Creating Good Game Art When You're Not An Artist
by Mason McCuskey

Contents   Introduction   Plugins and Styles   Art Sources   Resolution & Rendering   Sketching   Printable version   Discuss this article

Introduction

Every amateur game programmer has a dream that goes something like this: You post an ad on gamedev.net, looking for artists. Within an hour, you're swamped with fifty emails from artists. After telling you they've quit their job to do art for your game full-time, they point you to some of their sample JPGs, which are incredible, and in exactly the style you're looking for. They then tell you they'll be more than happy to work for free (or for royalties).

Ahh, what a good thing life would be if it were like this.

Unfortunately, it isn't. Most teams have a difficult time finding a talented, dedicated artist, and for many developers, the only way they're going to get art is to put on the artist's hat and do it themselves. Fortunately, modern technology has provided us with tools that can disguise our lack of artistic ability. Many hobbyist game art needs can be fulfilled by a non-artist and some really good use of software.

Take this article with a grain of salt: I can't draw, nor am I versed in any form of art theory. I'm a programmer, but over the years I've been forced to try to draw things, and in doing so have picked up some tricks that I'd like to share. So, here's a quick look at a few techniques that the newbie non-artist can use to create good-looking art.

Plugins and Styles