Some BGs for Criticism

Started by IndieBoy, Wed 02/07/2008 00:27:21

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IndieBoy

Well I have never been that great at backgrounds. I just either make them too complicated and spend forever adding detail, or I make them too simple and you don't understand what is going on. Also I have trouble matching up a background style with my character style.
So basically I want is some feedback on my style and are these Backgrounds usable/playable in an Adventure game.


This was going to be in a game that I posted help for last time in the CL forum. Basically I spent ages working on it, so much I that I gave up. I used perspective, but bent it a little. A little experiment which I think I pulled off. My aim was to show that is was a large city and that the space it took up seemed powerful and intense.

This was going to be for Sylvr and I's OROW entry which is uncompleted. This would be the loading screen and cut screen image. This is my most recent Background. I am not happy with the shading and making sure that the eye focuses on the tree.

Basically I wanted to show both sides, Simple and complex, and to get an opinion on which I should work on towards. All I am really asking is what would look good in a game and what would be my style. I am also working on another project "Whale's Quest" which you can see some screens of in my blog, but the backgrounds are just a gradient of blue so it isn't much to comment on, or worthy of adding to the post. Although if you would like to give feedback on that too it would be welcome.

Still I would like any feedback that is possible, good or bad. I am just looking to improve ;D
Quote from: Calin Elephantsittingonface on Tue 08/02/2011 09:00:55
The only person in favour of the mobs seems to be IndieBoy.. but he's scottish so we dont listen to him anyway.

Matti

#1
1st backgound:

Looks good. It isn't really a useful view but it could be, if most of those buildings could be entered by the character or if it would be a cutscene. But I think the street is taking away too much space. You should either make the sidewalk larger or add a pedestrian refuge island. And try to make the buildings look a bit different (not only in terms of color).

But if it really takes you "forever" to make such a background than it's probably not the right thing for you.

2nd background:

It's a bit too simple for my taste, especially the trees green area (is it called leaf?). Some shading and some more colors would help. But since it's only a cutscene image I can't say if you should use that in your game. You should show us an in-game background in that style.

SSH

Not a very helpful comment, but I think they both rock!
12

scotch

First one does work for me. Once the other buildings are detailed like the nearest and there is some street detail it'll look good, the fisheye style is fine. Feels like the city goes on forever, and actually the empty streets make it kind of eerie, could be a good thing if you are going for that.

The second looks more odd to me because the bands of light coming out of the sun radially suggest that it's a lamp hovering over the horizon. In a landscape, when the colour of the ground changes with distance it's generally due to fogging, which means colours get less vibrant, whereas you have the opposite. I like the cutout style of the tree, if you want it to be a more interesting focal point you could add some more details and volume on it, trying to maintain the original feel. When you have strong bands of colour in an image they can be broken up in a way that suggests the texture, could work on the ground. Anyway here are some of those ideas in practice.

bicilotti

They're very odd and likeable. I expecially am fascinated by the second one... Let us know of further progress!

IndieBoy

Hey thank you all for you comments. I have noticed them, just I would of liked to have an update to show you but I haven't had much time the last few days.

Quote from: matti on Wed 02/07/2008 00:55:10
1st backgound:

Looks good. It isn't really a useful view but it could be, if most of those buildings could be entered by the character or if it would be a cutscene. But I think the street is taking away too much space. You should either make the sidewalk larger or add a pedestrian refuge island. And try to make the buildings look a bit different (not only in terms of color).
Well this wasn't going to be a place of a lot of interactivity. Basically a "map" room, to get you A to B, only the first 3 buildings were going to be accessed by the player. Also I was going to scale the character when it walked further up the path. However thank you, before I didn't realise how much space that road took up.  I may put in a pedestrian island or crossing to break it up a little. And I was going to add some more detail in the buildings and a little more character but that is what was taking so long.
Quote from: matti on Wed 02/07/2008 00:55:10
2nd background:

It's a bit too simple for my taste, especially the trees green area (is it called leaf?). Some shading and some more colors would help. But since it's only a cutscene image I can't say if you should use that in your game. You should show us an in-game background in that style.
Yeah well it was all mostly really simple plain colours and this seemed the most finished out of the lot. Although I see what you mean about adding some depth.

Quote from: scotch on Thu 03/07/2008 20:18:18
First one does work for me. Once the other buildings are detailed like the nearest and there is some street detail it'll look good, the fisheye style is fine. Feels like the city goes on forever, and actually the empty streets make it kind of eerie, could be a good thing if you are going for that.
Yeah well I want the city to give the impression that a lot of things are going on else where. But I wasn't aiming for an eerie atmosphere. Maybe I should add more detail as in structures or cars etc to fill the background up a little.

Quote from: scotch on Thu 03/07/2008 20:18:18
The second looks more odd to me because the bands of light coming out of the sun radially suggest that it's a lamp hovering over the horizon. In a landscape, when the colour of the ground changes with distance it's generally due to fogging, which means colours get less vibrant, whereas you have the opposite. I like the cutout style of the tree, if you want it to be a more interesting focal point you could add some more details and volume on it, trying to maintain the original feel. When you have strong bands of colour in an image they can be broken up in a way that suggests the texture, could work on the ground. Anyway here are some of those ideas in practice.
Thank you for this in depth analysis. I have trouble with shading: when it is necessary or not, how bright or how much contrast, defining shape. Originally everything wasn't shaded in this background, but I wanted to add another shade to the clouds which lead to the grass. And well I wasn't happy with the shading on the grass anyway. Thank you a million for your paint over. I love the shading on the tree and your adjustment of the overall colour. However this was going to be the kind of title screen and intro/outro cutscene background so I don't want to make it too complicated.

I must say thank you for your kind words SSH and Bicilotti.

I will put up an update eventually, but I think I need some practise on some other backgrounds, or finish WQ. Still my question is still out there, which do you prefere? Although I believe that my simple style is too simple  :P
Quote from: Calin Elephantsittingonface on Tue 08/02/2011 09:00:55
The only person in favour of the mobs seems to be IndieBoy.. but he's scottish so we dont listen to him anyway.

Paper Carnival

Well, this is only an extremely fast edit, I know it looks weird.


But I'm sure you'll understand my suggestion. Fixing the new pavement and the building lines (so it doesn't look like a rectangle drawn in MS Paint) would help.

The road was too wide in proportion to the buildings.

yarooze

The first one looks very nice. (only unfinished)  ;)

I think it will be better, if you round the doors and windows to. Your picture is not really fisheye, it is only a bit bended and it looks nice enough. But if you start, to bend a house - you have to bend it completely.  ;)

It is also important to make all the curves logical: ether all the same or the same progression. (dunno how to explain this  ??? but I hope you understand me)

The fish eye perspective is much the same like normal perspective, but you use curves instead of lines.
http://www.adobe.com/designcenter/tutorials/phscs2at_presetimgwrap/image/phscs2at_presetimgwarp_11.jpg
As you see, the horizontal lines are curves to.

But it isn't necessary to bend all the stuff (for example here are only horizontal lines bended):
http://www.adobe.com/designcenter/tutorials/phscs2at_presetimgwrap/image/phscs2at_presetimgwarp_5.jpg


try to google for fisheye:
http://images.google.de/images?um=1&hl=de&lr=lang_de&client=opera&rls=de&q=fisheye+perspective&btnG=Bilder-Suche
My Blog

Andail

There's nothing in the original background suggesting a fisheye perspective.
A fisheye perspective typically compresses the visual field to include a larger scope of it, in the same time rendering the peripheral objects smaller.

In the background here, we simply see a long street in a typical one point perspective, only that it's slightly bent.

yarooze

Quote from: Andail on Mon 07/07/2008 12:12:45There's nothing in the original background suggesting a fisheye perspective...
that's what I said.

but there are some similarities with it, that can be used. (IMHO)

My Blog

IndieBoy

#10
Gentlemen, I wasn't going for a "fish-eye" look. Just I wanted to try and bend a few lines to give it character. Although saying that google has shown me some nice pictures of streets taken with a fish-eye lens. Still I think it would ovr complicate things. Still no update yet, maybe later tonight...

@Paper Carnival:
Thank you for you suggestion, however I don't like how the buildings would be going through the camera/viewer, also it takes up a lot of room. I would rather still see both sides of the street. I am presently adding a little crossing to use up some of the space.

@yarooze:
I don't totally understand what do you mean by bending the windows and doors. I have already kind of bent them. Just I kept all the x-axis lines straight and just bent the y-axis and z-axis a little. Originally it was just bent on the z-axis to show there was more of a hill. But I felt that I should ad a little more character to the rest of the buildings. Giving the idea that they are "resting" on a slope.

I am starting to regret the bending of the lines as it is over complicating a background. Maybe I should make a straight line one point perspective version. 
Quote from: Calin Elephantsittingonface on Tue 08/02/2011 09:00:55
The only person in favour of the mobs seems to be IndieBoy.. but he's scottish so we dont listen to him anyway.

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