THE SCREENSHOT TOPIC RETURNS

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LockeZ
I'd really like to get rid of LockeZ. His play style is way too unpredictable. He's always like this too. If he ran a country, he'd just kill and imprison people at random until crime stopped.
5958
author=TDS
Also I only work in VX/RGSS2.


weep
What are you trying to do, LockeZ? I love the tedium of making menus and custom systems in rm2k3, I just lack graphical skills. I might be able to help.
LockeZ
I'd really like to get rid of LockeZ. His play style is way too unpredictable. He's always like this too. If he ran a country, he'd just kill and imprison people at random until crime stopped.
5958
Well I'm using XP, not 2K3, so it would be all scripting. What I need is a battle menu that displays the relevant information for my game in a better format than "2-3 line help bar for each skill" and "plain white text in the corner at all times to tell you the current law", and has more of a modern/grunge look instead of just a... recolored default interface look.

Part of the problem is I don't really have a clear idea of how I want it to look. If I can get something usable to coagulate inside my head, I will likely post a mock-up in this topic, and subsequently start begging people to do the work for me via every available channel of communication because I have more in common with lazy hobos than I do with game designers
If you make a mock up example in paint with some test graphics I bet it will get some ideas flowing. Once you get a little work in, I'm sure you would find someone to help you.

Edit: Might as well add a screenshot!

The RTP trees really don't fit with the other two plants.
Also, it's very samey. You need to cut down the number of plants in favor of other doodads (rocks, crevasses, logs, etc) or just more plant variety.
Yeah, I agree with Dyhalto, as well, Demicrusaius, those plants really stand out and don't blend in well with the map! I would either get rid of them, or find something else to replace them. Other than that, looks not to shabby. :D
Those RTP trees are also Treants and some of them attack you. As for the other plants, I was trying to give this area a jungle feel. How do you think I could better accomplish that?
Exotic plants and lots of foliage, but there has to be a wide variety. Even just color change edits.

When I think jungle I don't think cliffs, though. I think more of really tall trees, maybe have some kind of canopy graphics covering most of the map to give that appearance. Usually jungles are crowded places.
LockeZ
I'd really like to get rid of LockeZ. His play style is way too unpredictable. He's always like this too. If he ran a country, he'd just kill and imprison people at random until crime stopped.
5958
Jungles really have as many cliffs as any other type of forest, so that's fine. But the major defining feature of a jungle (aside from being tropical) is that it's extremely crowded with a huge variety of plant life.

Some types of jungles from google image search:



Ferns would help a lot, as would any sort of big leafy plant. Try to find as many varieties of plants as you can. Small flowers, tiny sprouts, whatever. Vines on the cliffs would help a lot; maybe on the ground too. If you can find a sprite of a big tree that has vines or moss covering the trunk, that'd work a little better than the little trees you're using. Maybe have some dirt areas with moss partially covering them, instead of grass everywhere - grass is actually pretty rare in forests and jungles, since most of the ground is covered in small plants (like poison ivy).
I would include a canopy of leaves overlay rather than a fog, since jungles tend to have some very tall trees that give them an enclosed feeling.

As LockeZ said, lots of little plant details would also help.
Thanks for the advice! The fog is magical to discourage travelors, but a canopy is still feasible. I added ferns and there are already drooping vines (top left corner, I drew them myself) I want to add twisty trees with more vines, a canopy, mossy vines, and more leaves. Any canopy suggestions?
LockeZ
I'd really like to get rid of LockeZ. His play style is way too unpredictable. He's always like this too. If he ran a country, he'd just kill and imprison people at random until crime stopped.
5958
Though arguably overused, I have always liked the Mac and Blue canopy (your larger tree in that screenshot is from Mac and Blue so hopefully you know what I'm talking about). It even has vines that hang from it, as a nice bonus, so it can easily look pretty jungley. (Jungly? Junglesome?)

See if you can find some Secret of Evermore tiles. This jungle map from SoE has a lot of nice plant growth (though I'm not sure I'm a fan of how it uses thick brush as the only barriers in the whole area). If nothing else you could extract some of the plants from that screenshot manually.


Here is a work in progress of the jungle. I took your advice. Still no canopy, trying to avoid it if I can.



This is a before-middle-current version of the area. The first screen is a joke, back when I wanted to make as much as possible and didn't focus on quality. The middle is from the revamp and rewrites I did five years ago and the last one is it's current state. There is still work that needs to be done to this area...
arcan
Having a signature is too mainstream. I'm not part of your system!
1866
Still doesn't look like a forest. You need way more stuff and perhaps smaller cliffs.
It looks a bit more like a jungle but not quite there yet. I still insist that the amount of cliffs is ruining any kind of jungle atmosphere. I'm sure that there are cliffs in jungles in real life but you don't usually see them. Just look at all the pics LockeZ linked to, I don't see any cliffs at all xD (*waits for rebuttal pics of cliffs in jungles)

I'm afraid that you might not get the full desired look without major reconstruction of those maps. Too many high cliffs and wide open spaces of freshly cut grass. You gotta feel surrounded by tall grass with even taller trees sticking out randomly. Any small cliffs would be concealed by the thick foliage. But that's only if you want to try and make your maps as literal as possible.

The link to the SoE map is awesome.
Here's a good example of how a canopy in the jungle can work wonders:



That would probably look alot more "bare" if those shadows were not there..

But in either case, I think your screens there need to focus less on riddling your map with doodads and focus more on your placement of them.
Also, might want to consult your use of ground tiles. One plain grassy tile probably won't produce the desired "busy" effect that a jungle usually contains.

Also, shows how cliffs can really work in a jungle setting :D
author=narcodis
Also, shows how cliffs can really work in a jungle setting :D


haha exactly, you nailed it with a perfect example
Fasinating! A Chrono Trigger reference too. I made the auto tiles more reasonable, they are less boxy and tall.

author=Link_2112
I'm afraid that you might not get the full desired look without major reconstruction of those maps.


Absolutely. This place was originally an enchanted mountain pass. This whole jungleing business was merely flavor. I do like where it's at now and I think I will do some canopy work tomorrow.

author=narcodis
I think your screens there need to focus less on riddling your map with doodads and focus more on your placement of them.


I kinda like the crazy overgrownness of it, though it could definitely be reigned in better. I'm trying different things and it's a huge map, so tweaking is to be expected. Overall feel is getting there. I'll post another shot with the smaller autotiles, more reasonable overgrowth and canopy some time later. I never sleep so maybe even later tonight.

I am still curious how to go about making a canopy. The Chrono Trigger one is good but I'd like to see vines. I'd also like it to be not as blown up.
My problem with these canopys is how it feels like filler. There is not a single tree in that CT map but there are leaves covering the area? I am worried because they are over used in Rm2k3 games and maybe cheapen it?
I will experiment though.
But the way, thanks for all the great feedback! Far from perfect, but definitely better with help.
Another fine use of canopy in Chrono Trigger, this time with visible tree foliage.
LockeZ
I'd really like to get rid of LockeZ. His play style is way too unpredictable. He's always like this too. If he ran a country, he'd just kill and imprison people at random until crime stopped.
5958
I am definitely liking the improvements, if anything I think at this point you just need more of the big trees to make it look more foresty. But maybe a canopy would do the same thing more easily. I think you actually did great on the plant growth.

So the Chrono Trigger canopy is just made up of shadows on the ground, apparently? Interesting. When you said "canopy" before, I was thinking of the Mac&Blue or RMXP canopy tiles, that are visible green leafy tiles on a layer above the hero. But the CT method doesn't even require tiles. I think it would work best with pictures instead of tiles. And it's definitely less intrusive since it can be added to the map without changing any existing part of the map.