To get that mental image of a Fakemon, you have to show them as such.

Try sketching them out in the Pokemon style, so you have definable Fakemon,
and then go to spriting.

(11-21-2010, 09:45 PM)StarSock64 Wrote: insert critique here

Of course, when I said "I don't understand the concept here" it doesn't mean that concepts have to be immediately obvious, I just mean that there should be a reason why it is what it is so that's something to keep in mind

Oh man thanks a ton! That was super-helpful.

As for the concepts, a lot of them aren't terribly obvious because they're based on concepts rather than animals or objects, which is probably where I'm going wrong.

First post: The first one is based on a kaiju from one of the Godzilla movies and a large lizard + a thistle plant. The second one is a tar pit, complete with animal bones. The third and fourth are based on the japanese fashion of "decora", to go along with Jynx (ganguro) and the recently released Gothemme (gothloli).

The fakemon in the next post are rabbits based on weather phenomenons - sunshowers and thunderstorms, as well as the sun and moon.

I do have some ideas on how to fix the ones mentioned a bit more, for example making the sun's rays more obvious as a 'tail' on the rabbit, and perhaps turning the dresses into skirts on the decora ones.

Misterssauga: I already try to sketch my ideas in a style similar to Sugimori's but scrunching them down into pixel form sorta makes them look crowded.

(11-21-2010, 09:57 PM)masquerain Wrote: Misterssauga: I already try to sketch my ideas in a style similar to Sugimori's but scrunching them down into pixel form sorta makes them look crowded.

When did I say put the sketches into pixel art?

(11-21-2010, 10:01 PM)Misterssauga Wrote:

(11-21-2010, 09:57 PM)masquerain Wrote: Misterssauga: I already try to sketch my ideas in a style similar to Sugimori's but scrunching them down into pixel form sorta makes them look crowded.

When did I say put the sketches into pixel art?

No no, I wasn't implying you were saying that, and that's not what I do either. I generally sketch my ideas in the pose I'd like them in, then pixel them freehand in a smaller space.

Sorry for the misunderstanding.

It might help to sprite a pre-existing pokemon in this style too to have something to compare it to (totoototo)

Okay I've been working on a sprite of an official Pokemon in my spare time, here's the WIP of it:



(5th gen bug/steel type, Shubarugo)

Here's another fakemon that I finished for a weekly challenge on a forum I attend:


It's a jinn, (usually) malevolent spirits from Islam. Fire/Ghost type - the colors were part of the contest, I'll probably end up recoloring it later.

The jinn thingy kinda reminds me of an existing pokemon (I don't know which one, since I've not been into pokemon since gen 1). The color scheme also seems to indicate electrical powers rather than fire powers. Otherwise, the sprite itself looks okay.

(11-30-2010, 06:53 PM)John Hale Wrote: The jinn thingy kinda reminds me of an existing pokemon (I don't know which one, since I've not been into pokemon since gen 1). The color scheme also seems to indicate electrical powers rather than fire powers. Otherwise, the sprite itself looks okay.

When I first looked at it, it reminded me of Jirachi, maybe that is what you were thinking?
To me, the color scheme also doesn't indicate fire, I think it indicates more of a water type, but thats just me. Its shape is rather aqueous, but it is not clear, which makes me see it more as a tadpole, rather than a ghost.

(11-30-2010, 04:53 PM)masquerain Wrote: Okay I've been working on a sprite of an official Pokemon in my spare time, here's the WIP of it:

the outlines seem really jaggy, not a lot of contrast on the steel and the shading nearly looks pillowed on this.

(11-30-2010, 09:58 PM)Diogalesu Wrote:

(11-30-2010, 04:53 PM)masquerain Wrote: Okay I've been working on a sprite of an official Pokemon in my spare time, here's the WIP of it:

the outlines seem really jaggy, not a lot of contrast on the steel and the shading nearly looks pillowed on this.

I don't think you understand what pillow shading is.

Like I said the djinn was for a contest which specified if I was to use Fire and Ghost types I would have to make the main body colors teal and yellow. So yeah, here's a non-contest version of the djinn and his evolution:



Preevo coming later, i guess.

Lamps are usually very shiny as they're metallic, so I'd suggest upping the contrast on it. Some really cool concepts here, liking them a lot.

1st sprite: you could lower his hands, they are on the same height as the mouth. btw a part of his lower body sticks too much out.
2nd sprite: looks way better, but the lamp could use a more metallic look.

First off, Masquerain is a kick ass Pokemon, good choice. Second of all, you're sprite work is great and in a nice refreshing style. Unfortunately, they do NOT look like Pokemon in the slightest bit. Pokemon design style fits a pretty tight pattern (that was mostly shattered 5th gen regardless of how good it still is). For example there is the lumbering bipedal powerhouse types (Tyrannitar, Crawdaunt, Aggron, etc). If you look at these Pokemon they all have the same body shape and even very similar features. A common mistake people make when designing Pokemon is they try to make them incredibly fanciful. Which looks nice on the back of a Rose Art crayons box but doesn't look Pokemon. A lot of Pokemon designs strive to look organic (save first gen and maybe a few isolated cases beyond that). Many fakemon are full of tufts and fluffs and rainbows and magical fins and wings and it just makes them look like general fantasy monsters. Try to find some continuity with the original Pokemon designs and make yours more streamlined.

What I'd really like to see on the grounds of "they don't look like Pokemon" is design suggestions, instead of the broad definition of what Pokemon are and aren't - because that's both subjective and changing (5th gen is best gen!)
I got some really good specific design suggestions on serebii's sprite section once - I took it one fakemon at a time, and they went through and gave me improvement ideas. I don't want to cramp your guys' crit styles or anything but I've found it's easiest for me to learn this way.

If we're going to do it that way, I'd like to start with a design of mine that I really like, Zepplock.

This is more in the Pokemon style because I find that people aren't liking what I do when I just doodle out shading, because OH MY GOD THEY'RE NOT FAKEMON IF THEY'RE NOT IN OFFICIAL STYLE.

(there's no selout on this because it's not done)