Prism's Scribbles

[PrismProjections]

Hello!



I just joined last week, but wanted to start up an artist area for myself to dump things as I work it all out. I'll try to keep things organized when I post with links in this main post to the updates and what they are. [Background, sketch/concept, sprite, CG]

Feedback is always welcome. I'm brand spankin' new to making games of any kind, having only done my first one last month. I only ask that if you have criticisms, they be constructively posted.

For example!

"_____ looks bad." versus "____ could use some more work because {Reasons}"

I'm sure it'll all get sorted as I go along. For now, please enjoy and thank you for checking out my thread!

[PrismProjections]

Background

Apartment Front [Day]
Cafe Inside [Day]
Rooftop [Night]



sketch/concept


sprite

Atti [Original]


CG

Mary [Cutscene Screenshot]

[PrismProjections]

9/27/2015: Finished Assets from my demo/game jam game.





Atti's Original Design [Currently being reworked]


Mary screenshot from an animated cutscene:

[E-l337]

I'm going to focus on your 3D works, since that is honestly what I have the most experience with.

I notice that you're using cel-shading for most of your stuff, which isn't bad, but it really makes sharp edges pop out way more than they have any right to. Example: Those cafe stools look like they would cut you when you sat on them. Start looking into ways to smooth those edges - playing with the normals or simply adding a bevel to the edges can do a lot to soften those curves - most 3D software packages can 'round' things out for you from there.

Another thing you should watch out for are your light sources. I can tell you're using a spotlight for your sun, which isn't a great thing. Example: The rooftop you can see that the source of light is relatively close, since the shadows point in two different directions. Consider a directional lamp for casting sun-based shadows, since the sun is a very very very long way away!

And since I'm on the topic of shadows, I understand it may be a stylistic choice, but with the Apartment Front it is very obvious you are using two different sources of light for shadows, which throws off the illusion. You've got the sun casting light from almost the opposite of where the camera is pointed, but the trees seem to indicate the sun being somewhere off to the right... excepting for the tree closest to the camera, which doesn't show a shadow at all!

Experiment with some different light combinations. Using one light to cast shadows and using other lights to only light the scene are perfectly acceptable workarounds.

It's little things like this which can really add to an image. Take some time in the next couple of days, and look at how shadows work in the real world. Then see if you can replicate it.

Keep up the good work!

[PrismProjections]

I'm going to focus on your 3D works, since that is honestly what I have the most experience with.

I notice that you're using cel-shading for most of your stuff, which isn't bad, but it really makes sharp edges pop out way more than they have any right to. Example: Those cafe stools look like they would cut you when you sat on them. Start looking into ways to smooth those edges - playing with the normals or simply adding a bevel to the edges can do a lot to soften those curves - most 3D software packages can 'round' things out for you from there.

Another thing you should watch out for are your light sources. I can tell you're using a spotlight for your sun, which isn't a great thing. Example: The rooftop you can see that the source of light is relatively close, since the shadows point in two different directions. Consider a directional lamp for casting sun-based shadows, since the sun is a very very very long way away!

And since I'm on the topic of shadows, I understand it may be a stylistic choice, but with the Apartment Front it is very obvious you are using two different sources of light for shadows, which throws off the illusion. You've got the sun casting light from almost the opposite of where the camera is pointed, but the trees seem to indicate the sun being somewhere off to the right... excepting for the tree closest to the camera, which doesn't show a shadow at all!

Experiment with some different light combinations. Using one light to cast shadows and using other lights to only light the scene are perfectly acceptable workarounds.

It's little things like this which can really add to an image. Take some time in the next couple of days, and look at how shadows work in the real world. Then see if you can replicate it.

Keep up the good work!

Thanks for taking the time to write. I'll try and do some more exercises to make them better in the next rendition!

[svarn]

First let me say that your art is really nice, and this is just a little advice I can offer:

I feel like there are some perspective issues with "aparment front". And that would be mostly because your vertical lines don't align with canvas. If this was rendered in 3d, I'd advise to keep your camera angle towards the horizon, because otherwise you are getting the feeling that either the building, or the viewer is falling over. So when you are rendering, make sure that your horizontal lines are horizontal and not angled (unless you want to show that 3rd vanishing point, but that's going to be rare). And another weird thing are shadows, they don't seem to be following the form, so if you have a shadow of tree's trunk, it would change angle and become horizontal when it "hits" the wall of the building (or at least that's what it looks to me atm).

And then in "rooftops", something's off with shadows for the tables, and they feel like they are floating above the floor.

In terms of your characters, I think they lack definition around clavicle - neck area. And I'd say that you tend to make iris too big, kind of like you'd do in anime style, but the shape and eye size is more semi-realistic and that combination makes them a bit scary, since the proportions of iris vs sclera are altered.

I hope that this helps, and that I wasn't too harsh or out of place.

[PrismProjections]

First let me say that your art is really nice, and this is just a little advice I can offer:

I feel like there are some perspective issues with "aparment front". And that would be mostly because your vertical lines don't align with canvas. If this was rendered in 3d, I'd advise to keep your camera angle towards the horizon, because otherwise you are getting the feeling that either the building, or the viewer is falling over. So when you are rendering, make sure that your horizontal lines are horizontal and not angled (unless you want to show that 3rd vanishing point, but that's going to be rare). And another weird thing are shadows, they don't seem to be following the form, so if you have a shadow of tree's trunk, it would change angle and become horizontal when it "hits" the wall of the building (or at least that's what it looks to me atm).

And then in "rooftops", something's off with shadows for the tables, and they feel like they are floating above the floor.

In terms of your characters, I think they lack definition around clavicle - neck area. And I'd say that you tend to make iris too big, kind of like you'd do in anime style, but the shape and eye size is more semi-realistic and that combination makes them a bit scary, since the proportions of iris vs sclera are altered.

I hope that this helps, and that I wasn't too harsh or out of place.

Hello!

Sorry it took me so long to respond. I've been rather busy with work.

A lot of what you mention were intentional choices on my part, but I'm thinking their intended effect is weak or not having the impact I'm looking for. Due to the game's story and content, I wanted everything to look a little 'off,' so I changed the field of view lines on most of the backgrounds to be skewed to give a feeling of distortion. I realize now that perhaps I should progressively introduce those into my game as it progresses in order to make the impact more effective.

As for characters, both items you noted are style choices I implement in my art lately, but I'll be exploring variations and will see to making some choices that don't set people off as badly.

Thanks for taking time to respond! I'll try and improve my stuff as well as I'm able!