Graphics Update

Today I created a new sprite, this will be used for an NPC based off of Welsh_Believer.

I started by drawing out the basic line art for the character.

This character is off a much broader frame than the player's

character so I made the base line fairly wide.

After that, using the redline technique I gave the sprite a more

defined shape. I added eyes and eyebrows and gave the trousers

some shape.

Finally using several different layers, I gave the character clothing.

While not visible here, the shirt actually has text on it, I went that

far so that the part visible flows better.



Titlescreen Update

This post is about the techniques and progress of the title screen for the game.

Firstly I chose the default resolution of the game window as the resolution of the canvas. For the game it is 640px by 480px. I felt that I should use consistent resolutions throughout the game.

To begin with, I used the paintbrush tool with full opacity, I used this tool for both the title text and the yellow back to the eye. After that I used an orange-yellow for the front of the eye. I found that it was easier to use a separate layer for each element as I went along.

After using the blur tool to make the eye look more 3D I added a pupil in an off-black shade and used blur to add shading to the pupil also. I did a bit of cross-hatched paint brushing with shades of grey to map out where the mist/smoke effect would go.

After I did the cross-hatching I used a zig-zagging technique with the blur tool in order to create a ripple on the cross-hatching. On the layer bellow that I used a huge brush size and did 2 large areas of colour, 1 purple and 1 maroon, again, using a large blur brush I melded them together in order to gain an interesting effect.

In addition to this I used a big, partly transparent black brush to create a smog-like area for the menu items background (so they'd stand out off of the "busy" title screen).

I changed the text colour to dark red and started to use the text tool to write in the menu items.



Finally I converted the menu item titles into a non-text object and blurred them all slightly so that they didn't clash with the rest of the theme.

This is the (blog friendly) final product, I feel that it turned out quite well. This version isn't as high quality as the version going into the game as that'd be far too big to go on the blog!

The reason the file size on the main version can be so large (I'm using a .BMP) is because the title screen is fairly static and loading a large image won't slow down any in-game processes at the time that it is there.

pre[0.6] update

This is gonna be a long update, so get ready:

First off in response to the feedback I have received I have began to replace the placeholder floor cover, it still isn't as good as I want it to look but it's definitely a step in the right direction.

In addition I have reduced the monotony of the area by placing some objects, including chairs, computers and some recycling bins.

In addition if you look at the title bar you might notice that there is now both an icon and a caption, this will likely be the final icon and title as they sit there quite nicely :)

Onto graphical progress I've added a new sprite into the game, it follows my rough sketch of the first apparition type encountered in the game, called the Lesser Scavenger.

I've done both a lined and line less version of the image (these are the .JPG versions, again for keeping them fit for purpose), please comment on which you'd prefer to see in the game. With the lined one I really want to make the line less thick.

On to functionality updates, the torch is now able to run out of juice. This makes the scene gradually more dim and grim. The issue I'm having right now is making the lighting technique more optimised so that the game can handle more than just the 1 light source in the game.

I guess that I'll be adding the text engine handling and a true A* algorithm for the mobs (mobiles or NPCs) so that they can handle getting around the level without getting stuck on walls. I'll also try to do a bit of optimisation, on the lighting so that I can add some cool effects!

pre[0.3] update

Been a while since I last updated ^^;

So today I've been working on the lighting engine and the HUD that Jamie designed.

The HUD displays health, sanity and battery power. At the moment the lighting bar doesn't do anything nor does the inventory.

When the battery get implemented properly the lighting from the torch dims and the light will be effective.
The green frames are there for placeholders for other objects.

I've changed the zoom level in this version too, the old zoom level was 320px x 240px where as now it's zoomed out to 640px x 480px.

Next up I'll be drawing more NPC sprites/concept art, I might also add the graphics for the Inventory that Jamie makes.

pre[0.2] Info

In this post I'm going to write an update on the prototype version of the game.

Firstly I've settled on a title for the game, the game will be called Somniphobia - Pavor Nocturnus.
The title, Somniphobia, is the fear of sleeping. The sub-title, Pavor Nocturnus, is the Latin for Night Terrors. The title is a bit wordy but it's better than the generic working title of Insomnia, in addition there is less chance of there already being a game with the same title.

Secondly I've improved the tech-demo, in the sense that it now has collision checking and movement. The player's sprite still doesn't animate but the door (which is now an object) animates when the player walks into it.

Using a y sorting algorithm I've made it so that the player and door know when they should be in front of or behind each other, the algorithm doesn't work with tiles however so I'm going to be sparing with areas where the player can go under, or partially behind an object.

The red walls are only visible in the editor the red stands out against the pastel colours used elsewhere.

The wall next to the left door is actually an object so that it can be stepped behind, the boarder wall above the door is also an object (the rest around the other areas aren't) but is excluded from the depth algorithm so that it is always above the player and other objects.

Mock-up Level

I'm posting this quick update on a mock-up level design I made using GM8.1 Standard Edition (Link).
I used an unfinished tile-set that I made using NeoTA's Better OHR Palette (Link) and GIMP 2.6 (Link), which I will put up here in a later post.

The grey portions are areas where there is no colour this will later be replaced with black tiles. The reason that I'm using this shade of grey is because I don't currently have any tiles that use that shade of grey. Later on I will likely use magenta as it is a very bright colour and usually used to mark transparency.

This tile-set is merely a placeholder, and will be replaced with a much more detailed one later. A few elements are still missing, such as the overhead wall boarder (to show where the walls that are hidden by the view are) and decals (other than the notice on the doors).

In this image the only object is the player I plan to make the doors into an object also, as they can be interacted with.

Art Update

In this entry I will show the progress of the first character sprite.

This was my rough concept art for the currently unnamed main character. I threw this together to give me an idea on what I wanted the final sprite to look like.

These images are the original line art and the redline edit. The purpose of the redline edit is to see the clear difference between the first and second image. The redline is the improve image and is drawn on a separate layer so that multiple redlines could be drawn for the same sprite.

These are the first colour version and the final sprite at a much reduced size (and quality). These are saved as .JPEG but the versions I will use for the actual game will be saved as either a .TIF or a .BMP as the quality is what will matter in the long run not the compression.