» Thu Dec 08, 2011 10:21 pm So the following games are games that allow you to create your own character during the PS3 and Xbox 360 era and I will be posting what makes them great and what makes them disappointing. If I'm forgetting something chances are I haven't played them so please feel free to comment
1. Elder Scrolls 4
Pros:
x. The best thing about the character creation about this game is like Morrowind and past TES games before it there are 10 races and 2 sixes to choose from and that's more than most games can offer you.
x. The character customization options has been tremendously imrpoved as opposed to Morrowind's choose a face and hair, now you get to align the eye spacing, the age of the character, the length of the hair, etc. etc.
x. There are fewer helmets that cover the character's entire face thereby exposing the face of the character throughout most of the game
Cons:
x. Its very difficult to make an attractive character (I know that Orcs were meant to be ugly... but still) this game did not age too well in this category which was kind of sad
x. Khajiits and Argonians lost their distinctive beast men posture
2. Mass Effect / Mass Effect 2
Pros:
x. The character models are very photo realistic and you get to choose between male and female
x. The character has full voice acting, while most games that allow you to make your character tend to not give the character a voice, Commander Shepard had 2 great voice actors that made role playing as either the greatest guardian angel in the galaxy or just another intergalactic jerk fun and interesting to watch and listen to
x. There is an option to toggle the helmet on or off. This feature helps the player see the face of their character even during the heat of battle
Cons:
x. Its hard to make a pretty female Shepard
x. Its also hard to make the character your happy with so many people tend to stick with the default Shepard
3. Dragon Age: Origins
Pros:
x. There are 3 different races to choose from and 2 sixes to choose from as well
x. There is a great amount of character customization options ranging from hair, skin tone, eye spacing, facial hair etc. etc.
x. You get to choose the character's voice. While the voice given to the character is not at Mass Effects level, it at least it allowed the player to hear more from his character than just the usual moaning and screaming. Examples of these voices are Violent, Savvy, Seductive, Wise and Cocky as well as several others
x. During cut scenes the helmet of your character is removed giving your character's face some much needed exposure to sunlight
Cons:
x. Not much really, the only gripe I have with this is that your character stays eerily silent during cut scenes
4. Dragon Age 2
Pros:
x. Default characters look great
x. Characters now have full voice acting at the same level as Mass Effect (Though I do prefer the female voice actress over her male counterpart)
x. There is now an option to toggle the helmet / head gear on or off without losing the head gears' benefits giving you the opportunity to admire your character's gorgeous mug
x. Some characters / party members will look different depending on what you look like
Cons:
x. 2 out of the 3 races that you can choose from in Dragon Age: Origins are now gone
x. Few new options / recycled character creation options. (I was able to fully recreate my Origins human character in this game by the way)
5. Dark Souls
Pros:
x. You get to change your characters hormones... this is the only game I know of that lets you do that
x. A decent amount of customization options
x. You get to make a big head character, small head character, big chest, slim etc.
x. The devs are very careful not to offend anybody, rather than just saying Asian, Black or whatever, they use flamboyant words like Jubilant Catarina and Far East traveler
Cons:
x. There are no facial hair options
x. You will barely be able to see your character's face at its best during gameplay. This is because most of the games head gear cover the entire face and even if you are wearing a head gear that shows off your face, you will most likely be looking at a zombie version of your character unless you use your humanity which is fairly rare so for the most part your a zombie
Halo Reach:
Pros:
x. Great customization options
x. Plenty of unlockable options making you go back to this option again and again
x. You can keep customizing your character even though you've already started the game
Cons:
x. You don't get to see your face
(rather your character doesn't have a face)Fallout 3 / New Vegas
Pros:
x. Multiple ethnicity to choose from
x. Plenty of character customization options, particularly the facial hairs
x. There is an NPC in the game that gives you the option that allows you to change the way your character looks even though the game has already started (an option that is sadly lacking in Skyrim according to interviews and such)
Cons:
x. While not as bad as Oblivions characters, Fallout 3's and New Vegas' characters still look funky
Lost Planet 2
Pros:
x. Some good unlockable costumes you can mix and match
Cons:
x. Very limited character customization options. Basically choose from a head option, body option and leg option (that's all)
x. Characters don't blink or move their mouths or have any other facial animation
Well anyway that's all I can think of right now and on the list my favorite was Dragon Age: Origins/ Dragon Age 2 in terms of customization options and come 11-11-11 maybe that will change...
