December 2015 Vault Update

I LOVE it. I'm a big fan of angular art style. I like the HAL9000 lenses on the headpiece, but the frowny frog at the crest needs to go.

 

Also... I thought they said no humanoids....

Yeah, I thought about mentioning the obvious "humanoidness" of this guy as well.

Several humanoids in the other concept art too, although they claim most were rejects...

I think they meant nothing that's IMMEDIATELY humanoid. The beard is clearly just part of the christmas theme. Really, just try to imagine it without the beard and it's not very human at all, even if it's "humanoid".

I wasn't talking about the beard. I know that's fake, especially since its hung around the back of his head.

It looks like a humanoid alien, sitting on a chair with his elbows on his knees. (He's "manspreading".)  Sure he has 4 eyes and 3 fingers per hand, but he could double as a model for some new MMO armor set.

I'm not complaining. I'm pro-humanoid. I'm just confused by the "no humanoid" message mentioned earlier.

That alien looks like sci-fi'ified archmage or some kinda patriarch. Pretty boring design TBH. Probably another rejected concept.

Hyperspace track is an obvious rehash of original with unexplainable repeatable pauses and still is very underwhelming. I'd rate it strong 5/10. Will most likely replace it with something better like Awkbird's remix if it's a final version.

Thanks, I'm humbled. Tell that to Stardock!

I am getting the impression we'll probably be encouraged to add any content we come up with to our own clusters.

All I wanted to do was make a modern, polished version without any alterations to the composition itself, if for no other reason than to mod the game myself and put it in there just like you're suggesting. I don't really consider it a mix, more of an update or makeover to bring the original into modernity without completely reimagining or reinterpreting it.

I also hope this alien concept is a reject. It's very nice artwork, as has been the case with all the concept art, but there are just so many forms of life that could exist and I am so tired of the lack of imagination in portraying aliens in games as if the only kinds of fictional spacefaring races must have two arms and two legs with bilateral symmetry and a traditional head. One of the many reasons Star Control was so great and able to capture so many imaginations was that the majority of alien species were anything but humanoid.

While I agree with your assessment and general disdain of TV aliens, I would also like to point out that non-humanoid aliens can go horribly horribly wrong...

 

http://www.scifiideas.com/sfi/alien-ideas/ascendancy-aliens/

 

This is what people came up with when they scoffed at the aliens in Master of Orion.

 

I personally don't care if the alien is humanoid or not. I want them to look cool.

Does noone else see the second pair of arms under the robes?

I think one of the biggest issues when designing aliens or evaluating alien designs is that there's often not a lot of understanding of the underlying biology or reasons for various elements. 

External bilateral symmetry with a head/centralised area, for example, feels so cliche because almost all life on Earth follows that pattern. And while we're not entirely sure of the reasons, it's most likely because it's efficient (it terms of energy), ideal for locomotion (especially in straight lines) and allows for a relatively straight forward approach to a sensory and nervous systems. Other forms, such as radial symmetry, most often occur in slow/rarely moving or completely stationary life. And since the challenges of efficiency, locomotion and simple systems are going to be fairly universal (laws of physics), it's quite possible that life we find in the greater universe will have come up with similar solutions.

That said, with environments that are far from the Earth norm, you might find interesting things... And I think the lack of understanding hurts even more badly there. One cliche that's seems especially common to me, is the "High Gravity Planet" which ends up being a bulky giant or broad dwarf physique, with the bruiser and aggressor personality, which I think makes the least sense objectively for such an environment, but seems very readily accepted by an audience/"feels" right to them versus others.

That balance of real (or imagined real) function, versus what people understand/accept in function and then aesthetics on top of it, is tough.

 

I actually like the archmage thingy... besides we do not know what the mask and fake beard hide. "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." - Arthur C. Clarke  :)))

 

 

There's 2 pairs of eyes behind the HAL mask too. And Mukay computer controls/monitors (placeholder in concept drawing?..)

Noted. Ascendancy tried to go too far in the opposite extreme. Several of them are very Lovecraftian, which is cool, but only a few should be that bizarre. Filling an entire game with completely unusual abstractions is too much though.

The thing I appreciate about the Ascendancy aliens is that many of them blur the line between plant and animal. I think it's part of what made Lovecraft's mythologies so popular and why they overdid it with so many species like that.

The biggest problem with so many of those Ascendancy aliens is that many don't have any facial features. Anyone play through the Legacy of the Void campaign in StarCraft? We do finally see what the ancient Xel-naga look like and they are also very Lovecraftian, but at the same time relatable and even sympathetic because they have eyes and a face, which are critical for conveying emotion. I must give Blizzard huge props on that alien design; I have been waiting years to find out what the Xel-naga looked like and it did not disappoint!

I think it's imperative to consider biology, lore and ability to space travel together when creating space-faring alien looks. It'd probably make sense for the artists to create alien home-worlds first and then aliens themselves. But that, probably, is already irrelevant at this point.

 

P.S. Just finished listening to the new hyperspace track for the tenth time. Great sounds used in it. Less intense than original and a lot more mellow which makes your pumped up excitement to go out there and explore, well, less exciting. The intro feels like it's missing resolution chords after each loop - very dissatisfying. Then just plain boring 4 chords loops with sounds variation for 5 minutes... Feels lazy TBH.

Hmm... I'm very confused on the feedback. I didn't realize that 8 eyes, 2 arms and 4 legs and a head in the shape of a clamshell was humanoid. 

^ Why do you say 8 eyes? I see either 4 or 10. 4 in the mask slit + 4 big HAL eyes + 2 small HAL eyes. Wait, you say that's not a mask, but a part of the face? Nice one! I'm starting to like this augmented robomage. BEEP BOOP "I WILL PURGE YOU ALL WITH FIRE, HUMEN FROM EARP!!"

 

So, you're saying we, possibly, could get a blue 5 titty space babe even if she's tripodal?... I'm excited! 

 

It doesn't look like he had 4 legs or 8 eyes. And his head is just a giant headdress.

EDIT: This is the pose he looks like he has.

 

I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, Vaelzad. This may be a case of viewer's perspective.

 

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Why don't you upload the undoctored photo ?

(And don't mind the haters. This alien is a 10/10 on the coolness scale.)

Yeah, not trying to be obstinate but I don't see how anything about this guy's biology is clear based on this art besides the fact that he has arms and hands with three fingers. He is completely obscured by the costume, which is fun, but I think most would still classify this as humanoid based on what's visible.

That being said, it would be a fun surprise to have at least one alien encountered to have a deceitful appearance that we later find out to be false; e.g. the K'taang in SC3 pretending to be big and tough in their mech suits was kind of funny.

I agree with IBNobody that the alien is up there on the coolness scale.

 

On a side note, the biological-like eyes sunken in a metal casing remind me somewhat of General Grievous.

 

That was one of my favorite arcs in SCNot3, to be honest. Like, out of everything that was presented in that, that felt the most like something PR3 and FF would have done themselves.

 

I see it like this (didn't find legs ):

 

The other thing I realized after Andrew's comment: "Can't really judge anything ultimately without knowing its context..."

 

Think this approach often leads to the best results, and it's the one I use (unless I catch hold of an idea that seems too good to pass up.




If I recall correctly, they got the original composer back, so it might be somewhat of a cultural thing. Finnish music, at least the folk music anyway, often has a lot of unresolved chords. Can be effective in making something memorable, partially because the lack of resolution sticks in the mind. 

Not to say I don't think the track needs refinement though, I assume it's still a WIP.




I'd actually forgotten about that, but that actually was a great interaction. 



This thread makes me curious though, how does everyone here define "humanoid"? As in, where is the line where something goes from humanoid to not? 

Dungeons & Dragons (yeah, I know, authoritative in sci-fi) says:

Humanoid: One head, two arms and two legs, usually medium or small. (Larger than medium becomes a giant).

 

Still have trouble seeing the second set of arms. To me, they look like legs, and the two bands per leg look like the straps securing the diamond knee guards.

^ He can not be sitting so high above the controls. Doesn't make sense. He's standing and he has second set of forearms/maybe arms tinkering with controls.

 

Unless...his body is segmented underneath. Like a J or L shape, with an abdomen, thorax, head, and pelvis, possibly? Not necessarily in that order. I hope.