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How do you guys make sprites? - Printable Version

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How do you guys make sprites? - Mariotroid - 04-14-2018

So recently I was spriting something. I used a base of a drawing then started putting little squares around the object and on the object to show what the pixal will be since it was a large image. 

Is this your guys approach? Do you draw something then go over it with pixels? I' completely curious. I' not much of a sprite (at least not yet)

RE: How do you guys make sprites? - Pedigree - 04-14-2018

I sketch it out and put the reference on my other monitor, but using layers to Sprite over your sketch may be a lot easier to do.

RE: How do you guys make sprites? - Yrr - 04-14-2018

I used to just start pixelling in blank space but recently I took to drawing an image, scaling it down, and then cleaning it up and editing it into a sprite.

Once I have the initial sprite tho its all just editing it into new poses.

RE: How do you guys make sprites? - TheMeadTree - 04-14-2018

For advanced pieces, I make a basic sketch in Photoshop.
[Image: Photoshop_2018-03-15_02-13-10.png]

Zoomed out and blurry. If you're imagining some sort of detail, there is none. There is barely anything here besides some very poorly done line art, flat colors, and a few sprayed on overlays. Quick and ugly. What matters is the silhouette - the big idea.

I size it down and index the color palette. We're left with something even UGLIER.

[Image: gimp-2.8_2018-04-14_04-34-15.png]

It's ugly, but the palette is a lot more manageable. So is the resolution.
After that, endless rendering and refining. Set up your light sources. Apply what you know to the best of your abilities. As far as improving your rendering goes, learn some real world physics. Cast shadows, material reflectivity, speculars, bounce lighting, rim lighting, so on... Observe what you see in real life, then try copying it. Yes, even if you're working on something stylized, you can still apply what you know to GREAT effect.
[Image: Untitled.gif]

Never start drawing with outlines. Paint in shapes. Feel the volume. Also, be extremely hesitant to add in new colors to your palette (just good practice, honestly).
The key to having a good palette is hue shifting as well as value shifting (instead of going from dark red to light red, go from dark red to bright orange/yellow).


Keep a visualized chart of your color ramps handy at all times. You gotta keep track of the colors you're using and how they relate to one another if you want to use them to their fullest potential.

[Image: 5pice_IDE_2018-03-17_00-41-03.png]

Forgot what other advice I had, idk. I'm forgetting something again.

Oh yeah, always have a pencil and paper ready. Draw out something in pencil and really feel its flow before going into pixel art. Reference your drawings while using the pixel editor. That's a good way to ensure you don't come out with blocky, lifeless characters. Fighting games have amazing sprite sheets. https://www.spriters-resource.com/playstation_2/mbaa/?source=genre
Those sprites make my head spin. They're beautiful (especially Walachia). Find inspiration, keep drawing. Copying is always good too.

RE: How do you guys make sprites? - Yrr - 04-14-2018

[Image: j2DoGOE.png]
Heres my process in action for a game I'm working on at the moment.

(And here it is animated and in action)

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