Capcom's departure from 2D always saddens me, they mastered sprite art and now it feels like a lost technology. There's a whole bunch of indie games keeping 2D alive and yet none seem to ever match the fluidity of Capcom's 2D, e.g. their fighting games, Breath of Fire, Zelda Minish Cap, etc.
I wish those techniques were passed down a lot more.
The first five Pokemon generations had fantastic pixel art. Each generation had its own distinct style and felt like a solid step up from the last.
The fifth generation (Pokemon Black/White) was unique in the sense that it was the first generation that used the same hardware (the Nintendo DS) as the previous generation, so they had a chance to get more experimental by using a pseudo-3D overworld and fully animated sprites during battle to help differentiate those games from Diamond/Pearl/Platinum.
After that, they attempted to make the transition to full 3D for the 3DS era, which is where the series really fell off a cliff. Each new generation feels less like a new world full of distinct handcrafted sprites and more like a poorly-shaded mess of recycled 3D assets that somehow struggles to maintain its intended frame rate.
I feel the same way. Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike was so good. The Mega Man X games for the original PlayStation were the peak for me, I'm reverse engineering them to figure out how they work.
SNK fighting games are incredible as well. Mark of the Wolves and Last Blade 2 have some incredible art and animation. Always makes me sad when I remember nobody really plays these things anymore.
khhu2bnn · · focus · HN ↗
I wish those techniques were passed down a lot more.
Pikamander2 · · focus · HN ↗
The first five Pokemon generations had fantastic pixel art. Each generation had its own distinct style and felt like a solid step up from the last.
The fifth generation (Pokemon Black/White) was unique in the sense that it was the first generation that used the same hardware (the Nintendo DS) as the previous generation, so they had a chance to get more experimental by using a pseudo-3D overworld and fully animated sprites during battle to help differentiate those games from Diamond/Pearl/Platinum.
After that, they attempted to make the transition to full 3D for the 3DS era, which is where the series really fell off a cliff. Each new generation feels less like a new world full of distinct handcrafted sprites and more like a poorly-shaded mess of recycled 3D assets that somehow struggles to maintain its intended frame rate.
Agentlien · · focus · HN ↗
When I first heard people complain I shrugged it off because people always complain. But having seen it myself...
So many easy to fix basic mistakes. Such poor craftsmanship. I would have never shipped something looking like that.
matheusmoreira · · focus · HN ↗
SNK fighting games are incredible as well. Mark of the Wolves and Last Blade 2 have some incredible art and animation. Always makes me sad when I remember nobody really plays these things anymore.