Radical Character Designs.

[Juu-kuchi]

Over the course of videogame history, there have been those characters that have been given radical makeovers. While we are always used to the original design, it's very hard to accept their new ones, which gives way to us not really liking them at all. This is a post... dedicated to the characters who were given major makeovers, and our initial reaction to it. Here let me give you a couple examples:


http://www.fightersgeneration.com/fightgen/characters/terry-k2000.gif http://www.fightersgeneration.com/fightgen/characters/terry-b-win.gif

Terry Bogard

Now here's a change of radical design. We first knew him as a streetwise fighter in a red vest, jeans, and his trademark cap for many years. Now after Mark of the Wolves he's now seen with shorter hair, in a leather jacket, and without his trademark cap.


Which design is better?


http://www.fightersgeneration.com/fightgen/characters/link-face.JPG http://www.zeldauniverse.net/games/z10/screenshots/7.jpg

Link

Perhaps more controversial than Terry Bogard's design change was Link's. The Ocarina of Time Link has become (in some terms) the epitome of what Link should be. A badass swordmaster who does not take no for an answer. However when the Wind Waker comes out, we now see a cartoony Link that is all ways different from what was the OoT Link (except for the fact that Link is still Link)


Which design is better?


I could go on. But I'm leaving you a request. Name some videogame characters that have had radical design changes done to them in the past. After that, tell if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Which was the better version, etc. etc.


Also name some characters in dire need of a more better change in design. And um, answer which of the versions I mentioned is the better.

[DonkeyKongSnes]

This really isn't a drastic make over but Jin from tekken 3 and Jin from tekken 4. One was a copy of his father, while the other one had changed to a different person. If this makes any sense.


I personally like the cartoony link better.

[Artimus Gigan]

The NES Donkey Kong to DKC Donkey Kong...

[Lord Dalek]

Shinobi's gradual transformation over the years.

[Behonkiss]

The NES Donkey Kong to DKC Donkey Kong...As a DK fanatic, let me tell you the truth: The DK of today is actually Donkey Kong Jr., and Cranky Kong is the original arcade gorilla. This is why he always talks about the good old days of gaming.

The characters in Jet Force Gemini got a total makeover before the game was even released. They were originally kids, but people felt that they didn't mesh with the game's violent nature well enough.

OoT Link went through at least 3 different models, based on early previews of the game. Funny enough, the first design looked like something out of Wind Waker.

Sonic got much more sleeker and cooler-looking when SA1 came out, Amy grew up, Robotnik got a wardrobe and name change, and Knuckles and Tails got a bit older-looking.

Rayman has had three major platform games. And looked different in every one.

And how could you forget Jak? He was the main topic for the first three months after the sequel's unveiling.

[The Jinjo]

Most characters have changed over time. Mario has different colored clothes, kirby is a different color, link constantly seems to change, sonic is less cartoony, there are so many examples. Pac Man had a huge transformation, from being a yellow circle to having arms, legs, and 30's-like animation eyes.

[Captain Harlock]

As for Terry, I think he's aged gracefully. I think Link's design become worse. I wasn't even interested in getting Wind Waker, as I was getting the OoT bonus disc. I'd say the graphics turned me off a little to Wind Waker, but the game just wasn't as good, so that gives me a bias towards cel-shaded Link. Not the design fault, but a fault of the game.

[Vyse]

Conker: Alright, so his design changes were more of personality than of the visual kind. But, who would have thought of a cute squirrel that drinks, pees anywhere he wants, and swears like a sailor?

Joanna Dark (Perfect Dark): When Rare went to the land of the XBox, they also changed the look of their super-spy as well in tech demos, from the realistic look from the N64 game, to a pseudo-cartoonish look for the video announcing Rare's move to Microsoft.

Zero (the Mega Man games): He went from an aggressive look in the X series to a 'cute' look (as well as an armor change) when he went into the Zero games on the GBA.

Mortal Kombat characters: A good chunck of the cast went through changes in their looks- Shang Tsung (old to young), Jax (the inclusion of the metal arms), Sub-Zero (Masked ninja to his unmasked, scarred brother, who also went from unmasked to masked to, in the upcoming MK: Deception, Ghengis Khan), Reptile (masked to unmasked), etc.

[DonkeyKongSnes]

Jak's transformation to dark jak. He was somewhat less agressive looking in the first one and in the second one he is goign after the bad boy look.

[shogunthethird]

Samus Aran: Both inside the armor and out, she went from the cartoony look of the original game manual to hyper-detailed in Super metrioid to biomechanical in Metroid fusion

[Jundaunted]

As a DK fanatic, let me tell you the truth: The DK of today is actually Donkey Kong Jr., and Cranky Kong is the original arcade gorilla. This is why he always talks about the good old days of gaming.
Who the puck cares? Nintendo calls both of them Donkey Kong anyway, so they're officially considered the same character. I always hated Rare's Donkey Kong desing by the way. He looks like the bastard child of Jimmy Neutron and the original Donkey Kong with that stupid curly hair. I prefer the design he had in Donkey Kong '94.

Who can make a thread like this without mentioning Luigi. He officially went from being a mere Mario palette-swap to being taller and leaner in Super Mario Bros. 2. Heck, Mario himself changed alot, but his basic design remained the same.

Other radical character redesigns:

Pandemonium's Nikki went from being a rather cute girl in the original game, to a skanky skank in the sequel. Quite a dramatic change, if only for marketing purposes.

The Lee brothers from Double Dragon, Billy and Jimmy, originally had pompadours with blond and brown hair respectively in the Arcade games to a low-cut and spiky flat-top with the hair colors switched in subsequent home versions (which is what you see in the new GBA version).

And while, I'm not sure if this count, Solid Snake looks alot different now with Shinkawa's character design (even after how he aged in MGS2) than the Michael Biehn-lookalike that graced the cover of the original game for the MSX and NES. In Metal Gear 2, he looked like an aged Mel Gibson too.

[Juu-kuchi]

As much as I like all of this, I'd also like to see people's opinions on which design of certain characters is better.

I liked MGS1 Snake over MGS2 Snake. Snake in MGS2 looks all grungy and I do not dig the mullet or his sneaking suit. The Snake in the original Solid game I like.

[Jundaunted]

As much as I like all of this, I'd also like to see people's opinions on which design of certain characters is better.

I liked MGS1 Snake over MGS2 Snake. Snake in MGS2 looks all grungy and I do not dig the mullet or his sneaking suit. The Snake in the original Solid game I like.
I prefer the Iroquois Pliskin outfit over either of them. Looks alot more military, almost like a throwback to the MSX games.

Also, speaking of Metal Gear, I would like to point Meryl's appearance in Policenauts. She was a hardened war veteran there and quite a constrant to the naive rookie she was in MGS (she saves the main character, Jonathan, on various occasions).
http://jpn00.konami.co.jp/products/policenauts/charactor/poli-meryl.html

[Juu-kuchi]

I prefer the Iroquois Pliskin outfit over either of them. Looks alot more military, almost like a throwback to the MSX games.
Actually he is better in that. I just wish we did not have to play the rest of MGS2 as Raiden. I wanted a gameplay element where you were Snake while Raiden was the one who was unplayable during the main story.

[Peter Paltridge]

I don't know why people prefer Goofy Donkey Kong to Sophisticated Rare-Rendered Donkey Kong. That makes no sense--you want to go BACKWARDS!!

You people got thrown a bone though...DK has been pictured lately showing his teeth, and he had none under Rare because it made him look kind of like Goofy DK.

[shogunthethird]

I gotta say my favorite of the Samus designs is the power armor version with the round shoulderpads first seen in metroid 2

[Jundaunted]

I don't know why people prefer Goofy Donkey Kong to Sophisticated Rare-Rendered Donkey Kong. That makes no sense--you want to go BACKWARDS!!

You people got thrown a bone though...DK has been pictured lately showing his teeth, and he had none under Rare because it made him look kind of like Goofy DK.
Because "Goofy" Donkey Kong looked more like a real and menacing ape. Rare's Donkey Kong is more like the hairy version of Jimmy Neutron. Like I said earlier, Donkey Kong '94 had the best design for him. I wish the Rare's games would've gone to that direction

http://www.nesretro.com/mariohistory/images/DonkeyKong94.jpg

[Tanooki]

i pesonally prefer cel-shaded link. i enjoyed the cartoony environment and i just thought the overall effects looked cool. i'll have to second samus aran too

Hero

[Dudley]

Lara Croft's nose is more defined, and she's recently been wearing mascara (i don't know how to spell it)

[Bubblegum Girl]

All of the Final Fantasy Tactics(Both PS1 & GBA versions ;) ) class designs are so freakin awsome!

Cackletta's, Fawful's, and Popple's designs are great too.

The Pikkmin(Spelled right?) designs are so cute! :p

All of Megaman's(And X's) villians. For some reason I like their designs better than Megaman. :sweat:

[Lucky Bob]

Did somebody say Donkey Kong redesign?

http://www.gamer-nation.co.uk/games/images/donkey_kong/DonkeyKong_1.jpg

[Vyse]

Good one.

Also, did anyone noticed that Pico from the F-Zero games looks a little bit more menacing in F-Zero X and GX than in the instruction manual for the original F-Zero? (Can someone supply pics?)

[Eddy]

Rare's DK > Classic DK

Here's another...

http://home.clara.net/flatbatteries/opinions/pixelchick/amy2.gif became http://www.planetdreamcast.com/sonic/learn/glossary/amy.gif

I do like both looks, since both are cute. But I prefere Amy's current look.

[Nin-Nin69]

I for one like the new look for Kyo in the recent King of Fighters. Yet I prefer the classic Terry Bogard outfit.

Don't forget about the entire cast of Virtua Fighter. They looked different in each game. If they Sega didn't change their clothes, then it was their facial features. Akira looked like Bert from Sesame Street in VF3.

Most of the monsters in Metroid have changed over the years.

Ryu Hayabusa from Ninja Gaiden had about 4 make overs.

Dracula from Castlevania had plenty of makeovers.

[Jundaunted]

Rare's DK < Classic DK

There! I've corrected it!!

[Juu-kuchi]

Rare's DK > Classic DK

Here's another...

I do like both looks, since both are cute. But I prefere Amy's current look.
Amy came a looong way. What was up with her original design... so... awful. Now she's better-looking and cute to boot.

[guinaevere]

I was rather surprized by the character design of Princess Zelda in OoT. Her disguise, you know... not really what I'd have expected her to look like.


Actually he is better in that. I just wish we did not have to play the rest of MGS2 as Raiden. I thought in MGS2 Substance, you could play as Snake the whole way through.

[Jundaunted]

I thought in MGS2 Substance, you could play as Snake the whole way through.
Nope, at least not in the main game. Only in the Snake Tales (which are non-canonical) and the VR Missions.

[guinaevere]

Ah. Thanks for the info, Jun. I thought Substance had some magic I hate Raiden option for the main game.


BTW, nice work, Lucky Bob. :D

[Mynd Hed]

I was rather surprized by the character design of Princess Zelda in OoT. Her disguise, you know... not really what I'd have expected her to look like.
Y'know, when that character was first introduced at the beginning of the game I remember thinking, "Oh, man, this BETTER not be their sad excuse for Princess Zelda." But the way they explained it, it turned out to be okay-- and we did get to see a more traditional interpretation of Zelda as well, which was good.

But Ocarina of Time Link still rules over Herbie the Elf Who Wanted to Be a Dentist Link. Sorry. (-:

[Eddy]

There! I've corrected it!!
You're not supposed to misquote me. :p Read the FAQ...


Amy came a looong way. What was up with her original design... so... awful. Now she's better-looking and cute to boot.
Yeah, I do find Amy to be better looking and cuter but he classic form was still pretty cute.

Here's some more...

http://www.personal.psu.edu/users/j/x/jxt908/eggman.jpg became http://www.nintendomaine.com/gba/tests/sonicadv/eggman.jpg


http://cube.smedia.co.uk/downloads/pictures/smb/bowser.gif became http://www.nintendo.co.jp/n01/n64/software/nus_p_nalj/smash/flash/0724/koopa_pinup.jpg

[TacoHunter]

You know, new Link does look a lot like old Link.

Then http://www.geocities.com/willmark_2000/oldLink.txt Now http://www.zeldauniverse.net/games/z10/screenshots/7.jpg

That's why I don't mind the new Link. Though, that didn't help to make Wind Waker a good game though.

[Zapages]

The Prince from Prince of Persia 1, 2, and 3D...
http://republika.pl/princeofp/hero2.gifhttp://www.pop2.princed.com.ar/pop2/screens/t01.gifhttp://image.com.com/gamespot/images/screenshots/0/56700/pop3d_screen005.jpg

[Vyse]

Hey! For those who thought that Wind Waker Link was bad, wait until you meet the Link from the CD-i Zeldas!

http://www.hyrulekingdom.com/Other%20Games/Gamelon/16.jpg
http://www.planetnintendo.com/zelda/games_cdiseries/facesofevil/screenshots/5.jpg
:moon2: -"It's all part of the evil plan, fool!"

[Behonkiss]

God, how did that ever get approved? It looks like something whipped up in 10 minutes on MS Paint.

[guinaevere]

Yeah, the CDi Zeldas are rather infamous for just how bad they were and he looked.

[Nin-Nin69]

I love it how only people pick on Link and not Zelda in the CD-I Zelda's. She looked very ugly for both her designs.

[Vyse]

I love it how only people pick on Link and not Zelda in the CD-I Zelda's. She looked very ugly for both her designs.The reason: he's the star of the series. Sure, the series is named after Zelda, but Link gets the most screen time. I'm glad we have better versions of Zelda since OoT.:D