Hey!
I'm part of the Art team for HIVE21. Over the last months I've been working on concepts and sprites for our game.
Our style has been continuously evolving and I wanted to share some of the process.
During early development it was important to create an easy to understand distinction between the players'
base and the surrounding area.
The base had to feel like a safe place whereas the other zones should invoke a feeling of danger and loneliness.
To achieve this we used a combination of color coding and lighting.
Blue and green colors are used for friendly units and environments.
In addition we decided to define a certain blue to express energy. This blue (more likely cyan) is
used in all characters as well as in interface and environment.
Enemies usually have red and brown colors.
During Development we slowly found a style that was suitable for the atmosphere we were trying to achieve.
Here's some of the first sketches we did to develop the overall look of the game:
Usually our graphic assets consist of multiple parts which interact differently with their environment.
Some parts throw shadows, others are used for ground textures. The excavator, for exampe consists of four
different sprites which are layered on top of each other in unity.
Currently I'm working on a new NPC. Here is what he looks like at the moment:
It's been quite the experience for me so far, and I am learning a lot in the process.
If you have any questions regarding the artstyle and process please bombard me!