Dawntrail character graphics update - opinions, requests and discussion megathread

[Cheapshot]

And not only mine but the 99% of people in this thread it seems. You are trolling I don't believe it with all the proves people has shown over all the thread XD it is by far the thing most people hates now.

Yeah, look I disagree with them completely but this behaviour isn’t acceptable. They haven’t been antagonistic or patronizing, they just have a different opinion. Attacking them harms our credibility and makes this thread look like just an echo chamber. Please keep things civil in here.

[Birdbrain]

I hope it's not too late to offer suggestions that the devs might take into their feedback.

My character is a male Au Ra with Face 4:

• Please re-add more solid black coloring further up the Au Ra's horns!
  In the pic comparison you can see that pre-Dawntrail, there was more black coloration further up the horns. It was solid black for 5 rings and fading out by the 6th ring. Currently in Dawntrail, the black only extends to ring 2 or 3 before fading out completely by ring 4. The fade is now simply too strong and there is less black to see.

• Reducing the dark shading in the scale below the eye would be appreciated!
  Male Au Ra Face 4 comes with the scales on the forehead and below the eye. The one scale below the eye now has very prominent dark shading that makes it look like a hole, pit, or teardrop. It reminds me of clown tears and is very distracting :'(
  Before Dawntrail it was smoother, lighter, and blended in better. Lessening the dark shadow inside that cheek scale will help it look closer to what it was before without removing the 'texture' they were going for.

I think tweaking those two simple things would do wonders to make Face 4 male Au Ra more accurate to its old self.

[Rueby]

I hope it's not too late to offer suggestions that the devs might take into their feedback.

My character is a male Au Ra with Face 4:

• Please re-add more solid black coloring further up the Au Ra's horns!
  In the pic comparison you can see that pre-Dawntrail, there was more black coloration further up the horns. It was solid black for 5 rings and fading out by the 6th ring. Currently in Dawntrail, the black only extends to ring 2 or 3 before fading out completely by ring 4. The fade is now simply too strong and there is less black to see.

• Reducing the dark shading in the scale below the eye would be appreciated!
  Male Au Ra Face 4 comes with the scales on the forehead and below the eye. The one scale below the eye now has very prominent dark shading that makes it look like a hole, pit, or teardrop. It reminds me of clown tears and is very distracting :'(
  Before Dawntrail it was smoother, lighter, and blended in better. Lessening the dark shadow inside that cheek scale will help it look closer to what it was before without removing the 'texture' they were going for.

I think tweaking those two simple things would do wonders to make Face 4 male Au Ra more accurate to its old self.

I couldn't help but notice how faded/barely visible your eyebrows are...granted they were pretty light in the Pre-DT, but I could tell it's there

[Birdbrain]

I couldn't help but notice how faded/barely visible your eyebrows are...granted they were pretty light in the Pre-DT, but I could tell it's there

You're right. Not sure if it's due to the new, darker shadows around the eyes, but it definitely seems like a handful of races have had eyebrows getting thinner/lighter.

The more I look at screenshots the more I notice those little differences... nose shape change, paler scale color, longer chin scales... and it's driving me a little nuts now!

[Argantaelle]

I've brought one more example of the "unholy triangle," composed of the cheekbones and philtrum. This time it's a male Viera.

Behold the philtrum in all its greatness! (no spoilers)

Also, I'd like to add that if a person doesn't post on forums, it doesn't mean they are content with their characters. They can be just shy, or don't like typing, or have no time to provide detailed feedback, or just don't know English well enough. Like this male Viera player, who sent me the two screenshots I've shown in this post.

[Turnintino]

I couldn't help but notice how faded/barely visible your eyebrows are...granted they were pretty light in the Pre-DT, but I could tell it's there

Eyebrows have really been all over the place, both in terms of color and in shape. Respectfully to the artists, but I just don't believe due diligence was given, especially in regards to how certain colors look on certain skin tones; an issue that seemed much less egregious to me before the DT update.

Apart from Birdbrain's character, where you can see his eyebrows all but disappeared, I was just going through SB on an alt, and like a damn beacon in the dark, I instantly noticed M'rahz Nunh's eyebrows look like they're practically glowing lol.



Easily twice as saturated as his hair color, even setting aside the darker highlights he has. His beard is a little off as well, but not nearly so starkly as the brows, IMO.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg, as we've seen.

[Len_]

I wonder what happened to the people that posted early on in the thread when DT first launched. Have you guys gotten used to the changes or has the graphics update just demotivated you from logging in whatsoever?
I ask because it looks like a lot of people didn't fanta into something else despite their grievances. Not trying to antagonize or belittle anyone; disliking the update is totally valid. Just curious where you all stand 2 months later.

I canceled my DT pre-order when the first benchmark came out. Since it released, I created a glam that entirely covered my character's face and I have logged in probably less than 15 times since DT launched. I've done the events and got the pvp series reward. I don't ever stay logged in long. If I happen to have to change glams and catch a glimpse of my character's face it makes me want to turn off the game lol. In fact the only reason I'm back is for the Rising event and the fact that I saw my long time OTP in this game got actual content for the first time in years. It honestly felt like bait directed specifically at me to get me to log in lmao but that's' neither here nor there. I don't feel like I'm missing out not playing Dawntrail. I've been replaying the Dragon Age series anticipating the new game instead.

And I just wanna make a comment about the "dead eyes" thing. I really think so much of the eyes looking lifeless and dead is due to the lack of definition of the pupil. It seems like the iris textures for certain color eyes are more darkened in the middle. And shadowing over the top of the actual eyeball further obscuring the definition. It gives the illusion that the pupils are more dilated than they are which as you know, can make someone look dazed, unfocused, intoxicated, etc. When I look at a lot of these characters that's what I'm seeing personally. I feel like it affects my character too.

[lunartears]

And I just wanna make a comment about the "dead eyes" thing. I really think so much of the eyes looking lifeless and dead is due to the lack of definition of the pupil. It seems like the iris textures for certain color eyes are more darkened in the middle. And shadowing over the top of the actual eyeball further obscuring the definition. It gives the illusion that the pupils are more dilated than they are which as you know, can make someone look dazed, unfocused, intoxicated, etc. When I look at a lot of these characters that's what I'm seeing personally. I feel like it affects my character too.

I've felt the illusion of dilated eyes on other races, but on Female Au Ra they did dilate the pupil. I've also compared the eye textures.



The conscious decision to make Female Au Ra have larger pupils, when before they were small (which was a key component of their appearance and was represented in official illustrations) just makes absolutely no sense to me.
I don't know if this was maybe an attempt at cuteifying them, but it looks disturbing on my WoL.

Believe me, I've got feelings about the other races eye changes too (my alts are a Lalafell and Viera, both of which have lost their look to some extent because of the new eyes) but I can't stop fixating on what they did to Au Ra.

i honestly liked the borderline glowing iris when using brighter colour options, and the way theyve been toned down makes characters that used to have it feel almost lifeless.

Your entire post is similar to my own thoughts (especially the part about art/stylization over realism) but this part has been something I've been bothered by with the new eyes.
I haven't said much about it because it's really difficult to explain (and usually only prominent on Au Ra / Miqo'te), but I used to see this on my character in 6.5 and I really liked it. The new eyes "split" the colour in a way where it looks very saturated as opposed to a mix of different tones with the center having the glow.
I'm also unhappy with how eyes appear in the dark now but that's something I find impossible to describe without looking crazy. Sorry if I misunderstood your post at all.

[Cheapshot]

I'm back is for the Rising event and the fact that I saw my long time OTP in this game got actual content for the first time in years. It honestly felt like bait directed specifically at me to get me to log in lmao but that's' neither here nor there.

Hah I know what you mean. It’s just a coincidence, but on the day I was going to quit last month I was wrapping up all my affairs. Writing letters to my friends and collecting stuff like retainers and whatnot. I was headed to the housing plot I entered the lottery for to get my deposit back as usual and thought “wouldn’t it just be so typical if I finally won the housing lottery for a small plot after trying and failing endlessly to get a house for more than 5 years?” Like any other point before the dawntrail benchmark I would have shot through the ceiling with joy and excitement to win, but always always lost, to botters before the lotto and to rng after it. Like it would be too ironic to win on my last day right?

So of course I finally won it. I finally won a home for my character after years, but my character isn’t my character anymore. Now I can’t just let my account go dormant while I wait to see if they improve things, or else I lose the house I’ve been trying to get forever. Just miserable.

[poooman]

I haven't said much about it because it's really difficult to explain (and usually only prominent on Au Ra / Miqo'te), but I used to see this on my character in 6.5 and I really liked it. The new eyes "split" the colour in a way where it looks very saturated as opposed to a mix of different tones with the center having the glow.
I'm also unhappy with how eyes appear in the dark now but that's something I find impossible to describe without looking crazy. Sorry if I misunderstood your post at all.

i think i understand what you mean? the contrast on the texture feels much higher, with darker darks and brighter brights. this ends up making it feel like the ONLY place the colour shows up is in that bottom ring under the pupil, rather than it being the entire thing. while, yes a very minimal change in the grand scheme of things, clearly it makes a big enough difference for people to notice. my main has very dark red eyes, and before the update i could see that hint of red in most lighting, but now its like theyre pure black unless the sun is right in his eyes...
sunseeker eyes feel like the easiest to notice the difference on, maybe because the bright eyes were very fitting for their theme, and letting the thinner pupil shine. but i definitely see it.

i also definitely agree with the eyes looking off in darker lightings. sometimes they just look glossy in a way that also ends up cloudy? if this makes any sense. again, i use a very dark eye colour, so its VERY obvious when there's this weird... film looking thing overlaid on the eyes. its like he's always about to cry or something. i find hrothgar eyes specifically can look really weird because of this sometimes, since you basically cant see the whites of their eyes.

imo its better to have eyes that pop out a bit more, because the average player probably isnt 2ft from their characters face at all times. but you would still want to see the eye colour you picked i think. i don't know, though, i'm just spitballing my thoughts now LOL