... think of it. Maybe you could add an armour or something like that...

[Archangel (aka SoupDragon)]

Erm... you do realise that even knights take off their armour sometimes, Farlander?

[Scummbuddy]

The beasts legs are an optical illusion.  Congratualtions for making one.  You can view the beast as if his legs are twisted, or you can see it as the leg thats behind be his true right leg, and it is all good.  I didnt notice, until  someone brought up his legs.

[OneThinkingGal and ._.]

Spiffy.

[Neole]

Wow, very SImon the Sorcery! I love!

[Evil]

they are very good, one thing i would change would be to lower the heals of the feet. his feet remind me of bananas... maybe a little more shading on the legs?

[Bob_Ross_is_the_schiznit]

I like the sprite overall, but I have a few suggestions...

In order to eliminate the "crossed" legs optical illusion, you could extend the highlights you put on his right calf up his thigh. This would make the leg closest to you seem brighter, while the other leg would fade more into the background.

I know it's a lot of work, especially with a sprite as detailed and shaded as this one is, but if you redrew parts of him (like his shoulders and face) in the animation, even if it was only one frame, it would heighten the animation's realism.

Also, if you paid attention to his muscles (especially his bicep and tricep)when he curls his arm (lifting the hammer), I think his arm would look less detached. I know these seem like minor things, but they will greatly contribute to the overall quality of the graphics.

Reminds me a bit of the blacksmith in the Lure of the Temptress, if you've ever played that one.

I think your game promises to be very original, since it doesn't go down the old "elves and dwarves" path like so many other games have (Simon the Sorceror and Discworld, to name a few).

However, the one thing that really bothers me is the main character. Every time I see him, I reflexively think "Guybrush." Now, my obsession with young pirate boys aside, I think the similarities are too close.
His stance, the shirt, the way his hair is not all pulled back (there's a part on the side), and his enormous belt buckle all contribute to what I will refer to as the "Guybrush effect."

It just seems to go against the originality you've cultivated (so far) in this game to leave him this way. I think it's disconcerting.

Maybe he could have a sword in a sheath, or change some of his clothes. I know the swordfighters of old sometimes wore bits of cloth around their sleeves to catch an opponent's sword in a duel.

Food for thought, anyways.

[Xadhoom]

Whoa...that's a whole lotta replies...thanks alot guys. Didn't get to work on anything yesterday, but I will try to get some worktime in today.

- Okay, you win......I will rework the main character. I'll try adding some stuff in his belt and work a little on his poses. The only problem is that he actually really looks like the concept as it is...but hey, I don't want people to think Guybrush when they see him, so i guess there's no way around it. *sigh* Here's the initial concept for those that didn't see it in the other thread:


- As for Grimosh...well...I think I'll start from scratch, just keeping the one frame at the beginning and make the others from the bottom up instead of just editing the one frame.

And thanks alot for your continued support and constructive criticism. Much appreciated.

[Nacho]

Well... as archangel said... Knights don´t wear armour all the time...

Anyway, I imagine the fantasy world a little bit like a medieval time, so this is my version of the main character...

http://www.2dadventure.com/ags/medieval.bmp

It has been quickly made, but it may work for you as an inspitation... I hope  

[agsking]

You are amazing xadhoom. :o
Everything looks very professional.

[Bob_Ross_is_the_schiznit]

I like your original concept art for the main guy, but the "modified Guybrush" sprite really doesn't look that much like him.
The guy in your pic has more of that Inigo Montoya from "Princess Bride" look. His shirt is a different color (more biege than white) and it extends down past his belt. It also looks like it has full length sleeves.
You could play up the gold buttons and the gold buckle on the baldric (shoulder belt).
Anyways, just a few suggestions on how you can differentiate your sprite.