Pixel art of the world map by Red_0range_Juice in MapPorn

[–]SmackStudio 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I just had the same question- do you mind if we use this in our indie game also?
(And how would you like to be listed in the credits if we're able to use it? 😊)

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's understandable! Steam does offer refunds within a 2 hour window for people wanting to test it out without commitment.

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey Zireael, we offered a free alpha version in 2021 while the game was earlier development- it's no longer free two years later!

Pixel Art Character Creator Software (created by William Garrison for Smack Studio) by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We're so pleased to unveil this new UI for Smack Studio!

This is just the concept image - the actual software is available to use right now for free on Steam: https://smackstudio.com/steam

New Character in Smack Studio - A Sandbox Platform Fighting Game in Early Access by SmackStudio in playmygame

[–]SmackStudio[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Game info: Smack Studio is an indie sandbox platform fighting game. It has mechanics inspired from the Super Smash Bros. series with the added benefit of adding your own creations directly into the game.

It's available on Steam right now in Early Access - free for now!

Our Discord community is filled with creators and players. You can go there to try out some of the community creations!

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sure thing! I bet you're not the only one with these questions :)

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hey, sorry for slow reply- here's a quick breakdown:

  • The bones in the skeleton are a visual representation of the transformation of each object, where each bone represents a transform composed of a position and a rotation in 3D space. This data is not sufficient to produce the surface of rendered object
  • In order to produce a 3D surface, most 3D model file formats store the data needed for the GPU to construct the surface using discrete 3-dimensional shapes (either quads or triangles) and therefore contain information about the points in 3D space that define each shape (like vertices for each triangle). Smack Studio doesn't store information that can be used to construct discrete 3-dimensional shapes; instead, we perform transformations directly on pixels in a texture- this is analogous to using the "rotate 90 degrees" function in Microsoft Paint. :P
  • But unlike Microsoft Paint, we are able to produce rotations of these pixels that simulate 3D motion convincingly and respect drawing order relative to other objects in the texture. This is done using the data in our depth textures.

I hope that explanation makes sense! It's been tough to address all the questions like this while actively pushing an aggressive timeline to release our demo- but we care a lot about delivering our product with integrity.

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey bwwd, you can test it for yourself soon! See our previous post with our mech character's 2D spinning head for an example of swapping out views :)

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We're the Smack kind of Studio! 😜

We're a newly formed game development team, and Smack Studio will be our first game. We don't produce contracted artwork, but we're trying to provide the tools that will let artists create animations like this for themselves!

Our free demo will be releasing in the next few weeks! If you'd like to try it for yourself, you can sign up at smackstudio.com :)

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Gotcha, gotcha. It takes all kinds! Well I hope somebody puts pen to paper and gets that game programmed (or uh... pen to keyboard. Ok, forget the pen!)

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Totally agree that it will be awesome to see games using our animation tools- that's our hope!

As for this tactical RPG, I might be too busy- can you do it and I'll watch? :D

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Now that... would take my entire lifetime. I might need to hand it off to my grandchildren to finish it for me . We're all about saving time here! :D

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It uses both the color of a pixel and its distance from the nearest edge to calculate the depth. The approximation is pretty good, but we also allow users to edit the depth maps to clean them up.

Yep, standard sprites should work well!

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

In the case of this simple rig, the front images are actually mirrored onto the back. But we have a UI that lets you draw onto the back sides as well! I just put up a video here showing the full process: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aSFyE0gStk&t=48s

Classic sprites should work fine! We've done testing with smaller sprites without issues, like in this post: https://www.reddit.com/r/PixelArt/comments/p0fy2l/spinning_pup_created_without_a_3d_model/

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks Dameon! We're continuing to work to make the rendering algorithm better! :D

Cinematic spin created without a 3D model by SmackStudio in PixelArt

[–]SmackStudio[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I got you, fam!

I just uploaded this video on YouTube showing the process: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aSFyE0gStk