ShapeFusion icon

[treellama]

We've been working on a few improvements to ShapeFusion, with an eye toward uploading another private build soon. One thing I think it needs is a better icon.

Since we had so much success with the last icon thread, I thought I'd see what you guys can come up with. We're not trying to match Bungie icons with this one, so it's much more open ended. I do have a couple suggestions though.

Tito once expressed that what he wanted to try for the ShapeFusion icon, but hadn't had time to work on, was the Marathon symbol, but with a gear instead of the inner circle. There is a risk that such an icon will look too similar in the dock to the Marathon games themselves, so maybe using a different color like purple, red, or bronze; and/or using a stylistic approach to make the gear stand out, would be good. Or you could use a background plate like Weland. Or make the outer circle a gear instead, like Arne did in the other thread.

Here's a tip on how to draw gears with Inkscape: draw a star, then draw a concentric circle about a third as big as the star. Union this with the star, to remove the sharp inside points. Then draw another concentric circle about two thirds as big as the star. Intersect this with the star to remove the outside points. Gear!

Scalable icons are best, but 512x512 should be enough for anybody.

[Crater Creator]

When treellama mentioned using a gear as part of the icon, I remembered this icon Arne made earlier in the Aleph One icon thread. Perhaps reposting it here will help get people thinking creatively.

[Not Invented Here]

[attachment=5351:path5053.png]

[attachment=5352:path3781.png]

[Hopper]

[attachment=5353:sfgear2.png]

[L'howon]

Reminds me of Gnome/KDE. I like it. Might be better without the background gears though, they seem sort of out of place

[Shadowbreaker]

Hey, I made one!

[attachment=5357:shapefusionlogo.png]
[attachment=5358:shapefus...ogosmall.png]

I think it fits with the Weland icon pretty well.

I have other ideas for what the icon could be too, I'll see if I can make them.

[RyokoTK]

Hey, I made one!

[attachment=5357:shapefusionlogo.png]
[attachment=5358:shapefus...ogosmall.png]

I think it fits with the Weland icon pretty well.

I have other ideas for what the icon could be too, I'll see if I can make them.

lighting looks really weird, I don't think the two light sources on the gear effect works at the small scale

[brilliant]

I really like Hopper's icon out of all the icons submitted so far.

[goran]

I wondered why there were so many cog wheels when fusion is a chemical process, and more related to atoms and chemistry. Took a quick peek in googles image search and found something related to atoms that I liked. I basically copied it and added a 'thon touch to it. I don't know what you guys think, but I find the concept more appropriate than cog wheels.

Among those already suggested, I liked shadow breakers most. The reflections may be a bit off, but I like the colors and shape. Easy on the eye. Symmetric. The reflections can be fixed should the icon be chosen. Not a difficult job.

[goran]

@ hoppers icon. Maybe make the purple circle underneath into a cog wheel as well? Here's a rough sketch of it.

[treellama]

I wondered why there were so many cog wheels when fusion is a chemical process, and more related to atoms and chemistry. Took a quick peek in googles image search and found something related to atoms that I liked. I basically copied it and added a 'thon touch to it. I don't know what you guys think, but I find the concept more appropriate than cog wheels.

Fusion has numerous meanings in different contexts of course. The ShapeFusion that ran on classic Mac OS actually used a plasma pistol as its icon!

I really like your take on nuclear fusion, though! Interesting choice of lithium since that's one rare type of fusion product we have hopes of attaining here on earth; rather than helium-4 which is so common in the universe.

[goran]

Fusion has numerous meanings in different contexts of course. The ShapeFusion that ran on classic Mac OS actually used a plasma pistol as its icon!

I really like your take on nuclear fusion, though! Interesting choice of lithium since that's one rare type of fusion product we have hopes of attaining here on earth; rather than helium-4 which is so common in the universe.

Lol, a coincidence then. It didn't base it on lithium. Drew something I thought looked good.

[Wrkncacnter]

You guys should just change the name to ShapeCogs instead.

[ukimalefu]

I wondered why there were so many cog wheels when fusion is a chemical process, and more related to atoms and chemistry. Took a quick peek in googles image search and found something related to atoms that I liked. I basically copied it and added a 'thon touch to it. I don't know what you guys think, but I find the concept more appropriate than cog wheels.

Among those already suggested, I liked shadow breakers most. The reflections may be a bit off, but I like the colors and shape. Easy on the eye. Symmetric. The reflections can be fixed should the icon be chosen. Not a difficult job.

I like that one!

[Zott]

I like the design of Shadowbreaker's except for the lighting on the outer cog.

Goran's electron cloud is also quite clean, but I would prefer those path lines to be a darker shade. Especially when it is downsized.

[Crater Creator]

I suggest incorporating the number seven: seven teeth on the gear, seven orbitals around the nucleus, or what have you.

I had an idea where the background would be a solid circle, and a combination wrench would lie on top of it, pointing down, so as to combine to make a facsimile of the Marathon logo. It's not panning out for me in Photoshop on account of the proportions not working out right.

[Hopper]

Crater, maybe you could have the wrench turning a nut on something circular, and the combination could form the overlay. I didn't bother finding appropriate clip art for it, but here's a mockup of the general idea:

[attachment=5364:test1.png]

[Shadowbreaker]

I like the design of Shadowbreaker's except for the lighting on the outer cog.

The idea I had when making shiny stuff was that making sense wasn't that important. I guess I was wrong . I made an attempt at correcting some of the light (in the first one), and then I tried making one with just photoshop lighting (bevel and gradients) to make it have more simple shinyness.

[attachment=5371:shapeytwo.png] [attachment=5372:shapeyfour.png]

[attachment=5367:shapeytwosmall.png] [attachment=5370:shapeyfoursmall.png]

Goran's electron cloud is also quite clean, but I would prefer those path lines to be a darker shade. Especially when it is downsized.

I like it too! My only problem with it is that it looks kinda simple and lacking in depth... maybe more might mess it up though. I also think the electrons should be the same size.

[treellama]

something circular

[attachment=5373:lollipopone.png]

[goran]

marathon engineering

[JohannesG]

marathon engineering

<3

[goran]

version 2

[goran]

cog purple

[treellama]

I like these both.

Edit: actually, all three recent ones. Dang!

[Crater Creator]

Metal shaders are hard. I'm trying to get a shape that plausibly wouldn't seem out of place for a screw or bolt head, but where the Marathon logo is still apparent. For whatever reason, I went with a realistic 3D render, somewhat like Goran's bolt image, rather than the stylized vector art that's more common.
[attachment=5385:SF_icon_1.png]