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The Smash Grand Festival Spriting Contest (Closed)

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Kantrip

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I have photoshop, and I'm usually more comfortable with that, but I was told that classic Paint was better for spriting because the more advanced programs messed with stuff. If photoshop works, that's great!
I'm using IE. The problem with the black backgrounds I'm getting is if I remove it it also removes outlines and other black highlights.

Thanks for the help :)
 

Fuelbi

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Yeah I also had that problem back when I used Chrome. I usually had to refill it back in with the pencil tool on GIMP.

And it only really messes with stuff if you don't know what you're doing on PS and you accidentally do something to the sprite.
 

Kantrip

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Huh. I installed firefox and tried using it. Background's still black. Ah well. How do I know which pixels are supposed to be black afterwards, as I don't think the entire outline is?
 

ndayday

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Try saving and then opening it?
 

Kantrip

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I tried saving and opening, and it worked for the one image, but then my canvas was stuck and other images I pasted in still had the background problem.

This is what I made anyways: I had to re-add outlines and stuff, and the cattail was just penciled in (LOL)



I call him Bogbuck!
 

Tacel

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I don't mean to be impatient or anything, but results have taken an extensive period of time to get through recently, even with few submissions and one judge. May I suggest that we resort to the old fashion polls? I'd be glad to create the polls.
 

Charmander

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I know Im late on this, but I havent been on, and considering someone posted one yesterday, I hope this submission will be counted.

Its meant to represent a Sawsbuck raised in a laboratory environment rather than in nature at all, hence the sterile look. (I think laboratory counts as an environment?)
 

Firus

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All right, I apologize for the results taking such a long time given the small amount of entries. I've had somewhat of a busy week and wasn't able to get around to the judging until last night, but didn't get a chance to post it up until this evening, and due to the small number of entries and the fact that I took so long judging, I decided to include the other two entries in the judging. In the future, however, I won't accept entries after the deadline.

Anyway, here they are:

JOE! - Beachbuck



A well-executed sprite. The environment you’re representing isn’t immediately evident, but you definitely got it across creatively, between the more sunny brown color and the beach umbrella / shovel replacing Sawsbuck’s antlers, plus the sunglasses. I think the sunglasses would look slightly more natural on the sprite if you made the top less flat – you might’ve curved them up at the ends to go into Beachbuck’s ears instead of going straight across, for example – and the tuft of hair on his chest might’ve been better removed or reduced to fit in better with a beach theme, but overall I like what you did with the sprite.

8/10

Sir Bedevere - Reefbuck



You did a good job on this sprite, pulling together the whole design well between the larger alterations and small, subtle changes. From the moment you see the bright pink antlers, the coral reef theme shows itself; the bubbles contribute to this, and the leafy tufts of seaweed on Reefbuck’s hooves pull it together well also. The piece I really love is the gills on Reefbuck’s neck. I didn’t notice them at first, but it’s one of those small touches that really adds to the sprite.

9/10

CrimsonFeint - Bogbuck



You pulled this sprite together pretty nicely, but it's a bit awkward. I like the grassy tuft on Bogbuck's chest, and I think you did a good job with the cattail tail. You had an interesting idea with the lilypad on the head, but I think you'd have been better off going for something more similar to antlers for the head; the large lilypad is a tad awkward. I also find that it brings my mind straight to Lotad and distracts from the fact that it's supposed to be a bog-themed Sawsbuck. If you had done cattails for the antlers as well (or gone for something different on the tail), I think it would've shined a little more.

7/10

Charmander - Spacebuck



On first look, I felt this sprite was awkward, but the more I look at it the more I like it. The overall green tone of the sprite gives it sort of a radioactive, test-subject-like vibe, and the chest plate and tail further contribute to that idea. The most glaring thing to me is the Arceus antlers, but after some consideration I think that was ultimately a good decision, because it further creates a futuristic look which once again adds to the laboratory idea. The one thing I might've changed is the fact that the antlers are connected -- I think they'd look less awkward if they didn't have the connector in the middle -- but overall, you executed the concept well here.

9.5/10

---

Congratulations to Charmander for being the winner of this round!

I recognize that this last week's prompt was a fairly difficult one to work with, so I'll give a really general prompt this week:

Fuse any three Pokémon.

The deadline is Friday, April 22nd at 11:59 PM EST.
The deadline is indeed a long way away -- nearly two weeks -- and that's because I'm trying to set up a more solidified schedule for both contestants and judges. There's also the fact that we're trying to work out some of the kinks of the Grand Festival at the moment and work out the judging situation. All of that will hopefully be solved by the time the judging for this round starts, so there will hopefully be multiple judges for Round 8.

In any case, I know judging has started to become pretty unreliable, and although it may not seem like it, it's bothering me as much as it's probably bugging you guys, so I'm really working on a system where you can count on the judging getting done, rather than waiting a long time and never knowing when it'll actually end up getting done. I'm considering polls, but I'm taking that as a sort of last resort if we really can't get a more consistent judging schedule going.
 

Kantrip

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Hmmm, nobody's posted anything yet. I suppose I'll post what I made. This is my first attempt at fusing pokemon, but don't hold back on criticism.

Geneskullzard


EDIT: Posted one with white background the first time. Oops!
 

Sir Bedevere

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This place needs more activity. :(

Gogo entry!



Articuno + Dodrio + Houndoom = Ardridoom

I based the design off of the fusion of a gryffon and a cerberus. It's a fusion within a fusion. :p You can view it better in one of the blue skins, since Rev/Vibrant is too dark for Houndoom colours (looks better on a white background though).
 

Firus

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All right, the deadline for Round 8 entries has passed so now judging will go underway.

Due to the fact that judging got to a somewhat inconsistent and unreliable schedule, we will now have a set schedule for the contest: each round will be open for entries beginning on a Wednesday and continue until the following Friday (a week and two days afterward). Then, judging will take place and be posted on the following Wednesday.

As such, you can expect the judging for this round to be posted on April 27th.

In addition, Neon Ness and F8AL will now be joining me as judges of the Smash Grand Festival! We all look forward to carrying forth the Grand Festival in a more organized fashion. Hopefully a more reliable schedule will also incite some more participation in the contest.
 

Firus

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As promised, here are your Round 8 scores!

-------

CrimsonFeint - Geneskullzard



Firus: You had a good concept with this sprite, and it’s good to start; there are some flaws, however. While you blended Genesect’s cannon with Charizard’s head well, Charizard’s head is out of proportion with the cannon, making it look somewhat awkward – had you maybe shrunk it down a little, it might’ve looked a little better. The idea you had with Duskull’s head was a good one, I think; however, the way the skull is situated stands out. It looks less like the tail is going through it and more like it’s simply plastered on top. I think a better way to approach it might’ve been to keep the flame as it was, putting the skull over that and letting the fire shine through like that instead. Finally, the wings stand out a little too much. While Charizard’s wings are differently colored normally, only the insides are; the ridges of the wings would look better if they were purple, simply because they would blend into the body better. You had good concepts with the sprite and you did a decent job of incorporating them, you just need to work on incorporating ideas a little more naturally.

Neon Ness: I can clearly tell which Pokemon you fused here, and I think you did a decent job of integrating an equal amount of traits from each. There are parts that lack cohesion though. Charizard’s wings look blatantly different (in color and material) than his body which makes a rather alarming contrast. Duskull’s head is also tacked onto the Charizard tail, and again the two parts don’t quite mesh; in this case I think simply one head might have been better. Genesect’s cannon looks awkward and unbalanced tacked onto the forehead as well. It might have been better to try to add it somewhere more physically stable. I wish more had been altered about Charizard other than color/eyes so that he looked like a true fusion, instead of a recolor with parts stuck on afterward. Consider the material and color of each Pokemon when fusing them, especially when working from 3 different sprites. Overall a really good idea, it just needs more consideration in terms of execution.

F8AL: I'm glad you choose Charizard as one of the Pokemon in your spirit, as he's one of my favourite Pokemon from the original games. I love the skull that you added to the end of it's tail because it acts like a focal point and the colours you picked for it's wings really make it look cool. The cannon part on it's head looks a bit out of place but doesn't take away too much from the spirit. Overall, a decent spirit. Keep at it!

F8AL: 7/10
Firus: 6/10
Neon Ness: 6.5/10
FINAL: 6.5/10

Sir Bedevere - Ardridoom



Firus: I love how you took this concept and made a really solid sprite using that concept. The Cerberus/griffon fusion through the use of three different Pokémon is a really cool idea, and you blended the pieces pretty well in addition to using blue and black, which work well together. I do think using some darker blues to transition from neck to body might’ve looked better, and I also think it might look better if you separated the lines of the tails in some way – they look a little like a jumble of black lines as they are – but overall you executed it very well.

Neon Ness: Who doesn’t love a 3 headed Houndoom monstrosity? Reminds me of a chimera. I love how the front half has bird talons and the hind legs are canine. The middle head appears to have an elongated chin as opposed to having a spherical head like the others. Still, I can appreciate the amount of effort it took to make Houndoom heads from 3 different angles. The pitch black details of the tail/necks is a bit too dark compared to the overall tone of the sprite--you might want to try using a really dark gray or something similar there instead. I wish the transition from the blue feathers to the dog fur on the torso had been slightly more graceful, but it’s good all in all. I can tell a lot of thought was put into the concept behind the fused Pokemon, and the end result is excellent.

F8AL: First of all, I love how you chose to have 3 heads in this spirit because they look like they are there naturally. The wings look cool and the colours you picked (Blue and Black) for the body really come together and look good. I can tell that you've had previous experience with spiriting as it shows with this one. Overall, a good spirit. Looking forward to seeing more in the future!

F8AL: 8.5/10
Firus: 9.5/10
Neon Ness: 9.5/10
FINAL: 9.2/10

-------

Congratulations to Sir Bedevere for being the winner of Round 8 in his third Grand Festival victory!

And now this next week's prompt:

Retype any fire type to a water type.

The deadline is Friday, May 6th at 11:59 PM EST.
 

Daddy Ash

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My very first sprite attempt, for the retyping of a fire poke to water.
Not sure if i've did it right, but here is my first attempt open for critique of course

My water typed ninetales, obtainable when using a water stone on vulpix :p
I did this using paint.net if anyone wants to know for comments
I was considering adding an ocean spray type effect around her feet/mane, but until I can figure out how to do it in paint.net she'll have to stay as she is

EDIT: right this is my final design swapped the spray idea for fins from vaporeon



so what you think? good enough?
 

Firus

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I apologize guys, I somehow (don't ask me how, I'm still confused as to how I pulled this off) ended up pasting F8AL's judging for Ardridoom in the place for Geneskullzard's judging and left out the judging for Geneskullzard entirely, as F8AL kindly pointed out to me. So if you noticed the lack of judging for one sprite and nonsensical judging for the other...that's why.

Again, my bad. It's been fixed now.
 

Terywj [태리]

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My very first sprite attempt, for the retyping of a fire poke to water.
Not sure if i've did it right, but here is my first attempt open for critique of course

My water typed ninetales, obtainable when using a water stone on vulpix :p
I did this using paint.net if anyone wants to know for comments
I was considering adding an ocean spray type effect around her feet/mane, but until I can figure out how to do it in paint.net she'll have to stay as she is

EDIT: right this is my final design swapped the spray idea for fins from vaporeon



so what you think? good enough?
I personally like it, especially for a pilot sprite. However, I don't think you can match the Sir Bedevere monster.
 

Kantrip

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Those colours are so pleasing for some reason.
Here's what I have so far, not sure what to do with it. Calling him odobentai
 

Daddy Ash

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I was aiming to keep the continuity with ninetales tails, I guess I could pull the fins higher up off the tail's tip, and was considering adding wartortle's spray tail/ears into sprite somehow but it may look too much with the fins as well.
I don't know maybe I shot myself in the foot picking ninetales as my model, she has limited space to add features without taking too much from basic pose.
I doubt i'd ever reach sir bedevere's spriting level but thanks tery and crimson, i just randomly selected some turquoise's for my palette but I was so happy with the overall recolouring look.
I'm liking the bubbles on the tail off your sprite as well crimson and how you reposed entei :D

EDIT: right after rechecking my sprite in closer detail I agree with nday the fins looked out of place in the old placement, my idea of adding the spray tail to ninetales mane was a faliure but I rejigged the fins and personally I think they look a lot better, the sacrifice of ninetales continuity.


Not sure now what more I can add to the pose, may have to re study the b/w sprites for some inspiration. Tried to add suicine's mane onto ninetales, not sure how well it looks in keeping with the pose though
 

Mic_128

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Dont forget that the sprites (unless specified in the prompt) are from whatever gen. If the BW sprites are too limiting, try one of the previous gens (for example, ninetails from Plat might be better
)

I think the main thing people are meaning about the tails is the one closest to the body with how it looks like it's got a box on the end. Really looks like it's been cut-off and placed ontop.
 

Kantrip

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Hmmm I should try making a colour palette for recolours. Usually I just use all the colours another pokemon has. Cherry picked palettes actually get some interesting and unique aesthetics.

Also, the Platinum sprite above looks like it would be easier to work with and have more going for it, although you'd need new ideas and to rework everything in (other than the colour).

EDIT: Saw your Suicune mane edit and my first reaction was to lol. Then I thought it looked regal. Now it seems badass. It's a bit icey, but that's not a bad thing. Good ****!
 

Daddy Ash

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My opinion on the suicine mane is 50/50 still, looks odd but seemingly to fit at the same time. I could try reworking a new sprite from plat. ninetales pose, if i don't have time to finish it can always leave either suicine mane or no mane tales as my entry I guess.
Thanks for the critique guys, it really is invaluable being my first attempt at this sort of thing,
Also I have been playing around with sprites from b/w a bit again and started a arcanine/swampert mash up, looking semi decent but needs a few finishing touches though.

EDIT: Right had some spare time so I threw together a quick recolour of the pt pose, I decided to keep the near white yellowish highlighting from original colouring for two reasons, to keep the sprite from being totally blue, and because honestly I think it looks good

fin needs a little fine tuning to make it look like it fits better, and back to my ocean spray idea, I messed around with wartortle's tail and layering and this was closest I could get in paint.net to ninetales appearing to 'stand' on water so to speak

It's nowhere near amazing quality but it kind of works I guess...
 

M.K

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Introducing: Phountain! (pronounced just like "fountain")

It's Lampent, but instead of a Torch, it's a fountain!
 

Daddy Ash

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that looks amazing meta-kirby, never would have thought of making lampent a water type but it looks so good.
 

Kantrip

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Well, I couldn't really fix anything but the shading at the bottom that I messed up on. I'm pretty happy overall with how this turned out, so

Final Submission: Odobentai
 

Daddy Ash

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deciding to take a risk here, although I have other sprites available that look more appealing, and safer I guess, and decided my final submission will be....

Suicinine (bad at naming pokes :/ lol)
Still not 100% how the mane looks on nintales but it's certainly adds a striking feature onto her.
 

Circa

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I find it very tempting to just take a sprite of Rotom-W and call that a submission, but I'll refrain.

Hopefully I remember to make one before time is up. I've never done a re-type before.
 

Firus

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Thanks for your submissions everyone! Judging will be posted on May 11th.
 

Firus

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Round 9 Scores!

-------

Meta-Kirby - Phountain



F8AL: I can see what you were trying to accomplish here with this sprite. You were successful in turning Lampent into a water type because the colours really go together with each other, everything looks like they belong with each other and work together.

Firus: I love what you did with Phountain, taking the torch concept of Lampent and slightly altering it to be a fountain – rather than just doing a generic sort of water retype, you took it to the next level conceptually (and took advantage of the subtle similarity there). You did a great job of conveying it sprite-wise, as well; the spout of water at the top, the water trickling down the sides, and the water finally dripping off all look completely natural. The one thing I’m a little iffy on is the gold coloring of the “fountain” part – I think a silver or other cool color might’ve worked better, as the gold clashes somewhat with the color of the water, but it doesn’t detract too much from the overall sprite. Well done!

Neon Ness: I’m a huge fan of the concept. I never realized how closely Lampent actually does look like a fountain before this. The subtle blue gradient of the water inside of its glass bulb is very well done, and the way the water spills down over its body is really impressive. Something that seems a little bit off is the ‘flame’ shape in the middle. If it’s supposed to represent the pressure of the fountain spray from within, then maybe a lighter color or something that resembled bubbles might have looked more cohesive. An unusual color choice with the brass look for Lampent, but it makes a pleasing contrast with the blue in the water. Some parts of Lampent’s cap are a little rough; I can’t quite get a sense of the direction of the lighting and it looks like there might be some sort of texture, but it’s hard to tell. All in all this is a well designed sprite, you worked from a really strong idea here.

F8AL: 8/10
Firus: 9.5/10
Neon Ness: 8/10
FINAL: 8.5/10

CrimsonFeint - Odobentai



F8AL: Wow! From a first glance at your sprite, it's very well done. I like the bubbles you add to it's tail and all the colours match and blend in together. Keep up the good work!

Firus: You had a great approach here. I love how you subtly transformed Entei from the dog-beast he is into a seal-like creature, and Entei actually lends itself quite well to that concept, surprisingly. The fins, coral-esque face, and tusks all help add to the concept and really help it feel like a water type without doing any of the cliché alterations generally involved in a retype. The bubbles look really nice, but I find that they are ultimately the biggest detractor in the sprite. When I look at them alone, it looks great, but in the context of the whole sprite, they seem very abstract and makes Entei’s body seem less concrete. That flaw aside, though, you made a really great sprite. Keep up the good work!

Neon Ness: At first I almost didn’t realize it was Entei. You kept just enough parts that I did recognize what it was though, which actually makes me like this more. The crest on the forehead is probably my favorite element, the fact that it resembles coral makes the entry that much better looking. The fur, the tusks, the fins—almost everything you altered looks so well thought out, and yet it still feels like Entei. The body angle is probably the biggest issue. The angle of the torso/tail looks like they’re floating when I imagine it should be lying flat on the ground. Fixing that would make the front and back half look more connected. I also wish the tail had more definition. The bubbles look nice, but I have a hard time imagining how it fits on Entei’s body as an actual form. It just looks like a flat plane of cartoon bubbles, not something we could actually walk around and see in 3 dimensions. I would like to see more of an actual tail, or at least have the bubbles resemble the shape of one. This looks like it was incredibly difficult to work with considering the angle and body type you chose, so I commend you for that.

F8AL: 9/10
Firus: 8/10
Neon Ness: 8/10
FINAL: 8.33/10

Daddy Ash - Suicinine



F8AL: For a first attempt at creating a sprite, this one is quite decent. I like the part where you added the fins at the end of it's tail and blue matches the sprite well. The mane also looks cool and looks like it belongs on it's head.

Firus: Overall a decent sprite, but there are some flaws here. The most glaring to me is the coloring. I like the blue you used, but a more tame color would’ve been more appropriate, I think. Brighter blues tend to lend themselves more to ice, while duller ones lend themselves better for water. Also, the tails are both off a shade from the body. From looking into it some, I think that’s because they’re from Vaporeon’s tail – which is fine, because you worked them into the sprite pretty well, but always make sure to change the colors and blend pieces when you take them from other sprites. On that same note, Suicune’s crest could’ve been blended into the sprite better too. Suicune’s crest isn’t the same color as Suicune’s body either, but it’s duller than Ninetales’s body color, which makes it clash a bit. Overall, I do wish you’d done more with the sprite – retypes are harder to work with than other sprites, I know I started out in a similar position, but try to think outside the box with retypes to really make the different type come alive in the Pokémon.

Neon Ness: The colors are incredible, if a little bright. For most of it, it looks like each shadow is a slightly more bluish hue than its lighter counterpart, which creates a pleasing aesthetic. While not necessarily realistic, I like this better than just using a darker tone of the same color for all of the shadows. I’m glad you altered the ends of the tails for a more marine look as well. But the way they’ve been attached is still a little awkward. They also look duller than the rest of the body for some reason; it probably would have made more sense to have them share a similar color scheme. The crest shares similar problems. It looks tacked on, and it could have been resized smaller to fit Ninetails. It too looks dull compared to the saturated cyan you used for most of the fur. The mane fur could have benefitted from a smoother shape. The jagged look is kind of striking since most of the body is made of smoother lines. I also noticed that some outlines are a dark, prismatic blue (inside of the tails/legs) while others are black (muzzle/neck). Best to stick to one or the other for the sake of cohesion. Darker duller tones (in general) work better for outlines.

F8AL: 7/10
Firus: 6/10
Neon Ness: 7/10
FINAL: 6.67/10

-------

Congratulations to Meta-Kirby for being the winner of Round 9 in his second Grand Festival victory!

This next week's prompt:

Fuse a Pokémon with a trainer.

The deadline is Friday, May 20th at 11:59 PM EST.
 
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