Decided to re-create something from my childhood. (With some compromises, e.g. not being able to find or create the same character, some textures etc.) It's the cover art from one of the gamebook adventure games that I loved playing. If anyone is old enough to have played those back in the days, feel free to leave a comment.
This is my initial test render. I have been postponing this project for many many months, and it's time to force myself to complete it. Definitely need to tweak the camera a bit, and I need to study lighting as I have no idea what I'm doing in that department... And I'm working on a short animation sequence as well.
Sources:
Ninjato Sword is from CGTrader:
Ninjato PBR freeNinja character is from Mixamo.
You nailed the feel of the old adventure type game somehow. Tenchu came to my mind, an old PS1 game. Also the old NES Ninja Gaiden game. Looks cool. Try getting some shadows in there, right now it is evenly lit and that takes away depth.
Thanks for your comment, Omar. Yeah, it does share a lot of the style from those games. I believe the book adventure game was created in the 1980's. And you're right about the flat lighting. I've been trying to replicate the painted cover art from the book in a 3D environment. I guess I need to experiment more and not be afraid to deviate from the original.