The Ultimate Character Design Tournament

I love character designs! I decided to start running this tournament because I wanted to see all sorts of good designs, and see what other people considered good character designs!

[ultimate-character-design]

Bracket rules

Polls will all last for 1 week

New propaganda and images can be submitted at anytime through reblogs or asks.

Please do not submit any extremely NSFW designs or racist caricatures, or characters who stem from pornographic or controversial media.

FAQ

* If you have any other questions, please check the #answered tag on my blog before asking a question to make sure I haven't answered it before!

Why didn't you use a better image?

I use the images the submitters gave me, and if they did not provide one, I used the first image that google gave me (prioritizing full body images over cropped close ups)

Why would you pit these two together?

Normally said as a joke, but figured I would answer it seriously in case someone ever asked it seriously: matchups are all randomized.

Why does one character have propaganda and another doesn't?

Propaganda also comes from the submitters. I unfortunately do not have the time to go through every character that doesn't have propaganda and research what makes their design good.

Links

2026 Tournament Submission Form: link

2026 Tournament Entries: link

Current Bracket Matchups: link

[ultimate-character-design]

The 3rd Character Design Tournament

Please remember to vote for characters solely based on their design, rather than which character you are more familiar with or like more! Reblogs for more reach are much appreciated as well.

Finals

DJ Subatomic Supernova

Catbus

Kirby

Voting ended onJul 26

DJ Subatomic Supernova | No Straight Roads

“I love how his glove calls attention to the hand he uses to spin his turntables. The planets around his jacket MOVE!!!! And they form circles around Supernova's head; He literally considers himself the center of the universe. It's a FANTASTIC display of his ego. Also he's not wearing pants because he doesn't expect anyone to see more than his top half, another good bit of characterisation and pretty funny to boot!”

“DJSS has a great silhouette and a beautiful black hole for a head. His space theming matches his solar system-sized ego.”

Catbus | My Neighbor Totoro

[No propaganda submitted]

Kirby | Kirby

"Perfect creature. like look at him"

"He is a round boy"

*Additional propaganda and images for Kirby down below

"I was gonna give propaganda for Kirby, but what is there to say? He’s round, he’s pink (he was always supposed to be) and he’s everyone’s friend. He only ever kills out of necessity.:

"Kirby's roundness and simplicity actually work for him, since it allows for most Copy Abilities to look good on him (the only exception is circus). Here's a list of my 5 favorites which are, in order, Freeze, Mirror, Fire, Cutter and Stick"

"And also, Robobot Armor and its alternate modes."

[ultimate-character-design]

Sorry for the late announcement, got a little busy!

But congratulations to DJ Subatomic Nova for being the winner of the 3rd Ultimate Character Design Tournament!

Of course, now the true test remains: Going against the previous winners!

[ultimate-character-design]

The 3rd Character Design Tournament

Please remember to vote for characters solely based on their design, rather than which character you are more familiar with or like more! Reblogs for more reach are much appreciated as well.

Finals

DJ Subatomic Supernova

Catbus

Kirby

Voting ended onJul 26

DJ Subatomic Supernova | No Straight Roads

“I love how his glove calls attention to the hand he uses to spin his turntables. The planets around his jacket MOVE!!!! And they form circles around Supernova's head; He literally considers himself the center of the universe. It's a FANTASTIC display of his ego. Also he's not wearing pants because he doesn't expect anyone to see more than his top half, another good bit of characterisation and pretty funny to boot!”

“DJSS has a great silhouette and a beautiful black hole for a head. His space theming matches his solar system-sized ego.”

Catbus | My Neighbor Totoro

[No propaganda submitted]

Kirby | Kirby

"Perfect creature. like look at him"

"He is a round boy"

*Additional propaganda and images for Kirby down below

"I was gonna give propaganda for Kirby, but what is there to say? He’s round, he’s pink (he was always supposed to be) and he’s everyone’s friend. He only ever kills out of necessity.:

"Kirby's roundness and simplicity actually work for him, since it allows for most Copy Abilities to look good on him (the only exception is circus). Here's a list of my 5 favorites which are, in order, Freeze, Mirror, Fire, Cutter and Stick"

"And also, Robobot Armor and its alternate modes."

[ultimate-character-design]

The final poll to crown the winner of the 3rd Character Design Tournament has begun!

A quick reminder that we will be doing one last tournament for 2026 before we switch to yearly tournaments!

You can submit characters here!

The Ultimate Character Design of 2026

You can submit any character design from anywhere! This includes OCs, too! If you are submitting someone else's work/OC, please include an i

[ultimate-character-design]

The 3rd Character Design Tournament

Please remember to vote for characters solely based on their design, rather than which character you are more familiar with or like more! Reblogs for more reach are much appreciated as well.

Finals

DJ Subatomic Supernova

Catbus

Kirby

Voting ended onJul 26

DJ Subatomic Supernova | No Straight Roads

“I love how his glove calls attention to the hand he uses to spin his turntables. The planets around his jacket MOVE!!!! And they form circles around Supernova's head; He literally considers himself the center of the universe. It's a FANTASTIC display of his ego. Also he's not wearing pants because he doesn't expect anyone to see more than his top half, another good bit of characterisation and pretty funny to boot!”

“DJSS has a great silhouette and a beautiful black hole for a head. His space theming matches his solar system-sized ego.”

Catbus | My Neighbor Totoro

[No propaganda submitted]

Kirby | Kirby

"Perfect creature. like look at him"

"He is a round boy"

*Additional propaganda and images for Kirby down below

"I was gonna give propaganda for Kirby, but what is there to say? He’s round, he’s pink (he was always supposed to be) and he’s everyone’s friend. He only ever kills out of necessity.:

"Kirby's roundness and simplicity actually work for him, since it allows for most Copy Abilities to look good on him (the only exception is circus). Here's a list of my 5 favorites which are, in order, Freeze, Mirror, Fire, Cutter and Stick"

"And also, Robobot Armor and its alternate modes."

[ultimate-character-design]

DJ Subatomic Supernova, Catbus, and Kirby will be moving onto the final round!

It seems DJ Subatomic Supernova and Catbus were destined to find each other again

[ultimate-character-design]

The 3rd Character Design Tournament

Please remember to vote for characters solely based on their design, rather than which character you are more familiar with or like more! Reblogs for more reach are much appreciated as well.

Semifinal Round - 3

Kirby

Custas

Voting ended onJul 17

Kirby | Kirby

"Perfect creature. like look at him"

"He is a round boy"

Custas | Witch Hat Atelier

“Custas sees fate as a cage, and believes that learning magic is what will help him break out of it, so he has a lot of feathers in his design to tie him to birds! There are feathers on his hat, in the lining of his cloak, and even the daggers on his belt mimic the shape of feathers. Also, the wooden constructions on his legs are mobility aids! They stretch and bend and look like tree roots and I think they're neat.”

*Additional propaganda and images for Kirby down below

"I was gonna give propaganda for Kirby, but what is there to say? He’s round, he’s pink (he was always supposed to be) and he’s everyone’s friend. He only ever kills out of necessity.:

"Kirby's roundness and simplicity actually work for him, since it allows for most Copy Abilities to look good on him (the only exception is circus). Here's a list of my 5 favorites which are, in order, Freeze, Mirror, Fire, Cutter and Stick"

"And also, Robobot Armor and its alternate modes."

[ultimate-character-design]

The 3rd Character Design Tournament

Please remember to vote for characters solely based on their design, rather than which character you are more familiar with or like more! Reblogs for more reach are much appreciated as well.

Semifinal Round - 2

La Muerte

Catbus

Voting ended onJul 17

La Muerte | The Book of Life

[No propaganda submitted]

Catbus | My Neighbor Totoro

[No propaganda submitted]

[ultimate-character-design]

The 3rd Character Design Tournament

Please remember to vote for characters solely based on their design, rather than which character you are more familiar with or like more! Reblogs for more reach are much appreciated as well.

Semifinal Round - 1

Embla

DJ Subatomic Supernova

Voting ended onJul 17

Embla | Fire Emblem Heroes

“HER DRESS BEING BAT WINGS THAT ATTACH AT HER WAIST IS SICK AS FUCK OBJECTIVELY!!!!!!”

DJ Subatomic Supernova | No Straight Roads

“I love how his glove calls attention to the hand he uses to spin his turntables. The planets around his jacket MOVE!!!! And they form circles around Supernova's head; He literally considers himself the center of the universe. It's a FANTASTIC display of his ego. Also he's not wearing pants because he doesn't expect anyone to see more than his top half, another good bit of characterisation and pretty funny to boot!”

“DJSS has a great silhouette and a beautiful black hole for a head. His space theming matches his solar system-sized ego.”

[ultimate-character-design]

So I'm finally doing artfight for the first time this year, and I saw that some people do a "design a cbaracter" thing, where you design a character within a loose set of parameters, and I thought that was really fun! So I just did a simple one, and then the receiver started telling me things to change.

Is this normal? I ended up liking the design and don't really want to change it, but should I? I figured I'd ask you all.

[ultimate-character-design]

The Ultimate Character Design Tournament - 2026

Welcome to the Ultimate Character Design Tournament of 2026! Just a few rules before we begin:

No nudity or gore allowed in the submitted image. Horror is allowed, but please let me know in the comments if the image should be put under a cut.

Please vote for characters based on their design, not just if you happen to like the character more or not

You can submit as many characters as you like, but if I notice someone spamming characters or submissions from the same franchise, I reserve the right to remove them. The hard character limit is 256

The ban for most characters has been lifted, as well!

Submissions will stay open for 30 days!

The tournament will be single-elimination

Here is the submission form! E-mails are not collected.

Please also check the spreadsheet before sharing to see if your character has already been added! You are welcome to submit them again, but if you have anything you'd like to add to the submission, it's easier for me if you leave a comment on the spreadsheet! This time, I will also be creating individual character posts to introduce the character, and they'll be linked and referred back to during the tournament. If you wait until those go up, you are welcome to comment or reblog on those posts and I will add any additional images + propaganda (please keep in mind the tumblr image limit, as well!)

Thank you to everyone who participates this year!

[ultimate-character-design]

who submitted Jesus Christ

[ultimate-character-design]

The 3rd Character Design Tournament

Please remember to vote for characters solely based on their design, rather than which character you are more familiar with or like more! Reblogs for more reach are much appreciated as well.

Semifinal Round - 3

Kirby

Custas

Voting ended onJul 17

Kirby | Kirby

"Perfect creature. like look at him"

"He is a round boy"

Custas | Witch Hat Atelier

“Custas sees fate as a cage, and believes that learning magic is what will help him break out of it, so he has a lot of feathers in his design to tie him to birds! There are feathers on his hat, in the lining of his cloak, and even the daggers on his belt mimic the shape of feathers. Also, the wooden constructions on his legs are mobility aids! They stretch and bend and look like tree roots and I think they're neat.”

*Additional propaganda and images for Kirby down below

"I was gonna give propaganda for Kirby, but what is there to say? He’s round, he’s pink (he was always supposed to be) and he’s everyone’s friend. He only ever kills out of necessity.:

"Kirby's roundness and simplicity actually work for him, since it allows for most Copy Abilities to look good on him (the only exception is circus). Here's a list of my 5 favorites which are, in order, Freeze, Mirror, Fire, Cutter and Stick"

"And also, Robobot Armor and its alternate modes."

[greatwyrmgold]

I've said it before and I'll hopefully say it again.

Kirby does not have an exciting design; his design is very simple, almost iconographic. But that's why it works.

Kirby is a little blob creature, a cartoon that any kid can doodle in their notebook. And he's a basic formless template who can wear any costume worn by his latest victim. And despite his simplicity, he's appealing enough to serve as the mascot of a major Nintendo franchise.

Kirby's design is everything he needs and not a single line more.

[ultimate-character-design]

So I wanted to make propaganda for Kirby, but I don’t have anything that hasn’t yet been said, so instead, a story in three pictures.

Lol, incredible.

[ultimate-character-design]

The Ultimate Character Design Tournament - 2026

Welcome to the Ultimate Character Design Tournament of 2026! Just a few rules before we begin:

No nudity or gore allowed in the submitted image. Horror is allowed, but please let me know in the comments if the image should be put under a cut.

Please vote for characters based on their design, not just if you happen to like the character more or not

You can submit as many characters as you like, but if I notice someone spamming characters or submissions from the same franchise, I reserve the right to remove them. The hard character limit is 256

The ban for most characters has been lifted, as well!

Submissions will stay open for 30 days!

The tournament will be single-elimination

Here is the submission form! E-mails are not collected.

Please also check the spreadsheet before sharing to see if your character has already been added! You are welcome to submit them again, but if you have anything you'd like to add to the submission, it's easier for me if you leave a comment on the spreadsheet! This time, I will also be creating individual character posts to introduce the character, and they'll be linked and referred back to during the tournament. If you wait until those go up, you are welcome to comment or reblog on those posts and I will add any additional images + propaganda (please keep in mind the tumblr image limit, as well!)

Thank you to everyone who participates this year!

[ultimate-character-design]

The 3rd Character Design Tournament

Please remember to vote for characters solely based on their design, rather than which character you are more familiar with or like more! Reblogs for more reach are much appreciated as well.

Semifinal Round - 3

Kirby

Custas

Voting ended onJul 17

Kirby | Kirby

"Perfect creature. like look at him"

"He is a round boy"

Custas | Witch Hat Atelier

“Custas sees fate as a cage, and believes that learning magic is what will help him break out of it, so he has a lot of feathers in his design to tie him to birds! There are feathers on his hat, in the lining of his cloak, and even the daggers on his belt mimic the shape of feathers. Also, the wooden constructions on his legs are mobility aids! They stretch and bend and look like tree roots and I think they're neat.”

*Additional propaganda and images for Kirby down below

"I was gonna give propaganda for Kirby, but what is there to say? He’s round, he’s pink (he was always supposed to be) and he’s everyone’s friend. He only ever kills out of necessity.:

"Kirby's roundness and simplicity actually work for him, since it allows for most Copy Abilities to look good on him (the only exception is circus). Here's a list of my 5 favorites which are, in order, Freeze, Mirror, Fire, Cutter and Stick"

"And also, Robobot Armor and its alternate modes."

[ultimate-character-design]

The 3rd Character Design Tournament

Please remember to vote for characters solely based on their design, rather than which character you are more familiar with or like more! Reblogs for more reach are much appreciated as well.

Semifinal Round - 2

La Muerte

Catbus

Voting ended onJul 17

La Muerte | The Book of Life

[No propaganda submitted]

Catbus | My Neighbor Totoro

[No propaganda submitted]

[ultimate-character-design]

The 3rd Character Design Tournament

Please remember to vote for characters solely based on their design, rather than which character you are more familiar with or like more! Reblogs for more reach are much appreciated as well.

Semifinal Round - 1

Embla

DJ Subatomic Supernova

Voting ended onJul 17

Embla | Fire Emblem Heroes

“HER DRESS BEING BAT WINGS THAT ATTACH AT HER WAIST IS SICK AS FUCK OBJECTIVELY!!!!!!”

DJ Subatomic Supernova | No Straight Roads

“I love how his glove calls attention to the hand he uses to spin his turntables. The planets around his jacket MOVE!!!! And they form circles around Supernova's head; He literally considers himself the center of the universe. It's a FANTASTIC display of his ego. Also he's not wearing pants because he doesn't expect anyone to see more than his top half, another good bit of characterisation and pretty funny to boot!”

“DJSS has a great silhouette and a beautiful black hole for a head. His space theming matches his solar system-sized ego.”

[ultimate-character-design]

The semifinal round will begin tomorrow!

After the semifinals are over, we'll head straight into the finals, where the three winners will face off against each other all at once.

Best of luck to every character!

I'm also planning on doing one last tournament for 2026, to kick-off the start of the Annual Character Design Tournament!

[ultimate-character-design]

After the semifinals begin, I'll also start taking submissions for the 2026 Character Design tournament!