#also experimenting with new chibi style

[anshares]

Just a random thing i did that i thought would be funny you know a step by step guide by gardener dfqc (part time moon supreme, full time gardener)

[pom12art]

Drew some Naruto OCs

I introduce you guys my Naruto OCs. Muichiro Aburame, Haruna Mori, and Kazuma Kimura.

I'll draw their instructor later...

[lastoneout]

Got asked if I had any tips for new artists during my stream today and I figured I'd put them here too:

Draw, seriously, just do it. This is the hardest part and also the most crucial. Just run at it screaming and refuse to back down. You just gotta do it.

Always do your wrist/arm/shoulder stretches before drawing and make sure to take breaks to stretch/re-center yourself if you've been going for a few hours or more! (Here's the stretches I do, and they help with gaming and writing and desk work too, they're just a good idea all around!)

Try to draw less from the wrist and more from the shoulder(move your arm more and your wrist less basically). That and stretches will help you avoid carpal tunnel which is never fun.

Consistency is only something you need to worry about if you're like, working in the industry/doing some types of commissions(like an twitch emote bundle or a comic book). If you're just starting out or only drawing for yourself it literally doesn't matter. Like, I don't think I've ever drawn a character exactly the same way twice, it's fine.

Don't do warm up drawings, do warm up scribbles. Doodles circles and squares and lines and swirls until you feel nice and lose, then start actually drawing.

If you're between 50-90% done with something and you REALLLY start to hate it, keep going. You just gotta power through, cuz chances are it's perfectly fine(or even really good) and your monkey brain is being a jackass coward chugging that impostor syndrome juice.

If you finish and you still hate it put it away until tomorrow or the day after and then look again. Never EVER trust your negative opinions about your art(or anything) if it's after like 8pm.

Re: the above points, as an exampke last night I HATED my new pngtuber model that I'd spent literally all day on. Went to bed and in the morning was like "oh this is good actually". Trust me, tired burnt out you is not a good judge of quality, especially the quality of something you've been staring at for like 4-5 hours.

If, after all that, you still hate it, that's okay too. It's a bummer, but don't try to force yourself to like something just cuz you spent a lot of time on it. Chalk it up to experience and move on to the next thing!

Do everything in your power to not compare yourself to others. It won't get you anywhere. Instead learn to look at other people's art and find what you like about it and try to break it down or do it that way yourself. Dont fully copy/trace ofc, but really think about how something looks and see if you can figure out why you like it and/or how it's done.

OH MY GOD USE REFERENCES. Anyone who says not to use references is talking out of their ass. You think figure drawing classes are bad?? That artists draw from life just for shits and giggles?? No, its because you need to know what shit looks like to draw it!!! USE REFERENCES!!!

Same with youtube tutorials, especially for learning to use digital art programs. Do take everything with a grain of salt ofc(we've all seen the "masculine vs feminine eyes" shit or the trash trend of "I fix my viewer's bad art uwu" ignore that crap) but you can learn all kinds of shit for free on youtube.

If you can feel yourself burning out fucking stop drawing a take a break. Even if you're in the middle of something, or part of you wants to keep drawing. Burn outs suck and it's gonna take a lot longer to get over it if you push yourself until you crash instead of just acknowledging that you're hitting your limit and stopping for a few days. The art will be there when you get back, your health should always come first!

If someone tells you thick line art or anime style or whatever is bad, ignore them. All art is subjective. Draw what you want how you want. Even if it's all thick line art or you stick to sketches or only do anime stuff or chibis or humans or furries or goddamn stick figures just draw literally whatever. If this is just a hobby for you there's no reason to push yourself. Draw what makes you happy, fuck everyone else.

Anyway that's all I've got for now, might add more tomorrow when I'm less tired(and I encourage additions for other artists as I'm self taught and had to learn most of this the hard way and thus I'm sure I've missed stuff) but yeah, just draw my dudes, this is supposed to be fun. You deserve to have fun.

[turboacek-blog]

BDSP was fine, y'all just mean

Kinda kidding but not really as I know it's a hot take

Written Feb 6th 2024

Not saying some of the dislike wasn't worth it

But the problem wasn't with ILCA it's the base game of Diamond and Pearl

A lot of people's complaints basically sum up that they didn't incorporate Platinum into the game

Mainly from Pokemon available, with some mentioning the Giratina distortion world and such plus other changes that platinum had from DP like battle frontier differences

On one hand yes it would have been nice if they did make some more changes like implementing more Platinum story elements making it more of a definitive Sinnoh experience

But also it's DP remakes not Platinum remakes

Similar with ORAS and FRLG they had some new stuff and revamped stuff. But it's not like FRLG had Yellow elements (that's lets go) and ORAS had a lot of Emerald. At most the Delta episode for ORAS was their workaround for no Emerald so if you want to group that as the full game then sure BDSP needed some DLC but then you have the DLC dilemma is getting the platinum stuff worth an extra $20-$30 dollars and have that dlc debate

The underground solved a lot of the issues imo

The underground having Pokemon down there personally solved a lot of the Pokemon availability problem

For example, I picked Turtwig so I wasn't just limited to Ponyta for a fire type since I didn't pick Chimchar I had options as Magby and Houndour were now available, which fixes the fire type problem imo

And I think people overreact about the changes to the bases and flag capturing as yes it would have been nice if they were the same but I think the changes outweigh it greatly. Plus if ORAS showed anything people really didn't care to have the secret bases as secret bases and just liked it for nostalgia mainly

Not saying BDSP was perfect but I do think in a lot of aspects it is the definitive Sinnoh experience as you're basically just missing the Giratina story which isn't as necessary to the plot imo

As it kinda just seems like Yellow, Crystal, Emerald and Platinum were seen as definitive because they don't have the dual version conundrum so they seem more complete in compariso. But when the dual version games get additional content is the additional usually third legendary plot really worth it?

Maybe maybe not

And I know a lot of rumors about potential Johto or Unova remakes have been going on and people are worried as they didn't like BDSP

But if for example ILCA makes the remakes and has the chibi style and etc

But they fix the level scaling in Johto or something like Pokemon availability for Unova I think those would be better even if minimal changed

I do have my own hopes and wishes for potential remakes but I will wait until they are officially announced

[kyouka-supremacy]

your new banner is so cool.. wow.. I just stared at it for five minutes..

Aawwww thank you 🥺🥺 To say I didn't want to make anything too elaborate, I'm happy with how it came out.

I like that chapter 51 panel so much, Atsushi and Akutagawa are so cute in that half-chibi style, and sskk having their sskk quarrels is just too dear to me. I think it's a very cute moment in their relationship? It may sign an evolution from addressing their disagreements through physical fighting, to facing them through heated quarrels, to (hopefully) solving them by calm words. It's nice how both Atsushi and Akutagawa grow with and because of each other.

And tbh to me that panel is also a... Wow, Akutagawa is really whipped. Like, there's little to no other person on earth who could say the things Atsushi did to Akutagawa and leave alive. Akutagawa must truly be head over heels to go past all of it like it was nothing. It's really cute. In this panel in particular, he looks uncharacteristically collected. It's crazy how Atsushi has changed him.

I like the first part of cannibalism sskk. It's the most light-hearted sskk can be. It's got funny quarrels and coming to common ground in spite of themselves and involuntarily helping each other and overfocused Akutagawa and “once this is done, I'll teach you some tricks besides killing” and “this riding experience is terrible”. Overall, it's the first time in the manga we see Akutagawa being silly, and it's sweet.

I like how in the end the header resulted with it looking like Akutagawa is looking directly at the blog underneath, ahah. I wonder what sskk would think of it. I don't think Akutagawa would be very pleased with my description of him. Atsushi would probably feel uncomfortably called out ahah. Maybe that's what they're fighting over. It's very amusing for me to imagine.

[gzeidraws]

I have two questions

What's your advice for an Artist who wants to do commission? 

What do you advise Artists to do, particularly those who would want use their online names and do not wish to reveal their real name throughout the payment process? Such as PayPal and ect. 

Hello Anon!

This is quite a broad question, but let me list what I can think of:

Create a style sheet or gallery showing what art style you'd do. This can be different from your usual style eg. doing chibis only. It should also give an idea of art, subjects, and themes you're comfortable with drawing for others (or if you want to be a NSFW artist, obviously have NSFW examples :P)

Don't be afraid to focus on a fandom first, especially if you're not sure of demand. Build up your client base and following, and you can slowly offer up more options from there once others know about your experience with comms.

Set up a detailed post or external page/site (I use Carrd) that displays updated info about how your comms work. Include details like steps, estimated waiting times, what to expect, and terms/conditions.

You can just have potential clients DM you directly, but I prefer to use a form (I use Google forms). This way their requests get auto-consolidated into a sheet, I can see who messaged first, and I can edit the sheet to keep track easier (eg. highlight a row to show if paid, or if comm in progress, or if done, etc.).

Be firm and honest in communications. You are essentially selling a product/service, there is no 'customer is always right' but think of it as having common respect for each other. If a client requests a comm you're not comfortable with, you can say no or ask if it can be amended. If you feel you might not be able to deliver the comm or a wip by a milestone, let the client know in advance.

For prices, I cannot advise on this as it depends on circumstances. If you find your art style or type of comms more unique and in demand, you can ask for a higher price. If you are doing this fulltime, you should definitely ask for a higher price (pegged to what you'd think you should earn per hour in a similar job scope). If you're new and are unsure of demand, you can start 'low-ish' and increase your prices over time.

For payment, you should at least ask for partial payment up front for a sketch. Never do 'test' drawings or sketches for free. You can slowly switch to asking for full payment upfront especially if clients are confident you can deliver based on your past work.

About the Paypal thing, it's been a long while since I've set my account up and PP also likes to change stuff on their website 🤔 But I believe as long as you convert your personal account or set up a Business account, you can choose the display name.

[greentrickster]

@dragoncharming​   #truly galaxy brain  #but i gotta say the apron is probably some cute monster theme bc he thinks sqq will like it

Thank-you so much, and may I also commend you for your own extremely galaxy brain addition to the concept? Because you’re completely right, he would, his apron now officially has a cute li’l chibi version of a Thousand Death Poisonous Viper Crane that he designed and appliqued himself, because he remembers a particularly passionate lesson Shizun gave on them back when he was a disciple and also it was the first one he thought of that would look both good and recognizable in chibi style!

Not to mention, you know this is something that’s going to instantly catch on at least with other disciples of Qing Jing. And, given that he’s four years behind his former classmates, that means its the younger, newer disciples that arrived while he was gone who get the most exposure to it at first, since he’s taking classes with them to catch up on his cultivation. Because it’s too cute to picture Binghe with a group of shimeis and shidis who are all nervous around him but also curious of their mysterious returned shixiong who everyone thought was dead, but who’s turned out to be alive and also a half-demon. And he’s tall and handsome and uses strange words and knows all these songs no one’s ever heard of before, and he doesn’t act anything like they’ve been told demons are like, but he’s got his forehead mark and his eyes are red and his ears and teeth are a little pointy, so he’s obviously a demon, but Ming-fan shixiong and Ning shijie both seem excited to have him back, so maybe it’s okay...

Binghe gets the surprise of his life when one of his shidis timidly comes up to him after an art class and asks shixiong’s critique on a design he’s working on for a new qiankun pouch - he’s been working on it for days, but he can’t get it as cute as shixiong’s design.

Binghe: (still pretty new back and, for all his bluster, feeling very insecure about his place on Qing Jing Peak, and also having 0% experience being a shixiong and therefore about to turn down the request)

Binghe’s System: New quest available, A Good Role Model! Does Host accept?

Binghe: Nope! (hand hovering over the [reject] button)

Binghe’s System: Host should know, if Host makes shidi cry, this System will make Host cry! ^U^ <3 <3 <3

Binghe: (slams that [accept] button) What sort of creature is shidi trying to make?

Shidi: ...just a mole-puppy. They’re round, so I thought it would be easy to start with...?

Binghe: (accidentally channels his inner Tatsu and starts lecturing on how deceptively difficult it can be to make something cute and simple, while also showing shidi what parts of his design he needs to tweak to get the intended effect)

Binghe’s System: +10 shady-but-cool points! System requests Host keep it up!

(Meanwhile Shen Yuan’s desperately trying to figure out how a modern art style has invaded his peak, and will soon also be running over to An Ding to demand if it was Airplane who taught his disciples how to play Despacito on the guqin, because if he did that will be considered an act of War and Shen Yuan will respond appropriately-!!!)

[oobi-oobi]

Hihi!

Question: How did you develop your art style, and do you have multiple?(like a more realistic and a more chibi?) Also! Who inspires you to make such pretty masterpieces?

𓅭 𓅰 𓅭 𓅰

Thank you so much!!! You’re so kind!

Sorry, in advance for the extremely long response :') My hand slipped/j

These are the 3 big tips for developing an art style I wish knew when I was younger:

Find the things that inspire you, and break down what you specifically like about them.

Experiment! Try new things! Practice! Your art style will develop on its own as long as you keep creating. 

Have fun! Draw what you enjoy and what makes you happy. Your style is yours; you should enjoy it.

When I was younger, I caught myself thinking things like, "I would like to draw the eyes like this, but I can't because it's not my art style." Then I realized that I was getting in my own way. Once I overcame that mental blockade, I started having fun drawing again. When I allowed myself to experiment, it also caused me to improve faster because I could figure out the things I liked and the things I didn't like. Everyone's art journey and process are different, but this helped me personally.

Yes, I do have multiple different art styles. I have my regular art style, a cartoony art style (I am not currently happy with it. I have a lot to work on), a silly doodle art style, and a realism style (or as close as I can get to it). I also draw eyes differently depending on the feeling I want. For example, I draw tear ducts on characters that I want to have a sort of scary horror vibe, and I don't on other characters (I don't really know why or how it started). I also experiment a lot, which causes my art to always look slightly different. 

I also like to prioritize drawing the things that I enjoy the most. I really like drawing faces and expressions so I've practiced that the most (along with neglecting things I don't enjoy like coloring, I'm working on it I swear, I digress). 

There are also a ton of little trademarks that show up over and over again. Like giving characters sideburns or hair strands that frame their faces, never adding highlights in eyes, adding swirls in hair, and there is this weird thing where I associate the number of eyelashes I give characters to their personalities (I couldn't explain it if I tried 😅). I think it's important to stumble upon little things you enjoy drawing and to keep doing it. 

I never made a list of things that inspire my art even though I really should. Below, I'll list off some artists who inspire me who you can find here on Tumblr.

☆Cryptidw00rm 

(also highly recommend their YouTube animatics they're absolutely breathtaking)

☆Seiishindraws

☆Sinlizards. 

☆Nanamis-username 

☆Viria

(their drawing tutorials have left a lasting impact on me from when I was younger. I really suggest looking them up; they're really in-depth. I couldn’t find the original posts, but it's the first results when you Google "viria art tutorial".)

I'm always instantly enamored whenever I see these artists' works. They are such a huge inspiration. Please go check them out!

There are also a ton of other artists and things that inspire me too, but I'll spare y'all for now. >:)

As a bonus, here is a little example of how my art has developed. I just found my old art from each of the listed times. This is my OC Amaryllis over the years.

Below are some collages of sketches that I hope will showcase my style (these took forever to compile)

And finally, have a Megamind that I am proud of but never posted *thumbs up*

[iwiwiwi]

some AK chibis I made some time before

I was also experimenting with a new style i'm more comfortable with kshfsd

I also made them into stickers and keychains and the urge I had to hoard Lee

[gomzdrawfr]

Hi Gomz! Been so inspired by your art, I'm considering picking up digital drawing again haha. What device and app do you use? What would you recommend if I wanna restart drawing? Would be great if you can answer with doodles :D thanks!

Hello Cumi! Thank you very much for this ask, to think I can inspire other people with my doodles means a lot to me <;3 ((def not cryin rn))

In this ask response, I'll include some links that you can check out for the appropriate stuff! I hope you can understand some things by the end of it :D

Disclaimer: im no professional, so most of this is just based on my experience!!

Okie dokie first off:

What device and app do I use?

I draw using a drawing pad, the Deco Mini7 on my laptop, and I use Krita to draw :3

Krita is free to use! You can download it here, or if you can afford it, clip studio paint is definitely a popular choice out there, some people use adobe too!

I will say it may seem complicated at first BUT it is relatively easy to learn once you get the hang of it, there have a full tutorial on their website with videos included if you wanna know more! digital art apps usually works the same way, once you get the fundamentals you can draw on any app tbh

Or if you do want to start using Krita, then you can send me another ask in the future and I'll share you my tips and tricks (which are honestly pretty scuff HAHA))

Other recommendation if you want to draw on phone/tablet/ipad!

2. I know you didnt ask this, but I wanted to share my experience starting out with digital painting/using the drawing pad for the first time

the thing about digital painting is that there's a lot of features here and they serve to make the process easier, but it can be quite overwhelming when you start off! examples are layers

drawing pad also means getting used to not looking at the pad and the screen at the same time + getting used to the pen, I had a hard time with it but the more I use it, the more i got used to it :D

funnily enough, I actually gotten this drawing pad bcuz I started using lecture notes online through pdf and such xD

3. What would you recommend if I want to restart drawing?

Not really sure what you mean about restarting, but Im assuming like finding a new artstyle or trying out different art medium is it? (like from traditional pencil doodle to stylus pen) but if you mean literally restarting then uhhhh XD I guess you gotto start drawing then haha?

I think my motto when it comes to drawing is that no matter what it is, just do it

"its gonna look bad" its okay bcuz at least I drew it, yk? xD the thing with art is the more you draw, the more you're familiar with it, the less intimidating it will become(tho it can still be scary, but hey! baby steps right?)

perhaps what I would recommend is testing out all kinds of artstyle, ask yourself:

what am I going to draw? ex: I wanna do self potraits! I wanna do silly doodles of my favourite characters!

what style do I wanna do? ex: Chibi, non-chibi, landscapes

Sometimes, you won't know those answers to those questions until later on, which is exciting dont you think? one day I said "im gonna draw Ghost in full gears" then the next I decided "actually nah screw that im gonna make Ghost cute" -w-

didchu know my first few digital doodles were done on OneNote? haha yes! and on my lecture notes nonetheless pfttt (this was around october 2022)

When in doubt, always ALWAYS start small and simple. Draw a circle, draw a blob, anything! Make it manageable :D

You can, of course, challenge yourself and go big! the most important key is you're drawing for yourself :3 and you should do something you're happy with!

well, sometimes there are moments where you wont like what you draw or artblock, when it comes to those time Id recommend taking a break xD

Finding your artstyle is an ever growing journey, I would suggest looking through websites like Artstation or Pinterest and collecting artstyle that you like! then learn from it, replicate it, trace it(AS LONG AS YOU DONT CLAIM IT AS YOUR OWN AND YOU DO IT FOR PRACTICE PURPOSES!!!) and study it :3

like heck I just found a new artstyle yesterday literally HAHA so you know, enjoy the fun!

4. Other helpful links and video for starting out digital painting:

Marc Brunet, has a ton of tutorials that are useful! my fav one being this one about face drawing and cell shading

Bluebiscuits, very cute artstyle and the videos are always soothing and calming to watch! they did this video about finding your artstyle which I highly recommend! their face drawing tutorial is also really good :3

I also watch tppo occasionally, his video focuses more on how he study other people's artstyle and then implementing it on his own! If you like art studies you can give it a go, like this one!

practice, practice and practice! things like art takes a while to master and get happy with :) like i said, keep trying and dont forget, all of this is for fun!

have a good day! feel free to ask me anytime if you want if you want some clarification <3

[cactimore]

Mercenaries Lives Matter #1

The first work in this series! In general, I do not know exactly how many drawings I will make, since I have meme ideas for sub-classes as well (I am guaranteed to make the remaining 6 classes).

I also decided to experiment with a near-cartoon-chibi style. Next time I think to simplify it a little and add an aura of "soft sweetness".

Btw, I'm still experimenting with the new recording feature 🙃

[bunny-bun-draws]

✨ Commissions compilation ✨

Welp didn't post last month commissions I did, so here we got a good bunch of them hehe- Really liked to experiment with some new things, along with making some fanart and lots of couples for February uwu

Also Patreon commissions! You will be able to recognize them by the little bunny on the corner nwn

Thank you so much as always for your support!

Credits:

raccoondoobles (Instagram) (Chibis style 2)

The_Collector (Toyhouse) (Chibi style 1, icon)

@invaderblam (Chibi heads, chibis style 1)

Luke (Pets)

Lozi (2 characters halfbody, base color)

@lillystarreds (2 characters chibi style 1, chibi sketch)

@frosty-talks (2 characters chibi style 1)

@worlds-on-shuffle​ (2 characters chibi style 1, with background)

@the-hyphen-is-important​ (Chibis style 1)

Andi (Bust, base color)

tinihuman (Instagram) (Chibi sketch)

[fourseasonsfigs]

I Didn't Know How or When you Would Come...

This "hairpin" fig set is of course directly inspired by this scene in Episode 31 of Word of Honor.

The set comes with the two figures, the table, chair, and the mirror. It's made of resin, which always worries me due to the fragile nature of the material. I have the warehouse bubble wrap any resin figure, but you just never know how aggressive carriers might get, or if there were any hairline fractures to start with.

In my experience, all resin figures come in this type of carved plastic cushioning, and I've had (cross my fingers, knock on wood, etc etc) good luck so far.

Only the hairpin appeared broken in transit, so while I was sad, I felt that overall I had gotten lucky.

However! I realized that the hairpin was not actually broken, but shipped in two pieces to avoid breakage, and they included a tube of glue in order to glue each side to A-Xu's little hairbun.

Normally the warehouse removes glue from shipping, but in this case the tiny little tube seems to have accidentally slipped down the side of the box. I already have a 2-part resin glue of my own that I bought locally that is a bit of a hassle to mix and deal with, but is pretty rock solid. This nail glue? is softer and the hairpin is already wiggling loose a bit.

This is a beautiful set for a beautiful scene. I love it.

The figures are very stable. A-Xu sits squarely back in his chair and I don't worry at all he'll fall out. As I say this, of course, I upload this picture...

He is laying very gently down on his perfect face to illustrate. Sorry, A-Xu! You can see he's crafted to fit quite securely with his robes and his sleeves. You can also see his little bun here and the hairpin holes pre-glue.

I love the long elegant sweep and train of Lao Wen's red rescue robes.

A-Xu looks adorable sitting there. These figs have quite a bit of glorious hair but their heads seem a bit smaller and more delicately sculpted than typical.

I never get tired of their beautiful long hair. You can see my wobbly-glue hairpin creation here.

Here's an angle of Lao Wen in full hair brushing action.

A view of the mirror here. I'm quite tempted to decorate the table with little jars and a runner like the screenshot.

The seller also sold this beautiful standee. This was originally a fig / diorama design, but demand wasn't high enough to offset enough of the cost. A huge bummer because this would have been incredible.

The box the fig set shipped in is also beautiful! I love this seller's whole design aesthetic:

Two sides of the box have spicy sets of artwork in a non-chibi style. There was also a pin-up style piece of art that I believe came with the early bird/first-in purchases, but I wasn't early to this, so unfortunately I didn't receive it.

Unlike the (mild and sweet) spice level of the art on the New Year Wenzhou armory magnet (which you can read here), this definitely is kicking it up a notch. I'll post it past the ***** line as usual.

Material: Resin

Fig Count: 57

Diorama Count: 5 (I'm not counting the diorama in the header post quite yet! I'll do another post on that)

Snowglobe Count: 1

Rating: ...but I knew that you would come

[link back to Master Fig Index for more posts]

*****************************************************************

Alright, I'm going to ramble on for a bit so anyone scrolling down to read the bulleted list has a substantial buffer of space before the pics.

I really hope this fig creator makes more figs. Their work is fantastic and I love their vision they had for the swing figs / diorama - full credit to them for shooting for the moon on a large dramatic glorious piece.

Plus there simply just isn't enough Wenzhou figs out there - fig makers could literally make figs for every scene of every episode they're in, and I would buy them all. Can you imagine? That would be amazing.

Alright my patient fig friends! Here's the artwork. I will admit it took me a while to get what the fig maker was riffing off of here, but I did eventually get it.

[popcultureoverdosed]

Remembering what was Lost: My Dragalia Lost Experience

My time with Dragalia Lost wasn't as long as I wished it could be. I knew about the game since its launch, but my low quality phone at the time made it almost impossible to play. It felt like a tragedy since the concept of forging bonds with dragons pulled me in like everyone else. It wasn't until the fall of last year I played the game consistently after upgrading my phone. For a while, it seemed like I found my daily routine. I'd login every day for daily challenges, linger on the main menu to hear my units chat it up, fall in love with adventurer stories, and bob my head to epic boss music. All was going well until news of the end of service struck the community.

To say we were all shocked is a huge understatement. An important part of our lives was about to join the graveyard of forever lost video games. With news of Dl's impending doom, I was forced to reflect on my experience with the title and came to a surprising conclusion: Dragalia Lost is easily one of my favourite games of all time.

I don't usually talk about video games on this blog, but Dragalia Lost holds a special place in my heart for being the most fun I've had with a mobile game. It hit all of that boxes that other gacha games struggle to keep up with.

It's impossible to talk about DL Without mentioning Daoko. Whether players are chilling on the home screen, slaying a deadly boss or summoning beloved units, Daoko's pop vocals are bound to be heard. Even some of the instrumental tracks are remixes of her other songs. Her songs fit the game perfectly as they invoke the feeling of a light-hearted and fun-filled adventure. The pop score helps DL stand out from other games which usually use European orchestral music. It gives the game an oddly fitting contemporary atmosphere. Ryusei Toshi and CRASHER remain iconic tunes that gets players into the thrill of a good ol' boss battle.

While on the topic of the sound department, the English voice acting deserves special mention. Ocean Productions was in charge of the voices and that makes DL an incredibly rare case of a Canadian dubbed anime game. Each voice was a breath of fresh air that fit the characters like a glove. Special mention goes to Brian Drummond as Zhu Baije, Tabitha St Germain as Althemia, Richard Ian cox as Ranzal, and Mark Oliver as Hawk.

My only complaint is that the English audio lacks fully voiced dialogue. That could've gone a long way to making the game more immersive.

Pokemon TCG artist Naoki Saito brought his A game with the art design. Most of the characters have highly rememberable designs done in a vibrant pop art style. Character portraits were always a delight to look at due to how much they popped out on the screen. Each adventurer has a unique appearance highly distinct from each other and full of personality. The fun expressive style really added to the Saturday morning cartoon feel of the game. The user interface also has a nice sleek look to it that made navigating menus anything but a chore. While the chibi graphics can seem overly minimalistic at first, that simplicity prevents the game from feeling dated and instead gave it everlasting appeal.

It may seem disingenuous to review a game without mentioning gameplay but there's not much I can say in that department. DL's isometric action RPG style made it stand out from other games on the market even with its very limited attack system. It wasn't the most immersive combat system I've experienced, but it always kept me back for more and never left me bored.

The implementation of skip tickets and auto-loop was a godsend for grinding and made it overall stress-free. I didn't have to waste hours of time just to upgrade a single character. Just hit the auto button and step away from the phone for a while. Seriously, more games need to follow this method instead of making maxing out units so tiresome. The Co-op raid battles also deserve special mention since it was so fun seeing strangers come together to beat a particularly arduous boss. There were several times I relied on Co-op to clear stages because the difficulty is no joke at times. This was especially true for the MARVELOUS final boss Xenos which can easily last half an hour. Now that's how you go out with a bang.

Last but certainly not least is the story. It starts off simple enough with Euden performing his princely duty of forming a dragonpact; the main draw of the game. Then the game added layers of complexity with Zethia's dark doppelganger and the King's sudden evil disposition. The carefree prince now has to save his kingdom from his treacherous family with an even greater threat looming in the background. The beginning of rbe story was a bit slow at first, but there were enough plot twists and burning questions to keep me fully invested. I so was not prepared for the time travel shenanigans and social commentary on classism/privilege the mid-game story brought.

And that's only what the main campaign brings to the table. Dragalia has several event stories that heavily build on the robust lore and characterization players love so much. Certain events like Faith Forsaken, Fractured Futures and Advent of the Origin even serve as epilogues to plot points made in the main story. I will admit that there were FAR too many beach themed events for my liking. This game had great slice-of-life moments but it'll be too soon if I ever see another beach adventure in a mobile game.

Finally, it would be irremissible of me not to mention the vocabularian localization provided by 8-4. Character dialogue is stuffed to the gills with personality and colloquialisms you wouldn't expect from this game at first glance. It's guaranteed you learned a few new vocab words after playing the game. Seriously, some of these characters talk like they eat thesaurus' for breakfast. That's when they're too busy spouting meme worthy dialogue at least.

Dragalia may be lost, but I'll never forget the incredible memories I made along the way.

[superthatguy62]

A Reflection on Alex Kidd

Some time ago I played through two platformers that happened to have re-releases on the Switch.

The first was Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil. An excellent game, very good platformer, would definitely recommend even if it gets kinda intense towards the end.

The other was Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX. Alex Kidd was one of those franchises that I knew existed, but didn’t think too much about. Most of my exposure was via Alex Kidd and the Enchanted Castle on the Genesis, which was decidedly kinda janky (and not in a fun way) and punishing. But it still remained a curiosity to me, so when the remake caught my eye, I decided to eventually nab it and experience it for myself.

Cut to now and I’ve not only played Miracle World DX, but the Sega Ages version of the original as well as read up on the other games in the series.

And now I have thoughts regarding this franchise and so must inflict them upon all of you. My apologies. 

(Janken Dance!)

The Origin of Alex Kidd

Alex Kidd is considered Sega’s second mascot, preceded by Opa Opa: A cute sentient spaceship that fights to protect to Fantasy Zone who is also a child soldier and traumatized by the events of the game up to and including killing his own father, the leader of the enemy forces. 

However, when Sega entered the home market and released the Mark III console (the basis for the Master System), they wanted a character that could stand against Mario.

(Sega showing themselves to be the masters of subtlety)

Alex’s creation, funnily enough, mirrors that of his rival: Sega had intended to create a Dragon Ball video game, but were ultimately unable to secure the license. They decided to take what they had and turn it into a new character: Goku’s power pole was replaced by by Alex’s fists and his design eventually shifted to what would become Alex. With this in mind, the series’ chibi artstyle could very well be rooted in OG Dragon Ball and people have pointed out some of the remaining similarities on sites like The Site That Formerly Had The Blue Bird. One particular similarity is vehicles: Various Dragon Ball artworks had an emphasis on vehicles owing to Akira Toriyama’s fondness for them and Kotaro “Ossale” Hayoshida has a similar interest. Thus, the two main console Alex Kidd platformers feature the Peticopter and the Sukopako Motorcycle.

Plot:

The Alex Kidd franchise is emblematic of Sega’s approach to storylines in their games and builds off of what Fantasy Zone did before, as well as setting a standard that the Sonic series would follow later.

Alex Kidd in Miracle World takes on the Planet Aries, which is invaded by a tyrant known as Janken the Great. At the time, Alex was an orphan who trained under a master named Saint Nubia and thus had no idea of Janken’s take over until he came across some citizens. Alex goes back to his master who reveals to him the truth: Alex himself is one of the two princes of the kingdom of Radaxian. The royal family has been in a tizzy as the king disappeared shortly before Janken’s take over with acting king, Prince Igul/Egul, being held captive in Radaxian Castle itself. Alex thus sets off to not only save his kingdom, but his family as well, using the technique of Shellcore; a style of martial arts that allows its users to embiggen their limbs (or at least, their hands).

It’s not the most original plot, nor is it really the first platformer to put such emphasis on plot (Maybe. I’m not sure.). Still, considering that Sega had eyed Alex as a potential rival to Mario, it’s interesting to see some degree of ambition here: The reveal of Alex being the prince of Radaxian is saved for a couple levels in. When Alex needs to get into a nearby kingdom after rescuing his brother, he has to collect a letter inside Radaxian Castle (in turn, rescuing his brother) or he’ll be turned away. Even after beating Janken, Alex still needs to reclaim the Crown of Radaxian that Janken was after. It gives a general context for why you’re going through the stages that’s a smidge more varied than usual. And then there’s something else that I’ll mention later.

Compare this with the Mario games, which generally had little plot: SMB1 had functionally no plot outside of a general premise, Mario 3′s only major plot development is saved for World 8 and while Super Mario World narrates prose after each Koopaling is defeated, it doesn’t really have any more of a significant plot as was seen in Super Mario Bros 3. Overall, Sega’s games would have more ambitious plotlines, with Sonic picking up where Alex left off and taking it to further and higher heights.

Gameplay

Alex Kidd in Miracle World is a simple platformer. Alex’s two primary actions at any given time are jumping and punching something with his enlarged fist. Aside from vehicles and temporarily from a certain powerup, Alex can only over take one hit before dying. Lose all of your lives and it’s game over... although, if you have enough money (and know of a certain code in the original game) you can purchase another continue. Levels in Miracle World tend to be short, so it’s not too bad to die in the game (although you do lose the Telepathy Ball on a game over and certain stages the jungle can be a pain to get through normally).

Stages in Alex Kidd tend to vary: sometimes they’re simple platforming stages. Other times, Alex can use a vehicle: The motorcycle is optional and can be purchased from the shop, the boat appears automatically and the Peticopter (a pedal-based Helicopter) varies. These vehicles can make getting through a stage a breeze, but they only have one hitpoint: In the case of the motorcycle or stages where Alex can purchase the Peticopter, Alex must brave the rest of the stage himself. In the cases where he starts in a vehicle, Alex will fall into a level underneath the play area and have to work from there. Lastly there are castle levels that are significantly more mazelike. There’s only two such levels in the game: Radaxian Castle and Janken’s Castle.

Powerups differ from Super Mario Bros as well. While you’ll occasionally find power ups (usually extra lives) scattered throughout Radaxia in marked boxes, you’ll mostly be getting them from shops that litter the world. These shops cost money, which you can find scattered all over the place. The powerups range from a barrier that makes Alex immune to enemy attacks at the cost of not allowing him to attack, a ball that can shoot mini clones of Alex at enemies and a magic rod that lets Alex hover in the air. One powerup that you can only get from item boxes is Death, who will promptly chase Alex until scrolled offscreen. Another is skull boxes which aren’t necessarily powerups so much as they stun Alex for a moment if he punches them. Lastly is the Telepathy ball, which may or may not be critical to winning at Jankenpon, depending on your knowledge anyway.

 At the end of certain stages, Alex will run into one of Janken’s minions (excepting Janken’s Castle, where he runs into the big man himself) and will have to play Jankenpon (i.e. Rock-Paper-Scissors). It’s pretty much as you’d expect: Music plays, Alex can pick a hand to chose, when the music stops you play the hand. Best 2 out of 3 are the rules and if Alex loses, he dies. There are two general work arounds for Jankenpon. 1st: Getting the Telepathy Ball allows Alex to see his opponent’s thoughts and therefore get an idea of what they’re going to pick. This is less helpful as it sounds as the thoughts occur in real time and are constantly shifting, meaning the opponent can suddenly switch their hand at the last second, giving you only a split second to react. However, the Telepathy Ball does help with the second option: Janken and his minions have set patterns when it comes to Jankenpon. Thus, if you know the pattern, you can easily sweep the two rounds needed to progress. The issue is that the patterns change if Alex loses a round (i.e. if the opponent chose scissors and Alex loses, he won’t choose scissors next time). Still, one could theoretically puzzle out the winning hands and learn to choose them each time.

Boss battles are a very non-graceful affair. In the first encounters with Janken’s generals, they will die immediately after losing. In the second encounters, they will actually fight by means of detaching their heads and/or shooting projectiles. Since mercy invulnerability does not exist for enemies and Alex himself dies in one hit, boss fights usually end quickly. The absolute irony is that the easiest boss in the game is none other than the final one, Janken the Great himself: His primary attack is shooting a projectile, and the nature of how he shoots it means that Alex can stand right next to him and be at no risk. Perhaps it’s for the best that the actual final challenge is a more puzzle-oriented level.

Re-releases and Ports

Alex Kidd in Miracle World was never as widely re-released as it’s Genesis sequel. The original game remained Master System exclusive until it landed on the Wii’s Virtual Console. It eventually made it to the PS3 in 2012 as part of the Sega Vintage Collection (or Sega Ages Online) line. Today, the two options for playing Miracle World legitimately are the Switch-Exclusive Sega Ages release by M2 or the Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX remake.

Miracle World DX generally updates the graphics, adds some new stages and expands on the story somewhat (the major difference being that Alex himself now has dialogue and the first stage now takes the place of the Japanese manual’s storyline to explain how Alex learns about Janken). The game has a few QoL options that make the game easier (better controls, infinite lives and permanently having the telepathy ball) but I believe achievements are disabled if those options are turned on. Also, I’m not sure if it’s a glitch, but progress seems to be tied to the game state (i.e. if you decide to replay Mt. Eternal after finishing the game, the game will reset your progress to as if you started a fresh game at Mt. Eternal). On the other hand, the game has some neat little touches such as collectibles referencing both other Alex Kidd games (even including Enchanted Castle’s interesting boxart) and other Sega games in general, including Sonic or how the food Alex eats can be changed (in the original game the donut riceball was changed to a hamburger. The remake gives you the ability to toggle the change and even adds a few new ones). The game also allows the player to shift the artstyle to one closely matching the original Miracle World at the push of a button. The overall consensus is that if you like the original Miracle World, you’ll probably like the remake, but if you didn’t, then you won’t be won over either. The game is faithful, perhaps to a fault (and even then, there’s almost assuredly some mechanical differences that I do not know about).

The Sega Ages version is more of a remaster. In addition to Original Mode, which is what that name implies, Ages mode adds a new soundtrack based on the FM Sound Unit: An add-on for the Sega Master System which improved the audio capabilities and could lead to some stark differences between it and the more “bleep-bloop”-ish PSG audio (Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars would have support for the FM Sound Unit and is a good example of such differences). Ages mode also adds new illustrations at the start of each level (covering the map, which can still be seen on the pause screen) and adds a rewind function, which can make playing the game easier.

Later Games 

The franchise after Miracle World went in some... odd directions.

(Multiverse theory means that there is a timeline where “with STELLA” became as much of a meme as “& Knuckles”, “Featuring Dante from the Devil May Cry series” “New Funky Mode”, etc)

The first follow-up was Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars (With Stella), an arcade title released the same year as Miracle World, getting a port to the Master System two years later. I’d tell the plot here, but there’s a bit of an issue: While I cannot read Japanese, the little I’ve parsed through DeepL suggests that it varies much differently from the English plot. This was kind of a thing Sega did on occasion (see: Sonic CD). Regardless of which region, the overall plot is that a greedy star known as the Ziggurat (or the Bloom?) is going around absorbing other stars. Alex and his new ??? Stella must go out and find the Miracle Balls to restore the constellations of Planet Aries. In terms of gameplay, it’s a bog-standard run ‘n jump with bizarre visuals. Alex can’t even attack enemies without a specific power up.

(Pictured: Sega of America’s depiction of Alex Kidd, which would remain consistent in terms of western covers until Shinobi World)

The second, more direct follow-up is Alex Kidd and the Enchanted Castle for the Sega Genesis. If Miracle World was a flawed, if somewhat interesting game, then Enchanted Castle says “you are like baby: watch this.”

Gameplaywise: Alex has a new jumping-kick move when he descends, which requires positioning as it’s not a traditional jump attack. The plot-related elements that Miracle World had are non-existent, being a straightforward platformer. Rather than being strictly a boss battle affair, Jankenpon is now necessary to buy anything in the stores (or rather, the one item they have on display) and speaking of, there is only one proper boss fight in the main villain Ashura. Every other “boss” is a bout of Jankenpon. Most damningly, movement is just as slippery as ever and Alex still dies in a single hit.

Then there’s the ending, which...

The plot of Alex Kidd and the Enchanted Castle is that Alex hears a tip that his father is on another planet... namely, the planet that Janken the Great from the previous game is from. Alex travels there and fights his way to a castle in the sky, where he encounters Ashura, Janken’s son (maybe?). After defeating him, Ashura runs into the next room where King Thor/Thunder is waiting, perfectly fine. As it turns out King Thor had never been taken prisoner; He was visiting Janbarik/Paperock and took Ashura as his servant. The End.

(Alex’s Enchanted Castle design would go on to become the base for his modern design, albeit with some minor changes).

And here’s where the franchise gets weird.

Alex Kidd in Hi-Tech World was released for the Sega Master System the same year as Enchanted Castle. This one is interesting as it never released in Japan. Why? Because I lied: It did, but it wasn’t connected to Alex Kidd at all.

Anmitsu Hime was a Japanese manga/anime about a tomboy princess getting into all sorts of antics. It got a licensed video game in 1987. About 2 years later, Sega of America decided to “SMB2″ it for... reasons I cannot fathom. The main character was replaced by Alex, the characters were changed to be legally distinct versions, and the objective was switched from reaching a cake shop to reaching Hi-Tech World to play some Sega games (meaning the title is technically a lie: Alex is in Hi-Tech World in the ending).

So if you were ever wondering why Radaxian Castle went from a European Castle to a Japanese castle, why Alex’s parents are suddenly overtly Japanese, why Alex is being attacked by ninjas, etc, that’s why.

And speaking of ninjas...

(Alex is by everything as he contemplates the state of his franchise) 

Alex Kidd in Shinobi World was the last Alex Kidd game originally released in 1990, just a year before his speedy blue understudy would enter the scene. The plot is simple: Alex’s girlfriend is kidnapped by the Dark Ninja. The White Ninja, deciding that Alex is a bad enough dude to rescue her, grants him ninja powers. And all of this takes place on Planet Shinobi.

This is a weird one.

Despite being made by Sega’s R&D 2, Shinobi World was never released in Japan. It was called “Shinobi Kid(d)” during development, raising questions of if it was ever intended to be an Alex Kidd-related game. The first boss was originally a parody of Mario. This game, overall, was the note this series ended on.

Apparently, it plays really well by virtue of being based on Shinobi, so a high note. Still pretty sad when you think about it.

There is one last game to talk about regarding the Alex Kidd franchise, but it isn’t a sequel. On the contrary, it predates the series and even afterwards, it’s not immediately clear how it fits.

(Pitter Potter)

Pit Pot is a puzzle game, somewhat like Tower of Druaga. A knight, wielding a magical hammer, must save a princess who is trapped in the titular Castle Pit Pot by a witchsorceress. The knight, Igul, searches the castle for the three treasures he needs and succeeds in rescuing the princess.

But what does that have to do with Alex Kidd? Because Igul, the knight who’s the main character, is in fact the same Igul/Egul who is acting king of Radaxian, and the princess who is rescued after defeating Janken, Princess Lora/Rooney, is indeed the same princess that Igul rescued in Pit Pot. This is furthered by the Alex Kidd Complete Album release, which includes music from Pit Pot.

And Pit Pot, itself, is a sequel to an unreleased game called “Chain Pit”.

In any case, the Miracle World DX remake references this further The collectible for Radaxian Castle is given to Alex by the captain of the royal guard. The collectible in question? Igul’s hammer.

Other Appearances & Legacy

While never reaching the lows of say, Bubsy for example, Sega did have some fun poking at Alex’s failure to truly take off. Altered Beast has tombstones reading “Alex” and “Stella”, a reference to Lost Stars. Alex also featured in Segagaga, including a scene where he speaks with the main protagonist, Taroh, in order to convince him not to give up after he has been fired from Sega. Segagaga is a parody RPG of sorts, being one of the last games Sega made before exiting the console market (with the game itself reflecting the state they were in). With that in mind, the entire game takes on a bittersweet tone and Alex’s speech and reflection on his failure to catch on have a similar feeling, especially one scene that implies that Alex felt envious of Sonic (his replacement).

Alex has also been a mainstay of the Sega Superstars/Sonic & All Stars brand since Superstars Tennis.  While the franchise in general never got a court or track, Alex himself still has a slew of references: His Superstar State in Tennis is based on Jankenpon from the two main console games while All Stars Racing features the Sukopako motorcycle as his standard vehicle and Peticopter as his All-Star move. Sega still finds use for Alex even today as a mascot for their early years, with the Sega Ages line on Nintendo Switch having Alex present the games. Alex also appeared in the back half of the Mega Man/Sonic Archie crossover Worlds Unite (i.e. Sega X Capcom, sadly not as exciting as you’d think).

(But it still gave us stuff like this image)

And of course, the Miracle World remake, which started as a fan project.

Conclusion

So... why did I type up all of that? 

I dunno. I feel like Alex Kidd is a series that had potential, but squandered it. Miracle World is decent, if flawed, but Enchanted Castle doesn’t fix (or even doubles down) on those issues. I haven’t played the other games yet but given what I’ve seen of Lost Stars and the nature of the other two games, I’m not keeping expectations high. I suppose I’m just lamenting what could’ve been with this charming little series after playing both versions of Miracle World.

Of course, we got Sonic from all of that. People can argue over how worth it it was considering the later games and the fanbase and etc, but overall probably the best call...

Alex’s future these days is no better or worse than it has been for years. A proper follow up game is as unlikely as it’s always been. “Ossale” has stated/joked that if he could make a modern day Alex Kidd, it would be a realistic first-person action game with a feeling similar to the movie, Shaolin Soccer.

Miracle World still has a fanbase, especially in regions such as Brazil where the Master System is fondly regarded. The game even has a modest fan-hacking scene: You won’t find anything on the level of, say, Sonic: The Next Level, but it’s still noteworthy. Full on fan-games are rarer, but SAGE 2023 did have someone make an “Alex Kidd CD” to imagine what Alex Kidd would be like on the Sega CD, so there’s that.

Will we ever see a fangame that reinvents Alex Kidd with a detail of quality comparable to the finer Sonic fan games? Probably not, but imagine if we did, and Alex and Stella got an adventure that endeared them to players.

It’d be a Miracle.

[silverbrume]

MI6 Cafe Creators Tag Game

(Thanks for the tag, @3nigm4art!)

We’d love for people to keep getting to know each other after this year’s 007 Fest, so we’re starting this tag game!

Rules: Answer the questions, then tag 3 new people to complete this. Also, tag the person who tagged you and @mi6-cafe so we can reblog your response.

Note that when we say ‘fanwork’ in the questions below, that could mean a fanfic, gif, fanart, headcanon, cosplay, crocheted work---any kind of fancreation counts!

1. What work of yours challenged you when you were creating it?  

This 00Q piece inspired by @dixkens Did I Fall Asleep? The whole time I was making it, I kept thinking, why did I make my life hard and choose a scene with four people?? I'd never drawn more than two people in a scene before this, so it was a lot of figures to finish. In addition, I wasn't sure how to keep the focus on Bond and Q when there were other characters around. Finally, Q isn't wearing glasses in this scene, so I couldn't lean on that salient feature. All good challenges!

2. What is a fanwork you’ve seen which gave you a new headcanon about a character?    

This amazing Bond/Felix/Della headcanon post by wehaveacavetroll. I hadn't seen either of the Dalton Bond movies, so this ship was not on my radar at all, nor was ace!Dalton!Bond. Both were delightful revelations :)

3. Is there a fanwork that you really want to make, but you haven’t started yet?

There's a Dalton!Bond and friends piece I have in mind that I need to level up a bit more to accomplish. I'm imagining Pam flying the small plane from the end of Licence while Kara plays the cello balanced on top, with Bond dangling from the plane and Q dangling from Bond's hand and talking into his broom walkie-talkie :D

There are also a lot of fanfics I'd potentially like to illustrate as well!

4. What fanwork of yours surprised you, and how? 

It surprised me when I made my first sketch of Dalton!Bond and it came out in a realistic style, because I'd only been doing cartoons/chibis for months before that. Maybe I needed to sketch him using realistic proportions before I felt ready to experiment with a cartoon version. Or maybe I needed to do cartoons for a few months before I was ready to try a realistic style!

5. What themes/styles/subjects are common across many of your fanworks? 

Perhaps music and musicians? I'm still early in my art journey, so it remains to be seen.

6. What other fandoms do you create for, if any?

Inception!

7. Is there an artist that you like to listen to while you create? Or one whose work always inspires you?

I listen to a lot of movie soundtracks, video game soundtracks, and classical music. I go through phases of obsession as I discover new games and movies--currently, I'm really into the NTTD and OHMSS soundtracks. Otherwise, John Williams is the soundtrack composer I listen to the most, since I grew up on that music.

8. Share a fanwork that you’ve found yourself thinking about weeks after reading/seeing it.

The first fanwork that rearranged my brain was an epic Glee fic called All the Other Ghosts by rainjoyswriting. It made me realize that fanfiction had the power to tell stories that no one else would, stories that might resonate more deeply with me. It was the gateway to another world!

9. Finally, share where you post your works! 

My tumblr fanart tag

Next I’ll tag: @mr-iskender @samanthahirr @dixkens