Is it still Pixel Art if ...?

[@jimmypatatoeyt4800]

personally, i like the one just before the fog most

[@lucky-jacob]

Thanks, man! Yeah, the fog was a bit much xD fun though.

[@WeirdWizzard]

I enjoy both ends of the spectrum when it comes to pixel art. To me both sides offer interesting challenges that require the artist to flex their creativity in finding solutions. I personally really enjoy this style and do consider it to be pixel art, as it still captures a pixel art aesthetic, but with more detail. On the other hand, I also like the classic pixel art style and the use of imposed limitations. I find it fascinating to see how other artists find creative solutions to those limitations when creating their peices. Either way, both are great in their own respective rights. :)

[@lucky-jacob]

Agreed! For me, it's also about the process of making pixel art. While the result is still pixel art, I feel like some of the techniques I used in the video (color gradients, layer effects, CG light rays, etc) kinda feel like cheating. The struggle to "construct" a piece is part of the fun, I guess.

[@WeirdWizzard]

@@lucky-jacob For sure! I definitely agree with you on "construction" being a big aspect of the fun. If you set up, say, a brush that achieves something for you a click, you've lost that part of the construction process. I also wonder if that could potentially hinder your creativity later, if certain tools, brushes, etc. are no longer available to you. Interesting to think about.

[@odw32]

Feels a bit like modern chiptune music created in Ableton/FLStudio -- It's something else than "classic" chiptune, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Constructing music from just simple saw/sine waves can be fun, but also a bit harsh on the ears, adding subtle reverb/stereo effects, a more balanced bassline and some automation just makes it a lot more enjoyable to listen to. Similarly, as long as the spirit of the pixel art is preserved, I wouldn't view a vignette/gradient/shimmers as sacrilege to the artform, it just makes it more enjoyable to the eyes. The fog took it a bit too far though I think.

[@lucky-jacob]

agreed!

[@lixivia8350]

It looks awesome but the fog can be too much, feels like half of the things u added got erased at the end, maybe if u tone it down a little bit u can find a nice balance(?

[@lucky-jacob]

I thought about that too, but ultimately shrouding was the main purpose of the fog. So I kept the opacity high.

[@Soy_Barman]

I can agree with limitations, especially time, ...so some non-pixel added effects can improve the average look of a game. But also think less is more. Trying to "hide" this effects sometimes can be a good way.

[@Soy_Barman]

I love the lightcast on the trees, btw.

[@lucky-jacob]

Yeah, in the end it still has to match. Sometimes I see people mixing different resolutions, which can really break the whole piece.

[@ladyamphibulon7784]

Im curious to see what it would look like if you posterized the end product back to the limited palette to get the pixel feel back or if it would just turn to low-res mush

[@Roxor128]

With a palette that limited, it'd end up pretty mushy. It's more something that would go with a 256-colour graphics mode.

[@lucky-jacob]

what @Roxor128 said

[@deebambi5567]

In my head I refer to this style as "Pixelated Art" and view it as modernized extension to "Pixel art"

[@lucky-jacob]

I like that

[@Roxor128]

The final product doesn't seem too far away from what you could achieve with 256-colour VGA. Posterise to 64 levels (because VGA only has an 18-bit RGB colour space), then reduce the colour-depth to 256 colours with an optimised palette and you'd have a version that could be displayed on a VGA display. Actually, working within the limitations of VGA could be a worthwhile exercise. Actual games made for it did include things like fog and translucency. Layers are straightforward. Fog and transparency is a bit harder. Given how slow hardware was back in the early 1990s, games used pre-calculated lookup tables for the job. Fog can be done with a 256-entry lookup table generated by finding which colour in the palette is the closest match to the desired colour given the fog colour. Translucency needs a 256*256 table for all possible pairings of colours with a given transparency value. BUILD engine games have a table of 2:1 mixes, which allows for two levels of translucency between opaque and invisible (look it up one way and get the more-opaque results, swap the colours for the less-opaque one).

[@lucky-jacob]

Thank you for the deep dive! I never approached it from a technical point of view. When trying to interpret a retro aesthetic, it's easy to forget the reasons and limitations that led to it. Especially with the possibilities we have today.

[@findot777]

Something interesting to keep in mind the snes resolution was actually usually only as high as the nes yet it looks like it has a higher res because the extra colours.

[@lucky-jacob]

why are all you guys so damn tech-savvy ... I feel like a caveman around here xD But yeah, just a couple more colors can make all the difference, sometimes

[@natanmaia3575]

reminds me of Zetterstrand's paintings.

[@lucky-jacob]

Hell yeah! I'll take that compliment any day! 🔥

[@zixvirzjghamn737]

Im curious how to do the fog effect in such a pixelated manner, would be pretty cool for a video game

[@lucky-jacob]

In this case it is just a down-sized video asset I had in After Effects - with some editing trickery to make it loop. I guess you could use it to create an overlay for a game from it. It's a free asset pack you can find here >>> www.premiumbeat.com/blog/free-4k-fog-overlays/ Shout Out and Thank You to @PremiumBeat

[@supermj767]

0:01 You forgot to save yourself. The "*" right next to your name indicates you haven't saved yet.

[@RobinsonPixels]

Definitely wouldn't call it pixel art at this point, but I don't think the label really matters, because the only ones who will really care are us pixel-heads lol. It reminds me of the style of art they're using with the Octopath Traveler games. It's very cool and an aesthetic that's worth pursuing if you enjoy it.

[@lucky-jacob]

HAHA although I feel quite the same, that "definitely" had a bitter-sweet sting to it xD (Love your stuff BTW 🔥) /*edited for spelling and stuff

[@nullvader]

I like the channel!

[@leiocerayt]

not first

[@lucky-jacob]

Don’t feel bad. Here, have a cookie 🍪

[@leiocerayt]

@@lucky-jacob i actually was first r/whoooosh

[@lucky-jacob]

Give me back my cookie then 🙃

[@leiocerayt]

@@lucky-jacob Already ate it sry, it was yummy tho

[@lucky-jacob]

I was afraid of that 🤔 but in that case: have some more 🍪🍪🍪