Street Fighter Alpha/Zero 3 portraits: Andore/Hugo (Final Fight/SF), Captain Commando, Harley Quinn (DC Comics), Spider-Man (Marvel), Black Widow (Marvel Comics)
Four of these were requests that I already wanted to make, but for various reasons (I had a Hugo/Andore sketched years ago, but didn’t like it) didn’t get done until now. Harley Quinn is just one I just had an itch to make.
Seeing my custom portraits in fake screenshots is one thing, but did you ever wonder how they’d look in the game? Using a new rendering technique, I made a short video using some of the older portraits I made from scratch:
What’s that rendering technique? I’ll tell you at the end of this post.
GFX Generator: The engine itself got some minor fixes, including a fix to some reflection effects. Also
– a “ScrollTech pattern background (added by request) added to the main generator
– The new portraits were added to the GFX Generators, mainly the SFA3 generator
Happy New Year and Happy Year of the Rabbit! I’ve spent most January 2023 working on a line art commission that you’ll see some time this year (it was teased by the author last year, but I can’t show it yet), so this update is a bit lighter than the usual First Update of the Year, but at least it has variety.
Custom Sprites:
– Street Fighter: new Cammy SSF2 win pose, updated her other win pose sprite to match better with the others.
– Marvel Comics: the Enchantress
– DC Comics: the Rabbit enemy from Taito’s Superman arcade game
– Illmosis Network – ScrollBoss: Vonetta “Vernacula” Paige gets a new sprite, a slightly modified outfit, a satchel and a last name in an all-new sprite!
All of these sprites are tied to things I plan to work on throughout the year, including a rabbit theme to celebrate the year.
Vernacula-X Glossary: Vonetta, mascot of the Info Center area of the site, threatened suggested I also work a bit on that part of the site, so I updated amazon (updated the main pic), Beat ‘Em Up (added info, main pic borrows the main menu “Brawlstreet” banner for now), Versus Mode (added more info and main pic) and minor updates to other entries.
Image Generators: All new custom sprites were added, and the following screen styles were updated…
– Vs 3v3 scene 384×224: 12 more Vs. graphics from different games were added.
My newest game-related action figure is the Marvel Legends Capcom-style War Machine (not that they mention Capcom, but we know the deal). The Iron Man sculpt it’s based on was already proven solid twice in the standard red and gold release and the special flat red and yellow PROTON CANNON edition from last year. The spark effects, also used in that Proton Cannon IM, are still great, but you’ll probably have to heat up the rubbery plastic of the biggest spark to bend it back into shape. What makes this version really sing is the use of metallic paints and plastics to mimic the sprite’s look. I’m not a fan of factory-done painted-on cel shading for action figures, 97 times out of 100 it just works against the sculpt work and only looks good if you have light coming from a specific direction (if it ever looks right). But this figure looks really close to the sprite when it’s hit with enough light, mimicking the car paint finish found in the sprites.
Ever wonder what would happen if Captain N: the Game Master had its own Netflix monkey paw-grasped revival? Friend of the site Channel 905 a take on that (and a few other things) in this video!
Okay… I’m going to try and take a break again. A real one this time. Besides getting rest, I’ve got some new programs to learn, and maybe I’ll even take enough time to play a game again. I’ll be back at some point between late February and early March, but there may be some small updates before that.
It’s time to wrap-up this year of updates in the usual way: content based on toys from the eighties and some unfinished business!
Custom Sprites:
– G.I.JOE: Wild Bill, B.A.T.s
– Thundercats: Mumm-Ra
– Toys and Cartoons:B.P. Vess (C.O.P.S., all-new sprites), Miles Mayhem (M.A.S.K.)
– Double Dragon: the alley cat from arcade version of Mission 1, NES design Billy and Jimmy Lee
– DC Comics: Stargirl (yes, I’m going to miss that show)
Mini-Logos: Venom (from Kenner’s M.A.S.K.) added to Toys and Stargirl added to DC Comics
All new custom sprites and mini-logos have been added to the image generators. The main “Fighter-size” generator now an 80s action figure toy aisle in the Group, Vs. and MvC ending screenstyles. It’s still a work in progress, because I spent more time searching for image and scale reference than I did working on it so far. This version’s toys are mainly centered around 1985, the last year the first wave of Transformers were still being made. I’ll continue to update this in the future, and possibly add more versions and years (like a late-eighties version with a big TMNT section) if enough people want to see that. BTW: some of the most helpful reference pics were from this post on 20th Century Toy Collector, because I was able to see how some boxes from different lines of the era scaled next to each other.
ToyBoss: My custom New X-Men/classic Cyclops Marvel Legends figure is done enough to show, so I finally… FINALLY… have a full Konami X-Men playable character roster in 1:12 scale. I’d have had this roster (and others) finished earlier if I didn’t have to practically restart my Marvel Legends collection in 2020. I also added an updated shot of the Red Skull’s crew in Data East’s Captain America and the Avengers to show I’ve got the Controller in there.
Speaking of toys, a lot of my 2023 figure hype is aimed at Jada Toys’ Street Fighter and Mega Man action figure lines. Three figure in each wave and all at a price point that won’t K.O. your wallet, and they’ll fit in with 6-inch/1:12 scale figures, so they’ll be part of my Marvel vs. Capcom set-ups. All the little details, like the Hadoken having hands molded in like the old sprites and one of the two optional heads being based on the Super Street Fighter II Vs. portraits (still some of the best art of those characters), I’m definitely hype for these. Check out this Fwooshcast episode that drops info on these and the other figure lines Jada is working on right now:
Storm Collectables is still putting out Street Fighters, though their figures seem to be in a slightly larger scale than Marvel Legends and closer to Mattel’s Masterverse and McFarlane Toys. It’s great to have options with these and I hope both companies get into more classic video game lines.
It’s time for me to thank everyone who has visited the site this year, and I’m giving a really big thank you to those who commented here, by e-mail (yes, some people do!), and on social media. There are times when my day job has worn me out and I don’t have a lot of energy to do anything when I get home, but things like your feedback, seeing pics you made in the image generators, being surprised when the pixel minilogos pop up in fan projects, and things like that refill my energy again. Take care and see you in 2023!
– DC Comics: all-new Scarecrow (classic)
– Horror:Evil Dead Ash Williams standing sprite updated (colors like the Horror vs. Horror 2 print, lots of other detail adjustments) and Phantasm’s Reggie (new versions in Ice Cream Man outfit with vest)
– Ninja Gaiden: arcade hockey mask enemy (completely redone for hopefully the last time)
– Streets of Rage: Zamza
mini-logos:
– movies: Stephen King, WNUF Halloween Special
All new items added to the Image Generators, where you can make screenshots like the one at the top of this post!
Raven Perez, creatively inspirational friend of the site, has a new horror-flavored game starring his classic crew of the Dojo! Terror Cube is a block-breaking game that has the Dojo teaming up with the Gore Orb to ball-bust some bricks, and anyone who knows how Raven gets down knows it’s gonna get WEIRD (in the best way). It’s a fun game, perfect for this time of year, and a treat to see crisp 8-bit-ish pixel art in his drawing style. Warning: Raven’s Dojo is not safe for work but safe for awesome. Get Terror Cube at this link!
The DangerTerrorHorrorThon continues with another update this Sunday, so stay tuned!
If you look at that new Batman sprite compared to the older scratch-made sprites I’ve done, you may notice that he doesn’t match 100%, mainly the cowl. Call it an experiment to try and make better Batman sprites. If it works, I’ll probably start modifying the older sprites to match probably next year.
This update has new and updated Capcom sprites, some fixes and additions to earlier updates, and a new video!
Mega Man – Roll (Classic) Street Fighter – Chun-Li (in her brand-new Street Fighter 6 outfit), Street Fighter 2010’s Kevin Straker Final Fight – Mike Haggar Final Fight 2 G.I.JOE – updated Cover-Girl, Doc, Quick Kick (made taller). Also added some section links at the top of the gallery so you can get to the sections more quickly.
Mini-Logos:
– Capcom: Street Fighter 2010
– DC Comics: Wonder Twins
As usual, all these new things have been added to the main Image Generator, where you can make (and right-click save) your own images like the one at the top of this news post!
I also made a video that recaps what I’ve posted and made during the first half of 2022. This includes some things I haven’t shown until now, including animations and video project previews (though I’m still holding back a bit here). This just might turn out to be a yearly thing, so I gave it the name of HalfTime.
Those G.I. Joe sprite updates and that G.I.JOE HQ clip you saw in the HalfTime video’s “lab” are prep work for the “Yo Joe June” update later this month, which will include a few more G.I. JOE sprites! Currently working on more replacements of the old Capcom sprite edits and more “Original 13” (the original 13 members of the G.I.JOE line-up). Stay tuned!
There’s currently a Kickstarter campaign for a Ninja Baseball Spirits comic book! Yes, the Ninja Baseball Bat Man beat ’em up legend is fighting get it’s due right now, but the campaign still needs help to reach its goal. The comic has an all-star line-up of people who appreciate beat ’em ups, including Drew Maniscalco (the original creator of Ninja Baseball Bat Man), writer Dave Cook (“Go Straight: The Ultimate Guide to Side-Scrolling Beat ‘Em Ups”), and artist Steve Gregson (BPM: Beatdowns Per Minute). The comic will be available in digital and physical forms and there’s a wide array of extras for higher tiers, some including the beat ’em up-based BPM comic as a bonus. There are sample pages and artwork on the Kickstarter page, so check it out and give ’em a pledge if you’re interested (yes, I’ve got my pledge in already)!
Couldn’t let Black History Month end without an update like this, so let’s get into it!
Custom Sprites:
– Sega: B.D. Joe
– DC Comics: Nubia (original armor)
– Marvel Comics: Bishop
They weren’t alone, as new sprites of Balrog (Street Fighter) and Doc (G.I.JOE) were added to the gallery earlier in the month!
Hot dang, that’s a lot of twos! This site is going to celebrate that with some new Double Dragon sprites, along with some other twins, including another pair of Technos game twins!
Double Dragon: Billy and Jimmy Lee (Double Dragon Advance cover art pose), Skullmageddon (Double Dragon Neon), an update of my 2017 Chin Taimei sprite Kunio-kun: the Hattori Twins/Dragon Twins (who are based on the Lee Brothers) Streets of Rage: Onihime and Yasha (a.k.a. Mona and Lisa) had their standing and crouching sprites redone DC Comics: the Wonder Twins Zan and Jayna (sorry, you’ll have to wait for Gleek) G.I.JOE: Tomax and Xamot, evil twin brothers!
All new sprites have been added to the main image generator, where you can create graphics like the one at the top of this post!
Finally, because I couldn’t let this day happen without doing this, here’s the Double Dragon Sprite Showcase video!
Stay tuned, there’ll be a “Yo Joe!” update later this week!
– Magic Sword: new scratch-made sprite of Alan/the Brave One (player one)
– Tomb Raider: new v.1 Lara Croft sprite
– Shantae:new Shantae sprite
– Sonic the Hedgehog: Amy Rose (classic)
– Illmosis: new Nutroll taunt sprite and improved fight stance sprite and the first Beans vs. Cornbread character sprite: Al1mighty Grandmaster Wizard!
– Marvel Comics: the Vision (arms folded, white rebooted design)
– DC Comics: Fire/Green Flame sprite
Also, a quick little video showing of the new sprites (including a few with eye blink animations), a display of all the X-Men sprites I’ve done so far, and a little bit more of something I’ve been posting teasers of since last year.
Custom Sprites: Finally, every character in the Marvel and DC gallery that only had a sprite edit based on a Capcom fighting game sprite now has a sprite I made from scratch. I’ve been working toward this goal on the side for a while, but I just decided to clear them all out before 2021 ended. Some of these new sprites are exact or close replacements for the old poses, but not all of them. The edits for those characters who weren’t originally in the games will be removed from the Image Generators.
– Megaman: Megaman classic – redid the Rockman 1 title screen pose from scratch, Elecman (NES stance), Dr. Wily, and (by popular demand) Yellow Devil
– Run Saber (new separate gallery): Allen and Sheena, new scratch-made idle sprites
– DC Comics: Blue Beetle (Ted Kord), Red Tornado, Green Lanterns Guy Gardner, Arisia, Katma Tui, Kilowog, and a new Justice League group sprite with the Brave and the Bold #28 line-up.
– Marvel Comics: Archangel, Havok, Professor X, Psylocke, Rogue, X-23, Doctor Octopus, the Lizard, and new group sprites of the Avengers (issue #1) and the X-Men (Konami beat ’em up playable roster)
– Masters of the Universe: new Skeletor sprite (with Havok Staff)
– G.I.JOE: all-new scratch-made Quick Kick
Mini-Logos:
– Atlus: Run Saber
– Marvel Comics: Archangel, Professor X
– DC Comics: Blue Beetle, Red Tornado
ToyBoss: Added a page for my first custom figure in FIFTEEN YEARS and first custom Marvel Legend has been added to the page, the Red Skull in his business suit (as seen in Data East’s Captain America and the Avengers)!
All sprites (except for the group sprites) have been added to the image generators, along with:
– the Comic Book arcade background being added to the main generator (Group, Vs., MvC Ending, Comic 88×136, Boxes).
Last, but definitely not least, there’s a Wrap-Up video on the ScrollBoss YouTube channel! The vid is a mix of clips from my 2021 videos (the Superhero Showcade with Iron Man and Batman, Beat ‘Em Up Showcade 2021, DangerTerrorHorrorThon, and more), a few updated clips (The Gotham villain scroll no longer has Bane in it), and some all-new clips, including some with the sprites in today’s update:
It’s been a tiring year (online and off), so I’m going to get some rest for a while. Thank you for coming through, I hope you have a great remainder of 2021, and I’ll see you on the other side of New Year’s Eve!
