I'm going to briefly move this conversation to something more related to character design...
Character designs can be extremely subjective, as shown by this conversation we've been having. This is why having a diverse variety of playable characters is important for particular games. For me personally, I pay attention to a game's visuals 70-80 percent of the time. The rest is gameplay and sound design.
Since it was pretty much the spark of our debate, let's look at the roster for Dragon's Crown from my perspective (I haven't played the game before so try to refrain from spoiling anything to me ><)...
[spoiler]
![[Image: DC-Classes.jpg]](http://ftg.operationsupplydrop.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/DC-Classes.jpg)
I am a female gamer who is attracted to female characters, so when I pick up a game with multiple options for playable characters, I will most-likely pick one that is female.
Looking at Sorceress: yes, she is super voluptuous and has exaggerated proportions. This is very clear to me. Do I like it? Well, personally, boobs aren't everything for me, but whatever. But maybe this character has some clever aspects about her abilities and whatnot (which I hear she's probably one of the strongest).
Next to her is the Amazon. Very muscular, and wearing less clothing than Sorceress. Her proportions seem almost opposite to Sorceress, as her bust is significantly smaller and her tush is gigantic (in a more muscular fashion though). I usually prefer curves over muscles, so overall the design of the Amazon doesn't appeal much to me (I'm also not a huge fan of large blunt weapons).
Then there's the Elf. She comes with a much younger appearance and doesn't show much skin. She also wields a range weapon which for someone like me, might aid well in battle. Overall, I appreciate the design choices made for her. No, not because it's less sexualized. It just looks good to me, and I'll probably enjoy playing as her the most.
[/spoiler]
I guess what I'm trying to say is that there's a playable character out there for everyone, because for each individual player, there are characters that they just don't find appealing to themselves. It's not a bad thing at all. If anything, it's a great choice on the game's design team to include variety for the players.
Might I add that Vanillaware, the company behind Dragon's Crown and quite a few other cult RPGs, is very well-known for keeping their female designs pretty decent and not too sexualized. So for anyone who isn't a fan of the art direction of Dragon's Crown, I'll recommend their tamer titles such as GrimGrimoire, Odin Sphere, and Grand Knights History. There's also a game in the works called 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim. Not sure what kinda game it is or what it's about, but it looks interesting.
Character designs can be extremely subjective, as shown by this conversation we've been having. This is why having a diverse variety of playable characters is important for particular games. For me personally, I pay attention to a game's visuals 70-80 percent of the time. The rest is gameplay and sound design.
Since it was pretty much the spark of our debate, let's look at the roster for Dragon's Crown from my perspective (I haven't played the game before so try to refrain from spoiling anything to me ><)...
[spoiler]
I am a female gamer who is attracted to female characters, so when I pick up a game with multiple options for playable characters, I will most-likely pick one that is female.
Looking at Sorceress: yes, she is super voluptuous and has exaggerated proportions. This is very clear to me. Do I like it? Well, personally, boobs aren't everything for me, but whatever. But maybe this character has some clever aspects about her abilities and whatnot (which I hear she's probably one of the strongest).
Next to her is the Amazon. Very muscular, and wearing less clothing than Sorceress. Her proportions seem almost opposite to Sorceress, as her bust is significantly smaller and her tush is gigantic (in a more muscular fashion though). I usually prefer curves over muscles, so overall the design of the Amazon doesn't appeal much to me (I'm also not a huge fan of large blunt weapons).
Then there's the Elf. She comes with a much younger appearance and doesn't show much skin. She also wields a range weapon which for someone like me, might aid well in battle. Overall, I appreciate the design choices made for her. No, not because it's less sexualized. It just looks good to me, and I'll probably enjoy playing as her the most.
[/spoiler]
I guess what I'm trying to say is that there's a playable character out there for everyone, because for each individual player, there are characters that they just don't find appealing to themselves. It's not a bad thing at all. If anything, it's a great choice on the game's design team to include variety for the players.
Might I add that Vanillaware, the company behind Dragon's Crown and quite a few other cult RPGs, is very well-known for keeping their female designs pretty decent and not too sexualized. So for anyone who isn't a fan of the art direction of Dragon's Crown, I'll recommend their tamer titles such as GrimGrimoire, Odin Sphere, and Grand Knights History. There's also a game in the works called 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim. Not sure what kinda game it is or what it's about, but it looks interesting.