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A Sin, A Machine, A Business (Alice Body Concept Art)

Dear Insane Children, 

Now that we've got some idea of what Alice's face looks like...

We need to start work on her body. 

But first - Why are we doing (or re-doing) this work now? 

Because we have an opportunity to engage a professional 3D Model Builder to create a next-gen ready 3D model of our Alice from Alice: Asylum. 

And we can then use that model as part of our pitch to publishers/investors. And make quick animations as you see here: 

Sample 1 

Sample 2 

I Am Not My Body

Take a look at the concept images sent over by Joey. They show the main character of our game (Alice) in a relaxed A-Pose. These are the kind of images our 3D Modeler will use to create a high-detail 3D model of Alice. 

As with the face, these images come with some caveats: 

First, we'll never see an in-game Alice undressed in this fashion. The a-pose image here (top) is used as a reference to understand the underlying form, bone structure, and musculature of Alice. These bits of information help to inform how she rests, bends, stretches, moves, and reacts. 

Second, as with her face, the image of Alice we see here is a mental representation - the way in which 23-year-old Alice sees (recalls) her 13-year-old self. It is in some ways idealized, in others a sort of caricature. Try to examine the way in which you recall and represent your younger self. Then place that representation upon a mental landscape. That's what we're going for.

Beyond that... we'll need to decide which dress we want to use for this Standard Model. My feeling is that we go with either the Ash Dress or the Classic Dress. But I'd like to hear your thoughts on that as well... 

So have a look at the dresses and drop your feedback into the Comments below.

Keep in mind that this model will be used as a  Sales Tool going forward. And that we may not have the ability to continue adding dresses - so we need to put our best foot (dress) forward. 

I've got my own thoughts and feelings about the artwork... but I am going to sit on those for a while. I always find that my initial reactions are less valuable than my thoughts a day or two later. 

But be sure to put your feedback into the Comments below and we'll discuss during the next live stream. 


From Shanghai in an A-Pose, 

-American



PS: The title is borrowed from a quote by Eduardo Galeano:

“The Church says: the body is a sin.

Science says: the body is a machine.

Advertising says: The body is a business.

The Body says: I am a fiesta.”

― Eduardo Galeano, Walking Words

A Sin, A Machine, A Business (Alice Body Concept Art) A Sin, A Machine, A Business (Alice Body Concept Art) A Sin, A Machine, A Business (Alice Body Concept Art) A Sin, A Machine, A Business (Alice Body Concept Art)

Comments

I love the Ash dress, because it creates a nice separation from the other games while maintaining enough similarity to be nostalgic, and it also represents that this version of Alice is still close to the event of the fire and it's fresh on her mind.

Nova Rose

Yasss to the ash dress and to the red eyed version as well

Would love any that could support VR toggle

Ash dress for sure. Easily understable and recognized for everyone.

I would go with the Ash dress.

I agree.

Ash👍. Still not digging that circus denial hair style. 😔

Ash dress all the way.

She's really not bow legged at all. Looking at the way she's drawn, her legs are quite straight in an A line if you're looking at the bone alignment, she's just standing with her feet apart. What you may be interpreting as bow legged is the curve of the muscle the way it lays on top of bone. But her legs themselves are structurally straight.

Inferno Mode as the first model would be epic, although I would imagine it would need some fancy lighting and particle stuff to really make it pop, so maybe beyond the scope of what you're trying to do right now. I'd like to see Joey's "prelude, the fire asylum" alice. Or the depression dress. ooOOooo Or the rabbit outfit. :D Hell... just make them all. Edit: I think it should be something thematic to the story of the game, but if you think it best to go with the "iconic" look for the first dress, then Ash dress gets my vote.

truth_decay

# 4 is my preference # 3 second choice x

I need to go look into this I’m deeply invested

Maxen Young

I agree with classic or ash, it is really jarring for me to see her out of her attire haha.

For consistency sake the classic dress is going to help people recognize the character right away. The Ash Dress is awesome though...

Stephanie Groth

I'd go for the ash dress.

I realize i forgot to add on before. I think if we have to choose only one, the Ash dress should be used. It's a good way to represent Alice as a series and the Asylum game concept itself. It looks similar enough to classic but is different enough to stand separately and be immediately striking to anyone regardless of prior knowledge of the series. Either because its not exact classic blue or because they're wondering why she is slightly on fire.

RedBreloom

Always a fan of the Classic dress to start, even if just for a short brief time.

Erin Flower

I thing she’s a little bow legged. Otherwise good. I like the classic dress.

Sarah McKeegan

There's a lot to unpack here. I understand people's comments about the "Victorian ideal" of beauty and maybe seeing yourself as more fragile when you look back, but I have the opposite view. I think of my 13 self as more sturdy/hardy. Before I really became a woman and had to deal with curves. To that end, I think her waist is too small. I agree with other people that her arms are too long as well. As for the dress, I originally wanted to go Classic because I'm a traditionalist, but upon reflection, I think the Ash dress would be better.

Drucilla Shultz

The DLC dresses, aside from the rabbit, will these become simply cosmetic outfits? Because f.e. 'Armor' wasoriginally in the theme Anger, and I thought that fitted pretty good.

In dresses she looks good but the arms are too long and for the young Alice I would take the Ash dress

I really love the idea of using the denial dress. It reminds me of the Alice movie with Whoopi Goldberg and kinda sets it apart from the Disney blue, if it makes any sense 🙈

I have a question though: In that picture you seem to have all the worlds already thought out and dresses to go with them. Does this mean that ideas about the chapters are obsolete now? I`d would have loved to add a epic clash between 2 forces of wonderland. Alice (in denial, "a unstoppable force") going against the caterpillar (absolute truth and logic, "a unmovable object") This could serve as a way to enter a mini game, a last encounter in "Denial" or as its own chapter completely. What ever is needed, I have this figured out :).

It is weird how much commotion this post has created compared to lets say the picture of the head where the eyes are about 500% out of the proportion alone. Alice in the wonderland is just a distorted image of something that isn`t real in the first place. It is not supposed to be real and I think it shouldn`t be treated as such. Also we have to remember that this is not a game for children even though the main character may appear to be one. Classic Alice dress is nice and all, but it is a visual that says nothing! In a conference room Im watching a presentation and see a image, I stop to look at the image, there you have a way of saying something extra about your game without using the words. Isn`t blue Alice dress making a more conservative statement staying very close to Disney`s original. As the Ash is more of a statement about your game. It all depends in the end of what you wanna say with that image and along with it. :)

Not to mention when I think back on my own 13 year old self I tend to remember myself as more fragile than I probably was, because of how I imagine childhood and its comparative lack of agency. I look at a child playacting certain trappings of adulthood to regain some semblance of control, which is what I see here (but Alice's journey has always been a very personal one for me! ). Re: dresses I honestly think classic or ash would be perfect, but denial is definitely an interesting option too

Especially since we're considering the Victorian ideal I think the model and its proportions are pretty darn good. It honestly looks like how a child might, post some trauma or tragedy, imagine themselves more "grown up" (what with corsetry and padding/etc being implemented to make that traditional hourglass shape) but simultaneously captures how hurt/unwell this has made her. So I don't expect the model to look particularly "realistic" in that sense, its embodying too much context and is made to make the dresses "fit right".

I think her torso needs to be bigger in every direction, and she's a tad bow-legged. And as far as the dress, I vote Ash Dress!

Wendy Jaa

Legs and arms to long

Head To Big, Waist And Bust To Skinny, Looks Like Anorexia

I know you are going for an idealized Alice look but please please use more realistic proportions for a girl her age. She can be skinny without having a shaved down ribcage. It is a bit better once she is clothed but if we see her at all in her natural state I feel she should deffinitely have more realistic proportions. The ash dress is amazing!

I vote for the Ash dress for young Alice. Classic for older Alice

Sarah Heist

Body looks good. My vote’s for the ash dress. omg that cracked doll face with ash dress in the last picture... so good!

I feel like the torso is thin, but agree with others that once it's clothed it doesn't seem as bad. I could see it being explained away as a mental projection of a frail and fragile young child. I think waist down it looks on point. As for dresses, the classic/slumber is probably the safest in terms of marketing but I'm not sure it would make the game stick out as different from AMR. The jump in graphics from AMA to AMR was pretty big, so using the classic dress there made sense there. For Asylum the Ash dress is similar and would maybe emphasize the proximity to the infamous fire. I still love the denial dress, and it does give the most impact of a younger alice in my opinion. But visually it's very different and might be a big risk for marketing.

Anna Lepper

While at first glance the body model does look alarmingly skinny, once the dresses are on her she does appear to have roughly equivalent proportions to the prior games given the allowance for different ages and technical evolution. Looking at the Ash dress picture (photo 2) in comparison to screenshots from "AMA" and "AMR" she appears to have about the right dimensions, seemingly drawing a little bit from both prior games’ designs. As for the dresses, much as I love the Denial dress the initial materials for selling and pitching the project should definitely use either the Classic or Ash. The former is instantly recognizable and would carry a strong brand continuity while the latter is close enough in style to the Classic visually that it could be enticing in the sense of making the viewer ask “what’s happening in the story to put her in this condition?” and clearly demarcate that this is something new.

I think for the model, either the Denial dress, the Ash Dress, or the Classic would look the best.

I like the denial dress or the ash, as we have seen her in her blue dress, the denial gives it a younger look as well as reminds some of us of other Alice movies ( like the one with Gene Wilder) it gives it a fresh yet familiar look to it. I also think her torso and arms are a little thin compared to her head/hips/legs. Her sleeve poofs feel a little disproportionate with the body at this scale

Blue and Ash dress could be great options, but I would like Denial to be on the list, it conveys the sense of a young protagonist better than any other dress

I'm no expert, but I feel that the ratio between her waist and hips is too large. That being said, we could justify that by the accessories in the dress, like the ribbon and maybe some bustle, but seeing her body like that makes me think of a caricature. Maybe that is how Alice remembers herself, with the ideal measurements of the era

I actually found the extremes of her form pretty fitting. If her 22 year old self is viewing her 13 year old self then its being put through multiple filters. From what I remember, Alice in AMR seemed thin/ malnourished. So if AMR was her when she is in a stronger, healthier state, then I can only imagine her view of her younger self. An empty frame of a girl with everything torn from her. Unaware of the horrors to come but still all too aware of them. Looking back on a younger self going through the depths of hell with the knowledge that you can't save them from it. You can't rush back to be there for them like they needed so badly. It's agonizing. So I don't view it as an indication of an eating disorder personally. I view it as a pretty appropriate visual metaphor. However, on the other hand I do think that the shape the dress makes from the chest to the waist does not look right even for her thin frame. So it could probably be made a little more filled out. (PS, how this story story is shaping up is really pretty impressive and I relate to it a lot honestly. )

RedBreloom

I think this body will do just fine! I also think that the ash dress or the blue dress will be perfect for the 3D model since we arent 100% on her other dresses besides denial. I'm excited to see what comes next! Everything looks great so far :)

My criticism aside, it’d be silly to go with any dress other than the classic blue.

Lucky Dragon ‘She.They’

I agree with some other comments that the Classic Dress is recognizable and a good one for a sales pitch. I also like the Acceptance/Harvest Dress and the Ash Dress.

I believe even with the whole weight and structure she should still have a bit of noticeable weight in her waist. I know that the bow makes her have a cinched waist but a little extra noticeable weight makes it both still realistic to the audience and herself in-game. Also, I would go with the classic because not only will it pay homage to the previous games but it could be a nice segway into the development of the chaos dress like she can be in the dress and then the fire happens and then the chaos dress is formed? and that's how it stays for the remainder of the game until maybe the end like in AMR. Great work American!!

classic is probably good... especially if that's the starter dress ^_^

Catheryn Alice North

So are all the costumes going to make it into the game? If they do that would be amazing, each costume with it's own world to explore and engulf one's self into the world of Alice's Wonderland. You know just looking at all the nice things, shrinking to see stuff from different perspectives and what not. If you make the story 100 hours long to beat we would be more happy than anything McGee ;-D

Definitely the classic. It's iconic!

Rosuav

I realize that she won’t be unclothed at any point in game, but even in a dress her waist is still extremely tiny in a way it never was in the previous games.

Lucky Dragon ‘She.They’

As I said in the post, we would never see that in the game. Never. It is used as a guide for the animator to understand the weight, structure, and points of flex on the body model. As an example, imagine what Tony Stark would have to look like if he were to actually fit into an Iron Man suit with all the related flexibility, range of motion, etc. What's under the dress will be very different from the final form of the character "in uniform."

American McGee

Yes the torso looks thin but it fits the artstyle really well👍 And with the dress it does not look so thin anymore.

Usagikie

Not a fan of the upper torso with the rib definition in the center and sides just because it looks like anorexia. I think if the side lines of the ribs were smoothed straight and the center sternum highlights removed (where it looks sucked In) would be better.

Christine Phillips

For a sales pitch, I’d definitely go with classic! It’s the most recognizable. :)

Waaay too skinny! I mean she should be skinny but that is beyond anorexic. It looks bad at best and problematic at worst.

Lucky Dragon ‘She.They’

That torso is looking pretty thin

V--R


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