The Winning Formula

TimLet’s start with a little disclaimer: I love the Joystiq Weekly Webcomic Wrapup. Without them most of you wouldn’t be reading this right now which would make us very sad. Joystiq is consistently one of our top referrers and we look forward to making comics on a weekly basis knowing that the Joystiq faithful are going to check it out. As far as our ‘winning formula’ goes, we typically avoid the drug/sex references, but we certainly do use popular game characters and pop culture references. We feel that we shouldn’t go out of our way to force a comic based on certain elements, but it’s nice to make jokes about something that the majority of readers are familiar with. I personally loved VG Cats’ Iwo Jima Worms comic last week, but it had more obscure references than Extra Life did. As a result, VGC got far fewer votes than EL. I think that’s okay too because you want to be proud of the comics you make even if fewer people get it. Those that do get it probably appreciate it more.

RayI’m always surprised at what wins and what doesn’t nearly every week. Thanks for keeping it unpredictable!

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20 Comments

  1. Dostovel says:

    jaja, Great!
    Loved the way you guys made fun of how the real thing goes.

  2. Hah. I actually came here from Joystiq as well. Glad I did.

  3. Ajvizz says:

    I forget where I cam from to get to this comic place. It was worth it cause I have you guess bookmarked.

  4. Robm14 says:

    I have no idea how I originally got here. There was a link on another comic I read which to the wii+venom=PS3 comic, but I have no idea which comic!

  5. zhinker says:

    Hey, what program do you guys use to make these comics?

  6. Ray says:

    I use Adobe Illustrator CS3 to do the art using vectors, and then a tiny bit of Photoshop to touch it up at the very end.

  7. MSW0 says:

    I think I got here via Dueling Analogs. I think they had a link to the Wii + PS3 Symbiote comic. Been reading ever since.

    Oh, and on the topic of the programs you guys use, I’m also starting a webcomic once my partner gets a Graphics Tablet, and we’re using the same programs. Hopefully they turn out as good as yours.

  8. Boredoom says:

    I remember I came here for the Wii + Venom thingie ^_^ Found the link at Dueling Analogs… I think you guys have a good thing here.

    I’d like to see what you guys enjoy doing, regardless of who likes it or don’t, it’s really cool to actually get to know the author’s ideas and taste.

    Hope you’ll be doing this for a long time!

  9. zhinker says:

    Thanks Ray, and keep up the awesome work! You’ve got something great going here and you don’t need to change it up

  10. laserboyjc says:

    is it my imagination or is that a Joy Electric poster on the wall? who’s the Ronnie fan?

  11. Ray says:

    That’s me.

  12. Dăcasy says:

    In panel 3, Ray has no mouth.
    Was your mouth shut by Smith ?

  13. Excellent as always guys. Just as a head’s up, you now have a giant banner at “Welcome to Pixelton”. Keep up the great work. 😀

  14. Dostovel says:

    I came here cuz of the wii + simbiotic = PS3 as well. Looks like it was a turning point for new fans of 2pstart comics. Always cool stuffs here.

  15. Jamwes says:

    What is this Joystiq Weekly Webcomic Wrapup that you speak of. Maybe I’ll have to go check it out… How does it feel to give Joystiq a referral?

    I too found you guys from the wii/venom link from Dueling Analogs. Keep up the good work.

  16. Adam_Y says:

    Sadly, I think your formula is pretty accurate… I tried todo something different with my hand-drawn, black and white sprite comic strip (http://www.flowfieldunity.transplantcomics.com/?p=51), but for some reason it didn’t catch on.

    Perhaps it needed more doobie references?

  17. Tim says:

    Haha, Yeah you caught us Kvb. The panel’s not the same, but some objects in the room are (most notably, the iMac). It really serves 2 purposes. First, it gives some consistency as far as environment goes. The comics with Ray and Tim talking will likely take place in a few familiar locations unless the joke requires them to be somewhere else. Second, and probably more importantly, it saves Ray a lot of time not having to reinvent the wheel every week. There are always tons of new things he has to draw each week, so if he can ‘recycle’ some things he’s already drawn, it makes the process more manageable. You may also notice that the consoles in the comics are often the same image as well.

    Good find though!

  18. chriskatching says:

    Hahaha! 🙂

    Consistency is good 😛
    It would be odd if Ray’s room changes everyweek O_o

  19. Mirby says:

    After reading the next one (thanks, randomizer) and hitting BACK to get it, it now makes sense. And stay tuned for the comment on the comic that comes after this one yet I saw before this one!

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