Feedback on BG Blitz entry

[Babar]

Hello friends!

So I did an entry for a recent BG Blitz, and in my usual way, I was deeply unsatisfied with it. So I worked some more on it, and am still deeply unsatisfied with it  .
[imgzoom]https://i.imgur.com/gyCXaYD.png[/imgzoom]

The idea was to use the rules to make something relating to one of the required screens in a game I've been working on for far too long. It would be one of the first screens in the game, an entrance to a "castle" the player would be spending most of the game in. My initial idea for the screen was to have a scrolling screen, where the player could walk along the side of the castle(shown in the lower left here), and come across a blank wall, a grating, and a decorative birdbath/bowl thing. I decided while working on the BG Blitz to separate that into a separate screen. The only really important part of this BG would be the pedestal with the writing, the door, and the fact that you'd have access to the roof that would overlook this BG from above, but I feel the ominous and oppressive atmosphere (harsh skyline, spooky tower in the distance) added to it.

But all that is design considerations for the BG to give you an idea where I was coming from, and not technical and artistic problems with my current implementation.

Some issues I had with my work that hopefully you can help me with:

• I wasn't the biggest fan of the original palette required by the Blitz, and I definitely utilised it badly. My final game might have the same "lineart", but probably not the same palette. Still any feedback on better implementations on this palette, or a general palette for a medievalish eastern european/turkic castle palette would be appreciated (just note, this would be one of the very few outdoor BGs in the game). You can see some changes I made from my original attempt (door was green, now it is purple), that I'm not sure worked well.
• Level of details in the BG- this is somewhat tied to the limited palette and how I'd deal with it, but I wouldn't mind a limited palette (and feel it would add to the game) if I could make it work. Between the entry for the Blitz and the update here, I had the idea to add more detail to the stonework, as well as maybe gargoyles or statues along the edges, and an archway over the door, but it just didn't seem to work so I settled for more minor changes. Also considered a foreground tree on the right, but I felt that would obscure the entrance to the BG the skyline, so I settled (unsuccessfully?) on a bush.

Spoiler

[imgzoom]https://i.imgur.com/njlRIYY.png[/imgzoom] [imgzoom]https://i.imgur.com/nqDrCl0.png[/imgzoom]

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Also, any other help would also of course be appreciated!

[eri0o]

I don't like the composition.

I don't like the walkable area to be in a too small area on the right, and more than a third of screen with only wall makes it a bit claustrophobic, which should not be the case since the actual character would be in an open area.

It's all about feelings, is this place friendly to the player character, threatening, mysterious, ... ? What are the feelings you want to express?

Without additional information it's hard to judge the background.

[Babar]

Oh, it's definitely not friendly. As I said, I was going for an oppressive, ominous, stark atmosphere. The player is at an unfriendly place with antagonistic intentions.
But you feel the walkable area is too small? How come? Imagine a player about 2/3rds of the height of the door, coming in from the right. The width of the walkable area would be the width of the highlighted path (plus a little more).

[blur]

The pedestal could be more prominent by reaching to or above the horizon, which would be somewhat lower.[imgzoom]https://files.catbox.moe/ew9rui.png[/imgzoom]

[Babar]

The pedestal could be more prominent by reaching to or above the horizon, which would be somewhat lower.

Thanks for the suggestion! You're right, it's super-effective at making it more prominent.

[imgzoom]https://i.imgur.com/aIR1RvA.png[/imgzoom]
I didn't want to have to redo all the brickwork in the new perspective, so I sort of just made the pedestal bigger, and more like a milestone/gravestone. But I think I did achieve the intended effect!