Dark forest background (new version)

[Matti]

This is the first background I made for my new project. It's a dark forest-swamp-jungle-mix, only lightened by lanters.

I used a simple drawing style with few colors in order to create backgrounds relatively fast. My main concern is to create an eerie mood, making it very dark and using strange forms for plants and trees. I think it worked well and that it's a good compromise between simplicity and a richness of details.

I would like to know what you think of it. Be sure that no light is shining on your screen when looking at the images. And your contrast/brightness should be adjusted in a way that your black is a pure black.

The second image shows a sprite of a beetle I want to include. The rider obviously isn't finished yet, but the beetle is. Does it fit the style of the background? I'm asking because the sprite is more detailed than the BG. Note: I included the sprite in Illustrator, not in AGS, since I haven't started the game yet.

[Laukku]

The darkness already is effective, but those bright colours make it too non-eerie IMO. Try using a greyish colour for the trees; most bark I've seen is actually grey (at least here in Finland).  There also seems to be a perspective issue with the river, it looks like it is wider and the banks lower further away. Or maybe it IS like that.   

[creatorlars]

That's very cool, did you draw this in Flash (or Illustrator)?

[Matti]

Illustrator. Since a year or so I'm into Vector graphics.

[Oddysseus]

I think it looks very polished.  It has a good atmosphere and perspective.

I also think the beetle fits in very well.  Having the sprites slightly more detailed than the background is a good way to make them stand out (though you shouldn't go overboard.)


One tiny criticism:



This light looks too bright, in my opinion.  It breaks up the flow of the composition, and it doesn't make sense that the green under it is brighter than the second lamp, since it is further away.  I would make it darker or just get rid of it.

That's just a nitpick, though.  Otherwise, I would gladly place a game with these graphics.  It looks very unique.

[pslim]

I really like this style and I think it looks great.

Since you're asking for criticism, though, I think the textures of the water and grass could be made more different. I think they're meant to blend together in a swampy sort of way, but to me it just makes it hard to tell quite what you're looking at there.

[Matti]

This light looks too bright, in my opinion.  It breaks up the flow of the composition, and it doesn't make sense that the green under it is brighter than the second lamp, since it is further away.  I would make it darker or just get rid of it.

You're right about that, I'll either make it darker or get rid of that light.

I think the textures of the water and grass could be made more different.

Yes. I think I'll make the ground more moss or grass-like. I'm not sure about the water though.

[Domino]

Nice. It kind of reminds me of Arcadia from the game BIOSHOCK.

[JuuJuu]

The texture of the "grass" makes it look like water.

Also the overly mossy completely green tree on the left of the screen looks as if it was growing out of the stone.

But I absolutely love the fallen tree with the river running under it. It already feels as if I have been taken away to a fantasy land!

[DanielH]

I actually thought the grass was water for a while :o. It needs more definition to help it. Other than that, you've managed to get a whole eerie feeling quite well.

[Matti]

The texture of the "grass" makes it look like water.

Ah, now I get what Pslim was trying to tell me. But as I said I'll change the look of the grass by adding moss and plants etc.

But I absolutely love the fallen tree with the river running under it. It already feels as if I have been taken away to a fantasy land!

Very good, since this was my intention. 

[Matti]

Okay, here's a new version.

1. I changed the ground and made it more mossy.

2. I moved the lantern in the back and made it darker.

3. I darkened the shiny parts on the front tree and made them a bit more detailed.

[aussie]

Hi,

Pretty good indeed. I love it.

My only suggestion if you're going for an eerie look is to desaturate the colors a little. Something along these lines:



Ok, the edit isn't great but you get the point. Cooler, desaturated colors give a scarier feel to bgs.

[LGM]

Aussie is on the right track. Personally, as someone who works with images for a living... To convey dark, spooky atmospheres you generally want cooler, desaturated colors. So what I did was use the color balance too to balance the colors more toward cooler colors, such as cyan and blue. I also changed the levels a bit, and created a vignette effect on the edges to kinda limit the light from spreading too far, thus creating a spookier, uneasy feel.

Finally I desatured some reds and greens, as well as boosting the yellows of the lights to make them more highligted, as if they're lighting a path.

[Matti]

You're both right. That would indeed make it spookier. But it doesn't have too bee that eerie. Most imprtant is, that there's a certain atmosphere in the picture. Another thing is that I like the warm colors so I guess I'll stick with it. But thanks anyway.

I'll soon post a little "tech demo" cause I want too make the forest lively animated. Therefore I try to let creatures fly through the scene, make glowing eyes appear in the dark and animate some plants.

Well I'll need a few days for that.

[JuuJuu]

Aussie is on the right track. Personally, as someone who works with images for a living... To convey dark, spooky atmospheres you generally want cooler, desaturated colors. So what I did was use the color balance too to balance the colors more toward cooler colors, such as cyan and blue. I also changed the levels a bit, and created a vignette effect on the edges to kinda limit the light from spreading too far, thus creating a spookier, uneasy feel.

Finally I desatured some reds and greens, as well as boosting the yellows of the lights to make them more highligted, as if they're lighting a path.



I do like this one...but I dont like the rocks in the very front right. How they are an icy blue.

Edit by ProgZ:  Please don't quote images, especially not big ones!