My very first pixel-thingy, please critique

Newton · Fri 22/09/2006 12:06:49

Hiya guys! Just another new amateur walking in, hopefully won't cause too many problems.
I've been thinking of doing an adventure game for quite some time now, but as I know I really can't draw at all, I've been afraid to sit down and try. Well I recently worked up the courage to make some shitty art, and ended up with this concept of a main character.

Latest version:

I'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas on how to improve it! His head tunred out really, really bad, but I couldn't find a way to make it look better. It's meant to be kinda tube-shaped. The thing in his chest is supposed to be a shiny black orb with a green tint.

I did some basic shading and it certainly looks better with than without, but I still think it looks kind of flat.
Anyways! I'm looking forward to reading your posts

2ma2 · Fri 22/09/2006 12:11:42

I'd say, a great design. About the head, you may want to avoid tilting it to really bring out the tube shape, or just let the eyes be in level with eachother. The orb is lost within the shirt, you could alter the color even more or keep the black but alter the color of his shirt. It all looks well down to the legs, which seem flat and unnecessary far apart. You can make his stance as confident without exaggerating the pose that much.

Newton · Sat 23/09/2006 11:37:59

Thank you so much for your suggestions, they really helped! I'm just amazed how much a work can improve with a few small changes that you're blind to until someone else points them out. Here's the latest version:

Changed the head, the legs and tried to improve the overall shading. Made the belt smaller and also enlarged the orb. I think this is an improvement but I'll leave that for the experts to decide

I'm still unhappy with the orb though. It stands out more now but I can't quite get it to look orbish. Any ideas?

Newton · Sat 23/09/2006 16:10:14

I couldn't resist trying to animate it, so here you go

2ma2 · Sat 23/09/2006 16:29:47

Is he scratching his crotch?

The new version is good. He has a lovely pose, looks a bit cowboyish.

When it comes to shading, it can be accomplished in so many way. First off you can try cellshading, with perhaps one darker hue as you've done on the arms and head. You can make this shade even darker, it does not show much as it is now. Try shading the black parts, perhaps with a brighter highlight. This can be made on the orb aswell, a bright reflex on the upper half.

m0ds · Sat 23/09/2006 17:55:30

QuoteIs he scratching his crotch?

I think he's tickling it.

I'm scared!!

This is a lovely sprite though, well done!

Newton · Sat 23/09/2006 18:41:36

Okay, so here's the latest version, in all its highlighted glory!

It finally looks like an orb! And I think the legs certainly look better with the added shading too. I really had no idea how to place the highlights so I just tried to place 'em where they looked good. I think it worked out neatly in the end though. Thanks a bunch!

Quote from: m0ds on Sat 23/09/2006 17:55:30

I think he's tickling it.

I'm scared!!

This is a lovely sprite though, well done!

Hahah, you never know

Thanks! It's definitely exceeded my expectations, so I'm more than satisfied! I just hope I can keep this up so I can manage to make a game out of this.

Mikko · Sat 23/09/2006 20:21:57

I'm not sure if this helps at all, but here it goes.

I assume that the propotions are supposed to be little different than normal human being, but I still can't help it that for me it seems that the character was portrayed from frog perspective (camera near the ground). This is because of the legs. The waist is narrow and the legs (or trousers to be specific) get larger and larger towards ground. This could be helped with proper shading, I think, but also with positioning the legs differently.

Anyway, I did few changes. And came up with this rough image:

3x

- changed shading in few parts
- brought the belt few pixels down
- drew crotch differently
- narrowed the legs
- positioned the legs so that right one should be bit straighter towards the looker
- removed the black outline of the orb (though I'm not sure is it any better, just something I prefer)
- made the outline dark gray, instead of pitch black

Shane 'ProgZmax' Stevens · Sat 23/09/2006 23:37:07

I really like the character design and made an edit that while not changing much might give you some ideas.

1. Made the left arm the same length as the right and put it into a more interesting pose (possibly for a gun or something).
2. Shaded and added highlights.
3. Added tiny feet and moved head forward slightly to accentuate pose.
4. Reduced torso height very slightly. I really like the exaggerated features and pose, but I think the straight area between the torso and legs was throwing it off a bit.

Nice work!

ThreeOhFour · Sun 24/09/2006 05:54:28

I picked on the orb...