Art Direction

[Jimbob]

Hi, I've started a one-room adventure game as a means for getting into the AGS program, and I've been toying with a means to doing the art.

I enjoy pixelling, but I also enjoying playing around with the graphics tablet I have (a Wacom Bamboo A5) so I'm trying out a combination of the two.



Thing is, I've been going the traditional route of pixelling everything for the room layout and things on the right, but I've got a few closeups (of puzzles and computers) that I'm attempting to paint in doublesize, shrink and reduce the colour depth (from say 16-bit to 256) and then clean it up with a little bit more pixelling...

Do you think the two go together? Also, as it is my first attempt at rooms and the like I'm not sure if there's anything that stands out as 'odd' perspective wise. I've also kept the colour range low, dunno if that effects it or not. (NB. Not all the objects are in, and the shading is incomplete, but you can point out if you like which areas you think need it most)

And the character... he's supposed to be wearing a kinda fashionable face mask (y'know the smog beating kind) but it may just look like a blue beard

Cheers, anyway, once I get this sorted I can get the game started properly...

[ThreeOhFour]

I think both of them look quite nice, and I am a fan of doing both tablet style and pixel style graphics as well, but I think that using backgrounds of the two interchangeably looks a little odd here. Both look very nice, but I'd suggest either using all tablet style backgrounds or all pixel style backgrounds. That terminal really would be quite easy to do in pixels...

Also, the graphics look very nice, but the little man is just a touch funny looking, legwise  

(quick edit that might give you some direction character wise... or maybe not  )

[DanSte]

It's very nice, reminds me a little of 6DAS but much crisper. 

As Ben304 said, the legs look a little strange in the upside down "v" position. (It made me think of Bernard from DOTT.)

[Jimbob]

Cheers for the advice and edit.
I admit drawing a monitor in pixel art shouldn't be hard by any stretch, but some of the other puzzle close ups may be a little different.
I'm going to try redoing the picture with the tablet and see which way to go.

[Jimbob]

Quick intermediate update...



With or without pencil outline on furniture/objects? I'm really liking the painted look though, I think I might go for it throughout...

[Brad Newsom]

I like the pencil outline. It gives it more character and depth. Otherwise, it will blur into each other and lack definition.