Background Blitz: Scale

[Jack]

SCALE

Make a background that brings across a feeling of unusual scale. Go microscopic, go big, or get creative, like applying the scale to your style as lots of detail, or very little.

Deadline: 20 February 2020.
Voting closes: 28 February 2020.
Results announced

Voting:

Concept: your background should tell us something about the place you have depicted.
Playability: does it have clearly defined walkable areas, things to interact with, etc?
Artistic Execution: does the image convey the wanted atmosphere? What's the feeling of the place?

Entries:

jwalt:


Racoon:


lorenzo:


stylez75:
[imgzoom]https://i.postimg.cc/pXw35VjL/Simms-Upload.jpg[/imgzoom]

blur:

Results:

1st Place: Racoon
2nd Place: lorenzo
3rd Place: stylez75

Trophies:

                     

[jwalt]

Edit 1: After posting an initial image, I realized I had a smoothing problem with the plane. Fixed it. Try this one:



Original below:


Had a free Saturday to mess with this. Found a picture of a vehicle scale at a Kansas landfill. Also, to work in another play on the scale topic, I dumped a pedal airplane on the "flight deck."



Probably not going to work any more on this. I might try to figure out an odd coloration near one of the arms to the scale pad, the center one. Green color bleeding all over the place around the thing. Found out it was the Bryce texture I used. May play with other textures, if I can find time.

Modeled in Anim8or, and rendered in Bryce.

Edit 2:

Got to thinking you folks might like to see the photo I was working from:

https://www.chanute.org/ImageRepository/Document?documentID=5472

[lorenzo]

A very interesting theme, although not the easiest. Hopefully, I'll get a good idea for a background!

[Racoon]

Here is my Snailhouse 

[cat]

This is lovely, Racoon!

[Racoon]

Thanks! I am really happy how my entry turned out this time too
Jwalt you did a good job on the countryhouse and plane too. Building in 3D is something that I really admire, because it seems so complicated to me.

[Jack]

Cool entries so far.

Bryce

Now there's a name I haven't heard in a long time. It was so easy to make geological backgrounds with it, but I could never make anything more out of them.

[blur]

I have a problem with the subject of this competition, as all my petty ideas so far involved animate objects to transport the sense of scale, like animals or persons which obviously should not be part of the background scenery.
To add to this in the inspirational images in the first post I can only mostly see unidentifyable coloured blobs and the second image also depicts human beings.  Hrmph

[Jack]

7 days left to make something fantastic.

I have a problem with the subject of this competition, as all my petty ideas so far involved animate objects to transport the sense of scale, like animals or persons which obviously should not be part of the background scenery.

I used to do this same thing. It's a skill all its own to make a background speak for itself.

This theme doesn't have to be about something strange. I see a small hut standing in front of the big wide ocean.

[Racoon]

Hey blur, I am looking forward to your entry If you need some ideas you could describe what kind of scene you want to draw and maybe we can help out. I personally would also not mind if you add people or animals (I´ve been guilty of both, lol), since it gives a better feeling about how the game would look like.

[lorenzo]

My entry:



I actually started drawing an entirely different entry, but I decided to scrap it because there wasn't much to look at outside of the characters. I left it unfinished, but I think it fits the theme:

Spoiler

[close]

[TheManInBoots]

Wow, lorenzo, did you draw that yourself?

[Matti]

Very nice background!

[stylez75]

For what it's worth.. Here is mine.

[imgzoom]https://i.postimg.cc/pXw35VjL/Simms-Upload.jpg[/imgzoom]

[Jack]

Great, lorenzo, as usual.

For what it's worth.. Here is mine.

Is it very small? Would fit the theme

Edit: Ah, I see it now. Very nice. Reminds me of Space Quest.

[lorenzo]

Thanks, everybody!

Wow, lorenzo, did you draw that yourself?

Yes Well, most shapes are boxes, so it wasn't too complicated.
Also, I looked at reference photos of medieval towns for the buildings.

--

I can see stylez75's background now! Cool setting, it reminds me of the first Space Quest!

[Jack]

The deadline has passed, and the entries have been added to the first post. Voting can now begin.

If someone is still working on something, it can still be added to the list. But sooner is better than later.

[blur]

[imgzoom]https://files.catbox.moe/cpsohr.png[/imgzoom]
Hope it is not too late.

[Jack]

Not at all.

Added.

[blur]

Concept: stylez75.
Playability: Racoon.
Artistic Execution: Lorenzo.

[cat]

Concept: Racoon
Playability: Racoon
Artistic Execution: Lorenzo, with Racoon as a close second

[Jack]

Concept: Racoon
Playability: Racoon
Artistic Execution: Lorenzo

[Ess2s2]

Concept: Blur - Multiple senses of scale gave this one a clever feel, but the lack of detail kept it from really sucking me in. Even some scattered stars in the backdrop or some further detail on the moon or floor would have improved the overall picture. Great concept, but left me wanting more, particularly with the level of detail given the earth.
Playability: Stylez75 - The layout and art style instantly transported me to an old x86-era adventure game, and I could see a fun scene where you had to get from the station to the rover on the cliff, and your sprite was only a couple pixels. Made me smile.
Artistic Execution: Racoon - The art style was perfect for the scene, and only didn't also take playability due to the very compact feel (and thus few walkable areas). The feel of the scene is wonderfully tiny and quaint, and the finer details such as smoke from the chimney and clothes on the line that really bring it alive and give it a life the other entries lack.

Great entries from everyone all around!

[jwalt]

Concept: Lorenzo
Playability: Racoon, with stylez75 a close second.
Artistic Execution: Racoon

[Kastchey]

Concept: blur - it's a clever concept that fits the theme well. Also, really nostalgic!
Playability: Stylez75 - looks right out of an 80s Sierra game
Artistic Execution: lorenzo - because of the lovely play of B&W (not that it's anything new with lorenzo, but it never ceases to impress me!)

[Creamy]

Concept: jwalt
Playability: stylez75
Artistic Execution: Racoon

[lorenzo]

Concept: blur. This background has a fantastic sense of scale. It could use a few more details in some areas, but it really gives you the idea you're in space and the vastness of it.

Playability: Racoon. This background is really fitting for an adventure game: lots of things to interact with, clear walkable areas.

Artist Execution: Racoon. It makes me want to explore the rest of the game world and see what other strange things it contains.

[Racoon]

Concept: stylez75 (there is a lot you can intpret in that background)
Playability: jwalt (clear arrangement)
Artistic Execution: lorenzo (I do like your art alot ! Your first image with the leaf also looked really nice, but with both backgrounds I can´t really imagine how they would be used in a game)

And cheers to blur for entering! Nice, that blue cup looks kind of lonely though

[Jack]

Voting has closed and results have been announced in the first post.

Congratulations!

[lorenzo]

Congratulations Racoon!

And thank you, Jack, for the trophy!