Been a while, huh?

Hi there old (and new) folks, welcome back to another exciting moment in my life. This time, I'm happy to bring lots of good news. First one and most important is that I'm feeling quite happy lately after doing lots of changes (waaaaaaay less social media, making more friends, and embracing the things I love more often without worrying about "becoming famous"). Things are going quite well, and while the goals I'm setting for myself are hard to achieve in this day and age, I'll take my time enjoying the journey rather than speedrunning towards it like I used to do a lot.

Therapy is also being quite useful as per usual, so if you ever feel like nothing works try getting in contact with an expert. World's pretty much a mess sure, but improving things in oneself can create ripple effects on others even if we don't believe it. Go out and touch more grass kids, you'll feel happier in the long run.

Oh and as you might have noticed, my art has been leaning more towards comics than games, and it has a reason: I love comics. Well, I used to, but American style comics and graphic novels in general haven't been that popular in Spain for the most part. And it's quite a shame, as I'm understanding the importance and relevance of this media more as I grow older. Well there's that and also the fact that you actually have a physical thing in your hands when you buy it and you can enjoy it at its fullest without worrying about your Internet connection going south or the company that sold you the comic deciding that you can no longer play because the servers are down.

But also yay funny pages and pretty colors!

My love for games has faded, that much is true. Not out of hatred towards developers and creative people in general (they deserve WAY more praise that we give them), but towards the feeling of giving up and not fighting against them with our wallets. The claim "support indies!" can do so much when you still have people playing safe rather than risking putting money into something that might be ok for them. But comics? Which would you rather get: an $80 game that took a thousand years to make only to get a "meh" and close and entire studio or a $5 comic that in case you don't like it you can just go to something else without feeling you just wasted half your salary on it?

Sure, they are different entertainment channels with different approaches, but comics still provide to me something that games sadly have moved away from: ownership. I open up a comic and I feel invested in the colors, the story, the characters from the very beginning (and I can even learn who's doing what without having to go to the end of the issue, credits are on the first page!). But when I purchase a game sure, I can get the feeling that I'm playing something amazing or remarkable even, but end of the day I don't get to own them. I need to install them, update them, and even have to pay extra if I want to play something that requires friends outside of PC.

I love comics, and I love games. But lately I've been feeling more and more distant from games. There are titles that blew my mind like Clair Obscur Expedition 33 sure, but those are anomalies in this current times filled with safe bets and 0 risk. Even some indies have turned into "remember this game from your childhood? Yeah here's something pretty much similar to it, but it doesn't really go beyond that". And of course I'm not stupid, I know comics have been around with the same characters and the same stories since the days of old, but at least with them I get to see different takes on characters by different people. Frank Miller's Daredevil is not the same one as Noceti, or Waid, or Zdarsky, and that's great and awesome and I love it! The Martian Manhunter of today with the Absolute run is miles away from what the original looked and felt like back in the 50s in terms of story, characters, and visual storytelling and THAT'S the power of comics. If I play the new Assassin's Creed it will look prettier, sound prettier and feel better, but I'll be doing the exact same things I did back in 2009.

This rant might sound like both paths converge in the same points, and that comics and games are not that different when I put them like that.

They are not.

Games and comics are entertainment, and end of the day extremes are stupid. I'm not going to stop supporting the games I enjoy made by the people I like, and I'm not going to become a Marvel/DC shill and deny everything they make is flawless either. But with this I just wanted to showcase my thoughts as of late, and that the bright flame of loving games with a passion has rekindled an old flame: comics.

Change is good. Change is bad. Change can be both, and that's why it's important to take the step and try things. Things you loved, things you hated, things you don't know if you will like. But try, just try.

Anyway, all of that just to say I love Daredevil, damn

Have a nice one,

-Ray

Hey y'all,

Good news, bad news and so-so news. Good news first: got a new job as a teacher again (guess old habits die hard), which means money is back in the menu (don't eat money). I've also been practicing daily for so long that I'm finally in a place in which I'm comfortable drawing stuff that requires more of a challenge in terms of color and composition.

Bad news: I have lost all motivation to keep on working on games. I only get rejections upon rejections from the studios I try to apply to and that takes a hit on morale. And let's be honest: I have zero interest in finishing stuff I'm not happy with that I'm doing out of fun. I love games with all my being, but I also know that turning them into a job will make me hate them.

So-so news: I got sick but I'm kinda better now. Oh and I'll be updating Rosario next month again, so look forward for it (and I'll make some digital comic shorts after it to completely transition to digital art, so yayyy)

current picture of myself while writing this:

Take care and have a nice week,

-Ray

Hi there ya'll!

2025

-Ray

Hey y'all,

Happy 2025 everyone! Last year was rough, but this one I'm trying my best to make some important changes. I'm currently working on both physical and digital game projects. Commissions via PM and through my website as well as Ko-fi donation will be kept open for anyone who wants to support me.

Enjoy January!

-Ray

ko-fi.com/thegorondorf

rayfrutos.portfoliobox.net

Hey ya'll,

Been a while huh? I've been studying art a lot these past months as well as working on a thing or two for a game (not paid, but at least keeps the mind busy). Fall is coming very slow with no income whatsoever, and things are really not that better in the job searching department. If you enjoy what I create and what I do, make sure to show the support via KoFi or by getting a commission (I've updated to digital art now, so if you don't like squares I can draw more than that now!).

Right now I'm aiming for a $150 goal to get the insurance for the trip to the US, so if you can spare the money I'll be really grateful (and draw more pieces for everyone too, I don't enjoy taking without giving back).

If you are looking for a pixel artist for your next project, you can browse my portfolio and write me an email.

That's pretty much it. I can't share the things I'm working on at the moment but the demo will be coming out on Newgrounds really soon. I put lots of effort into the sprites so I hope people enjoy them moving around in the game.

And that's pretty much it. Stay safe and have a nice one,

-Ray

Hey everyone,

Hope you enjoyed the sunny break. I for one did, even if it things are still rough in terms of finding a job (companies asking you to have at least 6 years working for NASA in order to put cans of paint on a damn shelf is so much fun you guys!). At least I can happily say that I've improved a ton on my pixel art skills! But sadly, without any income whatsoever I'm going to have to put every single project I have working on at the moment on hiatus. That's Baldomero's Ballad, Ravioli Eastern and some other small stuff like Rosario, a short comic I've been working on.

I'm really not one to ask for aid unless I need it, but right now social growth and commissions would help a lot. If you have the money to spare and you want some pixels of anything you enjoy, do please contact me via MD, support me using Ko-Fi or check my works through my website. And if you don't have the bucks to spare, liking my posts both here and over Bluesky (Twitter is completely death in terms of views for me) helps a lot too.

I'm sorry for anyone who was eager to see bigger stuff from me, but without constant income that's how things go around in the world. I'll be posting small things like the usual ones but that's about it until things get better.

Have a nice month,

-Ray

Hey y'all,

Good ol' job seeking is still at a stalemate and this heatwave is not helping at all in terms of letting me focus on game making, so I'm opening commissions yet again until I can find something else>

Not much else to add, summer blows.

Have a nice week,

-Ray

Hi y'all!

Wanted to showcase some sprites from Ravioli Eastern while the weather allows it:

ENEMIES

Canner Gang

Jarnice

Meaty Mike

PETER ENNET

And those are some of the main baddies you'll find while playing Ravioli Eastern. If the sun doesn't melt my bones I'll add more.

Enjoy the rest of the week,

-Ray

Hey everyone,

This past week was rough. I'm not giving any details about it, so I'll just focus on the present for now.

Due to the massive heatwave, work on Ravioli Eastern has been slow, REALLY slow. It has also been tough to figure out what I really want to do with the game mechanics and were I want to aim the game at. For now, I made some new enemies and a logo. I won't show the enemies yet, but you can check the different logo versions:

I'm also going to start translating that thing I worked on for a contest earlier this year, so I'll post it here once I'm done doing that.

Enjoy the week,

-Ray

Hi y'all!

Hope summer is not kicking you in the rear as hard as here in Spain. Before the Ravioli Eastern showcase, some updates:

• It Says To Wait flopped big and flopped hard, and I honestly was expecting it. Experimental stuff is usually something people are not eager to waste time on if the basis is not good enough to begin with, but I honestly enjoy doing these types of games more than the usual "you've seen this stuff before but now the pixel art is different/prettier". I'm very tired of playing the same stuff and creating things just to get views or likes from people I'll never met. I want to make games I enjoy creating as well as playing, that won't change anytime soon.

• Baldomero's Ballad development is in hiatus for one simple reason: I want this game to be something I want to play and pour as many hours as I put on the original Castlevania. That means lots of trial and error, lots of studying level design, and lots of time I'm not getting paid one single dime for. I'll take my time with it.

• Commissions are still open until the end of July. If you want to support me feel free to ask via MD. You can check prices here.

• My partner's Kickstarter needs a boost in order to reach the goal, and I can assure you she's breaking her back to put lots of quality into the pins' manufacturing process. Back the project, you won't regret it!

And that's pretty much it in terms of updates. Here's a showcase of Ravioli Eastern as promised:

This will be an action platformer-ish game in which you only play using the WASD keys and NOT for movement. You are Peter Ennet, outlaw and gunslinger. You'll have to make your way across various stages fighting against the members of the Canbell's Gang.

And as per usual, some Q&A:

How long will the game be?

Longer than my previous titles but not by a lot, it will be level based after all.

Will it be part of the Figure It Out genre?

No, I actually want people to play this one.

When will you release it?

Probably by the end of summer if things go well. If not, by the end of the year.

Will it be hard?

I'll try to make it challenging like my other games, but I won't make any promises.

And that's it for this week. Hope you have a good weekend and stay cool,

-Ray