Character Redesigns

The pros and cons of changing a game character.

by exterminat

©2010 Nicholas Laborde

BlogBanter is a group of websites who set a topic monthly and ask each site to have a writer comment on it, sharing the various sites thoughts across all the various BlogBanter participants. So please check the url’s at the foot of the article regularly, as new articles are added. But for now, enjoy OXCGN’s take of Game Character Change.

When you have a character that has been established for several games, years, or even an entire series, making any changes (no matter the subtlety) can easily upset your fanbase.

It’s not something that you can take lightly. You are watching this same individual over the course of his/her story and development, and come to find this as commonplace.

But when the sequel comes out, and the character is completely different, the lid is off: it’s fair game for every kind of criticism.

The most recent example of this act is with Cole from inFamous 2. When the original design for his character was announced, there was a huge fan outcry over how he looked.

A few months later, another redesigned Cole was released, pleasing some of the critics.

Another example of this occurring was with Splinter Cell: Conviction.

The first, second, and third games all featured the same Sam, in his Splinter Cell suit. When SC: Double Agent was announced, it showed that Sam is now switching between sides and as a result, his outfit changed constantly.

Fans, including myself, were pleased with this. Here we have an older Sam Fisher, looking more brutal and deadly than ever before, ready to kick some butt.

Fast forward to 2007, and Splinter Cell: Conviction was announced. In the trailer, we see a Sam Fisher on the run, but there is something quite peculiar about him: he has long hair and a full beard (the original concept of Fisher had a beard).

To put it simply: he didn’t look like the Splinter Cell guy… the reality was more along the lines of a hobo and although it fit with the different style of the game, reception was not that positive.

Then we had the whole fiasco with the game being scrapped and fans facing nearly a two-year information blackout, before rediscovering a completely redesigned Fisher in a completely redesigned Splinter Cell: Conviction.

Now, I’m all one for change: you’ve seen me recently encourage innovation and change.

‘If it ain’t broke – don’t fix it’

The old saying “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” certainly applies here.

New things, such as redesigns, can always work both ways.

But the thing that must be understood here is that when you change the look, the character is going to receive some revision as well.

The original concept of Splinter Cell: Conviction was essentially a tale of survival in the aftermath of an emotional crise for Sam Fisher.

What we got so many years later was not survival, but a tale of how a man who had lost everything (who, might I mention, had the entire United States of America after him) managed to kick more butt than ever before.

This is a Sam Fisher that has no rules, no restrictions, and no moral code.

He will stop at nothing to get revenge for the death of his daughter.  And it can all be attributed at one point or another to the clothes on his back and the hair on his face.

The changing of appearance is not purely superficial. In fact, it’s quite the contrary: the entire foundation of that character is shaken whenever they simply change a shirt.

It’d be as if the President of the United States grew out a large beard and wore casual clothes all the time; it’s simply breaking established tradition and is out of place as a result.

In my own humble opinion, character redesigns are not something that is necessary (or even needed to be thought about) unless they are minor.

As I just explained, it changes the whole of the character.

Why change things?

Why would a developer think to do this in the first place, then?

In our modern day and age of sequels being released left and right, developers stick to the trend of changing as little as possible, because it will gain them sales in a time when the economy is on the verge of either going up or down again.

Coming from someone who likes to write stories in their spare time, character development is a tricky process.

I have no experiences with sequels, but once something has been established, you don’t want to break the preset equilibrium. As a result this makes you feel less inclined to change.

But for those few developers that want change, a new character design usually would fit into a new gameplay style or change. Just think: what if Sam Fisher in Splinter Cell: Conviction was doing all of this in his wetsuit?

It would simply draw you out of the experience.

Even when the very hands that crafted the concept think that a change is for the best, why would fans go nuts over it?

In my opinion, fan outcry over change is often complete and utter caprice.

As stated, change usually is to suit a gameplay change. But have these complaining fans tried the game yet? Obviously not.

Thus, their basis is essentially invalid, making their opinions flawed. But in this age of fanboyism, and everyone out there having their own blog, it’s hard to convince anyone that something is for the best.

Their arguments come based off of true care for the character in question, though. Why would you make a big deal over it if you didn’t care?

If Sam Fisher was all of a sudden in a pink bikini, I would certainly raise enough ruckus to make it be changed. The fans usually know as much or more than the developers regarding the characters, and when they outcry over the same issue, it truly is something to take note of.

While we have seen some more radical recent changes, such as Dante in the new Devil May Cry, and Max in the new upcoming Max Payne game,  it doesn’t happen often. But when it does, it’s sure to start enough chaos to make some artists grab some pencils, break out the drawing board and completely start over.

©2010 Nicholas Laborde

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Other takes on character redesign:

• Silvercube: Perfect Dark Missing Perfection
• Sniping Mizzy: Man, You Got Reaaaaaal Ugly
• Pioneer Project: A Change in Development
• Oxcgn: New Look Character Redesigns A Good Idea – Or Bad?
• The Average Gamer: Hampered by Hollywood
• Zath: Has A Redesign Changed Your Attitude To A Beloved Video Game Character?

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