Need help shading Interface
Printed From: Pixel Joint
Category: Pixel Art
Forum Name: WIP (Work In Progress)
Forum Discription: Get crits and comments on your pixel WIPs and other art too!
URL: https://pixeljoint.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=13502
Printed Date: 01 August 2026 at 4:23pm
Topic: Need help shading Interface
Posted By: Elenter
Subject: Need help shading Interface
Date Posted: 09 December 2011 at 12:47pm
I'm trying to make an interface for my game but seem to be terrible at it, I want to make it brighter and have more detail. I'm terrible at choosing palletes and am always choosing darker colors, even if I want something brighter. I colored in the Health, Mana, Exp bars and when I got to the rest of the interface I got stumped. Basically middle, under the health/mana bars is where the quick skill slots are going to go, to the right of that will be stuff like Stats,Inventory,Spell Book, Skill Tree, Quest Log, etc. Left side I'm still undecided, been thinking of a few different things which I will have to experiement with. Above the health bars is the day/night cycle bar. It's an interface inspired by this 
I'm also trying to figure out what kind of art to put on the sides for more of a professional look. I'm more of a programmer than I am a pixel artist and am trying to get better as much as possible. Any advice or changes are welcome. The main thing is shading & shading it to a brighter color. Even providing a nice palette would help. Thanks~ |
Replies:
Posted By: Elenter
Date Posted: 09 December 2011 at 3:37pm
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Okay so I've been working on it and what has come out looks a LOT better than what I had initially.
Though I think it needs a lot of work it is starting to come along. Though at this point I am unsure how to add anymore detail withhout making it look weird. I need better shading techniques :p 
The sun looks weird :/ |
Posted By: Zeratanus
Date Posted: 09 December 2011 at 4:25pm
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Definitely looking a lot better!
However, as a gamer, i really have never been a fan of those big, bulky HUDs. They just feel like they're covering areas with static art when I could be actually seeing whats underneath them. I'd personally lose the side stuff thats not being used right now, unless you can find a good use for them that couldnt fit anywhere else. For the sun dial, i think it takes up too much space (notice how much shorter the one in your example is). If you want to keep it bigger like that, i'd probably go for something closer to Zelda: Majora's Mask's HUD and its clock - just basic lines for everything but the sun and moon. That way it could go into the play area without completely covering it. |
Posted By: Elenter
Date Posted: 09 December 2011 at 4:55pm
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Thanks for the input!
Believe it or not that UI is actually very small compared to the resolution size so it hardly takes up any room at all :) |
Posted By: Partack
Date Posted: 10 December 2011 at 3:12pm
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i agree, never ben a fan of those bulky hud's .. but if it was an exquisit piece, it's forgivible. i imagine clouds and feathers and fluffy stuff and things.. and stuff..
i also suggest you have it like a drawer that slides up and down you coudl display the daynight thing constantly but clickign on it (or whatever) would 'slide the drawer open' (amke it move up) and reveal the bars and the art. when the drawer is clsoed you could also have bits of the art poking up in the bottom left and bottom right corners. just an idea. what sort of theme are you going with for your status bar? what is the game you're making/pixeling for about? think about what theme it is and then roll with it. thaat's all i've got for C+C. sorry ^__^; |
Posted By: Zeratanus
Date Posted: 12 December 2011 at 1:22pm
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I suppose I'd have to see it all put together, but its less about taking up too much room and more about taking up more room than it needs to.
In your example, its all nice and pretty with the art there, but I'd much rather it be gone if i was actually playing that. It's a HUD, if it's not informative (or immersive, like Samus's visor in Metroid Prime), then i dont want to be bugged with it being in my way while I play, regardless of how pretty it is. For example, the original Legend of Zelda's HUD is bulky as heck and completely bland, and certainly could be streamlined a ton, but as it is the whole thing is used, so its not overly annoying. Granted, I'd RATHER it be smaller, but it all serves a purpose |