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Lilmonstart
Oct '21

Does it bother you if the character dresses the same each chapter? or do you preffer if they dress the same because that makes them more recognizible ?

or do you preffer if the character has different outfits like a normal person? lmao

I´m asking this because well we all when designing our characters we design them with their very first attire
and when it comes to give them new outfits you gotta come up with another one again

So what do you say?

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FauxAffliction
Oct '21

Well I think it depends on the personality of each character. If one is eccentric or rebellious they will always be dressing differently to crave people's attention. But if it's just like a hero with some cliché personality (even though interesting in their own way) they will have some normal clothes... it also depends on what the story is focusing at the very moment, sometimes the reader is so entertained with the plot that they don't notice the redundancy of their dressing. I think this subject is always at the writer's criteria.

LunarScyphozoa
Oct '21

Depends on if it’s a modern story as opposed to fantasy and how complex said outfit is

GingerLoge
Oct '21

It depends, I guess.
If a comic is settled in the real world and nowadays, characters have more outfits maybe, and changes them often. It's up to you, as long as the characters are recognizeable.

In my story (fantasy setting), the main characters have like 3 outfits each: the main, more recognizeable one; then a second one I use when I need a change of pace (after a battle, in a period of rest and such); and finally the outfit for different wheather/travel outfit. Also, I thought of the "social status" of every character: a traveller will own only the clothes that can be carried by foot or horse or I dunno; a king or a nobleman can have more.

I try to keep these outfits similar, so the shape of the character isn't altered too much.

Final note: as @AmeTsunami said, you actually have to draw the outfit a lot of time. In my opinion, it's important to find a balance and don't over decorate everything. Keeping only what you need is enough!

...ok I've babbled a lot, as usual :sweat_smile:

DesiredUsernameTaken
Oct '21

If characters mostly look the same, then having the same clothes (or at least the same color scheme for their clothes) helps with telling characters apart. Even a change of hairstyle can mess me up.

But I do like to see a little variety if it fits with the story and characters, like maybe 2-4 different outfits. The biggest reason is that it helps me tell days apart from each other :joy:. Storytelling is often extremely unclear about the passage of time, especially when it comes to days, weeks, etc. I like to have a general idea of the passage of time because it helps me see the pacing of the story.

Simplegray_OWO
Oct '21
2

Hmmm, I think it depends on the genre, setting, and characters. Overall the context of the story. For example, the setting, if your characters are in a modern setting and its slice of life I think it would be weird if your character didn’t change their clothes. But let’s say this is a character that doesn’t care for appearances and loves to wear the same hoodie over and over again then that’s the focus of the character’s design. If a character works at a coffee shop you would always expect him wear a uniform so in that case its fine as well. That's how I usually go about character design. To recognize a character doesn't always mean clothes and you can also have a character's signature clothes but doesn't always wear it.

Legendofgenii
Oct '21

Oh yeah, my characters must smell something awful. They wear the same clothes for days, wash in muddy rivers and get covered blood and who knows what.

My MC complains about his various outfits - which he’s usually given. He hates the poncho. :joy:

Costume Genii.jpg600x950 169 KB

I do wonder what he’d pick to wear if he actually got to choose.

AmysGames
Oct '21

I don't really mind it because I'm 100% guilty of just designing one outfit for my characters and drawing them in that every time, lol. It's a habit I've been trying to break. :stuck_out_tongue:

That said, giving your characters a wardrobe to pick from can definitely help them feel more like real people, if you're willing to put in that effort!

Kaydreamer
Oct '21

I'll be changing mine up, for most of the characters. I haven't done so yet, because everything which has happened thus far has been within a window of a few hours, and they haven't had a chance to change. But I definitely want to play with different outfits.

There will be a few recurring outfits they return to, though. Particular space suits for combat missions are a good example.

DokiDokiTsuna
Oct '21

I prefer when characters have different outfits; it's just more fun that way. ^^ I like to design lots of clothes for my own characters, and I like to see other people's characters in different outfits and hairstyles.

I don't mind if they always dress the same, though, especially if it makes it easier on the artist. I mean, there's always fan art~

simonitropunk
Oct '21

Personally, I love changing the main characters' outfits almost every story arc and depending on what kind of outfit would work for each character.

wispysing
Oct '21

Oh, this. I've been asking myself the same question from time to time. Been wondering if my readers would find it weird they wear the same thing over and over but on the other hand I did spend so much time designing their costumes and putting a heck lot of symbolism and personality to them. So I rarely ever make them change outfits :sweat_smile: only when there are specific occasions then I can have more wiggle room to design new ones.

Zin_Trollborn
Oct '21

I prefer when they have different outfits, I think it's more interesting to grasp a character's personality.
When I draw characters always in the same clothes it's because of laziness :sweat_smile:

I'm going with Ryoko Kui (Dungeon Meshi) here : a good character design is when you can put characters in other characters clothes and still recognize who is who.

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darthmongoose
Oct '21

While after the timeskip everything has taken place on the same day in Errant so it hasn't come up yet, yes, the characters in Errant will change their clothes every time we change what day it is.

My way of dealing with keeping everyone recognisable and with interesting designs is that the characters all have a strong theming colour and a consistent aesthetic or fashion style so that whatever they wear you can feel like it's the same person. ie. Subo always dresses in greens and earthy browns and beiges, and tends to wear hippie sort of style relaxed clothes made from materials like linen, his clothes aren't sharp or stiff at all, so they have a soft, loose look. He looks like a guy you'd find playing with some poi at a music festival. Jules always wears black, purples and bright neon pinks, their style is goth leaning more cybergoth or punk, or even a bit emo rather than lacey elegant stuff. They look like somebody you'd find selling glow in the dark enamel pins at a comics con.

xstarx07
Oct '21

I am a sucker for character growth, especially when the story takes place over a long amount of time, so of course it's always nice seeing the characters not only grow as a person, but also change their clothes from time to time to reflect that a little bit! :smiley:

The first outfits for my project's characters are more easy and simple, some don't even change much besides some pieces here and there. For most of the crossover characters, they also got different/new outfits, but I plan on letting them show up in some of their iconic ones every now and then after Part I. Also, power-ups; those will show up and change over time, lots of training and character development. Like, going from simple to more detailed armor/weapons, the stronger the power-up is :3

allenT
Oct '21

Most of my anthro characters stay the same outfits (if they actually have them). Changing outfits is when they are in a different development state, and i want to show it to readers clearly.

DiegoPalacios
Oct '21

Personally, i don't care. Is a common break from reality in fiction and can help developing an iconic look.

That being said, it can be a plus if you are willing to make the bonus design effort.

IndigoShirtProd
Oct '21

I don't think it's a particularly bothersome thing if characters are wearing the same outfit throughout the run of the comic. It's something that really that depends on the style and artist. If the style of the comic is more cartoony, you can really get away with not changing outfits. Otherwise, especially in the case of timskips, not so much.

I wasn't originally planning on having the characters in my comic change outfits, but because they change locations often, I thought it would weird if they didn't.

fleurravenbooks
Oct '21

depends on story and character, i won't expect someone in post apocalyptic world to change everyday (if ever) but i do expect rich royal to change their outfits often ( they can repeat ofc), so for them i would expect at least 4 outfits ( pj, everyday wear, fancy wear,etc)