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Let the Graphical Overhaul Commence!
Red_Nova- 04/17/2016 07:19 PM
- 12773 views
After countless hours of studying, sketching, scrapping, and revising, I'm happy to say that all of the characters, playable or no, have finally been redesigned, and the portraits of the first three party members have been completed.
Without further ado, and with the old art below them for a better side-by-side comparison, meet the new Aeyr, Mia, and Amalie:
As you can see, they look sliiiightly different than they did before. Aeyr's and Mia's alternate outfits are also done too, but they are significantly less interesting than their defaults.
In addition, here is the new sprite style that will accompany these new character portraits:
This is the entire playable cast, so there are some you don't recognize since I haven't talked about them. But yeah. This is everyone.
And that's the new art direction for the characters. All that's left now is to shade everyone the same way that these three have, including dialogue busts, and the art for the main characters will be completely done. Of course, there are obviously still the NPCs and tiles to sprite, and I'll go back and make some adjustments as needed, but the art overhaul is almost over. Yaaaay!
That's not to say that all of my time has been spent on art, though. I've been setting aside about an hour every night after schoolwork is done to write a more proper synopsis of the storyline, rather than the bullet point collection that it was before. I pace myself by writing about 1000 words a day, and am about a third of the way through the whole plot. Forcing out words like this has been amazing for creativity and brings out some interesting plot points and world lore that I hadn't thought of originally, and I encourage anyone else out there struggling with writing to try it for their own projects.
So while the new prologue won't be out this month, the art certainly will be finished, and I'm confident next month everything will be ready. I can see the light on the other side of the tunnel, everyone! Between this new art style and the expanded plot, I'm gonna hit the ground running when it finally comes time to return to the editor. I won't lie: While I'm enjoying every moment of working on the art, I think I'll be ready for when it's time to get back into development of the game proper.
Thanks for sticking around while I slave away over the tablet for the past month! Now that the end is in sight, what do you think of the results?
Without further ado, and with the old art below them for a better side-by-side comparison, meet the new Aeyr, Mia, and Amalie:
As you can see, they look sliiiightly different than they did before. Aeyr's and Mia's alternate outfits are also done too, but they are significantly less interesting than their defaults.
In addition, here is the new sprite style that will accompany these new character portraits:
This is the entire playable cast, so there are some you don't recognize since I haven't talked about them. But yeah. This is everyone.
And that's the new art direction for the characters. All that's left now is to shade everyone the same way that these three have, including dialogue busts, and the art for the main characters will be completely done. Of course, there are obviously still the NPCs and tiles to sprite, and I'll go back and make some adjustments as needed, but the art overhaul is almost over. Yaaaay!
That's not to say that all of my time has been spent on art, though. I've been setting aside about an hour every night after schoolwork is done to write a more proper synopsis of the storyline, rather than the bullet point collection that it was before. I pace myself by writing about 1000 words a day, and am about a third of the way through the whole plot. Forcing out words like this has been amazing for creativity and brings out some interesting plot points and world lore that I hadn't thought of originally, and I encourage anyone else out there struggling with writing to try it for their own projects.
So while the new prologue won't be out this month, the art certainly will be finished, and I'm confident next month everything will be ready. I can see the light on the other side of the tunnel, everyone! Between this new art style and the expanded plot, I'm gonna hit the ground running when it finally comes time to return to the editor. I won't lie: While I'm enjoying every moment of working on the art, I think I'll be ready for when it's time to get back into development of the game proper.
Thanks for sticking around while I slave away over the tablet for the past month! Now that the end is in sight, what do you think of the results?
Posts 
argh
792
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CloseThis looks nice. The eyes in particular are much better; the eyes in the old portraits looked a bit too anime, if that makes sense. Very flat colors and cartoonish eye shapes. I also like that the heads are bigger. The only thing I would object to is Mia's Breast Plate, since it looks aberrant next to Amalie's more normal armor.
I agree that Aeyr looks pretty insane, and I think it's because his eyes are so wide. The irises don't reach the edges like they do for the other characters and in his older portrait -- opening your eyes that wide requires a lot of strain and is very unnatural, so when someone has it as their default expression they look unhinged.
On Amalie looking less sad -- I think it's because her eyebrow is moved further up, so it might be overlooked if you're just looking at the eye.
I agree that Aeyr looks pretty insane, and I think it's because his eyes are so wide. The irises don't reach the edges like they do for the other characters and in his older portrait -- opening your eyes that wide requires a lot of strain and is very unnatural, so when someone has it as their default expression they look unhinged.
On Amalie looking less sad -- I think it's because her eyebrow is moved further up, so it might be overlooked if you're just looking at the eye.
Red_Nova
Sir Redd of Novus: He who made Prayer of the Faithless that one time, and that was pretty dang rad! :D
9192
I'm glad you like them! It's nice to see the common reception to Aeyr's and Amalie's expressions, so I've edited their faces to be less insane and more sad, respectively.
Looking really good! I like the old style, but this looks pretty damn professional. The dude on the left has crazy eyes. I'm not sure if that's supposed to be intentional or not, but if so I like that. It's intriguing.
Red_Nova
Sir Redd of Novus: He who made Prayer of the Faithless that one time, and that was pretty dang rad! :D
9192
Hahahaha...
You know, Aeyr's eyes seem to be such a catch that I'm starting to think about keeping them anyway, despite changing them.
Well, in all seriousness, his eyes certainly were intentional. Taking Aeyr's inner feelings and the ordeals he goes through, the expression felt the most natural to me. Seeing the feedback, though, made me think I took it a little too far, so I toned it back to a more reasonable level.
You know, Aeyr's eyes seem to be such a catch that I'm starting to think about keeping them anyway, despite changing them.
Well, in all seriousness, his eyes certainly were intentional. Taking Aeyr's inner feelings and the ordeals he goes through, the expression felt the most natural to me. Seeing the feedback, though, made me think I took it a little too far, so I toned it back to a more reasonable level.
Red_Nova
Sir Redd of Novus: He who made Prayer of the Faithless that one time, and that was pretty dang rad! :D
9192
Thanks again for all the feedback, everyone! I'm getting closer and closer to updating the screenshots with the new art. For the time being, though, the before/after pic above has been changed to reflect the new characters in response to the points brought up here. Aeyr's expression looks more, well, human, Amalie's is more sad, and Mia's breastplate has been adjusted to look a little more natural.
I hope these look better now, but please tell me what you think. Thanks again!
I hope these look better now, but please tell me what you think. Thanks again!
Malandy
357
Well, Aeyr's irises just seem big in comparison to Amaile's, but Amaile isn't human or whatever, and we've no idea of other humans look like.
Are Amalie's irises diamonds?
Are Amalie's irises diamonds?
Are you temporarily forgetting Mia, Malandy? I mean, I don't claim to be an expert, or have an eye for such things (pun somewhat intended), but they seem comparable enough to me.
*Edit: Personally speaking, I like what I'm seeing here.
*Edit: Personally speaking, I like what I'm seeing here.
Red_Nova
Sir Redd of Novus: He who made Prayer of the Faithless that one time, and that was pretty dang rad! :D
9192
I'm glad you like them! Thanks, everyone!
If I'm studying this correctly, one way of measuring age for this style of portrait is the eyes. Amalie is decently older than Aeyr and Mia, so her eyes should be smaller in comparison to appear more mature and experienced.
At least, that's what I had learned.
To clarify: Mia's eyes seem smaller than Aeyr's because her eyes are half closed in a sad expression. I'll look at the rest of the character portraits and adjust them to compare better to each other.
Yep. They're supposed to be reminiscent of cat's eyes:
author=Malandy
Well, Aeyr's irises just seem big in comparison to Amaile's, but Amaile isn't human or whatever, and we've no idea of other humans look like.
If I'm studying this correctly, one way of measuring age for this style of portrait is the eyes. Amalie is decently older than Aeyr and Mia, so her eyes should be smaller in comparison to appear more mature and experienced.
At least, that's what I had learned.
author=Marrend
Are you temporarily forgetting Mia, Malandy? I mean, I don't claim to be an expert, or have an eye for such things (pun somewhat intended), but they seem comparable enough to me.
To clarify: Mia's eyes seem smaller than Aeyr's because her eyes are half closed in a sad expression. I'll look at the rest of the character portraits and adjust them to compare better to each other.
Are Amalie's irises diamonds?
Yep. They're supposed to be reminiscent of cat's eyes:
Malandy
357
author=Marrend
Are you temporarily forgetting Mia, Malandy? I mean, I don't claim to be an expert, or have an eye for such things (pun somewhat intended), but they seem comparable enough to me.
Well, yeah? Mia's eyes are comparable in size, but we're getting them from the side, so I'm sort of only going to compare with people who are facing the screen.
And the Cheeky Mouth makes me go something like "The Art is Stylized, so I'm not gonna compare anything, unless they're in the same position or something."
***
Aeyr looks like a bit cross-eyed, with his right (from his perspective) iris seeming squished?
***
author=Red_Nova
I'm glad you like them! Thanks, everyone!
They're pretty good! Don't take my criticism as a sign that they're bad, but that I'm so invested in this, and your art, to find these things! ... But then again, I've never tried my hand at Character Art, so I'm sort of an Armchair Critic? *shrugs*
author=Red_Nova
If I'm studying this correctly, one way of measuring age for this style of portrait is the eyes. Amalie is decently older than Aeyr and Mia, so her eyes should be smaller in comparison to appear more mature and experienced.
At least, that's what I had learned.
Hmm... I think it's because big eyes = Neoteny, and energetic-ness and other youthful things?
Are Amalie's irises diamonds?
Yep. They're supposed to be reminiscent of cat's eyes:
I see... Right now, they seem to be diamond-y diamonds instead of the rounded diamonds of the picture, but hey, she's not human, and to get more fine detail, you need more pixels that you might not want to spend. *shrugs*
Red_Nova
Sir Redd of Novus: He who made Prayer of the Faithless that one time, and that was pretty dang rad! :D
9192
Aeyr looks like a bit cross-eyed, with his right (from his perspective) iris seeming squished?
At an angle like that, you need to reshape the eye to match a difference in shape. Note how the rest of the eye is pushed in as well, not just the iris.
They're pretty good! Don't take my criticism as a sign that they're bad, but that I'm so invested in this, and your art, to find these things! ... But then again, I've never tried my hand at Character Art, so I'm sort of an Armchair Critic? *shrugs*
Nah, it's fine! I appreciate you keeping me on my toes. Every time you bring up a point, I have to mentally ask myself to confirm why I did what I did and, if there's not a competent answer, go back and fix it. So I'm totally fine with it.
Hmm... I think it's because big eyes = Neoteny, and energetic-ness and other youthful things?
Correct. Where that got started, though, is that a person's eyes stop growing at around age 7 or 13, depending on the research you look at. Either way, the rest of the body still has quite a lot of growing to do, so as a person gets older and their heads develop more, the eyes will appear smaller by comparison.
I see... Right now, they seem to be diamond-y diamonds instead of the rounded diamonds of the picture, but hey, she's not human, and to get more fine detail, you need more pixels that you might not want to spend. *shrugs*
Well, that was just a random cat I found in a Google search just to give you an idea. A more appropriate one would look like this:
Just a little larger.
Anyway, it's no problem at all to edit. I've bloated the iris a little more to make it look natural. Though I'll probably be here another 30151 years if I keep adjusting details like this, haha!
The angles you draw your characters are the type of stuff that kiiills me when I art, haha. Human anatomy is the hardest.
Red_Nova
Sir Redd of Novus: He who made Prayer of the Faithless that one time, and that was pretty dang rad! :D
9192
Haha thanks!
I wish I could say I pulled this off with ease. I really would. But then I'd be lying so badly... Sometimes, I feel like the only way I'm making progress is by smashing my head against a wall for so long the wall itself just takes pity on me and falls over on its own.
I wish I could say I pulled this off with ease. I really would. But then I'd be lying so badly... Sometimes, I feel like the only way I'm making progress is by smashing my head against a wall for so long the wall itself just takes pity on me and falls over on its own.
That was me with pixel art for years. Now I can just, do it. It's weird. I have no natural talent for it, just a talent for enduring the head smashes. Now everything comes with much less head smashing... until I eventually try to take it a step up in skill, haha.
Red_Nova
Sir Redd of Novus: He who made Prayer of the Faithless that one time, and that was pretty dang rad! :D
9192
Oh man you've been doing this for years? I only just started with my tablet for a little over a year now (and only started seriously pixeling back in December).
Banging your head against a wall isn't as bad as you'd think, though. Once you lose your sense of pain, it's actually quite comfortable!
Banging your head against a wall isn't as bad as you'd think, though. Once you lose your sense of pain, it's actually quite comfortable!
Those improvements look really good, I specially like the armor details.
Amalie's expression does look sadder to me on the old artwork though.
Amalie's expression does look sadder to me on the old artwork though.
Red_Nova
Sir Redd of Novus: He who made Prayer of the Faithless that one time, and that was pretty dang rad! :D
9192
author=iddalai
Those improvements look really good, I specially like the armor details.
Thanks! I'm pretty proud of the armor as well. Though if I'm honest, it's the facial expressions that I want to get right more than anything. Did you have an opin...ion... on tho...se...
Amalie's expression does look sadder to me on the old artwork though.
Or maybe not! I think I got it:
I just reduced the curve of her eye to look half opened. That looks a little more glum.
You might still need your head someday, you know? Perhaps it's about time to accept things the way they are, even if they are only 99% perfect, and stop torturing yourself over the same thing again and again.
Red_Nova
Sir Redd of Novus: He who made Prayer of the Faithless that one time, and that was pretty dang rad! :D
9192
Do I need my head? I can't think clearly enough to tell right now. Better keep beating it against the wall so I can knock some sense back into me. That's how it works, right?
And yeah, in all seriousness, I think I've reached that point for the art. I just need to polish off a little more and then I can update the screenshots.
And yeah, in all seriousness, I think I've reached that point for the art. I just need to polish off a little more and then I can update the screenshots.
Malandy
357
author=Red_NovaAeyr looks like a bit cross-eyed, with his right (from his perspective) iris seeming squished?At an angle like that, you need to reshape the eye to match a difference in shape. Note how the rest of the eye is pushed in as well, not just the iris.
I think I think that the squished eye's eyeshine should have been moved down or something? 'Cause eyeshines tell us nearly everything about where they're looking?
