What inspires you...
I have a couple I made early on in my game time because I didn't have any ideas for characters and thought it would be neat to see them realized in a video game. These days I usually start with a name and powerset combo I like first and work forward to costume and concept.
"You don't lose levels. You don't have equipment to wear out, repair, or lose, or that anyone can steal from you. About the only thing lighter than debt they could do is have an NPC walk by, point and laugh before you can go to the hospital or base." -Memphis_Bill
We will honor the past, and fight to the last, it will be a good way to die...
I have a couple I made early on in my game time because I didn't have any ideas for characters and thought it would be neat to see them realized in a video game.
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![Smile](images/smilies/smile.gif)
Ya, I don't understand why someone would want to play a character that someone else made ... (CapCom syndrome as I just, right now, started call it). City of Heroes lends itself to making new stuff.
For instance, my new character on Exalted, "Water of Life" was inspired by the empty-brain jar Halloween helmet and the Clockwork body. He was a medical experiment in hydro-molecular computing. Developing sentience, and a high degree of intelligence, he's off to save the world. What comic book has sentient water as a major hero? (Note: haven't read comics regularly for nearly 12 years).
American Dawg, Starblaze, Neanderthal Joe, Shining Dawn, Tokamak Dragon, Stinger Incarnate, Burning Tyger, Dover Tornado, Big Roach, Dark Paladin, Archmage Wylde, Kings Row Hornet, Prancing Deer
Avogadro, Science Lord
Edgar Nightcraft, Doc Cicada, Chupa Macabre, Dr Forchtenstein, Blood Shrew
This is a song about a super hero named Tony. Its called Tony's theme.
Jagged Reged: 23/01/04
What inspires you to make a character that is inspired by an existing intellectual property?
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I don't mean to speak against people who do this, of course. But as I said in another thread, my brain just doesn't work right unless I am able to create characters other people haven't thought of before. Recreating other people's work just has no value to me because... Honestly, the original authors did it better.
Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.
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admittedly my Dual Pistols character was inspired by Burn notice, of all things
On Justice
Global @Desi Nova Twitter: @desi_nova Steam: Desi_nova. I don't do Xbox or PS3
Hhhmmm...I get inspired alittle differently.
My necro/pain MM was inspired after I read the bio on Aleister Crowley.
My ele/sd brute was my idea on a slavic god.
My demon/therm MM was inspired from Anton LeVay after I read his bio.
My BR/SR corr was inspired after I watched some cheesy sci-fi(invaders from mars/plan 9) flicks.
My spines/wp crapper was a dream I had after I watched Creature from the Black Lagoon and River Monsters in the same day(Halloween fishman ftw).
And many others...about the only one from comic books would probably be my bots/ff mm who was inspired by Ultron.
I always make original characters, but sometimes I get the inspiration to make a character as if he/she were in a specific game's/anime's/etc world. My dual pistols character was inspired by Wild Arms, my Street Justice scrapper's gloves are actually his partner in 'weapon' form, and I have another character inspired by Eureka Seven that is able to use the planet's 'thoughts' as energy.
Though, playing a Wild Arms game recently, I've started wishing we had cool guns like these:
http://www.creativeuncut.com/gallery...-illust09.html
Really wish we'd get that Gunslinger costume set soon...
Shadowblaze - Lvl 50 Dark/Thermal Cor, Alexander Kalsoa - Lvl 50 BS/Regen Scrapper, and a whole bunch of other Alts. Global is @Shadowblaze.
Simply put, I wanted to "live" the same characters that I have grown up reading about and watching in cartoons and films. But that was back when I started playing, because it was all I had to go on. I found it a lot of fun to see just how close I could get the costume creator to imitate some famous costumes.
After that brief initial phase, I found myself creating characters with similar power sets to my comic book idols, but with unique costumes and stories. I can go back and look at any character I created in my first year playing (that stuck), and I see power set inspiration from Iceman, Green Arrow, Ironman, The Human Torch, and Captain America.
Since then, concepts have been my own ideas, for the majority.
@Winter. Because I'm Winter. Period.
![Big Grin](images/smilies/biggrin.gif)
I am a blaster first, and an alt-oholic second.
![](http://i1091.photobucket.com/albums/i382/Winterminal/Talsorian-BannerGrey.png)
I've had some fun in usign the CC to recreate iconic characters, but never actually rolling them up, just having the costume there as a thought experiment, but I lost all of them when my PC got wiped recently.
At the moment, with Titan Weapons I'm attempting to come up with a TW/Elec Brute flavourfully pulling from Norse Mythology (as I often do) Thor is the obvious choice, given the hammer, some sort of futuristic techno Thor springs to mind.
Creating a costume and theme for him, while shying away from the Marvel character of the same name and background is going to be difficult.
Well most of my characters are inspired by other fictional characters to some degree. Not so much in the sense of making a direct copy but more along the lines of taking a character archytype I enjoy and then making my own interpretation of it.
For example my DP/Storm Corruptor Jack Steam is heavily influenced by Harry Dresden (magic wielding, film noir private detective) but his actual character differs significantly (he's a LOT more of a mercenary).
Similarly my Demon/Thermal Mastermind Lord Harrandeous was heavily influenced by the Temeraire and RCN series (and therefore indirectly Horatio Hornblower) and is a stranded mariner with attitudes similar to an age of sail Officer and a Gentleman. However his actual background as a dimension traveling demon differs a bit from the character's he's based upon.
I've got a lot of Amberite characters running around, but that's because they're all based on my Amber Diceless Roleplaying characters. None of them are "canon" from Zelazny's books, they're the children and grandchildren of those characters, so it's definitely inspired-by and not a ripoff-of.
I've never tried to duplicate a comic book character, really... but there is a bit of Stephen Strange in Talisander's personality. I'm not quite sure how that happened, but I can't deny it's there.
Also, the Unquiet Bride's name came from the lyrics of a Decemberists song. I had the name first, and built the character and her background around it. I suppose that counts as inspiration of a sort.
@Brightfires - @Talisander
That chick what plays the bird-things...
You'd be hard pressed not to come pretty close to at least one of the comic book characters created over comics' 70+ year history with almost any character you create.
On a recent Usteam, the devs said Street Justice was influenced by Batman, so the devs do it, too.
I like to take an existing comic book character I like and alter them enough so that even though you can guess the source material, it isn't genericable because it's just too different to be called a copy.
A certain sci-fi MMO coming up blatantly uses famous characters as their templates too, saying you can live out the "smuggler-guy fantasy" or the "dark lord fantasy" in their promotional videos.
Heck, even the various comic book publishers have done this to each other other the years! Captain Marvel vs. Superman is a great example. Original work or rip-off?
Maybe someone in this game wants to live out the Batman fantasy or the Superman fantasy. Nothing wrong with that so long as you inject enough originality to call it your own.
The best comics are still 10�!
My City of Heroes Blog Freedom Feature Article: "Going Rageless?"
If you only read one guide this year, make it this one.
Super Reflexes: the Golden Fox of power sets!
![Cool](images/smilies/cool.gif)
WARNING: I bold names.
![Big Grin](images/smilies/biggrin.gif)
...to make a character that is inspired by an existing intellectual property?
Now this thread isn't about ferretting out those "generic-able" costumes and names, but instead to inquire about the WHY of making a character in name, appearance or bio that is inspired by such characters as Batman, Spider-Man, Spawn, Neo and Green Lantern. Myself, I have always preferred to make a character as unique as possible with my own (somewhat limited) creativity, so I am just trying to understand the idea behind doing otherwise. For me, there have been only a few characters that I have made that are inspired by existing comic characters.
What are your examples, and why did you make that character? |
I penned up the character "Dr. Turgenev" waaaay back in spring 2004. A Russian, magic-based illusion/storm controller, I themed him up as a modern day mage, a la "Mage: The Ascension" from White Wolf Studios. Personality was modeled somewhat after my own: Serious, with an acerbic flair to his humor. Driven in the war against evil, and some would say a bit too driven. He commanded shadows to do his work, and knew how to speak to the elements to favor his goals.
I rolled this toon for several years, and by chance, came across Neil Gaiman's reinvention of the "Eternals". One of the characters he tweaked for the reinvention was "Druig".
Who is, by look, personality and combat behavior, a direct clone of Dr. Turgenev.
I've contemplated suing prior art. =D Then it occurred to me... it would have meant I've teamed with Neil Gaiman... and he liked my concept enough to steal it... and then I was mollified. Rage gone, calmness ensuing. XD
![](https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-UpDQEFqY8tQ/To5hdQ6YxfI/AAAAAAAACws/VDY01b84PPs/s800/turg_new.png)
@TURGENEV - Freedom Server / IRON / B.A.N.E / HORDE
![](http://avatars.cohtitan.com/signatures/cit/u13743.png)
Turg Fiction: Ghost in the Machine Acts III & IV coming 2012!
Turg Fiction: IX is now LIVE on Architect Entertainment!
The odds. When the odds against me surviving are overwhelming I become inspired. For example I was doing a BAF the other day and things suddenly went awry. The Adds got way out of hand and the league window was full of the red names of the dead and dying. But somehow, with just seconds to spare, we rallied and were triumphant.
I've got a lot of Amberite characters running around, but that's because they're all based on my Amber Diceless Roleplaying characters. None of them are "canon" from Zelazny's books, they're the children and grandchildren of those characters, so it's definitely inspired-by and not a ripoff-of.
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I loved the series and played that Diceless game for YEARS with a lot of close friends about 15 years ago. Such epic stuff. Love the setting!
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The Queen's Menagerie
Interesting question.
Most of my toons are unique.
However, I do have a small handful inspired by characters in books or movies, etc.
In those few cases, my rationale was - "I wonder what those guys would be
like, and how they'd interact if they were in the 'City of' world".
For instance, I have a Brute that is a Tolkienesque Tree Ent, who slumbered
for aeons, and woke up to find themselves in this radically changed "Middle Earth".
I have another toon that is Arizona themed (for an AZ SG) that is based on
a Hopi-Indian legend and it is built based on what I read of that character on
Wikipedia.
A couple characters from some movies I like have found their way into Paragon City
and the Rogue Isles, one of which was purely a "pun" name about existing game
powers and the character's name in the movie.
I'm doubtful the Ent or Hopi-inspired toons are copyright issues at all, and some
of the movie characters weren't IN the movies but were inspired by the movie's setting.
A couple of my "movie" toons might be copyrighted (I have no idea), and may possibly
be an issue as they are those characters, transported here in "City". <shrug>
Whether they are or not, the reasons *I* made them were because they "fit" (for me)
in the "City of" universe and they're sort of a tribute to a movie I liked. YMMV.
Regards,
4
I've been rich, and I've been poor. Rich is definitely better.
Light is faster than sound - that's why some people look smart until they speak.
For every seller who leaves the market dirty stinkin' rich,
there's a buyer who leaves the market dirty stinkin' IOed. - Obitus.
I, too, have a few toons inspired by movies I have loved. (I even try and make at least one costume as close to the movie version as possible, and try to get the powerset as close also.)
A few of my toons are in honor of characters that I admire. I created The Lone Ranger's daughter...
the long-lost and unknown sister of Superman...
and Zorro's child...
These all belong to an SG I made called Legends Live On, and are for the relatives of well known folks.
I also love to create toons with a 'play-on-words' name and matching powerset, like HareTrigger...
My inspirations can hit me any time, any place. It could be a concept, a word or whatever. I LOVE the creation part of the process, and seeing my idea become a reality is very self-gratifying. Even after seven years it has never gotten old.
![](http://i.imgur.com/MNOG0.jpg)
You'd be hard pressed not to come pretty close to at least one of the comic book characters created over comics' 70+ year history with almost any character you create.
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In the present discussion, I am more after the cases where it is intentional.
What comic book has sentient water as a major hero? (Note: haven't read comics regularly for nearly 12 years).
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The odds. When the odds against me surviving are overwhelming I become inspired. For example I was doing a BAF the other day and things suddenly went awry. The Adds got way out of hand and the league window was full of the red names of the dead and dying. But somehow, with just seconds to spare, we rallied and were triumphant.
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I apologise if this comes off as me being a spoilsport, but... Nothing. Nothing can ever inspire me to copy or recreate other people's work. Even if I draw inspiration from an existing intellectual property, I'll go out of my way wrap that up into a character who's solely and truly my own and that others haven't made before. I think the closest I have is my Jun, who would look like Street Fighter's Sakura, if Street Fighter's Sakura didn't look like every Japanese Schoolgirl ever, but I still went out of my way to build an entire character around that concept which essentially hides the resemblance.
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I grew up on French and Belgian comic books, like Tintin, Spirou and Fantasio, Asterix, etc. My frame of reference is weird, so I think I can safely say that I have never intentionally copied an existing hero/villain concept. I simply don't know them that well.
![Smile](images/smilies/smile.gif)
That said, however, disregarding people who actually go "hey, I want to play Wolverine!" I think a main issue is that the better known characters are more like archetypes. Their basic concepts cover a lot of potential character types. Like, if you have an idea for a tough, street-smart, "all natural" guy who fight crime with his fists, it's very easy to just settle for "Batman-like", even if their backstory and costume is nothing alike. These character types cover most of our reference for what superheroes are, so it's easy to chance upon a character concept that turns out to be inspired by one of them, even if you didn't do it intentionally. Heck, Statesman is an obvious Superman clone.
Thought for the day:
"Hope is the first step on the road to disappointment."
=][=
I pretty much never deliberately copy any Intellectual Property for my characters.
Recently it happened accidentally or subconsciously. I was desperately searching for names to go with a powerset I wanted to play (Street Justice/Energy Aura). I was fishing around and found the name Witch Boy. I made the character in a suit because I was thinking he could be a witch boy in witch school, but that he was more interested in fighting than in magic.
Around level 8 or so I realized I had a character named Witch Boy who looked just like Klarion the Witch Boy. Ok, mine didnt have grey or blue skin, as Klarion often has. And my guys hair was blonde, not black. And my character doesnt cast spells. But he was running around in formal clothes and his name was Witch Boy. So I radically changed him to look like a swamp gas spirit, so he is just a pitch black fey entity who gives off a ghostly fire. No clothes. Just a burning hole in reality. His mom was a witch. Kept the name. Not even remotely like Klarion now.
So I avoid IP infringement aggressively.
Lewis
Random AT Generation!
"I remember... the Alamo." -- Pee-wee Herman
"Oh don't worry. I always leave things to the last moment." -- The Doctor
"Telescopes are time machines." -- Carl Sagan
...to make a character that is inspired by an existing intellectual property?
Now this thread isn't about ferretting out those "generic-able" costumes and names, but instead to inquire about the WHY of making a character in name, appearance or bio that is inspired by such characters as Batman, Spider-Man, Spawn, Neo and Green Lantern.
Myself, I have always preferred to make a character as unique as possible with my own (somewhat limited) creativity, so I am just trying to understand the idea behind doing otherwise. For me, there have been only a few characters that I have made that are inspired by existing comic characters.
What are your examples, and why did you make that character?