Devlog · Episode 14
The seven Houses used to be the same character
Gear, shields and wings now show the House of whoever wears them. Here is how I split seven looks that used to be one.
For a long time, the seven Houses were the same character in different colors. You could see it in a screenshot: the clothes changed, the figure did not. For a game built around the Houses, that was a serious problem.
A silhouette for every House
Silhouette is what the eye catches first. Before color, before detail, we recognize a shape. That is why I started with the outline and only then worked on the finish. If the outline does not work, nothing else saves it.
I rebuilt weapon, armor, shield and wings so each House has its own silhouette. One is recognized from afar by the shield, another by the shoulder, another by the wings. The idea is that you look at someone in the square and know their House without reading the name.
Gear grows with you
This changes how you play. Moving up a tier stops being just a number in the corner of the screen and becomes something you see in the mirror. When a friend shows up with the new piece, you notice before they say a word.
Gear also evolves with level. When you reach a new tier, you see the piece change, which gives you a visual reason to keep going. The image above shows three tiers, from the start to the top, so you can compare how each House evolves.
Up close
In the high tiers, the detail shows. You can see the metal pattern, the shine and the shape of the piece. This is where I spent the most time, because from far away everything looks alike, and it is up close that the House shows who it is.
One world
In the end, the test is simple: I put the seven side by side and ask whether I can tell who is who. When I can, and they still look like siblings, I stop.
The hard part was keeping the seven different without losing the feel of a single world. I compared them side by side until each one was recognizable and they still looked like they came from the same place.