Alright i'll make this fairly quick. I'd say today was a slow year for me, art-wise. Outside of collabs and doodles, I only drew 5 things this year. Crazy!! I know, right??

But to be honest, I'd say today was an amazing year for me as an artist, despite how little stuff I uploaded. As in those large gaps between art portal drawings, the improvements in them have been getting more and more noticeable, which I am happier about than anything else (WAY better than my old crap from 2024 and older). I think the best way to do this recap thing is to just list out everything I did this year on Newgrounds instead of doing it by the month, since I did so little.

January 9th, Lily and Aapi Drawing

So this was the first thing I made this year, just being of @aapiart's characters, Lily and Aapi (his persona). I used to hate this drawing, but now that I think about it. It was a big leap for me, especially in terms of background and rendering-wise (even though I really don't like the rendering on it). I also thought the fact that the background was based on a random place in Finland I got from Street View was cool.

March 22nd, The Maria Price Ref Sheet (The Threequel)

Ah, yes, my Magnum Opus, Maria Price. I like this one a bit more since I finally managed to lock what Maria would actually look like (Even then, I made some minor changes AFTER this was published, but I'm not making a fourth one.). I still think the hair is really good for what it is (It's still supposed to resemble dough). And yes, she still hates rats.

April 2nd, Morko's Sweet 18 Drawing

Since @mork0's birthday was a day before mine, I decided to draw this as a gift to him since he's cool. I had to get this out in like 2 days to make it in time for his birthday, or else I would be a TERRIBLE friend. For a drawing that was pretty rushed, I thought it was fairly decent. I did way better on the lighting than the Lily & Aapi Drawing, that's for sure, not to mention the expressions on Morko (the cat), which I really liked. Though I wish I could put more effort into Mika (the rabbit on the right).

April 5th, The Toybox Collab

Yep, that one collab by @whimiscal-wife. I thought it was a super sweet idea for a collab, only an idiot would pass this up. So I decided to turn my persona into a very unmarketable plushie. I love plushies, so this is an epic win for me.

blehhhhh

June 15th, Wayne Price Ref Sheet (The Pre-Sequel)

As part of my ever-expanding Mariaverse™, I gave Maria a younger brother, Wayne Price! Admittedly, I half-assed this one as I didn't draw a side-view; heck, I couldn't even be bothered to render it. I did want to make more reference sheets for more characters, which explains why I decided to half this one.

December 18th, Almighty Doodle Dump: Numero Uno

Time-traveling six months into the feature, I don't even know if I should count this as part of the recap, but I still made these, and I still published it on my profile, so screw it. I think most of them are really impressive, though. Expect a sequel soon.

December 27th, I draw Lily again 2 (Electric Boogaloo)

I draw @aapiart's Lily again for the love of the game. Despite my saying "I draw Lily again 2 (Electric Boogaloo)", this HAS to be my best work by FAR. So many aspects of this I'm proud of. ESPECIALLY the rendering and anatomy. This is also the first art portal drawing I made that is on Procreate, not on Krita (Both software are amazing, it's getting hard to choose which one is better 😅). Procreate brushes are a GODSEND and carry like 50% of the drawing. I definitely ended this year strong with such a massive improvement in drawing.

Other unrelated stuff

Today was also a big year for me, gaming-wise. As I finally hit 100 owned games on Steam (Jesus Christ.), which means I get a badge on my profile for everyone to see (The 100th game was OneShot, if any of you were wondering.)

In addition to that, My steam recap came in a while ago and showed me how much I dedicate my life to the Steam Platform.

(Did I mention I got REALLY hooked on Nuclear Throne this year? Thanks, @FunnyPlush08.)

Speaking of getting hooked, I got a TON of new games I'm pretty obsessed with this year. Some of these include...

• Hotline Miami
• Borderlands
• Nuclear Throne
• OMORI
• Enter The Gungeon
• Balatro

Some of these I played on Xbox instead of Steam, so you won't see them on my recap or on my Steam profile (Which you can see here!)

Special Thanks!

I've seen some people do this on their recaps (And have been mentioned in a couple, not to brag 😏). So here is a list of people I would like to thank from the bottom of my heart (In alphabetical order, I don't pick favorites).

@aapiarts - For being a good person and a great artist with great characters too, there's a reason why I draw them so much, y'know!

@broskullemoji - For being a funny (and sometimes unhinged) guy. I enjoy everything you make and love hearing about your OC's lore.

@Caniac77 - For helping me make Maria and also being full of life, I appreciate you a ton!

@cornflakesintestines - Also being a nice person and creating amazing art too, your art is way better than you think!

@CrimsonKero - Although I don't know you as much as other people do, you're still a cool person, and I love your art style!

@funnyplush08 - Thank you for always being a great person to talk with and being one of my favorite artists, too!

@GGishere - Thank you from the bottom of my heart for inviting me to that old NGR server where I met so many people. I don't know where I would be now if I hadn't clicked on that invite link. Keep doing what you are doing and always stay positive!

@GlitchBuddy - You're an amazing person to talk to with a ton of wit and charm! I always love hearing about your ideas and characters. We should definitely talk more!

@Hexamak - Thank you for being there for me since the start and since I first started using Newgrounds. You were one of my first online friends I ever made. I don't know where I would be now as an artist without your support. You will forever have my gratitude.

@mork0 - You're a funny ass guy, and I love all of your drawings! Always keep drawing, no matter what it is!

@NuTaka - Though I don't see you a ton (I know you're super busy), you still seem like a great guy!

@nebulate - You were such an amazing person to talk to. It sucks that you went on hiatus. I miss you a ton. ;(

@PachkaNG - From all the times we talked for hours, I cherished and appreciated every second of it. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for being such a sweet and amazing person. You inspired me to keep drawing and were always there, even for some of my lesser moments. You will also forever have my gratitude <333.

@Spaggo - You're a cool person with cool drawings on your belt, you should definitely draw more!

@SuperDeathMonarch - You're a great person with cool interests! Even from the times we worked on projects in the past (remember Cutlery Crusaders? Those were good times.)

@tberger - Even though I don't see you as much, you're still an amazing artist! I'd be lying if I said that your art didn't make me jealous at times (Not in a bad way, like the "making me want to improve my craft" type).

@TheShokBlok - I enjoy the times that you'd occasionally pop in. I also love all the (good) dumb little doodles you make of me and my characters occasionally. I hold dearly to those!

@Thetageist - You're a super cool person also! I enjoy seeing the stuff you make, and your ideas too!

Conclusion

Okay, I maaaay have lied when I said that I'll make this quick. Of course, thank you to the people listed above, all of my followers, and YOU, yes YOU 🫵! The person reading this!

What will happen next year in 2026? Well, that's a great question! I plan to draw a lot more and possibly dip my square-shaped toes into a couple of projects that I'm working on right now. Will they ever form into something meaningful that the whole world can see? That we will have to wait for.

Thanks for reading, and have a great New Year's!