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Worst Female Character Design in Gaming?
- Thread starter DiipuSurotu
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Retro Edge
Member
a new challenger for quite has appeared!
from valkyria revolution
What do you have against woman with natural big breast?
Did they not deserve to exist in videogames at all? Just because they have big breast? Isn't that not kind of sexist?
She is not even naked, come on.
Bloodporne
Member
I don't know about "worst", but Nu EMO Lara Croft is incredibly lame and boring.
Not that her original design was amazing with their bizarre pixel-tit fetish, but lord, did it have to be this instead?
Not that her original design was amazing with their bizarre pixel-tit fetish, but lord, did it have to be this instead?
In my opinion, those insisting that the modern Lara design is "more generic" (and as a result, worse) than classic Lara design are clinging to something ugly.
Visually, etchings of Othello are "more generic" than Bert Williams' blackface stage characters. My point being that the elements being considered "more distinct" about the classic Lara design (or the role/characters Williams was famous for) are their own kind of generic: They're aspects that pander to the audience and dehumanize the character to the whim of the audience. They don't make a better character, they make an "easier" character for certain attitudes and time periods.
For me, Williams is an interesting example because he was the highest paid black actor in his day, and was obviously talented, but only found his niche in the industry by pandering to uglier attitudes and expectations of his audiences. I think classic Lara is something similar; she's a design with inherent appeal, but to be marketable, was postured a simplistic, mangled Barbie-Doll of a character compared to what a character with her elements could have been. I think modern Lara is a full-throated attempt to move past that, and particularly in the context of how well the new games came out, I'm inclined to call it a success. Even just on a superficial level.
Visually, etchings of Othello are "more generic" than Bert Williams' blackface stage characters. My point being that the elements being considered "more distinct" about the classic Lara design (or the role/characters Williams was famous for) are their own kind of generic: They're aspects that pander to the audience and dehumanize the character to the whim of the audience. They don't make a better character, they make an "easier" character for certain attitudes and time periods.
For me, Williams is an interesting example because he was the highest paid black actor in his day, and was obviously talented, but only found his niche in the industry by pandering to uglier attitudes and expectations of his audiences. I think classic Lara is something similar; she's a design with inherent appeal, but to be marketable, was postured a simplistic, mangled Barbie-Doll of a character compared to what a character with her elements could have been. I think modern Lara is a full-throated attempt to move past that, and particularly in the context of how well the new games came out, I'm inclined to call it a success. Even just on a superficial level.
Blackquill
Member
It's not because of the big breasts, it just doesn't make any sense
So hot-take here: Cindy's garb makes sense in the context of being a retro "sexy pin-up mechanic." Which I personally think is obnoxious, but the clothing makes sense in a way a lot of the arbitrary designs in JRPGs don't. I can understand someone (especially someone attracted to that archetype) being totally into it, and then also appreciating further nuance of her character over the course of the game.
SoundPulse
Banned
FFX-2 has some real shit in the dresspheres, but Leblanc though.
Ana from Overwatch. I just can't see how this characters fits in the game.
Spoiler: She fits really fucking well.
Retro Edge
Member
Ana from Overwatch. I just can't see how this characters fits in the game.
What does that have to do with her design? o_o
Lol, huge breasts, especially when they're borderline cartoonishly perky here, are always gonna get a bad rap in general, because there's rarely any good faith to be had there. Like yea, we get it, there are women out there that have chests that large, natural or not. But uhh, they're not making those designs because they feel like women with huge chests are underrepresented lol
They can exist in video games, but don't ever be surprised if someone calls out designs like this. And yes, she does not have to be naked for someone to find the design to be lacking.
TheJollyCorner
Member
Wait... are the Aloy (from Horizon) as 'one of the worst female designs in games' posts real or just trigger traps? I honestly can't tell anymore. :/
Those Aloy posts (and the Zarya ones from a few pages ago) are ... pretty fucking rancid.
Dice//
Banned
Suited Samus:
LOL I actually ALWAYS think about this.
Bland, boring, generic, grey, uninspired, uncreative, unattractive, non-feminine, terrible.
Grey? Fine. Boring? Sure. Unfemenine and unattractive?? Does she need curls and a pair of earrings?? Def confused there...
Can't even tell if sarcastic given the cartoonishly huge size. No way those are "naturally large", son.
UtterlyPerplexed
Member
Because it's transparent as hell and a lot of us here in this thread want to see the medium grow up and move forward rather than stay stagnant as either a constant wankfest for the male gaze and/or exhibitions of male power fantasies. It's obvious what the thought process was when this character was designed. Giant tits first and foremost because the otaku crowd need a reason for their miserable arses to come crawling out of their hole to spend money on the game, and everything else is secondary. It's another example (albeit not the worst example) of creating a female character primarily to titillate and everything else about her may as well be subordinate.
Basketball
Member
Nu Raider is probably the worst because of what happened to the character along with the super boring design (not to mention tomb design, gameplay faults)
Turned a legendary superwoman .. into some random rich girl with mental issues who moans and talks too much. Hero to a zero. Just because her tits were bigger and her shorts were smaller doesn't make her any less respectable as an Icon.
Turned a legendary superwoman .. into some random rich girl with mental issues who moans and talks too much. Hero to a zero. Just because her tits were bigger and her shorts were smaller doesn't make her any less respectable as an Icon.
Yeah but it's Japan, I doubt they'll ever move past that thinking.
Ana from Overwatch. I just can't see how this characters fits in the game.
Thread is asking for the WORST female character designs. I think you posted in the wrong one lol.
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
Ana from Overwatch. I just can't see how this characters fits in the game.
Ana is one of the GOAT. Both in gameplay design and actual design.
If anything my slight falling out from Overwatch is because they nerfed the shit out of her.
Basketball
Member
It has to make "sense" that this woman has big breast?
you don't understand
she has big breasts that must mean everything else about her is invalid
If you're a straight male gamer how can you get anything of value from the character if your brain is just focused on her chest.
Only 12 year olds like ze boobies
Natural breasts don't look like that, and she wasn't designed to look natural either, so I don't really agree with you here.
Remembered another good one, a free DLC PSO2 outfit for Kat from Gravity Rush, her worst look by far...
Nothing about this works at all, it's trashy in the worst sense.
Lol
Nothing about this works at all, it's trashy in the worst sense.
Lol
FairFriend
Member
Reboot Lara is definitely not the worst female character design but it is a step down in terms of being recognizable when compared to the older designs.
encephalon
Member
It's not as if there are general trends in how female characters are designed. What attracts most men is truly a mystery.
I think I've been through the whole thread. Maybe I missed it. But this is awful and Im usually a sucker for fanservice stuff.
Edit: Also I fucking love timesplitters but they had some shit designs.
I forgot about the 'SLUT' t-shirt. There are some other Timesplitters 'classic' female characters here. (I never liked the characters in that game)
http://bennewmanart.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/timesplitters-rewind.html
Check out the characters from Time Splitters 1!
http://timesplitters.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Characters_-_TimeSplitters_1
That1BlackGuy
Member
I've personally never had a preference either way, but if I had to say I'd think the biggest offender would probably be a design is that either ultimately forgettable or an overall art direction that doesn't speak to me such as the original Injustice.
To my knowledge Hoya has never been explicitly antagonistic about his preference for titillating female designs outside of occasional bad wording. I believe that he is entitled to his preferences as is any other member of this community within the confines of the ToS, particularly so in this instance since this thread's subject is based on visual preferences.
To my knowledge Hoya has never been explicitly antagonistic about his preference for titillating female designs outside of occasional bad wording. I believe that he is entitled to his preferences as is any other member of this community within the confines of the ToS, particularly so in this instance since this thread's subject is based on visual preferences.
Bloodporne
Member
I actually completely agree that the character needed a redesign and also agree with many of your points here, however, I think they went the absolute other extreme and it's absurd to me.
This is moving away from simply her design itself, but the change in personality etc. that came with it is my main gripe. While her design was always well, what you already pointed out, the original character itself was great in my opinion. Highly intelligent, witty, educated, physically disciplined and always one step ahead. The redesign offers a superficially less offensive approach, but once you really dive in, she seems to be some sort of abused-female-victim fetish come to life (at least in the first reboot, I haven't played the sequel). I honestly found her modern incarnation, the sound effects, the absurdly fetishized deaths, pain and suffering inflicted upon her much creepier and flat-out gross than their past visual fixation on her pixel-tits and short shorts.
Again, that's really close to being off-topic here in the first place since this is all about design, but I think the helpless and vulnerable body language of her redesign (specifically speaking about the first reboot here again, not familiar with Rise) reflects what I find so off-putting about Nu Lara Croft to begin with.
themaskedndi
Member
I actually don't think any of them are from porny-type games, aside from the Onechanbara designs. I thought about posting some of the goofier designs from Conception II but decided against it for those reasons.
I don't hate "sexy" character designs; if we had a thread for the best sexy female designs, it'd be easy to think of examples (Bayonetta, 2B, Catherine, Lyn, Threia, etc.). I do think female characters look bad because the designers prioritize T&A over good design. It's not like sexiness is what makes Velvet look ridiculous.
Boy, I sure am glad we have men here to tell women what they think.
My favorite part is how the skirt is held together with a belt. They could have at least gone with safety pins!
FFXV Cindy's most attractive quality is her face/voice/mannerisms. They didn't need to dress her so provocatively. Really stands out in a silly way, given the demands of her profession (things burning her exposed body, etc) and the relatively grounded fashion sense of the other characters.
MGSV Quiet would be a solid design if they just gave her shorts instead of the goofy torn nylons. Yes, the plot justification for her exposure would still be trash, but at least it wouldn't feel so blatantly fetishized.
Also, the camera perving out on her was half the problem with her depiction. Way too heavyhanded.
SC4 Ivy is the absolute worst, though. Like holy crap. RER Rachel is also abysmal, although zipping up her wetsuit and trimming her bangs so you could actually see her eyes would help.
MGSV Quiet would be a solid design if they just gave her shorts instead of the goofy torn nylons. Yes, the plot justification for her exposure would still be trash, but at least it wouldn't feel so blatantly fetishized.
Also, the camera perving out on her was half the problem with her depiction. Way too heavyhanded.
SC4 Ivy is the absolute worst, though. Like holy crap. RER Rachel is also abysmal, although zipping up her wetsuit and trimming her bangs so you could actually see her eyes would help.
SoundPulse
Banned
Remembered another good one, a free DLC PSO2 outfit for Kat from Gravity Rush, her worst look by far...
Nothing about this works at all, it's trashy in the worst sense.
I'm not really a fan of PSO2's costumes in general, but there's a few they could have gone for that wasn't, well, this.
Given the wealth of options, I can't believe there are people saying reboot Lara Croft is one of the worst female character designs. Come on guys...
My contribution is this monstrosity
FUGGGG. This one. I even liked Jessica's design but this is just appalling.
Here's a design I find terrible because of sexualization that I'm surprised no one has brought up.
It's Makoto from BlazBlue.
Barely wearing anything, big ol' thong, copious underboob, the works really.
The saddest thing is that there's a much more reasonable Makoto design in the games, but she doesn't wear it for fights. What the hell ArcSys?
Also, can I just say that I had Mu-12's look? It's so much worse than Nu-13 or Lambda-11's designs. The lack of a bodysuit makes it look so skeevy.
It's Makoto from BlazBlue.
Barely wearing anything, big ol' thong, copious underboob, the works really.
The saddest thing is that there's a much more reasonable Makoto design in the games, but she doesn't wear it for fights. What the hell ArcSys?
Also, can I just say that I had Mu-12's look? It's so much worse than Nu-13 or Lambda-11's designs. The lack of a bodysuit makes it look so skeevy.
Sarcasm?
This might have shown up already, but I'm putting it up just because the attempts at justifying it are so stupid. Also male gaze and all that.
I'm not saying there aren't observable patterns and repetition in character design that suggests preferences or at least a perceived preference, I just think "they made this character this way because it's what men/women want" is an extremely murky argument without further discussion. I'm well aware that pandering exists but honestly, in the case of something like Dragon's Crown, I think the art is drawn to the preferences of George Kamitani. I highly doubt he had some sinister plan of appealing to the lowest common denominator.
Thats some quality spin on why she has giant bigger than a head sized tits.
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
It obviously has, and I'm certainly not telling you to go through nearly a thousand posts, but... it's right there in the OP.
Boobs don't look like surgically attached basketballs "naturally".
Hero_of_the_Day
Member
This still blows my mind. I know it has become a joke, but I feel like the response should be more along the lines of "fuck you" than "LOL!"
Bloodporne
Member
"Natural"...you come on haha.
It doesn't need to be intentional to be real. Even if George Kamitani is drawing according to the preferences of George Kamitani, he is still pandering stereotypes that inform what is "appealing", even if only unintentionally. It's about discussing the social factors that condition people, both consumers and creators, to think that certain designs are ideal or marketable, not necessarily assigning blame to artists.
Damn, my bad. Well, great minds and all that
Mister Wolf
Member
Nothing about Cindy's clothes being a mechanic makes sense. Sexy mechanic, sexy warrior, sexy robot lady its all the same just out of place sexually pandering designs meant to appeal to men which I have no problem with.
encephalon
Member
It's not a sinister plan. Japanese artists generally design games to be titillating because they want characters that titillate. Then when the west goes "what is this?" they get all confused and that's why he responded with "lol what are you gay?" It's taken for granted that men like big boobs and games are for men.
ResidentWeevil13
Member
Someone should make a 'Worst Male Character Design In Gaming' thread and 'Best Male Character Design in Gaming' thread to compliment the two we have discussing female characters.
If I know GAF, I think the results would be hilarious!
Edit: Looks like they already exist! GJ Gaf
If I know GAF, I think the results would be hilarious!
Edit: Looks like they already exist! GJ Gaf
Whompa02
Member
Given the wealth of options, I can't believe there are people saying reboot Lara Croft is one of the worst female character designs. Come on guys...
My contribution is this monstrosity
I forgot about this. This might win tbh. People who say Quiet are being hyperbolic. This one takes male gaze and just general stupid design aesthetics to a whole new height.
This is all assuming that there is a "right way" to inform what is "appealing", that there is a "right way" to draw characters. And whether people are conditioned by beauty standards or social factors and whether that should have any bearing on the quality of a character design is much more complex than you are making it out to be, in my opinion.
I also find it a bit strange that you dismiss intention at the start of your post, yet at the end, you're talking about how consumers and artists might think certain designs are ideal or marketable. Is that not a matter of intention as well? Perhaps subconscious intention? And in going that far, are we not assuming a little too much with very little science to support that?
Look, I get that there are definitely beauty standards in this world. But I don't necessarily think that a character design is immediately to be deemed "bad" because it appeals to these supposed beauty standards, or that they have the greater social implications that you seem to believe. In any case, I think it is a much bigger discussion than just "Is this design good or bad?". And I don't think answering that question with "yes because male gaze" is a very constructive or thought out stance to hold. But in the end it is all opinion, so I suppose I am in no place to say what is and is not a well thought out opinion.
Remembered another good one, a free DLC PSO2 outfit for Kat from Gravity Rush, her worst look by far...
Nothing about this works at all, it's trashy in the worst sense.
PSO2's designs in general are just a constant train of utter disappointment if you don't care for either generic bland sexiness with mild sci-fi trappings or generic bland moe crap with heavy schoolgirl underpinnings (seriously, this shit is gross, wtf Japan?).
And yet I still play it (occasionally) because of the combat and the fact that it's one of the very few games on the planet that lets me play an androgynous, well-muscled woman. ¯\_(ツ
_/¯ I just want a single high-tech fully-armored battle suit for women, and yet for some reason we're not allowed to have one while the men get at least a dozen. Double standards ahoy! Seriously, if there were any game that could serve as THE poster child for this kind of sexist bullshit, PSO2 would be it. It's more blatant than any game I've seen developed outside of Korea, and considering Tera is a thing, that's saying something!
I'm not entirely sure what this has to do with whether or not a character design is good or not. The Witch (or is it sorceress? I forgot) is intended to be a sexual character. Whether the artist has made that come across poorly or not is up to you, and if you think he failed, then I suppose it is a poor character design in your view. I'm not sure if that's what you were trying to get across but in that sense I don't really have much to say other than it is a valid opinion for you to have.
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