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This isn't on Weasyl?? Well, shit, that's something we'll have to fix:
A little something-something in the vein of things suckmcjones was doing a while back here: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/8467650/
Essentially it's Vahn being Vahn and this is pretty much how I would idle if I were in a fighting game. Totally Bridget. Totally Bridget. I've actually admittedly wanted to animate a character in this idle stance for years now so I'm glad I finally finished it.
What's that Vahn why did it take you so long to finish it what's what I didn't hear anything I don't know must have been the wind
Anyway, things I learned:
1) Animation is hard
2) I have no patience
3) Freaking USE LAYERS FOR BODY PARTS and NOT FOR EFFECTS (I did the former and yeah it was kind of nice but I had to redraw over and over)
4) Watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R34YlOeqXWc
5) I love pixel art so much
A little sad I didn't use a broader palette but hey you gotta start somewhere.
Anyway, enjoy <3
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- Views:
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- Comments:
- 32
- Favorites:
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- Rating:
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- Category:
- Visual / Animation
Comments
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I know you dooo ;3
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Love it! Really smooth animation and it does look like an actual idle stance! There's a definite sense of the character you get from the way he moves. The thick black line makes him look more vector than pixel, but it's a unique look - reminds me of when Skullgirls was using sprites way early in development.
I have a couple potential nitpicks as someone fairly well-versed in pixel art, but if you're not interested in crit I'll just leave it at that. i know after working on a time-consuming animation sometimes I just want to be totally done with it.
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I'm definitely not professionally trained - I'm a terrible animator in general outside of pixel work - and the critique is welcome! Especially since I'm currently working on animating an entire pixel art game, though it'll be thankfully a much simpler style than this. I am aware of some of my mistakes:
- The character looks pretty flat, which is a problem I have often in my artwork, texture
- The feet don't really shift as weight moves across them, and the shadows moving over them are poor
- Hair is still a tad too stiff
- The black outlines, as striking as they are, may have been a poor decision - and ultimately I used them because I was kind of too lazy to recolor the lines every frame >_>
Any advice you can offer would be useful!
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I'm by no means a professional either, but I've participated in several communities that have their share of experienced, and, at times, professional pixelartists, so i like to think I've picked up a few tricks.
I think a lot of the "flatness" comes from the black outline being used all over - IE the inside. Things like the different "pieces" of his hair, where the gloves/thigh-highs hit his skin, etc, might be better lined with a lighter color or not at all. As long as the distinction can be made between them being clothing and not just more markings, you're good. (Partially outline them, perhaps?)
Your issue with texture - do you mean fux texture? With a sprite like this, approximating the look of fur using shading is probably a better option than going all out and texturing him up. Gonna link one of my own works really quick... http://infinipede.deviantart.com/art/Not-Again-382246494 - the middle guy here is a good example. I like using Pokemon sprites as reference for how to do simple fur, though that's mostly because I do a lot of Pokemon style work. Another example of interest, and perhaps closer in style to what you have here, are some of Cure's gen one resprites: http://www.pixeljoint.com/pixelart/71043.htm
I'm piss-poor at anatomy so I can't be of much help with the shifting feet - when it comes to the shading there though, I think the shadows should be simplified a bit more. They look out of place compared to the rest of the body. The stiffness of the hair can really only be fixed through more movement!
As I said prior I like the black outlines on the outside because they give him a very vector or 3d model kind of feel, but if that's not what you're going for, a general pixel art rule of thumb - never use pure black or white. Always use something like a very dark grey or light cream (depending on what colors surround it.) If you're going to redo the outlines like this, make them single pixel, too - the thick outlines add to the vector look.
Last but not least, when it comes to palettes - consolidate! You want to use as few colors as possible. Pick a palette that allows you to reuse colors for different shades and body parts, then reuse those colors and drop the colors you don't need. (For example, an orange shadow could be made red enough to highlight his hair, and a lighter orange could be made creamy enough to be used instead of one of the white shades. Again, this'll give it a less vector-ish and more pixelly feel.
In any case, I really like this and I'd love to see more of these kinds of pixel work from you!
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A lot of really useful advice in all this! Thank you!
I absolutely see what you mean about the lines - in both their thickness and their color usage. I think my shading is a big contributer, since it's so simplistic that it doesn't produce the same depth as Cure's work, and that makes the flatness noticeable as well. These are all things to fix going forward! Thank you for the awesome link to Cure's pixel work - I'm keeping this in my references! It'll come in very useful <3Thankfully, the game I'm working on right now is much more simplified :) No outlines, very small sprites, gradients and lighting being key in generating atmosphere and detail. Art style exemplified here: http://fluff-dragon.tumblr.com/post/74120056496 That's going to make development considerably easier, I think.
Thanks for the tip on pure black and white! I quickly adjusted this in the sprites I've been working on. I already see plenty of situations where that'll come in useful I had never thought about X3
And yes, I've definitely been focusing on using a select few colors! The above animation is only 10 colors, plus the background which would ordinarily be transparent :)
I hope to be able to share what I've got as I'm going forward, working on this game! You might see more if you watch this space :) I might even try redoing the lines for this and cleaning it up.
Thanks again for all the great advice!-
I love the style of art you linked! I remember seeing a couple mockups of game ideas with a similar style to that. Can't wait to see progress ^^
And I love Cure's work! I really recommend studying how experienced and professional pixel artists do their work - some of my favorites (who you can find through a quick Pixeljoint search:) OCEANSCENTED, a3um, Jalonso, Fool, Jinn, wish04, Frost, st0ven, Adarias, Drazelic, Elk, Skeddles, and Vic. Also I'm unsure if he has a Pixeljoint account since a lot of artists on there loathe him with a passion, but I highly recommend taking a look at how Paul Robertson/Probs does animation, since he works on quite a few commercial projects (the Scott Pilgrim game, that one episode of Gravity Falls, the "bitcoms" from SA's Flash Tub, etc.)
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Why do people loathe him with a passion?? O_O
(Begins researching pixel artists eeee)-
I don't know the whole story, I think it's a combination of his style being very simplistic/cartoony/anime-esque and a bit lighter on the pixel technique (which to be fair, makes it a lot faster/easier to animate large quantities of sprites for games and animation and such,) possible jealousy at him being probably the most well-known pixel artist to do more mainstream commercial work, the fact that he's done porn in the past and some kinda of silly drawings of anime girls riding flying rocket tentacle dicks and such (oh my god though who hasn't,) and possible theft of the explosion animations from an old SNES game (this one I can definitely see being reason to dislike him, though iirc it was more recent and I don't know the whole story.)
tl;dr either a case of the pixel community being pretentious and holier than thou, or the case of a sell-out with some nebulous morals, or both, depending on who you ask, and I'm honestly kind of out of the loop on it. (If any other pixel artists wanna correct me on this, that'd be fine.)
Anyways, I definitely recommend checking out the weekly/monthly top galleries on Pixeljoint and studying how they do stuff! I've found dumping something I like into Graphicsgale and getting a good look at it to be super helpful.
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Ugh. I still LOVE THIS SO MUCH <3
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Swayin' them hips like you tryna sink ships, dang mamacita mamacita~
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I am the sexiest damn pirate you ever did see ;3
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hehe I know which fighter to select still
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I would totally have a full screen of these <3
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Amazing work! This is wonderfully done :D Could watch all day!
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<3 From someone with tastes as good as yours that comes as wonderful compliment!! ^_^
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I have half a mind to try one of these sometime. x)
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This is oddly hypnotic. Or maybe I'm just ogling.
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i LOVE idle stances because they give so much character! i always think of "idle stance" when suiting and it helps a ton :3 this one is particularly sassy and fricken adorable, i'd love one!
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Always would be curious to see what sort of game this character would fit into. Maybe Lingerie Fighter 20XX! Now with more lace! =3c
It's incredible work, that's for sure. Thanks for posting it Vahn!
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Heh. You look good... though funny thing is that you're not looking at your opponent, you're looking out at the audience.
"Yeah, you know I'm sexy..."
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Wiggle waggle <3 Show me your claws
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vahn is sexiest furfighter?
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Does Vahn care to spar? I think he would make a very good sparing partner for Cujo. After all long session of studying each other's craft in their specific martial art form they suit themselves for some R & R love making.
Link
NecroDrone
Man these are awesome! I want one ;_;