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Patient Alpha: Your Suggestions
Anashel
Member UncommonPosts: 200
I get that some peoples didn't like our patient Alpha. I also don't want to end up with a 'only the squeeky wheel get the grease' situation as we had a so wide success both in the beta ARG and the current new pledge member!
But, I just can't let it go when Besson manage to pull it out 17 years ago.
So how would you had created her? Keep in mind:
- Demi-goddess
- Vanity as a sin also her vulnerability
- Slightly out of phase
- Someone that you cannot look at and have and odd feeling
- Must work well both in her lightness (beauty, pure, enlightenment) almost like a siren's power to hypnotised
- Must work when all hell break loose, when beauty become rage (Remember Adria / child of the ori (morena baccarin) when she flip from this demi-god preaching you to save your soul to judgment day (http://bit.ly/1hLqwHs)
Post a link, a picture, a sketch, whatever you feel would have better fit our Patient Alpha!
Comments
Honestly, I wouldn't change a thing. Not very creative, but it's the truth.
The only thing I can think of that even remotely fits is having her made of light, plasma, or some other energy. Energy beings tend to fit all of that criteria, but it's not at all creative. There's also the use of a robe, tunic, or some form of greco-roman clothing such as a stola. It inspires dignity.
Well, if you wanted to widen her wardrobe choices (frankly, the original design has grown on me) I'd suggest digging into the clothing of the ancient Greeks and Romans. I mean, one of her inspirations is the nymph, correct?
I'm not saying go full peplos or anything, but it'd be a starting point?
Besson managed to pull it off because it wasn't a videogame. It is just a bad time for something like this, imho. We have half-naked woman everywhere, trying to sell us stuff. It's nothing new and it's just tiresome seeing the same cliché used over and over and over again.
Maybe a variant of this http://www.angelfire.com/realm/quinlara/godspic/Airmid.jpg could be nice.
And if I may, I would also propose fixing the cybermage outfit. I see no valid point in making that gigantic hole in that dress. It looks really forced. Seems like you have to show a certain percentage of visible skin to get through quality control.
Fubar over on TSW's forums. [Also in the German forums: Fubar]
Yes, I understand people might be upset because of a sexy woman. Not everyone likes sexy women showing a little skin. Here are my suggestions:
Suggestion 1
Suggestion 2
Suggestion 3
Suggestion 4
As these are all heavily sexual, especially the one where it randomly has a 'cheek window, I'm not sure they'd solve anything - switching from one sexual outfit to more blatant and less dignified outfits means the issue persists and people have more to complain about.
It doesn't help that your last suggestion is from Spirit Halloween, which is notorious for its sexual female costumes as well as sexual advertisements. Here and here are just examples of the outrage they amass. Plus, it's a Halloween costume so wouldn't be taken too seriously regardless.
While I have no issue with the original concept, I do think that Vanity as a vice can be portrayed not only as being deeply narcissistic. If I were fortunate enough (everything's relative) to be one fifth out of a million, and I was vain, I would imagine I'd be prone to constantly demonstrating my new-found powers and prowess.
So lets assume the reason for the lack of clothing is not purely cosmetic, but also pragmatic: Seeing as there's no fabric - that we know of - that is completely in sync with her, she is literally incapable of wearing all that much. Perhaps wearing as little as she is, actually acts as a heavy burden on her - in essence diminishing her new-found powers, as she has to expend power just to remain in sync to have the fabric not simply fall off her.
In other words, the lack of clothes isn't so much a case of narcissistic vanity, but vanity for power. The obvious way to make her less sexual, but still maintain the notion of being Vain - in one way or another - is to have her powers constantly show, in such a way that it is very apparent that it's not her powers natural way of manifesting; it's her way of manifesting it.
So, how to portray that? Well, it would depend on the powers she has, I suppose. One alternative might be to techno-babble something about how the other realm she is in phase with, "bleeds in" to ours, and she somehow manipulates that matter around her body. Both in order to portray her power, but also in order not sacrifice the strength of her powers on "needless clothes".
This leads neatly into the notion of her having the air of being a demi-goddess - even if it is somewhat stereotypical: Matter that envelops her body, and that she in turns uses to quite clearly portray her emotions. So you could, for example, have the matter wafting gently about her if she's calm, or acting as licks of flame blazing up around her when she's furious.
After all, when I think of demi-gods, I can't help but imagine someone who is very keen on letting everyone know how they feel, because it is one very assured way of asserting domination over someone else; in essence never having to share themselves with others, but have others be keenly aware of their state of mind. In essence, never telling them "Do you see how angry I am!?", but showing it.
Did you participate to the Beta ARG? Your overall resume is almost complete aside some details.
So far, what we know is that Patient Alpha is the only one who reacted that way to the rupture radiation. in the first 500 meters of the Artifact, she was found as the only survivor amid charred buildings and blackened bodies. The event thrown her slightly out of phase with our realm, not being bound by the same rule as us, she gain some control over our universe. That seem to have been the result of the BDNF gene mutating in a cascade reactions that is still ongoing. Following the tragedy, test where made with the artifact that seem to be link with her mutation, result was cancellation (consumption?) of the rupture radiation. Location was declare secure but other rupture where found. But so far we have only trace of one cyber-mage, making it a challenge to control the evolving situation. Technically, she should be naked as cloth are neither out of phase or relevant for both her or to use the artifact. The only important component is the scarf she was found wearing at the incident site. It is inscribed with some sort of runic combination that seem to shield her, or rather blending with her overall consciousness and acting much more like a symbiote then a scarf.
Unfortunately, no, I didn't. My notification mail as well as TSW GM activation codes never arrived, and I first found out about the new ARG yesterday via one of the facebook groups created in the wake of one of your previous ARGs.
I tried reading up on the lore available - and reading what you told me just now, I must admit I have trouble seeing where I'm woefully off?
- She is out of phase with our universe, so she is impervious to conventional weapons, and I take it - unless I missed something important in the fashion-world - cloth as well.
- She consumes, or at least reacts, with the radiation from the artifact.
- Knowing little about the nature of the rupture radiation, and what exactly she is partially in phase with, if she is partially out of phase with our universe, what then, are the link between the two? Is the radiation something unique to where ever she is now partially in-phase with? If she absorbs that radiation, and her aligned phase is constant, wouldn't this radiation "bleed" into our phase as it has at the ruptures?
Either way, I apologize if my reasoning was woefully wrong; I attempted to base it on the available lore, and I unfortunately can't quite point out where I'm ignoring lore - both in terms of looking for inconsistencies between what I wrote and the available lore, and what you just now explained.
Edit: In terms of the scarf, it does indeed come across as something vital. Based on your description of it, it obviously has some other-worldly component to it, which might explain why, or more importantly; how, she's wearing it.
Be that as it may, my only point was that the vice of "Vanity" can be shown in more ways than "Narcissistic Vanity", and that an obvious avenue for portraying both her vanity and her powers, would be to incorporate how she does interact with whatever she is partially in phase with, and use that as an "excuse" to make her less sexualized, but still in line with portraying Vanity (i.e. "Look at my beauty!"-vanity versus "Look at my power!"-vanity)
However, I want to emphasize what I said in the beginning of my previous point: I have no issues with the current concept, and I strongly feel that artists should never compromise part of their concept. Doing so only leads to an ultimately messy and inconsistent concept. The thread called for suggestions, hinting at the fact that you were contemplating changing the concept regardless, so I wanted to chime in with - what i mistakenly thought - as a plausible explanation and compromise.
All that being edited in, I am still keen to know where I've misunderstood the available lore - as I'd hate to miss out.
Edit: Just to avoid confusion, I realize now that I misunderstood Anashels post above. That'll teach me to prowl forums late at night. My apologies.
Actually that was only my way of saying that I don't care. If people come to play a game designed for adults and they are somehow offended by an under boob, they should just find another game. Maybe one where you can kill a loads of people in different and cruel ways. It seems like genocide does not offend people as much as a pair of tits. I don't know a single person that didn't spend the first months of their lives sucking boobs, I just can't understand why people still get offended by naked/sexy/half naked women in 2014. Middle Age is gone.
If the ladies who worked on this are willing to post (or write something to be posted for them), I'd be interested in hearing their process for this outfit. It may shed some light that is otherwise missing to have their thoughts and points of view.
As for how I saw the outfit...and my wording here is going to be slightly harsher than what I usually go for, but I'd like to present it as constructive criticism, because it's largely regarding the art itself...I think my biggest point of confusion was why the heck she wasn't wearing underwear, if she was bothering with a top. I imagine, if you're going to wear anything, you'd cover up the more sensitive area, so her outfit is really confusing. The body paint V does not look like it would merge in front to then swing back up and reattach to the cloth in the back (trying really hard not to say mankini, but dammit, that's the shape I imagine was intended to be implied). It looks purely decorative. If it were made to become the "underwear," why not attach cloth straps to the tube top and actually have it cover? Then you'd have to worry less about it not "looking right" at certain angles, because it's actually, physically there, and peoples' brains are less likely to run into a clothing-based uncanny valley. (Or maybe it's just me?)
With the extra information we have now--that she is literally, physically "out of phase," not possibly (or strictly) psychologically "out of phase"--I have to say I don't think the image conveys that at all. Sure, her clothes don't make physical sense, and sure, her scarves (which don't have runes in the photomanip, by the way ;P) are glowing...but that doesn't communicate anything other than "probably magic, probably some form of fantasy setting." If she's physically out of phase, maybe have all or part of her be translucent to emphasize that point. Take photos of the scenery without her in it, a little fiddling in photoshop, and you can make the stand of the chair show through her legs, or have the chair show through her hands. That strikes me as the easiest way to communicate that without having to say it (which it really should be doing--"show not tell" is a pretty big deal with art). There are probably a plethora of other methods, but they aren't coming to mind right now.
The other big way that I can think of (and you can certainly combine the two) is that if she can't interact with cloth, you shouldn't have used any. Go full Mystique. You don't even need fancy prosthetics--just some pasties, a little latex to smooth out the edges (if you don't feel like just photoshopping that), and the white body paint. At that point, I think the paint would be closer to implying a skin pattern chosen for aesthetic purposes to emulate clothing because she had been human, rather than a confusing choice of coverage limited to only what was necessary to avoid censoring on what looks like a pretty normal human. Perhaps still not a perfect solution, and it might even seem counter-intuitive, but I think it would be like that particular line of thinking: some coverage causes the image to become titillating and sexy, whereas no coverage "leaves nothing to the imagination" and becomes less "exciting" for some. That also puts it closer to artistic nudes, I think. (Bear in mind, I could be very, very wrong with this line of thinking, so don't go jumping on the idea before getting more feedback!)
If this was anywhere near the sort of thing I usually draw, I could probably sketch out something, but I honestly have no idea what to offer. Not having hardly any information (visual or textual) makes it even more difficult to offer a solid idea. Maybe allude to various shapes involved in the artifact, or wherever she's now in phase with, in the pattern of the body paint? That'll help keep the visual style consistent, and make her feel more in tune with her setting. Perhaps something personally relevant to her past, or to a faction she's aligned with (assuming she is)? A favorite style of clothing, a favorite type of architecture, a favorite food or drink or something that, if analyzed, could give some hints into her personality? As it is, I don't see much. She just looks like any other eye candy you'd find trying to draw in those thinking they'll end up with more sexy things to oggle. This is a very relevant and incredible tutorial (even if this isn't currently illustration), and I'd recommend oggling other ones, too, if only for the sake of artistic knowledge...because damn, those are some excellent tutorials. (The design tag on the right there should get you most if not all of them, and other posts might have more tags worth checking out.)
I also have to agree that very little (at least art-wise--the writing is necessarily based in this world) has felt TSW-relevant. It feels very, very sci-fi, which is one of the things TSW doesn't touch on very much (if at all). If the intent is to add sci-fi stuff to the list of things that are canonical within TSW, excellent!...but consider adding an homage here or there to remind us that they're supposed to be tied (I know you only own TBW, so you can't do too much, but you shouldn't need much). Of course, I wasn't around for the other ARGs, so I could very well be missing the tie-ins...but as it stands, as someone new to it, it feels like a separate universe entirely. I imagine you have more tie-ins planned, anyway, but I figured I'd add my vote for that, while I'm here.
EDIT: of course, after I post, I realize having things phasing through her is also a good idea, and might help imply why she can't wear clothing. Put the runes on the scarves and her body paint, to imply that they're similar, and why they're able to make contact with her. Or put the purple glow on the things she can interact with. Something to indicate why this works, and that doesn't. Tell us as much as you can in the art without having to use words. Keep things consistent so you don't end up confusing people.
Melycinya over on TSW's forums.
Again...I would ask why DID Besson "pull it off" 17 years ago? Would any of those scenes OR the story been significantly different if Mila was wearing a bodysuit, jumpsuit, or sweatpants? Not really. The strange little machine could have given her any outfit. The story would have been the same.
Don't get me wrong, I think she looks fantastic. Very sexy. But I also am realistic enough to know that she was in that outfit largely because sex sells, and it would generate ticket sales for that movie. How many commercials or trailers showed scenes of her in that outfit? Most, if not all as memory serves.
And that's fine. I just wish people would say that, or at least acknowledge it as a reason.
As for what I would have gone for, maybe something similar to Eva Green in the latest 300 movie.
While i don't have a problem with alphas current design, if she is to appear vain of power, a demigoddess, and out of phase, i do think it wouldn't be a bad thing to follow some of the previous posts about the greco-roman fashion types, because it gives the impression of ancient power, and also in my opinion if being slightly out of phase with reality makes it hard to wear clothes, then it would make more sense to wear something easily put on, like wrapping a blanket around yourself.
Unless maybe was the intention to have it be a story point like "her outfit is a special thing that helps her maintain her presence in phase with the rest of us", in which case you could just blend what you have with some additions.
*Don't make me pull out magical girl transformation sequences. I'll do it. Don't think I won't. ;P Also that Knot Just a Scarf tumblr has a lot more tops and some skirts, I just didn't want to make the entire sentence be links to it...In the effort to not make it "too strong," the intent seems to have become muddled (well, at least I've been rendered confused by what they chose to do vs. what they could have done that would've been more canonical). They could've toed the line and done bodypaint that vaguely emulated clothing but looked more like a skin pattern, as I suggested earlier. Or, they could've foregone bodypaint altogether, and had her wearing the scarves (which look long enough to knot together into something interesting).* I think them being worn would make them seem more connected with her, closer to the symbiote they apparently are. With them just being draped over each shoulder, they look like little more than glowing accessories. Most symbiotes I'm familiar with are attached in one of two ways. The first, being hooked into their host and embedded under their flesh (which these don't seem to be, and it could be a pain to make that look good). The second way being that they cover enough to pretty much replace the host's clothing (or need for clothing)--which these could have done, very easily, which would solve the issue of not being "too strong" while also not having to deal with the confusion of her wearing clothing that she isn't supposed to be able to have.
Actually...with all the anime references that have been pulled out, I'm really, REALLY surprised I haven't seen Outlaw Star yet. Found naked, has to be naked to interface with strange, advanced technology that (currently) only she can operate? Feels close enough to be another inspiration.
Melycinya over on TSW's forums.
That is definitely a relevant video, though I'm inclined to disagree with it to some degree.
Here's an article that expounds on the difference between artistic nudes and pornography pretty well. Not 100% relevant in this case, but relevant in the explanation of where the art draws the eye. In the case of Patient Alpha, the perspective lines of the room draw the eye toward her stomach, and the body paint V then draws the eye down. (I imagine this is why, when we first got it, I stared at her thigh and foot. Well, that and the fact that I was trying to determine whether it was body paint or photoshop desaturation, and those were the most clear spots to study.) But she's not actually naked, nothing is actually showing--indeed, it is not porn. It wouldn't have been able to be used as this ARG's primary promo image, if that were the case (or, well, it could have, but sites that allowed it would have been restricted in number). But it kinda toes that line, in the odd way that partially-clothed models can.
I warn for nudity in the other article I'd like to link, but fear that it would be edited out. A google search for "Stuart Aken nudity in art" will turn it up in the first two results, though. It covers this topic pretty well, in a more concise manner than I can (and it goes into nudity in writing, too). Of particular note for my purposes is this sentence in the second half of the article:
Partial cover, with its promise of the hidden and its drawing of the eye to the most sexually attractive parts, became more alluring than actual nudity, for many men.
That's what I've been trying to explain, and why her top and the cyber-mage dress create a dissonance for me. Neither of them seem to have any underwear, and what they're wearing would flash people if they moved, so it seems like they aren't dressed for going out in public, unless they're wearing skin-tone bodysuits. Or if the cyber-mage dress is stitched into her flesh. Fine enough for Patient Alpha, since it seems she may not have any need (or even be allowed?) to go anywhere...but my mind is boggled for the character class. I can't think of a substantial reason for the cutout size and placement, so the only answer I can think of to the question "why?" is "why not?" (to which I say, "what have you done with physics? Another kidnapping victim, I bet."). In any case, with their outfits looking more like private wear than public wear, they both seem to be set up to make people think "if only the camera were in a slightly different position, or she moved just a tiny bit, she would be exposed!" Obviously not everyone has that thought or basic feeling run through their head with these images--hell, it seems most of the posters here don't. As far as I can tell, though, with how the images are set up, they look like they very easily could cause that line of thinking.
For me, if Patient Alpha wasn't the promo image, we had similarly "sexy" images of/outfits for male characters, and/or we had obviously female concept art (the rift image is largely neutral, none of the helmeted figures read to me as "definitely a lady") that didn't get automatically sorted into my "this looks like it was made to be titillating" brain category, I wouldn't care. As it is, though, my interest in the visuals for this ARG is low, because it looks like more of the same that I could find in nearly any other game or comic. I'm not uncomfortable--I'm uninterested, because of oversaturation. You're absolutely welcome to leave things as they are, of course--hell, make more! But please, branch out and do things other games aren't wont to do. You're already obviously familiar with that, what with spearheading the PARG idea--but expand that to your art, and my personal interest in this game will likely rise. You'll also get the added benefit of being able to say "but look at the great variety we have! We've balanced things and made everyone equally uncomfortable mwahaha!" rather than the current "at least we aren't as bad as those guys, right?" That still won't be a perfect argument for some people, but you're likely to win over some of the ones that have been put off by this.
Also, only slightly related: the image of Patient Alpha posted in the other thread seems to have been saved at least twice over as a jpg. I know people say it's fine for photography, but I can see artifacts around the edges of everything. It's not as bad on the wallpaper we get from the ARG dashboard, but...these are not the artifacts you're looking for. ;P
EDIT: I forgot that I was gonna do more critique and "what I would've done" with the stuff I brought up in this post. Something something scarf-clothes, as I said before...but also (noting where the perspective lines are currently pointing) adjust the placement of the background so the perspective lines point to her face, instead. Possibly also do similar with the scarves--have them sweeping up like that even as a faux-shirt or whatever, and it'll contribute to guiding the eye towards her face. As it is, the perspective lines point to her stomach, the V leads down, and her foot and scarves lead the eye to the edges of the photo. Having most of the lines lead to her face would help it lean further toward the category of "artistic nude" and away from "porn," for the reasons explained in the first article I linked.
Melycinya over on TSW's forums.
That's why I wrote in one of the early posts that my first picture came to mind was Madame Web from Marvel, with the scarf and the lights and the walls the whole scene is telling you that she's the center, she's in focus and pulling the strings.
I liked the video, it's a nice lead-in to a thought I wanted to post since the first "if it was a guy there would be clothes" comment...
Moore has a masterpiece, the (not black) Watchmen, and in it there's Jon. True, Alpha is "only" demigod and Jon was a god (or as close to god as we can interpret with our limited resources), and he was naked. Just as the gods mentioned in the video, those limited cover-ups are just for the public... Why would a god wear clothes? 
Since they mentioned Alpha was planned naked, I guess they had the same thinking.
Scarf, is it discussed already, how she's using it? Are those "strings" used as tools for manipulating objects and interacting with the environment (like Doc Octopus's arms or the spectral "arms" in Elfen Lied to use them as a shield, or attack with them, etc)? If not, and those are more like a peaceful symbiote for connecting to relic, then maybe she could use it as an outfit, like Bayonetta uses the hair.
I was also talking to a friend of mine who suggested using hair as a covering a la Lady Godiva. They'd need to use a wig or extensions, of course, but it's another method that could have given her enough modesty to pass censors (assuming it's just nipple concerns, anyway) while maintaining canon.
I'm tempted to do a few redline sketches with various scarf-wrapping methods that come to mind...but then, we don't know much about the symbiote, so it's hard to know what direction to go for.
Melycinya over on TSW's forums.
I wonder why no one has brought this up...
She is a character of similar power and background to Dr. Manhattan from The Watchmen. As the graphic novel went on, he wore less and less clothing. This was an indication of his slow evolution beyond the worldly concerns of mankind. When someone becomes more than human, a being with the power of a god, why would they bother wearing lots of clothes. I personally think she should be nude, just like Manhattan was at the end of the graphic novel.
You are all thinking of this along the lines of why would a human female show her body like that, when, in reality, the question is, would a god care about wearing clothes at all.