{"id":3462,"date":"2014-07-28T11:29:39","date_gmt":"2014-07-28T18:29:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cpgaming.gg\/?p=3462"},"modified":"2014-07-28T13:28:32","modified_gmt":"2014-07-28T20:28:32","slug":"the-importance-of-character-design-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/the-importance-of-character-design-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"The Importance of Character Design – Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Brian “i am guitar” Cordry, Player Manager for Evil Geniuses<\/em> (See Part 1<\/a> of this article)<\/p>\n

So how do each of these titles approach some of the non-standard fantasies that they both share? Let’s take a look first at the gorgon, or \u201cmedusa\u201d character that both games include \u2013 she’s Medusa in DotA 2<\/a>, and Cassiopeia in LoL<\/a>. The typical medusa imagery depicts a beautiful woman with snakes for hair \u2013 her gaze can turn anyone to stone, her hair turns to snakes. In both games, the medusa is given only the upper body of a woman, while her legs are relegated to a snake’s abdomen and tail. DotA 2 stays true to the original imagery of snakes for hair, but drops the ravishing beauty. LoL on the other hand, ditches the snake-hair for a crown, but retains the original beauty of the medusa. Even in their in-game lore, DotA 2’s Medusa is a vengeful, power-hungry monster; while the Cassiopeia of LoL is a deceptive seductress. One game chooses the grittier path, the other the more sexualized. In terms of gameplay, both retain the ability to turn their enemies to stone.<\/p>\n

\"medusa_chardesign\"<\/p>\n

Another shared idea between the two games is the Scorpion King. In DotA 2 we call him Sand King<\/a>, and in LoL he’s Skarner<\/a>. Now, the most easily-noticed feature that both share is a humanized face. A look at a real scorpion<\/a> shows nothing that we humans would be able to relate to \u2013 no eyes or nose, no teeth. But when we look at the designs in both games, he’s been given readily-identifiable facial features: eyes, teeth, a flat face. He retains his arachnid leg count, skittering on 6 legs with 2 claws to attack with in both games. In terms of lore, Sand King is the physical embodiment of the magic of the desert, while Skarner is the defender of land filled with crystals and old magic. Both are considered ‘guardians’ of a sort.<\/p>\n

\"scorpion_chardesign\"<\/p>\n

Certain character tropes can lead to extremely narrow visions of what the character is able to do in-game as well. In the first part of this blog<\/a>, I mentioned a “small, mischievous, energetic creature that traverses this fantasy land in some sort of advanced (but not-too-advanced) mechanical walker” as an example of how each of these games used very similar ideas independently of each other and came up with nearly identical (and very specific) character ideas. Why, in this land of fantasy, magic, and forests, do we find League of Legends’ Rumble<\/a>, and DotA 2’s Timbersaw<\/a>? In both of their lores, they disappear into seclusion and frantically build their mechanical walkers as an act of revenge \u2013 Timbersaw against nature and Rumble against humans and yordle-doubters. Rumble was released on April 26, 2011, before Timber’s release date of December 13, 2011. This is important to note \u2013 it marks the first time that the games released similar characters, but that Riot’s version came first.<\/p>\n

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Even more interesting to me, however, is how incredibly similar these characters are in gameplay as well as thematic design. Obviously, DotA 2 and LoL have very different mechanics (destroyable terrain in DotA 2 is one important difference), so with each having their own restrictions or allowances, I would say that Rumble and Timbersaw are about as close as you can get to direct ports of each other. Let’s take a look at each of their kits to see why. Rumble’s abilities are based around “Heat,” a mechanic that allows him to spam his skills mana-free, and even see them increase in power if he has enough heat. Timbersaw’s hatred of flora empowers his abilities whenever he connects them with the map’s abundant trees. Because of this, both characters need to be crafty in their ability use to get the most of their kit. Rumble’s primary ability is his Flamespitter, which deals periodic damage to enemies in front of him (and deals amplified damage if he’s overheated). Its range is pitiful, but its damage is powerful \u2013 much like Timbersaw’s Whirling Death, which sees his saw do high damage in a small area around him, amplified if he also cuts down a tree. Rumble’s scrap shield and Timbersaw’s Reactive armor both see them gaining defensive capabilities, Rumble gaining speed and HP for a short time, and Timbersaw passively gaining armor and regeneration; both mechs are naturally tanky. And while Rumble’s harpoons slow enemies, Timbersaw’s hook allows him to zip around the forest, opposite sides of the same coin. Lastly, their ultimate abilities are virtual mirrors, both providing long-ranged area-of-effect damage that also slows their opponents.<\/p>\n