Hey Hive!
We're back again with another Art Attack! If you're new to the series, this is where I share my paintings and the process behind them. A behind-the-scenes look at my artwork, if you will. This is not to say that I'm very good at art, or that I'm a professional in any way. In fact this is the opposite, and serves as a reminder to how I first started, and lets me track my progress too!
So back at the end of November 2019, I was browsing reddit and saw this ad for a hoodie with the original Super Smash Bros. characters that looked like this:
It was a really interesting comic book-esque design and I really liked it but didn't have a use for the hoodie (and it was too expensive), so I thought I'd draw it instead! But I thought to make it more unique I'd choose characters from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate instead; specifically, my and Sean's mains!
I wanted it to look similar to this one so I had to pick 8 characters, which was just right since we have 4 mains each.
Time to get sketching!
I started with the frame first so I could get a gauge on how much space I had for the characters. Then I started sketching panel by panel.
I did use reference pictures for all the character poses; some were fanart, others were original screenshots from the game.
Here's a fun game: guess which characters are my mains, and which are Sean's! I'll reveal the answers at the end of this post!
When I first thought of this idea I was so excited to get going and draw it because I thought it would look so cool!
The sketching took a pretty long time though, because of all the details. I tried my best to be as accurate as possible.
I did have to use rough tracings for some characters like Banjo. Since the size was just right it seemed easier. I drew the rest of them freehand though. Some characters were tough to get just right, especially Ganon with this suit-thing.
Here's the full sketch! I did this over 2 days which I think is about 4-5 hours.
And here it is outlined!
I didn't outline the eyes for Roy and Zero Suit Samus because I needed a thinner marker for that which was not waterproof, and I was gonna be using watercolour paints to colour this so it would have to wait until after I painted.
Well time to get paintin'!
I decided to go for alt skins for all the characters (except Mr Game and Watch), since we did like to choose specific colours for our mains.
I did use some markers here and there for specific colours that I had. Like the gold on Roy's armour, and the highlights of orange on Zero Suit Samus' boots.
I think I made her face look a little like a Mii Fighter though. But I couldn't help it; since it wasn't a very big area I couldn't draw her any more detailed.
I'm actually quite proud of how King K. Rool came out. I referenced an in-game screenshot for this and translating it into a 2D comic book-style drawing was a challenge. But I think he came out great! The perspective was also well done. And the smoke from the cannonball looked good too!
I was kinda unsure of Ganon though. It was tricky getting his skin tone and I think it's a little off still. And now that I look at it his arm seems a little dislocated. But this is legit one of his moves. He punches with his fist sideways instead of like Donkey Kong.
Banjo & Kazooie turned out great though.
Here's the full piece with all characters coloured!
The last part was probably the easiest part: the backgrounds. I wanted to keep it simple to make sure the characters stood out, so I mostly went for simple solid colours.
Well except for Zero Suit Samus of course. Since hers was an action shot of her kicking downwards.
Here's the final full piece done!
I'm really proud of this piece and I like it a lot! Other than a few smudges at Ganon's shockwave punch and Ganon's arm looking a little weird (although tbf I'm not sure how else I could've changed it), it turned out great! The details and colours were pretty spot on, and the background for Zero Suit Samus really nailed the desired effect to her pose.
Oh yea and here are the answers for whose mains are whose!
Basically mine are all the characters with blue; so they're Piranha Plant, Roy, King K. Rool and Banjo & Kazooie!
While Sean's are Isabelle, Mr Game & Watch, Zero Suit Samus and Ganondorf!
I'd say we actually have 3 mains and a couple of alternates, so I had to take some time to really think of which alternates I was going to choose. And I think I made the right choices. This piece turned out fantastic!
Here's the original picture again. I think from here you can see the resemblance in the poses and why I chose those specific ones.
And here's a high-def version of this picture I found on deviantart! I guess I wasn't the only one to get inspired by this ad. This version looks absolutely amazing! Awesome job Amanomoon!
I posted my artwork on the Smash Ultimate subreddit and got quite a few nice comments! Of course someone did point out Ganon's arm, but luckily someone else had my back. The smash community can be quite toxic so I'm so thankful for those nice people in the subreddit!
Oh just a sidenote but I also discovered a song about Smash by Starbomb that's pretty rad! I was listening to this while painting because it seemed fitting. 😅
Well I guess that's all for now! Sorry this post was pretty long but it makes sense since the entire process was long too. Can't wait to put this up in my new house next time!
Thanks so much for reading!
To find out more about me, check out my intro post here!
