DEVLOG - Character Design: Silhouettes, Shape Language, and Weird Fashion! (2024)

With that said, crunchy smaller images HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

SILHOUETTES OF THE TEAM (at 43% scale*)

In the full game of Catalyst: Blind Faith you can have up to 5 main characters in your roster. They might come and go, or be missed entirely. Enemies! Friends! Lovers! They're not just there for cool abilities and looking sexy in all this nice clothing. The relationships you share with them shape the game heavily, and often dictate what ending you get. This is for a heavily choice-based game, and a lot of the fun is seeing how differently things can play out based on your behavior!

You play as Father Richard Anscham, the troubled young priest in the center of this lineup. He thinks that his journal bag is very cool. Try to be understanding. ;)

The entire purpose of drawing this image was to cement the silhouette for Richard's coat without causing conflict with the shape language on the other main characters' designs. I found it as a great opportunity to show some of the key details for each of these characters, but please note that these are not sprites! Our hero does not have green hair! Ray has a face!

This is a heavily stylized image that I just cleaned up to share with you all. I'll be breaking down lots of details and cool specific design stuff later in this post! These monochrome colors are just for vibes, as these characters have distinct and varied color palettes in the game itself.

A huge part of developing this image was striving for clear shape language with each party member. Character design is a huge opportunity to share massive amounts of information at a glance, and I wanted to take full advantage of that! For every character, this involved three primary considerations:

1. A large percentage of the game (approx 60%) is shown in "ADV" (Adventure) mode. That's where the textbox occupies about 1/3rd of the screen, and sprites+backgrounds appear behind it. Ofelia and Ray are relatively short, as the character the player controls (Richard, the string bean on the left) is 6'2''. The game is seen through his eyes, so not only do I want it to look like a natural angle when looking at other characters, but primary physical features must also be displayed above the textbox. I have an opacity slider on the textbox for accessibility or player's personal preference, but obviously I design all assets with all transparency levels in mind.

2. Many games do not show full-body sprites, which is totally fine! But for Catalyst: Blind Faith, I will be showing the full-body designs in CGs and with any other poses that are very dynamic. A significant percentage of visuals show the full-body designs of the cast in some capacity, sometimes even with sprites.

This is a mood board for our starlit sorceress, Celegwen! She is a dancer and highly physical combatant, and since her graceful body language and spellcasting will predominantly use ballet motifs, many of her poses will have her legs or sandals visible. I'm sure you can imagine why it is key to include those aspects when considering her design (and everyone else's)!

3. I keep mentioning shapes for good reason! A big part of communicating things like personality, roles in the story, and many other visual associations come from basic shapes in character design. I have a razor-focused need for each of these characters in the party, so even though each character has depth and complexity, it is very doable to convey their core design elements through simple shapes!

These shapes form the heart of their silhouettes, but also are consistent throughout all details in their designs. I'm going to briefly touch on some specific considerations for each of these party members, from left to right.

Ofelia "Eagle-Eye" Banks | Medieval Aesthetic

Your eyes trail up to her bright blue gaze. Freckles. An unhinged, filthy smile.

Ofelia is an anchor for the story in so many capacities, and her character design is no exception! The majority of the cast has unusual fashion choices, but the genre of Catalyst: Blind Faith is a blend of dark fantasy and horror. Because Ofelia is the only mundane, humanoid combatant in the party, she provides an incredible opportunity for me to telegraph the genres of the game and its tone with some traditional fantasy elements, medieval motifs, and an enchanted cloak. Thanks to her having such a conventional appearance and being onscreen in many routes for the majority of the game, this helps me enormously with sharing more bizarre design elements and not stressing over the aesthetic at every turn.

I still put a tremendous amount of thought and care into her major features. Big and fluffy hair that's as big as Ofelia's personality is a major part of her silhouette, as well as the cloak I mentioned before. This is an incredibly important item in the narrative with deep sentimental value for Ofelia, and I wanted to make its magical qualities very readily apparent. Here the specific shape and details of the eagle eye broach, the exact style of the starlight on the inner trim, and the lineweight was not important, because this is just for her silhouette, but it's still fun to share those vibes!

Equally important is the fact that Ofelia is the only armored member of the party. She survives with cunning and intelligence, and a major part of that is protecting herself in a practical fashion. The outer layers of her armor conceal additional pauldrons, a gambeson, and some neat elements that will be better seen on her sprite. I spent a ludicrous amount of time digging through historical thieves tools and lockpicks, scabbards, knife designs, and even had some contributions from my Discord community for inspiration from their own favorite knives and gear! I am incredibly excited for when you will get to meet her in the full game--I try not to play favorites, but Ofelia is far and away one of my favorite characters. c:

Celegwen | Antique Grunge

Gwen makes an elaborate gesture with her hands, and a strange incantation leaves her in a language that defies all comprehension.

The ultimate tragedy of this lineup is that Celegwen's key design features do not show on her silhouette at all lmao. The key component of her visual design is full-body tattoos, which are obviously not displayed here! Those tattoos are not only a reflection of Gwen's long history, but also of the world she inhabits, and each tattoo is part of her story. So, rather than rush their design (which is not relevant to her silhouette) I omitted them from this drawing. It is extremely important to me to take the time and care to design them well, as in addition to all of those incredible elements that they convey, each one is reflective of a different form of physical motion. They augment her spellcasting, and can light up when casting certain spells. Suffice to say I will be giving them extreme diligence on her sprite and in CGs!

The main elements here that are strongly reflected in her silhouette are:

• Long ears. Elves in my setting continue to have their ears grow as they age. This is a sore spot for Celegwen, as it's the biggest tell that she is over 350 years old.
• Piercings and hair dye. Body modification and personal expression is deeply important to Gwen. She has far less need for traditional physical defense or stealth, so she openly wears jewelry and brighter colors than most characters in Catalyst: Blind Faith!
• A gnarled staff. She has no need for a walking stick, but this staff is an additional augment for Celegwen's spellcasting. It's bent from channeling spells through it, and is one of her most prized possessions.
• Tattered clothing with ample bare skin. Mundane concerns are nowhere near as pressing to Celegwen as it is to the other party members, and this also provides strong visual contrast with how heavily concealed Ofelia's appearance is.

The numerous smaller holsters that Gwen has for daggers and knives, as well as the short sword she keeps on her back, have such a low impact on her silhouette that they are not included here as well. I'm deeply looking forward to sharing her art in the full game, probably more than any other character!

Father Richard Anscham | Dark Academia

Your loose-fitting robes normally do such a good job of hiding how skinny you are, but the fitted fabric you’re wearing now snags on the angles of your shoulder blades, knees, and elbows. It makes it clear that Flesh has wasted away what should be abundant, hard-earned muscle. Agriculture has made it harder still to eat or drink. You curl into yourself in mortification, your face a deep shade of red. "I told you not to look at me."

Our anti-hero and the reason for this lineup! The entire purpose of this image was to cement the silhouette and length of Richard's "robe," which is an extremely structured and hand-sewn coat. "Eccentric" might as well be his middle name, so I wanted to wholly capture the extreme preoccupation that Richard has with personal image, while also conveying a degree of his lack of self-awareness.

For this extremely repressed, troubled, and bookish character, I focused on perpendicular angles and straight lines for his design. This doesn't mean he has to look like a turbo nerd, as even high-waisted pants and suspenders can look very classy when done well!

I made certain that this scholar's journal and cartography equipment are literally strapped to his body and visible at all times, however. He'll also be carrying a backpack, mace, shield, and numerous other items that can be obtained over the course of the game, but these are his core components, and I think this nails his focus on rigid thinking and his own inner world quite well!

A very dark color palette will be used for Richard in both the demo and full game, which not only is meant to convey the dark fantasy and horror genre of Catalyst: Blind Faith, but also will provide great contrast for color-centric visuals. When you play as Richard, very often you are given the ability to channel the power of Gods and Goddesses in the pantheon through his body. Doing so has strong, monochromatic color associations that will not only be reflected in the game's UI and all visuals you see through his eyes, but also on Richard's design itself!

Color plays SUCH a huge role in the design of this game, but we will get there in future posts!!

Ray | A very good boi

His collar may look cumbersome, but its durable spikes are made from a remarkably lightweight and ancient metal. Not only is metal excruciatingly rare for your people, but only a smith from the Church of Storm possesses the knowledge of how to shape this substance—by harnessing the might of Corcaea's coastal winds to power her divine forge.

Your loyal service dog, Ray, is an English mastiff who has been trained to kill if the need ever arises. His original design did not include the wolf collar, and I agonized over its inclusion for the entirety of development. Ultimately I decided that it strengthens the narrative and his visual so much that it is well worth it, and completed the edits quite awhile back on the script which makes the needed adjustments to the narrative for its inclusion! The next demo update will feature that content, as well as of course his adorable sprite.

Animals are difficult to draw at the best of times, and having them in a visual novel is no exception. I am incredibly fortunate to have the need for such a large animal in the narrative, as he barely peeks above the textbox even at a staggering 200lbs of solid muscle. Many, many scenes will need special design considerations to show Ray effectively, but he is arguably the main character of the game, and it is well worth it to me to take the time to draw him with justice.

Also yes there are many many many pet the dog choice menus. It's vital gameplay. VITAL

Lord Yech, the Disgusted | Landsknecht/Harlequin

The skeleton's empty eye sockets meet your own sunken stare with more disgust than you ever thought a creature could convey. Now that the demon is close enough to be heard readily, he croaks at you with a voice as hollow and wavering as the mist.

Last but CERTAINLY not least is Lord Yech, the Disgusted. This is a completely optional party member, but is a main character in the game in most routes nevertheless!

Due to this character's lack of normal anatomy, coming from a different time period, and having the ability to conjure items on a whim, I have the liberty to give him EXTREMELY ostentatious clothing. And did so. In abundance.

A few extremely wacky fashion choices here, from top to bottom:

• A highly exaggerated, quilted beret with feathers of questionable origin.
• An oversized ruff with matching wrist cuffs.
• Puff and slash tunic and trousers, fused with the silhouette of a traditional harlequin.
• An original cape design with strips of cloth in the fashion of pteruges, but paralleling the structure, fabrics, and texture of the striped doublet.
• A laced up codpiece. This will be polished and glossy on his sprite. I apologize for nothing.
• Striped hose that are actually baggy due to this still being a skeleton.
• Poulaines (these can go by many other names, point being very long and pointy shoes that are highly impractical and there for vibes)
  

There are a few extra costume variants for Yech in store, but the heart of his design was capturing his extremely unhinged energy and the chaotic element he brings to the party, while also conveying his obsession with status and material goods. I did not picture him here dual-wielding wine bottles per usual, but that is something to look forward to when he appears in the full game lol.

That's the full party roster! As you might imagine, I put a tremendous amount of thought and consideration into each one of these designs. Due to ongoing (and healing!) photosensitivity I'll be working on the art in grayscale for the time being, but will release a demo update in color after this next release!

The upcoming demo update will have the final art designs for every character, background, object, CG, the final polished features I've been cooking for the last many months, and all the rest. I'll be very hard at work in the coming weeks with camera movements, getting those final assets made, and sharing more updates with you all soon!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this through. If you enjoyed seeing this art and my process, feel free to come check out our community Discord (we're having our 5 year community anniversary next week!) or support me on Patreon! I share updates quite frequently in our Discord and all those cool early previews and high res images in the Patreon. Looking forward to bringing you all more updates very soon!

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