saw this floating around in my 2010 files as a .psd. decided to resurrect it from the dead because it was just too hilarious to pass up
this, in my experience as a character designer is a text book example of overloaded character design. As a result, the focus of the character suffered.
You can clearly tell that i wasn't really focusing on anything when i came up with this design - I just put things together that looked cool to me and called it a day. Which is like putting ALL your favourite foods together: let's say ice cream, cotton candy, gravy, tuna sushi, chicken nuggets, copious amounts of nori, anchovies, your enemy's firstborn - then putting two stale pieces of toast on the top and the bottom and eating it.
there's too much going on and now you have diarrhea.
you're welcome.
now after 3 years of not looking at it and looking at it again, i have come up with some tips and questions one must ask before designing a character:
1) Describe your character in 2-4 words. In Abigaille's case she's a Holy Wind Dragon.
2) What's their context? Like what is your character's background? It doesn't literally have to be ABOUT the character themselves, it can be about their literal background: like, their world, their habitat, the objects and shit they interact with, etc
i.e Abigaille is a holy wind dragon and because of this she is usually drawn just....floating. because she lives in the skies. because she is a holy wind dragon. yeah. FUCK YEAH NEGATIVE SPACE. she was not meant to be a video game character to be modelled in 3d (LOL SECONDLIFE HAHAHAHA) she's mostly just for pin ups. pins up of happy dragon flying in negative space.
3) What is the purpose of this character's _______. question EVERYTHING about every bit of the character. What are they for, do they work with the other features and tidbits you've given your character...etc
i.e those fucking markings on Abigaille over there. what are they for? how do they enforce that she is holy? that stupid scarf, those stupid wingy thingies and the clothing: wouldn't that reduce drag when she flies lol
4) Less is more. the most important lesson for all designers: sometimes all your character design needs is less of everything. Or possibly none of anything.
Markings? Unless they actually serve a purpose (see number 3) then cut them out. ALL THE COOL AND KAWAII CLOTHING Fashions? Why put clothes on an animal if their body design by itself already looks cool?
5) Don't strive for originality the hardest lesson for all.
"Originality" is a myth. we all borrow ideas and aspects from somewhere. Everything old is new and everything new is old. we're all humans so we'll all come up with the same things. it's in our DNA.
you want to be a purple house cat anthro? why not just become a purple house cat anthro? why would you have to spice it up with markings and wings and guns and all the clothes?
