Thread: Revelations from Patch 4.3

Originally Posted by Ghald

I wish the design team give him an older look.

I've noticed that NPCs only get so old when they're fully-functional eNPCs/bNPCs. It looks like people go directly from [middle-aged with a can of Whoop-Ass in each hand] to [without their cane will fall over sideways and burst into aetheric mist upon hitting the ground], like those speech-bubblers you come across in hamlets sometimes.

Compare: Edmont de Fortemps (Age 59, if I remember right)

On thing I've noticed with computer animation is that it has a hard time making old people look like they are not caricatures of old people. This is especially true when working with a pre-made character builder. You can see this with characters like Varis, who hovers on the edge of being a caricature. I can't take him seriously, and a lot of that is due to his face being so fake compared to the other characters. He looks hilariously fake.

However, age isn't just what people look like, it's also how people act. Edmont de Fortemps feels older not just because his face does look older then most characters. He also behaves like he's been around for a while. He knows how Ishgard works and he's got experience that people like Aymeric don't have because of it. I can believe that he's spent forty years as the head of House Fortemps.

Kinda like it's pretty easy to believe Shadowhunter has been taking command of battlefields for a long time. And laying out options for people in ways that make his ideas be the ones people go with.

Originally Posted by Anonymoose

Compare: Edmont de Fortemps (Age 59, if I remember right)

Correct! See also 56-year-old Baurendouin de Haillenarte, who is is literally identical to his ~28-year-old second son Aurvael. (They have the exact same character model except Aurvael is taller and Baurendouin has a beard.)

It's specifically noted that Elezen have longer lifespans and mature more slowly than the other races (hence Alphinaud and Alisaie still looking very young), but since the Garleans are physically very similar to Elezen it's possible that they have the same trait.

Originally Posted by ObsidianFire

On thing I've noticed with computer animation is that it has a hard time making old people look like they are not caricatures of old people. This is especially true when working with a pre-made character builder. You can see this with characters like Varis, who hovers on the edge of being a caricature. I can't take him seriously, and a lot of that is due to his face being so fake compared to the other characters. He looks hilariously fake.

The first time Varis was onscreen, I seriously thought he was supposed to be wearing some kind of "fake face mask". He has weird deep lines across his face in a way that looks unnatural.

Originally Posted by Iscah

The first time Varis was onscreen, I seriously thought he was supposed to be wearing some kind of "fake face mask". He has weird deep lines across his face in a way that looks unnatural.

Very true. He's also just one ugly motherlover imho. XDDD

I am for one personally offended that they made probably!Gaius so attractive. You're too problematic to be attractive, confound it

Originally Posted by Iscah

The first time Varis was onscreen, I seriously thought he was supposed to be wearing some kind of "fake face mask". He has weird deep lines across his face in a way that looks unnatural.

Dat jaw too

Varis has an unusual look to him, though he isn't unattractive. He also doesn't look particularly old, he looks like a man in his prime should look. That he has that unusually distinct 'Pureblood Garlean' look to him is a bonus, as far as I'm concerned.

Originally Posted by Jyera

Very true. He's also just one ugly motherlover imho. XDDD

Nah, he's not. Quite the opposite. He has classically handsome features. On the other hand, I didn't think Gaius - at least in that scene - was anything special, in terms of his looks.

Originally Posted by Lauront

Nah, he's not. Quite the opposite. He has classically handsome features. On the other hand, I didn't think Gaius - at least in that scene - was anything special, in terms of his looks.

Agreed.

As for Varis, I like his design for the same reason Blood Elves were my favourite playable race back in WoW. The men, at least, had a very distinct set of features that made them look attractive in way that also made them look very masculine and regal. In this game, there's no shortage of eye candy, thankfully. I think overall Yotsuyu is the most attractive female character to date and Hien is the most attractive male character.

The developers will have their work cut out for them if they want to top those two - and I have a feeling it won't happen anytime soon.