[Dawntrail Benchmark v1.1] Female Midlander face 3 - eye shape changed and stretched
Date & Time: n/a
Frequency: always
World name: Dawntrail benchmark v1.1
Character name:
Retainer name: n/a
NPC name: n/a
Monster name: n/a
Class/Level: n/a
Party or solo: n/a
In-game time: n/a
Area and coordinates: Dawntrail benchmark v1.1
Housing: n/a
Steps:
1. Start the character creator mode.
2. Select female Midlander, face 3.
My character in this example is is face 3, jaw 3, eye shape 4, eyebrows 4, nose 5, mouth 3, although the issue seems to have affected all eye shapes.
https://lds-img.finalfantasyxiv.com/...8507f3fa35.gif
There are four main issues here:
A. The eyelid is lower over the eye, changing the overall shape.
B. Regardless of whether the lowered eyelid is an error or an artistic choice, the alteration seems to have stretched the outer corner of the eye, turning the eyelid rim into a strange fleshy space that looks unnatural.
C. The lower eyelid rim is not framing the eye effectively.
D. Shadows under the eyes.
---
Issue A: Lowered eyelid
https://lds-img.finalfantasyxiv.com/...428f43eb2c.jpg
As I have annotated on the image, the eyelid appears to have been lowered to cover up what was likely seen as a strange artistic choice on the original model. While the visible surface of the eye has not changed, this has still made the eye appear smaller, because it is a natural assumption that the position of the eyelid and eyelashes marks the outer edge of the eye.
Additionally, I believe that this modification to the eyelid position has pushed out the corner of the eyelid, further changing the shape of the eye by stretching it out horizontally in addition to narrowing it vertically.
This also makes the iris take up more of the eye surface, giving it an over-large, almost alien look at some angles.
---
Issue B: Stretched outer corner of the eyelid and Issue C: Poor framing of the eye
https://lds-img.finalfantasyxiv.com/...4e7e9a5a85.jpg
The lower eyelid is visible between the the eye surface and the lower eyelash line.
In the current version, as in reality, this eyelid rim is a fairly narrow line with parallel edges, but in the benchmark model this has been stretched out to a strange concave triangular zone around the eyes that looks unnatural and catches the light in strange ways.
Additionally, the current model has a permanent darkened edge to the eye surface where it meets the eyelid, which helps to define the shape of the eye. This has been lost in the shift to "realistic shadows" and the eye surface blurs into the eyelid rim, especially on a pale-skinned character like this.
Additional examples of the benchmark eye rims looking unsettling (and those alien-looking eyes in the top right screenshot), versus some current screenshots:
https://lds-img.finalfantasyxiv.com/...b08e9fdf05.jpg
And more screenshots from the current version, so you can see how the current eye shading works at different angles - it's like a 3D replication of anime-style eyes with a black outline around the edges.
https://lds-img.finalfantasyxiv.com/...0b57ebbaff.jpg
---
Issue D: Shadows under the eyes
You can see from looking through the various images I have posted here that the benchmark screenshots frequently have shadowy "bags" under the eyes.
This seems to be a common issue among many character types with the new lighting and possibly alterations made to the model shapes.
In this case I do think the shape has always been there and it does occasionally catch the light and look unflattering, but now it seems like a built-in and constant feature of many faces in the benchmark.
It doesn't make the faces look better or more realistic, it just makes them look puffy and less beautiful, and possibly sleep-deprived.
Given that one of the talking points of the updated benchmark was adjusting some hairstyles to deliberately not cast shadows over the face, I hope that this approach can be taken with the eye bags as well. Leave the shapes there if they need to be there, but don't let them cast shadows. Or if you can't stop the shadows, tweak the face shapes.