StoryNexus Art and Layout

StoryNexus
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[color=#0033ff]Hello folks, Paul here.[/color]
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[color=#0033ff]This is a thread is for [/color]
[color=#0033ff]1. icon requests [/color]
[color=#0033ff]2. art-related feature requests[/color]
[color=#0033ff]3. questions about the art and layout, such as it is right now.[/color]
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[color=#0033ff]As StoryNexus evolves, we hope to add a number of ways for you to customise the look of your game, from genre card deck styles to colour and background pickers, to eventually uploading your own images. However, for now, we want to concentrate on building a serviceable icon library for all our users. The silhouetted style of SN icons is designed to be flexible across multiple worlds and against multiple styles. Key points to bear in mind for icon requests are: [/color]

[color=#0033ff]-it should be renderable in a silhouette. [/color]
[color=#0033ff]-It should be clearly recognisable as an outline. Remember, it will have to be readable at both card size (100130) and quality size (4052) [/color]
[color=#0033ff]-It should have symbolic value, the wider the better. I’d encourage you all to think as symbolically as possible in your art choices, even when we get to the “add your own” stage. Not only is this conceptual approach cheaper, it adds a resonance that can’t be always achieved with more specific illustrations of the action. [/color]
[color=#0033ff]-It should not already be covered by the existing library[/color]
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[color=#0033ff]I’m the only one doing art, so it’s a bit of a bottleneck. Be patient with me! In some cases I may add placeholder icons (ie text on a plain background) and go back to them depending on how much they get used. [/color]
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[color=rgb(0, 51, 255)]cheers[/color]
[color=rgb(0, 51, 255)]Paul [/color]
edited by MisterArendt on 7/30/2012

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[color=#009900]Some existing icon requests we noticed on the SN support thread:[/color]
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magnifying glass
scroll
cogs
‘metal ship door’ (like a hatch in a bulkhead?)
demonic teeth
view of stars
robed figure
question mark
toy icon - ‘maybe a tilted top’
[/color]
[color=#6633ff]icicle or snowflake (something for winter, anyway), [/color]
[color=#6633ff]raygun (I love the gun icon that exists, but it looks slightly odd for an sf setting), [/color]
[color=#6633ff]spaceship or rocket,[/color]
[color=#6633ff]a glass or cut with a crack in it,[/color]
[color=#6633ff] a feather.[/color]
edited by Emily St Aubert on 8/2/2012

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Okay, time to make some more work for poor old Paul. ;) Here are my suggestions/requests.

  • A running person, side view moving left to right[/li][li]A spirit/ghost with vaguely human appearance[/li][li]Desert sands[/li][li]Castle/fort, external view (with sun rising above it?)[/li][li]A gravestone; not a cross btw[/li][li]A winding path or road, approaching a horizon?

I think that’s it for now.

EDIT: While it’s in my head, I do have a particular request that might be applicable to others:

  • An arrowhead

edited by lily on 7/30/2012

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Paul,

Thanks for being open to suggestions!

Generally my feedback is that the existing icons are high-quality but lack breadth. That is: you’d have an easy time writing a 1920s pulp serial or a 17th century swashbuckling adventure – as long as you don’t set them anywhere woodsy or desertish and as long as you don’t want to include any female faces.

My specific requests:

  • A few more varied, generic location icons – thinking here of Busy City Street, Desert Dunes, Trees That Aren’t Eerie or Creepsome, etc.[/li][li]More faces in silhouette – Woman With Exotic Hat, Clean-Shaven Man, Swarthy Sailor, Man in Tuxedo, Boy Child, Girl Child, etc.[/li][li]A few more simple symbolic pieces – a Caduceus, a group of people laughing, flowers

Appreciate the attention. Have a good one!

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Thanks so much Paul! Really appreciate it.

I’d love a few more along two themes, especially if they’re usable by others.

  • General Habitats: desert, ocean, water (without fish), hills, grass
  • Elements: you’ve got fire and I already mentioned water, but ice, air, earth, things like that.

Cheers!

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Amendment: I would very much like a train, please.

(I’m imagining my hands held out Oliver Twistishly here.)

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I am planning on investing on my own art but the more I can put the general library to use, the better!

-A castle (simple silhouette of two towers and crenellations between would be fine)
-A tower
-A flower that isn’t a rose
-An old-fashioned door
-An open hand
-A single star (white on black)
-Other white-on-black versions of icons

I’ll have more. :-)

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[color=00ffff]Good suggestions folks; already a few patterns starting to emerge. Keep them coming![/color]
edited by MisterArendt on 7/31/2012

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A moon
A comet
A spaceship
A testtube
generic tech

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Hi Paul.

I’ll try to keep these as generic/symbolic as possible. Sorry that I’ve listed so many - I appreciate you have lots on your plate with this already.

  • various head outlines (e.g. young, middle-aged, old man and woman)
  • a house and/or cabin
  • a comet/meteor
  • a hammer (a heavy smithing hammer would probably be quite generic)
  • an envelope
  • a book
  • a piece of paper with writing on it
  • a question mark
  • something to represent death/danger (skull and crossbones?)
  • stars/constellations
  • a tent (one that could represent both modern tents and traditional yurts/teepees/etc.)
  • something to represent chemistry (beakers/retort/etc.)
  • something to represent magic/alchemy
  • something to represent medicine, potentially something to represent disease/epidemic
  • a witch
  • a giant/troll/etc.
  • fireworks (could be literal or represent success/etc.)
  • a bright sun
  • a moon

Thanks!

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Since Lion and I are making a zombie game I have a few suggestions if there not already in there.

A skyscraper
A log cabin
A tombstone
A skull
A Blank emotionless face
A can of food
A Palm tree
A Military vehicle of sorts.
A Boat
A Wolf
A Tiger
A Tent
A Fort

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A candy (wrapped like >o<, perhaps?)
A leaf (Life symbolism?)

A drop of Water / Tear / etc (to stand in for generic liquid from blood to soy sauce?)

Rolls of Fabric (like Mr Veils’ icon)

Close up of face with fangs, no eyes (for all these people making horrors or zombie games)

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Not a request, but an idea. Rather than uploading user-created images onto your server, what about allowing them to link to image-hosting sites such as Imageshack or Photobucket? Many sites offer free as well as premium hosting, which would reduce the amount of disk space FB would have to provide. Bandwidth, of course, would be the priority (re: problem) of the game creator.
edited by RageBox Alice on 8/6/2012

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Suggestion: There should be a link to the Storychoices wiki in the top bar, perhaps after Icons.

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[quote=RageBox Alice]Not a request, but an idea. Rather than uploading user-created images onto your server, what about allowing them to link to image-hosting sites such as Imageshack or Photobucket? Many sites offer free as well as premium hosting, which would reduce the amount of disk space FB would have to provide. Bandwidth, of course, would be the priority (re: problem) of the game creator.
edited by RageBox Alice on 8/6/2012[/quote]

[color=#009900]We thought about externally hosting images, but it means rogue users can (for example)[/color]
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[color=#009900]- hotlink to images they don’t have permission to use[/color]
[color=#009900]- link to an image of a kitten and then quietly switch it to something 4Chan and terrifying[/color]
[color=#009900]- link to images on unreliable services[/color]
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[color=#009900]If we handle uploads, we have some sort of ability to moderate. We can also encourage / enforce / assist cropping to standard image sizes. The moderation issue is a biggie, and one of the reasons this feature is coming a bit later.[/color]

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[color=#009900]This is a good idea and absurdly simple to implement. We’ll do it.[/color]

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[quote=Alexis Kennedy][color=#009900]We thought about externally hosting images, but it means rogue users can (for example)[/color]
[color=#009900]
[/color]
[color=#009900]- hotlink to images they don’t have permission to use[/color]
[color=#009900]- link to an image of a kitten and then quietly switch it to something 4Chan and terrifying[/color]
[color=#009900]- link to images on unreliable services[/color]
[color=#009900]
[/color]
[color=#009900]If we handle uploads, we have some sort of ability to moderate. We can also encourage / enforce / assist cropping to standard image sizes. The moderation issue is a biggie, and one of the reasons this feature is coming a bit later.[/color][/quote]

Ah, this is true. I didn’t even consider the possibility of abuse. Sad that it’d probably be only a few outlying users who’d make you do so much preventative work, but an ounce of prevention…

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(First to qualify: I don’t have access to the current image library so I don’t know if this is a relevant suggestion or already covered.)

One thing I would love is access to racially diverse / generic figure options. At least in EV/NC, elements like face shape, hair texture & attire styles tended to have relatively limited interpretations, so it would be cool to be able to pick up and set in a fantasy Thailand or something.

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[color=00ffff]Hi everyone. I’ve added a bunch of placeholder icons to the library:[/color]
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[color=00ffff]castle
hand
stars
moon
comet
test tube
hammer
book
Question
jolly roger
tent
sun
caduceus
single cell
firework
skyscraper
cabin
tombstone
palm tree [/color]
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[color=00ffff]I’ll replace these with art as I get to them, but the filenames won’t change, so you can add them to your storylets in advance. They should work with qualities too. [/color]
edited by MisterArendt on 8/9/2012

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As always, thanks a bunch Paul. :)