Gamer
Designer
Writer
Graduated High School with a diploma in Computer Science and Maths. Hold a degree in BA Games Design and Art from University of Southampton, part of the Russel Group.
Present-day passions include writing stories and learning about environmental creation.
Characters: A Design Framework
Dead Link
From Concept to Final Artwork: 17 Steps to An Outstanding Character Design
by Niki
Niki is an illustrator for the game Victus, which is a MMO created by the indie studio of the same name. He goes through the process that he takes when designing the characters for the game.
Character Design and Process
Character Design is shown to be like storytelling. To design proper characters, it is best to create their story first. It goes along the lines of why do they look like this, what do they like and hate, what do they do for a living, what have they done in the past. The steps are the following:
The Brief – a short phrase that describes what the character is doing
The Characteristics – a list of words and features that are associated with the image of the character
Research and Inspiration – visual research is done by using mood boards, that use images that are similar to the features needed, afterwards noting the distinctive features or feelings
Raw Sketches – based on the visual references some rough sketches are drawn, similar to the references, or recreated or maybe a bit modified
Finding Directions – a filtering of the sketches is done, in order to try and find a certain direction that is desired
Pursuing the direction – the chosen character is then drawn, analysed and redrawn until close to a desired look
Drawing the pose – the process is similar to the previous, where a number of them is drawn, analysed and then chosen, depending on what the character should transmit
Structure and anatomy – the next step is made of choosing and creating the desired anatomy
Designing the outfit – it is the same process, by using mood boards, and selecting some for the design of it
Early sketch of the character – the early sketch of the character is created, using the outfit selection, pose and face
Repeat – the same process of creation followed until now is used for whatever other characters may appear in the scene
Drawing the weapons – same process of mood board, selection of an interesting weapon and drawing it in the scene
Interesting not always works – it is about selecting an appropriate weapon in order to transmit the desired story
Testing the silhouettes – if they are interesting and distinctive enough so will the characters
Now the details – the next step is to focus on adding details
Adding specific details – for whatever details are wanted, the process of mood boards is used in order to get the feeling for the desired one
Shading – the last step is to add shading after colouring the scene
Notes
This process seems very straightforward and easy to follow when designing characters. It is a helpful guide to create a workflow and consistency in artwork.
Character Design Tips
20 top character design tips
by Jon Burgerman
Jon Burgerman is a New York City based artist, born in the United Kingdom. When drawing he like to instigate improvisation and play. Most of his artwork is based on doodles, being one of the leaders of the ‘Doodle’ art style. In the article he shares some tips that he uses when designing characters.
Tips
Decide who the character is aimed at – the purpose is to know the audience, be it children, teens or adults, as each one sees the design differently
Decide where the character will appear – what medium the character uses is very important, since it modifies how detailed or simplistic the design will be (mediums: PC, mobile phones, tablets)
Research other designs – it is useful to analyse other designs in order to see what makes them successful and what makes them stand out
Make your character distinctive – in order for the character to be successful it need to be strong and interesting visually
Use line qualities and styles to describe your character – the thickness of the lines also help describing the characters, for example thick, soft, even and round lines can suggest an approachable character, while sharp, scratchy and uneven lines might suggest an insecure and erratic character
Use exaggerated characteristics – in this way viewers are able to identify the key qualities and defining features of the character
Chose colours carefully – as they help in communicating the characters personality, with bright colours used for heroes and dark ones usually used for evil ones
Add accessories – it is helpful in emphasising the traits and background of the characters as well as their personality
2D or 3D – knowing the way the character will be used is helpful, as for 3D characters, the way it looks from all angles would need to be considered, as well as the height, weight and physical shape of them
Give the character a personality – achievable through different poses and how it reacts to different situations, as well as the way it is drawn
Focus on facial expressions – by doing this, humanity is brought to the character, showcasing its personality
Give character goals and dreams – as making this will help the characters to be understood by the viewers, by showing their motivation that drives them through the stories and adventures they take part in
Build up a backstory – this could lead the viewers to become more interested in the characters, more than the adventures they are going through
Experiment – by experimenting and sometimes going out of the rules could create unexpected and exciting results
Make character designs flexible – as it makes it possible to transfer them to different mediums, such as paper and pen
Swap mouse for pen – in this way outside elements can influence the design of the art
Get feedback from others – in order to determine how well the characters, transmit the traits and emotions
Hone, plan and polish your design – in order to make the character more likeable and believable and how it could be expanded beyond its artwork
Create the right environment for the character – as it leads to the improvement of the believability of the character
Fine-tune your figure – as slight changes can lead to a totally different perception of the character
Notes
The rules are well thought out and share similarities with the previous article, starting to show a pattern in character design.
Out of Character
Out of Character: how to design good game characters
by Michel Sabbagh
Michel Sabbagh is a game writer/designer who works as a Quality Assurance Tester for Bethesda Softworks. His academic works brought him to the attention of game developers such as Monolith Productions. The article is talking about his viewpoint as to what makes characters interesting in video games and how they can be created.
Game characters are not just characters that are present in a game. They are also a part of the immersive agents, the elements that makes the player invest in the experience and makes them believe that it is more than just a game.
As such, first impression is always important, and most of the times that is created through the look of the character. That is why physical characteristics matter. If the character is tall and well-built he might be a brute that is not that intelligent, or if he is frail and thin, he might have poor health or might be faster than other ones. It is also important for enemies and bosses, as the looks must match its characteristics.
Another crucial point is the silhouettes. They must be distinctive enough to stand out against the environment as well as to make them recognizable by the players. The silhouettes can also give a good first insight into the gameplay characteristics and personalities of the characters.
Poses are also important when designing a character. They give depth to the character and makes their personality stand out. For example, a character that wields two revolvers gives the impression that he will shoot first before asking questions, or a character that is flexing his biceps and smiling might come off as confident. Therefore, an adequate pose can only add to the personality of the character that is being designed.
The next thing when talking about a character is his way of acting. Here, dialogue and voice play a key role in defining his personality. They tend to be the ones that decide whether the character is humoristic, evil or heroic. It is important to keep the dialogue consistent with his looks, otherwise it might fall short and make him unlikeable, killing immersion. The voice must also match the character, and a proper delivery of the lines, that match with the feelings and situation the character finds himself in, really pushes their design to the next level.
The last part of the design of a character is his actions. They are important in transmitting the way a character acts and feels, therefore they should usually match his overall personality. To be noted is the fact that they should not be over the top, as heroic characters are not always perfect, funny characters would know when is the right time to crack a joke, while tough characters rarely shout. This makes them more relatable and attachable.
One way of designing characters that are likeable and relatable is by following some of the given advice:
Make the character distinctive – achieved by having a unique trait which makes them stand out from other characters, defining their personality or appearance
Implement characteristics seamlessly and harmoniously – the way a character combines his different traits is what gives his personality shape and makes him likeable; it could be achieved by having various, but similar traits and by accentuating one of them can lead to an interesting result; on the other end an opposition of looks and personality is hard to achieve, but if done properly can become very intriguing and make the character stand out
Do not use stereotyping – the worst thing that can be done to a character is to make him a walking stereotype; this will make him look bland and might even destroy the immersion of the game
Do not use tokenism – it refers to the inclusion of a minority character just for the sake of inclusion; this is to be avoided, unless the said character has a well-developed personality and reason to be present in the game
Be creative and open to new ideas – this encourages the exploration of ideas in order to come up with characters that are individually different from one another, and characters that break the norm, becoming unique and becoming recognisable by the players
Vary characters for the sake of the game, not diversity – this means that characters should be well developed and differentiated from the other ones, that are not shallow and created just to fill a certain spot in the game
Notes
The article relies some logical information as to what concerns the creation of the character, as well as sharing some tips that can also be found in the previous articles.
Character Design Framework
The framework is based mainly on the 17 steps of the creation process, from the first article read for character design, adapted to fit within 10 steps.
Brief – a concise description of the character
Overview – words/features associated with the character
Research – mood boards that transmit the feeling of the character
Sketch – sketches inspired by the mood board
Direction – decision on one of the sketches from the previous step
Iteration – working through versions of a sketch to get close to one
Pose & Anatomy – setting the pose of the character and drawing the basic look
Outfit and Accessories – making the outfit and accessories through visual inspiration taken from a mood board
Silhouette and details – adding details upon checking the distinctiveness of the silhouette
Colour – adding the colours to the character
The above framework will work as a guide when creating the characters, however there are a few notes that I will consider while creating the character: the target audience will be mostly adults and teens (characters will be somewhat realistic in terms of looks), creating the backstory that matches with the character, include voice and dialogue samples to showcase personality, avoidance of stereotyping, careful selection of characters, to avoid tokenism.
The two frameworks that I created were based on several opinions of people working within the industry. The advice that I found allowed me to create the two methods of work which saved me time and allowed me to be more efficient.
I hope that these frameworks will be of help to somebody else, or at least the articles they are based off will allow more character and narrative designs for games to be born.