Do you guys prefer gatobob old artstyle too?
First of all... I’m not here to attack or judge anyone, I just want to share my personal opinion.
I deeply admire Gatobob as an artist, she has clearly evolved so much over the years and her art really inspires me.
However, after seeing YKMET... I’ve been thinking on a few things. While I love the game, the writing, and the art itself, I can’t help but feel a little... conflicted.
Compared to Gatobob’s older style in Boyfriend to Death, for example, everything used to feel... rawer, you know? More intimidating. You could look at the art and actually feel chills, you could tell something was "off" just by looking at them.
Now, the new art feels too... "polished" for me.
While I think the new design works perfectly for Strade because it fits his character, I’m not a fan of the redesigns for Ren and Lawrence.
There’s an obvious technical evolution, but I feel his design no longer matches who he is. Ren looks way too confident and physically sturdy for someone who supposedly spends all day in his room watching anime. His posture is almost imposing. You can also tell that most of Ren's scars are gone, only a few are left, and they look too "subtle", It doesn't even look like Strade actually toyed with his body.
I know some people like that he finally "looks his age" now, but that’s actually one of the reasons I dislike it too.
People who don't look their age exist in real life, and keeping that trait would have felt more realistic and immersive for his character archetype.
About Lawrence: Even though the game isn't out and we only have some design tests (i think), he’s the one that bothers me the most... Now, Law just has a "generic tired white guy" aesthetic that I’m honestly kind of tired of seeing.
Before, Law actually looked like some weirdo you'd run into in a random alleyway... now he looks almost like... a model? I don't know. His body doesn't look tense anymore, his eyes don't look constantly on alert anymore.
He doesn't look anxious... he just looks exhausted. Plus, for a guy who isn't supposed to care about fashion, he’s strangely well-dressed now. Not a "heartthrob" (of course) but his clothes match way more than they used to.
(Or maybe I just miss his plaid shirt, lol).
Also... they feel too... attractive? Their faces look too "chiseled" for me... if that makes sense.
I mean... I guess it makes sense for Strade to be attractive. He uses his physical appeal (ya know, the "halo effect") and charisma to manipulate the player. But for Ren and Law? Being that pretty feels unnecessary.
I understand that YKMET is not just survival horror, but also horrorporn, and it feels like Gato is leaning more into that aspect.
Well... sex sells, and if she’s focusing on a higher financial return and showing off her technical growth, I don't judge her for it.
People who are there for the "porn" more than the "horror" want pretty characters to project their fantasies onto, and that’s fine.
I just think those of us who fell in love with that raw, gritty aesthetic of the early games might have to stick to the old art and fanart for now (but we can still enjoy the new games, of course).
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