What Do You Usually Make Your RPG Characters Look Like?

[Jolly Co-operator]

I recently made a thread asking what my fellow Escapists named their RPG characters. I've had a lot of fun reading the names you guys have come up with, and now I'm curious about any recurring physical traits in your customized characters.

I never try to make my character look exactly like me, but there are a few constant similarities: My character is most often male. My character will usually share my haircut (short hair, swept a little back and to the side). My character is usually the same race as me (caucasian), with pale skin. As for eye color, I make them blue, green, or gray (I want to match mine, but it can be hard to tell exactly which color they are).

That's where the exact similarities end. I typically give my character a narrow nose, a somewhat narrow jaw, and a slightly-smaller-than-default mouth/lips. I also never let the mouth have an over/underbite; I always try to make upper and lower lip protrusion exactly even.

As for facial hair, I like to give my character a light amount of stubble, unless the game has some truly ridiculous options. In that case, I pick the most extravagant mustache I can find. While we're on the subject of hair, the color is either black or red (I'll consider purple, on the rare occasions it's offered, since it's my favorite color).

In terms of tattoos, I'll put a small one on the arms or on the face, as long as I think the design is cool. If I put it on the face, though, it has to be pretty modest.

I rarely get to customize the body, but when I do I usually make my character fit, but not ridiculously huge. The one exception I've made to this is Saint's Row 2, where I spent many hours running around as an obese man dressed like a stereotypical pimp.

 

[Elfgore]

In terms of facial features (including eyebrows, mouth, nose, jawline, etc.) I usually just pick the coolest default option. If I'm not seeing this guy much, I really couldn't care less about how high his eyebrows are. I only really focus on Hair (both facial and headwise). I usually go with the longest hair possible, as long hair on guys looks awesome, and depending if I'm actually roleplaying a certain character with a backstory, for facial hair I usually just go with some stubble or a goatee like thing. Though my current Skyrim character is sporting a full beard.

 

[KarmaTheAlligator]

White or pale skin usually, although I've gone into milky tea territory, too. Usually icy blue eyes, or a deep dark blue (I'm fascinated by blue eyes). Red or dark blond hair, mostly. After that, I make something that would appeal to me, depending on the possibilities of the game, so I can't really describe the features. Fit to average body, usually no tattoos or piercings or any ornaments, really, I don't like those.

 

[wintercoat]

I usually just use the default face, because 9 times out of 10, you rarely get to see the poor bastard anyways, so what's the point?

It also seems impossible for me to create a good looking face. I end up with something that makes Sloth look like a super model in comparison.

 

[BathorysGraveland2]

Well, I tend to balance it up, twos things that are always constant: male and long hair. I really, really do not like the look of men with short hair. It's either got to be long hair, past shoulder length or completely bald. Depends on the character to determine which of the two. For example, in Skyrim, I had long-haired Nords or Orcs, while in Mass Effect, I have a bald Shepard. As far as gender goes, I just have no interest in playing as females unless that is locked in (such as Tomb Raider). No sexism or anything, just prefer men.

Hair and gender out the way, I tend to make quite normal looking characters. Or try to, at least. No huge eyes, or anything silly. Just realistic looking characters. If I can determine their race, then I may be tempted to switch things up a little. In my current Mass Effect playthrough, I have a black Shepard going on, and my first Skyrim character was actually a Redguard, come to think of it. So racially, I like some variety.

Facial hair can be rather diverse. Either a full, long beard or a small goatee works. Hair colour tends to be black, usually.

I guess that would be about it. Race aside, visually, my characters don't seem to be all that diverse. Rather interesting, but hey.

 

[tilmoph]

I try to customize my characters appearance to the role I want them to play. In new vegas, my crazed, alcoholic, machete wielding courier with little impulse control (stole everything, murdered dudes to get their sunglasses and hat) had long, scraggly, unkempt hair with a hobo beard, all stark white to add to the sense of an elder with a rough life. My paragon sheperd had the default face because he was the default space hero, in two I gave him the closest thing I could manage to paladin looking armor, white with light blue trim, always with helmet (a holdover from the first, made the kissing scenes with Liara pretty damn funny), uninstalled three after two hours so I didn't do anything with him there, but I think you get my point.

 

[ShinyCharizard]

I usually create manly men with a majestic grey/red beard and long flowing hair or ponytail.

 

[KoudelkaMorgan]

Ruby hair, amethyst eyes, tall moderate sized boobs. Basically as big as they can get and not look ridiculous. I tend to wear pants or long dresses. I don't like dressing like a ho, and I don't go heavy with the makeup.

Generally a mage.

 

[Requia]

Different games, different approaches. For Skyrim or the fallout games I've been all over the map, conversley in Mass effect its always femshep, and always with default face, though I will mess around with hair color (not style) and makeup.

 

[Wyvern65]

First playthrough I'm impatient and want to get on with the game. Usually I'll go with one of the male presets, jiggle a few sliders just to change it up a bit. I'll almost always pick a much darker skin tone than my own, since most RPGs have characters that are outdoors far more often than I am so they should at least be a bit swarthy. If there's facial hair there will at least be stubble. If there's body hair options I tend to pick the most. Could have something to do with the fact that I'm an ape in real life.

Second playthrough (in other words, if it's a good rpg) I'll have a specific character concept in mind to match the world and lore, and will try to create the character to match that. Most likely female the second time, since I usually want to experience the choices for both genders. Her build, appearance, cosmetics, etc will be a tailored around that. I'll spend way too much time in the character creator, exploring all the options.

 

[TehCookie]

I rarely make my characters look the same. I play around with what I can do in the customization and end up with what feels right and call it good. Though for my second character I always make a bishounen.

 

[kingthrall]

Its funny cause I go a few different approaches depending on the style of character im making in a rpg.

Instance-
-I made a really old looking man and had high speachcraft, surival and science for f.O.N.V
- roman looking soilder black straight cut hair, long nose (romes all over his face LOL) and a strong jaw for sword and board in skyrim.
-Pale ugly character for necromancer or witch
- Standard faces for thieves, maybe alter with a few darker tones
- Assasin mostly always ugly face, assassins would have the ugliest faces simply cause of all the fights they get into and high risk area's.

 

[ninjarafter]

Don't really care that much. If it's a (mostly) first person RPG(Elder Scrolls, Fallout:NV) I generally don't bother to even look at the options. If it's third person, with a lot of cutscenes and dialogues(like Mass Effect), I just go with the default, pre-set option, since that usually looks best and most natural. I usually play male and then afterwards female. That is, only if playing a different gender provides a different experience, extra dialogue, or content that can't be experienced with the other one. And I'm not counting romances, since those are usually boring and melodramatic anyway and aren't worth a whole other playthrough.


The last time I actually remember caring enough to change my character's appearance was in KOTOR/KOTOR II. I remember all the white guys' faces being hideous and distracting, because the technology wasn't strong enough to make all the different features(facial hair, haircuts, braids, etc) not look ugly and artificial. So in both games I picked the bald black guys with no facial hair(the second one had a little goatee, but I didn't mind it), because they were the most simple character models and so looked the most natural and human.

 

[Dimitriov]

Well my profile pic is a character I made in EVE online... and honestly I usually go with something like that.

You know: the boring, ubiquitous slightly unshaven, short brown-haired, white guy. Cuz, honestly, that's me. My profile pic was in fact an attempt to recreate myself - and I daresay it actually went pretty well. But then the EVE character creation is shockingly robust



Only really notable differences are that I sometimes like to give my characters massive beards (the kind I COULD grow, but lack the dedication to actually do so), and often blue or grey eyes (mine are brown). Oh, and I often make the hair black... I kinda wish my hair was black.

That's my usual default first character in a game anyway. Afterwards I'll tend to mix it up and make female characters - and also characters of whatever crazy races or body types the game will allow!

 

[piinyouri]

Mine are almost always different.
I always try to do new things. Different races, ugly characters (not ugly in the cool way), ect.
Nothing's off limits to me.

Ha, reading that back to myself I realize I probably sound a bit odd.
I love my characters.

 

[Scde2]

Though for my second character I always make a bishounen.

That's actually my first choice, if I can make a decent one.

If that fails I normally try other races the game might have or make an attractive looking female. Though normally, I'm sadly static with my characters appearances.

 

[Andy Farren]

With ME3, I specifically tried to make Shepard as ugly as possible. I just thought it was funny seeing the hero of the universe, chatting up everyone and getting high-fives, look like an ex-boxer. I'm not what you'd call 'conventionally handsome' either, so there was a bit of that in there too!

If it's a male protagonist, I often try and make them a bit older (grey hair, possibly a beard). I don't particularly understand the obsession with youth. A recent example I admire is Joel from 'The Last of Us'. That guy really has lived-in looks. And, no spoilers, you know he's seen some shit in his time.

 

[Insideout Ink Demon]

i usually go for Female, and if at all possible non-human

once did a male as close as possible likeness to me n I didnt like it

 

[Genocidicles]

Male, whatever hair looks the coolest, and the most gruesome scar if scars are an option.

I don't put much effort in, as I usually look for a full face helmet for my character.