AuthorTopic: Critique Needed - Legendary Character!  (Read 4960 times)

Offline TheUnknownVar

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Critique Needed - Legendary Character!

on: September 06, 2015, 12:21:37 am
Hello everyone,
I wish to develop a character that is overall pleasing to avid pixel lovers, so to do so I would love all the advice this place has to offer!
This character will begin being animated for a game I am developing once I have input from everyone in the community here... hopefully it will be refined to a legend by the time I get some serious help with it. Not that my pixel art will ever be that impressive... just the advice I get for it! ;)

Below is my current prototype:

Offline Joe

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Re: Critique Needed - Legendary Character!

Reply #1 on: September 06, 2015, 12:58:45 am
Hey, welcome.

What kind of character are you going for? What kind of game?

The lighting doesn't match the form in some areas. If that's a mask maybe it should be joined in the middle.
Quick edit:

Offline TheUnknownVar

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Re: Critique Needed - Legendary Character!

Reply #2 on: September 06, 2015, 01:04:05 am
A character for a massive metroidvania/adventure... and actually it's not a mask! It's a marking on his skin... and no it's not blood or anything strange.
Also, thanks for your input on the lighting, it is greatly appreciated!

Offline TheUnknownVar

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Re: Critique Needed - Legendary Character!

Reply #3 on: September 06, 2015, 01:05:43 am
I wanted to mention I like some of the lighting, but not entirely.
Thanks again for the input.

Offline Decroded

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Re: Critique Needed - Legendary Character!

Reply #4 on: September 06, 2015, 06:44:59 am
not enough info.

Offline TheUnknownVar

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Re: Critique Needed - Legendary Character!

Reply #5 on: September 06, 2015, 11:44:38 am
What else would you like to know about it?
(I apologize, I am not trying to be vague in my post or responses.)
« Last Edit: September 07, 2015, 02:10:00 pm by TheUnknownVar »

Offline TheUnknownVar

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Re: Critique Needed - Legendary Character!

Reply #6 on: September 07, 2015, 04:02:53 pm
Update based upon the first critique I received:

Offline Cyangmou

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Re: Critique Needed - Legendary Character!

Reply #7 on: September 07, 2015, 04:20:59 pm
have you considered the background the char will be displayed on?
If the character is dark, you might not want to use him on dark backgrounds.
But since it's sideview and not topdown, you will run in several dark backgrounds where you hardly can cheat with colors, like caves, dark interior rooms and nightscenes.
"Because the beauty of the human body is that it hasn't a single muscle which doesn't serve its purpose; that there's not a line wasted; that every detail of it fits one idea, the idea of a man and the life of a man."

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Offline TheUnknownVar

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Re: Critique Needed - Legendary Character!

Reply #8 on: September 07, 2015, 04:39:03 pm
The character will not be used in dark backgrounds, due to the fact that eventually he will have an entirely different costume.
(Throughout the game the character will evolve in skill and appearance... so for his current introductory form he will never be in too dark of places.)
Also, even if I were to change the color I am mainly concerned with the overall shading and appearance, regardless of color.

Just wanted to say thanks for posting though, because I really should think more about how to contrast him with his surroundings!

Offline Drazelic

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Re: Critique Needed - Legendary Character!

Reply #9 on: September 07, 2015, 06:34:26 pm
Would you like to tell us anything about this character???

Is he a kid, a teenager, or an adult? Is he bleeding from the eyes constantly or tattooed or wearing weird glasses or what? What is the context of the game in which he'll appear- is it a fantasy world? Horror? Sci-fi? Does he have a name? What distinguishes him as a person? What's his personality? Does he have powers or anything? What are you trying to convey to the player with the character design? What makes him 'legendary'? Why should we care about him?

Like, right now as far as I can tell, your 'legendary character!' is just a random guy in a black tracksuit. His design is literally the most generic everyman ever, with the exception of the red rings around his eyes. Maybe he's a businessman? The red tie would fit with that, I guess?

That's what Decroded means by 'not enough information'.

Offline TheUnknownVar

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Re: Critique Needed - Legendary Character!

Reply #10 on: September 07, 2015, 07:34:04 pm
OK... I get the point. (Thanks for clarifying Drazelic)

The character is a teenager in a fantasy world who will eventually go by the name Kibo. At first he has no name because he knows nothing about himself whatsoever. He awakens alone on a small island floating above a nearly desolate canyon. Basically the red around his eyes (and the red stripe in his hair) are markings that define him as an outcast. Once in the canyon below he finds a primitive clan of people who do not even know what writing is... and yet he knows how to read and write. His markings among other things cause him to stand out severely to anyone. To the people, these markings mean he is cursed by the god they serve... (This WILL be shown as false) Once he has gotten to know the few people that are there, he soon learns that no one has ever actually left the canyon. Everyone lives simply, content with their position, firmly believing everything their "god" tells them.

Kibo goes on a quest to escape the canyon, and he does. From there he finds other "Sectors" based upon various time periods the earth has once undergone. Traveling through a world of magic and mystery that transcends time, he will discover reality, in itself is a lie. Throughout the whole adventure he obtains weapons and skills from nearly every time period, all in the pursuit of the truth.

The game will be called "Timeless".
(This is just the introduction, if I say much more I'm pretty sure it would spoil the entire plot)

Yes, his clothing is supposed to be generic in the modern world... that suit will not be in the game long! His clothing will have five different stages, each one representing a group of different eras he has passed through. What makes him legendary is this: He is just like anyone else (normal, no special powers), but unlike everyone else, he is not willing to go along with the "truth" everyone pushes. He relentlessly pursues the question "Why is he here?".
Also, as you can imagine he collects weapons galore and saves the world.

Really it is all complicated and hard to explain, but it will make sense if I ever finish the game... so for now: Yah, he should look pretty normal.

Offline TheUnknownVar

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Re: Critique Needed - Legendary Character!

Reply #11 on: September 07, 2015, 07:37:01 pm
Oh, and it's not a red tie... it is like a red outlining around a small zipper, or whatever.
Part of why I would love as much input from this place as possible is so I can realize what my project looks like to other people.
Thanks for the input thus far everyone.