Character graphical changes are NOT in an acceptable state, please make it optional

[Rein_eon_Osborne]

So many side by side sreenshots and people still talk about "upgrade". This is not an upgrade, this is mostly a redesign nobody asked for. And thats the whole problem. If they wanted to redesign they should have give us more options. Besides light and shadow are "upgraded" but buggy as hell and need fixing on technical levels. We are 3 months away from release.... this means THIS IS IT. Thats what we are getting at launch.... are they mad?
Where is QA? Still alive?

There's also some of us who were around when EW benchmark happened till the actual release of EW: that benchmark was released about 4-5(?) months prior to the actual release. That's about TWICE the length of time for players to send in feedback... if there's anything they dislike. Not that they made too much changes back in EW.

Now compare it to DT where they have warned about the graphic overhaul... this benchmark is released about just 2 and a half month prior to its actual release? I'm just beyond amazed.

[SpiritMuse]

Would like to point out here that the new lashes are also a problem that needs to be fixed. The way they're much darker and thicker now is not only responsible for the "yassified" fake lash/ extra mascara look for many female characters, but it also affects the visible eye shape for many others, making eyes look more closed and narrow, which is a big factor in why so many characters have lost their original personality and look much angrier and more "evil" in the new version.

[Scintilla]

"Only looks good in the right lighting" is not a solution. I don't want my character to look like someone else every time they turn around or step into a shadowed area.

Because that wasn't the case already, right?




I'm sorry, there are some valid points from players which I do totally understand. There are some changes which I question why they were done. And there are changes to my own characters which I dislike (I will definitely be using Fantasia to change my female Viera's eye colour. Possibly more if I find there are other small tweaks I can make to get her looking more like I imagine her to. And my male Viera might be going for a complete race change, but still undecided on that. My Midlander and Miqote will likely stay as they are). But the hysteria in a few of these posts is far overdone: "My character is a totally different person. They look nothing like they used to" - the only difference? A slightly rounder appearing jawline, partially due to the softening of the shadows there, which you have to look very hard to see anyway.

I'm not saying that there aren't some valid points being made. I do sympathise with some points made, for example hair highlights having been altered, race-specific features changed, 'bald patches' on some male characters, neck seams visible etc. However, some complaints are definitely being blown far out of proportion. This, alongside increasing hostility towards anyone who says the forbidden word 'lighting', is making me quickly lose what sympathy I had.

Sadly, they will never please everyone.
Some complain of skin being too plastic and doll-like. Others complain it's too textured.
Some complain it ages their character. Others complain it makes their characters look like children
Some complain of dimples now being far more noticeable. Others complain their dimples are now too subtle and/or unnoticable.

If they 'fix' one of these issues for one person, it will be considered worse by someone else. Yes, there are things which have been widely criticized by most, but we do still need to compromise a little more than some seem to be willing to.

[Rein_eon_Osborne]

If you give my supposed 'more youthful'-character a far too profound nasolabial folds on his face, then having good or bad lighting won't matter. He's practically 15-20 years older to the future---he's not 'youthful' anymore.

If you keep my 'more youthful'-character they way he is, then he'll still the 'more youthful'-character that I recognize & love. Bad lighting won't make him look old, not in the drastical way that those profound nasolabial folds would give.

Big difference.

[Nicola_Kunu]

Now compare it to DT where they have warned about the graphic overhaul... this benchmark is released about just 2 and a half month prior to its actual release? I'm just beyond amazed.

Due to the sheer density of feedback that's cropped up on the forum over the past... 3 days? I think it's unfortunate but realistic to say that not everything will be addressed.
Hopefully there are one or two people in SQuenix that are collecting and prioritising the issues people have, but realistically... Dawntrail is going to be content locked in-house a month if not more before release. Artists will not be in the office pushing the latest lip or eyelash fix to the main dev branch 3 days before release. Nothing short of critical issues will be adjusted in the release build in the last 2-4 weeks before July 2nd.

I can see some of the majorly visually incorrect stuff being fixed in time (like the dead eye Lalafells and Keeper fangs), but if they choose to fix anything else, I can imagine it'd be in waves of patches following Dawntrail's release where they'd fix a batch of issues at a time - artist work would be split between patch content and graphical update fixes.
Or not at all.

I got lucky with my Miqo'te, I'm happy with the result but would still want to see the model in-game. But I empathise with people who are upset over the more drastically visible and unwanted changes they have received, I get commissions of my character and fuss over small details myself.

[AirisRay]

I think most of us who think you guys are wildly overreacting can see the differences, we simply disagree that they are 'huge' and 'completely ruin' the character, who is now 'unrecognisable'. If I have to look at two more pictures of 99% identical catgirls and be told that they 'don't even look remotely similar' I will spontaneously combust.

Please, try to tell me that they are similar.



Seriously, I'll be very surprised if you say that. I will be very surprised if anyone even says this. And I’m most surprised that whoever did this didn’t see it himself.
I'm surprised I have to even be here on this forum trying to get my posts noticed so they can fix it.

Yes, they did the environment beautifully, as far as I can tell from what I've seen. For example, the flowers are beautiful. But I don't play for the flower. I played my character, who is now objectively broken.

I'm sure our characters should have been a priority during the graphics update. For many of us, this is the most important part of the game. They said it was just as important to them. That they will approach this issue very delicately and will attach great importance to it. I believed them and did not doubt their words for a second...

[twobear]

Because that wasn't the case already, right?

Thankyou for this. It's quite flabbergasting to see some people start referring to the lighting update as not an improvement given how easy it is in the current version to make your character look like a space alien.

[slippdipp]

Please, try to tell me that they are similar.



Seriously, I'll be very surprised if you say that. I will be very surprised if anyone even says this. And I’m most surprised that whoever did this to her didn’t see it himself. Perhaps he did it blindfolded, with his left leg? I don't know.
I'm surprised I have to even be here on this forum trying to get my posts noticed so they can fix it. I'm shocked that the people who do this work did it so mediocrely in my case.

Yes, they did the environment beautifully, as far as I can tell from what I've seen. For example, the flowers are beautiful. But I don't play for the flower. I played my character, who is now objectively broken and disfigured.

I'm sure our characters should have been a priority during the graphics update. For many of us, this is the most important part of the game. They said it was just as important to them. That they will approach this issue very delicately and will attach great importance to it. I believed them and did not doubt their words for a second. But at this point, I no longer trust a single word they say.

She got dimples, otherwise she looks the same? The lips, again, are universally a problem, but she genuinely looks the same. I say this as an artist too. Please, step away and take a few days break because you and a lot of people in this thread are very obviously overanalyzing the littlest differences and blowing them up in your mind.

[twobear]

Please, try to tell me that they are similar.

They are similar. I'll go one further, they are very similar.

Are they identical? Well no, the face on the right to me looks a little rounder, the hair is a different, greyer hue, the eyes are a little more widely spaced.

I hope they can tweak those things for you, but to insist they don't look similar is wild.

[Tethan]

Please, try to tell me that they are similar.

The changes around the mouth are very startling, there is also a huge gap between your face and the hair on lower right pic. It really is rough.