Posted 19 April 2010 - 12:27 PM
I am guessing these are following "Baraja"?
Being American, I don't know much about spanish playing cards, but in my research (wiki) I found a set of Spanish playing cards called Baraja.
I agree with Like an Angel, the second card looks bacterial/viral to me. Not trying to be funny, just my honest opinion.
From what I understand, instead of suits, the 4 cards are supposed to represent the 4 social classes from the middle ages. I like the direction of most of the cards.
As far as the design and workmanship, I think there a couple of things that may help. First, I would try scaling the art down a tad to bring the art away from the numbers a little. I would say maybe 80% to 90%?
Another thing that sticks out are the gradients. I would keep in mind your light source on some of the 3d objects and make sure that is consistent. I would lessen the intensity of the white in some of your gradients, maybe making it a really light version of the color you are overlapping to show highlights. This will assist in the realism of the appearance.
Cards 3 and 4 look excellent as far as form, but card 1 looks like it could use some help with the bulge part. I would play with the colors a little, especially the blue to make it more "Royal".
I realize designing a deck is no easy task, on I def. would probably have to REALLY be in the mood to take on, but cheers to you for taking on such a tedious task! I hope my suggestions are understandable and help you out.
Good luck! And keep up the good work!