Artist/Character Designer for FE Switch

[nyainou]

Prior to the new main game being teased, I remember there being some discussion in the forums about which artist people would love to do stuff for the next game. Well, we know the next game is happening now, so I feel its appropriate to bring back the discussion!

We've seen that Kozaki did work on FE Heroes, but we've got a completely different artist for the Gaiden remake: Hidari. Its hard for me to imagine Hidari doing work for the new main game as well, because then they would be balancing work on 2 full games. Kozaki, however, isn't the only artist on FE:H, so I could see him working on FE:switch.. Because of the popularity of Awakening and Fates, his style has sort of become the "standard" or "face" of/for Fire Emblem, in my opinion. But once again, the use of Hidari's works show that they're not afraid to use a completely different artist.. So it really is difficult for me to make any solid claims.

Personally, I hope for Kozaki's return. I absolutely adore his style and designs. Some of his designs are easy to mistake for other characters, such as Oboro with her hair down looking a lot like Lucina.. but that kind of comes with the whole "anime style" thing. On the flip side, I wouldn't be upset if Hidari was working on FE:switch. Their art is a bit weak in my opinion, but I'm willing to give it a try. 

Which artist would you guys like to see working on FE:switch?

[Magical Glace]

Between the two, I personally prefer Hidari.  However, since Kozaki doesn't do the costume design, I don't really mind him still being the artist.

...Just get rid of the costume designer for FE13-14.

[JasonMendez]

I like both, but I'm leaning more towards Hidari on this one. It'd be cool if one artist did the "good" characters and another one would do the "bad" characters. 

[Hardin]

I would be very surprised if Hidari worked on the Switch game. Kozaki was chosen to design the characters for Heroes because it's the big event game in the franchise. I think he's sticking around for the foreseeable future. 

[forsety]

Yeah, I agree. I don't personally like Kozaki's designs, but they're practically the face of future Fire Emblem. He seems to be actively tweeting about Fire Emblem, and doesn't seem to show any signs of stopping from there.

However, I won't cast aside Hidari and the use of another artist just because it's Switch. I don't know about anyone else, but I think just the change of console that isn't "handheld"  might mean something, but that's me being hopeful.

Because I love Wada's design, and they keep reintroducing that artist in Cipher and Heroes, I wish for Wada, but :( I don't think it'll happen.

[AlexArtsHere]

I want Hidari, but I expect Kozaki. Maybe Kozaki's art is better suited to handling stuff like avatars or something?

[Ryo]

Speaking as someone who is mostly used to Kozaki's style and has spent an enormous amount of time playing the 3DS games compared to other titles in the series, I personally want a new artist for the new platform for something fresh, because honestly I'm getting bored now. However, I wouldn't want them to hire just anyone only because they're not Kozaki. Looking at the mass of Cipher and Heroes artworks, only a few styles stick out to me that I really want (I really dig Sachiko Wada's Eliwood card for example, and of course Senri Kita). That said, I wouldn't be surprised at or entirely against Kozaki returning, tbh.  

And yes, I want better art direction this time around, because that's more important. Seeing battle panties in 1080p is definitely not something I'm looking forward to.

[Anacybele]

I wouldn't mind Kozaki staying in, so long as the art direction is changed. I'm tired of the overdone fanservice. I'm aware that fanservice is nothing new to FE, but Awakening and Fates go way too far with it.

That being said, I've always stated that I'd love for Senri Kita to return, as her Tellius art is my favorite to look at in the series no question.

[dap005]

I came here to gush about the Suikoden 2 & 3 character designer/illustrator Ishikawa Fumi. No one is more suited for drawing a large cast of interesting and diverse characters with awesome costume/armour design than her in my eyes. My personal favourite is the characters of Suikoden 3 (all 108 of them, yup). And that was over a decade ago, I don't know if she's still drawing now but damn if artists only get more skilled with time imagine how good her stuff would be now. 

A few special artwork she did for suikoden artbooks

Spoiler

 

And for the Castlevania fans here's some of her special art related to that (le sigh posting about what Konami used to be, always make me melancholic):

Spoiler

 

 

Edited January 26, 2017 by dap005

[bufkus]

I absolutely want Hidari, or any other modern Atelier artist. Was never a fan of Kozaki, his style seems too childish for Fire Emblem.

[dap005]

10 hours ago, Ryo said:

Speaking as someone who is mostly used to Kozaki's style and has spent an enormous amount of time playing the 3DS games compared to other titles in the series, I personally want a new artist for the new platform for something fresh, because honestly I'm getting bored now. However, I wouldn't want them to hire just anyone only because they're not Kozaki. Looking at the mass of Cipher and Heroes artworks, only a few styles stick out to me that I really want (I really dig Sachiko Wada's Eliwood card for example, and of course Senri Kita). That said, I wouldn't be surprised at or entirely against Kozaki returning, tbh.  

And yes, I want better art direction this time around, because that's more important. Seeing battle panties in 1080p is definitely not something I'm looking forward to.

 

So much this, I love Sachiko Wada, though they've already worked on a previous FE game (sacred stones) so I don't know if they'll get asked again. Because, damn Wada's lastest artstyle. Either way I agree we need a change and hopefully no more face-palm worthy, panty-shot friendly armours (though if it's still the same art director that does the armour, gulp). 

 

[CrimeanRoyalKnight]

I would love to have Kimihiko Fujisaka as the next artist. For a quick reminder, he drew DLC Roy in Awakening.
Here is a link to his tag on Zerochan: http://www.zerochan.net/Fujisaka+Kimihiko
His work is modern and cool, and I love how he draws faces. He has the variety FE needs (meaning he can draw old people, cute girls and guys, monsters, etc).
These are some of my favorite drawings from him:

Spoiler

http://drakengard.wikia.com/wiki/File:DD3_One_(Male)_Artwork.png

Yes, his art can be quite dark, but also brighter. I'd love it if he drew for a darker (but not too dark! A T at most!) Fire Emblem.

Edited January 20, 2017 by CrimeanRoyalKnight

[JasonMendez]

1 hour ago, CrimeanRoyalKnight said:

I would love to have Kimihiko Fujisaka as the next artist. For a quick reminder, he drew DLC Roy in Awakening.
Here is a link to his tag on Zerochan: http://www.zerochan.net/Fujisaka+Kimihiko
His work is modern and cool, and I love how he draws faces. He has the variety FE needs (meaning he can draw old people, cute girls and guys, monsters, etc).
These are some of my favorite drawings from him:

  Reveal hidden contents

http://drakengard.wikia.com/wiki/File:DD3_One_(Male)_Artwork.png

Yes, his art can be quite dark, but also brighter. I'd love it if he drew for a darker (but not too dark! A T at most!) Fire Emblem.

He would seem great for a dark Fire Emblem game. Makes me wonder how he would depict dragons and other creatures like the monsters from Sacred Stones.

[Anfaidora]

Sachiko Wada would be my choice hands down for returning artists, outside of Kozaki. Their previous work on Sacred Stones was wonderful and current work for Cipher is splendid. They do a fantastic job at keeping characters recognizable, even with a newer style and flair.  Hidari 's art looks promising, but I don't think it would be a good launching pad for the Switch and FE coming back to console. It has that more 'dated' feel after being exposed to Kozaki's designs, it's art I would have expected 10 years ago for an FE game. It's soft hues and strokes are lovely, they just don't grab a hold of me yet for a war game. Once I see more character art though I'm sure I'll start noticing more details to their art style I enjoy. 

[Emeraldfox]

I'd like the artist for PoR and RD to come back, I like her work. OR the artist for 7th Dragon 3. Or better yet the artist for the Etrian Odyssey games.

[Slumber]

Hidari's style is immediately more appealing to me than any of Kozaki's artwork over the 3DS games. Not that Kozaki is a bad artist or anything(The dude draws better than I possibly could ever hope to), but I do agree with the "it's too anime" sentiment. It's fine art, just not fine art for the series, IMO. Hidari's got a much rougher, grittier art style that helps de-emphisize the anime-ness, and fits a high fantasy setting much better for me.

That said, I don't expect Hidari to return. Echoes may be a relatively easy job for him, since he already has a bunch of pre-established work to build on, rather than having to build a bunch of new character concepts from what IS tells him, but it's still a busy job. IS likes to change the art of the series often, and as far as I know, they've never brought an artist back after switching, so I don't expect Kozaki to come back, either. It will likely be a completely new artist so they can give FE Switch its own identity, which is usually the logic behind switching artists like IS does.

[pianime94]

I personally like the classic FE designs, it just gives off the fantasy vibe really well, but that was the yores.

I don't mind Kozaki again, on the exception that the characters has to be at least fashionable in a pleasant way.

That being said, Hidari FTW.

[nordopolica]

I have a feeling Kozaki is here to stay. They seem to be pretty happy with working for him and with the aesthetic they've decided to go forward with. I imagine if Echoes is really a planned series, they'll reserve other art styles like Hidari's for that. Which is a shame, because I really like Hidari's work from what we have seen, and at this point though I admire Kozaki's art, I feel as if we've seen the extent of his designs. It all seems rather same-y now. 

[Slumber]

5 hours ago, nordopolica said:

I have a feeling Kozaki is here to stay. They seem to be pretty happy with working for him and with the aesthetic they've decided to go forward with. I imagine if Echoes is really a planned series, they'll reserve other art styles like Hidari's for that. Which is a shame, because I really like Hidari's work from what we have seen, and at this point though I admire Kozaki's art, I feel as if we've seen the extent of his designs. It all seems rather same-y now. 

Again, I wouldn't count on it if they stick with Kozaki. They switch up artists frequently, and it's unprecedented for them to go back after they change artists in the main series. If Kozaki comes back after Heroes, that would be a series first(At least as far as I know, since the artists for 1-4 are seem to be unknown).

It's always been a strength of the series, IMO. It's how a series can have like, literally 1000 unique characters without too many of them feeling like retreads.

Edited January 23, 2017 by Slumber

[Shengar]

On 21/01/2017 at 2:20 AM, dap005 said:

I came here to gash about the Suikoden 2 & 3 character designer/illustrator Ishikawa Fumi. No one is more suited for drawing a large cast of interesting and diverse characters with awesome costume/armour design than her in my eyes. My personal favourite is the characters of Suikoden 3 (all 108 of them, yup). And that was over a decade ago, I don't know if she's still drawing now but damn if artists only get more skilled with time imagine how good her stuff would be now. 

A few special artwork she did for suikoden artbooks

Ishikawa Fumi work is godly and definitely the artist that will be suitable for FE. But the thing is, how long since she worked on a game designing? Is there any recent work of her? Suikoden 2 and 3 is more than decades old and artist can change their style drastically depending on what their client asked for.

On 23/01/2017 at 9:25 AM, nordopolica said:

I have a feeling Kozaki is here to stay. They seem to be pretty happy with working for him and with the aesthetic they've decided to go forward with. I imagine if Echoes is really a planned series, they'll reserve other art styles like Hidari's for that. Which is a shame, because I really like Hidari's work from what we have seen, and at this point though I admire Kozaki's art, I feel as if we've seen the extent of his designs. It all seems rather same-y now. 

Kozaki can designs can be more varied if that what the art director wanted from him. You don't even to look at no more heroes when the designs of his generic units. It all comes down to IS whether or not they wanted the cast to be more diverse in age, race, and body shape.

=====

 

If IntSys aiming for different artist and aesthetic that appeal to modern audience, I believe there's no one to fit that job outside Hidari. There are some that comes to my mind but most of them are already a full time employee of other company. There's Akihiko Yoshida, but I'm afraid IntSys don't want to use him just because they don't want people to call the game Fire Emblem Tactic.

Edited January 24, 2017 by Shengar

[dap005]

On 24/01/2017 at 5:49 AM, Shengar said:

Ishikawa Fumi work is godly and definitely the artist that will be suitable for FE. But the thing is, how long since she worked on a game designing? Is there any recent work of her? Suikoden 2 and 3 is more than decades old and artist can change their style drastically depending on what their client asked for.

Kozaki can designs can be more varied if that what the art director wanted from him. You don't even to look at no more heroes when the designs of his generic units. It all comes down to IS whether or not they wanted the cast to be more diverse in age, race, and body shape.

=====

 

If IntSys aiming for different artist and aesthetic that appeal to modern audience, I believe there's no one to fit that job outside Hidari. There are some that comes to my mind but most of them are already a full time employee of other company. There's Akihiko Yoshida, but I'm afraid IntSys don't want to use him just because they don't want people to call the game Fire Emblem Tactic.

Yes ultimately is what the art directors want but as we've seen with hidari IS is also not silly enough to take away the suitably of the character art and the game in question. Despite how much I dislike fates designs it does suit a game which had mycastle and petting in it but moving on...

Woo another Ishikawa Fumi  fan *high five* :D. It's true that she hasn't worked on a game for a long time and since I couldn't really find any work after 2011 (I'm not looking it up in jon google mind), I really do want to see this artist return to the gaming scene if she is still actively working as an illustrator that is. Still I'd be pinching myself is she ends up working on the next fe it would feel unreal. And may get suikoden fans interested in the series :). 

But like you said it really depends on what IS wants and right now they're obsessed with expanding the audience hence the level of 'fan service' (I hate that term because not everyone wants to see perv-gaze in their games or indulge in fetishes when their playing something like fe, which has a history of decent characters and worldbuilding). Personally I can also see many players (especially outside Japan) avoiding the games bc they think it's an eroge dating game series or something, I know I would have if I didn't start with fe8. 

Still it's quite hard to guess who they'll hire from the games sphere since artists all seem occupied. I would just like the next game to leave awakening's shadow so a new character designer is definitely needed for that. 

Edited January 26, 2017 by dap005

[OpheliaNohrPrincess]

The fact that Kozaki is STILL doing FE art its likely he's gonna continue for FE16 while Hidari does the Gaiden remake. I do think the one that does some of the armor should change but its unlikely at this point.

Edited January 26, 2017 by OpheliaNohrPrincess

[dap005]

9 minutes ago, OpheliaNohrPrincess said:

The fact that Kozaki is STILL doing FE art its likely he's gonna continue for FE16 while Hidari does the Gaiden remake. I do think the one that does some of the armor should change but its unlikely at this point.

I don't think any fire emblem artists has every returned for a third game it would certainly be a first. Though with the FE being on a new console, IS will likely want to shake things up and go for a different style. I'd be quite surprised if kozaki did another game.

Plus I think it's good to give other artists a go as well whilst making sure that designs don't get old and samey. Only time would tell what they go for in the end.

[OpheliaNohrPrincess]

1 minute ago, dap005 said:

I don't think any fire emblem artists has every returned for a third game it would certainly be a first. Though with the FE being on a new console, IS will likely want to shake things up and go for a different style. I'd be quite surprised if kozaki did another game.

Plus I think it's good to give other artists a go as well whilst making sure that designs don't get old and samey. Only time would tell what they go for in the end.

So far we got no info of FE 16 obviously but since he's been here for a long time now its a safe assumption he's probably might be here for one more time but until a teaser trailer comes that's gonna be the judgement call.

[dap005]

Also I know it'll never happen bht imagine if Yoshitaka Amano did FE designs. The old ff style would certainly get old school fans exicted. Maybe for the fe4 echoes remake? Would definitely suit that game I believe. I can already picture what Amano's Arvis   would look like haha. 

I'm a big fan of akihiro yamada as well (I mainly attribute the high fantasy style to him due to his work on the twelve kingdoms). Not sure you can call it 'mordern' though but damn the art is awe-inspiring:

Spoiler

Welp I've decended into art appreciation hell. Probably should go bed. 

Edited January 26, 2017 by dap005