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[Muffinhat]

It's a question I've pondered recently. How did such a simple, yet charming concept for a character essentially become the famous icon for video games? I guess it's easy to understand that he's been in countless titles created by a multi-million games company, and that pretty much every aspect of his design is original and fun, but that explanation doesn't leave me quite satisfied.

It leaves a difficult question: what factors go into creating a memorable character? I mean specifically, what kind of traits, forms, or details make a stylized character stand out more? How can you create a stylized character that achieves the perfect balance between simplicity and detail that makes it more recognizable or connectable?

I don't exactly intend to make this seem like some lazy "how do I create characters?" question, but what are your guys' thoughts?

[ink.inc]

http://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=22991.0

some of that discussion here

[Uykered]

• Make a good or popular game
• Include the character(s) in more than 1 game for maximum memorability
  
• Optional: Make it look good

[Riho]

I've read an article about it once, but can't remember where. Some of the points it included mentioned having a memorable name that rolls well off the tongue, but also having the character have such a shape that you can recognize it even from just an outline.

[baconman]

Stick with a character in 75% of everything you develop, from Tennis to Picross, to Racing. They'll become imprinted just from repeated exposure.

[ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)]

i think alastair has it right. the character becomes memorable only if the game itself is popular, not the other way around. there's no popular game series without a "memorable" character. it's just a matter of exposure.

however, there are also memorable characters from games that weren't popular, too. and non-memorable characters from games that are popular. for example, to me, bubsy is more of a memorable character than "barbarian" from gauntlet, even though gauntlet was a much better and more popular game than bubsy

[mickmaus]

produce a long series of well marketed and made games that also happen to be commercial successes. also make the character reasonably likable

[Runefrog]

Mario was lucky. I don't think he would be as iconic if Nintendo hadn't revitalised the gaming industry with their games (same can be said for Link I suppose, but he's so much more bad-ass than Mario).

Mario gets a lot of exposure and not all Mario games are good, but as a character he can get away with it because Mario is what Star Wars is to George Lucas. Mario also has the benefit of a rich history.

Gaming audiences are unpredictable though. In theory there should be a popular figurehead for CoD and Battlefield but no names come to mind; all I think about is the copy+paste style of gameplay across those games. Maybe if it was third-person (like Gears of War and Uncharted) it would be different.

But that just goes to show what others have said before me, and that is the game has to be popular, great quality, and eventually repeatable for sequel success.

[Sir Raptor]

Give them a cool hat.

[Bandages]

Seconding the cool hat advice.

Also consider:
An intense religious fervor
A "recognizable" "silhouette"
Enormous phallic weapon
No weapons at all
Multiple Forms
Make them unable to speak, even though they're an otherwise functioning adult being
Goat's horns
Lidless eyes

[JindrichP]

In my opinion Mario is a famous character simply because what they did they did right. I mean the movement in a Mario game usualy felt like having a ball or something like that and they created a unique character that somehow stick to that "ball" feeling.

I think that nearly every character can be good if you don´t go with cube or ball etc. When you are creating a character that feels good in its role you usually end up with something new and unique. But it is really hard and it takes some time. I´ve spent something around two months of drawing before I was happy with a character to one of games I am working on.   

[Udderdude]

Keep in mind that a lot of early videogame characters were shaped as much by the hardware they ran on as anything else.  Try making a character that fits within the NES's limited palette and color useage rules.  It's harder than you'd think.

Give them a cool hat.

This is amusing because one of the reasons Mario has a hat is because Miyamoto admitted he's terrible at drawing hair ..

[Graham-]

Work hard at it. Making a good game character can be as complex as making a good anything. Also, make the character behave in a way the reflects his personality. Mario looks the way he feels. The way he feels suits the context of his world (i.e. the levels).

[Sir Raptor]

Keep in mind that a lot of early videogame characters were shaped as much by the hardware they ran on as anything else.  Try making a character that fits within the NES's limited palette and color useage rules.  It's harder than you'd think.

Give them a cool hat.

This is amusing because one of the reasons Mario has a hat is because Miyamoto admitted he's terrible at drawing hair ..

It's especially amusing because I said it as a joke, but then I realized how true it is. Most memorable video game characters either have some kind of hat (Link, Master Chief, Gomez), or aren't human (Sonic, Pikachu, Ratchet). It's less of a common practice now that graphics are advanced enough that old limitations don't apply, which is why we get guys like Cole McGrath, but hey, you're indie, you don't have that kind of character budget.

[Faust06]

As memorable as Mario?! Honestly, it's also merchandising. The first incarnation didn't look like anything special, but they later, and quickly, fleshed out the image we associate with Mario today, and soon he was found in animated form. The strength of the game boosted the value of the image and made it iconic. That said, the character design is still important, but success of which could just be luck.

[Graham-]

Have a distinctive trait that makes sense for him/her.

[Konidias]

Step 1: Create a game starring your character that revitalizes the game industry.

Step 2: Slowly update your character design through decades of iteration

Step 3: Place that character as the star of nearly every major launch title game for the new consoles you release

Step 4: Then place that character in dozens of various game genres like golfing, basketball, tennis, kart racing, rpgs, soccer, baseball, etc.

Step 5: Market that character tirelessly. Make cartoons starring the character... t-shirts, hats, backpacks, toys, posters, stickers, cereal, lunchboxes, bad live action movies, etc.

Boom, your character is more recognizable than Mickey Mouse. (no joke)

Also some additional tips:

- The character should either not talk at all, or be super positive with almost a naive child-like quality about them. The child-like aspect works well to reach a massive audience and helps make the character endearing and likable. (Mario, Link (the non-animated series versions), Mickey Mouse, Spongebob, Pikachu, etc) Conversely, you could give them some "attitude" but this tends to limit your audience down to mostly boys or younger people only (Sonic, Conker, Donkey Kong, Link (the animated series version), Ratchet & Clank, Crash Bandicoot, Earthworm Jim, etc)

Note that the more attitude you give the character, the less likely they are to reach "Mario" status. The more extreme you push one aspect of a character's personality, the more you isolate the audience.

I feel like this is why Sony has never had a breakout mascot that really represented the company throughout the years. Pretty much all their characters have serious 'tude, and it causes a disconnect with a lot of people. I guess Spyro is like a halfway between Mario and a 'tude character, which is why he's been mildly successful but still hurting because they give him the stupid eyebrows:


("Look at this raised eyebrow! DO YOU SEE HOW MUCH ATTITUDE I HAVE?!")

Oh, if you want your character design to never reach mass popularity, give them the stupid raised eyebrow as their signature look. Guaranteed to stay mediocre.

Also sunglasses... stay away from sunglasses...


(Even generic dino side-kick disapproves)

In fact, stay away from any clothing that is currently "in". Plenty of early 90's characters with the backwards hats and jeans and sneakers and sunglasses who are now just jokes.

[s0]

that's a great post

[Whiteclaws]

produce a long series of well marketed and made games that also happen to be commercial successes. also make the character reasonably likable

Nailed it

[Graham-]

It is great.

I wonder if "child-like" is necessary, or if we don't have many examples of other things because we haven't figured them out yet.

Also Spyro is less interesting than Mario, and so is Bandicoot. I feel like Mario when I play as Mario. I don't feel like Spyro when I play him, only sort of.

For games maybe the child-like element is common because "adult mechanics" are harder to find. Playing GTA hero X, or Marcus Fenix... I could be playing as almost anyone and it would make just as much sense. But Mario is Mario.