Interview with indie developer Luc Bernard.

We recently interviewed Luc Bernard, a fairly notorious and unconventional indie game developer with a strong connection to pixel art. With games like Mecho Wars, Steam Pirates and Mecho Tales under his belt, few developers can claim to work with pixel art as much as Luc does. Our interview was firmly centered on pixel art in game development, which you can check out after the jump.

PAG: One thing that immediately stands out about your games is the fact that most of them use pixel art for presentation. What made you decide to use pixel art on your games, and will you be using pixel art again in the future?

Luc: I actually really like pixel art because in a way it is so precise, which makes sense since it’s done pixel by pixel. And also it often stays closer to the concept art I drew for the game, since the pixels can be done over the drawings directly. Once I start development on Mecho Tales again, that will be one title to have pixel art.

(Screen Shot of Mecho Tales.)

PAG: How does using pixel art affect a games art direction compared to other forms of art?

Luc: I would say that with pixel art you need to know exactly what size you need the sprites to be at, since you can’t go changing sizes after without redoing the art. So you just need to be 100% sure of what you need design wise before development starts.

PAG: What was your first experience with pixel art?

Luc: First experience was on a old java cell phone game I made for those old sony ericson phones.

PAG: You’ve been making cell phone games for a while then. How has mobile game development changed since you started making games? Have those changes affected your decision on using pixel art?

Luc: Well now mobiles are more powerful than portable consoles out on the market, while before on the old java phones they would barely run well. The only thing I really miss on iOS devices are buttons, but there is android phones with keyboards for whoever wants them.

 

(Screen shot of Mecho Wars on iOS.)

PAG: Do you think pixel art is still a viable medium for use in games, or is it just for people who are trying to sell to a retro audience?

Luc: Two years ago on iOS and PSP it would of been for all, now I think with the higher resolutions such as the iphone 4 and PSVita you need to make it a retro homage like Cladun, or do a 3DS game where it fits the resolution well. I mean doing HD in pixels looks like it’s really hard work.

PAG: The sprites in your games are larger than what you see in the average pixel art game. Is that an aesthetic choice?

Luc: Well now resolutions are bigger you need to fit the screen more, before the GBA and DS sizes were tiny, with iPhone, PSP and 3DS its easier to do bigger sprites. 

PAG: For any aspiring game developers out there, how did you actually get in contact with the pixel artists who work on your games, and how difficult is it to put a team together?

Luc: I’ve only worked with the same people for years, I really rarely work with anyone new, so to put a team together I don’t know to be honest haha, I’m picky with who I work with.

PAG: So only go after the best?

Luc: That’s what I do.

PAG: How many pixel artists usually work on your games, and who are they?

Luc: It varies from 1 to 3 people, it depends on the amount of work. I’ve worked with Shane Gill, Tyvon Thomas, Oli Lee and Jonathan McGuire.

PAG: Thanks for taking the time to speak to us, and good luck with your projects.

Luc: No problem, and thank you.

If you’re interested in following Luc you can do so on his tumblr.