Dray's Art Thread

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Dray's Art Thread

#1 Post by dracothrope »

If you have a moment, I was wondering if I could get some input from the forum in the form of rating the following characters from most interesting to least, based on some quick concept art and personality blurbs!

As a quick disclaimer, the art below ain't quite representative of how I envisage the final product. I'm still hacking through the visual concept stage, so things are rough. I'm fairly happy with the characters themselves, and would be perfectly content to start in on refining each of them in turn, but I'm hoping to use a show of interest to better direct where to start!

The game I'm working on is a world exploration that I'm sort of fondly denouncing as a 'whimsical fantasy alien poly dating game', which is to say that I'm mostly just enjoying playing with Ren'Py and branching stories! I have basic plots for each of these sketched out and want to know which one (or two, or more) characters people would hypothetically be more interested to see more of. The protagonist (not pictured below as yet!) is roughly just as not-quite human looking as the rest of these characters, and identifies as a tomboy sort of female (with, visually at least, a more girly facade.)

Alternately, if they all sound lame, then let me know why! I'm really happy to have constructive criticism -- there's tonnes I haven't solidified yet and if someone brings up a good point, that just makes the end product that much stronger, right? :D

Anyways, on to the poll!

Image
From left to right: Serilac, Tonvah, Tonnaw and Provilak.

1) Serilac
Image
Serilac is fond of philosophical pursuits and performances -- she loves to talk and to draw others into conversations, often trying to suss out a deeper meaning from life. She can sometimes be something of a diva, being mildly competitive and willing to put herself out there in order to win, but ultimately she is not so selfish that she won't back down for the sake of a friend or a partner. She's a staunch supporter of those she feels are worth her effort, and likes to express her affection by showering a beau with appreciation. Serilac tends to strive for the upper hand in a debate but finds those who are quick enough to outmanoeuvre her as worthy opponents. Physically, she has the ability to sublimate from her physical form to a gaseous one and back again, and to do a little in the way of rearranging her physical appearance, though she's comfortable with herself and doesn't use this ability for cosmetic experimentation all too often.

2) Tonvah
Image
Tonvah is competitive and, when he feels challenged, can become quite asinine, however he injects an enthusiasm for life that few can match. He can be and usually is smooth, noting the attitudes of those around him and playfully manipulating others to suit his mood. To be fair, his sense of humour is dry but not usually meant to draw blood, so to speak. He will test those around him to determine whether they're worthy of his respect, and usually treats those who are worthy of affection as being a cut above most people, treating them accordingly. He's a physically active person who can sometimes be difficult to keep up with, but does his best to reward those who put in the effort. He feels that sometimes the mere act of continuously challenging friends or partners is what defines metamorphosis into a better way of being.

3) Tonnaw
Image
Tonnaw is just old enough to have settled from the nomadic, celebratory and sometimes rash lifestyle of his culture into a more localized lifestyle, often arranging said celebrations and offering advice to those who need it. He's extremely generous and adores making those around him happy -- he sees most opportunities to lighten someone else's load as a pleasure. He has a few small issues that he's hoping to have put behind him by settling down, and tends to look the other way if people take advantage of his kindness. Mostly, he tries to avoid conflict, and he has enough experience under his belt to know when to stand his ground. While he has a nigh upon encyclopedic knowledge of the best food and drink from planting to putting on the table, he seems to be knowledgeable in some topics that one might not have expected, but it takes a lot of conversation to bring those to light.

4) Provilak
Image
Of the four characters, Provilak is probably the most difficult to get along with; she is observant, quiet, and rarely lets down the hood which covers her face. She mostly keeps to herself, keeping focused on whatever task she deems the most important at the time. Largely she spends her time doing research, and seems to be able to grasp concepts that others would not think to link together. Provilak, under her cold and calculating exterior... is not wholly different when it comes to personal matters. She believes firmly in autonomy of the spirit, but perhaps at a clash with that, she strongly believes that there are those who want to be led in life, and that those who seek her out are agreeing to put their lives in her hands. She is far from murderous, but she can be difficult to gauge because she wants absolute control over interactions with those who aren't rebuffed by first impressions. She has a sadistic streak, but this is limited largely to physical experiences, as she is not wholly interested in meddling with relationships that fall outside of her direct sphere of influence. Provilak has a similar, wispy hair-do to Serliac, however this is not due to a gentle, ongoing sublimation. Provilak, like her people, possesses a fine layer of smouldering skin beneath her carapace that often realeases steam and a touch of smoke at the major hinges of her body. Because the spikes atop her head create so many grooves and cracks, this steam is far more prominent there.

Anyways, if you have a moment to list most interest -> least, that's all I really ask. Thanks so much for your input! I appreciate it!
Last edited by dracothrope on Fri Jun 08, 2012 7:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Dray's Art Thread -- Quick Interest Poll?

#2 Post by Auro-Cyanide »

I really love the alien designs, they are quite creative and the skill within them is good :D This is something I want to experiment with one day, to see how far you can push from the human form and still have the being be appealing.

Anyway, appealing from most to least:

Physical:
Provilak
Serilac
Tonvah
Tonnaw

Personality:
Provilak
Tonnaw
Serilac
Tonvah

I felt the need to separate them because while I might like the design of one, I might not have liked their personality as much. Though that of course could change after seeing how they actually interact. My one critique is that the names are quite similar, especially Provilak/Serilac and Tonvah/Tonnaw. It seems like they have similar naming structures, which would be unlikely if they are from different species. Mass Effect did this quite well by giving each species a specific way of naming so that you could almost tell what species someone was by their name. It was also a way of mixing in the lore of the game, such as how the Quarians have the name of their ship attached to their name.
Last edited by Auro-Cyanide on Sat May 19, 2012 10:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Dray's Art Thread -- Quick Interest Poll?

#3 Post by dracothrope »

That's something that I will keep in mind! Thanks for splitting things up -- I think that I'll have fun trying to balance that mixture between what a person is looking at and what they're reading while playing, and it seems like quite a challenge!

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Re: Dray's Art Thread -- Quick Interest Poll?

#4 Post by Mink »

I'm going to steal Auro's idea and separate it like she did:

Physical
  • Tonvah
  • Serilac
  • Provilak
  • Tonnaw
Personality
  • Serilac
  • Provilak
  • Tonvah
  • Tonnaw
Uh...maybe Tonnaw sounds like a bit of a doormat to me? That's probably why I put him last; he sounds like a really nice person, but it seems like to a fault (though as far as I know that's the point). On the other hand, I do like all the designs. I'm kind of like, "Holy crap, aliens that look alien!" I mean, they're humanoid, but seeing aliens that look identical to humans immediately breaks my suspension of disbelief.
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Re: Dray's Art Thread -- Quick Interest Poll?

#5 Post by dracothrope »

Thanks for the input, Mink! I was a bit hurried, trying to get the writeup side of things done. I'll better consider how I want to portray Tonnaw. He's more the kind of character that tries to diffuse situations and looks for an out that doesn't involve violence or even bickering, if things come down to it -- he's such a big dude that he could probably squash most of his competition without meaning to, so he's spent a long time cultivating patience... sort of! Muchly appreciate your comment, though!

Auro, I dunno if this is too outdated, but I was fishing for some characters to draw in thanks for your comment (Mink, I'll get to you in a bit! I'm just juggling loads of stuff so I can't promise anything spectacular right now. XD) and I found the LP of RisAmo. I really enjoyed yours and Camille's work! You guys rock! So I drew a picture of a couple of characters. I know it's pretty scratchy, but it's the least I could do. ^^;
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Re: Dray's Art Thread -- Quick Interest Poll?

#6 Post by Auro-Cyanide »

Whaaaa~ Thank you, I really love it! ^o^ They look so like them hahaha.

Personally I like Tonnaw's personality. I have a big soft spot for softies, especially if the main character is slightly more combative. With personality you will probably find that people will swing each which way. Everyone just has different personal tastes and it's not really possible to keep up with that. One person might find one character totally boring, and another will find them really interesting. The best you can do is to have a varied cast full of fullfilling characters. As long as the personalities are developed and rounded out with faults and positives, you should find that people will relate to at least one character in your cast ^_^

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Re: Dray's Art Thread -- Quick Interest Poll?

#7 Post by Obscura »

OMG Dracothorpe, your aliens are cool and I really, REALLY love the way you draw humans. J'adore!
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Re: Dray's Art Thread -- Quick Interest Poll?

#8 Post by Mink »

^^Yeah, this might just be a personal preference sort of thing. I like nice characters, but on a certain level I tend to go for ones that sound like they're just as sarcastic as I am. Though to be fair, I don't expect to really know a character from a blurb, so I could play a game with him and he could turn out to be my favorite.
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Re: Dray's Art Thread -- Quick Interest Poll?

#9 Post by dracothrope »

I know how that goes! Hopefully in a couple of months I'll have a working script with some sprites that I can present to editors for a better idea of what I'm going for!

For helping me out in picking paths to begin on, I drew you an image of a character from one of your old games... brace yourself! XD
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Re: Dray's Art Thread -- Quick Interest Poll?

#10 Post by Mink »

I look forward to that, because when I looked at this thread, I was like, "DAT ART."

Also, that image of Susan made me LOL so hard. 8D Thank you~
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Re: Dray's Art Thread -- Quick Interest Poll?

#11 Post by Reikun »

First of all, I love your art *U* The colors and lines (or lack of lines) is really amazing! So my thoughts on the poll:

Physical:

Provilak
Tonvah
Tonnah
Serilac (ahh ;___; she's beautiful, but I wouldn't say she's as 'interesting' in the context of the other designs)

Personality:

Provilak
Tonvah
Serilac
Tonnaw

What does Provilak do if the steam comes out of her head while she's wearing her hood? Does she take it off or just let the steam escape through the fabric? :0 Or does the steam get trapped?
I liked everyone's blurbs and portraits! I wish Tonnaw's was a bit more unique sounding though. Right now he sounds like a typical peacekeeper/pacifist type character. I just think the way it's currently worded makes it sound like there isn't much room for conflict or development for him (unless he's supposed to be a static character).
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Re: Dray's Art Thread -- Quick Interest Poll?

#12 Post by dracothrope »

Ah, thanks so much, Reikun! ^_^ In response to your questions, Provi's cloak is meant to provide some re-circulation of transpired steam, which means that it breathes through the inner layer to wick it from her body, then it gets caught, filtered, and stored for later. Similar to Dune's Freemen, her origin hosts a variety of environmental extremes in terms of temperature (and other forces, but that's for later) so catching water and heat and storing them for later are a large part of her culture.

Hmm, I think I understand where you're coming from with Tonnaw! I've dropped the same poll in another location that's not as familiar with VN's and people seem to be picking him more frequently, so I wonder if I just need to be more considerate of how to word him around here? I think he still has some room for growth, but he is more mature and has already dealt with a lot of the more dramatic issues that are often the realm of teens/twenty-somethings. I'll do s'more writing and come back with something that is hopefully helpful!

Thanks again for the input!

I've been working on the protagonist for a bit, and have a few sets of faces and the like settled! X3

Image

Apologies for the cheesy background; just had to put something there for the gif not to be horrendously pixelated!

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Re: Dray's Art Thread

#13 Post by dracothrope »

Hey folks! Here are three sprites that I'm currently working on, sort of for height comparison. (Two more yet to draw up!)

Image

I'm also working on a faux Let's Play of my game starting here as I develop more of the basic assets required. :3 I think it's been a lot of fun to get a consensus of where to go next with people as they read along and I continue working... it's very encouraging for a newbie!

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Re: Dray's Art Thread

#14 Post by dracothrope »

A background WIP! To be fair, I haven't done one of these in forever, so I'm still puzzling out how lighting/shadow/points of focus are going to work. It's fun but very challenging!

Image

(I'll be adding colour once I've ensured that I have the values down properly!)

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