Some concerns/feedback about some new item artworkk/art-direction on the PBE
So I saw some new items on the PBE, and I know that most of the art there is placeholder, but I have some concerns about the direction that the art seems to be taking. Briefly, here's my issues.
Twin Shadows Basically, my concern here is only that the art we are seeing isn't placeholder art. It's the art for the original Twin Shadows item and, honestly, it's a bit of a mess. I think it's supposed to look like a ghost trapped by chains? But it doesn't really look like that. The art is serviceable (barely) for a time, and it's in desperate need of a fidelity update.
All jungle upgrades So here's my concern. I ALWAYS thought it was strange that 90% of the real-estate on the jungle items broadcasted what SMITE you have, and only a tiny gem in the center showed what stats the item was actually giving. I, somewhat, understood the idea though, since it had to be a unique solution when there where so many possible permutations of "what smite did you take and what upgrade did you take". there had to be SOME way of showing both in a consistent way so you didn't have to memorize 16 different items instead of 4 smites and 4 upgrades (now 3 smites and 4 upgrades). The issue is, on PBE, the testing is creating one UNIFIED smite upgrade, and if this happens, the current design/art for the way jungle items work makes NO sense at all. 90% of the item is still dedicated to showcasing which smite you have picked, but there is only ONE smite option, so it makes no sense to do so anymore. The only _actual _ choice is now which upgrade you take which only shows up as a tiny little gem in the center of the item. I know art assets take time, but it really makes so much more sense to me to go back to the style of "Spirit of the Lizard Elder, Spirit of the Ancient Golem, Spirit of the Spectral Wraith Madred's Bloodrazer" design so that there's some level of design parallelism maybe, but the items are clear and distinct.
Think of it this way: the way support items are now, they ALL give the same active upgrade: wards, but their DESIGNS are different. They all have an eye in the center to show that they are parallel, but since the stats and passives on the items are so different, MOST of the real-estate is dedicated to the item, not the sightstone upgrade portion.
vs
It's pretty clear to ME which design is clearer and just all-around better