working on my own Loom sequel (currently working on bg art)

[Sphinx317]

There are a couple in the works, but since they're going a route that I'm not really wanting to go, I figured I'd start making my own dream a reality.  I've been spending my time using JUST GIMP it's EXTREMELY taxing since it takes forever to get things done (and I'm a perfectionist) but regardless, I'm slowly getting there.  If anyone has any input on what I've done so far, please let me know! 
   

Uploaded is one of the space animations similar to the first one, but will be used a tad more than with the original.  The still is of the new and updated church.  Everything has been hand drawn and matches the original in color and pattern.

[Snarky]

Welcome to the forums!

First, have you decided what resolution you're running in, and what dimensions your backgrounds then need to be? The two screens have vertical resolutions of 600 and 256, respectively, which seems pretty inconsistent. You don't want to make a bunch of backgrounds and then discover that you can't put them all into one game because they don't fit together, size-wise. Given your art style, which doesn't use a ton of detail, I would recommend a low resolution similar to the original Loom, 320x240. (And keep in mind that the interface elements are going to take up part of the screen.)

For the second screen, the outlines look fine. I think it's mainly held back by three things:

(1) The perspective is boring. The angle is sort of similar to the original graphics, but here the camera is pulled much further back (in order to include both the corridor and the nave - or whatever it's called - of the church, when they probably shouldn't be part of the same screen), making it seem less involving. Also, it apparently renders the walkable area as only that thin strip between the columns and the weaves/windows, with the rest of the screen taken up by unplayable and undifferentiated gray. If you're going to update the original graphics, I would choose a more dynamic angle with some depth to the scene, e.g. looking down into the corridor instead of just sideways at it.
(2) There's very little shading, making the scene flat and lifeless. Having lightsources that cast light and shadow is key to creating atmosphere, and you should plan out the lighting from the beginning. The one area of light you've drawn is dull because it's just a slightly lighter shade of gray (which there's way too much of in the scene already). The stained glass windows should throw light of many different colors across the scene. Compare to how the original graphics use a salmon-tinted main light and blue contrast lighting with lots of black shadows in between.
(3) There's so little detail, and no texture to anything. Everything is just flat, smooth surfaces. Therefore, it doesn't look like a real wall, a real floor or a real ceiling, but like a diagram where the different regions have been flood-filled real quick. Also, you should avoid automated gradients. Unless they're used very skillfully, they look very flat and fake, and they don't fit in well with the hand-shading you've used on the windows and the wall.

The third point might just be because it still work-in-progress, but for the others I think you should go back and think about what you're trying to do with this screen. Start by consider the role in the game. In the original, having the long corridor was a way to build tension and to create a sense of grandeur. But in a fan-sequel, your players will already be familiar with the location. Unless you have something new to offer them or there's some puzzle that takes place there, there's really no point having them walk down that same long corridor for screen after screen once again.

Once you know what the screen is for, what effect you want to create and what actions will take place there, you can come up with the angle and the lighting that works best for your purposes. Maybe you'll want to use an effect like parallaxing to add depth?

In comparison, I think the first screen is fine. Again, though, I think you should create some variation in tone instead of having space be all black, the stars and portal all white, and the in-between gray.

[Sphinx317]

Snarky,

Thanks for the input.

All screens are 800x600...the corridor is I think triple the length without checking.  It will be a scrolling map similar to the first game.  The plan with the corridor is that it's basically an enhanced version of what was in the previous church...and unfortunately when I posted the picture here, it zoomed out so much that details aren't very easy to see...I promise there's a lot more shading than the picture leads on in the size uploaded.

The church is the ONLY scene that will resemble anything from the first loom...and I wanted to have the feel of the original in that regard.  There's an added tapestry hanging (the one that was damaged is now finished and a new one that's incomplete now hangs next to it)

I agree that there is a lot of grey, but my issue was that I didn't like the few textures I had dabbled with.  Granted that scene is nowhere near complete, the church picture is around revision #20 already.

I'll see if I can link a better version for everyone to get a better look at.  The truth is, the screen will be zoomed in enough that most of the walls won't really be seen...afterall, I didn't want to spend 20+ hours on something that wasn't going to be noticed in game.  (at least at this stage)

More to come so that I don't look like I did a terrible job...haha.

[Khris]

Looking good, but I'd also recommend switching to 320x2X0. The main (I'd say only) reason for using a high resolution is hiding the fact that the image is made of individual pixels. That's simply not necessary for your style of graphics.

You said yourself that it takes really long to get things done, and part of the reason is you using 6 times more pixels than necessary.

[Sphinx317]

Yeah, it takes a long time, but I like the fact that it's not so pixely...but I'll end up giving it a go with a couple other screens to see how I like it...regardless, thanks for the input, guys.  I welcome critical reviews...I'll defend myself, but I'm not going to get offended...afterall, that's why I'm here.  I'll have more to come in the coming weeks.  Sadly I can't transfer the 2400x600 pic correctly...it's always scaled down.

[Khris]

Put it on imgur.com and post just the link.

[Sphinx317]

Updates to come soon.  I've done screens in 16 and 32 color palettes as well as scaled back the project to 320x240 to make things easier.  My ambitious plans simply weren't doable on my own.  The past few months have been a lot more coding and story writing, since I felt there was no point in making screens without more concrete settings.  I look forward to hearing what everyone thinks of the different angle.