So I finally sat down and started learning some basic pixel art (purchasing Aseprite, following some tutorials like finalbossblues and saint11 etc.). I do not have a knack for art. I try, but I know that my works are amateurish. But that's not going to stop me (at least, not yet)!

Anyway, after gaining the bare-minimum in proficiency with Aseprite, I tackled a long outstanding item - the actual titlescreen!





Now, your first impression should be to realize that it bares a shocking resemblance to the mockup that Ocean made for me back in 2018 (omg... 2018... *sigh*)



(comment on it here: https://rpgmaker.net/games/9906/images/81978/)

I mean, I loved it and it was always going to serve as my inspiration. Thanks Ocean!

Shortly after receiving it, in fact, I had created a "composition" in Photoshop using my preferred font (Optimus Princeps).



I had envisioned even back then that the base would be some fantasy-like setting (castles, fields, mountains, or the like), so I cleared out that area. I also LOVED the sword Ocean made (obviously. It is great). You can also see where I was experimenting with a "company" name using a font I made with my own handwriting (yes, my handwriting is that bad). I used one of those handwriting-to-font services. The font name is Gbone btw.

Yesterday (or was it the day before?), I took this base and began in earnest. I flattened the font and neatened up the edges, mocked up some mountains and hills, and a castle.



If it looks familiar, then you know about the Bavarian castle in Germany!



This image formed the basis for my composition and castle layout. I shrunk it down to 320x240 and did a quick trace/freehand on it, and referenced it when I was spriting the details.

Next, I added details to my mockup mountains. I had a lot of fun doing this. Natural scenes at a far distance is my wheelhouse. I also mimicked the style that Ocean made for the font. I think it turned out pretty great, myself. The title really pops.



I then got to work on adding detail to the castle itself. (FYI layers are your friend).

I am not terribly happen with the final result, to be honest. It is quite amateurish. The scale, perspective, colour, balance, lighting, and textures are all off (some a little, some a lot).



I debated (and am still debating, tbh) removing the castle entirely (despite working for hours on it) - I am that dissatisfied with it. I moved it around, tweak things a bit, tried making some forest/trees in the foreground, shrunk it to half-size to see if that helped, even tinted it to see if muting the colours would help. I just don't have the skill or experience to figure out what I need to do to make it better.

I probably shouldn't have tried to tackle something so complex mere weeks after starting my pixel art journey. Ah well. Perhaps I will revisit this titlescreen in the future.

For now - on to battle animations!

Thanks for reading.