Initial Rule Application: Planning A Design

Having started my research on mascot characters, my next step is to establish some ground rules for character design based on my findings up to now. With these ideas in place, my task will be to create a character that conforms to the aforementioned rules. During this design process, I'll draw inspiration from concept art books, online art resources along with games and other media around me. 


Once I've created a character, I'll put it alongside a mix of well-known and more obscure characters. I'll then present this collection of characters to people and ask various questions, like if they think there's anything the characters have in common, if they're recognisable just by their silhouettes, if they're likeable and appealing to look at, etc. From this I hope to gain a deeper insight into what people look for in a mascot character.

On looking through my research these are the rules, or trends, I've become aware of. These are not necessarily definitive and may be case-by-case, but I'm considering the following as a foundation for my initial character design process:

• A recognisable silhouette, often symmetrical but not always
• Short proportions from head to body to give off a cute vibe (like 1:2 or 1:3)
• Big eyes, when visible, amplify this cute aspect
• Often not a human character 
• Anthropomorphic traits like standing on 2 legs and humanoid hands
• Limited personality traits, clear motives and easy to relate to
• Simple colour palette (Around 5 colours - usually shades of a central colour)

Below I've used Shovel Knight, the titular character of a 2D platform game created by Yacht Club Games, as an example to demonstrate the above rules. He is a silent protagonist whose mission is to rescue Shield Knight from the Tower of Fate. The 'damsel in distress' trope is tried and tested as a popular plot device. With this knowledge, Shovel Knight instantly fits into the limited personality traits rule, his motives are clear to understand. 

Here you can see Shovel Knight's silhouette, taking out the shovel, his design is symmetrical. The shapes used are simple, this helps make him easy to recognise

Shovel Knight is human but his face is covered to add ambiguity, as such he still conforms to the rules of anthropomorphism (humanoid features). You can also see the head/body proportions of around 1:2 / 1:3.

His colour palette has 2 central colours (blue and orange), every other colour used is a derivative of these  

On reflection, Shovel Knight's character design is good as a mascot-type as he conforms to the rules I had determined previously. My next aim is to create a character who can conform similarly to this rule set.