Hi, I need some critiques on my game background. It's for the Release Something contest.
(http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5479044/2DBoy_Background01.png)
It's meant to only have 3 colors. I might have to make it 4 though. Very low-res and stuff. Thanks!
Just a few things that jump out at me, the number 2 needs to be bumped up 2 pixels, and in the bottom right hand corner, the floor board seems to be running through that piece of furniture, and last but not least, I would touch up that picture.
Umm.. How about: it hurts my eyes.
:-\
You should choose colors that are less painful if there is only going to be 3 colors.
Also the floorboard line runs through the foreground chest.
Three colors are a fine choice - four is the standard for ultra-low-res graphics. The one thing I would suggest in this case is that you raise the level of contrast between your colors. The problem with it right now is that your light orange and slightly darker orange are so similar that it's difficult to tell them apart without really examining the picture.
If you're going to stick to a super-minimalist palette like this, you also may want to make a lot more use of your darker shade to create shadows and texture. I'd suggest looking at some two-tone lithographs or scratch art for inspiration. At the moment with predominantly light tone with dark only for outlines, nothing comes across as having any real depth. Look into some dithering and line weight techniques and this has a lot of potential!
Good luck!
I think the style can look really appealing using less saturated colors with a bit more contrast. For example:
(http://pabs.org/images/misc/armageddonbgpaintover.png)
I like it and would enjoy playing a full game with this simplistic look. :)
The original one really hurts my eyes...
Pablo's color example would work better.
Love the minimalistic look Armageddon!
Seconded.