Day 217: EMP Grenade

Pixel art is something that I'm fascinated by. As an avid gamer I've grown up with this art, and with indie games at an all time popularity, there is no shortage of amazing pixel art and animation out there to look at. I've been trying to up my game a little bit just for fun. It's a serious challenge to work with, well, pixels. It takes a lot of design know-how to use just enough color and pixels to help the viewer understand what they're looking at.

I dabbled making art in the past but I always used Illustrator or Photoshop. It wasn't until I got a serious interest in making pixel art that I found out about Aseprite. After following a bunch of pixel artists on Twitter I discovered this little gem of a program. It makes it very easy to create pixel art and animation, as well as export in a variety of ways.

For this daily I created Thatcher, a character from the video game Rainbow Six: Siege. I've made Thatcher 3 times in my dailies thus far. I'm not quite sure what my obsession is with revisiting him. I really just like the design of the Siege characters. It's also fun taking something so detailed and breaking it down into its simplest form. I hope to keep making more pixel animations. It seriously is hard and takes a lot of time, but I can see myself slowly but surely getting a little better at it...I think.

Bun House Games: D-Man Plays Don't Starve

I have to admit, instead of animating I've been playing a lot of PS4 instead. So, I thought I'd put all my hours spent playing into good use and release a play through video every once in a while. Recently I've been obsessed over the game Don't Starve. It's a fairly hardcore survival sandbox type game that sort of resembles Minecraft in the way you play. However, it is much a much more stressful experience overall. For this reason I wanted to put one of my fellow Bun House Crew members through the experience of playing the game for the first time. Below is the result.

SUPER SMASH WARS: A Link To The Hope - A Star Wars / Nintendo-verse Mashup

This animation from James Farr is an amazing tribute to both the Nintendo and Star Wars universe. It was almost as if they were destined to be married together.

Night In The Woods - Kickstarter Trailer

Welp, Scott Benson is at it again, and this time it's with the help of Kickstarer and indie video game designer Alec Holowka.  Literally every job Scott works on would be a dream job for me, and this one is no different. Scott and Alec are creating a new indie game called Night In The Woods, and the work they have done so far looks pretty impressive.  The game looks exactly like one of Scott's animations, you almost can't tell that it's gameplay.  The game also looks like it's going to be fairly character and story driven, which could make for some memorable gameplay.  Needless to say, I've already pledged my hard earned dollars to them, now it's just time for them to make it!

Coin

This animation from EXIT 73 Studios is not only an amazing display of talent and humor, but it's also a wonderful homage to video game history in general. Everything I love all rolled into one.

Chrome Super Sync Sports: Launch film

NOMINT created this awesome ad for Chrome Super Sync Sports, Google’s awesome new online racing game. This animation oozes fun, and the game reminds me of Nintendo Tack & Field a bit, so it must be awesome.

BELOW - HORIZON TRAILER

Ever since I saw Indie Game: The Movie I have had a real affinity towards indie games and their developers. They are true works of art in my opinion with nothing more than an absolute passion for gaming and what gaming should be to drive them. With that said, this trailer for Below - Horizon gave me goosebumps. Everything from the music to the mile high perspective you have on this world. The adventurous open world feeling remind me of playing Legend of Zelda when I was little, while the massive open world maps remind me of the Shadow of Colossus. Needless to say I'm excited for this one.

Computer program that learns to play classic NES games

You heard it here first folks. Or maybe you didn't, and if that's the case you should be looking at something else on my blog. Computer programmer Tom Murphy has created a program that learns to play NES games and win....with some interesting results. I don't claim to understand half the math that went into creating this but Tom's commentary and examples are pretty entertaining. I could watch a computer learn to play videogames all day.

Emporium Arcade Bar 8-Bit Promos

I always love 8-bit animations and this one from OPTIMUS DESIGN for Emporium Arcade Bar in Chicago is no exception.  We all know booze and gaming go hand in hand, but I think we're all waiting for the first "coffee house" arcade lounge if you catch my drift.  There would be a lot less controllers thrown anyways...

The Game Over Tinies

Loving the dark humor of this video game themed alphabet series from Brentalfloss.

Star Trek's JJ Abrams and Valve's Gabe Newell D.I.C.E. SUMMIT 2013

I love this for so so many reasons. Not only are two amazing storytellers from two different genres talking candidly about their craft, but there is also the possibility of JJ Abrams and Gabe Newell working on a movie or videogame together. I love the way Gabe and JJ go back and forth and point out the flaws and drawbacks to the other's medium, be it videogames or film. Definitely worth the watch.

The Glitch

A hilarious real life take on the horrors of game glitching courtesy of Corridor Digital.


See the making of below.

Controller Evolution v. 2 and the Evolution of an Animator

Nintendo always has been and always will be a constant element in my life. This piece is a tribute to their life thus far.

Music by Heath McNease

I said this over a year ago when I made the first Controller Evolution, and now with the introduction of the Wii U, it only seemed fitting to continue this tradition. I can't think of a better controller's history to track than Nintendo's. The changes made have been so dramatic yet so subtle all at the same time. You really don't notice that until your animating every little piece.

People probably don't know this but the original Controller Evolution was one of the most played videos on my Vimeo page. Mostly due to the content and the fact it was posted on a few gamer blogs. When I had first completed it I was still working in Apple Motion; I was really proud of that piece at the time too. I recall seeing it posted on a blog not too long ago and the poster saying, "I wonder if Chris will update the animation with the Wii U?" At the time it hadn't even occurred to me, but as I started looking at my year old animation I knew it was time for a change. I not only owed it to Nintendo for the many years of joy they've given me, but I owed it to myself to show how much I've evolved as an animator in a little over a year. I am no longer animating in Apple Motion (not that I don't like it, I just think Adobe After Effects is a little more robust). I've taught myself everything I know about Adobe After Effects through experimentation and tutorials. I still have a lot to learn, but when I can look at my work side by side and visually see the progress it helps me know I haven't been wasting my time. Check it out for yourself.

OLO for iOS

I've played OLO and it's quite a lot of fun. It has a great style that Sennep has utilized in this animation promoting it. I'm also quite fond of how they used the split screen in this piece. You can find out more about the game here.

OLO for iOS from Sennep on Vimeo.

8-Bit Titles

I've been thinking for my new reel this year that I want to have a video game title screen style opening. When looking for references I stumbled upon this treasure trove of a website called Title Scream.  Here are a few of my favorites from back in the day.

Sensible Software 1986–1999 by Read-Only Memory

Well I've finally found something I whole-heartedly want to back on Kickstarter, seeing as how this particular product hits on so many of my personal loves. Sensible Software 1986–1999 is a definitive biography of Sensible Software, one of the world's most pioneering and best-loved games companies, and the flagship title for Read-Only Memory, a new publishing company specializing in high-quality video game products. Sensible Software is responsible for such games as Sensible Soccer, Cannon Fodder, Mega lo Mania and Wizball. The story will be told through the use of interviews from the team paired with some amazing design using their original sketches and art.

I seriously love the design of this book. Those old graphics will always hold a sacred place in my heart. When looking at these samples I'm immediately taken back to a much simpler time in gaming, and it makes me happy.

If that wasn't enough to get your heart pumping then get this, there will be a Vinyl EP Edition in which they are producing a numbered, heavyweight 12” record including the songs "Goalscoringsuperstarhero" from Sensible Soccer and "War" and "Narcissus (The Hill Theme)" from Cannon Fodder. These are the original, studio-quality recordings, before the songs were crunched to fit onto the Amiga. The record will be expertly manufactured by The Vinyl Factory in London, and will not be reissued in the future. Sounds like an amazing addition to any record collection.

Darren Wall, founder of Read-Only Memory has 9 years experience as a graphic designer and runs a one-man studio in London called Wallzo. Read-Only Memory is his attempt to bring his two favorite things together: games and design. Lastly, I leave you with a quirky animated commercial for the project. I can't stress how much I love this style, especially for animation.

Indie Game: The Movie

 So I finally watched this documentary yesterday and I feel that after sleeping on it for a night I finally know why I loved it so much.  Technically it's shot very well, the story is engaging, but what's keeping me thinking about it is the fact that it captures this raw creative spirit.  These indie game developers pour their hearts and souls into the games they develop for months upon months, all to release the game on a single day for the world to consume, love, or hate.  A truly daunting and scary experience for anyone.  It was this powerful emotion that really came across in the film and made me inspired to pursue more. I highly suggest buying and watching it here. Not to mention the whole movie was created by two people, James Swirsky and Lisanne Pajot, who did all the producing, directing, cinematography, editing, and writing for the feature film.