KARNAAAAAAGE*

*Yes I know thats not how the game's spelt. 

Some months ago, before Roadhouse Interactive launched their Games Workshop title, I doodled this. I think I overheard one of the producers talking about replacing all the characters with ponies as an april fools joke, and I thought it would be funnier to just put GIANT SPERCE MERINES on teeny tiny ponies. 

She loved it so much, she told me to color it so she could send it to the Games Workshop contact on April fools day. Which, apparently, she did. 

Characters and Unrealized Stories

Some sketches of a couple of story ideas. One had to do with a Helix-zombie post apocalyptic World War Z type of narrative - where the main character wakes up to find the world recovering from a zombie-like disease. Another is a bat-girl-esque short with a plot too short to summarize. The last has to do with an alien sci fi epic. About the survivors of a proxy war. 

The mice brigade will ride again!

Some sketches of Mikaela, Lenora, and Danielle.

Mentoring a Mentorship

I'm backlogging some artwork, for those keeping track at home. For the past couple of months I've squeezed in the odd hour or two to doodle, scan, and clean up my sketches. However, I never got around to posting them.

First batch!

Back in late February (wow, really?) I signed up to be a middle school mentor, as part of the Vancouver Mentorship program. I helped an 11 year old gifted student learn how to draw comics. Every thursday we met, and I attempted to learn how to be a good teacher. I'm still not there yet, but I'm happy to know he did learn many things.

While my mentee did his assignements (mostly shape drawing) I doodled characters.

Mice on the Brain

More mice! Non-stop Mice! Working on distinguishing body types and face types per each character. Next up, characters in the ROUND (front view, side view, 3/4ths view). I'm tempted to scrap a project I'm not-working on (started it last month but time got away from me again...) in favour of this. On one hand, thats me just repeating the never ending cycle of NEW IDEAS ARE SO EXCITING old ideas are so not going to happen; on the other hand cute things are always easier for me to draw. What I will do is finish scripting the project (called "Murder at the Queen Ann") and then let it sit in my script file folder (I think I have 15+ scripts by now). Then I will embark on creating a story for these mice. 

The Mice Brigade!

In my evenings I tend to watch tv with a group. Sometimes its current television, but recently its been TMNT (the 2012 version, which I realize is actually spelt out "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" but I prefer the abbreviation). The animation company Bardel does the show (which is in my city!!!) and its fairly AMAHZING. Seriously. I had my doubts, because the rebooted Teen Titans is just too sad for words (ugh, my teen-years, they hurt) but this show!!! (Also, I know because I applied to work at Bardel and ended up taking a story-boarding test, Bardel has little control over what the contracted shows entail - they're JUST the animation studio. Unless its an in-house project, all they can do is make the story/script *look* pretty, they cant make the words any better or worse.)

I ended up having some down time so I started doodling mice. The thought process went thus: what if TMNT was about four girls instead of four boys? (It would be designated a "girly show" and dropped from the network...) Then I went, "but I dont want to do girl turtles, that would be weird... how about... MICE! They're inherently girly, right?" So then I drew mice. Lots of them. Lots and lots and ... look I have about 8 pages of mice. They're ADORBS.

Obviously from my previous posts, I have a thing with mice. I think I've had a thing with them since before Ace Adventures... possibly all the way back to Texas... I blame Don Bluth/ Disney. Between American Tail, Secret of NIMH, The Rescuers, and The Great Mouse Detective, my childhood was inundated with adorable mice and TERRIFYING RATS!

Pirate Captains and Black Flags

I really meant to be updating this blog more frequently than I have. Quick updates: Billie VS Season 3 will begin "airing" on March 10th (or thereabouts). I'm still working at the mobile game company, and I've been getting better at UI art/ implementation.

We've been watching Black Sails in lieu of other shows (Sleepy Hollow wont return till next season, I've given up on Agents of Shield, and American Horror Story has finally wrapped up). There was a brilliant moment in episode 3 where Captain Flint gives this look that speaks volumes. Just, one simple look. SO GOOD. I decided I HAD TO DRAW IT.

Step 1: Take a Screengrab of the episode.

Murder. Thats what I'm thinking. MURDER.

Step 2: Start Drawing! (Using bad shadow blocking).

"haha wut" indeed

Step 3: Draw on top!

Yes I do constantly write notes to myself as I draw

Step 4: Keep drawing!

This is what happens when you draw at 11:30 at night

Step 5: Dont stop no matter how wonky the drawing looks!

Its a good bit closer, but still OFF

Step 6: Yeah, that looks too wonky. Start over, the next day. On lined paper. In Pen. Completely from memory. 

I knew I had to draw the picture without the reference

Step 7: Trace during lunch!

(Get called out during lunch)

Things are still not quite right...

Step 8: Tweak like crazy until the drawing looks like you think it should! THEN ADD COLOR.

Definitely murder

Step 9: Be happy with the final result UNTIL you look at the original image. Wait - he had a cut on his nose? And his hair goes round all the way on the top of his head - and *not* flat? UGH, I'll re-draw this tomorrow :P

I do appreciate his eyebrows are more dramatic in my drawing, and his eyes a bit bigger (I like the cartoony style!) but all in all I'm quite happy with the way Captain Flint turned out. 

Billie VS

Just a heads up - Season 3 (FINAL SEASON BOOOYAH!) will be coming down the works. Starting sometime early March. YAY!

A gamejam kind of weekend

I have been drawing *other* non-game-related things, but I have yet to scan them. So those will be saved for a later post.

This weekend I spent 48 hours (or there about) making a game. Unlike previous game jams where I've worked in teams of about 5, this game jam I worked on my own. I didn't want to stress about it, or spend extra hours on it – my goal for this game jam was to take my time, enjoy myself, and hopefully make something that resembled a game. I succeeded on all counts, which makes this one of the most successful game jams I've had.

The basic premise of the game goes thusly: You are a mouse in an atmospheric test facility, attempting a great escape. Squeeze under obstacles, avoid roid-rage rats, and collect medicine for the ultimate power-up! As a mouse you are incapable of attacking, but once you've collected 3 capsules of medicine, you can transform (for a limited time, of course) into a swash-buckling hero. Face your enemies, fight your way out, and become the hero of your own adventure!

The idea came from a mouse at the company I work at (Roadhouse) and a conversation that arose. I explained I found mice adorable and interesting, as they are essentially a conglomerate of disconnected bones in a gelatinous body (scientific fact!) allowing them to squeeze under doorways. There the main mechanic was born: a character who can squeeze under obstacles. 

I began sketching in my sketchbook, but having left my tablet at work and possessing no scanner at the jam, had to duplicate my sketches in pixel art (using photoshop). All in all, it works, I believe. The mouse managed to remain cute, even without the cute lines. I then set about making all the sprites for the major mouse animations. 

crouch walk - or as Kim says "Sausage MOUSE!"

Jump. I ended up cutting out the first and last sprite for the game.

and Walk

Due to the time constraints of the game, I did not manage to make the swash-buckling hero. I have plans to upload the concept sketches and to create a pixelated mouse-hero soon, but not yet. 

On the second day of the jam, I realized I wouldn't have the time to do all I wanted, and more importantly, I needed a baddie to avoid. Not necessarily an evil character to battle, but a guard of sorts, someone to avoid at all costs. I also realized I am rather bad at laying out the level design. I literally made it up as I went along. 

The enemy!

end of the level

middle of the level

On the last day I made a title screen (super important) and made sure the "game" looped. At the end of the day I only had one level (a mediocre one at best) that when you reached the end of you arrived back at the title screen. In a way, the game is functional. And kinda pretty to look at. 

The original background had a blue overlay

but I thought that was too meh, so I added a purple one

By the way, did I mention I made the entire game with a program called Stencyl? Because thats important. None of my "lone wolf game jamming" would have worked without it.