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What happens to a game sprite when she gets hooked on Crystal Meth, you ask?

                         

   Good call on the contrast, Krysis, but I think you aged her by about twenty years!  I'll see if I can work some rejuvinating magic while making the contrast more apparent.
   BTW I usually work with a hideous pink/purple background, as I figure it is a colour that I would never ever use in an actual sprite.  So far I've been right.....

OK, based on Yarooze's advice I've changed her body shape, exposed her chest, changed her hair & garb and added a bit of shading.  I think I'm on the right track, but I'm not sure if I'm satisfied yet.

                                     

This sprite is for this game I'm working on.  Miss Galactic needs rescuing just as Princess Leia did in Star Wars.  Like the princess, Miss Galactic is a rebel leader and she has been captured by imperial forces -I think for the purposes of my game she'll be held in some sort of Jello-stasis a la SQIII, but I haven't gotten that far yet.  She sadly won't have much of a personality as she will spend the bulk of the game in suspended animation, but I suppose she would have a fearful/pleading pose/expression just before she's frozen.  Essentially she only has to look like somebody worth rescuing.

Well, I've never posted in the Critics Lounge in the three years I've been a member, but I've seen you guys fix up a lot of art over the years.  Hopefully this will be another success story.


Here's Miss Galactic 2997.  I'm kinda locked into the cartoony outline style, and she can't get much taller or shorter, but otherwise she's fair game.  I've been fiddling with this character off and on for about a week and I just can't seem to get her right.  Her role in my game is the classic Maiden in Distress, so I want her to look the part completely.  She should have an emploring expression and a futuristic hair-style, and her body language should read "Help Me!"  Alas, my efforts to implement these requirements have hereto been futile, so I post here as an act of desperation.  Please -PLEASE!  Save the Princess!

The Erotic Adventures of 'B'.....
                                                              2x

.....Sorry, couldn't resist.

          Incidentally, I was very careful to use only eight colours, but when I converted it to a gif it said I had 11.  One of them is probably the transparency, and another might be the background colour that was cut out, but where's that other colour coming from?  (Just for future sprite jams where it might matter).

EDIT: Thanks Jim: based on your info I have determined that it's the tip of B's mustache that didn't get flood filled when I changed the shading :.  Guess I'll have to be more careful next time...

EDIT x2: Well, it would matter if say there was an 8 colour limit next time.  I would assume that to be 8 +background and/or transparency (which I didn't know before).  Perhaps a clear list of rules/instructions/conventions could be published at the beginning of each contest to make conforming to the established norms easier for first-time Jammers (a la MAGS or, to a lesser extent, Animation Competition)....

[Inchworms in hats]

Welcome to the Animation Competition of December 8-19, 2006.  Here are the rules:

A sprite is supplied, with a theme.
Participants must use the given sprite for their animation.
Each competition will last 11 days.
The starter of each competition will decide on the winner.

The winner, who will decide on the next competition's theme, must also supply a sprite.

The theme of this particular competition is: Inchworms in hats

Here is the sprite with a few sample hats.


You must animate the inchworm and he must wear a hat, or at least some form of headgear.  Further, the inchworm's actions must somehow reflect the personality that the hat represents.  You can create any hat or headwear -I just posted the samples to help pitch the rules, but feel free to use them if you are stumped for ideas.  Multiple inchworms interacting are of course acceptable!

The sprite is pretty simple to keep the competition open to all animation skill levels, but don't please think of its simplicity as a constraint.  We'll still consider it to be an inchworm if you sneak the occassional limb in (a la Worms Armaggedon).  Bonus points will be awarded for extra-creativity!

Have fun!

Wohoo! :o

I have to say that I thought KhrisMUC had me with the naturalism in his sprite's movements.  Congratulations to all who entered:  I saw a lot of creative ideas in this competition.  Hopefully the same will carry over to the next one (which will be started shortly).

BaRoN

Here's a walk-cycle etc. that I used for a game.  Hope it helps as a frame of reference.

  Suggestion duly noted.  I'll be frank: I'm not really seeing the improvement consistent resolution brings.  Couple that with the fact that changing it at this point would create even more work than finishing the project otherwise would, I have to say that I'm pretty comfortable with how it is now. 
   This has been quite an unexpected learning experience for me!   I will definitely focus more on resolution consistency in my next game.

Technically speaking we don't use Roger Wilco, as it's redundant. Saying ROGER means you understand, which in turn means you will comply. WILCO means WILl COmply, which in turn means that you understood.

Sorry for the OT.

  Wow, you really DO learn something new everyday!  I was just vaguely aware that both Roger and Wilco were military terms.  Since Roger Wilco is the name of the original intergalactic adventure game hero, I thought Charlie Foxtrot would be appropriate homage to those who went before me.  The misuse of Roger Wilco is something you'll definitely have to take up with Sierra or whoever controls their legacy.

  Thanks again for all the interest everyone has shown in this project.  I managed to animate another character today, proving that progress does [occassionally] happen. 

BaRoN

He he......yeah.  It's from back in my treeplanting days -I had this crewboss named Charlie and he called us Charlie's Foxtrots, mostly for his own personal amusement.  It was only afterwards that I discovered the military meaning of Charlie Foxtrot....  Of course, it's also a play on another military term, Roger Wilco.

EDIT: For anyone wondering wtf we're talking about see this

I would never have believed there were so many Pixel Purists out there!   

    I suppose a brief word on the resolution is in order.  At the very early stages of development everything was 320x200 but it was hard to see some details so I blew it up to 640x400, and I liked the feel of the general blockiness so I kept it.  At the same time I was having problems representing finer details and especially things farther away, so single pixel lines started sneaking into my backgrounds. 
    Beyond the arguments of necessity and the excuses of a young artist trying to find his stylistic calling, there is a more cerebral rationale for mixing and matching pixel sizes.  If you think about it, the wonky look of mixed resolutions fits in perfectly well with the zany atmosphere I'm trying to create: the two are mutually supportive  .  So consider it not an artistic slip-up but an affected irreverence.

    Thanks so much for the interest everyone has shown.  The work continues!

[CHARLIE FOXTROT]

     JUNE 18 2007:  THIS PROJECT NEEDS A MUSICIAN  -See latest post for details.

*       *          *        *        *         *          *        *         *         *          *         *         *          *          *         *

Well, it's that time of year again: the time of year where I start to feel guilty about not releasing anything for twelve whole months!  Unfortunately I won't have a finished game to release this year, but as I am increasingly optimistic about finally completing this project in the first couple months of '07 I think it's time to initiate a little marketing hype by starting a GiP thread.

Announcing:  CHARLIE FOXTROT, a game in progress.

Actually Charlie Foxtrot is an intrepid space adventurer -->
But I haven't come up with anything better to call the project, so it's named after him for now.

STORY: Charlie is a clone working for the Empire of Conformity.  Unfortunately his free-thinking ideals get him into trouble, so he flees to join up with the Intergalactic Rebellion Against Conformity.  The problem is they've gone underground, so Charlie must scour the galaxy to find them.  Once he does make contact with the rebellion he becomes a rebel agent on a mission to destroy the forces of conformity for ever!

CONCEPT: This game is conceived as a zany space adventure with a stong emphasis on parodying sci-fi as a genre.  Every effort has been made thus far to incorporate as many elements of sci-fi pop culture as possible without actually infringing on any intellectual property rights -at times I concede it's probably a pretty thin line I'm walking. 

SCREEN SHOTS:  First here's a picture of Charlie about to steal the Millenium Bug from a Conformist space station. 

This is Charlie wasting time in the scuzzy Burger Bar on the planet Aridis.
Here's an example of some of the animation in this scene -->

And now he's talking to Oxar the Grunge on the post-apocolyptic puppet world of Marf. 

STYLE:  The artistic style of this game is intentionally retro-blocky while attempting to keep a high level of detail for visual appeal and game immersion.  Every blocky character and many objects are animated to give the game an energetic feeling like that found in very old cartoons.  Needless to say this has delayed progress more than I would have liked, but I think the final product will be worth it.

PROGRESS:  Ah yes....  I'm never very good at this part (I misjudged the completion date of my last game by over a year....).  So take this all with a grain of salt:

             BACKGROUNDS:  57/57      }
             ANIMATIONS:       100%        }
             PLOT:                   100%        }-Last Updated April 29 2007
             SCRIPTING:          98%       }
             MUSIC:                 2%        }

  I hope to update thread on a weekly basis to show continuing progress.  If you see me slacking off please heckle me either in the thread or through PMing in order to keep me on task.  Questions, comments and encouragement are also welcome.

DEVELOPMENT UPDATES:

Minus sounds and music......
ACT 1: polished to release standards (March 6 2007)
ACT 2: polished to release standards (November 2006)
ACT 3: polished to release standards (March 22 2007)
ACT 4: polished to release standards (April 16 2007)
ACT 5: polished to release standards (April 29 2007)

December 2006 -Yeah, this was pretty much a write-off....
January 2-12:  I have done two rooms and all the associated animations and interactions!  Also, I have two more backgrounds in various stages of completion, and I've done another walk-cycle!
January 13-15: Another background and a simple animation.
January 16-19: Stupid tech issues with laptop -no discernable progress.
January 20-21: A complex animation completes the interactions for a new room!
Late January 21: Another background and room objects drawn & animated.
January 23 : futuristic vehicle designed and latest room fully scripted.
January 30 : two more rooms added with animations -we're getting there!
February 9 2007: Another two rooms, four characters designed (& two of them animated).
February 11 - Feb 27: Kinda got distracted by a side project  :
February 28 2007: Back on task with a walk-cycle!
March 2 2007: Two idle animations and two rooms worth of interactions polished off.
March 4 2007: A walk cycle, a conversation, and another room of witty interactions.
March 6 2007: Hooray for snow-days!  I have debugged and polished every single interaction in Act 1 (of five).
March 10 2007: Sheesh polishing takes a long time...  Anyway, interactions for half of Act 3 done, and a puzzle had to be reworked for plot reasons.
March 18 2007: Well it was a really busy week at work, but I've had time to work on the game most of the weekend and have polished 99% of Act 3 -two more acts to go!
March 19 2007: I created a background, but expanded the game design by two additional rooms  : 
March 21 2007 : created three characters and three awesome animations!
March 23 2007 : New room +scripting, and new object graphics for a puzzle.
March 27 2007 : New room, 2 animations and a bunch of scripting for two puzzles.
March 29 2007 : Killer new animation 
March 31 2007: New background, two animations, some interactions.
April 10 2007: Significant animation and coding progress -> I expect a Beta Version is possible within the week!
April 12 2007: Two new animations and more coding ->Act IV is quickly nearing completion!
April 16 2007: Act IV complete!!!!  Only two more rooms to go (+ a bit of coding).
April 17 2007: Second last background done - one more to go!!!
April 18 2007: All animations for second last room done.
April 23 2007: Last background & a new animation completed.
April 24 2007: I drew fifty sprites today for the climax animation of the game!
April 25 2007: Half of the final scene is scripted (more drawing required....).
April 29 2007: I've finished Act V !  Let the Beta Testing Begin!

The little one must eventually fly the nest.....
                                                                                                     2x.

What would you charge to ship outside the U.S.?

EDIT: Yeah, reading it over I see that he will ship anywhere.  I just looked at the Ship To graph of costs at the bottom of the page, which only includes the U.S.

So, where do we send a check to again?

I think CJ and Quintaros are both right:  the venue should be booked sooner rather than later, but the sign up deadline can be comfortably pushed back to the beginning of spring.  It would be nice to have a definite number of attendees as well as some cash in hand before booking, but realistically this is not going to happen.  At least, not before all the best places are already booked.  I think if we establish a ceiling of accommodation/food costs per person (say $200 CND for the week?) and estimate a minimum of 20 attendees, then we can plan on having $4000 to spend.  If there are more attendees, as is likely, then the cost will come down, or we'll be able to provide more elaborate services (transportation, group entry fees for attractions, matching team jerseys, booze..... etc.).
     Now is, however, definitely the time to book, as venues disappear quickly in the spring time.  We should assemble a short list of advertised cottages and start making enquiries ASAP.  Do you want me to organize this?

BaRoN

While sitting down and forcing yourself to be inspired does work for me -eventually - it does so often at the expense of the joy that making AGS games otherwise brings me.  Booze helps, although I've never tried that ping pong ball thing.....  It is not that I encourage anyone to become an alcoholic, but the decrease in inhibition and intrinsic fun of drinking by itself make it hard to argue against as a motivating factor.
    What I find works best for inspiration is intentionally ignoring the project.  I keep myself relatively busy with work/school/sports/ travel/camping/gardening etc., and inspiration strikes at the strangest times.  Then I can't wait to implement that inspiration in my game, but being busy keeps me from it.  The longer I spend from the game, the more eager I become to work on it, until at last there is a spare moment and I'm in peak form both inspirationally and motivationally. 
     Other things that work:  Don't overdo it all at once.  I know the feeling when you're on fire and you're making real headway -it's awesome!  But then there's the crash afterwards and you can't even bear to think of sitting down at the project again for a week.  Little bits add up quickly if you're consistent.   I find that in general if I work on my game for an hour first thing in the morning or between 9-11pm at night I'm at my best, but I'm sure it's different for different people.  I'd recommend experimenting with different work habits -shake the boat, so to speak -and see what happens.

Congrats to all the winners.  I'll get you next time -Y'AR!!!!!

Funny thing -my girlfriend is in an upcoming play and I haven't seen her for days either.  The really funny thing is that we live together.....  But enough about the domestic situation: admire the result of free time!

Looking very purple....I mean good!  Well, I also mean purple.
That crazy robot thingy looks like one of Baxter Stockman's mechanical bi-ped mousetraps from the beginning of the original Ninja Turtles cartoon series.  An influence on your work, by chance?
Keep working on the game -look forward to seeing the finished product.

 :o   I think you should expand on your character's nighty by about eight to twelve inches to mitigate that whole X-rated stigma that your game seems to be sliding into!  But then again this isn't the C&C lounge.....

      ....although maybe it shoud be?

       You can't seriously expect to sell AGS kitsch in any volume.  I'm looking at a market of 3427 as I'm writing this, and I've got a funny feeling that only a very, very small proportion of us would spend $10/Euros/pounds, especially when at least 50% of that will be shipping (as for a mug) -which, incidentally, does not leave a large profit margin after cost. 
      The alternative is to jack up the price, but that would shrink the market to roughly the same pool of people who would spend 100s to come to Mittens anyway.  Although, it would be nice to have a commemorative T-shirt of M'07: The Canadventure!  Hmmmmmm......
      Perhaps if you mass produce something cheap but with high symbolic value; something easy to ship and infinitely adaptable....  I like the patch idea: it can go on your clothes, your baggage, your pillow, your.... blow up doll........   I'm sure if you had a run of several thousand the price would be negligible per unit, and you'd probably be able to sell them all over the course of the next decade for a fairly healthy profit.

      Since it might support something to do with AGS, I'd pay $6-10 CND for a well designed patch.