Has Genshin Impact lost its way with narrative character designs? Critique and Praise
I like simple yet unique and memorable visuals in storytelling. I think this goes for my taste in any form of visual art: graphic design, video editing, illustration…
Has Genshin Impact lost its way with narrative character designs?
The outfits keep on getting more and more detailed and complicated with each character but I don’t feel much looking at them. From Inazuma onwards, at a glance, it all just seem like just another sparkly anime character design (especially for the female characters) instead of something unique that conveys the character’s personality to me.
Are the designers at HoYoverse too focused on making them marketable in a Gacha game rather than making sure their designs convey their personality effectively? Are they aiming for more and more complex character designs while forgetting the aesthetics, themes, and storyline that ties them all together for each region?
This is another reason why I lost my interest significantly after Inazuma’s release.
For this reason I personally feel Albedo, Barbara, Diluc, Rosaria, and Venti have some of the most memorable character designs amongst the Mondstadt cast, dare I say even amongst all the playable characters released. (Of course it’s also influenced by my personal tastes in character designs.)
They’re simple and not very flashy, so attention goes to their face, which is where you should be looking at first in a character design most of the time.
The use of black and white in them (or navy and white for Barbara) only brings out their face and defining assesories plus key colours even more. Their clothes are not outstanding with the muted colours. Blue, magenta, red, and gold are the respective “character colours” that pop out for Barbara, Rosaria, Diluc, and Albedo. Blue for gentleness and kindness, magenta for aloofness and mystery, red for resolve and individuality, and gold for elegance and perhaps prestige. These are all first impressions one might have towards them.
As for Venti, his colour palette is very pleasing and it’s obvious that green is the main colour with shades of beige, white, and gold being details. Pops of cyan in his eyes and “Vision” cools down the design and makes it look refreshing. His colours are in the mid-range in value, so giving him dark navy hair draws attention to his face immediately. A good design for a carefree wind god. You look at him, and he seems like just a little boy, if not somewhat androgynous.
I miss the Mondstadt times, where the storyline is simple enough that the characters feel familiar and welcoming.
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