I’d like to do a prototype HF32 cart that uses a black/white/red eInk screen like I showed way back at the beginning of the development. The idea behind this is to show what’s the best label that can be produced for these screens and what it may look like on HF32. I also have some other ideas in the background where I’m debating using these tri color eInk screens.
I’m not the best artist so I’m proposing a contest where I’ll give away a free HF32 flash cart ($200 value currently) to the best black/white/red eInk label. I may even throw in a free box set.
The label should be VB themed. It would be great if it was related to a VB game, or possible future game, but that’s not a strict requirement. I’ll pick based on best overall image quality on the eInk screen. Obviously this is based on my personal interpretation. For the b/w/r screen, it is only black, white, or red, no grayscales are allowed. So labels with dithering are likely going to look better. Also, if you review the original HF32 contest, many of the winners had dithering in some shape or form.
The eInk screen is 264 x 176 but I only use a portion of that on the HF32. Basically 236×176 shifted to the far left. There is some vertical clipped as well but its minimal. I’d recommend not putting too much near the top and bottom extreme edges. You can also bleed your background over into the right edge but just be aware it will be masked by the HF32 cover. Please make black –>0, white–>255, and red –>255 in your RGB 24bit bmps. This will keep conversion consistent.
I’ll run this contest 2 weeks and pick a winner on Jan. 24th 2021. I can give you either a normal production HF32 cart, or possibly send a prototype of the b/w/r version. We can discuss when you win. Just be aware that the on-screen interface popular on HF32 now won’t work well for a b/w/r screen. Also like before, I may give away more than 1 prize if there are multiple that really blow my mind. There were too many good ones last time. By entering the contest you also give PlanetVB people permission to use your label on a tri color eInk screen, should one ever become available. If you already paid for a HF32 unit, then I’ll refund your purchase if you’re the winner.
Cannot wait to see what people come up with! Post your 24bit bmps images here for documentation purposes and I’ll download and convert and repost on the screen like before. I’ll attempt to do at least nightly uploads, but may upload more often.
I’m posting some images of my original b/w/r image (although not a very good one) just as an example. As well as some others online that look good despite the screen limitations. Thanks!
