Pixel Painting - And Make it Double (Pokémon Red/Blue/Yellow)

This commission was done to be given as a wedding gift .

How. Awesome.

After working with the buyer to figure out exactly what they wanted, they settled on the original Game Boy sprites of Jessie and James. But again, like the Gym Leader sprites, there wasn't any good color versions of these characters in this form.

Those colors are...just awful.

I poked around the internet, seeing what others had done in terms of coloring these sprites, and came up with a hybrid of the parts I liked the best. I think it turned out pretty damn good.

The only thing I might change is the light shading on their clothes. Right now it's a very light blue, which works well with the background choice and all, but I was toying with making it a shade of gray instead. I think both work fine, so no worries on my end.

The buyer said that the newlyweds were ecstatic to receive it, since they are apparently huge Pokémon fans, of Jessie and James in particular. I'm glad it all worked out. There's not a ton of in-progress photos, because I was doing a million things at the same time due to the holidays, and my whole setup was wedged into a poorly lit, crowded room. Too much fun.

Commissions are always welcome. Price varies based on the size and complexity of the sprite/scene. I moderate comments, so feel free to leave one with your contact email and request and I'll get back to you ASAP.

Pixel Painting - Kanto Badges (Pokémon Red/Blue/Yellow)

Pokémon is such a great series, and I had the pleasure of being just the right age when it first came over to the States. Even after all these years, it's still going strong. It's been refined and tweaked over the years so that it still manages to stay fresh. My favorite will always be my first, though. I know a lot of people around my age who were there at the beginning regard Red and Blue Version very highly. Vocabulary, locations, individuals, statistics, and the Pokémon themselves spring instantly to mind when the topic comes up. It really has stood the test of time (although a literal mountain of marketing doesn't hurt either).

For colorizing the sprites, I looked a lot at existing efforts done by others, as well as the badges from the anime. The end result was a hybrid of all of them.

It's interesting to note that even though the pixel size seems obvious, the perceived pixels are misleading. They're actually composed of four smaller ones. Certain badges give this away by having very thin columns or rows. When the issue arose during the project, it initially presented a dilemma. I ended up adjusting certain sprites entirely to make them more manageable, although two of them still retain their original dimensions.

Each canvas measures 8" x 8". I found it interesting that the Japanese names for the badges are extremely exciting things such as: Gray Badge, Pink Badge, and Green Badge. The fact that the badge names are written in katakana makes it make sense, though. And it only really applies to Generation I. 

Boulder Badge

Cascade Badge

Thunder Badge

Rainbow Badge

Soul Badge

Marsh Badge

Volcano Badge

Earth Badge

The Mega Man-esque background has become my new favorite. It really seems to fit with almost everything. And since all of these projects go to different people, it doesn't bother me in the slightest.

I also just realized that I missed eight pixels on the Volcano Badge, so I should probably touch that up before sending it out.

Commissions are always welcome. Price varies based on the size and complexity of the sprite/scene. I moderate comments, so leave one with your contact email and request.

LSDj

Over the weekend, I decided to finally take some time to investigate the world of composing chiptunes. I know I'm a little late to the party, but it's never too late to investigate something that interests you. I listen almost exclusively to game music, and being able to compose in the actual format enticed me into action.

However, I ran into the issue of where the hell I was going to start. I did some research on basic terminology and how music trackers work in general. After much searching and experimenting with different software, I ultimately made the decision to start simple. I decided to use LSDj, which exclusively utilizes the Game Boy sound chip to create music. LSDj (which stands for Little Sound Dj) stood out to me for a number of reasons:

• I love the Game Boy sound, sound quality, and timbre

• Four channels mean it's not wholly overwhelming, and personally I find that limitations breed creativity (the tracker still has a ton of capabilities though)

• If I make the decision to purchase an actual Game Boy flash cartridge and put the software on it, I can take it with me

The included manual and online wiki provide a vast amount of information, both for beginning and advanced instruction. They are both extremely helpful. There are also a ton of features and capabilities in LSDj, making it a true powerhouse and full-fledged music workstation. The experimentation phase is never going to stop, which is great.

In less than an hour of messing around, I had already created a piece worthy of being on a crappy, third-rate Game Boy game. Success!

After experimenting with the free demo, I made the very easy decision to drop $5 for the full version (the actual minimum amount is only $0.01). I am using an emulator, but the more I play around with it, the more I want to buy an actual cartridge. A friend of mine already has one, so I might ask to borrow it and see how nice it really is to be able to carry it around with me.

I might eventually move to more advanced trackers in the future, but I'm just having too much fun right now. Being a music grad provided an easy window into the actual composition part. The only initial challenge I faced was how to input notes/effects and working with the more-complex-than-you-would-think interface (keep in mind the whole thing uses only four buttons and a D-Pad). Once I had the basics down, though, I was golden.

The next challenge is to familiarize myself with the more advanced features, tweaks, and shortcuts. But I feel like that won't be as much of a challenge. It'll be more messing around and mix-matching different combinations of things.

I also know my end goal is not to enter the whole chiptune scene. I know it would take more time and effort than I can expend, because there is so much you can do with LSDj, and I've got more stuff I want to do. I just want to familiarize myself with the software, and maybe create some music that I feel would fit right in with the early 90's Game Boy library. Just have fun with it, I guess.

Just what I need. Something else to suck away all my free time.

Pixel Painting - The Elite Four (Pokémon Red/Blue/Yellow)

It was only a matter of time before a Pokemon-themed painting came about. The buyer gave me a few ideas to work with, and this is the final result. I did a lot of experimenting in terms of how I wanted to present this one.

Once we had decided on the Elite Four (Kanto Region), I had to decide how exactly they would appear. Some ideas we wrestled with were:

Would I use the map sprites or battle sprites?

Would it stretch over one long canvas, or be split into four separate ones?

Would I use the original Red/Blue sprites, or the updated FireRed/LeafGreen versions?

We eventually decided on Red/Blue sprites, battle mode, one character per canvas. The next step was determining color vs. monochrome. Monochromatic choices were grayscale or pea-green.

Color choices were harder. The default Super Game Boy colors were the best choice (in my opinion), but also pretty bland overall.

The buyer suggested the Yellow version, Game Boy Color versions. He said that was the most vivid memory he had of battling the Elite Four. So I checked those sprites out.

Ugly. As. Hell.

So I guess what happened was due to whatever technical reason (available memory, etc), the "colorization" of the sprites had to be at the lowest possible level. It figures like this:

1) The monochrome sprites have black, white, and two shades of gray.

2) Black stays black, white stays white.

3) The two shades of gray have to stay all the same color, so that leaves us two colors to "colorize" the sprite with.

4) Is everyone in agreement with bright yellow and red? Those seem like realistic colors for people, right? Man, I'm bushed! Coffee break time!

Obviously, there was no way I would use those disgusting-looking sprites, and the buyer agreed after seeing them. Things from your childhood are usually different in reality from what you remember.

I liked the FireRed/LeafGreen color schemes, and I took the challenge of re-coloring the sprites myself, using the GBA versions as a foundation. I also did some edge cleaning, as some pixels stood out as looking sloppy. I think they turned out pretty good.

Last question was background. I have become tired of solid-color backgrounds (unless it really works for the painting), so I opted for something more dynamic. I toyed around with several options before settling on a Mega Man-esque background for each. Each canvas measures 20" x 20".

Lorelei

Bruno

Agatha

Lance

Now the buyer can wake up every day and be immediately invigorated to take on the day's challenges! Awesome!

Commissions are always welcome. Price varies based on the size and complexity of the sprite/scene. I moderate comments, so leave one with your contact email and request.

Donkey Kong '94

One of the reasons you had a Game Boy.

Donkey Kong. Arcade phenomenon, made DK and his nemesis the talk of the town. And for good reason. So many good things happened for Nintendo with that one game. It also made them so much money it would make your head spin. Needless to say, Nintendo was going to stick with these characters for quite some time.

Jump to 1994. It's been over ten years since the arcade debut, is it time to finally say goodbye to this archaic piece of machinery? Nope, we're talking about Nintendo, and Nintendo likes to dig into its toy chest of the past. Most of the time it turns out rather well, since it's more than just, "Release the same damn game without changing anything." Some companies have a rich history, but think that slapping a sticker of a popular past character on the surface qualifies it to be a best seller. No dice. Nintendo is smart. That's why they are where they are.

This game is absolutely brilliant. You start with the iconic four stages of the arcade (25m, 50m, 75m, and 100m). You go through Barrels, Pie Factory, Elevators and Rivets. Hooray, there's Pauline.

But what's this? DK is still active, jumps up, shatters the beam you're standing on, grabs Pauline again, and rushes off. Damn. Going through a small cutscene, you run into the Big City, where there are eight brand new stages. This trend continues through nine worlds which hold a whopping 101 stages.

But these aren't just "get to the top" stages. Nope. The way to complete each stage is to find and carry a giant key above your head to a locked door, which is usually in a hard to reach place (and sometimes among fake doors as well). Did I mention that if you drop the key and don't pick it up in about ten seconds, it reverts back to its original location? And these stages aren't flat either. You've got to pick up that key, toss it on conveyor belts, up ladders, across gaps, through enemies, across moving glaciers, you name it. This is also while you're trying to hit switches, avoid enemies/traps, jump onto moving platforms, and climb ladders (which you can't do while holding the key), among other things.

Slight upgrade in level design.

There's a decent amount of enemies. Over 35 different ones, and none of them from the Super Mario Bros. series. Some that just walk, some that charge you down, some that drop things from above, some that swim, some you can grab ahold of to reach new places, some that can be picked up, some that fly, some that shoot things at you, some that like to hide, some you have to ride, some that push you out of the way, some that can bury underground, some that suck your blood, and some that just plain have to be avoided. The game is a paragon of strategic handheld platforming.

The stages are very well designed (these were Nintendo's golden years, after all). They're not small either. The ones that all fit onto the screen all at once are the exception. You've got fire, water, spikes, electricity, monsters, melting ice, pits, conveyors, dissolving platforms, elevators, cannons, strong winds, ropes, ladders, the whole package. The nine worlds are of a good variety too. Big City, Forest, Pirate Ship, Jungle, Desert, Airplane, Iceberg, Rocky Valley, and the Tower. You must also battle Donkey Kong (and sometimes Junior as well) every four stages, and try and reach Pauline while avoiding whatever traps DK has set up for you.

Inside the red is what you can see at once.

There are a myriad of items to help you as well. Special blocks allow you to create ladders for a short period of time. Others allow you to create horizontal beams you must race across. Others allow you to create springs you can bounce on. There are switches that turn pathways on and off, as well as make doors open and close. The Hammer makes a reappearance, and is accompanied by the Super Hammer, which can destroy brick walls and floors.

Create a series of timed beams, ladders, and springs to get the key to the door? No problem.

Pauline's parasol, hat and bag are also scattered throughout each stage, and while you don't have to get them, together they provide a bonus stage. There are two different ones: A slot machine and a wheel of fortune type game. Both can yield extra lives.

Mario's move set in this game was reused in Super Mario 64, as crazy as that sounds. The flips, handstands, backflips, and triple jump were all used here first (and feel just as fluid and responsive). Picking up and throwing objects is very similar to Super Mario Bros. 2/USA. There are also horizontal and diagonal ropes Mario can swing around rapidly and release from to launch across the stage.

The mechanics and physics of the game are very tight and responsive. Some of the later stages require very good timing and skill. It also makes clearing the first four arcade levels pretty easy.

4 Seconds?

The visual style is clean and crisp. There are a lot of animations for Mario, as well as the enemies. Mario can die by being crushed from above, crushed from the side, falling too far, running into an enemy, hitting spikes, fire, electricity, being run over, or running into (and being thrown) by Donkey Kong himself. Each of these deaths has a different (and often comical) animation.

The combination, style, and detail of foregrounds/backgrounds, good lighting/shadows, and just top-notch level design really makes the stages look good, full, and balanced while at the same time not too in your face. It's blatantly obvious how much effort went into this game at every turn.

The sound is outstanding. There are over 40 different music tracks composed, all by Taisuke Araki (who unfortunately hasn't done much more in terms of game music). While the tracks aren't very long, the moods are matched perfectly in terms of intensity and location (e.g. Pirate Ship, Desert), and are rather catchy to boot. The sound effects are also excellent and fit with what's going on exactly. With the limited capabilities of the Game Boy, the sound really stands out as being insanely well done.

There are also tiny features that are a nice touch, and sometimes necessary to complete a level. An examples is being able to throw up the Hammer, climb a ladder, and catch it before it falls past you. Another is while carrying an object, if an enemy runs into you, you drop the object and only become momentarily stunned. In addition, falling from a rather low distance causes you to roll a little bit. Falling from a bit higher makes you crouch in pain for a second. Finally, falling from a great distance is instant death. A nice change from the arcade where if you fell from more than three inches you died.

The massive amount of effort put into this game is obvious. So many little things. If you sit on the title screen for a minute, it changes to a move set demo. Mario raises from a platform below, bows to an audience, and demonstrates his moves on a stage set up just for the occasion. After completing all routines, he bows a final time and is lowered back down below the stage. For just having four directions and a jump button, Mario can do a crap-ton of moves.

Having three save files is nice. Being able to go back to any previously completed set of levels as a starting point is even better. You can look at your best times and scores for any previously beaten level too, in case you want to try and beat your best time. As a bonus, if you complete a level with a certain amount of time left, you get a little bonus animation. Mario dashes through the door as normal, but then comes back and shuts it behind him. Necessary? No. Cool? Yes.

Cutscenes link every four sets of stages, and are a lot of fun to watch. They also serve as tutorials for when there's a new element in the coming stages. The game does an excellent job of informing you what must be done without boring you with tedious explanations (or text, for that matter).

Junior shows up in certain stages and hits switches/levers himself, blocking or allowing you through certain pathways. Homages to the arcade Donkey Kong and Donkey Kong Jr. are plentiful as well.

And the last battle! After seemingly beating Donkey Kong once and for all, you watch him fall from his tower, but there are a bunch of mushrooms falling too...

Yes! You must battle a gigantic Donkey Kong. You have to avoid being smashed in his clapping hands, crushed by his smashing fists, and dodge objects he causes to fall. You must climb onto his face, jump up his moving hands and get to a semi-safe platform and chuck barrels his rampage is causing to fall into his giant mug. It really is a perfect last battle for everything that came before it. This game is the kind of reason I point out as to why I like Nintendo the best.

Awesome.

I also had the enjoyment of playing this on my Super Game Boy, which was the add-on to the SNES that let you play Game Boy games with an SNES controller on your TV in color. It also allowed you to change the color scheme to whatever you wanted, or even to draw over the screen with a marker (Wii U GamePad, anyone?). Donkey Kong '94 was special in that the cartridge had special Super Game Boy features, such as an arcade style border around the gameplay screen, and specific color schemes for each areas. The game was also the Super Game Boy's flagship title, but unfortunately was one of the few Game Boy games that really took advantage of the Super Game Boy's capabilities. The effort put into fully utilizing the Super Game Boy is staggering, both visually and technically speaking.

And that's just the title screen.

I can't even count how many times I played this game as a kid. If I had my Game Boy readily available, I would play it again, and I bet that the cartridge is still in it and ready to go. The replay value of this game is through the roof, and it really pushed the Game Boy to its limits. The series was continued in spirit by the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series, but they aren't nearly as innovative (or good, for that matter). Even as an adult, Donkey Kong '94 is challenging, engaging, and a lot of fun. The game was and is a must-have for any Game Boy connoisseur, or anyone who just wants to know just how good the original Game Boy could be.