DOUBLE HAPPY - Creature Design Challenge (Rules & WIP)

[VertexBee]

Wow, so cool ! I'm so happy and it is a great honor for me. Thank you all guys, the double happy team, game-artist admins and moderators, and huge huge thanks for the jury ! Can't wait for the critiques to come. Congrats to all participants and winners ! The challenge was so fun. Double Happy, keep organizing such things, you awe awesome guys

[ReganS]

Congrats all, and thanks for putting on a fun contest. I appreciate all the work you and your group put in to this kind of stuff.

[kanga]

Yeah congrats to the winners and runners up. Actually congrats to everyone who posted work for this comp and to people who supported by commenting. All of you made beautiful concepts and it was a real pleasure to see.

Cheerio

[DoubleHappy]

And a massive congrats to the Game Artist admins and moderators. You built an awesome community that everyone should be proud of. The Double Happy team has been honored to be guests for a while...thanks to the entire community for making us welcome.

[Artswolf]

Whens the deadline?

[barkal]

deadline was 27th of may

[DoubleHappy]

Hi everyone. We are nearly done with the critiques for the top five winners of this competition, but while those guys wait for a little while longer, we would like to again thank all entrants to the competition.
Below is a personal thankyou to all of you (hopefully...let us know if we have missed anyone). We feel strongly that it is forums like this and competitions on them that really allow you guys to work to a brief, while still being able to bring your own creativity to the piece. This is all great experience, especially when you get feedback along the way from your peers and artists with some experience under their belts.
So...the winners will have to wait for a little longer, but for all of you who just missed out on the top five we offer our thanks...in no particular order

Torch
Nice silhouettes and look and feel collection. Let us know if you end up taking it any further, it was an interesting start

Tildidoum
Really different structure on the Shyala...always good to see people pushing the boundaries of humanoid structure, and the insectoid look was definitely headed in an interesting direction. Let us know if you push on with this

Piflik
Some interesting body shapes there. We would have liked to see where you went from there

Arsenal
An awesome character. We loved the organic feel of the armour and the brutish posture to the anatomy. The scarab on his belt is a great touch. This was definitely in our top ten! Thanks for your effort.

JMC3D
An interesting start JMC3D, another one that we would have liked to have seen pushed further. A nice little ZBrush tute too

Mullis
Thanks for your effort, this was a really good ensemble cast and definitely felt like they inhabited the same universe. There was some interesting texture work going on throughout the pieces and we felt that all were going in a good direction, but could be improved by making some of the anatomy more obvious and defined. Thanks again

Iconoshaw
We loved the facial structure on this guy. The eyes on the side of the head belie his ancestral origins as prey rather than predator. His use of technology to enhance his chances of catching his prey is an interesting take. Those hypodermic/taser fingers made us shudder. This Oolark was high on our list, it would have been great to see where you took the textures Thanks for your entry

Corkbottle88
Your Oolark concept was our favorite of your work, there is definitely some form of nasty amphibian in his genes. The sunken small eyes are an interesting take on how evolution might punish the Oolark for their life lived in the light...Oolark senses atrophy while their physique bulks up. Thanks for all of your work, it is a good set of ideas

PEZ2054
This was a great start PEZ2054. Your Oolark really looked like a creature that started out as a swamp dweller, before evolving into something more refined. His small eyes show a life lived in the light, and we liked the crest. If anything feels out of place it would be the legs...they felt a little too refined considering the feel of the upper body. Let us know if you take it further

Graze
This character really made us laugh, he is so goofy looking...and we mean that in a good way. Looking closely though, it is obvious that you have thought through the info from the brief. We loved the camouflage idea and the eyes on the top of the head, we can really see this Shyala dropping prone to the ground and almost totally disappearing. Thanks for the entry, update us if you take this further

Brashen
This was a really strong start and there are some really good ideas in those few sketches...let us know if you take it any further

Pangketepang
An awesome character, with great workflow along the way. This just felt a bit friendly to us, kinda like a friendly Koala that zaps you when you come in for a hug As a piece of character design and art, it is a beautifully executed piece. Thanks for your entry Pangketepang, it was definitely in our top ten favorites

M.A.C.
We loved the tribal feel of the character and it would have been interesting to see where you might have gone while abstracting this guy away from being so human. The colour palette was really interesting and would help to lift the character out of the dark and cool colours of Pharos.

Grimm_Ninja
It was great to see you pushing in a few different directions, but probably the most successful for us was your quite simple Oolark. He really looks like a brute, and we liked the contrast between the upper and lower body. He really looks content with his giant spanner...equally good for fixing and smashing stuff! Thanks for your entries

Chrissolino
Your Shyala v2 was your best piece. We liked how delicate and vulnerable the poor little guy is...it looks like if an Oolark sneezed next to him, he would drop dead instantly. The big eyes and ears fit the brief perfectly. Thanks for the entries

D.Y
These were beautiful characters, and we absolutely loved the style. It almost felt like these characters were the more ancient, happier Shyala before Oolark oppression forced them to hide in the swamp. Your style and the characters definitely brought a smile to our face though. Thanks for entering, and perhaps giving us a glimpse of the once proud Shyala

Jeremy Deighan
A very delicate and elfin looking character. Hopefully you will get time to return to this, it was an interesting start

Mohzart
We absolutely loved this character...it was definitely high on our list and did a great job of answering the brief. The inclusion of the very practical character lighting is awesome...he is one fancy guy, with a ego as bright as his clothes As with a lot of entries, you did a great job of giving this guy the feel of a swamp dweller. Thanks for your entry

Hell5ing
There are some great aspects of this design that we liked. The big eyes were definitely something that continually cropped up in our own designs for the Shyala and the horns/antennae are another thing that we explored in our own concepts as an attempt to show some evolution of sensory apparatus. The skin texture is really interesting, almost looks like it could work as a form of camouflage.

JacobJ
We really loved how atmospheric your piece was...it really had a great narrative feel to it. The lighting was particularly interesting, we were already seeing some of the bioluminescent plants and fungi as a strong part of the island of Pharos. Thanks for your excellent piece Jacob, you were definitely in our top ten entries.

Mighty Shrew
An good start Mighty Shrew. It would have been interesting to see where you were going to take this from where you got to. The large eyes definitely bring to mind a character who needs to see in low light. Let us know if you continue on at all

mind-play
Nice start with this guy, although there are so many shapes in there, it does make it a little difficult to see how some of the details work. The Surge Rod is a nasty piece of work...I wouldn't want to be on the other end of that. Thanks for your entry

jlmayen
We loved seeing this piece building up over the life of the contest, and it was great to see people offering up small crits along the way. Art forums are all about getting critique for your WIPS and it was great to see this culture still happening even though this was a contest. Another piece that was highly praised within our team. Thanks for your entry jlmayen.

skue352
We liked plenty of things about your design, including the steampunky backpack. It did feel a little like a character that was originally designed as a steed, and felt like it was a little unbalanced in the bipedal configuration. Love the mechanical lower jaw Thanks for your entry

plejground
This guy made us laugh out loud...his expression and stance just cries out "I'm an arrogant Oolark...what's your problem." A really simple design with masses of character and great humour.
Thanks for your entry...and thanks for the laughs

samuraipeter
This was a nice take on a more 'human' feeling Shyala. He has a nice tribal feel emphasized by his simple and practical accessories. If anything, it felt a bit too human to us, and it would be interesting to really push the arm tentacle idea a bit further...it is always a hard balance though as you could just end up with a mutant character. Thanks for your entry samuraipeter

tswalk
We felt like you really showed a good feel for the atmosphere of Pharos and your character designs showed some thought of how the two character type could have come from the same ancestor while still evolving in different directions. Thanks for your work tswalk

Aztan
Thanks for the entry. These guys look like they could handle themselves in a fight It would be interesting to see an Oolark design that could take them

Gokcen
We liked how spindly and vulnerable these guys are, there definitely seems to be a bit of Kangaroo DNA in them. You have managed to capture a good 'tribal' feel with the small amount of clothing they have. Thanks for your entry

bensta690
Keep going, interesting start that deserves some more time

renjoss
Great character renjoss...but is neither a Oolark or a Shyala. Nice work, just not quite right for the competition

MaxMan
Thanks for the entry Maxman. The psychedelic colours are an interesting thought, but they do make it a little hard to see some of the details of the structure of the character. The untextured character was a bit easier to understand. Thanks again

skrobart
A couple of very strange entries skrobart. The farting one was a beautiful piece engineering...reclaimed energy recycling...we think O__O

carvuliero
Thanks for the entry carvuliero. If that's how frightening your Shyala looks, we would have loved to see how evil and nasty an Oolark would have been. The rabbit on the end of his staff made us laugh...then cry...then laugh again

Lawrenzo
Thanks for the group of entries Lawrenzo. Your characters all had great structure, but sometimes it ended up being hidden by the atmospherics in your final images. We thought your strongest piece was your third entry, a Shyala. Even though it was a simple sketchy style, it still gave us the idea behind your character while not letting the background detract from what we are seeing

Villie
We absolutely loved these two little guys. Really strong but simple design with masses of character The Oolark made us laugh out loud...for a really long time. These were high on our list, and we would still love to see the coloured version of the Oolark if you ever get around to it

Caddaviddi
A streamlined and evil looking Oolark. Not a brute, but more of an assassin. We liked the small amount of technology retrofit onto an otherwise quite primal looking character. Thanks for the entry

cenobitetony
We loved these designs and they were another one that was high on our list. The head/mask structure is absolute genius and really fits with the tribal nature of the Shyala. The accessories on the character really help to lock in what this character is all about, and lend an air of mysticism that we really loved. Thanks for your entry

sebpla7
This is another entry that gave us a really good laugh. We loved his grandpa sweater under his illfitting jacket, and his extreme focus goggles are awesome. This didn't quite fit the brief for us, but is a great character in its own right. Thanks for the entry, and the laughs

vulp
An interesting start that deserves some more time spent on it. Has an almost Roman feel to it , which is an interesting take on the oppressing Oolarks. Thanks for the entry

tomafur
Such an arrogant looking character...definitely an Oolark that knows what he wants...POWER. Feels a bit Egyptian in design, which conflicts a little with the swampy nature of Pharos, but he is a great character anyway. Thanks for the entry

lisa
There were a lot of really nasty looking Oolarks submitted that seemed made to tear a quivering Shyala limb from limb. With his helmet down over his eyes and clompy boots, this guy looked like he would have to be right on top of a sleeping Shyala to have any chance of catching it Thanks for the entry

alex allen
A nice start Alex. We really liked the camouflage idea and how at home he seemed in the swampy environment. Let us know if you do get some more time to work on it, or manage to get to a Oolark

RavenX
Thanks for your entry RavenX. It was really great to see this guy build up over time through your WIP posts. He is a nice mix of humour and reality that really comes across in the 3D version. He feels threatening and cheeky at the same time Thanks for your work, and for posting your process along the way.

geometry
An interesting start geometry. Let us know if you push these designs any further

toxsam
Thanks for your entry toxsam...he is definitely a Shyala that looks like he can handle himself...it would need to be a pretty nasty Oolark that would take him down. We liked his adhoc weapon and shield, definitely adds to the tribal nature of the character.

Serverus
Points for including Pink and Blue in the image, it gave us a good laugh We liked the massive eyes on the Shyala, especially with the reflections in them Thanks for the entry Serverus

Spidermarx
Thanks for your entry Spidermarx, the tribal feel comes across well. The eyes are great...almost hypnotic, it is really hard to not look at them His adhoc staff is also a great touch. Great design, thanks again for sharing

[kanga]

In hind sight a last thanks to DoubleHappy.

These crits are surely very much appreciated by all and something I have not seen before in a competition. Dont be strangers as we look forward to seeing you again!

Cheerio
and boo to the infinite darkness

[barkal]

I finally got my critiques too... But im wondering why double happy guys use on their website and for their critiques a older version of my contribution. i put lil more detail here and there on my final work and submitted it on time ......

[DoubleHappy]

Hey Barkal... shhhhhhhhhhh We are releasing the critiques today and will be plugging them on here as well as our site. You got a sneak preview lol. We'll switch the image over as well. Cheers for the heads up.

Watch this space everyone, critiques will be announced today