New Feudal Japanese PopHeads Preview

UPDATE:


The PopHeads are essentially done, unless someone can come up with convincing reasons as to why I should tamper with them some more. I know it was a long time, but I'm a slow worker, what can I say.

Here's all the new heads:

From top to bottom (left): Male content, male happy, male enraged, male unhappy

From top to bottom (mid-left): Female content, female happy, female enraged, female unhappy

From top to bottom (mid-right): Male entertainer, male tax collector, male scientist, male police officer, male engineer

From top to bottom (right): Female entertainer, male tax collector 2 (I could't find any more fitting female models), male scientist (same as tax collector), female police officer, male engineer (same as tax collector)



And here's an in-game compilation (missing: both male and female enraged heads and the female police officer):






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As some of you may know, I am working at getting a much better, greatly revised and improved version of the Sengoku mod up and running. It's actually going to be a series of scenarios that I have planned, but the Sei-i Taishogun: Blade of Fury scenario will essentially mark the beginning. I have a complete game make-over planned, so that the scenario won't necassarily feel like a Civilization scenario, but rather a game of its own. A quite ambitious task, and I'm not one to claim that I'll achieve that, however, it remains my goal for the scenario.

This is basically the first make-over I have started and almost finished. I am going to have completely unique and new popheads for the Japanese daimyo clans, which I think will refresh the look of the game much better than the standard ones could. Not only that, but it will help the players immerse into the theme of the scenario, and that is a big goal of mine. After figuring the civ specific color thing out once and for all, I restarted my work on this project. But enough talk, here's some pics...and of course, I need feedback here. Negative and positive alike...



For this pic, I'm going to need your guys' opinion on which style is most to your liking. The first one has a very plastic-like look to it, which greatly resembles the civ standard PopHeads, which may be the best version to go with. But some may like the other two better, the third one being the most basic and real looking, and the second a real version with rosy cheeks (I thought that gave it a nice touch).



Here's a pic of three new specialty worker heads. The male entertainer is a Kabuki actor, the female one a Geisha. The male police officer is just a Samurai, but I think he looks really good and fits the position.

I await some good critiquing guys, be it good or bad...

I like #3 best

Is that a bacon resource? In the marked tile, in the 2nd picture?

Stormrage said:

I like #3 best

Is that a bacon resource? In the marked tile, in the 2nd picture?

Click to expand...

Looks to me like its supposed to be sushi.

Ahemmm...eh, no, it's sushi...bwahahahahahaha

But I guess it does look like bacon hehe. Just with something white under it...but hey, some of the original resource graphics are hard to make out as well, so I don't feel so bad

Thanks for your opinion by the way. How do you like the overall look of them though? Are they up to par or just "so, so"?

I like the specialists, they`re great! And I like the girl #3 as I`ve already said.

But.. why is sushi a resource? I mean.. isn`t that just.. fish?

Don't worry about the resource...if you go and read the info thread for this scenario, you'll see that most, if not all people have already told me the idea is rubbish, so ultimately, it will probably be scrapped. I intended on making it a strategic resource necessary to build a feudal style sushi bar city improvement which increases happiness in the city where it's built. Most have not liked this, so I doubt it will make it into the final scenario. Just think it away!

Stormrage said:

And I like the girl #3

Click to expand...

Am I right with the presumption, that you are like me and have the hots for Asian chicks? No wonder you like number three, I did afterall use a picture of a Japanese cutey for it!

Very nice work, I love them. I think the third one is my favorite, though all of them are better than the originals. The specialists are good also.

One suggestion (which you probably have already thought of). How about changing the wheat icon used for food in the city window to a rice icon? It should help the feel of your mod quite nicely since it was the staple food.

Lastly, I agree that the resource looks rather like bacon, and can't understand why you would want a resource for either of those anyway. Isn't sushi basically rice, seaweed and fish? You don't dig it from the ground or get it growing on trees.

EDIT - Cross post - the idea for a sushi bar improvement is fine, but like others I'd recommend scrapping the sushi resource. Given the abundance of fish and rice in Japan I'd suggest that the improvement should require no resources to build.

^ Good idea...that way the sushi bar stays, but the cheesy looking resource goes! Good thinking on your part.

And indeed, it's like you read my mind. I was playing with the fact numerous times of replacing the wheat with a rice kernal...or should I opt for a whole rice plant, similar to the way the wheat is shown for European food production in the standard graphic? I was thinking something like this if I do decide to use the actual plant rather than just one kernal:

http://www-plb.ucdavis.edu/labs/rost/Rice/bridget.gif

well all 3 looks much better then the original but what I really like is the specialists they are really nice....

^ Thanks for the comments...and thanks to everyone else as well, for all your words. They help alot and make my job a bit easier when making the others. Of course, don't be shy to keep the comments coming. All of them help. I expect I'll be posting a few more possible models in a bit. I'm working on the male worker right now.

I agree that the 3rd civilian looks best. I also agree that the sushi resource should go. The specialists look fantastic.

Maimonides said:

I agree that the 3rd civilian looks best. I also agree that the sushi resource should go. The specialists look fantastic.

Click to expand...

Agreed

They look brilliant, man.

Alright, it seems pretty unanimous. I'll definitely be opting for the more natural realistic look rather than immitating the standard civ PopHeads...and the sushi's going.

Thanks for the comments...I'm almost done with the scientist specialist and male civilian popheads.

Alright, here's the male civilian (far left) and male scientist (far right).

You might want to color in the neck on the Geisha (I can not tell what she is wearing). The sushi bar should be coastal

I think they're all very good; like others have said, #3 girl is the best of those. I think that the samurai image as the "policeman" is a great choice.

These are some great popheads. If possible, could you also do Chinese and Korean ones sometime?

Gen. Rommel said:

I was playing with the fact numerous times of replacing the wheat with a rice kernal...or should I opt for a whole rice plant, similar to the way the wheat is shown for European food production in the standard graphic? I was thinking something like this if I do decide to use the actual plant rather than just one kernal:

http://www-plb.ucdavis.edu/labs/rost/Rice/bridget.gif

Click to expand...

It's possible, but at the small scale required a pile of grains might work better?

Like the male head. That one is just content, right? He doesn't look too happy is all I was thinking. Good work again though.

Kumquat said:

You might want to color in the neck on the Geisha (I can not tell what she is wearing).

Click to expand...

Good idea...I'll try and darken it a bit to add some shadow, which should add a good deal of dimension and make identifying her clothes better.

R8XFT said:

I think they're all very good; like others have said, #3 girl is the best of those. I think that the samurai image as the "policeman" is a great choice.

Click to expand...

Well thank you very much! Hearing words of praise like that from an incredible leaderhead, pophead, and advisorhead maker such as yourself is a great boost of confidence.

Odegei_the_Mad said:

These are some great popheads. If possible, could you also do Chinese and Korean ones sometime?

Click to expand...

You know what? Because you've made some of the nicest looking Japanese city improvements, some via personal request by me, I would be more than happy to do this for you. It's the least I could do after you've basically provided me with the majority of the buildings I'll be using as well as that awesome feudal Japanese city set (still can't get over that thing's beauty).

Keroro said:

It's possible, but at the small scale required a pile of grains might work better?

Like the male head. That one is just content, right? He doesn't look too happy is all I was thinking. Good work again though.

Click to expand...

Alright, I'll use a pile of rice grains then.

And yes, the male head is content, unlike the female who I made happy from the start (no particular reason really). I've already made a content face female version, and am working on the rest as well. At this point, I won't be making to many more updates here unless I really need some more advice. I'd rather finish this set up and bring it out all at once.

Thanks for all your approval stamps guys, I feel confident making these now.

PS: And another big thanks to Keroro and BadKharma for helping me figure out how to get the civ colors working. Without your tips, this set would be utter rubbish.