Updated benchmark

[Sui-Kune]

I originally posted this here (#35).

I have permission from faiarrow to repost their translated post regarding Hellsguard Roegadyn from the JP megathread.

(Original post in Japanese here [#1229]).

Thank you for posting the updated benchmark.

Even though f!roe face 2 has been updated, I still have some feedback I'd like to give.
Here (#989) [Japanese; related to Benchmark 1.0] is a link to my initial feedback. Save for the shape of the nose all other issues have been ignored.



①The f!roe pupils are now black. Black pupils change the impression of the eyes and that affects the whole face.

② The shape of the nose has been corrected, but the nose ash does not look nice at all even on the lightest skintone. It's odd that a very beloved feature of the hellsguard has changed. I think it would be more acceptable if this was an option in the character maker (to change it light/dark) instead. This image is my face 3 character. She's the lightest skintone you can get on a hellsguard and her mark is practically invisible.



③There are still issues with the eyebrows. The following post is a great example:

However. Femroe face 2 brow creases are still. completely and utterly painted on. There is NO data on the normal map, so the brow creases just look plasticy and wierd.



The complete and utter lack of any shadows on the brow give the impression of the forehead, brow ridge and bridge of the nose being a completely different shape - smooth and airbrushy.

Here's a screenshot of the eyebrows from the benchmark. It looks like my character has filled in the outline of their eyebrows, making them look too long.



④ The philtrum is in an awkward position. From the side it looks OK but front on it's just two straight lines. That is not how a philtrum anatomically works, it should angle outward to meet the cupids bow of the lips.


I understand that female roegadyn is the smallest playerbase... but these are things that can't be fixed with a Fantasia.

[Boblawblah]

Just going to add the biggest thing I noticed that was taken from us lalafell... our belly button

potato jokes aside, that's ...an odd choice. Why would they remove that?

[Pyshiro]

potato jokes aside, that's ...an odd choice. Why would they remove that?

Not quite sure... especially since you can still see the vague man pecs so it's very :shrugs:

[PomPon]

Some thoughts here:

Hair textures are incredibly improved.

As a moon miqo:
Eyes actually appear duller and milky (?) in some lighting environments like she is going blind in the new 1.1 benchmark.
The highlight itself, is actually blurrier and less sparkly in bench2 than in bench1 as if a smudge tool was taken to it.
order: Live | Bench1 | Bench2



Milky eyes does carry over into the actual accompanying cinematic as seen in benchmark freezeframe shot at the end:
order: Bench2 | Bench1


The texture of the iris is... weird, but in the cinematic it is fine. The lines in the iris (idk what they are called) are too uniform, like a stuffed animals plastic eye, but its only noticeable in the character creator.

order: Bench2 | Live


The mouth shape is pretty different especially in regard to the top lip. She has less heart shaped lip type than before and the neutral curve is more of a slight frown. She looks annoyed/unimpressed/mad compared to before.

Order: Live | Bench2

[Dysvalence]

Compared to the last benchmark, the distortions around the top of the nose and chin are toned down, and the hair is a massive upgrade. Unlike the first bench, I'd consider the game playable in this state, though I need to adjust skin tones on pretty much all my characters regardless of race.


With that said, I still prefer the current game. On live, the eyes are more detailed than everything else, which draws the viewer's attention in and gives the overall face a focused look. But in the benchmark the detail on the philtrum and chin shadows is excessive and distracting, especially on low shadow settings, where it just kinda looks bad. The eyeshadow, especially in the outer corners, isn't as intense. The bottom lip still needs to be smaller.




On my viera I have more or less the same complaints, especially on the lower eyelid.

[wynnaura]

Some thoughts here:

Hair textures are incredibly improved.

As a moon miqo:
Eyes actually appear duller and milky (?) in some lighting environments like she is going blind in the new 1.1 benchmark.
The highlight itself, is actually blurrier and less sparkly in bench2 than in bench1 as if a smudge tool was taken to it.
order: Live | Bench1 | Bench2



Milky eyes does carry over into the actual accompanying cinematic as seen in benchmark freezeframe shot at the end:
order: Bench2 | Bench1


The texture of the iris is... weird, but in the cinematic it is fine. The lines in the iris (idk what they are called) are too uniform, like a stuffed animals plastic eye, but its only noticeable in the character creator.

order: Bench2 | Live


The mouth shape is pretty different especially in regard to the top lip. She has less heart shaped lip type than before and the neutral curve is more of a slight frown. She looks annoyed/unimpressed/mad compared to before.

Order: Live | Bench2

You're using the same face and eye model and I love that we can see here pretty well whats my issue with the eyebrows..
I didn't like the change in the first benchmark because the eyebrows look kinda "chopped" off at the end - but at least the front part to the nose stayed the same.
Now with the new benchmark they also changed that part which makes the previous "soft looking" eyebrows more tilted and "sharp" :c

I also noted the "milky" eyes and was pretty confused about it

[Fjarrisky]

My female miqo's eyes look... less pronounced due to the milkiness of the pupil, which in turn muddles the color contrast so the eye color feels wrong too.

Lowering contrast helps with the milkiness and other overly bright entities but going below 30 will definitely make the image weird.

[mixu]

Will post pics later but as a male viera main this is so much better! There are small things like brow fullness/richness, black hair issues, but overall I’m very happy with the viera changes and looking forward to DT like I was before the OG benchmark. The initial one was so rough on my boys (mostly face 3’s) but they have been resurrected lol

*Lash fullness returned for the most part, (brows better but not as good as current)
*Lip shine and shadow adjustment is closer to current
*Dirty nose mostly gone - with a bit of the previous sharpness actually restored as well, thankfully, so they didn’t seem so wide, dark, and flat (ideally would’ve liked to see a toggle or slider or leave it untouched for variety.)
*Awful shadowing on lower faces fixed
*Eyeshine is much improved which is so helpful in making them look more similar to their usual selves (i.e. alive).

Once again beautiful bun faces reign supreme \(^ - ^)/

If only my middies got this treatment as well lol. My fem face 1 looks like she hasn’t slept since arr. I’d love to see longer lashes, mouth fixes, and those weirdly enhanced under eye bags gone forever. My male face one needs his brows back and a bit more face fullness or something... but they weren’t hit as hard as my viera to begin with.

[Sandoria]

Ngl, when I saw the one on the right in the first Benchmark, I was worried. Now though, I'm over the moon thrilled with how great she looks. My Viera might be the biggest success story in Benchmark comparisons.


I thought Elezen was a massive improvement last time and this time, it's unreal. For me at least, this is an immensely wonderful change and I couldn't be happier. I hope everyone gets to feel that way about their characters eventually.

[AdventZero]

Admittedly I didn't care for my look in the new benchmark while watching it stand alone, but putting a few old BM screenshots next to new BM screenshots and it's not to bad, in fact I like it more with each moment. As someone who liked the old one there are still some points I like better in the old BM, like her hair color, love the brighter color while still being a med/deep red. If I lower the color it becomes to dark of a red, and if I rise it, it becomes to light/pinkish, so stuck here for now. otherwise I do feel she looks better in the new one and will only continue to do so as time passes.

Put new on the left and right so both lighting options can be seen next to the old one. I still look meh in blue light in option 1, but option 2 is great.



All other pictures are old BM left, new BM right. Didn't put as much effort into matching them up perfectly, but I think it's close enough.

Limsa Day.


Limsa Night.


Grid Day.


Grid Night.


Ul'Dah Day.


Ul'Dah Night.


Room face close up.


Over all, I still love how she looks and will continue to play as her.