
2D Game Art for Programmers - Impossible
http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/ChrisHildenbrand/20111019/8692/2D_Game_Art_For_Programmers__Part_2.php
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christkv
For a person without a single artistic bone in his body this pretty much
amounts to magic no matter how simple it looks. I'm sticking to programming.

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sambeau
It reminds me of _how to draw an owl_ :

<http://piccsy.com/2010/08/how-to-draw-an-owl/>

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5hoom
Laugh-out-loud coffee sprayed on my monitor.

Thanks for that :)

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christkv
My same reaction. Completely captures my feeling

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hsmyers
Although I've spent more than 30 years as a programmer, before that I spent 8
years as an art major so I know a little bit about how non-artist types steer
away from this kind of thing. That said, there are a few things that might
help. One of my favorites is 'I can't draw a straight line...' well, neither
can I (nerve damage and age)---when I need one, I use a ruler. Another is the
usual comparison to some great artist, Rembrandt or the like. If you actually
look at them you usually find out that what they can (or could) do breaks down
into two areas---that which can be learned and talent. Can't do a damn thing
about talent, you have to be born with that, but learning (which amounts to a
bit more than 80% of what most think of as good art), that is a matter of
teaching and practice. Best way to get to the goal of decent artwork is to
stop telling yourself you can't do it and pick up whatever tool happens to be
handy and have a go at it.

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bitwize
Agreed. I am not a great artist but I am a good one, and I basically got that
way by learning how to draw so I could make art for games.

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wrl
Anybody know of tutorials aimed at a similar audience (i.e. programmers with
little design background) but for GUI/UI elements/widgets?

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bgramer
There are some nice tutorials/articles at flyosity.com and bjango.com

This is one of my favorites: [http://flyosity.com/tutorial/crafting-subtle-
realistic-user-...](http://flyosity.com/tutorial/crafting-subtle-realistic-
user-interfaces.php)

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fourmii
This is great, I know it's applicable for game graphics, but I've been toiling
away with Photoshop, learning painfully all it's powerful features for ages!
It's good to learn about some other tools (free no less!)that may simplify art
creation.

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Groxx
So, the instructions are the equivalent of this:
[http://www.applegeeks.com/lite/index.php?aglitecomic=2006-05...](http://www.applegeeks.com/lite/index.php?aglitecomic=2006-05-03)

Which, to a non-artist, looks like this:
[http://www.applegeeks.com/lite/index.php?aglitecomic=2006-05...](http://www.applegeeks.com/lite/index.php?aglitecomic=2006-05-05)

Yup. _super_ enlightening.

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eliben
For some reason the link points to Part 2 of the article.

Part 1 is:
[http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/ChrisHildenbrand/20111015/866...](http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/ChrisHildenbrand/20111015/8669/2D_Game_Art_For_Programmers__Part_1_updated.php)

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Impossible
I linked to part 2 because part 1 doesn't have a link to part 2, and part 2
has a link directly to part 1 at the beginning. I figured it would be easier
for people to see both parts this way. Sorry if I caused any confusion.

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MetallicCloud

      > You should try and aim for the stars. Making games is all about that. Do the best you can and constantly push your limits and improve your skills... but thinking realistically and adjusting your expectations to your abilities and your budget is a big step towards creating the best game you can create.
    

This is advice that every aspiring indie game developer needs.

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exogen
I've been using Inkscape forever and I love it. Very easy to learn. It's one
of those programs that I never even knew had a settings/preferences window
until years later, because the default behavior is just that good.

Even after switching to a Mac, I still use it for everything even though some
UI and behavior is terribly out of place.

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pacomerh
Oh man, this is the kind of stuff I'm looking for. It's so simple yet I didn't
even know how to start it. Now I can put real characters into my javascripts
:)

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jarsj
I like it. Are there books that go step-by-step like this and cover a much
wider range of things.

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chromejs10
This is really cool. So simple and yet it looks really complicated.

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sgt
Yes. It gives me an idea that I can sit down with Inkscape now and create
amazing graphics. I'm sure it won't look amazing like this. I'll botch it up
somehow.

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gcb
Upvote because I never knew about the interpolate feature. That's handy

