There’s a lot of things to offer for the holiday season. USE THE CODE TODAY-THROUGH-MONDAY DECEMBER 1ST, YAY!
1) We’re now offering 16 bundles on Zen Monkey Studios. 2 shirts for $35, 3 for $50, 4 and more equates to $15 per shirt. Combine that with: 2) The black friday weekend (now, Sat, Sun, Monday) discount code. Insert “BLACKWEEKEND”on checkout and you’ll get 15% off on your order. Which you know means if you get 4 shirts for $60, you’re gonna now make it 4 shirts for $51. 3) Buy 3 or more shirts and you get a free random bonus one! 4) Buy 2 or more 16x20 prints and you get a free random 11x17 or 12x16 print.
I’ve had these screenshots sitting in my drafts for a minute. Not sure of my intent, but at the very least it’s an interesting contrast.
The first screenshot is Mega Man Legends on the PlayStation from 1997 (1998 outside Japan), and the second is from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998). I don’t think either screenshot is from the original hardware, or at least not as the games would have appeared on CRT televisions of the time.
As contemporaries, it’s fair to compare them as action-adventure games in which a player radiates out from a central hub to explore the world and its dungeons. Mega Man had a more robust customization system for its weaponry and the dungeon designs are fairly generalized to accommodate a broad array of weapons and tools, whereas Ocarina continues the series legacy of specialized dungeons designed around specific items. Mega Man also has a more boxy aesthetic to its characters and world, while Ocarina is more naturalistic in its palette and geometry. In terms of animation, Ocarina has nothing on the expressive anime-inspired characters faces from Mega Man, perhaps the most memorable aspect of the performances in that game. The main knock against Mega Man Legends is that its camera is based on the PlayStation original controller without analog sticks, and so movement and camera control is stiff and not as pleasant as the Nintendo 64′s camera experiences (or later PlayStation games that utilized the DualShock controller).
But the strongest feeling here is unexpected joy. I rented Mega Man Legends from Blockbuster Video three times before I finally bought it. I can’t say what compelled me to initially rent it (perhaps just a spotlight in a game magazine and a general interest in Capcom’s work at the time), but as I played through it and then kept going until I explored every nook and cranny, I realized this was a game that could fulfill what was missing as someone who hadn’t owned Nintendo’s SNES and Nintendo 64 until may years later. I was just not getting these Zelda and Mario experiences that so many raved about, and so I looked for surrogates. Mega Man Legends unexpectedly filled that role and then far exceeded my expectations. It’s a game of light-hearted adventure, pirates, and robots, but also explores themes of legacy and the expectations of previous generations on those who must make lives of what was left behind. It has so many fun character moments and part of the joy is just getting to know the inhabitants of Kattelox Island as they struggle to “eke out a living on the small patches of land that remain above the sea.” It’s Waterworld, it’s robots, it’s anime. There’s so much there.
Capcom produced a sequel and a side game starring the anti-hero Tron Bonne, then dropped it for years. There was a brief attempt to pick up the cliffhanger ending from Mega Man Legends 2 with a third game, but the project died when the series director left Capcom and there’s little hope of seeing any more games in the series. The good news is that the three main games in the series are available digitally for PS Vita and PS3 through the PS Classics label on the PSN store. All worth checking out!
Back on my crossover bullshit. The final boss of KvC is Metal Gear WILY. it seems Dr. Wily has teamed up with Dr. Mechado from Bomberman and they stole the plans to Metal Gear. But then why is the mech themed after Wily only? I smell betrayal…
Samus Aran Origins: Metroid’s Influences Beyond Alien | Hardboiled History
My new video is about the origins of one of my favorite video game characters. Everyone knows Metroid was inspired by the movie Alien, but what about its other influences?
Other questions explored include: Who did “Samus Is A Girl” before Samus? Why does Adam call Samus “Lady” in Metroid Dread? Were Metroid and Zelda inspired by Rareware games? Why does Samus fight a Mother Brain? Where does Samus’ first name come from? What does “Metroid” mean? What is a “bailey”? Who was the first character with an arm canon? And why can’t Metroid crawl?
Happy thirty-fourth anniversary to Mega Man, who will personally see Dr. Wily’s world-ruling schemes through to their ends as he fights for everlasting peace! … or, uh, was it fighting to save the world?
I REALLY wanted to make something far more extravagant for Mega Man’s anniversary this year, but given what I had made last year paired with how busy the first half of December’s been, I decided to opt for something a little simpler.
It isn’t quite a wallpaper (It can be if you crop it to your liking), though here is a sprite piece I whipped up of the crew from the original Mega Man on the NES (Guest starring Mega Man? from Mega Man Powered Up) in one big epic battle!
Of course, we all know who will prevail, don’t we? Here’s to another year of fighting for… well, take your pick!
Happy third anniversary to Mega Man 11, the blue bomber’s triumphant return since Mega Man 10, which released eight years prior! I’ve mentioned in a previous ask that Mega Man 11 is not only tied with its predecessor as my favorite Mega Man game, but it’s also a contender in a three-way tie for my favorite video game ever— and for good reason!
Mega Man 11 is noteworthy for a variety of reasons, but for me, I feel like its strongest point is staying true to the classic Mega Man formula while trying enough new things to form its own identity. More or less, it’s like a modernized NES Mega Man, with the addition of a game-changing mechanic, a solid team of voice actors, and perhaps the most expressive robot master line since Mega Man 8!
Speaking of the eleventh line of robot masters, back in March I began making posts that showcased the eight robot masters of Mega Man 11 sprited into an NES-esque style. The posts were certainly way more well-received than I thought they would be, and they were a whole lot of fun to make!
Anyone who’s been keeping track of said posts, however, knows that there’s still two robot masters left to be seen sprited, those robot masters being Blast Man and Impact Man. Really, the biggest reason I haven’t gotten around to making posts for them yet is because of both bosses’ backgrounds (Especially Blast Man’s) have a lot of detail in them, and it’s been really hard trying to get them to look right.
But with the anniversary of Mega Man 11 finally upon us, I didn’t want to keep any of my followers waiting for any longer for the last two bots of the lineup, so I figured what way to show them off…
… than showing the entire line all together!
While I still feel a little bad about not having sprited demakes for the boss rooms of Blast Man and Impact Man yet, the arrival of Mega Man 11’s release date made for the perfect opportunity to get around to showing their respective sprites since I have had both done for quite a while! With that, let’s start with the robot master who was originally going to be next in line to be showed off… Blast Man!
Blast Man is unique in a way that he bears a more simplistic design (In a similar vein to Fuse Man and Block Man) while still having just a touch of the modern design influences that the rest of the lineup has. However, he still has a lot of cool features that aren’t really explored a whole lot, such as his tri-button torso piece and his segmented boots, which I find to be really neat!
To make up for the lack of backgrounds for both Blast and Impact, I’ve made gifs showcasing the process I took in making their sprites as I’ve been doing for my more recent sprite posts! The biggest challenge in spriting Blast Man for me was accounting for the smaller details on his armor, as well as nailing his red headpiece, which I found was detrimental if I wanted his overall sprite to look good.
Another small detail I wanted to account for was Blast Man’s skin tone— there are a lot of Blast Man sprites out there that portray him with the same skin tone as most of the other vaguely humanoid robot masters, which I always found to be off-puttingly inaccurate. I made absolutely certain that this was something I would correct with my 8-Bit interpretation!
And with the ins-and-outs of Blast Man’s sprite design process done and out of the way, now we can move onto the last robot master of the pack, who I regard as being my favorite of the eight…
BEHOOOOOOOLD!!! IMPACT MAN!!!
The overall design of Impact Man is an interesting one; I remember when I first saw him that I thought his yellow/orange color scheme was just how he was shaded, but as it turns out, that’s actually a component of his design. I also didn’t really understand the spike on his head until we got around to seeing his full-body… though now knowing that he’s made up of the Impact Brothers, it’s a really cool design approach!
Perfectly striking a balance between the two was an astronomical feat, too. The biggest thing I wanted to make sure my sprite of Impact Man had were those classic ‘robot master eyes’, and from there I would sprite the rest of him as accurately sized as I could manage, all while still having him be smaller than Bounce Man.
Color choice was also very important, too! My original Impact Man sprite from 2018 used seven colors, and my version from 2019 had six colors like the present version above, though the color I swapped out for the latest version was a shade of grey so I wouldn’t have to color every dark section of him a solid black.
It feels so wonderful to finally get to show off all eight of my sprite demakes of the robot masters from Mega Man 11, and I hope that you’ve enjoyed them and the processes in making them that I detailed! I do intend on spriting out backgrounds for Blast Man and Impact Man when I get some more practice, but for now, here’s to another year of the Double Gear!
Around the end of November last year, I unveiled a full set of robot masters that I had designed for my very own faux Mega Man game, Mega Man Ultimate! At first, I was a little nervous in showing off my fanmade robot masters, but to my surprise, they were a big hit— I was not expecting the Synergon Legion bots to be so well-received!
In the first post I’ve linked, I mentioned that I’ve been designing robot master OCs since mid-2013, though ended up becoming super reclusive with them since a lot of them were subject to extreme ridicule, despite the fact that none of them were meant to be on the same level as official ones.
However, there was one particular bot in the very first lineup of robot masters that I designed which stood out the most, in that he actually looked like he belonged in a Mega Man game. Granted, his design was still particularly lacking, but I held him in a high regard.
And after designing a full set of robot masters that all look official in one way or another, I figured that it was high time that I revisit said favorite robot master OC of mine and give him a big redesign with my newfound robot master design smarts. Enter…
SDN-001:Stellar Man
Height: 5'11" Special Weapon: Crescent Boomerang Good Point: Confident Bad Point: Tends to overwork himself
Stellar Man is the rank of general of the Space Surveillance Network. As the head of the astral agency, he works tirelessly to ensure that the space station he mans is always within perfect working order. He specializes in the design of numerous spacecrafts and space stations, and has a major soft spot for all things astrology, spending most of his free time studying star patterns and galaxies.
When he’s doing battle with a threat from beyond the SSN’s parsec (Namely a certain Mega Man), Stellar Man utilizes his zero gravity mobility and his signature weapon: the Crescent Boomerang, a cross between the Metal Blade and the Rolling Cutter. With an iconic weapon, a well-regarded reputation and an absolutely out of this world look overall, he’s a real star, man!
(Design and sprite process below the cut!)
At last, Stellar Man makes his debut on my blog! I’ve actually had Stellar Man’s general design around since before I even had any of the Mega Man Ultimate robot masters up on tumblr, so this appearance was a long time coming!
When I set out to design him, one of the biggest things I wanted out of his design was to have him look a lot like the Stardroids from Mega Man V. The Stardroids have some of the coolest design elements in Classic Mega Man’s history; even now, there’s nothing quite like them, in my eyes, and that was something I wanted to incorporate into Stellar Man’s design.
I also knew that I wanted him to have a unique helmet shape, but after combing through all of the robot masters and Stardroids, I couldn’t think of something that’d stand out. It was when I looked to the character designs of the X Series, however, that I found a few design aspects that I liked, and suddenly his design was blasting off!
Here is the step-by-step process I made when drawing Stellar Man’s sprite! Really, the toughest thing about taking the design and shrinking it down to sprite form was the helmet, as the jagged edges and the glass dome proved to be a challenge in sizing perfectly, but I’m really happy with how he ended up looking!
Also, can we talk about the stage select portrait I drew for him?! I’m fairly certain that it’s one of my absolute best portraits I’ve sprited, right up there with Strafe Man and Glitch Man! It originally started as a test to see how far I could go in spriting a robot master portrait without any preliminary sketching… and before I knew it, I had a full icon made. Talk about motivation!
I am REALLY proud of the sprites on display here and the overall design of Stellar Man, and I couldn’t wait to show them to my followers! I really hope you’ve enjoyed everything this post has to offer, and you can certainly expect to see more fanmade robot masters of mine in the future!
Ifone of my first few art posts on this blog is any indication, I love making sprite art. While I didn’t necessarily consider myself much of a sprite artist back when I first joined tumblr in April of last year, the progress I’ve made in improving upon what I could do with pixels since is considerable.
Up until very recently, however, most if not all of my sprite pieces were done in an 8-Bit visual style, seeing as NES-Styled sprites are the easiest for me to make— there’s just something so fun about working with limitations and seeing how few colors one could use to make a visually stunning sprite.
With this, the thought of attempting something in a 16-Bit visual style didn’t cross my mind for quite some time. I was convinced for a bit (Pun absolutely intended) that my skill in sprite art was limited to a faux NES visual style, though with the unveiling of Override a little bit ago, it was pretty clear to me that my skillset exceeded eight mere bits.
And to see if it really did, I wanted to challenge myself with a task: sprite something that looks like it’d fit right in with Mega Man 7 on the SNES, cartoony yet solid visual flair and all. At first, I wasn’t sure what I could attempt making a 16-Bit sprite of…
But a fellow practitioner of shovelry was all I needed for inspiration!
With a franchise like Shovel Knight bearing an iconic faux NES visual style, it was only a matter of time before fans began to wonder what the titular spade-spinner would look like with a double the bits, and because of this, quite a few SNES-esque iterations of Shovel Knight and company are out there.
My goal, however, wasn’t to create the definitive 16-Bit styled Shovel Knight. As I mentioned, I wanted to really take into consideration how Mega Man 7’s sprites looked in particular (I.E. size, colors, shading styles, etc.) and reference Shovel Knight’s original sprite to ultimately concoct an upgraded, SNES-ified Shovel Knight.
Keeping these limitations in check, I managed to draw a sprite of the blue burrower using only eleven colors in contrast to Mega Man’s twelve— a whole color less! At one point in the sprite’s creation, I used twelve colors, though swapped out a dark grey for a dark blue. It isn’t very often in my sprite posts that I provide a step-by-step process on how I go about spriting, though for this post…
I’ve made a gif of the process using the various pieces I had on my workspace! You’ll notice a few things change as the sprite is shaped, the most obvious to me are his legs, which go from a solid placeholder color to fully shaded and then fixed a bit in the span of a few frames.
My end result really does prove that I can sprite whatever I can set my mind to, doesn’t it? I was NOT expecting the turnout to look so clean and faithful to the style I was going for, and it was really fun making it! Perhaps in the future, I could try my hand at a 16-Bit King Knight, or even SNES-ifying some of my Mega Man robot master OCs! Until that happens, though, I hope you’ve enjoyed my deep dive into the creation of what Shovel Knight may have looked like in the mid-90s!
In a previous post from the very start of this year, I went into detail regarding my love for the tenth installment of the Classic Mega Man series of games, as well as how spectacular a lot of that game’s robot master designs were (Even if most would disagree).
Even some of the more plain-looking robot masters of the bunch still appeal to me quite a bit, and if there’s one robot master from Mega Man 10 that wouldn’t look too out of place in an NES-Era Mega Man title, it’s probably Pump Man, perhaps one of the most underrated bots from Mega Man’s tenth outing.
In spite of being overshadowed by just about everybody else, he still has a lot going for him. In my opinion, Pump Man’s Water Shield is one of the best barrier weapons in the series, he has a really immersive stage theme (Reminds me a lot of Acid Man’s theme) and, while his stage takes place in a wastewater treatment plant, the stage itself has some really nice spritework.
Speaking of spritework…
I wanted to take a shot at spriting Pump Man myself, just like I did with Solar Man!
There’s a lot about Pump Man’s design that I really like— while fairly simplistic, his lanky, tubular arm shape is one of my favorite aspects of his (And even inspired the arms for Hydro Man) and he has a really cool buster (Even though we don’t see him using it in-game… though his true talent comes in using his pump handle)!
Some aspects of respriting Pump Man were actually a bit of a challenge. Take for example his large pump handle attached to his helmet— to me, that was one of the most important parts of the sprite to nail because it had to look perfect. His chest cannon and arms took a bit of experimentation in coloring though ultimately I love what I was able to come up with!
While I realize I still have two robot masters left in my ‘Mega Man 11 Resprited’ series, whenever I get done with that I’d like to resprite all of Mega Man 10’s robot masters since it’s one of if not my favorite game in the series; now that would be cool! For now, enjoy this resprite of Pump Man, as I loved giving a more underrepresented robot master some time in the limelight!
I actually drew this mid last year but, shhhh, I don’t really post here anymore so if you miss my content maybeeee check out my TwitterorPatreon (Theres some 18+ material, just drawn art with warnings)
