Updated Dog Art Style + Visual Effect Tests + More!
A good Friday to everyone!
Jérémie here with an insider look on something we did during a whole week last June - a “Hack Week”! As usual, this post is for Patrons only, so do not share it, thanks!
What’s a Hack Week?
A bit like a game jam - where people work intensely during a short period of time to create a game - our Hack Week was an occasion for all of us on the team to pick a feature, an idea to develop or something we just really wanted to work on and dedicate a whole week doing so. Usually we plan our weeks based on the overall planning of the project, working on top priority features, but this really was a time to work with a bit more freedom, autonomously for the week, on ideas that inspired us but might not have been priorities at that point.
We had a few constraints: the idea had to be something needed for the game, it had to be doable in about a week without requiring more work afterwards, and we had to be prepared for our work to not be used if it wasn’t up to snuff (as is sometimes the case in game development!). Everyone submitted a few ideas and got to work, and I wanted to share some of these Hack Week projects with you today!
Alice: 2D Animations
As you know, Paralives’ art style is a bit paint-y and has a hand-drawn effect to it. To fit with that, we are considering using hand-drawn 2D animations throughout the game for various visual effects and interface elements.
During Hack Week, Alice wanted to explore and test out ideas related to that. What follows is some of the work she did over the week!
The arrow could be used to indicate specific interface or game elements during tutorials. The 3 dots could indicate that something is being loaded or that the game is being saved. The light bulb could be displayed next to tips and tutorial prompts.
This effect could be used for tutorials or information popups.
This one could be nice to show the players that an option can be activated.
When an object has been cleaned by a character or when a new piece of furniture has been purchased, sparkles could appear.
Animated arrows could be used as part of tutorials to show the players that some furniture can be resized or that the character’s height can be changed, for instance.
Various effects that could be used to indicate the current status, mood or emotion of a character.
We can’t wait to integrate some of these animations into the game to see if it fits with the rest of the visuals but it’s looking really promising so far!
I know a lot of people liked the below effect when we showcased the censor visuals that we have tested and if we choose to go that way, Alice’s animations would fit pretty well with that style!
Léa: Heckin Good Pupper
Léa sure loves dogs, no one will be able to deny that. During Hack Week, she wanted to create a new version of Paralives’ iconic bernese mountain dog in our updated art style.
At the very beginning of the development, Alex quickly made the following dog which was very simple with flat colors and no texture details.
Old version of our dog.
Below is Léa’s new version that she created during Hack Week. As you can see, the 3D model is a lot more detailed and there is now a texture and an outline effect, in the style of our human Parafolks.
New version.
More angles. Don’t you want to hug this dog?!
Left: The old version. Right: The new version.
We hope you like this new prototype of what dogs could look like in Paralives. For now, the work on pets is on hold so that we can focus on everything related to humans of various life stages, until the early access release of the game. Then, during early access, we will resume the work on dogs, cats and horses and I’m sure it will be a lot of fun so I’m looking forward to it!
Anna and Jérémie: Photo Mode
Anna and myself decided to work on the Photo Mode that we presented in a previous Patreon post. With a game like Paralives, we strongly felt like having a Photo Mode would be an helpful way for us developers to share screenshots from the game while working on it and also eventually for players to share their creations, so we split up work! There were a lot of things to do, creating the user interface, functionality, filters and other neat camera tricks you would expect from such a mode. The result was quite satisfactory and we can’t wait to see what people do with it!
I could spend so much time creating funny pictures in Photo Mode, but I got a game to make!
And Everybody Else...?
As you can see, this only covers four people on the team, but what about everybody else? Some people worked on things that have to remain secret for now, while others did things at the brainstorming level that won’t turn into real game features for a while. Keep your eyes peeled in the future, we might reveal a new feature or talk about something surprising that originated from this very Hack Week! It was a cool experience and I really enjoyed doing it, personally. It might become a yearly event for us :)
And with that, have a great weekend!
Jérémie
Comments (85)
Wowzza, you all are kick'n it! Love the dog improvement, but as other's have said, that tongue is too shiny imho. Maybe you could tone down the censor a bit, it is way too white, maybe adding in just a bit of oppacity but still not able to see clear. Otherwise you all are amazing.
very cool!
Why are the lovely hand-drawn animations in the corner and not in the middle of the screen?😯
Idea: how about having two different types of sparkles effects; one to indicate something being new and clean, and the other for something just been cleaned? Now Sebastian is REALLY showing off his stuff. I hope he doesn't end up breaking those ceiling lights, though, and hurting himself. <_<
I’m hoping to be able to make any type of dog in this! I love weenie dogs (Dachshunds) and I would love to be able to recreate that type of long body with short legs!
That's a very nice improvement with the dog. It was already cute, but now! Wow!
What about bunnies I mean like cats or dogs because I have a free roam pet bunny that uses the litter and eats hay and greens and drinks water in a dish but I was wondering if it would be doable in game because I can never find games that have this feature and my bunny is like my baby so would be really cool to have him in-game too
yes I would love bunnies they a great pets like cats or dogs only difference is they eat vegetable stuff, not meat
I love the idea of the 2D animations, n would like them in my game especially the '...' (Not just in loading pages or tutorials, I'd like pretty scenic loading pages)cute little yarn balls rollin', love the aesthetic !, but when something is "loading" in live mode, like when the character is taking a moment to start an action, or coffee is 'loading' or something. I'd also like the idea ! thing when that happens, a Para has an lightbulb moment. But i think they are a little too animated, n hyper/but much(forgot the word i felt) for my liking n in game, like i can literally see Mikey mouse in that lightbulb, tho I'm guessing they'd probably be slowed down than this cuz it's the showy for it, I'd wanna see it a bit more toned down - like smaller, less violent impacts, tiny sparkles, less lines on the bulb n less mikey mousey inside, the i think a little simpler, the reactions cut in half. I really like these things n think they can look so cute, but they look to animated for me to fit in with my serene, fuzzy game, is like them but a little less 'animated' of possible lol, n if u know what i mean !
Live the dog ! I think the brown n some shades on it are a little unrealistic, n too bright tbh n would like less fur Tufts, cuz the paralives dogs seems fluffy but not Tufts and a little smooth tbh, and rounded n a little more longer face like that hairless black head dog breed with hair, but so excited to see it in 3D, it's a little strange to me given the textures contrast with the soft sunlit aesthetics I've gotten used to n loved in Paralives pictures, but it's adorable
So in love with the development of this game !!!!
Love everything mentioned here! You guys are doing an amazing work!!
Damn I love what you guys did with the dog, looks filled with life. So cute and fluffy! I can't wait to see other animals in the future. I just love how that doggo looks!!!
I Think the 2d animations looks really good!
Wow you all did an amazing job from what you have shared with us, and I am sure you all had great fun doing it! I myself cannot wait to see the rest <3 keep us posted for early access please ;)
such dog much doggo
C'est superbe! frais coloré j'adore j'aimerai si possible qu'il y ait beaucoup de poses photos pour profiter de ces couleurs. J'ai hâte de voir une session du jeu avec ce bon chien.
I love how the doggo‘s eyes look so alive😍
Good job on Dogo, honestly. He looks even cuter and his realism makes me want to hug him. You brought something emotional with his evolution, now I can't wait to feel this kind of emotions with my future characters and about their house and life. 🥰
the 2d animations are absolutely adorable, i love that style so much. i'm also very excited to play around in photo mode! the dog before/after really makes me think of a "paint from reference" option in game; like the old version is a parafolk's creative portrait of doggo :D
cute!
I love the 2D animations! I actually like the old dog better, but that’s just me, I guess. 🤷♀️
very cool ! this seems like a great way to stay motivated on the project while also taking a bit of a break. some excellent results!!! :D
These all are incredible. You're all doing amazing! 👍🏽
WOW I love those 2d animations, I feel like they'll bring so much flavor and character to the game!!
First I want to point out that Léa absolutely killed it with her dog rework. This dog kinda felt iconic to me (it probably could stand to become the game's mascot... and I say this as a cat person !) so it's really nice to see it again. And looking good ! It's another example of how far the style of the game has come. But most of all I'm impressed with Alice's 2D animations, because I really like the idea of expanding the "drawn" effect of some of the UI. It really leans into the cozy aspect of the game so far, and as we see here, them being animated makes for something both discrete (as opposed to colorful UIs for instance), easy of use (the animation is helpful in itself) and joyful (because it sets a tone). It's also terribly compatible with color blindness ! The mood/emotions ones are also pretty cool because they could pop once or twice (here they are on a loop, of course), which makes them inobstrusive. I hope we see as many of those in the final UI. And yes, admittedly, I'm on Team White Scribble for the censor effect too. Enjoy your weekend, everyone, you've earned it twice as much as usual !
The 2d animations are absolutely perfect. I think they compliment the art style of the game brilliantly. I couldn't be more obsessed with the evolution of the sweetest lil Paralives mascot <3 It's very cool to see how far the art style has evolved.
The hack week sounds awesome, I hope you can keep on doing those! Maybe even 2 or 3 times a year? I'm sure people would be excited if you announced them as something to keep an eye on! 🤩🤩🤩
AAAAAAAAAAH!!! DOGGO LOOKS SOOOOO CUUUUUUUTE!!!! 😍😍😍😍😍😍 I hope pets really go in this direction in the future, because I seriously love it!!! ❤❤❤
I BEG of you to put up the 2 pictures of old version Doggo as an Easter Egg in the game somewhere!!!! Oh! Like in a cave or cove by the beach, you can have Lore of earlier settlers doing "cave paintings" on the walls, using Old Doggo and other early drafts of people/pets/objects as the "paintings". And in one of the objects, like a photo colleague or corkboard with a couple notes and photos already pinned, one photo could be of Old Doggo in his party hat.
Hahaha, that would be funny!
Can't wait to see some of the animations of Doggo!
Me too!!!
Love the style being so consistent <3 Giving me (somehow, for some reason) GTA vibes from the effects and the censor, but some sophisticated. The pup pops off the page, gorge! Love the photo mode as well, Look at that pull up on the lights! Very cool. Can't wait <3<3<3<3
The 2D animations would be nice where the player has to wait for something like with a loading screen, or maybe if you'd asked the game to pinpoint the location of a para, but I am afraid I'd find a moving icon difficult to cope with if it's a UI screen where I have to think about something or make a choice. Very distracting and stressful for me personally. Other's mileage may vary of course.
What is the name of the dog?
For now, it's doggo!
Aww the dog! Such a good pupper! Its a huge improvement and fits very well in the surroundings. Hopefully when you guys actually start working on pets you can keep it to this quality. It makes me so giddy seeing this game come to life, especially with the most recent video! <3
That is INDEED a heckin' good doggo!!
I love this dog!!! He's so cute!!! And i'm a cat person! I can't wait to see the cats!!!
Awe!! The doggie is soo cute!!
I am so in love with this game! 💕 Everything you show us is amazing, and you can see the care and love with which you are developing it.
Love the 2D animations, but I think they flash/blink too much. I think an initial animation when they first appear would work - like they would sort of "pop" into appearance. And, then maybe followed with a softer, slower movement. I love the improvements to Doggo ❤️. It looks sooo much better. Fingers crossed there will be a Newfoundland as an option - a girl can dream.
Thank you for the nice words and feedback! Having the animation pop and then be softer is close to what we had in mind!
The doggo!!! I’m in love
THE DOG!!! I LOVE IT!! ❤️❤️❤️
fallen in love with this guy..❤️😱 wt to do
DOGGO
I am in love with Doggo! Now I’m excited for early access whenever that comes out to see what cats and horses look like. Especially what the paramaker looks like for animals.
Love how the new dog looks. Makes me very hopeful for the new game just based on that. I could make animals for hours LOL
Love the 2D animations, love the new dog and I love the surprised look in everyone's faces in the photo 😂 I love the idea of the Hack Week and I love its results. You should totally consider doing them even more often then yearly. (quarterly?) I want this game to be filled to the brim with passion and I think giving you freedom to work on whatever you want can do that! Question: will you update the dog icon in social media and Patreon with the new dog? The old one is a classic, but the new one is just perfect! 😍
Thank you very much Pedro! Hack weeks are very fun, that's for sure We might update the profile picture with the new dog in the future, once we reveal the new look to the public!
In love with the 2D animations. The cozy, hand-drawn aesthetic is perfect for the game and you're putting so much care into it. Hope you guys have a good weekend! P.S. Doggo is the absolute best boi.
I absolutely love those 2D scribble style animations. Especially indicating Paras reactions or emotions through them is such a great idea! You could look down on social interactions from a distance and still know whats going on! (Imagine that on pets btw… so cute). The dog absolutely had a glow-up, i.g. Alex has to update his profile pic now haha. One minor thing I don’t like is that the dark brown of the fur is a little… too dark? Its so much darker than the original and it kinda obscures the fur texture detail on that too. Otherwise I love all this stuff! What on earth is Sebastian doing to that ceiling light btw? He’ll end up breaking it for sure!
Thank you Lars! Haha, Sebastian is taking risks, that's for sure! Thank you for the feedback regarding the dark brown of the fur, I totally see what you mean and that's part of the tweaks that we will be working on later!
Omg the dog is so cute! Speaking of the dog, you guys should totally make the pink blob character that you guys used to test the early development of the paramaker as a dog toy. It would be a cool Easter egg to add into the game ✨ I’m really enjoying the art style of paralives and the animations that Alice made fit the game perfectly! Also the poses in photo mode add so much charm into the game.
Thank you Simmons! Hehe, I like the idea of having the pink character as a toy for pets!
I was just thinking last week about how exciting it'll be to see an updated dog photo! Thanks for reading my mind, team :) Also the little animations look great! I'm really vibing with the drawing/painting vibes of the game. I'm falling more in love with the style every time you guys post something new!
I really like the 2D animations, they fit so well with the overall style of the game. And it would be a great and distinctive way to show the status, mood or emotion of a para; subtle yet clear, without being too telling or cluttering. Doggo looks fab! What a great upgrade, such a handsome and very good boy. Can't wait to see more of (and be able to play with) the photo mode. Please tell me jumping up and hanging from the ceiling lights will be a possibility in the game?! Great work everyone and all that in just a week!
Thank you Zedef!!! Hahah, hanging from the ceiling lights won't be possible unfortunately but the beauty of the photo mode is that you can create scenes that are not usually possible!
Love the animations! I love how uniquely the style of the game has evolved.
The dog is so cute and I like the scratched out option for censoring, it fits so well!
Doggo got a GLOW UP ✨ love to see it
I cannot wait for more pets. The dog looks awesome! Great job guys!
Loving seeing more texture updates even though work on pets is on hold for now ❤
the dog is great!
I love the dog so much!
I like the animations Alice made. They're cute and simple. I'm also really excited for the photo mode
Does the new doggo mean we should expect a pfp change soon? :p
Could be nice! We might wait for the official public release of the new doggo though!
The dog is so cute !
The new dog is so cute! Does it have an official name, or is it just a base model for the game?
This particular dog will be living in our town so you will see him/her in the game! Doggo is the name we have been using so far
I’m in love with these animations!!!! Also Léa’s new version of the Bernese is amazing!
Thank you!!!
I've been following the development of this game for a long long time. And I have to say I really appreciate these updates. Just seeing the before and after of the dog just really makes me happy and really appreciate how far this has come. This applies to everything you've shown lately. Thank you for all of your hard work; this is for everyone on the team.
Thank you so much for the kind words, it means a lot!
The dog looks AMAZING I enjoy your art style so much is so refreshing and adorable to the eyes. I can't wait to get my hands on this gameeeee!!!.
Thank you Karen <3
Look at Doggo!! He’s amazing you guys have done an amazing job!! Tysm did the brilliant post 🥰✨♥️
I really like the new Doggo as well, thank you Becky!
Simple amazing! Love love love!
Thank you Amanda!
Thanks for sharing, was so nice to read all of this 😊
Aw, thank you :)