Dawntrail character graphics update - opinions, requests and discussion megathread

[Cheapshot]

I opened up the endwalker benchmark today to take a comparison photo because a month later and I still miss my old character. They are both in shadow here. I know she looks "better" to some people, but I struggle a lot with how different my character looks. It feels like this is a different person and I miss her old self. I think it's especially her eyes. I just wanted to share since I was attached to her and now I don't really like her anymore, and I'm still sad about it.

Face 4 Sun right? I’m face 4 Moon. It’s just over the top what they did to us. I think face 4 miqo is one of the faces that got changed the most. Sadly just not much care into preserving anything. Not even a single facial feature is the same shape. Even the eyelashes are just completely different. It’s so frustrating. I’m really sorry you lost your character too.

[GrizzlyTank]

Face 4 Sun right? I’m face 4 Moon. It’s just over the top what they did to us. I think face 4 miqo is one of the faces that got changed the most. Sadly just not much care into preserving anything. Not even a single facial feature is the same shape. Even the eyelashes are just completely different. It’s so frustrating. I’m really sorry you lost your character too.

Yeah, the artists failed to preserve the old aspects. Saw some post the base head model for fem-au ra and almost all the features were smoothed out...

Angular features have been made round, inconsistent textures some with wholly different sizes than previously...

[SongOfTheWind]

I personally think a lot of things were outsourced and evidently not supervised enough. Often I think that whoever made a decision just was completely new to the project and unaware of how things are done, just given vague goals. Take an absence of the Scions in the world map after 7.0 for example.
So it is not very surprising how features were just remodelled without trying to stay true to original. For example one m viera face type + eyes combo had an issue with eyeliner tattoo and the “fix” between two benchmarks was to rotate the eyes to match the tattoo. As a result they lost their original position, form and overall look. But sure enough - tattoo is now fine. I think only someone who was given a model as fresh with no background but a bug to fix could think of such decision as passable.

[Rueby]

I personally think a lot of things were outsourced and evidently not supervised enough. Often I think that whoever made a decision just was completely new to the project and unaware of how things are done, just given vague goals. Take an absence of the Scions in the world map after 7.0 for example.
So it is not very surprising how features were just remodelled without trying to stay true to original. For example one m viera face type + eyes combo had an issue with eyeliner tattoo and the “fix” between two benchmarks was to rotate the eyes to match the tattoo. As a result they lost their original position, form and overall look. But sure enough - tattoo is now fine. I think only someone who was given a model as fresh with no background but a bug to fix could think of such decision as passable.

I wouldn't be surprised if they outsourced stuff, look at the disaster of a trailer that was EW's, they butchered Zenos' face (amongst others), hell his ShB trailer that showed only his eyes felt more like him. I think we might be seeing more of the outsourced stuff ingame now...

[Apolline]

Face 4 Sun right? I’m face 4 Moon. It’s just over the top what they did to us. I think face 4 miqo is one of the faces that got changed the most. Sadly just not much care into preserving anything. Not even a single facial feature is the same shape. Even the eyelashes are just completely different. It’s so frustrating. I’m really sorry you lost your character too.

I am still so angry about the mouth of face 4 Miqo'te. Switched to face 1, hoping it will be addressed so I can switch back. Though I have feeling I may just end up returning to my hyur that I played in HW

[noumen0nn]

I wouldn't be surprised if they outsourced stuff, look at the disaster of a trailer that was EW's, they butchered Zenos' face (amongst others), hell his ShB trailer that showed only his eyes felt more like him. I think we might be seeing more of the outsourced stuff ingame now...

Agreed. Not just on the graphics front, SO much of Dawntrail feels like it suffered from a lack of QA/oversight/direction. The painfully mediocre writing, the atrocious voice acting, the questionable sound mixing, and just a staggering amount of bugs, visual and otherwise. The resentful part of me can't help but wonder if CBU3 is operating on the assumption that they can get away with subpar work on the assumption that the community will like anything they're given. And even the most forgiving part of me, at best, can come up with "They took on way too large of an undertaking, realized their error too late, and couldn't walk back on what they promised so they had to release SOMETHING, even if it was a rush job."

[GrizzlyTank]

I wouldn't be surprised if they outsourced stuff, look at the disaster of a trailer that was EW's, they butchered Zenos' face (amongst others), hell his ShB trailer that showed only his eyes felt more like him. I think we might be seeing more of the outsourced stuff ingame now...

Was also the issue where the cinematic team seemed to have differently designed models than those used in game. Like with Graha looking a lot more angular and less cute. Least that one got fixed for DT.

[Rueby]

Snip

A friend told me that they wanted to release before WoW's new expansion, which I just looked up, releases on the 26th of August...Which makes no sense considering how many people seem to be affected by this botched graphical 'update'. In EW I noticed some really 'immersion' breaking things, like excessively repeating textures that are too obvious in Labyrinthos, an entire cave that the MSQ takes you through...that is just empty and ugly. Flickering islands in ultima thule's background. Lack of care given to the visual clarity of fights...

I don't believe they were confident that this expansion was going to carry itself and needed something cool and shiny and 'new' to hype it up. That's just my opinion, I think they may have thought people are going to love it. In my eyes I think SE has been making very bad decisions leading up to DT that honestly soured the taste of this expansion for many. Payment processor change into the can of worms that is the 'unfinished' benchmark and the countless other issues that the release of DT introduced.

I can't say anything about the story but I've had friends tell me they didn't enjoy it. I set very low expectations for it too, but somehow this expansion managed to disappoint me. I get strange FPs drops doing alliance raids despite meeting the recommended settings, I can't stand any of the ARR alliance raids, the saturation and luminosity and contrast in these raids is busted and it hurts to look at. Ever since I got a headache from gathering for custom deliveries I became scared. I had to look away from my screen during Castrum Meridianum's explosions before Boss#2...

I always felt like this wasn't ready for release, if they 'forgot' to update the benchmark- the introduction of the graphical update to the players...it shows how much they really cared about it. I'd rather them take time and deliver a good product than 'we'll release it and fix it later'. I preordered this and renewed my sub, and honestly? It leaves a bad taste in my mouth, at times I can't even play the game I used to play for hours. I shouldn't be scared of what might pop in the roulette because someone decided to make something radioactive for my eyes.

They ruined my favorite mount Regalia by adding mount tilt, everything feels so wobbly, I feel like the mount tilt maybe belongs to motorcycles. Nothing else, it's done cheaply and it sucks and I wish to turn it off because it makes me sick.

Sigh...sorry I babbled again. I'm just really tired of this. I've been playing Wuthering Waves, but I miss this game...all I can do is do roulettes to 'level'...at this point I'll be lv100 on everyone before even touching the expansion.

[Rueby]

Was also the issue where the cinematic team seemed to have differently designed models than those used in game. Like with Graha looking a lot more angular and less cute. Least that one got fixed for DT.

I believe they were using models from previous trailers or something. I doubt anyone bothered to double check on Zenos and G'raha and they both looked like parodies of how they look. Zenos got a nosejob and lost alot of his unique features. I'm confused because idk they have Dissidia Zenos, so they could've worked that one up.....

[Moonfallen]

Oh gosh, ty!

Sorry for the delay, I've been an exhausted little namazu.

Elpis -


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