A&A 1940 Customization Photoshop Files

[ambilzi]

Hi everyone. I was digging through some computer files and found my Axis & Allies folder that I used to build my original custom map. I had entirely forgotten about this project and, I hate to say it, but I hardly got to play the game due to busy lifestyle. I popped back here and was humbled to learn how much of a positive effect my work had for a far wider audience than I anticipated. I’m glad to see the customization projects have progressed beyond what I had made, but at the time I don’t think I did a very good job at enabling users to take my resources and expand on them. I don’t know if I ever provided anything more than a flat image due to internet speed and online storage constraints at the time.

In any case, I still have all the .psb files and fonts and whatnot that I used. I don’t know if I’d have time or interest in continuing to develop custom maps, but if those resources would be useful for anyone else I’d be glad to find a way to make them available.

I’d love to re-learn the game some day and play it. I actually have the space to set up a board now, and my kids are getting older and I’m sure I can manipulate them to play A&A with me before too much longer (them coming around was part of the reason I didn’t have as much expendable time for epic board games anymore).

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1kReJ8ryGdWk_NBBwnBxAPAydJx3Po5jX?usp=sharing

I’m not sure if Google Drive will eventually block access from too much activity or something… but I’m uploading it there in any case. It may take an hour or so from this post before everything is online. Still takes time to move 10GB of data.

I would also point out that my efforts were entirely amateur, although enthusiastically so. I tried to produce a project with layers as made sense to me at the time in order to protect resolution and quality, but I’m sure I’m airing out my dirty laundry when you inspect how this is assembled.

[ambilzi]

This post is deleted!

[ambilzi]

I was reviewing the multi-page thread that spanned several years and it seems there were some questions regarding the quality, resolution, dpi, format, etc., as it pertained to the production of the original file.

I would have scanned the original tiles directly into photoshop at no less than 300 dpi. The tiles themselves probably weren’t 300 dpi (or whatever the equivalent is for that style of print). I don’t know what it’s called where the printing process produces those faint, round “pixels” that I remember seeing in color comics in the newspaper when I was young, but my understanding is that was the limit that I could scan those tiles in.

When I made this I didn’t know anything about vector art, so all the custom icons for convoys, bases, etc., I would have made an effort to keep those high resolution as well, but they’re certainly not vector.

Text should all be vectorized in the original document. If you install the included font you can modify it to your heart’s content.

I don’t remember why I added a number to the Caspian Sea. I never did get to play the game much at the time so I probably thought that it was an oversight that there was no number there, and it didn’t occur to me that you couldn’t go there.

If you have any other questions I’ll be glad to provide information as I recall it. This was 8 years ago after all!

[vodot]

@ambilzi said in A&A 1940 Customization Photoshop Files:

I don’t know what it’s called where the printing process produces those faint, round “pixels” that I remember seeing in color comics in the newspaper when I was young

This is called a “Raster” image!

Thanks for the archive!

[CWO Marc]

The pre-digital printing technique that was originally used in comic books (among other applications) is called halftone printing, or halftoning; raster imaging is its digital equivalent. Roy Lichtenstein once painted a giant comic strip panel titled Whaam!, and I think Andy Warhol was also fond of producing oversized images in which the halftone dotting effect was magnified.