Hello everybody!
I couldn't update these past months because I was living abroad and had no free time, I have loads of personal problems going on too. The situation in my home country is no good, either...
Anyway, I decided it was about time to update... this time I am bringing you some more of the concept art behind Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment, but not stages or backgrounds again, instead here you have characters' sketches and the likes. Let's start with the hero, Tobias Martin:
Tobia's sketches found in the artist's blog LINK
Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgement has been harshly criticized, especially the art. I will have to write a review on the actual gameplay, plot, etc. but for now, let's just review the characters' art.
Some of the most common complaints the fans stated, is that the "superdeformed american cartoonish style with large heads" didn't match the series and it's seriousness, and that the characters' designs didn't have the feeling of belonging to the world of Vandal Hearts, either... I agree for the most part. However...
... However, even if I agree that the art style of the characters doesn't fit the series, I don't think the art is so bad itself as some like to negatively point. Ok, so, apart from the unfitting "small body - large heads" style, I more or less like the looks of some characters such as Luce and Altyria, and I especially love Shance and Tobias.
I don't think they went so wrong with Tobias's design: clerics and priests are common classes in the VH series and there is always an important character that is one, like Sara in the first game, or Yuri in the second game, and it's refreshing that, for once, the cleric is the main character; Tobias does look like one of the other healers in the series, his clothes are cool and that cross-sword is badass. Shance is a badass bad-gal and totally fits the VH series as well. As for the others... well, they look like coming from an average western fantasy game or cartoon, but still, I think the concept art and first ideas weren't so bad -yet again, apart from the "chibi" style- However, I don't know why the final result is so... ugly in general. I mean:
Connor at first Connor in the finished game
In the first one I actually think he is kind of cute, even hot, and you can SO CLEARLY see what his personality is like thanks to that face full of expressiveness. The second makes him plain, ugly... and I am not the only one who thinks of Chucky from the horror films, am I?
You can see the final looks of the other characters in the two previous posts. I will finish this post leaving here some of the character sketches I collected, which show up while you are playing, as "loading screen". See you!
