Are people exaggerating ZUN's drawings?

[Ikari]

What about IN?

*facepalms with the strenght of a thousand Okuu suns*

God I'm dumb. IN had a lot of things, namely Mystia's nighblindless (Frustrating, but awesome!), Reimu's weird border bullet transport, Reisen's bullets playing hide-and-seek and the last words in general.

[AnonymousPondScum]

Let's see...

-Main characters acting like morons and taking their sweet time to get anything done, even on a speedy run
-Equally bumbling or innocuous antagonists
-Frequently confusing plot that was confirmably made while ZUN was drunk
-A two-woman mini-Death Star fueled by bickering
-The world's longest-running and least-motivated immortal blood feud grudge match.

Imperishable Night is the Touhouest of Touhou games. :V

[Cadmas]

For example, Toyosatomimi having two right hands (even though ZUN should know better by now, considering how much he had technically improved by UFO)~

Don't forget about Minoriko's two left feet. Wheres my crack pairing thouhouo community?

[Ikari]

Let's see...

-Main characters acting like morons and taking their sweet time to get anything done, even on a speedy run
-Equally bumbling or innocuous antagonists
-Frequently confusing plot that was confirmably made while ZUN was drunk
-A two-woman mini-Death Star fueled by bickering
-The world's longest-running and least-motivated immortal blood feud grudge match.

Imperishable Night is the Touhouest of Touhou games. :V

Border team: Yukari acting weird
Magic team: They actually went foward.
Scarlet team: Remilia picking fights with everyone, Sakuya trying to stop her
Netherworld team: Yuyuko's special... condition.

I wouldn't say ''take their time'', it's more like they have an annoying team member.

But anyway, you forgot the NUMBER 1 MOST IMPORTANT THING EVER in IN.

Alice and Marisa's snarky dialogue. Oh sweet, sweet dialogue >u<

Bitch, get out the way!

[Goldom]

[nm mispost]

[AnonymousPondScum]

Border team: Yukari acting weird
Magic team: They actually went foward.
Scarlet team: Remilia picking fights with everyone, Sakuya trying to stop her
Netherworld team: Yuyuko's special... condition.

I wouldn't say ''take their time'', it's more like they have an annoying team member.

But anyway, you forgot the NUMBER 1 MOST IMPORTANT THING EVER in IN.

Alice and Marisa's snarky dialogue. Oh sweet, sweet dialogue >u<

O rite.

And no I didn't! That was included in the bickering-fueled-Death-Star comment.

THE MALICE CANNON HAS NO BRAKES.

[BL2W]

Magic team: They actually went foward.

But anyway, you forgot the NUMBER 1 MOST IMPORTANT THING EVER in IN.

Alice and Marisa's snarky dialogue. Oh sweet, sweet dialogue >u<

Honestly, I believe that there should be more Marisa/Alice team-ups in future core Touhou games--and not for some silly pairing reason or other such nonsense. I just can never get enough of those two; their chemistry is nearly unrivaled within the Touhou universe. Not to mention, they make for the perfect heroic duo: the witty boke powerhouse and the elegant tsukkomi brain, both being highly unorthodox personally, but justifiably good-willed~

[Ikari]

Honestly, I believe that there should be more Marisa/Alice team-ups in future core Touhou games--and not for some silly pairing reason or other such nonsense. I just can never get enough of those two; their chemistry is nearly unrivaled within the Touhou universe. Not to mention, they make for the perfect heroic duo: the witty boke powerhouse and the elegant tsukkomi brain, both being highly unorthodox personally, but justifiably good-willed~

You know what would be even awesomer?Patchouli, Alice, Marisa, all together in a team. Snarky x3.

*drools thinking about it*

[Tengukami]

I think that's a good point, if the subject here is ZUN's art. Do backgrounds and stage design concepts not also count as "art"? If so, ZUN has done some incredible things with the medium.

This video is my favorite example: Imperishable Night, 6A, Boss fight with Eirin. This stage is, from an artistic point of view, a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Leaving aside gameplay, it is aesthetically pleasing on any difficulty - the suddenly shifting backgrounds, which include the iconic moon landing photo, are jarring and also play to the game's theme of the moon. At the same time, the bullet patterns themselves represent elements of Eirin as a character - namely, chemistry in particular and science in general. Her spellcard concepts refer to and reflect things like genetics ("Genealogy of the Sky-Born"), the British mathematician John Horton Conway ("Game of Life"), and the Apollo 13 mission ("Apollo 13"), not just in their names and descriptions but in the patterns themselves.

This is an artistic choice on ZUN's part. It does not affect gameplay to design your bullet patterns after personality traits of the boss; it's something ZUN chose to do for purely aesthetic reasons, to better convey the concepts behind his character and the game itself - and that is a decision an artist makes.

I'm going to go ahead and quote myself here, to get us back onto the thread's actual subject. Not every thread on this board needs to derail, I don't think.

[Hinacle]

Why has no one mentioned Yuyuko's fan?

[Ikari]

I'm going to go ahead and quote myself here, to get us back onto the thread's actual subject. Not every thread on this board needs to derail, I don't think.

Sorry.  :ohdear:

Why has no one mentioned Yuyuko's fan?

This. This is something no one has really noticed; Not only Yuyuko's fan, but every special things that bosses have sometimes. Parsee's jealousy bubble, Hina's misfortune aura, Yuyuko's bedazzling fan, Byakuren's lotus glyph, Miko's...flower. (If anyone could tell me what it actually is, I'd really appreciate) Those things makes boss battles so much more awesome; I mean, portraits appear for what? 20 seconds, maybe 30? Those things in battle gives you a ''Oh crap what is- Oh my god that is awesome'' feeling. That's a point even I overlooked at first in ZUN's art.

[BL2W]

I think that's a good point, if the subject here is ZUN's art. Do backgrounds and stage design concepts not also count as "art"? If so, ZUN has done some incredible things with the medium.

This is an artistic choice on ZUN's part. It does not affect gameplay to design your bullet patterns after personality traits of the boss; it's something ZUN chose to do for purely aesthetic reasons, to better convey the concepts behind his character and the game itself - and that is a decision an artist makes.

Oh, absolutely~! From just about any of the Windows games, the backgrounds and designs are stunningly gorgeous; I don't think I can find it in me to say a single negative statement about them (in fact, half of the time while I'm playing, I'm wondering what methods and tools he used to create them)~

[Ikari]

Oh, absolutely~! From just about any of the Windows games, the backgrounds and designs are stunningly gorgeous; I don't think I can find it in me to say a single negative statement about them (in fact, half of the time while I'm playing, I'm wondering what methods and tools he used to create them)~

Oh yes, the backgrounds! They're absolutely gorgeous, I wonder the exact same thing!  :3 It's really nice to see awesome 3d and moving backgrounds when you play a STG. Eientei was my favorite, with the eternal dark corridor and the rainbow/purple/cosmos path. Amazing. Plus, it becomes even more obvious when you check what was the background behind the bosses:

Remilia: Scarlet red moon in a dark night
Yuyuko: Cherry blossoms tree
Kaguya: Full moon shining with purple waves of moonlight
Shikeiki: Beautiful flower field
Kanako: Suwa lake
Utsuho: Nuclear reactor's core
Byakuren: Makai's twilight
Miko: Admittedly a bit less impressive, but still a nice night sky full of divine spirits.

I dare you to find games that top those listed here.

[Clarste]

To be fair, ZUN has improved since EoSD and before. I think a lot of the criticism his artwork is getting is something that stuck from the earlier days. Even so, ZUN doesn't compare to a doujin artist who specializes in being an artist. Personally I'd love to see more artwork like in GFW; that looked on par with what you'd expect from a game like this. But ZUN's stuff works too; his sprites are damned good IMO and that's really the bulk of the game.

Nothing against the artist in Fairy Wars, but I actually found it pretty unsettling to play a Touhou shooting game without ZUN art. That's one of the reasons I'm not very comfortable playing that game. There's something about the portraits that just works in context, for me anyway. I guess I'm one of the people who finds his art charming. It's pretty interesting how his style changes so drastically though. IN looks nothing like anything else he's done, for example. It's not a matter of improvement, he just keeps changing.

[game2011]

Someone mentioned this before: The art style for GFW makes the characters look a tad bit... chubby...

Also, what are people's opinions on the drawings from 1 to 5?  As I said in the first post, I think they're pretty good, even if we don't get to see the full portraits for most of the characters.  I think they look somewhat like manga/anime art style from the 80s.

[BL2W]

Someone mentioned this before: The art style for GFW makes the characters look a tad bit... chubby...

Agreed. I've never been a big fan of the art style in Fairy Wars; I would have actually much rather preferred ZUN's to be honest~

Also, what are people's opinions on the drawings from 1 to 5?  As I said in the first post, I think they're pretty good, even if we don't get to see the full portraits for most of the characters.  I think they look somewhat like manga/anime art style from the 80s.

The outfits may have been inspired by the 80s, but that hair definitely screams of 90s anime clich?; flashy, neon, and lots of it~

[Esper]

What about IN?

IN has a few spells that are pretty much Familiar Walls, which you can use for extra score.

If that doesn't count, at least I tried.

[Chuckolator]

ZUN art is awesome and people who say otherwise are haters.

Spoiler:

except EoSD Sakuya

[M M]

I like Makoto's art because it made the fairies look like children, unlike PMiSS art, for example.
Also, his GFW portraits moves a lot, and makes the dialogues much more fun to read. Since Phantasmagoria of Flower View ZUN's haven' been moving at all... he just adds some emoticons and bruises.

Btw, EoSD Sakuya:
http://i.imgur.com/TFZ6s.jpg

These are the two of the funniest expressions in the series. I don't understand how someone can hate it

[Ikari]

I personally loved the GFW portraits, but that's just me. (They actually look like kids! Plus, as mentionned below, they ''move'' too)

Btw, EoSD Sakuya:
http://i.imgur.com/TFZ6s.jpg

These are the two of the funniest expressions in the series. I don't understand how someone can hate it

Those two are ok, it's when she smiles... Her cheeks suddenly gain 15 pounds each and gives her a potato face

[pineyappled]

BUT I LOVE HIS ART UNIRONICALLY

it is pretty unique o <o) his style has this character that fits with the carefree nature of the gam
why do people call andrew hussie a god when he has a team and everything[/sizees imo

] 

Touhou just isn't the same without aderpable ZUNart. The fighting game and GFW art just rub me the wrong way.
and the fighting game art isn't good get a pair of eyes people ;_;

[AnonymousPondScum]

These are the two of the funniest expressions in the series. I don't understand how someone can hate it

THERE IS NO GODDESS BUT HINAFACE, AND ZUN IS HER PROPHET.

[Unassuming Squid]

and the fighting game art isn't good get a pair of eyes people ;_;

...why isn't it good?

Honestly, I like ZUN's art for the fact that it, as has been previously stated, adds a level of particular charm to the games, almost like a signature. It's not technically good art, but it's pretty well done.

If some other game had art like that I probably would not be charmed by it. But it's one man doing everything, and in that context it's fine.

Of course this is only talking about the character portraits. The backgrounds and sprites in the games themselves are fantastic. Say what you will, but the final stage of SA gets to me every time by the point it gets to the pan-up for the black sun.

[Zil]

I can't say I like the fighting game art, myself. Just looks bad to me. The characters aren't childish enough, they're shaped weird, stuff like that. Utsuho and Cirno in particular just look way off. I love the GFW stuff though. Cute as hell.

I have mixed opinions about how the spellcards look. MoF and SA were great in that department, UFO was kind of hit and miss, and TD was really lacking imo, especially in the second half of the game. Utsuho and Byakuren had this thing going with really flashy and creative stuff, and Miko just didn't do it. Oddly, the nonspells in TD look much cooler than what you'd expect.

[MaStErSpArK94]

Miko's...flower. (If anyone could tell me what it actually is, I'd really appreciate)

According to the wiki, it's a butterfly and a reference to "Zhuangzi's butterfly dream", a Taoist philosophy story.

And yes, it does look pretty cool.

[game2011]

All this reminds me of Yoshitaka Amano, the person who did the artwork for most of the Final Fantasy games.  His art style is either love or hate among fans.

[Ikari]

According to the wiki, it's a butterfly and a reference to "Zhuangzi's butterfly dream", a Taoist philosophy story.

And yes, it does look pretty cool.

...Well I'll be damned. Thanks!

As for the fighting game art... I looove it ;__; But that's just me.

I have mixed opinions about how the spellcards look. MoF and SA were great in that department, UFO was kind of hit and miss, and TD was really lacking imo, especially in the second half of the game. Utsuho and Byakuren had this thing going with really flashy and creative stuff, and Miko just didn't do it. Oddly, the nonspells in TD look much cooler than what you'd expect.

Yeah, UFO was lacking for a few characters, but Byakuren made me weep in joy and horror. (Oh wow that is so gorgeous- uuu I died  )
Miko's spellcard were... Eh. Rising Sun thing was ok, but a bit too simple, and the rainbow random pew-pew thing was gorgeous, for the first 5 seconds before you get bored of it.The rest was just random spread of colours.

[Goldom]

If we go by Marisa's statement in SSiB that "the most beautiful spellcards win,", Byakuren would be my #1 choice. Devil's Recitation is the most beautiful card in the series in my opinion, and her others are pretty stunning too. Miko's actually my second favorite though, Colors of 12 Levels in particular. IN Marisa is third, because I love rainbows.

[teefa85]

I agree with the fact that ZUN's art, while not the best out there, has its own charm.  Plus I love how he designs his characters, which is one of the more important aspects to me; seeing as I'm someone who has a great design in her head, but cannot get it onto paper due to her bad drawing skills.

[Ikari]

IN Marisa is third, because I love rainbows.

My first experience in IN when going in Stage 4:

''Oh hey it's nice, the stage is fast-paced!''

''Oh nice, Marisa's the boss!''

''Holy crap what a gorgeous non-spell, it's so colorful! and the stars are easy to dodge!''

''Wait- What is that star doin- WAIT NO STOP NO STOP MOVING AROUND LIKE THAT NO-''

''GODDAMNIT DON'T WAVE AROUND RANDOMLY STOP THAT, STOP THAT''

''*no lives left* Ok, Ok, I can do this- WHAT THE HELL!!!'' - When facing THAT non-spell where she creates a bullshit wall of stars. Impossible to dodge  :V''

Conclusion: Marisa is right. The more beautiful it is, the harder it'll rape you.