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[Discussion] Y'all wanna talk about Wukong?

MrBuffington··3 votes·1,283 views

New PBE update out in case you haven't seen, new Soraka art (awesome), Singed art changes (can't really tell the difference but still looks awesome), and, from the title, new Wukong art.

I gave it a little time to sink in (it looked odd to me, probably because I was getting used to seeing the older-new splash), but now that I'm starting too see it as it's own splash art (not just a modification of the other one), I still don't know what to think. Like the Ahri splash, I had started to get used to (and kind of liking; overall glad with the reroll but would have been content with the new art) the new one right about the time they changed it.

I can see that the art changes addressed a lot of the criticism and concerns I've been hearing (and making) about the new splash, namely that the face didn't look like him, his fur was too light, etc. Overall I like it, I think it represents the character better, but something still feels a little...off...

My initial impression was that this change aligns more with the older art style and not Riot's new overall art style, though I can't figure out why this is; perhaps the color scheme? It seems a little to me like some of the more detailed elements in the face of the old-new splash were dulled, and the color scheme is a bit more saturated to add contrast/definition that way? (I dunno art words).

I think I'm going to sit on this for a few days and see how I feel about this later, but I wanted to 1. make a record of my initial impressions and 2. get your thoughts on this. Going to draw a line and re-edit this post in a few (if I remember...)

Will date and edit as is necessary

12 Comments

DG Ashabel2 votes

Maybe I'm wrong, but I think what bothers you is his body. Wukong is very spindly in the game, he's basically a huge gibbon dressed in armor. The new splash art makes his body look more like a furry human, he has way more muscles everywhere. For example, he has actual defined thighs whereas his legs are matchsticks in the game.

It's still pretty good art (dynamic, good colors, solid anatomy, shows off his personality through that cocky grin), but it looks just different enough to bother you if you stare at Wukong in the game a lot (I know I do, he's my primary bruiser).

MrBuffington1 votes

I know his body was a lot of what people were criticizing, but I always focused more on his face. Plus, his body shouldn't bother me anymore than it did on the old-new splash, since it's virtually the same; there's something else that seems odd to me. I have a feeling it might still be the camera angle, he looks really angry. I guess it was one of my complaints with the old-new splash, which was that Wukong's expression seemed mixed between angry and cheeky; it still feels like there's a bit in the new-new one as well. To be fair, there's still a bit of that in the old-old splash, so the artist did do a good job of keeping him consistent with the old splash.

I guess the other thing that seems off to me is how shiny/oily/reflective his face is, especially compared to the rest of his fur. The hair on his head and the rest of his body seem completely different.

DG Ashabel2 votes

Hmmm, I tried to sit back and "lose" my familiarity with Wukong's personality so I could focus entirely on the art. You're right, he looks pretty angry. I think it's the butterfly-shaped markings over his eyes. Being angled toward the bridge of his nose makes him look like he's furrowing his eyebrows and therefore scowling. You need to look very hard in order to see that his actual eye shape is neutral/relaxed.

I think the other issue is that he's portrayed mid-attack, which somewhat diminishes the opportunity to portray Wukong's character. He's a very relaxed, focused guy who has a lot of strength to him, but doesn't show it off because he realizes that he's still on a journey and has plenty of mistakes to make. An openly aggressive situation doesn't really bring out his character. He'd look better meditating in some trick or dangerous situation, or training somewhere in the forest.

Of course, all that might just be me.

And yeah, the lighting on his face is a bit odd. If you judge by how the light falls onto the platform he's standing on, his entire face should be illuminated and not just a part of it.

MrBuffington1 votes

I didn't notice the eye shape until you mentioned it. It seems strange to me since this face just seems like a straight upgrade (in terms of art quality) from his old splash, but his old splash seems a bit more cocky/cheeky than this one.

You make a good point about the pose; the art seems to fit with what it is, where I can imagine Wukong having a face like that when he's in the middle of an attack, but like you said, if I personally was drawing Wukong, I probably wouln't have him in a direct action/attack-pose. I guess the same thing could be said about the Lee Sin splash art. I guess that's the general direction that Riot is taking the new splashes, where more and more splashes are champions in mid-attack (there are a few exceptions, like Shyvana).

The lighting seems okay to me; the light is coming from the right side. It's just that the texture of the hair on his body doesn't match the hair on his head, I think. Like, the hair on his head seems more coarse, and the hair on his body finer/shorter/less shiny.

cshakes1 votes

The sad thing is, Shyvana would've been better portrayed mid-attack. Ah well.

MrBuffington1 votes

I still like her splash though

catraven1 votes

Maybe I'm wrong, but I think what bothers you is his body. Wukong is very spindly in the game, he's basically a huge gibbon dressed in armor.

Yeah you're wrong. Wu is more like a classic trolling monkey that bites and pulls peoples pants down.

Poldy Scarecrow2 votes

Lol the splash is great. Wukong's in-game model needs a texture update.

Never liked the spindly look.. How does he even manage to carry around all that heavy armor.. being lean and nimble doesn't mean hes has to be spindly

Really looking forward to anything Riot have in store for Wu.

MrBuffington1 votes

I think the texture in his new-new splash seems a little inconsistent; the hair on his head and the hair on the rest of his body seems very different. His face/head has a lot of sheen to it, the rest of his fur is more subdued.

Poldy Scarecrow1 votes

I was referring to the in-game model bro not the splash. Sorry i was unclear.

WRT the splash you're right about the the difference in his fur but I still think it's great ..

Riot already went through all the trouble of changing the splash and I'm content with the way it is. Asking anything more would just be nitpicking

MrBuffington1 votes

No I knew you were talking about the in-game model, I'm assuming that most if not all models are getting a texture update soon (it's been happening to a lot of champs and skins), I was just talking about the splash :P.

I agree, I'm just nit-picking here, lol. I like the splash, don't get me wrong, I'm happy they're listening to the community and responding to our feedback, I'm just continuing the feedback loop in case they want to come back and revisit the splash

Poldy Scarecrow1 votes

okay word up, i hear ya.

Well if they are looking for feedback i guess brightening it would be cool- to match the brightness of the other splashes

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