WINNERS ANNOUNCED! Background blitz: A wreck

[Monsieur OUXX]

VOTING TIME! (until Sunday night, midnight in your time zone) (Please let me know if I forgot someone!)

High-quality entries. And plenty of them!

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Please do click on each image to see it with a proper size and resolution.
2. You must vote 3 times. Once for each criterium.

The criteria are reminded here :

  - Concept (a scene that stimulates the imagination, or something interesting, or clever -- something that makes people say: "Oh, I see!")
  - Playability (could it be used in a real game?)
  - Artistic execution (you know, there's always this one contestant who makes everyone jealous of his skills )

1. Kasander
2. GreenBeams (a.k.a. Yakatakatula )
3. Andail
4. Cassiebg
5. Dropped Monocle games (unfinished)
6. monsieur ouxx
7. jwalt
8. adventuress: has completeky disappeared :'( If anyone has news, that'd be cool.
9. Grundislav
10 Misj'
11 ThreeOhFour
12 I<3Pindorama!
I<3Pindorama!'s STORY/CONCEPT:

Spoiler

Sorry for the disgusting state of the toilet paper roll, but that's how he was found by the rescue team.
In order to not cause gag reflex, the full content is reproduced below...


[/center]

You can read THE CHAPTER I right here:
http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=51609.0

[close]

[Mandle]

OMG soooo friggin' hard to choose. There is not a flawed entry in this whole bunch...But:

Concept: Kasander...This background just makes me want to know so much more about the story of the game it would be in. Well that...and also that fact that any game with backgrounds just THAT beautiful would need an incredible amount of bungling of the rest of the production to not be awesome!!! I'm guessing it's a spaceship that crashed quite some time ago and is currently being worshipped by the jungle natives as a shrine to the "gods", so telling that much story with one background really deserves the concept award I feel...

Playability: GreenBeams...The multiple paths and obvious puzzle of the hanging medallion from the dead pilot's fist just makes me want to walk all over this. Sure character perspective is gonna be a problem, but the gorgeous walkbehinds make up for it. Besides: there is only one vote allowed for:

Artistic: ThreeOhFour...Ummmm, yeah. I can only repeat Cassie's comment: "I want to hang a print of this on my wall" I believe it was...

EDIT: Also, I just realized that the stuff wrapped all around the dead pilot, and hanging all blood-soaked down to the ground, in GreenBeam's work is the pilot's failed attempt at bailing out with his parachute, or it deployed upon crashing. Either way: deliciously ironic black humour right there. I can only hope the player has to climb the parachute somehow to retrieve the medallion, adding insult to injury...

[Stupot]

concept: Andail I like the big ship and I can't wait to explore it.
playability: Greenbeams Interesting semi-top-down angle looks great and provides for some intriguing possibilities.
artistry: Misj hard to choose an obvious winner here but this one was just slightly more joyful to look at than some of the others. Lovely stuff.

[Mandle]

For some reason Cassiebsg's entry is not showing up for me in the gallery... FIXED

[I<3Pindorama!]

Concept: Misj'

REFERENCES Spoiler As I said before this work had captivated me for its creativity which presents a quiet occurrence and still be an event associated to the dramatic theme. As soon as I contemplated the image Immediately a medieval version of Peter Rabbit came to my mind ... In fact, the work of Beatrix Potter "debuted" in the public domain this year. This means we can already reproduce and use his work in a infinity of things like... ags's games? The second reference was a comic book called Mouse Guard, below I leave the sequence of the first 11 pages of the first published and you are understand the elements of the work of Misj' that brought me this recall: [1][2][3] [4][5][6] [7][8][9] [10][11] Image Source: Super Hero Sutff http://www.superherostuff.com/blog/book-review/indie-spotlight-mouse-guard/ Project Gutenberg http://www.gutenberg.org/files/14838/14838-h/14838-h.htm [close] AWAKENED

Playability: (304)...

REFERENCES Spoiler It's irresistible! Very well executed and a tempting composition that makes me want... wait a minute... Stupott is here? No? All right ... here I go ... the spectacular work that makes me want to click in every hole of this ship! The desert area and the skeletons brought me memories of a comics version of the Bible that i got from my mother... yes, she used all the strategies to turn me into a good catholic child.       [Zoom] The Bible was illustrated by the italian master Gianni de Luca and who can look for his comics version for some Shakespeare's plays will not regret.  The other reference is a Bruegel Pieter's painting, "The Triumph of Death". When I first saw my eyes were buried in the details of this work. I with my fertile imagination of my 6 year old could hear the desperate cries of the people and the laugh dry of the skeletons. It was terrifying and magnificent... and still is! [Zoom] DETAIL The last reference is the scene of a Jos Stelling movie called "De Vliegende Hollander" (The Flying Dutchman). I did a movie trailer and insert the scene in question: Trailer: [embed=440,320]<iframe width="440" height="320 src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NJc6boSPiVY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>[/embed] FULL MOVIE - Torrent Link - Srt: PT / ESP / ENG [close] AWAKENED

Artistic: Mounsier Ouxx

REFERENCES Spoiler This Artwork touched and surprised me enough ... is indeed a very beautiful composition and each delicate elements seemed to whisper in my mind at the same time a tragic and sweet story. Soundtrack of the scene described below: [embed=240,120]<iframe width="240" height="120 src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/z-LUoMLiEvs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>[/embed] I could imagine the pilot of this helicopter trying to control his damaged aircraft while the story of his life revolved before his eyes when, in a brief moment between a spin and other, he noted on the ground a small glade filled with leaves dried. This place is very similar to the field where he gave to his beloved a engagement ring... and in a last effort he strives to launch its rotary skiff toward this landscape... if death was inevitable to him ... like a Shakespeare's Ophelia he wanted to be buried in his sweetest memory...kaputt ! Many other references came to my mind and these references have led to other references. It was a great pleasure investigate and understand how fit perfectly in the image each element that unleashed all this references inspire on me. I made a little "map" with the main references... [Zoom] [close] AWAKENED

I'm not saying that this things are the inspiration of the artwork,
but only what this artwork inspire on me...

[Andail]

Alright, first some general thoughts:
Kasander: Awesome technique, very original lighting. A bit too dark, but my PC monitor displays it alright (other devices not so much).
Greenbeams: Very impressive background, nice to see such high resolution and attention to detail. Unfortunately, the entire piece doesn't have the same level of polish (as is often the case with hi-res pictures) and the wreckage itself is very underdeveloped. If it had had the same definition and sharpness as most of the foliage, I'd have given this piece my vote, but unfortunately the wreck is just too unfinished at this point.
Monsieur Ouux: A very original lighting and atmosphere here. Greet feel.
Grundislav: I like this because it reminds me of the classic KQ games. It's very low key and has nothing dramatic going on, but it's still consistently executed.
Misj: This is great! Great technique, lots of work and time put into this piece. Shapes and details well made, but in terms of composition and lighting, it could be improved. I would like to give this an overhaul over at c&c, if I may.
304: Beautiful work, colours and composition are top notch. If Kasander and Greenbeams have brought some new concepts and techniques to the table, this one is pretty safe and conventional, but it's very professional. 

Very hard to choose between these, but here goes:
Concept: Kasander, for the dramatic atmosphere and original style
Playability: Grundislav, for the traditional grid-map kind of adventure game vibes I get while looking at it
Atistry: Monsieur Ouux, for the interesting usage of highly contrasted yellow/red pixels depicting an autumn evening.

[Creamy]

Artistic execution: Misj'. Very charming. It could belong to a Daedalic game.

Concept: Andail. I'd love to visit this frozen boat.

Playability: GreenBeams. Mandle said it all.

Ben and Kasander pictures are amazing too. I feel like the backgrounds of Kasander and GreenBeams could come from the same game. The 3D compositions of Cassiebg and Jwalt are very classical but they would work perfectly in a game. Mr ouxx forest is nice, even if I have the impression that the helicopter is a toy compared to the rocks and trees (Small Soldiers adventure game anyone?).
Kudos to all participants,the level was very high in this competition.

[GreenBeams]

This is a really difficult month. So many good entries and for different reasons too. But, as i can only use the three categories, here're my votes.

Concept - Andail - There feels like a solid story here and i think it's the level of finish that's making me feel that way. Fjord cruise taken out by a Kracken being smuggled in the hold... mmmm? Yes! It feels impressionistic in the sense that you've put just enough things in the picture for my mind to make up the rest. Really well done. (and thanks very much for the crit - i can't believe i completely missed tightening up the plane )
Playability - Kasander - dark in value and it feels dark in concept too. I want to know more about what's going on there and the larger, possibly more nefarious story is calling to me. I want to explore the darkness and find potential hidden loot and routes. i also really love that torchlight coming out of the hole at the bottom of what looks to me to be a stone temple (i apologise if it's actually metal). I might be banging on here more about the concept than playabolity but, what i mean is that it's so dark, it makes me want to play it more, to explore.
Artistic Execution - ThreeOhFour - The painting looks so effortess, it looks like it's been done by a serious pro but the skeletons have a lovely, accessibe tongue in cheek quality to them. It's moody and well lit, cartoon enough to be stylised and rendered well enough to be grounded in recognizable reality. Artistically inspirational and a personal yardstick for my own development. Excellent work and thanks for sharing it!

Other words i have to say -
@Cassiebsg - I want to say that i'm really impressed by your committment to make your work better. Not excusing yourself on render times and sticking with it is, i believe, the main reason why it turned out so well and why i think you're going to get so much better so much quicker.
@Misj' - I'm sorry you squidged through the cracks for me as artistic execution was already taken but, i wanted to say that with this and your character work, i think you're work is fantastic!

[selmiak]

Concept: GreenBeams
The perfect setting in the right perspective. great!

Playability: Andail
I know exactly where the path continues!

Artistic execution: Cassiebsg
Surprised me the most and made the biggest artistic progress imho. Closely followed by... everyone else! Fantastic entries in this blitz!

[Monsieur OUXX]

I still can't believe how cool are the entries and how many of them there are. Keep voting!

[Cassiebsg]

This is soooo hard, I can't believe that there are so many entries and they are all so good!
I think this is the contest I've seen more entries to since I started "trolling" on this forum.

Anyway, and knowing I can't be fair and vote for all:
- Concept: Kasander There's so much happening in there that I just want to know more and explore it. You even made me change the brightness of my monitor just to try and figure what it is!
  - Playability: Misj' I just want to explore that wreck and see how many cool stuff I can get from it.
  - Artistic execution: ThreeOhFour I still want this one hanging on my wall!

Everyone else, great job! And am looking forward to play all these great games in the makings!

[Lasca]

This is an absolutly insane blitz. So many entries. And it really feels like the artistic braintrust of ags. So very hard to vote.
But, here we go:

- Concept - Andail. I love the stranded boat feeling. And it's so big it gives me the shivers. Really nice.

- Playability - Misj. Feels like there's lots of stuff to do here.

- Artistic execution: ThreeOhFour. Without question the hardest category, but this one makes my heart skip a beat.

[[delete}]

- Concept: ThreeOhFour - I like the contrast between sea and desert, sun vs. stormy clouds and lively birds vs. dead sailors. Ben knows what makes a scene interesting!

- Playability: GreenBeams - a lot of detail work made this widescreen stunning, telling a Lara Croftian' tale of expedition and tragic fate of a brave pilot trying to bail out.

- Artistic execution: Misj' - a very nice painting style, fitting well his virtuosic franco-belgian character line. I can almost feel the cooler air in that enchanted forest.

- Flirt trophy: Kasander - with two wonderful entries, one poetic haiku dedicated to me  ,  and a spectacular metal wreck glowing in the heart of darkness! So X-Com!


Last but not least, the coolness of Andail's ocean liner, the ironic idyll of Grundislav, jwalt's tribute to Hopper's 'Gas' and Cassiebsg's overgrown medieval ruin, this was the best Blitz! ever.

[kconan]

Concept: ThreeOhFour - Love the huge wreck which is the centerpiece of the picture, and the skeletons make the whole thing more mysterious
Playability: Greenbeams - Perfect angles and walk-behind areas for a semi-top down adventure game.
Artistry: Misj - I could hang this on a wall; really like the exacting detail of the trees/wood.

[ThreeOhFour]

I have deliberated over this for far too long. There were many great entries this round.

Concept: GreenBeams - I love that the subject of the theme is so strongly tied into your choice of composition and layout - the theme of "a wreck" not only affects what we're looking at, but how we're looking at it; the position, angle and scope of what we're seeing is all tied to this theme. The fact that you managed to achieve such a strong final image while staying true to your bold choices here is very impressive, and speaks volumes about how much work went into the piece.

Playability: Misj' - A hard choice, but there are several elements in Misj's (that apostrophe finally makes sense to me!) that speak of a background designed for a game on a technical level. There's a very clear walkable zone with a very easily readable border in the backdrop which defines exactly how far back we can go. There's also a set of small stones forming a sort of path which are indicative of an exit, a nice, easy to read symbol of "you can walk through here" to show a room exit in a place with no doors, and the considerably high horizon line means that scaling is less necessary (if at all), redolent of King's Quest games and Beneath a Steel Sky. Smart choices for an adventure game scene.

Artistry: Monsieur OUXX - What impresses me most about this scene is how confidently it mixes reds and greens together in a textured, believable image that is quite noisy to look at and yet still easily readable. I also love that OUXX has done almost the opposite of what I usually do in order to make his object of attention stand out - whereas I'll usually try to create a fairly dull, under-detailed environment and then put the detail and colour on my object of interest, here the flat, textureless, dull coloured panels of the crashed helicopter stand out in the exact same way amongst the sea of visual clutter and vivid colours. It's a really nice look at how sometimes doing the exact opposite of what you expect to work can have an equally impressive effect.

[Snarky]

Goddammit, when did everyone get so frickin' talented?!

Impossible to choose fairly, since so many could easily claim any category, but still:

Concept: Andail - the ship in the forest, there's something about that surreal imagery that really resonates with me
Playability: Greenbeams - maybe not AGS playability, because it'd be a pain to do the character perspective, but for a 2.5D toon-shaded game, yeah! (There are other strong contenders as well, but this is a screen I'd be excited to come across in an adventure game because of all the fun interaction it promises)
Artistry: Andail - I've got to go with this one again, simply because flipping through the images, it's the one I keep stopping at

Sorry to not leave comments for everyone, but you all deserve a round of applause!

[Kasander]

Concept: Andail - so simple yet so effective!

Playability: Greenbeams - makes me want to pick and examine that golden watch.

Artistry: Greenbeams - There were just too many great entries in this category... I chose the one I was most impressed with TODAY. On the other day, I could as well chose Misj's or ThreeOhFour's entry, or Cassie's 3D work.

Great Blitz, so many beautiful backrounds Well done, everyone!

@Mandle, Andail - thanks for the feedback (you were spot on with your interpretation Mandle).
Sorry for making everyone's eyes bleed. Next time I'll try to remember to take my shades off while painting

[Monsieur OUXX]

Hey hey people, sorry I have trouble accessing my Internet these days, but I promise I'll be in soon for a recount of the votes, and a winner!!!

@Pindorama : I only just noticed the reference to Corto Maltese: do you know Hugo Pratt is one of my favorite artists?

[Monsieur OUXX]

AND THE WINNERS ARE

Code: ags

Concept 
  Andail      5
  Kasander    3
  Misj        2
  GreenBeams  2
  ThreeOhFour 2

Playability
  GreenBeams   6
  Misj         3
  Andail       2
  ThreeOhFour  1
  Grundislav   1
  Kasander     1

Code: ags

Artistic
  ThreeOhFour  4
  Misj         3
  MonsieurOuxx 3
  GreenBeams   2
  CassieBg     1
  Andail       1

TOTAL
 GreenBeams   10
 Andail       8
 Misj         8
 ThreeOhFour  7
 Kasander     4
 Grundislav   1
 CassieBg     1

So, here you are, please collect your trophies.

Thanks again for the amazing quality of the entries! So many hi-res digitally painted backgrounds! If you don't mind I'll stick to what I do best: Good ol' 320x200!
       
BRONZE      SILVER       GOLD
Ben304      Andail      GreenBeams
                    &
                  Misj



...And the special flirt trophy is a collective trophy meant to spread love on my fac...on the planet!

KASANDER! AMY! I<3PINDORAMA! ADVENTURESS!
All you need is love and a little bit of flirt!

[ThreeOhFour]

This was a very cool blitz to be a part of, I'm really glad I entered. Congrats, everybody!