Background Blitz! The Oubliette (08/12 - 24/12) WINNER ANNOUNCED

[Misj']

Deadline is now extended by 2 days. New deadline is 24th December!

Thanks! - That should give me some breathing-space as well...

We're hoping to get people to contribute mini tutorials about stuff they think is important (hopefully in addition to participation), so if you have something cooking, or got some idea for a tiny to large tutorial, all would be welcome.

I'm in...But I'm sure you already guessed that (and I actually already have an idea; it has to backgrounds and environments (and possibly layers)).

[oraxon]

Terrific entries so far!
I felt in the holiday spirit, so here's North Pole Oubliette:

...and I'd love to learn from a workshop next year!

[Wyz]

That would have made a really great Christmas card

[Pinback]

Cool entry Oraxon, good to see you experimenting with rendering styles here too. Nice to see some X-Mas themage here!

Warning: This Background Blitz will end in T Minus 14 hours from now!

[Misj']

Inside the Genie's Lamp

(not the Genie from Aladdin, another Jinn altogether...this one is cute, and feminine; but I didn't have time to draw her)


Slightly different from my usual render-style (and I didn't get to really finalizing the right area, but lack of time is a contagious disease (somehow others are always the cause of my lack of time)). I tried to think about the rules in an original direction, and some reason my thoughts ended up inside the Genie's lamp. It's a confined area, there's one exist at the top (the cloudy thingy stuff), and it's even a prison. Now all you have to do is make someone rub it...

ps. Great entries, nice theme (though it was quite difficult for me to come up with a usable layout).

[Pinback]

Great entry Misj'!

I'm going to leave this open a couple more hours just in case we have any eleventh hour entries.

Blitz closing in one hour- for realsies!

[Pinback]

Voting will now commence for Background Blitz!: The Oubliette. Categories for voting are as follows;

Idea: Was it an original/creative interpretation of the theme?
Atmosphere: Was an interesting world created? - Did the scene evoke a feeling?
Design: How well the individual elements are designed, from clouds to doorknobs.
Composition: How well the elements are combined to create a pleasing whole, and lead the viewer to the points of interest. This also includes the background's in-game functionality (hotspots, walkable areas, etc.)
Technique: How well it's rendered (within the chosen style!), in no way meaning the more elaborate the better.

Code: ags

[b]Idea[/b] -
[b]Atmosphere[/b] -
[b]Design[/b] -
[b]Composition[/b] -
[b]Technique[/b] -

[Daniel Thomas]

Idea - Oraxon, hilarious!
Atmosphere - Misj', Oraxon as a close runner up
Design - Derrick
Composition - Misj'
Technique - Derrick

[Misj']

Idea - Duncan - While I think it could be slightly better excecuted (scale- and compositionwise), and i don't think I would have gotten the scene without the insertion of the character-sprite...but I like this interpretation of the theme. It's original and unexpected (I also think Derreck's interpretation was original, but unless my biology is really off shouldn't there be an exit down as well ).
Atmosphere - Zyndikate - Nice use of colours, shadows, and lightning. They all contribute to a great overall atmosphere of the piece.
Design - Derreck - Nice use of textures to give the separate elements a well designed feel. Particularly the skin of the animal looks really leathery, and it adds to the overall quality of the piece. Zyndikate was a really close second, and I really liked the design and quality of almost all separate elements in the scene...except for the hanging meat which felt slightly off (which is a pity considering it's a scene about a butcher).
Composition - Zyndikate - There's a nice line of action, use of open and closed spaces, colours and light indicate important elements to enhance the composition (but the composition does not rely on it)...
Technique - Zyndikate - It's a great style that is rendered really well. It fits well within a game (even with character-sprites that are rendered slightly different (as is common in high-res and cartoon styles)).


ps. Loominous, I still expect you to share your unfinished or concept piece...

[Derrick Freeland]

Idea -  Oraxon (effing hilarious, unique take on the theme.  also very topical.)
Atmosphere -  Zyndikate
Design -  Duncan (definitely the strongest actual game design on this one.  not an easy thing to do for a single room.)
Composition-  Zynidikate (very well laid out.  it's obvious what you would interact with, who you would talk to, where to go, etc...)
Technique -  Oraxon (I like the hand-painted look of this room.  very refreshing.)

[Pinback]

Idea - DuncanFX
Atmosphere - Zyndikate
Design - Derrick Freeland
Composition - DuncanFX
Technique - Zyndikate

[Tabata]

Idea -   DuncanFx
Atmosphere -   Misj'
Design -   zyndikate
Composition -   zyndikate
Technique -   zyndikate

[loominous]

Idea - DuncanFx - really neat.
Atmosphere - Zyndikate.
Design - Misj, for the interesting lamp design among other things. DuncanFx's whole design is nice as well, and Zyndikate's scene is filled to the brim with brilliantly executed elements, though most of them on the generic side (that gargoyle is terrific though).
Composition - Zyndikate. Just excellent.
Technique - Zyndikate. Again, simply excellent.

I worked a bit more on my would-be entry, though it has yet to reach a finished stage, but here it is, with a generic Disney-esque character added:

[Misj']

I think it's time to end the voting...?

Loominous, already in this stage, the cardboard opening and matches-ladder look great with nice volume and substance.

[DuncanFx]

Quickly throw my votes in.

Idea - Derrick
Atmosphere - Misj'
Design - Zyndikate
Composition - Zyndikate
Technique - Oraxon

[Pinback]

Ok, the votes are in-

Zyndikate is the winner!

Rocking entries all round, and a well deserved win in my opinion. Great work everyone!
Zyndikate- the BlitzBall is in your court!

[Misj']

congatulations Zyndikate...justly won

[Daniel Thomas]

Thanks everyone! I will be making a new topic shortly.