The Definition of "Handsome"

[Moonsprite]

I'm sorry to be that person OP, but in the first few moments of meeting Zero I was definitely unsure if she's male or female. Her JP voice is super deep as well, so I thought I was looking at a younger, edgy boy.

Literally, here's my first reaction about her with a friend who really likes her.

I thought Zero was a young, like 19 years old, guy. It never occurred to me Zero could be a girl. I also thought Zero was a guys name. It’s open to interpretation by the person playing, which isn’t a bad thing.

@OP even bad guy Zenos had softer features despite having ridiculously oversized armor and having that dominant aggressive male type personality. I just think it’s the aesthetic of the game. Hien in Stormblood was pretty masculine to me. I guess maybe that’s the look you want?

[Simple_Barghest]

have you seen the new arc's characters? xD

I know it got announced but I haven't really had a chance to look into it. Got some other manga I'm keeping track of atm.

[Gemina]

I can see that. I just think in my personal experience "dapper" is more something that would be used for older men, and "pretty" (whether making fun of a certain type of guy, or as a compliment) were maybe more younger men.

That's fair, and I would agree. However, it's when males are older that they truly do become men. It's not always the case, but for most it really does take quite a bit of time for a male to become distinguished, mature, hardened, and to truly get past the "boy phase". These days, most males don't get there until their 40's so I can see where you are coming from. Pretty boys can and will garner some success with females, but their antics do not command respect so rarely are they taken seriously.

This also made me chuckle, written by a woman:

How can I be a pretty boy? 7 Simple Tricks That Can Make Any Man Look More Handsome & Attractive, Instantly

Trim Your Beard, Hair & Nails Regularly. ...
Supersize Your Sunglasses. ...
Get Serious About Skin Care. ...
Get Your Shirts & Suits Tailored. ...
Wear A Tie (Even When You Don't Have To) ...
Smell Nice All The Time. ...
Invest In All Things Quality & Classy.

That got a chuckle out of me as well. That's the kind of horse**** guys will listen to thinking it works. While some stuff still applies, this has more to do with just keeping yourself kempt. It's still important to be clean and neat, but the men I've always been around didn't need any longer than 15 minutes and an occasional haircut to do this.

[Kacho_Nacho]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDaYLxoJHBQ

Thank you!

Even in Japanese, I'm hearing a woman's voice, not the voice of an androgynous male or non-binary individual.

Zero IS a woman.

Yeah, that's still my take. But, it doesn't bother me that others see Zero as a male or anything else, really.

If that's the dev's intent, all power to them. They succeeded.

[Mcg55ss]

I know Sunday is jokingly referring to WoW troll forum day, is it the same here or coincidence it was on same day

[TheMightyMollusk]

I know Sunday is jokingly referring to WoW troll forum day, is it the same here or coincidence it was on same day

Everyday is troll day here, depending on which trolls have come back from their two-week vacations lately. The mods never step in unless enough people report something, so we're pretty much on our own.

[Absimiliard]

Breaking news: having aesthetic preferences makes you a bad person.

[aveyond-dreams]

We had Hien. I think he was supposed to fill that role for a bit.

Hien is proof that they are capable of designing attractive masculine men, aka "handsome" but I guess whoever made him got sent off to design the male characters in XVI and in their place we got the people who decided that male Viera have to be shorter and girlier than their female counterparts. They've barely designed any masculine characters since, with Hythlodaeus being similarly effeminate and then Vrtra, Zero, etc. The balance is clearly stacked in favor of those types and hardly any of the opposite.

Again though, FFXVI doesn't seem to suffer much from that by giving out something for everyone. You want a pretty boy? There's Dion. You want your classic hero type? There's Clive. You want your strong man? There's Hugo. You want your rugged older types? Cid and Barnabas. Everyone wins. All they'd need to do is produce *1* male character design for a party member that doesn't suffer from whatever is going on with Zero or Vrtra to make the current party we're stuck with less...ridiculous.

[Zanarkand-Ronso]

Breaking news: having aesthetic preferences makes you a bad person.

Having a conflicting opinion to OP is also a Bad-Bad

Its kinda weird XD

[Hurlstone]

Breaking news: having aesthetic preferences makes you a bad person.

I... do not think... anyone is saying that?