Overwatch/Destiny style character: Whip and Shield progress thread
polycounter lvl 6
Hey Polycount!
I'll be using this space to chronicle my progress on this project over the next few weeks. The end goal is to have a UE4-ready character along the vein of Overwatch or Destiny. My initial design idea is a character who utilizes a whip as a way to initiate combat along with a shield that retracts from an arm plate. The character will be female with a regal look, pose, and silhouette. I'd like her to be mostly cyborg with bits of anatomy showing, likely a species of another planet; something like Kerrigan from Starcraft mixed with cyborg parts.
So far I've only started playing with the general silhouette and some value patterns. Undecided on how much anatomy/skin I want showing and how I can sell the organic parts so they don't get lost in all the hard surface.
Any and all feedback is greatly appreciated!
I'll be using this space to chronicle my progress on this project over the next few weeks. The end goal is to have a UE4-ready character along the vein of Overwatch or Destiny. My initial design idea is a character who utilizes a whip as a way to initiate combat along with a shield that retracts from an arm plate. The character will be female with a regal look, pose, and silhouette. I'd like her to be mostly cyborg with bits of anatomy showing, likely a species of another planet; something like Kerrigan from Starcraft mixed with cyborg parts.
So far I've only started playing with the general silhouette and some value patterns. Undecided on how much anatomy/skin I want showing and how I can sell the organic parts so they don't get lost in all the hard surface.
Any and all feedback is greatly appreciated!
Replies
A few quick thoughts on the design in its current iteration:
• Is the underlying anatomy human, robotic, alien? (Some combination of the three?) I think making some concrete decisions at this point will help guide the design of the armor and give the design a believable sense of functionality and structure.
• It seems like some insect-like elements want to emerge. Is this something you're planning? I think pulling in some elements from nature can be helpful in guiding the shape language of a design like this. It doesn't necessarily need to be as overt as 'PRAYING MANTIS LADY', but can be a good reference point for creating shape repetition.
Looking forward to seeing this develop!
@jStins Hey man! Good to hear from ya. I've decided I want to go in the direction of Overwatch. Primarily because I want her to be more stylized and have that added bit of exaggeration. With that in mind, she'll be an 'Omnic' like Zenyatta, Orisa, and Bastion. Overall I'd like her to have something of a regal look and pose, like she is some kind of royalty among Omnics. Good note on the insect-bit, I hadn't specifically considered that, but her helmet design in A and C kind of have that praying mantis look. I'll see what else I can take from that.
Thanks for the feedback!
C has that circle-target-hipbone symbol thing on the outer thigh and we don't see anything mirroring that anywhere else. C has that triangular pope-hat shape thing that we also don't see anywhere else. We also don't see anything similar to the upper arm pistons anywhere else, except maybe on the back of the knees? For that reason to me, C is a bit confusing aesthetically as well as practically - what is it made of, what type of creature is it?
I like B because of the repeating lighter-colored stripes with the thin curved lines in it. Also B is the only one in which she has a defined face area. A and C are just big head shapes with no space for a face.
I like the chunky bevels of A, at the top of the forearms and the top of the thighs and the top of the lower legs. That helps define the forms even in a small thumbnail.
It looks weird to me that you picked various construction elements and put them in different places on the different versions. A has that wire/cable looking thing connecting upper arm and lower arm, B and C have it connecting calf with ankle. Keeping multiple similar elements in one design give it a feeling of cohesion and help the viewer understand the functionality and background story of how it was created and what it is.
Also this is perhaps simply a personal preference, but shoulder pads are logistically difficult to implement. In most games I see where characters have big shoulders, the shoulders clip into their face/torso/etc when they raise their arms. Stereotypically, wide shoulders looks masculine, and triangle shapes look evil (Think Jafar from Aladdin, ZigZag from Thief and the Cobbler, Shao Kahn from Mortal Kombat - his shoulder pads weren't triangular but they had triangular spikes on them). Giving a female robot insect thing giant triangles at her shoulders seems to not fit the motif. Personally I just think they're kind of ugly.
Also why a cape? Capes obscure view of the character from the back. Are you going to animate this in a manner that the cape accentuates the movement? Again like shoulder pads, capes are usually functionally impractical, usually just implement in a design to look cool. But in this case it doesn't seem to me to fit the character's aesthetic.
I think overall you've made me realize I'm not focusing on creating a cohesive design, bur rather have been implementing shapes individually. There are elements in each one I like, but I don't like any of the 3 standing alone. She's a droid, so she doesn't have to completely retain human elements (like the head). I agree about C, and quite frankly the only shapes I really like are the thighs and helmet.
I intend to keep those bevels you've mentioned in A in the final design. A common detail on Overwatch characters. There are a couple smaller elements I like, and I'll see if I can implement them together.
As for the shoulder pads, I don't like any of them I've done so far, and I think it's for the very reason you've mentioned. I need to find a shape that compliments the rest of her forms, rather than just jut outwards for the sake of being big and obnoxious.
The cape is a tough one. I agree about it obstructing view of the character. What I do like about it is the more regal look and how it wraps over the shoulders, giving her a bit more of a sturdy look. I'll play around with other potential elements I can use instead to retain that look.
Thanks again! This will go a long way in helping me.
Was considering dropping the whip and shield, possibly for a 2 handed sword. Or just going all out on the whip.
The other character can benefit from the learning curve that you hit with this one.