Character Redesigns

[Cortez]

The design of a character is obviously has no relevance to the gameplay whatsoever, but in this industry franchises tend to undergo drastic makeovers rather frequently, sometimes even to the point where characters only barely resemble their former selves.

I don't really understand the need for this though, I can appreciate that a change in style can create shock value and raise interest in an upcoming game and if a franchise has been revived after a long period of time I can understand developers wanting to give the characters a more modem look.

But when we get redesigns as drastic as the modern Spyro for example I can't help but FUCKS SAKE at the entire concept, if the original design was so popular why change it so much? Fair enough take a franchise in a different direction but surely that can be accomplished without changing the cast entirely? I mean come on, even Pokemon Colloseum managed to convey a darker tone without changing the characters completely!

What are your thoughts on character redesigns?

[Johnny Boy]

I really don't mind character designs, mainly because I'm a guy that's more focused on gameplay. But there have been extremely rare occasions where I get turned off by character designs *cough*Spyro*cough*.

[-Mark-]

But when we get redesigns as drastic as the modern Spyro for example I can't help but FUCKS SAKE at the entire concept, if the original design was so popular why change it so much?

To be honest, I think in those cases it's very much for the sake of your aforementioned shock value in order to draw attention. Franchises like Spyro and Crash Bandicoot are generally seen as playing second fiddle to major players like Sonic and Mario, and they're very much past their prime and arguably circling the drain of 'third rate'.

New looks grab attention which these franchises usually need. You can usually tell when a redesign is done purely as a desperate means for attention, because they tend to be universally poorly-received. Whilst his has generally been more successful, you could even accuse Sonic of doing it for those reasons back in 1998- whilst he was no doubt a cult icon in the early 90s, 1995-1997 were definitely some dark years for the hedgehog, and the new look was almost certainly a means of getting public attention.

Personally, it's hard to have an overall opinion on them. Sonic is the only key franchise I follow that's ever had a character design overhaul like this. But then, I'm fine with Modern Sonic. The only thing that bugs me is that as of Generations they honestly expect us to believe/ accept that Classic Sonic became Modern Sonic. Sorry, I'm not buying it. D:

[JezMM]

The design of a character is obviously has no relevance to the gameplay whatsoever

This statement couldn't be more wrong, and is in fact the exact reason characters tend to get redesigned.

Why did they redo Sonic's model for Sonic Adventure 2 so it would be more slick and streamlined in comparison to Sonic Adventure 1? Because the gameplay was more slick and streamlined.

[turbojet]

I don't care what anybody says. Megaman Zero Zero over Megaman X Zero. I mean how can people like this

over this?

[Salamander]

Are these the sorts of character redesigns where any casual fan can't actually see any difference at all?

[speedfreak]

I don't care what anybody says. Megaman Zero Zero over Megaman X Zero. I mean how can people like this

over this?

Because I grew up with the original and the new one looks like he has a life jacket and a diaper on. I much prefer the bulky Megaman X art style.

[Meemz]

Megaman X Zero is the best and you're just jealouuus. ;.;

But to address the topic, it's quite important for a character to get a redesign every now and then. It's like music. You either evolve and change or you get washed away into the past.

Now should it be one as drastic as Spyro's? It has a lot to do with the audience they're aiming at and what they want to get across. I'm pretty sure they're not aiming at older fans in any way, so there's no need to stick with the old design.

I much prefer small changes in design though. Drastic changes take some time to get used to, especially if the previous one was so lovable to begin with.

Edited January 7, 2012 by Mimi

[buba]

I don't care what anybody says. Megaman Zero Zero over Megaman X Zero. I mean how can people like this

over this?

Well, Megaman Zero Zero his way much more anime looking, at least to me.

Not that it is a bad thing, I just don't like very anime looking characters.

Edited January 7, 2012 by Tmsp

[LunarEdge]

I don't care what anybody says. Megaman Zero Zero over Megaman X Zero. I mean how can people like this

over this?

I don't want to turn this into a "Which is better, X Zero or Zero Zero" discussion, but I like both designs to be honest. I'm actually baffled as to how Zero Zero turned into that from X Zero lol. I happen to think that later iterations of the X Zero character design are really cool, such as the MvC3 Zero model.

Personally, I like character redesigns here and there. In my opinion, it gives the character/franchise "new life," if that makes any sense. For example, the aforementioned X Zero and Zero Zero. I think Zero's design in MMZ fits the "new" (or what was new) generation a nice feel with a nice new, fresh look.

[Senator NinjaShark]

Since we're on the Topic of Zero

How would this Look? I find it a Nice Balance between the X look and the Zero Look Personally and would've Liked seeing that since it Eliminates the Problem I have with Both designs (as in the Clunky look of X!Zero and the rather Barebones look of the Z!Zero)

anyway, as for the Topic at Hand,I like Redesigns when they're done Properly. I Love seeing a Old, well known Character in a new, Updated Look. Thing is, said Redsigns should always keep the Impression of who the Character is intended to be, and by Far not too Drastic (I'm looking at you, Spyro and Bomberman Act Zero) but I agree that Smaller changes, like the addition of some Extra Features ala Crash are much rather appreciated for my tastes.

Edited January 7, 2012 by Mr. NinjaShark

[lounge]

The worst redesigns I've ever seen are Spyro, Tom (Toonami), and Banjo and Kazooie. Redesigns that make characters ugly or take away that special something the original designs had.

Even Peach. The way she looked in Melee and Brawl and even 64 was fantastic. Then when I saw her in Sunshine, UGH! Really derpy face and overly cross eyed.

Adult Link's model in Ocarina of Time 3DS just bothers me. I don't care how many more polygons the new model has, it doesn't have that special something the original has.

The New Adventures of Batman and Robin...

Oh and Fox's new look in Command, which they used in Brawl

[Danj86]

I don't mind redesigns as long as they stay true to the original. Like Sonic. I've never had any problems with modern Sonic's look. Although I also hated Crash and Spyro's new looks.

I'd like to think I'm more open minded then - ...hm?

Wait! I know what's coming next!! Please don't!!!

Gaaahhh!!! My eyes!! It burns!!!

...must...remedy....!!

...aahhh...much better...

[buba]

I don't mind redesigns as long as they stay true to the original. Like Sonic. I've never had any problems with modern Sonic's look. Although I also hated Crash and Spyro's new looks.

I'd like to think I'm more open minded then - ...hm?

Wait! I know what's coming next!! Please don't!!!

Gaaahhh!!! My eyes!! It burns!!!

...must...remedy....!!

...aahhh...much better...

He changed his hair color because everybody keep asking him why is hair is white in Marvel vs Capcom 3.

[LunarEdge]

This statement couldn't be more wrong, and is in fact the exact reason characters tend to get redesigned.

Why did they redo Sonic's model for Sonic Adventure 2 so it would be more slick and streamlined in comparison to Sonic Adventure 1? Because the gameplay was more slick and streamlined.

IMO that doesn't really matter. Even with SA1's Sonic model, SA2 could have still played the same. I understand what you mean, but when it comes down to it, the design of the character doesn't affect core game play.

[krazystitch]

(Spoiler tags are just big pictures put in there to keep this post from being too huge or anything. I use a couple of cartoon characters as examples here, but it should basically be the same thing here.)

I'm fine with character redesigns for the most part. Sometimes you have those small changes where you can still identify the character, there's just a couple new things about them, kind of like they've done with Sonic or Mickey Mouse.

Edited January 7, 2012 by krazystitch

[Dobkeratops]

Well, a bunch of the characters mentioned are that way because technical limitations influenced the creative process. The redesigns could be what they were originally intended to. Most of the time it's a marketing decision or the result of some dumbass adding his own fanfic to the canon.

On a completely unrelated note, glad that someone got notDante out of the way!

Since we're on the Topic of Zero

[i'm not quoting a giant picture, thanks]

How would this Look? I find it a Nice Balance between the X look and the Zero Look Personally and would've Liked seeing that since it Eliminates the Problem I have with Both designs (as in the Clunky look of X!Zero and the rather Barebones look of the Z!Zero)

Edited January 7, 2012 by Dobkeratops

[JezMM]

IMO that doesn't really matter. Even with SA1's Sonic model, SA2 could have still played the same. I understand what you mean, but when it comes down to it, the design of the character doesn't affect core game play.

[Nepenthe]

I think we can at least all agree that Rayman got a hell of a lot better-looking over the years. Seriously, look at that Muppet freak on the left compared to the handsome bastard on the right. Mmm:

PS: Buy Rayman Origins if you haven't already.

As for character redesigns, they're like any other facet of franchise adaptation such as gameplay or story changes: Regardless of whether or not it was done for no discernible reason, it only bothers me if I find something to be wrong after the fact.

[buba]

I think we can at least all agree that Rayman got a hell of a lot better-looking over the years. Seriously, look at that Muppet freak on the left compared to the handsome bastard on the right.

As for character redesigns, they're like any other facet of franchise adaptation such as gameplay or story changes: Regardless of whether or not it was done for no discernible reason, it only bothers me if I find something to be wrong after the fact.

I liked all the designs for Rayman except the one from Rayman 2, from some angles he looks like an old man.

His in game model is alright but the artwork is ugly as hell, mostly in the 3DS version covers.

Edited January 7, 2012 by Tmsp

[Nepenthe]

The earliest Rayman design I hated. It looked very amateurish, but I do agree he got better with the sequels, and to me this improvement ultimately culminated in Origins. I even like that one design you posted. He doesn't look old there! Though I guess it's the somewhat bald forehead and eye ridges giving that impression. xP

[Mega]

I used to think Rayman's hair was a pair of ears... But yeah, his Rayman 1 and 2 designs just don't hold a candle to this:

I guess he just looks cooler these days to me. :|a

That said, I like redesigns that are subtle or for the better. Sometimes you do have to change a look for marketing purposes. Spyro is a very bad example of doing it for that reason. But there's been worse...

I like these designs. They're charming and could easily be tweaked just barely for HD consoles. What did they do?

They ruined them. Completely ruined them by making them look so... ugly. +_+

[Sean]

Rayman's designs felt more like typical art evolution; the only details I find (on inspection, not at a glance) different are the eyes. He does look better these days, but you can tell they didn't go out of their way to give him a drastic overhaul.

What I don't like are redesigns that have absolutely no good reason for being there. It is one thing to change a character's appearance to make them fit in a new setting, which is what Arkham Asylum did great, and I love what they did with Harley Quinn. And then they went ahead and ruined her for Arkham City. And... why? It's not only unnecessary and makes her look absolutely nothing like Harley Quinn, but it's just plain terrible in every way.

At least Zero in MMZ looked like himself - you can look at him and think, "Oh yeah, that's him." I can't say the same for characters like Dante. And then we have designs like Banjo and Kazooie, who only resemble their original incarnations the same way a patchwork mannequin does.

[Octarine]

They ruined them. Completely ruined them by making them look so... ugly. +_+

From the perspective of someone who's never played a Banjo-Kazooie game in my life... uh, I actually like the redesigns a lot better. HD Banjo has a bit of a douchey Dreamworks look to him, I guess, but it doesn't look nearly as bad to me as the original's awkward giant-eyed derpface. Both Kazooies look fine to me.

Like, I get why people have a problem with Spyro and Dante's redesigns despite not being all that familiar with either of their series, but I honestly have no idea what the issue here is.

[Mega]

For me it's just how boxy their faces are, how feminine Kazooie looks, and just how... creepy Banjo's face looks, I guess? The eyes bother me.

Too me there's just something unsettling about him. And Kazooie looking so feminine is both unnecessary and clashes with her personality.

EDIT:

Here's another example of Banjo looking creepy.

Also a nice pic of the old Kazooie for comparison's sake:

Edited January 7, 2012 by Mega