Owlboy Winners, Updates & News

[TomFulp]

This month we hosted an art jam to celebrate the launch of Owlboy, a game everyone should play!

The Owlboy team have checked out all the entries, here is their top ten:

• 

  'Get ready for REEEAL flight'!

  by Butzbo

  Illustration

  7,169 Views

  (Everyone)

• 

  Solus

  by ArmyAnts

  Illustration

  4,862 Views

  (Everyone)

• 

  Good Morning Otus

  by Llamadoodle

  Illustration

  1,820 Views

  (Everyone)

• 

  Final Resting Place

  by Sundownx

  Illustration

  1,319 Views

  (Everyone)

• 

  Owlboy Nes demake mockup

  by ScepterDPinoy

  Pixel Art

  2,209 Views

  (Everyone)

• 

  owlboy

  by satanasio

  Illustration

  1,625 Views

  (Everyone)

• 

  Owlboy

  by 3DRod

  Illustration

  4,319 Views

  (Everyone)

• 

  Owlboy Ol' Toby

  by Jobertson

  Illustration

  1,605 Views

  (Everyone)

• 

  Owl boy 0020

  by HochiganMeat

  Illustration

  1,321 Views

  (Everyone)

• 

  Let's fly [ Owlboy fanart ]

  by ExCharny

  Illustration

  1,971 Views

  (Everyone)

Each winner will be receiving an Owlboy Steam key.

You can view both the scouted and unscouted entries in the Art Portal, which coincidentally just got a facelift!

Art Portal Update

The Art Portal hub has been updated to utilize our new layout. The listings are now mobile-friendly and the desktop version has some improvements; for example if you go here and toggle filter options, the content will update in-page rather than load a new page. Registered users will also see more Supporter promos in place of traditional ads, because we need more supporters.

Other News

Sorry I haven't announced the Halloween winners yet, I've been swept up in a project to address some content issues on the site. Very important reminder: please only use music you have permission to use in the content you upload to Newgrounds. We created the Audio Portal largely so musicians could collaborate with animators and game developers. If you're making a speedpaint video, it is an especially easy opportunity to feature music from artists here on NG.

When you use music you don't have rights to, your work ultimately has no rights and NG can't protect you. Newgrounds might look like some big eternal part of the internet but at the center sits a very overwhelmed individual who is trying to keep things afloat against very difficult odds.

If you've had content removed as part of this sweep, it can still be brought back on-line if you can update it with music you have rights to. Let me know when that time comes and I'll work with you. Several artists have already gotten their work back up.

I'd also like to note that independent animators and game developers SHOULD be propping up independent musicians. Your work gives them phenomenal exposure and they in turn might help promote you or bring you professional opportunities. This sort of collaboration is what Newgrounds is all about.

[SlippyPunk]

I'm loving the new layout updates so far!

[Manderby]

Nice to see all those fan-arts, really love them! Otus makes a great protagonist. I wish someone would give a little love to Alphonse, I like that guy. :)

Owlboy really is a very, very beautiful game. Played everything through within a few days and was listening to the soundtrack the days after. I even posted my own gameplay on my userpage. I really encourage everybody to play this game. It is pure nostalgia.

On a sidenote: I never really understood how the scouting in the art and audio-portal works. As I understand it is a barrier for junk content. But in my opinion there are far to many great works lying buried in the unscouted section. Maybe the unscouted section should be promoted a little more? Or what are the criteria for being scouted, what is the level? I think, the bar is a little high at the moment.

[satanasio]

Thanks for hosting this art jam and choosing my work

[artistunknown]

At 11/17/16 09:35 AM, TomFulp wrote: This month we hosted an art jam to celebrate the launch of Owlboy, a game everyone should play!

Congrats to everyone! There's some really great stuff in here. I wish I had time to make something for this, Owlboy looks great.

Art Portal Update

This doesn't seem to work for me, it still reloads the page. Maybe I just need to clear my cache though.

If you've had content removed as part of this sweep, it can still be brought back on-line if you can update it with music you have rights to. Let me know when that time comes and I'll work with you. Several artists have already gotten their work back up.

While I haven't had anything removed, it does look like a few things I've been credited on have. Seems like most of these can be easily fixed, but some of them are music videos, so replacing the audio for that just kinda wouldn't be the same... What would you recommend for that? Would doing a cover of the song and using it in the video be okay, or would you just have to get permission from the artist at that point?

I'd also like to note that independent animators and game developers SHOULD be propping up independent musicians. Your work gives them phenomenal exposure and they in turn might help promote you or bring you professional opportunities. This sort of collaboration is what Newgrounds is all about.

I've really been meaning to use more audio portal music, especially since it's so easy to ask for permission when needed, but I always just go the easiest route and find a track that I know is royalty free and all I have to do is credit the artist.

In the end, maybe using audio portal stuff IS the best route to go with, because not only are you exposing their work to a bigger audience, you're making the musician aware of your work, making future collaborations a possibility.

I really need to participate in this community more. I've been way too busy this year :/

[ZJ]

Great stuff Tom! Are you optimistic for 2017?

[TomFulp]

At 11/17/16 12:15 PM, Manderby wrote: On a sidenote: I never really understood how the scouting in the art and audio-portal works. As I understand it is a barrier for junk content. But in my opinion there are far to many great works lying buried in the unscouted section. Maybe the unscouted section should be promoted a little more? Or what are the criteria for being scouted, what is the level? I think, the bar is a little high at the moment.

Possibly the biggest issue there is that you need four pieces of art to be scouted - this was added because it's easier to catch an art thief if they upload four disparate pieces of art. If you could be scouted with just one piece of art it would go much more smoothly for new artists who participate in contests.

[TomFulp]

At 11/17/16 03:05 PM, ZJ wrote: Great stuff Tom! Are you optimistic for 2017?

Wrong week to ask me that. :P

[Manderby]

At 11/17/16 03:20 PM, TomFulp wrote: Possibly the biggest issue there is that you need four pieces of art to be scouted - this was added because it's easier to catch an art thief if they upload four disparate pieces of art. If you could be scouted with just one piece of art it would go much more smoothly for new artists who participate in contests.

I see. Four different styles are definitely easier to detect. I guess I have to blame myself as I have not that much time to scout. Now I feel guilty of laziness. :)

[Lintire]

At 11/17/16 09:35 AM, TomFulp wrote: Hello yes my name is Tom Fulp and I've just awoken from a stress-induced coma.

Oh hey, you can turn the Visualizer off. I'll have to spend more time in the audio portal, always kept clear because that thing just killed my procession of toasters. Same with flash. And everything in between. Wonder how I get anything done here.

And congratulations to all the Owlboy winners! Minor consolations to the losers. Listen to some Audio Portal songs to console yourself. Or congratulate yourself. Or both, if you're not happy with your piece and you still won a key anyway.

[liljim]

At 11/17/16 01:45 PM, artistunknown wrote: Would doing a cover of the song and using it in the video be okay, or would you just have to get permission from the artist at that point?

My opinion - you'd be better avoiding it altogether unless you have contact with the artist. Spend your time working on something that's bullet proof and work with people who want to be worked with.

At 11/17/16 10:59 PM, Zerksisms wrote: I have used a lot of music off of newgrounds and credited the the musicians for a speed paint video and other videos on YouTube I always put the name of the musician and a link to the song is that alright or should I be putting more info in. What would be the best way to credit musicians?

TALK TO THEM!!! :) Find out how they feel about you working with their stuff. I would do this up front so you both know where you stand. This applies to artists, programmers and musicians.

If they like your work you'll have gained a fan and if they really like it, they're gonna tell THEIR friends they've been featured in it, putting more eyeballs or earholes on what you've done and you could end up working together more down the line.

Anyone you work with on NG, you should credit them in your work here using the projects system. You can apply correct attribution there. You should do this BEFORE you publish your piece, because when you do, fans on the lists of all those involved will be informed that they've pushed something live.

We're REALLY bad here at sharing or encouraging people to share testimonials, but people regularly go on to commercial ventures as a direct result of their involvement on and with NG. It won't happen for everyone, but you increase your chances by broadening your circles. By working with people in the community, you stand a good chance of making some lifelong friends regardless of whatever else happens and that's no bad thing!

[Cyberdevil]

If you click on a tag for a particular artwork, it would be nice if you could also see unscouted submissions with that tag. I know it can be done via URL (as with the link above), but there doesn't seem to be any way to reach these URLs via the interface itself, just by typing them in manually?

The 'Filters' button doesn't seem to be doing anything for me also. If it is supposed to be doing something.

Really digging the new art portal layout overall though. And Congrats to the winners!

[Cyberdevil]

At 11/17/16 03:21 PM, TomFulp wrote: Wrong week to ask me that. :P

Do hope that means you're optimistic about being more optimistic some other week! ;)

[TomFulp]

At 11/18/16 06:29 AM, Cyberdevil wrote: If you click on a tag for a particular artwork, it would be nice if you could also see unscouted submissions with that tag. I know it can be done via URL (as with the link above), but there doesn't seem to be any way to reach these URLs via the interface itself, just by typing them in manually?

Merging them is a bigger project than it looks like but we still want to give it a shot at some point.

The 'Filters' button doesn't seem to be doing anything for me also. If it is supposed to be doing something.

That's a bug - you see that when not logged in, right? The Filters button is intended for mobile only, where the sort boxes and ratings filters are collapsed (hidden) by default.

[Cyberdevil]

At 11/18/16 08:41 AM, TomFulp wrote:

At 11/18/16 06:29 AM, Cyberdevil wrote: If you click on a tag for a particular artwork, it would be nice if you could also see unscouted submissions with that tag. I know it can be done via URL (as with the link above), but there doesn't seem to be any way to reach these URLs via the interface itself, just by typing them in manually?

Merging them is a bigger project than it looks like but we still want to give it a shot at some point.

I was thinking you might be able to just add a link to unscouted submissions with the same tag or search term, somewhere on the search results page? An actual toggle between the two would be fantastic, but seems like this wouldn't be so difficult for now?

That's a bug - you see that when not logged in, right? The Filters button is intended for mobile only, where the sort boxes and ratings filters are collapsed (hidden) by default.

I am logged in, but browsing in incognito mode if that matters. Good to know what it's for though.

[Butzbo]

Woow, it's great to look at all the renditions, there's so much inspiration to absorb from this game.
Thanks so much to the team, at last I'll get into this magnanimous title! : D

[VicariousE]

CPMstar ads are now working in Firefox's Private Mode, I'd say that's a damn good step in the right direction. Now was this due to FF ver. 50, or some tinkering here at NG? Either way I'm glad some equity in ad-rev is beginning to take place
http://nypost.com/2016/11/17/facebooks-ad-metric-problem-is-becoming-zuckerbergs-headache/

[artistunknown]

At 11/18/16 04:22 AM, liljim wrote: My opinion - you'd be better avoiding it altogether unless you have contact with the artist. Spend your time working on something that's bullet proof and work with people who want to be worked with.

Yeah, that makes sense. I've been avoiding using any copyrighted material in stuff for years now, unless it's clearly fair use, and although there's a few music videos I would love to make, I wouldn't want to have to spend months on something and then not be able to share it with people for fear of copyright. When it came to my question though, I was moreso asking in relation to music videos that have now been removed due to the copyrighted audio. I mean, I guess you could probably find fitting music to replace it, but for music videos that heavily rely on that song, it seems like there's nothing to do to bring them back. Which is a shame, but I understand why.

[MysticSkillz]

I can understand about using music from NG audio portal, but is it still possible to use outside music sources even if only use a small portion of the sound track? Example: If someone was to make a Simpsons opening video and use the music from the show, is that okay or still no go? And are video game music okay as well? Even if credit is given?

[Jobertson]

Whoa, great entries! thanks to the team
Looking foreward to playing it this weekend:D

[Masculine]

At 11/17/16 09:35 AM, TomFulp wrote: Newgrounds might look like some big eternal part of the internet but at the center sits a very overwhelmed individual who is trying to keep things afloat against very difficult odds.

You're doing an amazing job Tom.

Anything anyone can do to help? Are you having to individually review every case?

[TomFulp]

At 11/18/16 08:32 PM, Masculine wrote:

At 11/17/16 09:35 AM, TomFulp wrote: Newgrounds might look like some big eternal part of the internet but at the center sits a very overwhelmed individual who is trying to keep things afloat against very difficult odds.

You're doing an amazing job Tom.

Anything anyone can do to help? Are you having to individually review every case?

The best thing individual artists can do is review their own entries and update their music if they used anything they didn't have rights to. I've been up day and night going through individual entries as well.

[StaticSkull]

Congrats to the winners, but what is Owlboy?

[Cyberdevil]

At 11/21/16 05:40 PM, TomFulp wrote: The best thing individual artists can do is review their own entries and update their music if they used anything they didn't have rights to. I've been up day and night going through individual entries as well.

Wonder if you get DMCA notices for all these submissions, or if it´s more of a proactive process? I doubt most artists are reading this, but sounds like something mods might be able to do? I'm sure people would be happy to help out.

[Hyptosis]

So much great Owlboy inspired content! Great work everyone, congrats!