CvS to KOF - Ryu (UPDATES)

[The Railgunner]

I never really liked the sprites in SvC Chaos - they didn't have either a SNK or KOF feel, more of a rushed look. Since CvS sprites are basically KOF style sprites with Capcom shading (there's no real difference between the proportions of a KOF sprite and a CvS sprite), I decided that a more faithful KOF spriteset for a Capcom character would come from the CvS sprites (characters with reused Alpha sprites don't count), and here's my first attempt:



It's not done, of course, as the clothes still have CvS shading and have a weird palette, but I want to know if this is a good start. I'm using Takuma '98 as a reference on shading Ryu's gi correctly.

EDIT: Frame 2 of the animation:


Comparison with frame 1:

[DooM]

It IS a good start. Keep it up, I like it.

[The Railgunner]

I suppose I'll have to think of what to do with the clothing, since I've tried three times to get it right and...well, didn't get it right. Once I get the hang of all of this, though, I'll follow the same process to just about every CvS character that doesn't reuse Alpha sprites/is an SNK character. I guess I could use the finished spritesets for Super Street Fighter 2 Neo (a project of mine, there's a thread about it in the Projects section).

EDIT: Updated version:


Screwed with the pants a little, using Ryo '96 as a reference.

EDIT II: Even more updated version:


Redid the pants and shaded the rest of the gi, using Takuma '98 as a reference (which I will use from now on for shoto conversions). For now, his gi uses the same colors as Takuma's, will fix that when I'm done.

[Real Bastard]

I suppose I'll have to think of what to do with the clothing, since I've tried three times to get it right and...well, didn't get it right. Once I get the hang of all of this, though, I'll follow the same process to just about every CvS character that doesn't reuse Alpha sprites/is an SNK character. I guess I could use the finished spritesets for Super Street Fighter 2 Neo (a project of mine, there's a thread about it in the Projects section).

EDIT: Updated version:
http://www1.picturepush.com/photo/a/2095219/img/stuff/ryu105.png

Screwed with the pants a little, using Ryo '96 as a reference.

EDIT II: Even more updated version:
http://www5.picturepush.com/photo/a/2095388/img/stuff/ryu105.png

Redid the pants and shaded the rest of the gi, using Takuma '98 as a reference (which I will use from now on for shoto conversions). For now, his gi uses the same colors as Takuma's, will fix that when I'm done.

When I look at the base and the redo, it looks less SNK. Try to make it so where you can use Ryu's SVC Chaos sprite as base to see what you should do to his CvS version.

[Cybaster]

??? The point is to make a version different from SVC, so he's not going to use it as a base.

Shading is still too CVS on the legs, but you're getting somewhere with this.

[Thedge]

Porpotions are off, CvS sprites doesn't have the same porpotions then the KOF sprites, you need to make the hands and feets smaller.

Shading is off too, in CvS it came stright down, while in KOF it has a 45 degrees angle, and, try to keep the lines straight, you'll be amazed to see how that affect the final product.

The arms are great, but the face is not KOF at all.

[Real Bastard]

??? The point is to make a version different from SVC, so he's not going to use it as a base.

Shading is still too CVS on the legs, but you're getting somewhere with this.

That is true. I just don't do SNK style anymore. It's too complex for me to handle. I see alot of KOF XII styles and it seems easy, but for some, it's difficult due to the older SNK shading.

I don't know, it's just me.

[The Railgunner]

Porpotions are off, CvS sprites doesn't have the same porpotions then the KOF sprites, you need to make the hands and feets smaller.

Shading is off too, in CvS it came stright down, while in KOF it has a 45 degrees angle, and, try to keep the lines straight, you'll be amazed to see how that affect the final product.

The arms are great, but the face is not KOF at all.

I dunno about the proportions part (will grab a KOF vs CvS Kyo comparison image soon), but the face isn't something I have much experience with (I could always look at SvC Ryu's face, but it'd still look weird...). I'm lost at the part with the "straight down, 45 degree angle", since I dunno what you mean (the pants possibly?). I see what you mean with the hands and feet (like I said, I used Takuma '98 as a reference, and his feet seemed tiny by comparison). Though the hands DO seem more natural now (it might have to do with the gloves), I'll check into that.

Shading is still too CVS on the legs, but you're getting somewhere with this.

Well, I don;t really know what to do as far as the lower leg shading is concerned (Takuma had mostly similar shading, but had some light on his right leg - I reasoned that it wasn't necessary because Ryu's lower legs face the player), but I'll keep working at it. Glad I got some good feedback on this one.

[Dr. H]

Even though I'll agree with you that his SVC self looks a bit off, shading is still decent, you should use that as reference.

Also, yeah CVS characters are slightly "fat" compared to KOF, but since Ryu is supposed to be bigger than your average KOF boy, maybe there'll be no need for resize at all (Take Rugal as example, his cvs design is slimmer than his kof, however cvs sprites are bigger so the proportions were kept even if accidentally). You'll have to take care of hands and feet though, as Thedge mentioned.

Talking about past experiences here, already did a CVS into KOF conversion for Ryu and Rugal and it ended up ok.

Edit: Oh, two tips, for his head you might want to check Robert's face and Chris's hair.

[The Railgunner]

Hmmm, could I possibly see the Ryu and Rugal sprites in question? Never thought much of CvS Rugal though, since he didn't look all that much like his original incarnation (his hair was too short, his chin made up half of his face, and he looks fucking sunburned or something), so I attempted to port a 98 sprite (the one in my avatar, for the unobservant - I kinda fucked up on the bottom of his right pant leg though). And I guess I'll have a look at Robert, wouldn't think that Chris is all that good of a reference.

[Thedge]

About shading, porpotions and stuff.

Check Guile, Chun Li, and obviosuly Ryu, CvS and SvC sprite sets to take hints.

[Jesuszilla]

How useful! I have to login!

[Thedge]

He is registered there, so...

[Dr. H]

Hmmm, could I possibly see the Ryu and Rugal sprites in question? Never thought much of CvS Rugal though, since he didn't look all that much like his original incarnation (his hair was too short, his chin made up half of his face, and he looks fucking sunburned or something), so I attempted to port a 98 sprite (the one in my avatar, for the unobservant - I kinda fucked up on the bottom of his right pant leg though). And I guess I'll have a look at Robert, wouldn't think that Chris is all that good of a reference.

We're talking about ancient works here, don't have them anymore. Sorry.
Chris could be a good reference of light sources.

[walt]

KOF Style
KOF Style will be considered the style used by SNK artists to draw the sprites from KOF 1994 through KOF 2000. The style of the sprites for new characterts changed in KOF 2001, mostly making the newcomers skinnier than they should be, and I wasn't pleased by the results, so sprites from 2001 will not be considered for this analysis.

Shading is spelled Gradient

Shading in the KOF style is supposed to be done through the Gradient technique. This requires that each color has anywhere from 4 to 6 shades and each of them with a considerable amount of contrast between one another. One of the rules of Gradient is that 2 shades of a color that aren't directly neighbors to each other shouldn't touch at all, there must be at least a single pixel line in between one another. There are certain exceptions used mostly on newer sprites for really contrasting shadows, but usage should be minimum. If you were to pick your shades from the gradient map on the left, each color should be at least 3 areas away from each other, and the lightest shade should be very bright, since the highlights are exactly what gives that crisp look to KOF styled sprites. Of course it's always recommended that you use already existing palettes in order for you not to mess up shades lacking contrast - there's no shame in using what already exists!

Proportions

Unlike Capcom sprites, which are meant to be anime inspired and stylish, KOF styled sprites look to be realistic. At all points proportions and anatomy should look human in shapes and sizes. No huge feet (SFA/SF3 Ryu) No oversized Torsos (SFA Zangief, KOF2K3 Tizoc/Griffon Mask) No huge hands (Silber XI - GTFO)  No giants (SVC Chaos Hugo, no) Real KOF style keeps reasonable sizes, Goro Daimon and Chang Koehan are examples of this. Even if it looks very conservative, or boring, that's just how the style works.

Style specifics

Do KOF Sprites look too pixelated? Deal with it, that's the whole purpose of these In order to give it a more pixelated look without making the sprite look un-finished is the usage of lines (Gaby, this is what I meant) Start getting used to the Line tool if you already haven't, that way your lines will be flawless and they'll follow the correct tracing without being broken or have jagged edges. Try using diagonal lines to provide the pixely feeling your sprite will need. Try to keep the lines as symmetrical as you can, having each section be the same amount of pixels throughout the same line-trace (example) Don't force the lines though, sometimes it won't be possible, but it's best if you can add them.

Lines - Anti-aliasing and alpha blending

To draw lines in an area affected by light try to use the neighbor color as much as possible, don't skip shades, that way your sprite will look more polished. Also, antialiasing can be used (Clark) to hint an edge of a line without having the line traced completely in a single stroke, but it can be done through dotted lines - this is widely used in CVS style but with other transition colors with slightly different results. It's also permitted in this style to provide a pixelated look and give more contrast ot the sprite.

Lightsource
As explained by Thedge here, the lightsource for KOF styled sprites comes from the Top, slighty top right.

[The Railgunner]

Well, I suppose it wasn't really necessary to post the tutorial here (like you said, I have an account there), but since it can only benefit everybody, I guess it was a good move. I'll be back later with a newer version of the sprite.

EDIT: Newer version:

[Julius]

Getting there. Lighting isn't perfect yet, and his lower legs need more detail, they look too flat.

Also, his hair needs more darkness and contrast in its shades, and the headband could use a second shade.

[kakkoii superhero]

I like the shading
If you use the Kof lighting source then his neck on the left side shouldn't that bright, and maybe he needs stronger looking jaw, a lighter 1 or 2 pix on the corner of his jaw to hint the muscle there

[The Railgunner]

Well, I started work on the second frame a while back, but never finished it, so I came back to it a couple of days ago:



It's mostly finished, except for minor fixes here and there. For now, CvS light sources will be used (the weirdness on his artist's right leg was in the sprite, deal with it). When I am entirely done with the stance, I will post an animation (I used the Ryu sprites in P.o.t.S' Ryu for these edits, so the palettes mostly follow the same pattern as his, albeit with a few extra shades).

[Some Random Guy]

Cool. Thought at first it would be just SVC with very minor adjustments. Obviously not the case. Good move to revert to original look, though the fluffiness of pants still irk me some. Am short on suggestions, howver.