My Pixel Thread

jaz · Tue 21/09/2004 18:35:13

Hi,

I should be working on MIA now, I know... and I am (don't worry, Foz) and I hope to bring you something MIA-related soon.

But for now, let me show you something different. It's not adventure related but still I would appreciate your feedback.

I was asked to do graphics for a mobile phone game (Moon Patrol remake)and I accepted. Yes, it's paid.

Now, I have no experience in pixel art but I gave it a try:

Original size

2x

It is not yet finished, sky could use some shading, the vehicle too and there are no enemies yet but what do you think? Would you like to play a game looking like this on your phone? Is there anything wrong with the picture?

Tear it apart, please, it' s going to be (hopefuly) a commercial product.

jaz

EDIT: New splash on the second page.

EDIT EDIT: more updates on second page

Mr Jake · Tue 21/09/2004 18:37:22

yup, its better than the original game, which was also uber. I think they look good.

BlackMan890 · Tue 21/09/2004 18:46:26

what program are going to use to crate this game? becvause i would really like to create my own game for my phone

jaz · Tue 21/09/2004 18:55:05

It's going to be a mobile java (J2ME) game. This probably requires quite a profound knowledge of coding but hey, I am just graphics artist. It will probably take some time untill someone makes AGS like tool for mobile phones users.

BlackMan890 · Tue 21/09/2004 19:05:39

because i thought of making an adventuregame in mobile phone, now that would Kick Ass

Privateer Puddin' · Tue 21/09/2004 19:07:19

While it is a cool feature, it can get quite annoying, blackman.

stu · Tue 21/09/2004 19:11:39

Quote from: blackman890 on Tue 21/09/2004 19:05:39
because i thought of making an adventuregame in mobile phone, now that would Kick Ass

no, that would suck.

i personally have no beefs about the graphics you've made.. i might try and add to it later.
good luck and all with this game going commercial.

BlackMan890 · Tue 21/09/2004 19:16:14

Quote from: stu on Tue 21/09/2004 19:11:39
Quote from: blackman890 on Tue 21/09/2004 19:05:39
because i thought of making an adventuregame in mobile phone, now that would Kick Ass

no, that would suck.

yeah you are propaply right :/

Privateer Puddin' · Tue 21/09/2004 19:19:56

(sorry to continue the offtopic bit

) it doesn't 'suck'

i have scummvm on my phone, with sam n max, foa, mi1 / 2 and dott and for bus journeys, it's crazy fun, for any longer (like, trying to finish a game in on sitting) it's not so good.

Mr Jake · Tue 21/09/2004 19:20:23

Quote from: stu on Tue 21/09/2004 19:11:39
good luck and all with this game going commercial.

why? he gets payed even if it doesnt sell well

Darth Mandarb · Tue 21/09/2004 19:29:04

Hah! I used to love that game way back in the day!!

It's a (basically) mindless game that is perfectly suited for mobile gaming on a cell phone!

Who commissioned you to do this if you don't mind me asking? I mean, since you've got no pixel experience ... was it a friend or something? (just being nosey cause I'd love to be involved with stuff like that)

The screen looks pretty good to me. I would try to throw a real subtle gradient to the skyline.

What are the specs on something like this?

Is 128x128 the resolution of cell screens? What color depth? How much freedom (animation) do you have?

[/questions]

jaz01 · Tue 21/09/2004 21:19:00

Well,i just had this idea that it could be a cool mobile game.So i made a barebone version of gfx and posted it on gamemaking site.I asked if someone could code it.As freeware.Well,i was contacted and offered this job.That's it.

jaz · Wed 22/09/2004 11:21:09

As for resolution, 128 x 128 happens to be resolution of Nokia Series 40 cellphones which are most common colour screen mobile handsets. These phones work with 4096 colours. The game will be probably ported to other phones as well (Siemens, Motorola) which have different display size so some tweaks are in order. Some devices work with 256 colour palette only thus I'm trying to keep number of colours down. Most mobile java games are up to 100kB due to limitations of certain handsets so I am also restricted to 40kB limit for all the GFX. As for animations there will be some minor background ones (flag wawing etc.) but not much. The vehicle and aliens will be fully animated as in Moon Patrol. No paralax scrolling tho, it would be too a tough job for mobile java so far.

Blackman: there is a mobile adventure game on the market already, don't know the exact name but it's based on X-Files .

jaz · Mon 04/10/2004 14:15:26

Well, some update, I would like to hear some CnC:

Emamples of explosions:

Nev vehicle design plus some enemies:

Splash screen (still very much work in progress)

What do you think? Be harsh as customers will be for sure...

James Kay · Mon 04/10/2004 16:20:23

Nice!

Explosion is from Pyromania, right? The standard video game explosion.

Too much black. Why not use rastering as an alternative to alpha? If, say, 255 pink is your transparency, do a 1 pixel grid on the blackest parts to make it seem transparent.

I like the vehicle of your splash screen much better than the in-game one.

Also, will this game be for 1 specific mobile phone? If so, you should experiment with sub-pixel anti-aliasing for extra sharpness. Things like the splash screen can defenitely benefit from that (though it'll be difficult if you're painting it pixel by pixel).

Don't listen to me though - it's very nice stuff. My only real criticism would be the moon surface. It's okay, but not as nice as the mountains in the background; like it's a different style. Too much obvious tiling, but when it scrolls that would be less visible, I guess.

Gilbert · Wed 06/10/2004 09:36:30

Really nice, I played moon patrol on Apple 2 and I loved it. The only thing that I'm concerned about was: would the game be rendered much more difficult after the car was redrawn to be THAT big?

Pft! · Wed 06/10/2004 10:29:17

Good work here. 8)

BlackMan890 · Wed 06/10/2004 15:09:57

the first one:
i don't like the black outlines on the explosions, also the explosion in the air is a little weird

the second one
humm the car was a little small just befour but now it is to big
but i like the alien ships
also i find the tires like flying in the air, they are hardly touching the ground

the third one:
dammn i love this one

now some advice
add something in the sky:
*maybe a galaxy
*the earth
*a metor
*or a gas cloud

MrColossal · Thu 07/10/2004 02:39:09

I strongly recommend darkening the mountains because at the moment I can barely see the pit that the bombs will make and the moon car will have to jump over, which as we all know is the point of the game.

I loved moon patrol on the commodore, it was the epitome of "OH MAN! I coulda made it... Just one more game!!" for hours and hours

Gilbert · Thu 07/10/2004 02:51:20

Quote from: MrColossal on Thu 07/10/2004 02:39:09
I strongly recommend darkening the mountains because at the moment I can barely see the pit that the bombs will make and the moon car will have to jump over, which as we all know is the point of the game.

And lightening the rocks/land perhaps, though they may look better with the current dark colour, making them a brighter colour may help in visualising them.

My Pixel Thread

jaz01