Character options used:
Au Ra Xaela
Face: 4
Skin color: RGB(155,122,137)
Hairstyle: 31
Hair color: RGB(75,38,94)
Highlights color: RGB(186,177,191)
Jaw: 2
Eye shape: 5
Iris size: Small
Left eye color: RGB(117,31,72)
Right eye color: RGB(64,55,105)
Limbal rings: Right eye only
Limbal ring color: RGB(74,45,97)
Eyebrows: 2
Nose: 5
Mouth: 1
Lip color: N/A
Other features: 3, 4, 5 (Both eyeshadow, horn rings)
Face paint: N/A

(Graphics/display settings equal in all images)

Its been over a month since we've gotten our hands on 7.0's changed character graphics, and after seeing them for so long the discomfort I felt at launch day still hasn't gone away, so here's my feedback.
Content of my posts will be very similar to
Quote Originally Posted by Alice9 View Post
snip
with a lot more visual explanation, I echo their sentiments that the promise to "maintain character impressions" and to "preserve the look you know and love" made multiple times before patch 7.0 was not adequately kept with this face.

Eyes

Ever since the graphics revisions, the pupil and iris have been raised in the eyes. Compared to the old position, these new eyes give off a feeling that you're being looked past, not looked at. This new gaze feels distant and makes my character appear disconnected, and I hope the eyes can simply be rotated slightly downwards to where they were before the graphics changes.



The pupils in the eyes are also much larger now, and far less sharply defined than they used to be. This completely changes the look of the character, and the less defined, muddy eyes darken the surrounding iris, making its colors harder to see too. I'd like if this racial characteristic could be returned to Au Ra, as it was an important part of the appeal of the race.


Additionally, the limbal rings saw drastic stylistic changes with the graphics replacements. Their colors are now far, far less consistent, with limbal rings appearing dark in bright conditions, but over-exposed/bright in darkness. This combined with limbal rings now being gradients versus the solid ring they used to be means that they even appear to grow/shrink based on the time of day. Before 7.0, their lighting behaved in the exact opposite way, and I hope this and the solid ring can be returned to how they once were as Au Ra's limbal rings were a very distinct feature of their appearance.
The green lines in the above image showcase more examples of the affect that the enlarged pupils have on the iris, making it almost invisible at times.