Roughs
Here are a few sheets with unfinished redesigns. The character proportions and head scale are about the same as in the Xexyz stuff.
X-Com
Rygar
Metroid
As for X-Com, I think I'm going to have to revisit my Rebel Squad project and revise the designs. I think these kind of proportions with more curves is more dynamic, and I've changed my mind about real time vs turn based. One of X-Com's biggest strengths is character development, and in a turn based game you can maximize the player's exposure to the characters. I think, even if you design a real time system with multiple monitoring windows (for scattered characters), the player will have a constant nagging feeling of having to be everywhere at the same time with his eyes. It's not enjoyable to constantly be reminded that you might be missing important action pertaining to your characters. Being able to effectively deliver tasty little bits for the player to build his game spanning macro story with takes priority.
As for the cute cartoon style, I don't believe it would make the game less scary or involving. Horror is mostly music and build-up. Benny Hill music will make almost anything funny, and if you just walk into a grimdark scary movie it's not scary at all because you missed the build-up.
14 comments:
Pretty cool! :)
pretty nice designs sir, I dig the rygar designs very much! keep up the great work
Responding to your last paragraph, I think instead that a cartoony look CAN ruin a scary game. Colour does his part, I'm sure you know it already.
I don't know about that. 'It' (the movie) still scares me and it's about kids and a colorful clown making jolly sounds, in broad daylight too. Then there's Chucky of course. I think some animé can be emotionally engaging. The images are irrelevant to some degree, because what scares us is the situations that the characters are in, and music. Dwarf Fortress doesn't even have graphics, nor does books, and they can be very emotionally engaging.
Also, shiny eyes, pointy teeth, black slimy bodies have become kind of blasé due to grimdark overexposure. Maybe we do get scared by alien things, but grimdark is no longer alien, it's just some designer playing the 'cool' cards. Cards which we've probably already seen by now, at least if you're my age... although, I might be damaged by my profession.
I agree. Cartoony characters can be scary if the atmosphere is well set with music, sounds and situations.
I played UFO when it was not XCom ... graphic was not so special, if I remember well, it was not animated too much, but the music was always scaring me. Even with turns, I was afraid and I was looking around with care ...
Me Personally, i liked the old style characters you had for the xcom team.
I liked the style of most if not all of your artwork specially with the concept Arty feel and thought if you managed to translate that ingame it would make for a most appealing visually game.
But, i still find the concept of your game to be most interesting, being that i am quite the fan of rebelstar and x-com.
I love your Metroid designs. Such great proportions on Samus and the creatures!
I too preferred the older designs you had for your x-com characters,I find the newer ones less dramatic /unique,
I agree with you on keeping it turn based, otherwise you'll always be trying to watch all your men at once which would ruin the immersion,unless you went wego like laser squad nemesis or the combat mission games, but avoid pausamatic like the UFo games from Altar as that is almost worse then real time.
Oh how I long for a decent remake of the original xcom. I've even been writing down my own ideas for additional features to improve the game for a good while. D: shame there hasn't been a fully playable remake so far.
Love the X-Com designs. For god's sake, don't make me become attached to my squad. Their trans-Foreign Legion 80% casualty rate on early missions would be heartbreaking.
Though I did think that game accurately modeled the standard horror movie "Lone Survivor" trope. Back in the day it never occurred to me to overload my dudes to build strength and have them randomly shoot things to build accuracy, so my squaddies spent a long time being terribad.
I love you artwork. I'm glad I stumbled upon your website when I was searching for a lobsterman image.
I have these UFO: Trilogy games, X-com clones and one of the things I think that really takes away from teh original game is the 3d art. I think a lot of games would benefit from using more traditional 2d artwork. X-com 1+2 for all their datedness have more character than these UFO games and your designs are no different (see Metal Slug for rich sprites).
Would love to see a new sprite-based Xcom-style game.
Ahhh, these X-Com chibis look just great. :)
why am i not playing on of these games? I'd pay anything to play an HD x-com remake that looks like this. Instead we got that FPS coming up... :-(
Good job and nice pictures. Can I use image of x-com soldier and muton for my web-site? Thank you.
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