Character Redesigns: Yay or Nay?

[Lyra]

May's eyes and bandana(?) seem very strange.

 

[Isaac Gravity]

It's a mixed bag for me.

The Aqua's re-imaging is awesome! Definitely making nudge more towards AS. The only one I'm slightly miffed about is Shelly as her design was plenty unique. The Magma's (sans the Grunts) however bother me. Yeah, I'm seeing the contrast between Team Aqua but...meh. Also gonna miss Courtney's dress slit...

Steven's looking as suave as ever with those cuffs only adding to his swag.

Brendan and May... I'm VERY happy they're both still in and (fairly) recognizable. Wouldn't be RS without them. While I DO like the fusion between the RS & E outfits (and think its clever that RE-Brendan and May both stand in their RS poses)...good god what have they done to Brendan? May's looking scrawnier as well and no bandanna seems strange. Granted to I DO like the white shorts over biker shorts to replace the skirt. The two look younger in comparison to the originals as well.

Their in-game models look oh so much better. Brendan really wins out there. Oddly, while it could be just me, his official art gives him a tan whereas his in-game model retains the skin tone he had back in the originals.

 

[ange]

Is it just me or does the protagonists get thinner and thinner each generation? I guess it could just be artist styles, but.. it does worry me a bit. May almost looks like a walking stick with those legs.

 

[LavenderTownGhost]

May looks very nice, I think. Very pretty. I don't know how I feel about Brendan. I feel that he looks......a lot younger?

Team Aqua looks boss. 'Nuff said.

 

[unShinyUmbreon]

I'm sort of so-so with the new art designs. First and foremost Brendan's new art isn't too bad, but I would change a few things. I would give him longer pants, or if not give him guy leggings/long pants to wear under his shorts, like he had in Emerald. I would also appreciate it if his white hat was a little less dramatic and his sideburns were slightly shorter. May's design is okay for the first part. They didn't completely butcher her, but I think she deserves her bandanna. Hopefully the clothing options will be available once again, along with the hair cut options.
All in all, Brendan and May's original art from Emerald will probably always be my favorite.



Steven's art work didn't change too drastically, so that's fine.
The enemies though, Magma and Aqua...I think they were better off as they were before...No other words on them. However, I do want to see what the gym leaders will look like, and the Elite Four.

 

[Agent 007 Squirtle]

I don't like how Brendan and May are wearing wetsuits. I know Hoenn is dominated by water, but what if you want to be a FIRE trainer or something like that? Would'nt it be kind of confusing to be a fire trainer wearing a wetsuit?

 

[IlluminationTheory]

I don't like how Brendan and May are wearing wetsuits. I know Hoenn is dominated by water, but what if you want to be a FIRE trainer or something like that? Would'nt it be kind of confusing to be a fire trainer wearing a wetsuit?

Naw, you're just sensible! Don't want to get those fire pokemon wet.

I'm sure there'll be some degree of customisation, anyway. I would hope for version-exclusive Aqua and Magma garb - as in, Aqua if you're facing Magma, Magma if you're facing Aqua, and maybe your opponents' clothes when they're defeated.

 

[The Outrage]

Visual storytelling is vital, though, all the moreso in a voiceless medium. The art asset tells you something about the character before they've said a word - I read a Hiker's dialogue in a different voice to a Lass's, it gives you something to pin them on. The Flare girls all looked like scientists with funny visors - they had different character models, but they were basically distinguished by their haircuts. [ETA: I had something about Xerosic being more memorable even before you've battled him, here, but figured it was an unfair comparison as he gets so much post-game attention.] Whether you're battling Tabitha or Matt, the screen is going to tell a different story. You'll remember them as different people. Having played Ruby and Emerald but not Sapphire, I'd formerly have had to Google Aqua Admin Matt. Not so, any more - he's intimidating, he's a bodybuilder, he's a buccaneer...

Pokemon may be a voiceless medium, but it is at no point devoid of dialogue (unless you're the PC). Are you telling me a book is less of a medium because it lacks a visual component? Furthermore, visual story telling extends beyond simple appearance, but also how an individual behaves (hence my criticism of judgments about Tabitha's design). Pokemon's entering an age of cut scenes, and even without that, the models are detailed enough for simple actions (we've seen N's 2D sprite flipping his hair during one of our encounters). Our visual cues are not static, so I don't know why we should judge their visual story telling based on static images. Going back to N, Cheren noted how he spoke faster than usual--this was shown in his dialogue when his text speed was always faster than the rest of the game's. In XY, we saw Lysandre cry. If we're going with visual story telling, why bother shoving old one-dimensional tropes when we can tell a much more interesting story based on how their actions and appearance interacts?

Let's hope battling Tabitha and Matt will tell a different story--they're different people. But you want to know why Aqua Admin Matt wasn't notable? Its not because of his appearance. Its because he literally appeared once in the game (in Emerald, twice in Sapphire), his team was exactly the same as the grunts, and his sprite is so generic its easy to miss. All a unique design will do, if his role is not expanded, is draw attention to how useless he was whereas we just tended to forget him. (and you'd have remembered Tabitha and Matt differently anyway since one looked like a generic Magma grunt and the other a generic Aqua grunt).

I don't like how Brendan and May are wearing wetsuits. I know Hoenn is dominated by water, but what if you want to be a FIRE trainer or something like that? Would'nt it be kind of confusing to be a fire trainer wearing a wetsuit?

It's "active wear" apparently. Nate was wearing a wet-suit under his clothes, which was kind of weird given that he did not live near a beach, Unova had very few water routes, and there was only one place to dive.

Their in-game models look oh so much better. Brendan really wins out there. Oddly, while it could be just me, his official art gives him a tan whereas his in-game model retains the skin tone he had back in the originals.

Other people noted the tan as well, which made me think we'd have better variation other than really pale and really dark. However, based on the in-game screen shots, I don't think GF's deviated from the two colour palettes they have for skin tone since Brendan's slight tan isn't translated into the game's promotional screen shots.

It's a shame really, considering that we have so many NPC's with varying shades of skin yet somehow we can't even palette swap that onto our characters. Its not like there was extra work to be done to create these colours.

 

[vulpix]

Hoenn Team Admin Courtney and Shelly redesigns. Yay or nay?

I don't especially like that they changed, but the new designs aren't bad to me. (Shelly's pants bother me though)

What do y'all think?

 

[Ivysaur]

Is it just me or does the protagonists get thinner and thinner each generation? I guess it could just be artist styles, but.. it does worry me a bit. May almost looks like a walking stick with those legs.

They don't even have knees lol. Forget about your first Pokemon, May needs to find a hamburger.

 

[Lyra]

A bit bummed of them taking away May's bandana. I hope we can customize the characters.

 

[Team Gaara]

Is it just me or does the protagonists get thinner and thinner each generation? I guess it could just be artist styles, but.. it does worry me a bit. May almost looks like a walking stick with those legs.

I honestly don't think so. The female protagonists have never really had that much meat on them. May's Emerald design looks thinner than her ORAS one.

 

[IlluminationTheory]

Pokemon may be a voiceless medium, but it is at no point devoid of dialogue (unless you're the PC). Are you telling me a book is less of a medium because it lacks a visual component? Furthermore, visual story telling extends beyond simple appearance, but also how an individual behaves (hence my criticism of judgments about Tabitha's design). Pokemon's entering an age of cut scenes, and even without that, the models are detailed enough for simple actions (we've seen N's 2D sprite flipping his hair during one of our encounters). Our visual cues are not static, so I don't know why we should judge their visual story telling based on static images. Going back to N, Cheren noted how he spoke faster than usual--this was shown in his dialogue when his text speed was always faster than the rest of the game's. In XY, we saw Lysandre cry. If we're going with visual story telling, why bother shoving old one-dimensional tropes when we can tell a much more interesting story based on how their actions and appearance interacts?

Let's hope battling Tabitha and Matt will tell a different story--they're different people. But you want to know why Aqua Admin Matt wasn't notable? Its not because of his appearance. Its because he literally appeared once in the game (in Emerald, twice in Sapphire), his team was exactly the same as the grunts, and his sprite is so generic its easy to miss. All a unique design will do, if his role is not expanded, is draw attention to how useless he was whereas we just tended to forget him. (and you'd have remembered Tabitha and Matt differently anyway since one looked like a generic Magma grunt and the other a generic Aqua grunt).

I regret that I've probably not been making myself clear, because you seem to be arguing with me without saying anything I disagree with! I'm not saying "These visuals are everything the characters will be," or "Books are an inferior medium because they don't have a visual component," I'm not sure where you're getting that, but it's just the thing where you can put the same words in two different actors' mouths and they'll find different ways of saying it - and in the absence of a body or a VO, the art (not just the Sugimori art - the model, static picture, everything) provides context. It becomes the performer - all I've said is the redesigns are neat and help tell a visual story! I've not said they're the only thing that tell the story, because I agree, that would be a really weird assertion.

 

[Alola]

Wow. I leave for one second and come back to a hostility battle regarding overweight people….

That aside, I’m very pleased with everyone’s input, whether it’s a comment or a poll entry or both! As for me, this is what I think of the present redesigns we have now:

Brendan

Overall it isn’t bad. I do really like how they went with a cross between his R/S and E outfits. However, I feel as if there is way too much black. Hoenn has a tropical and warm climate and out of all colors, black absorbs heat the most/greatest…so that bugs me. If his shorts were a shade of green, yellow or white (or a combination of those colors), his outfit would look much better. I don’t mind the tight shirt-most of the male player character default clothing is form fitting. His facial expression is clearly homage to his R/S one, however it looks goofier. But I like that, as it really conveys his youth and boundless energy. I do wish his hair was kept black though. Also, I think the tan was unnecessary-he looks better without it, in addition to his grey eyes. I'm so glad they got rid of his pant-pants. They made no sense whatever, especially in the hottest region to date. Overall, I do like the redesign.

May

May! I’ll admit, when Ruby first came out, May was my character. She is the only time I use a female character in my in-game plays, so I was excited for this. Overall, I really like her redesign! I think it captures Hoenn wear/culture perfectly. Unlike others, I see her outfit as a more lighter/comfortable version of her R/S outfit. I also really like those shoes! As for her bow, I like it. To me, she looks great with either it or the bandanna. I do hope we can wear the bandanna though as an option. I love how they re-did her hair, but stayed true to its original concept. My only complaints though are her extremely skinny legs (they look like bones!) and the gray eyes (that was Serena’s forte!). Other than that, I love it.

Interesting how they decided to make both heroes glove-less. That was a big thing for R/S/E. Anyway, both in-game models look fantastic, just fantastic (see what I did there?). As of this moment, I can’t decide who I would want to play as.

Steven

He largely looks the same to me. Which I won’t complain about as I liked his original design. So converting it to the current art form makes it all the more better. Those metal cuffs and rings are a nice touch. And is that steel on the inside of his jacket? Nice. Also, I see nothing wrong with his tight pants.

Team Magma

The Grunts

Mmm going to have to say I prefer the old art to this one. The new Team Magma grunts look childish compared to their original counterparts. Plus the originals look so much cooler with their shoulder capes and sleeveless shirts. I also like the male’s pants. I don’t know what that striped red material is supposed to be, but it looks tacky along with their shoes. Also, why the no skin unlike their original art? It's Hoenn. If we were in another region, I would understand.

Courtney

I like her design. Even though it looks more aloof and indifferent, it has a certain charm to it. Also, the fact that her hood horns are yellow to distinguish herself from grunts is pretty nice. I feel that her design would be complete if she had a lollipop in her mouth.

Tabitha

Dislike, dislike dislike. And only because I really liked the original Tabitha (especially after seeing him in the anime). It has nothing to do with weight. It’s actually really heartening to see GF take in different body sizes for characters. Not everyone is a skinny/fit soul. Nevertheless, the current Tabitha doesn’t even look like a Tabitha. He looks very childish, as if you can’t take him seriously. In fact, he looks like something right out of a Mega Man game. I don’t know, maybe his in-game render and personality might grow on me, but as of now not so. Doesn’t help that Team Magma’s ugly outfits negatively reinforce his appearance. Who said they took fashion advice from Team Flare (then again, their outfits weren’t much better)?

Maxie

I really like Maxie’s design. I would like it even more IF NOT FOR THE UGLY STRIPED RED MATERIAL. SERIOUSLY GAMEFREAK.
He looks really sophisticated and intelligent (which is what I got from his personality in the anime). I do agree though that he looks like Colress’ older brother or cousin, but I really like his design as well so no harm done. The glasses are a nice touch. We need more villains with glasses.

Overall, Team Magma’s redesigns I’m not so fond of. I really think it’s the striped material underneath their clothing, as well as the shoes. If the former went away and the latter was modified, I would be much happier. But as of now, old designs for the win.

Team Aqua

The Grunts

I love their outfits! Brilliant! TM should have taken fashion lessons from them. Additionally, its very theme fitting as well as practical (vs. Original Team Plasma and Team Galactic). To be honest, they should be called Team Pirate or something of that nature, if not have another alias.

Matt

Wow. With a body like that, who needs Pokemon?

No seriously, why is he even battling? He could literally be a Pokemon himself. I honestly cannot imagine May or Brendan, or any other tiny Trainer for that matter, defeating him and he just…leaves. Really?

Okay, that aside his outfit is pretty neat. I get it, the whole Hulk-ripped clothing act. He does it very well. I however do not understand those shoes. Just, no. But nice redesign.

Shelly

I really liked the old Shelly with her puffy red hair, but this one is equally good if not better. 10 bucks she is Dahlia’s younger, long lost sister. That aside, I love her design! She just radiates personality and spunk! As long as she isn't a genki girl, everything is fine in my book. Very neat design.

Archie

Pirate Lord Archie, of the Eastern Hoenn Sea. I love this redesign. It is just sheer epicness. The waist cape, the water suit, the facial hair-all of it is just amazing. He contrasts Maxie so well too. Archie looks to be full of character. I really hope he gives great bellows of hearty laughter from time to time. A really great redesign.

If Team Aqua doesn’t have a pirate ship, I’m going to sue GameFreak. Anyways, I love their designs! The pirate theme was an excellent choice. I’m saddened though because as I chose Omega Ruby, I won’t get to fight such awesome characters (if they go the route of R/S). I might change that…

Also I am really happy and appreciative of GameFreak’s increasing inclusion of different skin colors now. Now we have a complete villainous team that is dark skinned. I can’t say they are African American/First Nation/Indian etc as much as I would like, because race isn't really a Pokemon concept. Instead it has a focus on skin color. And since in general people are either light, fair or dark, I am so happy to see GameFreak finally implementing that. A drastic improvement from their earlier days of mostly light, light light characters. I know that as I say this, you would think my happiness applies to Brendan too. However no, as Brendan just looks like a legitimate tan (at least to me). Nonetheless, I am very happy with Team Aqua’s redesign.

 

[Finicky Fennekin]

May is SO CUTE I love her little bunny-ears hairbow!!!

Brendan doesn't really feel that different to me, but I am glad that his pant-pants are gone haha!

 

[Chevrine]

Trying to stay out of this thread now but I just want to remind you all that telling a skinny person to eat a hamburger is just as hateful as telling a fat person to stop eating.

Concern trolling is hateful and nasty and I know these are just characters but you NEED to know the importance of these words. You might say them about characters, but real people are reading the words.

Carry on.

 

[Team Gaara]

The only reason I believe they didn't include May and Brendan's gloves is due to customization. As of now, I'm assuming, since there's no option to customize "hands", they just left them gloveless.

 

[Norzan]

I'm seriously considering playing as May just because she's wearing a ribbon and not a damn hat.

 

[OfCorsola]

Strongly dislike them at first, but eh now i'm used to it.
May looks deaged, and I loved her ruby/sapphire design the most.
Brendan looked like a cutie before and now he looks like hes been working out with mega swampurt as his fitness trainer..

 

[EXGShadow]

Both Brendam and May look kinda bland.. but in my opinion, they always did so that's not a big deal.

Team Magma: Everybody looks horrible, standing in that stupid pose, ugly costumes and those glasses..

Team Aqua: Archie is a bit.. overdesigned.. but everybody else looks awesome, even the grunts!! I'll probably pick sapphire just because of them.