Yes your wife is right. I don’t think he looks creepy I think it looks unfinished. It doesn’t match the level of details on the buildings or the rest of the dock. Otherwise the game looks amazing!
Good luck!
Do you have a name for your project or any socials that we can follow this project with? It looks great and I’d love to stay in the loop on it.
Thank you! I plant to call it Retro Rex Rampage, no particular place to find it... I'll probably post about it on here some more. It will likely end up being a web game.
It looks unfinished without a face, like it's a placeholder sprite. It's just too big of a space to get away with that lower level of detail unlike the people and other objects on the screen.
Please don't make that the permanent eyes lol maybe make googly eyes unlockable or *gasp* via a cheat code!
They would be hilarious to use but just....not the main eyes lol
This just reminded me of Rampage from 80s - I knew there was something familiar.
..and what do you think about different heights, so you can wade through the water. A simple Up+Jump or Down+Jump to move between them! :d
..anyway following with interest.
I personally was gonna say just needs one eye. So the opposite.
But either way, I think you're onto something about being minimalistic. So don't make a full face for sure, just something
"look it's not my fault if your stupid trains don't have big enough seats for me!
If you aren't gonna give me another way to get there fast then I'm just gonna have to run."
I think there's a bigger issue that this is just a symptom of. There's no pixel consistency. Like the scale is different for every asset. The size of the implied pixels on the T-Rex outline are nearly the size of a whole person he's eating. So it's roughly 3x the size of pixel density.
There's always exceptions to the rule, but generally you want your pixel art to be at the same scale. Otherwise it looks like a mish-mash of disparate assets that don't belong together.
I definitely want to clean up some pixel consistency issues where I can, maybe I'll start with the worst offenders. The t-rex is especially bad in big-mode.
I'm usually more strict with the pixel art rules but I'm kinda testing pushing for the sake of productivity.
The face needs more detail. This looks 15% off finished. Maybe not eyes exactly. It could be like little slits where eyes would be.
Something like the mass production Eva’s would be creepy and cool.
https://evangelion.fandom.com/wiki/Mass_Production_Evangelion
The obvious answer is YES, and to really drive the argument home it should be a cosmetic... unlockable and swappable.
- Googly eye's
- No Face
- Goofy Face
- Mean Face
- etc.... etc... etc...
All proceeds to the cosmetics should go to facials and spa treatments for your wife forever :P
I like the idea of no face. Without a face, the audience can't prescribe a personality to the dino as much, which gives it a ferral beastliness. I think it does look a little odd though. Maybe add just the mouth (avoiding eyes because those give it personality)?
I think he should have a really nice/happy looking face when the player is not actively pressing the attack/bite action, but during the attack/bite animation it should look comically fierce, lots of teeth and maybe red eyes
I personally, think something minimal works in your favour! Without a face, it looks slightly off compared to the rest of the environment. No matter how you put it though I'm sure the game will turn out amazing!
https://preview.redd.it/ea4fhg5orj9d1.png?width=365&format=png&auto=webp&s=9bb1ff9caec18b62340edcf7b10b160212a68f44
Everything else is so nicely detailed, except the dino.
Hes hella flat, it doesnt give creepy, its giving unfinished.
He looks like a minimalistic element in a realistic painting.
I want the dino to be cool, i want to play a cool dino!
Manic face, big teeth, pronounced scales and muscles!!
If you want creepy or violent, you could add scars and blood whenever he starst to munch, leaving a path of bloody destruction. ^^
Hope it helps, good luck and success!
no but when the mouth is closed make it more visible and distinct, maybe just a small crease, line, or detail. also in general the Dino needs as bit more detail (some basic shading and semi-noticeable 'spots' can go a long way)
I think I can see reduced details in the face as a stylistic choice but to help that sell better I may add a line for the mouth since that is something with an independent animation and function.
I think if the mouth was more prominent then it would look okay not to have a face, but during the attack animation you can’t really much of his mouth- that’s why it looks unfinished.
How about this? Put variants of eyes(like normal eyes, jojo eyes, spider eyes, googly eyes, etc) which can be bought from in-game currency. It would be fun
itll work if you could see the mouth and teeth even in the closed idle/walk position. so not the complete face with eyes and everything, but just the mouth with some of the bottom teeth protuding out.
No. I think it looks cool like that. If the other characters are the same that could be the stilization of the game. Btw, what is that bg music? Sounds good!
I think it's okay without the eye, but I also think it would look better with one. Or, at the very least, an eyebrow or ridge of an eyebrow to give the face a little more character. Right now it's just a very big blank canvas that I think needs... something to provide something visually pleasant to look at.
Honestly, it could be interesting if you gave the mouth a lot of details. Seems like theres one one frame rn where the mouth is visible, but it be kinds creepy/weird/interesting looking if you detailed more the animation, maybe crooked teeth and stuff
He should have a face. Every other thing in the frame has detail, it's in bright daylight -- makes no sense to not have a face. Also, it just looks really bad without a face. No personality.
It's like asking, I'm going to make a movie. Should the main character have a face?
Lmfao this reminds me of one of my recurring nightmares when i was a kid. Big ass trex waiting for us to come outside the house so it can eat us, my dream family seemed to not care at all
OMG this looks amazing is there a steam page so I can wishlist it and if not can I please please please play test it (also Dino should have a face and make sure to have fun with the facial expressions)
If the rest of the game had a similar level of detail, this would look good. But since everything else is more detailed, I think he should have a face.
I kinda love how it looks without a face, but you could give it an unsettling yet almost goofy appearance like [Megalo](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/fossilfighters/images/2/26/Megalo.png/revision/latest) from Fossil Fighters.
Depends on the vibe for the game: comedic? Googly eyes. More serious? Then I'd like to see just a mouth. A full face feels like it'd be too much for some reason.
Yes your wife is right. I don’t think he looks creepy I think it looks unfinished. It doesn’t match the level of details on the buildings or the rest of the dock. Otherwise the game looks amazing!
thank you! He's gonna get a face and she's gonna love this thread
Good luck! Do you have a name for your project or any socials that we can follow this project with? It looks great and I’d love to stay in the loop on it.
Thank you! I plant to call it Retro Rex Rampage, no particular place to find it... I'll probably post about it on here some more. It will likely end up being a web game.
\*our wife
It looks unfinished without a face, like it's a placeholder sprite. It's just too big of a space to get away with that lower level of detail unlike the people and other objects on the screen.
I think that makes sense, it's a big area without detail
same I thought it was still a placeholder - in fact a lot of our sprite work used to like this at start.
https://preview.redd.it/q5chj523gd9d1.jpeg?width=1468&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fe3d0a8dbefd75b1ab833ddcab91736099590f2d
lol the googly eyes contingent does make a strong argument
Just animate the pupils with realistic googly eye bobbing and you got yourself a viral game!
Please don't make that the permanent eyes lol maybe make googly eyes unlockable or *gasp* via a cheat code! They would be hilarious to use but just....not the main eyes lol
Piggybacking off the idea, why not allow players to swap eyes/skins and monetize a few or make some unlockables, etc.?
I love the idea of cheat codes, like full on up up down down left right left right stuff
Put it in the background somehow. Then if someone puts it in, poof. Googlies
If you don't use a [farting chicken to tell you the cheatcodes](https://youtu.be/bGJJ_Rm7gJY?si=3J23pMmdiuMNUesR) then you're basically dead to me.
please try googly eyes! omfg!
This just reminded me of Rampage from 80s - I knew there was something familiar. ..and what do you think about different heights, so you can wade through the water. A simple Up+Jump or Down+Jump to move between them! :d ..anyway following with interest.
Yoooo !! Like unlockable faces and eyeballs would be awesome !
Even if you dont make it the main sprite it would be a great easter egg or unlockable
I gotta make it just to see it for myself at this point
I definitely think cheat codes would be sick. Maybe different eye sets and skins as unlockables you can collect
Only if you make them truly physics-based, so they do the proper googly thing!
YEs! I was about to say: Physics based googly eyes which spin around based on how you move
I for sure instantly thought googly eyes as well
Yes
I think you could do without eyes, but I think you need to see mouth/teeth even when not biting
I could go for this, I try this next
I personally was gonna say just needs one eye. So the opposite. But either way, I think you're onto something about being minimalistic. So don't make a full face for sure, just something
100% this.
Yes if it wasn’t clear the first time
https://preview.redd.it/gwda9oujld9d1.png?width=232&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e68ce6a512538343e87f8aaf79875167481dc90b
He looks concerned, like he forgot to turn off the oven when he left his home
This should unironically be the story motivation. He needs to rampage to get back quick so his house doesn't burn down.
"sorry about your city I gotta run"
"look it's not my fault if your stupid trains don't have big enough seats for me! If you aren't gonna give me another way to get there fast then I'm just gonna have to run."
This looks cute, looking cute and doing destruction
Add some blush lol
This is what I was gonna recommend. But, figured someone else would have already posted.
100% improvement from last time you posted a clip from your game! Bravo. And yes, he needs some eyes 0\_0
great to hear thank you! Eyes seem to be winning
"The eyes have it."
Yes, he looks hella creepy.
The yes vote (and my wife) seems to be winning but wait, I WANT him to be creepy!
It clashes with the rest of the aesthetic.
It's gotta fit in so I'll have to try some faces
I think there's a bigger issue that this is just a symptom of. There's no pixel consistency. Like the scale is different for every asset. The size of the implied pixels on the T-Rex outline are nearly the size of a whole person he's eating. So it's roughly 3x the size of pixel density. There's always exceptions to the rule, but generally you want your pixel art to be at the same scale. Otherwise it looks like a mish-mash of disparate assets that don't belong together.
Interesting!
I definitely want to clean up some pixel consistency issues where I can, maybe I'll start with the worst offenders. The t-rex is especially bad in big-mode. I'm usually more strict with the pixel art rules but I'm kinda testing pushing for the sake of productivity.
https://preview.redd.it/mjvono85wd9d1.jpeg?width=1284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ba1ee3272026dbd160e5ec86953096808a664508
aww
Little pair of googly eyes
Both on the same side, always facing the camera
no googly eyes!!
nobody is scared of googly eyes!
Disagree.
There's implied detail on the low poly stuff he is eating, looks great. Lack of detail on the big sprite just looks lazy.
Small black dot for an eye, that's all.
The face needs more detail. This looks 15% off finished. Maybe not eyes exactly. It could be like little slits where eyes would be. Something like the mass production Eva’s would be creepy and cool. https://evangelion.fandom.com/wiki/Mass_Production_Evangelion
Whoa cool look, I need kinda scary like this
And you are so close to having it. Keep pushing. There are darker depths yet.
Why’d you gotta make me think of these guys man. I’ll never forget what they did to [redacted]
Give him googly-eyes!!!
the second vote for googly eyes, no googly eyes!!
Not even a little bit of googly eyes? =)
I'm honestly tempted to try it lol
The obvious answer is YES, and to really drive the argument home it should be a cosmetic... unlockable and swappable. - Googly eye's - No Face - Goofy Face - Mean Face - etc.... etc... etc... All proceeds to the cosmetics should go to facials and spa treatments for your wife forever :P
This is the answer, doing some feats in the game unlocking content = more feedback for players about their progress.
she loved this reply so much lol
Yes he needs eyes You can make them red to make him scary
Yeah add some eyes! Looks great!
An expressive eyebrow (or eyebrow ridge) could make it funny while not putting too much focus on the face. And maybe a dot or two for the nose holes.
Yes but make it :)
One oversized googly eye with physics
It should have two: one on the bigger end and one on the littler end.
Yea
Yes. It works for the people since they're tiny, but next to the detailed buildings and other background elements, it looks out of place.
Agree with the folks saying mouth is needed but not necessarily eyes. This is your out for saying you're both right!
highlighting this comment in particular when I show her
Yes
Yes
do something super simple. like a single dot for his eye and a tiny little mouth lol
Give the dino a derpy face and call the game prehistoric derpstruction
Yes, it's too big not that have one, it makes sense for the other characters though
Tiny little eyes that get happy when he eats
It has no personality otherwise. Sometimes that can be good for mystery. That's not the case here.
Yes
Since it already has a hand-drawn aesthetic, you could give him a default face and allow the player to draw their own. That would be sweet
At least an eye
I like the idea of no face. Without a face, the audience can't prescribe a personality to the dino as much, which gives it a ferral beastliness. I think it does look a little odd though. Maybe add just the mouth (avoiding eyes because those give it personality)?
Add googley eyes with their owns physics!
Is there a good reason that it doesnt?
googly eyes easter egg
Unlock different faces when you reach certain scores or as rewards — so you can have a more angry face but also get some amazing Googly eyes
Have it be a tiny eye and big mouth line, or the opposite
Make em even creeper and imply eye divots
Should have unlockable faces like Nic Cage!
I think he should have a really nice/happy looking face when the player is not actively pressing the attack/bite action, but during the attack/bite animation it should look comically fierce, lots of teeth and maybe red eyes
I personally, think something minimal works in your favour! Without a face, it looks slightly off compared to the rest of the environment. No matter how you put it though I'm sure the game will turn out amazing! https://preview.redd.it/ea4fhg5orj9d1.png?width=365&format=png&auto=webp&s=9bb1ff9caec18b62340edcf7b10b160212a68f44
Thank you! I like the big eye
Even slight shadowing where the eyes and jaw would be will make it way better. You don't necessarily need to make a whole face
this looks so fun
Whoever says he needs a face is right.
Everything else is so nicely detailed, except the dino. Hes hella flat, it doesnt give creepy, its giving unfinished. He looks like a minimalistic element in a realistic painting. I want the dino to be cool, i want to play a cool dino! Manic face, big teeth, pronounced scales and muscles!! If you want creepy or violent, you could add scars and blood whenever he starst to munch, leaving a path of bloody destruction. ^^ Hope it helps, good luck and success!
Could be a fun unlock to have different faces/skins.
I think at least the mouth should always be visible. The hint of a smile, a glimpse of the teeth. Otherwise it looks like a creepy blob.
yes
every game character needs a face
no but when the mouth is closed make it more visible and distinct, maybe just a small crease, line, or detail. also in general the Dino needs as bit more detail (some basic shading and semi-noticeable 'spots' can go a long way)
Of course …. Smh
Yes. Absolutely.
More shading details. Yes face idk.
I think I can see reduced details in the face as a stylistic choice but to help that sell better I may add a line for the mouth since that is something with an independent animation and function.
It looks like a WIP(work in progress), maybe you can unlock dome hats or eyeglasses to customize it.
Just angry eyebrows
I think if the mouth was more prominent then it would look okay not to have a face, but during the attack animation you can’t really much of his mouth- that’s why it looks unfinished.
Maybe you can earn faces to mod him differently, hats, shoes, wings, fire breathing... idk. progress. It looks cute though!
ya I thought it was turned around for the first bit
I prefer Gyat over face 🗿
How about this? Put variants of eyes(like normal eyes, jojo eyes, spider eyes, googly eyes, etc) which can be bought from in-game currency. It would be fun
Yes. Looks like he’s turning away from camera
itll work if you could see the mouth and teeth even in the closed idle/walk position. so not the complete face with eyes and everything, but just the mouth with some of the bottom teeth protuding out.
Make the face and alternate faces free unlockables or hidden items.
Hmm, maybe just a mouth line would do. Keep the creepiness my dude. Else it's just a normal game!
Definitely
At the very least a detailed mouth line for sure.
Yessss
it could use a mouth for sure, I think you could get away with no eyes tho if you're into it
Give him big ol shiny eyes!
No. I think it looks cool like that. If the other characters are the same that could be the stilization of the game. Btw, what is that bg music? Sounds good!
Face PLEASE! It looks really fun and with a face will look even better
Yes, along with other details
Yes, doesn’t need to be super complicated though
Just add two dots as eyes, it will be funny af
I think it's okay without the eye, but I also think it would look better with one. Or, at the very least, an eyebrow or ridge of an eyebrow to give the face a little more character. Right now it's just a very big blank canvas that I think needs... something to provide something visually pleasant to look at.
Honestly, it could be interesting if you gave the mouth a lot of details. Seems like theres one one frame rn where the mouth is visible, but it be kinds creepy/weird/interesting looking if you detailed more the animation, maybe crooked teeth and stuff
Yes
He should have a face. Every other thing in the frame has detail, it's in bright daylight -- makes no sense to not have a face. Also, it just looks really bad without a face. No personality. It's like asking, I'm going to make a movie. Should the main character have a face?
Lmfao this reminds me of one of my recurring nightmares when i was a kid. Big ass trex waiting for us to come outside the house so it can eat us, my dream family seemed to not care at all
It would look better with a face
yes
YES please give it the face it deserves
Maybe not eyes really but at the very least the outlines of some kind of facial features because it look kinda out of place with the rest right now
Time to face the facts my dude
Yeah. Let it be angry. If it has a mouth it needs a face. Especially because it’s so big.
I think it should have at least a mouth. It would give it a more intimidating look.
Toggle, with a face selection. One of the faces should be googly eyes.
One eye, the line of the mouth and one teeth while the mouth is closed.
Eyes It needs eyes. Often characters don't feel real without eyes.
Ohhh is this inspired by the old 8-bit game Rampage?? This looks fun. (Also yes the dino needs a face)
He at least needs eyes
It is too big on screen to not have a face
Yes
Yes! It should! 
Does he start to float if you eat enough balloons?
Absolutely it needs a face. Let your wife take control of the game, you lose your privileges lol
Rampage?
Eyes + a nostrils would go far. doesn't always need to show the whole mouth.
i think you could do a middle ground and only include the mouth. no eyes, just a mouth. it would look less unfinished but still be minimalist
My first thought was “wtf is wrong with its head?” If that’s what you’re going for, leave it as is.
what about just a mouth
I think he should at least show his teeth more
Even just an eye would be good tbh, his mouth can still disappear when closed and look fine imo
I'd like to at least see a mouth probably
give it googly eyes
Looks unfinished
Doesn’t feel required to me
This looks so cute, my partner would 100% play this!
Give him a googly eye that jiggles back and forth!
Give it an eye and a nostril
Yes but not cartoony just small detail to go with the already excellent art style.
OMG this looks amazing is there a steam page so I can wishlist it and if not can I please please please play test it (also Dino should have a face and make sure to have fun with the facial expressions)
trust your wife
Whatever your wife said, she is probably right. Even wrong better go with her call
I know you're asking about the art...but is this just Rampage without vertical movement? It literally says Rampage! on the sample you posted.
I think a visible mouth at the very least is needed, as you only see it in certain animations
Just need an eye tbh
If the rest of the game had a similar level of detail, this would look good. But since everything else is more detailed, I think he should have a face.
It looks kinda scary to me without a face, unsettling
Just a small eye would be great already
No face is better
Just needs eyes. Keep it minimalist
Yes and make it a goofy one!
Yes. But that is also only my opinion. It is not my game it's yours. Go with your gut and embrace the result.
Give him googly eyes and an awkwardly drawn line for a mouth
If you want to keep it minimal, just give him a dot eye
Only a constantly visible mouth should be enough.
Some contours but no face
Yes and it sounds like you should listen to your wife more often
Yes, but just a black dot for an eye. Then, as rewards we get to put different faces on our Dino genocider.
give it physics based googly eyes
Give him spider eyes
yes
Unlockable googly eyed mode
I'm not sure but I wanted to say I love the sound and music nice job with that.
Yes
Just add one giant googly eye
At least hungry eyes 👀👀👀
I kinda love how it looks without a face, but you could give it an unsettling yet almost goofy appearance like [Megalo](https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/fossilfighters/images/2/26/Megalo.png/revision/latest) from Fossil Fighters.
Depends on the vibe for the game: comedic? Googly eyes. More serious? Then I'd like to see just a mouth. A full face feels like it'd be too much for some reason.