One thing struck me with the global unification of splash arts...
So, before you read this, take a quick peek at this article (or read it completely, it's very interesting !).
My first reaction when I saw the chinese splash art was "Eck ! I don't like any single one of them except for silverfang Akali !". But why ? Why was I thinking this way ? The response came quickly.
It's not the art itself that's bad with these chinese splash arts. It's the lack of vision of what the champions are, as characters, and how to render it. In a sense, it's a HUUUUUUGE stepback from one of Riot biggest improvement. Allow me to illustrate.
Here is the NA Nightraven Fiora.
http://ddragon.leagueoflegends.com/cdn/img/champion/splash/Fiora_2.jpg
And here, we have the chinese Nightraven Fiora.
http://img2.leaguecraft.com/lol-splash-art/asset/wallpaper_760px_6702.jpg
What's the big difference between the two of them ?
The NA one give us a glimpse of who Nightraven Fiora is. With a single, inanimated picture, the artist caught a whole lot more - of course, we can't be sure without words, but judging from the scene, it's quite obvious she's some sort of impetuous hitman, a daring sworswoman using stealth and violence alike to take down her target before it ever knows someone is coming after it. Add to that the rich-looking city in the background, the victim being some sort of guard, and you can almost imagine the whole thing - Nightraven Fiora, the assassin of kings, a blade to hire working for a high-ranking, decadent nobility at a high price in their internal war for power.
The chinese one, on the other hand, suffers from the chronical "generic fighting game artstyle" syndrome. It's just a plain representation of the character in front view with a plain background that could be as well non-existant for what it brings. It offers no characterization, no insight on who the character is. Responses might range from an emo martial artist to a medieval fantasy vampire for what we know. It lacks personality.
Welp, that's all I had to say. And really Riot, remember that : the important thing about a piece of art isn't where the artist came from, but what it conveys.
Cordially, a concerned art amateur.
