In and Out: Character Design

My first blog correlated to Communications 345 was about myself and the things that I liked about animation. Today, I'm wrapping up my blogs for said class with a post about what I think is the most important phenomenon of animation. It took me awhile to think about a certain topic within animation that I would like to talk about, and just last Saturday, I came across a game that helped me choose the topic. Gearbox Software , the game company behind the Borderlands game series, recently started an open beta to allow gamers to test out their new game Battleborn.

This game has not been under my radar since I first heard of it a few E3's ago. I knew of it's existence, but never saw any gameplay or what the playable characters looked like. After participating in the beta over the weekend, it has quickly become one of my favorite games of recent time. The gameplay is fantastic, the aesthetics are great, and the voice acting and humor are pretty top notch. Although, I think the best part of the game is it's character design.

Just look at those characters! They are all so distinguishable from one another! All unique, and all with their own funny personalities in-game. I think the thing that makes me want to watch an animated movies, play a game, or anything else that can be labeled under the animation field is the way they design their characters. I'm a fan of realistic animation, but the wackier the design, the better. To the left is the character Montana. His exaggerated muscle mass compared to his normal sized head is absolutely hilarious to me. You can tell a lot about his character just by looking at him! To the right is the character Orendi. What can you tell from the character? You probably think she's evil right? Maybe with a maniacal personality? If so, you're right. In-game she's batsh*t crazy. Anyways, I think character design is key to animation. It's what draws in a lot of people to an animation project, including myself. I can honestly say that my favorite animated movies are my favorites because of character design.