(http://img103.imageshack.us/img103/4892/excelsior0ce.png)
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(http://img103.imageshack.us/img103/886/excelsiorlg4tp.png)
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Some C&C, please. Spent time that should've been used studying for this baby. ;D
Very original design, I like it a lot.Ã, There are a few things that could probably be cleaned up though.Ã, Here's a classic MS Paint-over:
(http://www.2dadventure.com/ags/ddsprite.PNG)
(http://www.2dadventure.com/ags/ddsprite.PNG)
Here's what I did:
- Got rid of the double pixels.Ã, It looked to me like you drew a rough outline and shaded that, without ever editing it for a more realistic pose.
- On that note, I adjusted his stance to lean a little more forward, as well as widened the shoulders and gave the feet a more natural pose.
[li]Cut the number of green shades in half.Ã, While it's tempting to think that more colours equals more realism, it's not really the case.Ã, Less little details means easier animation, too.Ã, I usually stick to three shades of any colour: light, midtone, and dark.Ã, I used 4 in this paintover because I liked the dark green outline. - Tried to shade as though the light source was roughly overhead.Ã, It's more versatile in the game, especially if you design your backgrounds without any obvious light sources.Ã, Of course it'll all depend on where you want this character; if he's lurking in a cave, you can draw him with a more directional light source.Ã, I know I wouldn't want to run into this guy any place with bad lightingÃ, :P
- Changed the view of the wings(?) so they look more obvious.Ã, I also eliminated the one that was visible over the left shoulder, since it was distracting and didn't add anything.Ã, Think of how tricky it would be to animate the speaking view with it in the way.
- Changed the shape of the nose and eye to give a bit more clarity.Ã, I think the eyes are especially important since that's usually what we look at first when we see someone (or some tribal lizard-man, as the case may be).Ã, Even when they're only a few pixels large, they can show a lot of expression and personality (lizardality?Ã, This is tricky...)
- I got rid of some of his 'war paint,' especially on the face, since I found it distracting.Ã, You can probably play with it to get it to look the way you'd like, but always ask yourself if it adds anything to the overall sprite.
I know it might be scary to look at all these crits and think you didn't do a good job, but I really think you have the potential for a great character here.Ã, Like I said before, it's really original, and any game where you get to talk to a lizard in a loincloth is bound to have an interesting backstory.Ã, :)
Thanks much for the feedback. :)
As good as your paint-over is, the light comes from behind the back of all my characters to eliminate shininess that can be too distracting, so I don't think I'll be changing that part of the character.
That's not really a wing, it's more like an...elbow-spike thingy. I found it difficult to draw, but I messed around with it until I got something I could at least stand. Eventually I'll get more work into it though.
And I'm aware of the double shading not being realistic thing, I just sorta like it because it offers a somewhat smoother transition between the primary shade and the shadow.
I'll continue work on this and see if I can find anything else to improve as well.