Classic Reminiscent Custom Sprites for a Game Project

[StoneMask]

I'm learning how to program in DirectX and I want to do a full game in order to stretch my limits and boundaries, and I've already got some spriting experience, but I want to improve in both aspects. Please critique! I am going for a classic feel. (It's a muffin)

I ran it by my art major girlfriend and she did a much better job, I think. But I still want to know how to improve mine, in words!

Links so you can [Ctrl +] to get a better look:
Muffin Reference 1
Muffin Reference 2 (using the eight bit color palette)
Muffin Comparison

And by the way, I used your site a lot a few years ago, but never got to know the community. I'll try to be an active member of it, and hopefully improve a lot on the way. (:

[Bombshell93]

important question, do you want a classic 8-bit FEEL or do you want actual 8-bit?
Fact of the matter is most people and quite a few players of games included don't know the difference between 8-bit and pixelated.
If you only want an "8-bit feel" your colour choice will be much wider and the only real limit you'll have is size and pallet size.
actual 8-bit on the other hand is a very small colour choice and image size.

I think this is important to how your art is rated, because different standards are to be expected.

EDIT:
here is a true 8-bit pallet, Red 3-bit, green 3-bit, blue 2-bit. This is your limit in colour (unless you pick another 8-bit colour model) if you want true 8-bit.

[StoneMask]

Actual 8-bit, hence the limited palette and and small image size.

[Bombshell93]

just checked and only black conforms to a true 8-bit pallet from your sprites.

[StoneMask]

Thanks. I'll correct them now!

[StarSock64]

Alrighty, this isn't my area of expertise but whatever

I think with things like this, that are simple, readability is the most important thing. Right now, it kind of looks like a random blob. I'm not convinced it's a muffin.
http://etyman.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/muffin1.jpg
Look at a muffin. What are its most defining features?
http://image.shutterstock.com/display_pi...356936.jpg
if you wanted to draw a recognizable muffin, what would you accentuate?

What I'm seeing is that the top part is very large and fluffy, and can take a mushroom kind of shape. The bottom part with the paper is considerably smaller and angles inward slightly.

You should change the shape of the top portion on yours. The shading is pretty much random, so try to make it make sense. Your girlfriend managed a decent shot at texturing it. What's with the two black streaks in the bottom part? Are those...eyes?

It's also a bit distracting that in your animation, everything moves except the bottom right. It's a bit erratic and random in its movements in general. Your girlfriend gave it a more natural bounce.

edit: um, aren't these colors just from GB zelda, or something? If they are, I think these colors should be fine...

[StoneMask]

Oh man, these look a lot better, in regards to the color scheme.



To the most recent poster, I see what you mean, and yes, they're supposed to be eyes, lol. I do understand that it should look more natural in shape change, and I recognize it in my girlfriend's muffin.

Also, scratch my previous comment about it being 8-bit. I am more aiming for the Gameboy Color's palette, which was like 15 bit? So it's old school but retains a nice array of color.

[Cobalt Blue]

a word of advice before you do any more progress: amount of colors used has nothing to do with processing power.

what you call 8bit is nothing but a misconception towards old, low spec graphics used on early systems but ultimately has nothing to do with how many colors or wich colors do you use, nor even its size of said graphics. a computer system could house several 8 bit processors to enhace its performance.

as for your subject, i dont clearly see where are you going with this. it seems you are more focused on the color palette form where you are going to pick colors rather than on the actual desing and readbility of your sprites, wich is a terrible way to work, since without readbility or a proper, well planned desing, your sprites will look like random blobs of color.

[Bombshell93]

I'll agree on that form needs to be studied more than pallet, I threw it out there for the sake of knowing the difference.
Anyway going for a classic feel typically does conform to something capable given low processing power, so for the sake of theme it is quite relevant.
With lack of any other noticeable goal, 8-bit classic, is all there is to compare so that's all there is to judge.

Slightly on the subject, what are you aiming for bar 8-bit classic?
characters? tile sets? miscellanea items?
That's not to say a muffin is a bad goal, but its good to know what your aiming for before you start shooting.

[StoneMask]

So what you are saying in terms of bittage, is that when speaking stylistically, it is not actually talking about 8-bit graphics at all, even if you reproduce the exact image from an 8-bit system onto a more powerful one, it is not truly 8-bit? I was merely saying, if I were to reproduce the style of a less than 16-bit system, using the same restrictions they dealt with, how would I best go about it? I might have been misleading when I said "true 8-bit", but if that's the case, can you give me an example of a "true 8-bit" sprite?

How would you suggest I improve the readability and design? If it involves the shape and the representation of the object in itself, I will work on it, but for now, I'll return to my program. Thank you for your criticisms, everyone! Just go easy on me, lol. ):

If you're talking about things that I would like to think back to when creating my sprites, I would say Pokemon G/S/C, and OoX?

[Gors]

here, I tried my hand on the muffin.



working with 8-bit sprites isn't only looking to its technical part of using three colors per 8x8 tile (in the NES' case; there are actually many other 8-bit videogames with their own quirks). Aside from this limitation, you need to accurately use each of your available resources to make it instantly readable, understandable to any viewer. That's why working with colors in mind is a terrible thing to do.

[StoneMask]

Well, it is a muffin that has human characteristics, hence the "walking" animation. The muffins up there are facing left and hopping. So I was more thinking with that in mind. I tried to make a muffin that can walk either right or left and has discernible features that tell the player that the muffin is alive and moving, rather than being part of the background or something. The colors came secondarily, and I wanted to ask how I could manipulate them into making them work the best possible way for my intentions.

EDIT: I just realized that there may have been a misconception here, lol. To me both of the muffins look fine assuming that they are muffins, but you guys have been really pressing on the shape of my muffin, and it might be because I didn't mention that the muffins are alive and facing/moving left? If that's the case, I'm sorry, lol.

As far as environments I see the muffin being in, pretty much your basic outdoor areas? Sometimes indoor, etc. Not super industrialized. Just think of a generic RPG. It'll have attacks based on flavors, like blueberries, lemon lime, banana/nut, etc. All the characters won't be baked goods, so I'll try to post those up later when I make them.

[StoneMask]

So I read the rules and it didn't say anything about a 48-hour double post allowance. I'll post and hope you guys don't hate me. ):

I worked solely towards making an identifiable muffin, then changed the position of the eyes since they'd be hard to keep down there anyway and they make it look like a super mushroom. I tracked my ideas and improvements(?) mostly step by step so you can tell me exactly where I went wrong. I also went back on the color palette now that I kind of know where I want to go with it.



For those who don't feel like copypaste + zoom:


I was surprised that the eyebrows on the final one worked as well as it does. Well it does to me, anyway. ):
Please tell a dawg what's up.

[Garamonde]

So I read the rules and it didn't say anything about a 48-hour double post allowance. I'll post and hope you guys don't hate me. ):

Except it does.

On that note, it's fine to double post if you're bumping your own thread because you've made a change to your work or something; just don't bump your thread if it's simply to say "bumping because it's not the first topic in the list" or something stupid like that.

[StoneMask]

Oh, well that's cool.
Thanks, I must have skimmed over that bit.