This should help speed up the process.

...no guarantees, but until I have an official level-select menu, this'll do.

Two screenshots.

When you don't know about copyright laws when it comes to fonts, you either take a chance, or make your own.

Of course, in the world of sprite art, that doesn't leave many options.

First you draw parts, then program a rig for animation.

I need to work on the "What does this guy actually do" part.

Does anyone want sprite fonts? Here's a starter pack.

Good luck assembling it, and modify it any way you want.

Despite anything resembling better judgment, and this not going into any demos, I decided to implement a swinging mechanic.

I got it working. You can control the swing (loosely), and can stretch and retract the arm. It even adds a bit of momentum.

As a writer, you learn to just make stuff up. As a science-fiction writer, you justify the stuff you just make up.

"Derma" is related to "skin", and "myo" is related to "myoelectric prosthesis".

Why, yes, programming an elephant IS hard. Making its eyes blue is a lot easier, but I'm not doing that.

I also had to make sure it's a robot elephant, specifically, because this is a robot circus, and it's unethical to use real elephants.

What a bunch of clowns.

Possible default protagonists, Charlie (guy with hat) and Bonnie (girl with dress). Using a similar palette, because I can.

I would alter the faces, but I like appeal, and without the pixel-noses, they'd look like chibis at that size.