Male Character Models

[sleekit]

2 is normal.

it pretty much is.

its the norm for the majority of NPCs and the clothes are designed for this frame. you can very obviously see this with any item that has a diagonal strap or something on body 3 as its thin-fat-thin deformed as it passes over that bodys massive chest and in other places.

[anewok]

The male character models in this game are fairly decent, aside from the 4th one. I feel like the other 3 body types can all fit a certain class/advanced class and not look out of place.

At the very least, its not like some other MMOs were one genders character models were wonky enough that I felt I couldnt roll that gender. LOTR had this issue for me. Male humans and elves had a weird stance, like there was something wrong with their hips, and female hobbits were just plain unappealing.

[justpixels]

Body type 4 playing a stealthy Sith Assassin. There is nothing more hilarious and awesome than that. Also, my character is a disgusting pure blood with Dark Side points maxxed out and horrible facial scarring. I am disgustingly ugly and I love every bit of Ashara's romancing with me.

[Deleted]

am i the only one who thinks 1 & 2 are worse than 3 & 4?

[Profyrion]

Incidentally, there are only 4 models per gender because of animated cutscenes. Camera placement and model interaction in the quest cutscenes had to be defined as a limited number of variables to keep things simple enough for the animators. If you could scale height and weight infinitely on a slider (256 levels is near enough to "infinite" on a tiny slider) then it potentially introduces all kinds of problems with cutscenes, which in turn scales up the amount of work for the animators.

Hint: Think about the "romance" scenes where your two characters embrace.

I'm not making excuses, just explaining one very probable factor in limiting player character customization. This is also likely why we didn't get very many "unique" playable races.

[Deleted]

Incidentally, there are only 4 models per gender because of animated cutscenes. Camera placement and model interaction in the quest cutscenes had to be defined as a limited number of variables to keep things simple enough for the animators. If you could scale height and weight infinitely on a slider (256 levels is near enough to "infinite" on a tiny slider) then it potentially introduces all kinds of problems with cutscenes, which in turn scales up the amount of work for the animators.

Hint: Think about the "romance" scenes where your two characters embrace.

I'm not making excuses, just explaining one very probable factor in limiting player character customization. This is also likely why we didn't get very many "unique" playable races.

while that is a valid point indeed, there was nothing stopping them from coding it differently in the first place to allow for it

[sleekit]

am i the only one who thinks 1 & 2 are worse than 3 & 4?

2, when bulked up with midway through the game with trooper or bh armor for example, actually looks much better than it does initially.

i chose 3 on my BH and some of armors i'm getting now make me look fat

[Profyrion]

while that is a valid point indeed, there was nothing stopping them from coding it differently in the first place to allow for it

Agreed, but I think it comes down to just keeping the initial launch system simple so that it can also (hopefully) be polished.

[Octaboom]

Is it just me, or is there no male character body type that looks normal? Even the one that is supposed to be "normal" (the second one) looks kinda scrawny when you're actually playing him. Then the other three body types are too extreme for my taste. I always played male characters in WoW, but it seems like in this game I have to play a female character in order to look good.

(And to clarify, I don't mean "normal" as in what everyone should look like IRL, i mean "normal" as in the general lean body type that most heroes have in videogames)

The reason I say that, is that there are just some cultural archetypes (uh psychology, sociology types may explain this better) that fit into the models. The big bruiser type is the "heroic" version of a human male. So on my Juggernaut I've got him on the big bruiser type so that he looks more heroic. On the other hand my SI Sorcerer looks down right scrawny no matter what, but seeing how he started as a slave and under fed I figured scrawny fit him better.

Anyway, while the visuals may seem odd when contrasted to "larger" or "smaller" models I suspect that BW had the heroic idea in mind, or at least in the back of their minds when the models were created.

Joseph Campbell had interesting thoughts on the hero of myth. You may want to look him up to get more insight or ideas as to what BW was thinking. That is, of course, if BW doesn't explain directly to us.

[Larynx]

I agree. I can't really play males in this game because of that. And the only good female one is 2, or potentially 1 but that's a bit too thin.

2 for males would be good if it was a mix of the current 2 and the muscle of 3, in my opinion.

[Deleted]

2, when bulked up with midway through the game with trooper or bh armor for example, actually looks much better than it does initially.

i chose 3 on my BH and some of armors i'm getting now make me look fat

ah, i'm a consular with my thin robes, but at least with my bigger character i don't just look like a brown blur like 99.9% of every other consulars

[Deleted]

I am still determined to roll a Commando Trooper with a size 4 body type and name him "Heavy".

+1 to whoever gets the reference.

[Larynx]

I am still determined to roll a Commando Trooper with a size 4 body type and name him "Heavy".

+1 to whoever gets the reference.

Make sure you speak in terrible English too.

[Jhaalu]

Incidentally, there are only 4 models per gender because of animated cutscenes. Camera placement and model interaction in the quest cutscenes had to be defined as a limited number of variables to keep things simple enough for the animators. If you could scale height and weight infinitely on a slider (256 levels is near enough to "infinite" on a tiny slider) then it potentially introduces all kinds of problems with cutscenes, which in turn scales up the amount of work for the animators.

Hint: Think about the "romance" scenes where your two characters embrace.

I'm not making excuses, just explaining one very probable factor in limiting player character customization. This is also likely why we didn't get very many "unique" playable races.

I'm not asking for a slider, just one more option that is inbetween 2 and 3

[sleekit]

ah, i'm a consular with my thin robes, but at least with my bigger character i don't just look like a brown blur like 99.9% of every other consulars

ye thickness of future armor is defiantly something to consider,

i would think something like a sith juggernaut in a robe with body 3 would look good for example

its nice to be able to make skinny casters though

[rhoark]

Male: Gollum, normal, Hulk, Michelin Man
Female: thin teenager, athletic adult, soviet olympian, average American

[VenomousCarnage]

Well the male models looks more normal than the female ones. The "fattest" female model is slightly above average size imo.

^this

Male 2 is normal, the female models are junk and the variety is terrible. The "Fat" female/body 4 is not even close to overweight, in the real world she would still be quite average/skinny.

Despite this I'm sure there are many guys fooling themselves picking girls because they have warped fantasies/erotic dreams about their character but will lie and defend to the death that "female models are just better" despite that not at all being true in this game.

[Deleted]

Personally I find the 1st two body types on male characters to be refreshing, WoW's male character models were rediculous, I couldn't see any male apart from belf or gnome being anything but warrior/pally/DK. I enjoy being able to play a slim Smuggler who sneaks around and looks right doing so. I've settled into a hibit of playing female characters though, so they've been what I've been playing. The only body type on SWTOR I think is silly looking is the 'fat' body type for males.

[logintime]

And the only good female one is 2, or potentially 1 but that's a bit too thin.

Nah, I think 1 is great for female chars. The second choice is as well, but the 4th one (much like the 4th male one) becomes a lot less applicable to characters and character classes.

2 for males would be good if it was a mix of the current 2 and the muscle of 3, in my opinion.

I kinda like the 2 build as it is. 1 is essentially emo-thin. 2 is a runner's build. 3 is a Schwarzenegger build, and 4 is just morbidly obese. Save for the last, each one has their uses as is for character design.

[Deleted]

The number 1 looks like a wimp ^^ but 2 and 3 is really kind of "standard" I think? the last one is very special but still cool.

+you got to love the buts of all the male characters