I don’t often follow the trend of “New Year’s Resolutions”, because often they wind up failing within the first couple weeks and then it’s back to life how it always was. However, this is partly because of the goals themselves. This is a little different and it is based on experiences and lessons learned in the past year. Should I make big and bold promises? No. While that might help motivate some, it becomes a dreadful deadline to others. The point is not to build more stress upon what I currently have. So this is more a declaration of what I would desire, something to work towards and giving myself a year to get even just the beginning of it completed.
So what is it I’m going on about? Well, a little bit of history: it is, and has always been, my goal to bring my characters I have had milling about in my head has been my overarching goal since the beginning. One of them was Pewter Koopa, who was the very first one I wanted to make into 3D but couldn’t get his model right. However, I can say I have successfully done so! So, one of my earliest Blender goals complete in 2023! I’m even currently making an animation with him in it! (Not the animation walk cycle tests. I mean a full on animation with backgrounds and stuff) However, the thing about that model is that it’s based on Nintendo 64 style graphics. Specifically Super Mario 64. This is both stylistic a choice, as Pewter as a character came from when I was 9 years old and was playing SM64, so doing him in that style is like a poetic thing. But this isn’t going to cut it for most other models. Well… not COMPLETELY anyway. And here’s what I mean about that:
Working on Pewter and a couple of other models to accompany him, I’ve begun to get more into texture making in another program, Aseprite. Aseprite is normally used to make game sprites like characters, tile sets and whathaveyou. But it has more tools for artistic work than I first realized, including a “blur” tool that helps to make things look so much more high-res in smaller scope. So I used this to help with Pewter’s textures, along with accessories for said other models. This is quite the advancement, especially when it comes to character textures. This will allow me to make far more complex characters, having more highly textures graphics, while having very basic, low-poly models. You can get away with VERY low-poly models if they’re pretty with the graphics, I’ve found. So this is going to spur on the next phase of my model making!
On top of all of this, my job has been hitting me really hard both physically and mentally. While I am working on an animation, I don’t know how many of those I’ll be able to work on in general due to the questionable mental fortitude I currently have. And sadly, it’s not looking like it’ll get better any time soon. I’ve found working on modeling is very therapeutic for me, so that is what I will be doing when possible. I have a goal, I have what I want to practice, and then once my prototype is made, I will do my best to texture them.
Here’s to 2024, here’s to praying my mind will keep from the despair of life’s monotony, here’s to hoping that my goals will be realized. I will be sharing my progress in these endeavors with you all. Thank you.
Decided todo sculpting as we had a friend around and I introduced there son who was 9 to Blender. While showing him what we can do in Blender I let him loose in Sculpt Mode. He was picking it up really well soooo…I figured, I need to actually get better at Sculpting and finish all the sculpting Tutorials I have…after playing around yesterday it was fun! So…sculpting it is!