Man, every time you guys debate this deck.. it gets bumped to the top.

This deck does not deserve all the bumping, just let it die.. please.

Any serious card collector will stay away from this crap, and any novice card collector should just follow our lead.  If these pitiful projects get funded, it will just bring more of these horrible decks to fruition.
And, all the discussion these decks get, makes these """designers""" feel important because they are getting attention.  If people ignore these decks, they will go away.

This will be my last post in this thread... I encourage you to follow my lead.

CBJ

I agree, this thread needs some moderation as it has derailed from the deck itself and has become a boxing match between people. Either leave the comments strictly relating to the deck the thread was originally posted about, or make a new thread with the new line of discussion.

Alright. It's time again for another "Matt's Review" on yet another, deck that... well let's just say, this thing needs help. Like, no-joke-level help...

Here we go...

Right off the bat, you don't need Photoshop or ImageReady to tell that the back design fails the radial symmetry test. It failed the test pretty hard core too:


I've taken some time to piece apart the deck box's design and branding approach:


1. Not enough spacing between focal points and box folding points:
- Left margin of "Poker Size".
- Right margin of "Limited Edition".
- Left and right margins of "Mystic" logo, star bursts and "Techno Edition" on box front.
- Micro text and company branding on box bottom.
2. Various areas where typography is not aligned with similar elements:
- "Made in USA" is not vertically centered or on the same line as "Air Cushion Finish".
- "United States Playing Card Company" is not vertically aligned or provided room for breathing.
3. Three fonts are being used in the design of the box. One for "Mystic" and generic copy, one for the Gaff, and an additional font for the "Techno Edition". I didn't count the 4th since it's part of the company's "brand" (if that's what could be considered a brand, anyhow)
4. The "xXx" imagery does not follow any kind of symmetry, not vertically, nor horizonatally
5. The deck is branded as two different types of editions, one says "Limited" the other says "Techno" which is it?
6. The deck name branding is terribly off balance and leans heavily to the left since only one capital letter was used. No additional typography was performed upon the letters to make them unique from simply entering the text into a text layer in Photoshop.
7. The legibility of the font being used for the body-copy on the back has poor distance visibility and is also low contrast. Too much happening behind the text, and the text is too close to being the same color as the surrounding area.

General Personal Qualms with the design:
1. The "Crosshatch 4" brush from the "Assorted Brushes" Photoshop brush group was used as a primary graphic element. A brush is just as bad, if not worse than using clip art for a primary design feature.
2. The color is terrible and not at all printable. The nearest matching swatch is 51% less saturated and 37% less bright. The color turns out to be a grayish-purple. The color is also not exactly what I would call "unisex".
3. The odd pixel-art approach to design prototyping is never a good idea since what we see on screen is less than a third of the number of pixels that USPCC puts into 1 inch of paper.

With that being said, this deck does not even receive a grade in my book. I will continue to believe this was an "Ecstacy-laced beer induced MS Paint design session while thinking about playing cards". Just does not fly.

Welcome to the Discourse!
I've seen several posts from you regarding the TCA. In a neutral standing, I find your words somewhat amusing.
Love the art works too! Maybe you could get some designs done and help out in the Discourse deck!

I'll be honest, that was a bad day. I probably could have handled that original critique with a little more finesse. Which I will continue to hold myself to in the future. As I said before, nobody is without redemption. If TCA turns around and starts producing quality stuff, I'll acknowledge it. It was mainly about their claims about having "the world's best deck". Had to stroke the reality check on that one. I think a lot of people felt the same, unfortunately.

Thanks for the kind words about my work! Hopefully I'll be able to get back into doing more artwork soon, as I'm currently stuck designing and building websites for a living :/. Oh, well, puts food on the table and a roof over it .

Hey Mate,

Just checked out your website and you have some really nice work! What sparked your interest in joining a Playing Card community like ours?

I'm actually the roommate for one of the card artists already here and I've been wanting to do a deck for a while now (just haven't had the time, maybe that will change in the future ) He suggested I join and participate when possible.

Welcome aboard! I am an enthusiast of fantasy art and you have some amazing work in your portfolio.

Thank you kindly, sir! Much appreciated!

It's clearly a cannon mounted on a tricycle firing an eyeball jester with a sinister presence overseeing the whole process... DUH!

This guy has to be a troll. What he is doing is a clever satire on the industry proving to us that certain people will buy even the most vile junk in the world if it's simply marketed as the greatest treasure.

100% this.

I provided critique on the Queen of Clubs on the facebook thread, I'll repost it here for preservation since they like to remove ANYTHING that may be construed as being "negative" or "unprofessional", something I personally feel they are very experienced in performing themselves.

As quoted from facebook:

Some friendly critique this time i suppose, no meme-level picture...
1. There is a spade in the center of her gown.
2. The barb wire in the background seems very out of place.
3. The light weight on the hands seems a bit flimsy, needs thickening (has better anatomy this time).
4. The gown over all seems empty. Possibly could be due to the over exaggerated pose.
5. Idealistically, the amount of red in this card would lead me to believe its a red queen and not a black queen.
6. The guns seem really out of place with the traditional appeal courts. You may try re-approaching this idea.
7. The rose is a nice touch but seems weak comparative to the rest of the piece. Maybe incorporate the barbed wire with the roses since they both have "thorns".

Now that's just the amount of changes that I think would make it acceptable as a first draft, or rough concept, and does nothing to provide any unique or outstanding appeal to the deck. The appeal is so traditional yet skewed and guns poorly pasted in that it just looks like a rush job. Even putting creative license off the table, there is no artistry here. These cards will not pass for "custom high end" as they suggest they are on their facebook page.

That's not me being cruel, that's me being a critical consumer reviewing a yet-to-be-released product.

So for those of you that missed out on the fairly lengthy session that was just held over the tubes of the interwebs on that place with all the faces and books, here's the recap in all of it's glory. I've left last names out for privacy reasons. I've only left names in where appropriate.

The-Con-Artist.com
You asked for it, you got it! Personally the suicide king is killer, but this is a WIKID design as well. With the standard concept of original court cards, blended with a modern twist and new age look and feel. The King of Spades is not the court card with the full reveal of the projects name, but everyone gave it a good try. The name is actually hidden within the Queen of Hearts gown. So when you get your pack, be on the look out for all the hidden details and sayings as they might just lead you to something amazing!~TCAC

Moony
Wow. Looks very nice. Can't wait to get my hands on the deck ;P

Matthew Lee Keith
WTF... This thing keeps sliding off the wall. Need better glue!
http://matthewleekeith.com/random/ytbn_deck_theconartist.png

Robert
Hey, Con Artist, I hope your not paying for this art because my 6 year old son and 3 year old daughter are even laughing. They might be willing to pull out there markers and give you a hand with this if you ask nicely. LMFAO

Nathan
Wow. Ridiculous design.

Cody
I think the criticism that has come out is overlooking the fact that this is much larger than the actual cards, which will minimize most of matts criticisms.... I think the blue is the only that will really stand and some line weights.... I...See More

Cody
I did notice the card wasn't symetrical, the upside down gun touches the line while the rightside up shotgun does not.... I kind of like this, while I think others will get bent about that too.

Shane Carter
I also think its funny that the people posting the negative stuff is actually Lance Millers friends. Hmmmm his deck looks an awful lot like an iPhone settings button, but who am I to judge?

Lance T. Miller
Shane, many people that are my friends are here because of my supporting The-Con-Artist when it was just a name. It therefore, is completely possible that many of my "Facebook Friends" do not see eye to eye with you on your design. Does that mean you should pull shots with me? I think you may want to re-consider.

Cody
I love lance miller's design, and I found this page because of his liking it.... I don't hate this design either.

Matthew Lee Keith
Actually the iphone Settings button looks nothing like what lance designed other than the fact that it's a similar object. Next!
http://markystar.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/tumblr_lp46bj5z071qhuqgx.jpg

Robert
Shane, it has nothing to do with anyone knowing Lance T. Miller. It does have a lot to do with your inability to deal with your traffic & work seriously. I honestly doubt any of you guys have taken a look in the mirror and asked “yes I ca...See More

Stephen
Who ate all the pies?

Matthew Lee Keith
I'd also like to address the "friends of Lance" comment. I call bullshit on that because this is a COMMUNITY. Anyone worth the time of day knows each other. Lance has many friends because he's worked for those friends and gained those frien...See More

Cody
I may have missed all the hoopla, but to be fair Matt there is a right way to offer criticism to others... I mean obviously this deck has a few flaws but if I were as knowledgeable and skilled as you I would have gone about it in a more constructive way.... Not sure if there was already some bad blood... just saying...

Cody
But I personally was offended by the Lance Miller comment because his decks are amazing, and I think anyone who looks into starting a new custom deck should have the ability to appreciate those who have done so successfully.

Jay
i am sorry to interject but if lance miller decks have grown to make a following the way the have then good for them i think it is sad that most of you guys are downgrading the fact that they have proved to u all that they have stuff in the ...See More

Mike
This is horrible...just my opinion...I'm not buying these at all lol..."Worlds best deck of cards!"? I disagree, lmfao

Matthew Lee Keith
I've been watching like a hawk for a first look at art from this deck since TCAC claimed it would be better than the Actuators. I was the one who won the contest for coming up with the name for the Actuators deck, and I've been very interes...See More

Lance T. Miller
Jay, you bring up a very valid point. When my Gargoyles first hit the community scene, they were trashed and ill-regarded. Instead of lashing out at possible culprits, I thanked the community for it's feedback and went back to the drawing board. I have had many people tear up my design work and try to make me feel like crap. It's how you deal with criticism that counts.

Shane Carter
Lance it just looks weird that all the negative comments come from people saying they are good friends of yours. I myself have followed you from day 1. I feel most of the comments here are unjust and meant to hurt your possible competition and weird right after they posted it you said you can't stop laughing...really you support TCAC or is your ego that large?

Robert
Jay? You say lets let the deck speak for its self? Well thats what this is all about. They posted a court card and its hardly been given the time it deserves. Read everything and stop being bias.

Cody
I agree 100% with you matt... you just could have been a little more constructive with the offering...

Lance T. Miller
Wow bro, I was laughing at the youtube videos I was watching, go look at my thread. If you have a bad conscience because of it, that's yours to deal with bro.

Lance T. Miller
P.S. to Cody, Matt doesn't hold back. He does that to my designs all the time. He is one of my most go-to guys when I think I've done something viable. He tears it down, breaks it apart, and hands it back to me. That's the type of dude he is.

Matthew Lee Keith
In all seriousness, as brash as it may have been, I gave my review the same amount of time I felt that had been given to the design of the card.
Please take my suggestions seriously. Make the changes and repost. I have no problem stating that improvements are made and that the new version is better. Just do the work :)

Cody
I can dig that matt... I would agree 100% if the designer takes your criticism to heart and makes the changes this deck would be phenomenal... and I suppose I was trying to spare some feelings, but I know its not personal.... I am just the kind of guy that tries to avoid creating conflicts that aren't needed

Matthew Lee Keith
It's true, I did offer Lance the same level of criticism. If you can separate yourself from the design and not take it personally, you could benefit from this greatly.
I've trained my eye to find and scrutinize important details. If I really wanted to be an asshold, I could have done far worse, trust me.

Lance T. Miller
asshole*

Matthew Lee Keith
...

Matthew Lee Keith
So much for that "scrutinize important details" bit... Gawldammut!

Cody
but I like the carbon fiber...... fits the theme more than the font.

Elsewhere in the tubes this appeared on Lance's Deck page on facebook. Now to be fair, the post was made from a company page that did not link to the actual The-Con-Artist.com page on facebook, this one was clearly made for this post alone, as when the post was made from this account it said the page was created 10 minutes prior. I'll let the public scrutinize over what that means and I'll provide no bias in either direction other than provide the words that were written...

Real Page:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Con-ArtistCom/330147213678457

Page That Made The Posts:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Con-ArtistCom/352348668145023

The-Con-Artist.Com
FUCK YOU LANCE T MILLER! YOU WILL GET YOURS! JUST WAIT, OUR CARDS WILL PUT YOU OUT IN THE COLD AND ALL YOU WILL HAVE IS US TO FALL BACK ON! BITCH! FUCK YOU AND YOUR FAN BASE!

Matthew Lee Keith
Wow... So this was really professional. Forget it. Don't take my help. You've damned yourself and anyone associated with the TCAC name. Good luck with your future endeavors TCAC. You'll need it, because without professionalism, you've got nothing else.

The-Con-Artist.Com
FUCK YOU

So, that's been pretty much the highlights of tonight, I'll return you to your regularly scheduled forum threads. Adieu!

I'd like to better clearly review this here, so a rather lengthy edit is in order...

MATT’S REVIEW
“Yet to Be Named” Deck from The-Con-Artist.com

A: Borrowed original court linework from USPC, slapped new mouth and an eye patch over it without keeping line weight consistent.

B: Carbon fiber isn’t viable as garment material. Creative license aside, it would not even look like carbon fiber being printed at this scale.

C: The trigger guard is not a solid object. Why don’t we see blue showing through?

D: Borrowed original court linework from USPC, and slapped some vienna sausages on the other side as a poor attempt at hand anatomy. Oh yeah, either the hand is backwards or he has spaghetti elbows.

E: The most wobbly circular object to date.

F: Clip art doesn’t make you an artist. This shotgun is so poorly rendered I can’t even determine a starting point for critique.

G: Borrowed original court linework from USPC, KING OF HEARTS. Whoops, probably just an oversight.

H: The king seems to be a fan of hot dogs and has spilled mustard upon his vestments!

I and J were skipped for the lolz.

K: The font has no place in this slap-hazzard design. Just because you have used an “elegant” font in your design, does not make it elegant.

Here's the graphical representation of the critique.