SOv2 was what got me into spriting, which is what got me into game design. 2 years in college doing a diploma in Interactive media and nearly three years in university doing a degree in Computer Games Design and im back where i started all those years ago =D
I couldn't resist:
(http://s7.postimage.org/4g2ykit9n/compsheet1.png) (http://postimage.org/)
As always any feedback is much appreciated.
Requests:
Mr.Pwnage (Sorcerer/Necromancer hood)
(http://s14.postimage.org/qtjxmc631/necrohood.png) (http://postimage.org/)
Turkey (Knight solaire of Astora (Dark souls))
(http://s17.postimage.org/mcbv1zdbf/Knightsolaire.png) (http://postimage.org/)
WIP
Matty_Richo (Barbossa' Hat from Pirate of the Caribbean)
If you have an idea for a hat that you would like to see but lack the technical ability to create it, let me know and when i get time ill whip it up for you =]
When i get a chance ill dig out the massive library of SOv2 sprites i did, sieve through the rubbish and post any i feel have stood the test of time, probably just in the artwork forum though, they weren't used back then why would they be used now =P
Quick note as this happened before: You do NOT have permission to use these sprites for your own game, in any way, shape or form (with the obvious exception of the SO team who may use them for Stick Online) This artwork is protected under International Intellectual Property Rights and is only to be used under the expressed permission of the creator
Wow these are really great, glad to see you're back!
Those look awesome and fit in with what I've seen as to how V3 looks. Nice work. :)
I think that wizard hat is flawless and superb, just great work there. I think I prefer your first version to your second.
The top hat could use some work, I feel the top of the hat looks awkward, the way the red ribbon arcs up in the back is a little awkward, and the color of the hat might have a nicer contrast in a darker shade.
Anyways glad your back and running again, were always an old time favorite on the hangout forums! :D
I was thinking the same thing, Lucifer, as it looks like the viewpoint might be a bit flawed with the frontal view point and then the change in color for an above view look near the top. I don't think it's bad, but it would look nicer with it having a bit of an adjustment. I also feel the frontal darker black line at the bottom is unneeded. It adds contrast that doesn't really seem necessary to me, as the light source seems kind of frontal, it wouldn't make sense for there to be shading there.
Quote from: Mr Pwnage on November 07, 2012, 09:29:44 PM
I think that wizard hat is flawless and superb, just great work there. I think I prefer your first version to your second.
The top hat could use some work, I feel the top of the hat looks awkward, the way the red ribbon arcs up in the back is a little awkward, and the color of the hat might have a nicer contrast in a darker shade.
Anyways glad your back and running again, were always an old time favorite on the hangout forums! :D
=] i tried to use a bit of shade to subtly point the hat in a direction, i can see how it would look awkward. Top hats are very awkward looking hats anyway in my opinion =P it's good to know you are still around pwnage, its a shame the hangout died i would've loved to look over my topic again for nostalgia sake =D
I've missed forming hats around circles: updated Bandit + Jungle Mask
Quote from: sly 3 4 me on November 07, 2012, 09:32:31 PM
I was thinking the same thing, Lucifer, as it looks like the viewpoint might be a bit flawed with the frontal view point and then the change in color for an above view look near the top. I don't think it's bad, but it would look nicer with it having a bit of an adjustment. I also feel the frontal darker black line at the bottom is unneeded. It adds contrast that doesn't really seem necessary to me, as the light source seems kind of frontal, it wouldn't make sense for there to be shading there.
not sure if this is just me but ive found sticking rigidly to a fixed light source can result in a very dull looking sprite with a blanketed gradient feel to everything thats all too often peoples first move, sometimes chucking a pixel in to draw the eye to a different spot or highlight something that would be overcast otherwise works well to communicate the artifacts smaller qualities and bring out a style. i can certainly see what you are saying though =]
Dammit double posted, sorry admins...
Not bad at all! I especially like the wizard ones :)
Awesome job man, I think they look wonderful! My favorite is the wizard hat, I really think it looks amazing. My least favorite is the top hat, I don't know why, so its hard to criticize it, If i would say anything about it, I would say it looks blocky but that doesn't make much sense seeing as how can you not make a top hat blocky. All the other ones also look great, Overall great job!
Quote from: Meiun on November 07, 2012, 11:08:42 PM
Not bad at all! I especially like the wizard ones :)
thanks =]
@Kolla i always liked how blocky the top hat on SO2 was, might try a few variations maybe try and make it look more 'real' =] but you're right, how DO you make top hat not blocky lol
Quote from: MetalMatt on November 08, 2012, 04:28:27 AM
Quote from: Meiun on November 07, 2012, 11:08:42 PM
Not bad at all! I especially like the wizard ones :)
thanks =]
@Kolla i always liked how blocky the top hat on SO2 was, might try a few variations maybe try and make it look more 'real' =] but you're right, how DO you make top hat not blocky lol
(http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m4czss1LWB1rwc3vvo1_400.jpg)
on a side note: glad to see you're still around :)
Really love the wizard hat, I think I prefer the second version. Although it does seem a bit large for the head... but that's a minor thing.
Thanks for the feedback, ive edited the tophat a bit, simply changed the shape slightly and corrected some shading then exaggerated the shape entirely:
(http://s17.postimage.org/iq6gl2gi7/Tophat.png) (http://postimage.org/)
Its annoying cause im not happy with any of them =P
Damn this is a good distraction from writing my dissertation =D
I'm just thinking it may look better if it was ever so slightly tilted back on the stick's head.
I'll come back to the top hat....
(http://s13.postimage.org/hqfu4itjn/Skull_mask.png) (http://postimage.org/)
(http://s13.postimage.org/f7pjq3ifn/Cowboy.png) (http://postimage.org/)
skull looks sick dang
My 2 cents. It seems that some of the hats appear too big for the stick's head. It makes it look like the hats are covering it's "eyes" (or where the eyes would be). It gives the stick a very childish look, like a kid wearing his dad's hat. If you could scale them down very slightly, and/or have them sit higher on the head it might look more appropriate.
(http://s7.postimage.org/cq2wqf97r/faceposition.png) (http://postimage.org/)
I work from this: positioning the eye line any higher always looked too awkward in my opinion. To have the hats sit comfortably where i assume the eye line is they have to be quite big.
The cowboy hat, looking at it again, i agree should be higher, its far too low
i can move them all up a pixel or two just to show you if you want but i usually spend a few minutes playing with positioning and with the exception of the cowboy hat that was largely edited away from the base the hats are made specifically for their location on the circle. most of them would need to be completely reshaped to fit a different face alignment with higher or lower eyes or a higher or lower position on the head.
I think Matt's judgement for how far down the face the hat goes is acceptable. If you look at the one in my avatar it isn't far off. They are faceless stick figures after all, so I tend to think of their fittings slightly differently than I would if they did indeed have a legitimate face. Though, you certainly don't want to get too carried away with that notion. I wouldn't be against things being a bit higher either, it just depends on the hat I guess.
These are all very well done, Good work.
gotta love the skull!
Cheers for the support guys, Im very happy with the skull too! was always one of my favourite SO2 hats.
Any suggestions for other sprites to do, maybe you have an idea but no idea how to sprite it let me know and when i get time ill whip up a version for you!
Quote from: MetalMatt on November 09, 2012, 10:59:14 AM
Cheers for the support guys, Im very happy with the skull too! was always one of my favourite SO2 hats.
Any suggestions for other sprites to do, maybe you have an idea but no idea how to sprite it let me know and when i get time ill whip up a version for you!
I actually wouldn't be sure to how to go about doing it, but I'd like to see some sort of dark hood that should be worn like a evil sorcerer/ necromancer. Try to go for red/black or maybe just a really dark shade of purple? I'll let you take artistic liberty with it!
Quote from: Mr Pwnage on November 09, 2012, 12:37:31 PM
Quote from: MetalMatt on November 09, 2012, 10:59:14 AM
Cheers for the support guys, Im very happy with the skull too! was always one of my favourite SO2 hats.
Any suggestions for other sprites to do, maybe you have an idea but no idea how to sprite it let me know and when i get time ill whip up a version for you!
I actually wouldn't be sure to how to go about doing it, but I'd like to see some sort of dark hood that should be worn like a evil sorcerer/ necromancer. Try to go for red/black or maybe just a really dark shade of purple? I'll let you take artistic liberty with it!
Hoods are notoriously difficult to do on stick-men and it all depends on the movement restrictions on the engine but ill give it a go.
Couple of suggestions:
Make the bandit mask look less wrinkled.
Jungle mask the eyes look a little too plain, maybe give them more shape?
The top hat shouldn't have the visible 'dip' I guess you'd call it on the top of that hat since you are viewing it from the side/front angle.
The wizard hat, cowboy hat, and skull mask are pretty much flawless, great job.
As for ideas maybe some revamped SO2 sprites, an elves hat, maybe some type of full helmet... I'll think of some more ideas later.
Quote from: stick d00d on November 09, 2012, 01:21:12 PM
Couple of suggestions:
Make the bandit mask look less wrinkled.
Jungle mask the eyes look a little too plain, maybe give them more shape?
The top hat shouldn't have the visible 'dip' I guess you'd call it on the top of that hat since you are viewing it from the side/front angle.
The wizard hat, cowboy hat, and skull mask are pretty much flawless, great job.
As for ideas maybe some revamped SO2 sprites, an elves hat, maybe some type of full helmet... I'll think of some more ideas later.
making the darkest shade lighter should remedy that, ill do some tests later and post up.
It's a splint of wood with feathers on it, the eyes are as complicated as they can be without looking like a pair of cartoon googly eyes, maybe ill post up the different eye tests i did to show you.
I hate the top hat =] I'll come back to trying to nail that one later, it's not very fun.
Thank you, which wizard hat do you prefer? =D I'll be working my way through all of the SO2 hats, or most of them...some at least and as for suggestions it's easier for me if you give me a single specific rather than multiple options , they take quite a bit of time to get right and if i take lists of vague suggestions id be bogged down with sprites all day.
Quote from: MetalMatt on November 09, 2012, 01:43:36 PM
Quote from: stick d00d on November 09, 2012, 01:21:12 PM
Couple of suggestions:
Make the bandit mask look less wrinkled.
Jungle mask the eyes look a little too plain, maybe give them more shape?
The top hat shouldn't have the visible 'dip' I guess you'd call it on the top of that hat since you are viewing it from the side/front angle.
The wizard hat, cowboy hat, and skull mask are pretty much flawless, great job.
As for ideas maybe some revamped SO2 sprites, an elves hat, maybe some type of full helmet... I'll think of some more ideas later.
making the darkest shade lighter should remedy that, ill do some tests later and post up.
It's a splint of wood with feathers on it, the eyes are as complicated as they can be without looking like a pair of cartoon googly eyes, maybe ill post up the different eye tests i did to show you.
I hate the top hat =] I'll come back to trying to nail that one later, it's not very fun.
Thank you, which wizard hat do you prefer? =D I'll be working my way through all of the SO2 hats, or most of them...some at least and as for suggestions it's easier for me if you give me a single specific rather than multiple options , they take quite a bit of time to get right and if i take lists of vague suggestions id be bogged down with sprites all day.
The second wizard hat is my favorite one. As for the jungle mask were you going for something like the mask from Crash Bandicoot? If so maybe make it have like an angry looking mouth, and make the eyes sort of angled?
As for the revamps, maybe start out with bunny ears? (Black or white) or maybe the Bandit Cover. I'm not sure if Meiun wants to use revamps of SO2's sprites so I'll limit it to that for now.
Quote from: MetalMatt on November 08, 2012, 09:08:04 PM
(http://s7.postimage.org/cq2wqf97r/faceposition.png) (http://postimage.org/)
I work from this: positioning the eye line any higher always looked too awkward in my opinion. To have the hats sit comfortably where i assume the eye line is they have to be quite big.
The cowboy hat, looking at it again, i agree should be higher, its far too low
i can move them all up a pixel or two just to show you if you want but i usually spend a few minutes playing with positioning and with the exception of the cowboy hat that was largely edited away from the base the hats are made specifically for their location on the circle. most of them would need to be completely reshaped to fit a different face alignment with higher or lower eyes or a higher or lower position on the head.
I think the top hat and the wizard hat are also too low. It looks like the brims of the hat are sitting right where you are saying the eye is, which leaves no room for a forhead, and that's not how hats are normally worn. For that matter, the skull mask where you have the eyes positioned feels very weird, like he's looking down.
Based on Meiun's avatar, I imagine that helmet to have a visor where the eyes should be. If this is the case, then the eyes are positioned higher than where you're showing them. Now, I may be misinterpretting that, and what I'm calling a "visor" is actually a sort of brim of the helmet and the eyes are below the helmet altogether. If that's the case then I have a very different idea of where eyes should be on a head than either of you.
Since the head has no features, it is really up to each person to place imaginary features onto that head (it's how the brain works). Because of this, everyone is going to have a slightly different idea of where the hats actually sit compared to where they imagine the eyes and other facial features to be. So in other words, depending on how the art work ends up being in the final version of the game, I may end up having to live with seeing all of the stick figures as wearing their dad's hats...
in response to critiques the front page has been edited:
- New Wizard hat variation, smaller and higher on head.
- New Bandit with smoother shading to look less "wrinkled"
- New Top hat variation, smaller, tilted back and higher on head.
- New cowboy hat variation, Smaller, Higher.
- Edited skull mask, visible eye 1px higher.
- Edited Jungle Mask, added visible face area (missing from original but part of the original design).
QuoteI may end up having to live with seeing all of the stick figures as wearing their dad's hats...
I still dont fully understand what you mean by this, if its a case of scale then they are the size they need to be with the exception of skin tight headgear all of the hats are at least outside the border of the head. I guess I can't explain the reasoning fully for the hats being the size they are so im going to counter your crit with this statement: AHA! but make them too small and would they not look like dad's wearing their kids tacky Halloween costumes? =P
As you said, the eye line is up to interpretation and where i assumed it was has been Ok'd by meiun, which is good enough reason for me to keep working from it, let's hope for your sake they dont use any of my stuff =P then you wont have to suffer
(http://s14.postimage.org/qtjxmc631/necrohood.png) (http://postimage.org/)
For Mr.Pwnage: That something like what you were thinking?
I think you've fixed what always felt off for the Tophat in SOv2, I enjoy it sitting on the back of the head, looks perfect to me. Second Wiz hat looks the best out of the three, imo, and I love both of the necro hoods!
I think the Top Hat looks much better now thanks to tilting it back slightly.
Also if you get the chance I'd love to see an updated Jester Hat and also a pirate hat in the style of the one Barbossa from Pirate of the Caribbean wears.
Like this:
(http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs25/f/2008/143/6/c/Barbossa_hat_2_by_theLadyBarbossa.jpg)
Are you taking requests for weapons or just hats right now?
@Matty: Ill get on it asap! should be fun.
@Stick d00d: Only taking requests for hats or anything else that doesn't need animating, i really don't have the free time required for polishing up attack animations.
Could you do Solaire's helmet from Dark Souls?
(http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2012/303/3/b/3b9c0bbab12bef24e9e0eaf68dac7f99-d5jh45b.jpg)
Quote from: MetalMatt on November 09, 2012, 04:48:27 PM
(http://s14.postimage.org/qtjxmc631/necrohood.png) (http://postimage.org/)
For Mr.Pwnage: That something like what you were thinking?
Holy crap dude. Better than I was envisioning actually. I really like what you did with it and how you took it below the head level and still made it look good. I also think you have the perfect amount of the red markings, it's not excessive and adds to the mysteriousness. Both look really great, I think the black one would be my favorite.
Quote from: Mr Pwnage on November 10, 2012, 09:29:01 AM
Quote from: MetalMatt on November 09, 2012, 04:48:27 PM
(http://s14.postimage.org/qtjxmc631/necrohood.png) (http://postimage.org/)
For Mr.Pwnage: That something like what you were thinking?
Holy crap dude. Better than I was envisioning actually. I really like what you did with it and how you took it below the head level and still made it look good. I also think you have the perfect amount of the red markings, it's not excessive and adds to the mysteriousness. Both look really great, I think the black one would be my favorite.
Glad you like it pwnage, it was fun to make =D
Matty I haven't forgotten about you! but Turkey I did yours first as it was easier (less organic shape)
Here it is:
(http://s17.postimage.org/mcbv1zdbf/Knightsolaire.png) (http://postimage.org/)
Also some SO2 favourites =]
(http://s17.postimage.org/tq0fsfc4r/captainsandbarb.png) (http://postimage.org/)
*its a little plain so once a few people pick which they prefer, the large or small, ill play with the shading and colours until it's more fun to look at =]*
I'd like to point out some things in your hats so far :p
First off, something shared among all your hats is the coloring style, it is too gradient-ed in color and lacks texture, (aka it uses v2's coloring style too much)
Some of your hats' shape is also a bit odd, taking the wizard hat into example, the hat does not look like it is on the stickman's head properly, because most of the area fitted takes place in the front of the head ( the triangle shape) and not on the head. For the top hat, it looks a bit too flat not only because of the color, but also because of how it is fitted on the stickman's head. I don't think that the hats size are off, and they do have a good shape for most of them, but you should watch where they fit on the stickman's head.
Other than that, I like your skull mask, just gotta work a bit on the color and texture :p
Quote from: Ceroblitz on November 10, 2012, 11:39:08 AM
I'd like to point out some things in your hats so far :p
First off, something shared among all your hats is the coloring style, it is too gradient-ed in color and lacks texture, (aka it uses v2's coloring style too much)
Some of your hats' shape is also a bit odd, taking the wizard hat into example, the hat does not look like it is on the stickman's head properly, because most of the area fitted takes place in the front of the head ( the triangle shape) and not on the head. For the top hat, it looks a bit too flat not only because of the color, but also because of how it is fitted on the stickman's head. I don't think that the hats size are off, and they do have a good shape for most of them, but you should watch where they fit on the stickman's head.
Other than that, I like your skull mask, just gotta work a bit on the color and texture :p
I know a method for adding more "Texture" to things at this scale but for the large part i work from the ideology that the only textureing i should focus on are things like woodgrain etc. things with a large, obvious texture that massively effects the form of the material.
At this scale you cant even represent some of the simplest of forms because of the limit of the pixel. if it isnt fur, fabric, chainmail or anything else of that sort then any attempt to "texture" the sprite devolves into merely adding value noise, for example metal; in 3D or higher res 2D graphics you'd expect some scratches etc.....i challenge anyone to represent a scratched metal surface in what is largely spots less than a few pixels in area size and representational of a 3D shape not a flat surface. I only use pillow shading when there is no need for any other type, for fabric or cloth i generally crosshatch shade (A la pwnages hood, though it ended up mostly obscured by the red markings) and a lot of the time i just slap pixels down and zoom out repeating the process until it looks right, i tend to follow some basic rules: make it clear, make it effective, keep it simple.
I can "texture" an example up to show you what I mean and maybe play with the wizard hat (again!) based on your crit to satisfy your objections =]. just to be clear: your issue is that the hat appears to rest too far forward of the head giving it a floaty look rather than it actually resting on the 'skull'?
EDIT: To me it just looks noisy, but it probably is just me, I do much prefer the shape of this one though, cheers =]
(http://s12.postimage.org/8sikpypux/wizardfinal.png) (http://postimage.org/)
Quote from: MetalMatt on November 10, 2012, 11:29:41 AM
Here it is:
(http://s17.postimage.org/mcbv1zdbf/Knightsolaire.png) (http://postimage.org/)
Ohhhh thank you, it looks great.
I like the 3rd Top Hat, the wiz ones, and the necromancer hoods a lot. As was said by Cero the color schemes in most of them are a little -too- much like SO2's. One thing I think you could improove on is the look of the black outline. On your newest helm, the outline contrasts the light grey a lot, and there is a few unrefined jaggies. Color overall could be better (a few are a tad bland D:). Good effort nonetheless.
Quote from: crozier on November 11, 2012, 04:05:22 PM
I like the 3rd Top Hat, the wiz ones, and the necromancer hoods a lot. As was said by Cero the color schemes in most of them are a little -too- much like SO2's. One thing I think you could improove on is the look of the black outline. On your newest helm, the outline contrasts the light grey a lot, and there is a few unrefined jaggies. Color overall could be better (a few are a tad bland D:). Good effort nonetheless.
the....bland... coloring style is intentional and I've explained why i think it's justified in other replies, i still need to upload the "higher detail shading" comparisons but i can see how people want it to be something more than the SO2 style =]
the 'unrefined' bits are again intentional, removing the jagged pixels gives too organic of a shape whereas based on the image i was given the helmet in question has a much sharper, geometric shape.
I dont like black outlines in most cases but based on the current So3 graphics i've seen black outlines is what they are going for, it appears a fairly cemented design decision and if its consistent throughout the style i personally think it works.