Editing Character artwork

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[[File:Mario SSBU.png|thumb|The official character artwork for {{SSBU|Mario}} in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]''.]]
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'''Character artwork''' refers to the official images of the playable ''Smash'' fighters used in-game and in promotional materials such as websites, strategy guides, and posters. In the original ''Super Smash Bros.'', the artwork for the characters are 2D illustrations not seen in the game itself. From ''[[Melee]]'' onward, however, they are rendered from 3D models at a far higher quality than how they appear in gameplay. In ''Melee'', some pieces of character artwork were used in-game, but not all. Starting in ''[[Brawl]]'', cropped versions of the character artwork are used in the [[character selection screen]].  In ''Brawl'' and ''Smash 4'', each character's main render also serves as the basis of their [[Classic Mode]] [[trophy]]. The character renders in ''Smash 4'' and ''Ultimate'' are additionally the basis of the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series of [[amiibo]].
[[File:Mario SSB.png|thumb|left|Mario's official artwork in ''[[Super Smash Bros.]]'']]
[[File:Mario SSBU.png|thumb|right|The official character artwork for Mario in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]''. This version of the render has a transparent background.]]
'''Character artwork''' refers to the official images of the playable ''Smash'' fighters used in-game and in promotional materials such as websites, strategy guides, and posters. In the original ''Super Smash Bros.'', the artwork for the characters were 2D illustrations not seen in the game itself. From ''[[Melee]]'' onward, however, they were rendered from 3D models at a far higher quality than how they appear in gameplay. In ''Melee'', some pieces of character artwork were used in-game. Starting in ''[[Brawl]]'', cropped versions of the character artwork are used in the [[character selection screen]].  In ''Brawl'' and ''Smash 4'', each character's main render also serves as the basis of their [[Classic Mode]] [[trophy]]. The character renders in ''Smash 4'' and ''Ultimate'' were also the basis of the poses for the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series of [[amiibo]].


==''[[Super Smash Bros.]]''==
==''[[Super Smash Bros.]]''==
[[File:Super Smash Select.png|thumb|left|The character selection screen of ''Super Smash Bros.'' uses unique renders based on artwork from the characters' original series.]]
{{ImageCaption|File:Link OoT.png|File:Link SSB.png|width1=150px|width2=125px|align=right|caption= Left: Link's official artwork from ''Ocarina of Time''.<br>Right: Link's official artwork from ''SSB'', which is significantly stylized.}}
The character artwork of ''Super Smash Bros.'' is very different from all the games following it, not only because its use of 2D artwork but also due to its unique artstyle even compared to other games at the time. Rather than detailed art that accurately reflects the characters' in-game designs, the official artwork is heavily stylized, using thick lines and flat shading. {{SSB|Link}} and {{SSB|Samus}} are prominent examples of this artstyle deviating from previous artwork.


Strangely, despite all characters having artwork created for this game, the in-game character select screen instead uses renders based on pre-existing artwork from earlier games. The artwork on the select screen includes 2D and 3D artwork, though all are edited to appear as if they are 3D.<ref>[https://www.sourcegaming.info/2015/10/20/smash64-css/]</ref>
The character artwork of ''Super Smash Bros.'' is very different from all the games proceeding it, not only because of the 2D artwork but also due having a very unique style from other artwork at the time. Instead of being created in a more realistic and detailed matter, the roster is drawn in a more simplified, cartoony style. Characters that are drawn noticeably different from their original series are {{SSB|Link}} and {{SSB|Fox}}, who have a very different look that is never seen outside of other official artwork.
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The origin of each character's selection screen artwork is as follows:
[[File:Super Smash Select.png|thumb|right|The character-selection screen of ''Super Smash Bros.'' which has artwork from the character's original series.]] Strangely, despite all characters having artwork created for this game, the in-game character select screen rather takes already existing artwork from the respective franchise. The artwork on the select screen includes 2D and 3D artwork, and all are edited to look like renders.
 
Each of the character select screen artwork and their origins are down below:<ref>[https://www.sourcegaming.info/2015/10/20/smash64-css/]</ref>


*Mario: A render from ''Super Mario 64''.
*Mario: A render from ''Super Mario 64''.
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*Link: Artwork from ''The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time''.
*Link: Artwork from ''The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time''.
*Samus: Artwork from ''Super Metroid''.
*Samus: Artwork from ''Super Metroid''.
*Yoshi: Artwork from ''Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island''.
*Yoshi: Artwork from ''Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island''.
*Kirby: Artwork from ''Kirby's Dream Land 3'', which itself is a modified artwork of Sword Kirby from ''Kirby Super Star''.
*Kirby: Artwork from ''Kirby's Adventure'', however, it seems to be edited with Sword Kirby artwork from ''Kirby Super Star''.
*Fox: Artwork from ''Star Fox 64''.
*Fox: Artwork from ''Star Fox 64''.
*Pikachu: Artwork from the Japanese ''Pokémon Blue''.
*Pikachu: Artwork from ''Pocket Monster Blue Version''.
*Luigi: Appears to be a mix of Luigi's artwork from ''Mario Kart 64'', and artwork based on Mario from ''Super Mario 64''.
*Luigi: Seems to be original, based on ''Super Mario 64'', although there is still a lot of speculation on where the origin of this artwork comes from.
*Ness: Artwork from ''EarthBound''.
*Ness: Artwork from ''Earthbound''.
*Captain Falcon: Artwork from ''F-Zero X''.
*Captain Falcon: Artwork from ''F-Zero X''.
*Jigglypuff: Artwork from the Japanese ''Pokémon Red'' and ''Green''.
*Jigglypuff: Artwork from ''Pocket Monster Red/Green Version''.
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==''[[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]''==
==''[[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]''==
[[File:Character selection melee.png|thumb|left|250px|Like the previous game, ''Melee'' uses unique artwork on its character selection screen.]]
{{ImageCaption|File:Luigi Mario Party.png|File:Luigi SSBM.jpg|width1=150px|width2=150px|align=right|caption=Left: Luigi's official artwork from ''Mario Party''.<br>Right: Luigi's ''Melee'' design takes influence from this Nintendo 64-era artwork.}}
''[[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]'' was the first game in the series that used 3D renders with a semi-realistic artstyle, which is retained in other installments moving forward. However, compared to games after ''Melee'', the roster looks noticeably different: due to being released slightly after the launch of the Nintendo GameCube, many of the character designs are based on artwork from the Nintendo 64 era with additional realistic textures and detail. This causes the game to look very unique to many other games even outside of the ''Smash Bros.'' series. One example is {{SSBM|Luigi}}, who uses his design from N64 games such as ''Mario Kart 64'' and ''Mario Party'', which lacks his lanky anatomy that was codified in ''Luigi's Mansion''.


Similar to ''Smash 64'', its character select screen has unique artwork, but unlike '' Smash 64'', these pieces of artwork retain ''Melee's'' artstyle, and not every character has a unique render. {{SSBM|Mario}}, {{SSBM|Peach}}, {{SSBM|Yoshi}}, {{SSBM|Link}}, {{SSBM|Young Link}}, {{SSBM|Kirby}}, {{SSBM|Falco}}, and {{SSBM|Pikachu}} are the only characters whose portraits on the character select screen do not have a unique render. Additionally, the portraits of {{SSBM|Fox}} and {{SSBM|Zelda}} are unique on the character select screen, but match their character artworks when selecting their [[alternate costume]]s, while {{SSBM|Mewtwo}} has a unique render when selecting its alternate costumes that does not match its character artwork.
{{ImageCaption|File:Luigi SSBM.jpg|File:Luigi SSBU.png|width1=100px|width2=100px|align=right|caption= Left: Luigi's SSBM render which shows him in his Nintendo 64 design having a lot of proportions similar to his brother, {{SSBM|Mario}}.<br>Right: Luigi's Ultimate render which shows him in his most current design.}}
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''[[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]'' was the first game in the series that started using 3D renders with a semi-realistic artstyle, which will be used for every game proceeding it. However, compared to all other games after ''Melee'', the roster looks noticeably different: due to being released slightly after the launch of the Nintendo GameCube, characters that appeared on the Nintendo 64 retain their early 3D designs, causing the game to look very unique to many other games even outside of the ''Smash Bros.'' series. One example is {{SSBM|Luigi}} who has his design from games such as ''Mario Kart 64'' and ''Mario Party'' that lack his more lanky anatomy that games afterwards will portray him as.
 
[[File:Character selection melee.png|thumb|250px]]
Similar to ''Smash 64'', its character select screen has unique artwork that are very different from their main ones, but unlike '' Smash 64'', these pieces of artwork retain ''Melee's'' artstyle. {{SSBM|Donkey Kong}}, {{SSBM|Jigglypuff}}, and {{SSBM|Bowser}} are a few characters which use different renders on the select screen.
 
==[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]==
{{ImageCaption|File:Toon Link SSBB.jpg|File:Toon Link SSBU.png|width1=100px|width2=100px|caption= Left: Toon Link's SSBB render which shows him having a more realistic textures while in his original appearance he has more of a cartoonishly design.<br>Right: Toon Link's Ultimate render which shows him in his most current design.}}
[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]] was the first game to use fully realistic artwork for all of the characters. Character design and graphics strayed away from the groundwork created from ''Melee'' to fit all modern designs made during the Nintendo GameCube and early Wii era, which is mainly seen in all artwork. ''Brawl'' is well-known for its drastic changes with more dark shading, more realistic proportions and textures. While characters like {{SSBB|Snake}} in this type of art style seems more naturally, others like {{SSBB|Toon Link}} and many characters in a series with a more colorful style look slightly different in comparison. Also many of the characters weren't based on their appearance at the time like Snake, {{SSBB|Yoshi}}, and {{SSBB|Ike}}.


==''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]''==
[[File:Character Selection - Super Smash Bros. Brawl.png|250px|center]]
[[File:Character Selection - Super Smash Bros. Brawl.png|thumb|250px|left|''Brawl'' is the first game to use the same renders on the character selection screen as the promotional artwork.]]
{{ImageCaption|File:SSBU spirit Toon Link.png|File:Toon Link SSBB.jpg|width1=175px|width2=150px|align=right|caption=Left: Toon Link's artwork from ''The Wind Waker''.<br>Right: In comparison, Toon Link's ''Brawl'' render is realistically textured and detailed.}}
''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]'' retains similar artistic direction as ''Melee'', but had many assets built completely from the ground up to take advantage of the more powerful hardware. Many characters returning from ''Melee'' were also redesigned to match more current installments, such as {{uv|The Legend of Zelda}} cast, who were updated to their designs in ''Twilight Princess'' (including {{SSBB|Sheik}}, who did not appear in said game, but received a new design akin to its art direction). The overall aesthetic includes highly detailed textures and dark shading that give the game a more realistic look in comparison to the rest of the series. While this is a natural transition for characters such as {{SSBB|Snake}}, it is a drastic difference for others such as {{SSBB|Ness}} and {{SSBB|Toon Link}}, who gained significant detail in the transition.


''Brawl'' was also the first game in the series to use the same renders on the [[character selection screen]] as the official promotional artwork, which was retained in future installments.
Unlike both predecessors, Brawl was the first game in the series to match the characters character select screen art with the official artwork, and all games afterwards will have screens that act in the same way.
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==''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]''==
==''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]''==
{{ImageCaption|File:SSBU spirit Bayonetta (Bayonetta 2).png|File:Bayonetta SSB4.png|width1=140px|width2=175px|align=right|caption=Left: Bayonetta's artwork from ''Bayonetta 2''.<br>Right: Bayonetta's ''SSB4'' render uses more saturated colors and simplified details.}}
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The foundation of ''Super Smash Bros. 4''{{'}}s artstyle is similar to ''Brawl'', but relies less on dark shading and realistic textures, instead utilizing brighter primary colors with a vibrant, cartoon-like aesthetic for its visual effects. The 3DS version has exaggerated lighting and thick outlines around the characters (which can be adjusted in the game's settings) to allow for better visibility on the smaller screen, while the Wii U version has no outlines and more subdued lighting in comparison. Some characters also have updated appearances from ''Brawl'', such as {{SSB4|Samus}}, {{SSB4|Marth}}, and {{SSB4|Little Mac}}, who use designs from games released in the interim. Other characters, such as ''The Legend of Zelda'' cast, use the same designs as ''Brawl'' in spite of newer designs being introduced.
[[File:Boxing Ring Beta.png|200px]]
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For the art style of ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4|Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U]]'', it follows the tread of ''Brawl'' basing its characters on modern artwork from each series, however, colors are much more vibrant. With the game and its artwork being a lot colorful, other original traits from ''Brawl'''s art style have been noticeably changed: details like fur, clothing, and armor are more detailed and look less muddy in comparison. Some characters switch from their most modern looks that were created between the timespan of ''Brawl'' and ''Smash 4'', with {{SSB4|Samus}}, {{SSB4|Roy}} and {{SSB4|Ike}} having their ''Other M'', ''Awakening'', and ''Radiant Dawn'' interpretations respectively, although there are some exceptions such as ''[[Legend of Zelda]]'' and ''[[Star Fox]]'' characters who had ''Twilight Princess'' and ''Assault'' designs being intact.


==''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]''==
==''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]''==
[[File:MarioShadingDemonstration2.jpg|thumb|200px|left|Real life photographs of character models were used as lighting reference for ''Ultimate'', as shown in this image of Mario.]]
[[File:MarioArtStyleDemonstration.jpg|thumb|200px|Mario's model was modified to be less colorful and more realistic than his standard appearance...]]
[[File:FoxArtStyleDemonstration.jpg|thumb|200px|...while Fox's model was modified from ''Star Fox Zero'' to be more colorful and less realistic, in order to achieve a standardized look.]]
''Ultimate'''s artstyle was designed as a hybrid of color and detail, to give the characters a unified appearance without having to drastically change each character's design. All characters were made to fit this middle ground: characters like {{SSBU|Mario}} were given a slightly less colorful but more detailed appearance, while characters like {{SSBU|Fox}} were given less detailed appearances to appear more visually similar to Mario and other characters. As with ''SSB4'', some characters were given updated designs ({{SSBU|Link}} appears in his ''Breath of the Wild'' design, and Fox uses his ''Star Fox Zero'' design), while others were not given an update ({{SSBU|Samus}} still uses her ''Other M'' design).


[[Masahiro Sakurai]] and his team wanted the game's style and graphics to have more natural lighting, so they used real-life photographs of character figurines as reference.<ref>[https://www.4gamer.net/games/412/G041234/20190906163/]</ref>
{{ImageCaption|File:FoxArtStyleDemonstration.jpg|File:MarioArtStyleDemonstration.jpg|width1=250px|width2=250px|caption=Both photos which demonstrate the aesthetic changes that both characters made during the transition into ''Ultimate''.}}
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===Panoramic banner===
[[File:SSBU Panoramic.png|thumb|center|1000px|The panoramic banner displaying all of the fighters on the roster. This artwork is commonly used in ''Ultimate''{{'}}s promotional material.]]


Another noticeable example of ''Ultimate''{{'}}s unique art style comes from its panoramic poster, which features every playable character in the roster. The banner has a unique hand-painted look that reflects the game's balance between color and detail. It was conceptualized by Sakurai and illustrated by Yusuke Nakano, who designed characters for ''The Legend of Zelda'' series and ''Super Metroid''. Nakano decided to spread the roster evenly across the entire canvas, rather than focusing on the center, to keep the whole image visually interesting and balanced. He also consulted with the original creators on each character's pose within the artwork.<ref>[https://www.siliconera.com/2019/07/02/super-smash-bros-ultimate-illustrator-details-the-making-of-the-everyone-is-here-artwork/]</ref> Character artwork in the banner was used for the game's box art. The banner was routinely updated with the addition of each new fighter. The placements of fighters were often shifted to make room for these additions, and the banner got marginally wider every time this happened. [[Mr. Saturn]], [[Morgana]], and [[Slime]] are the only 3 non-playable characters in this banner.
''Ultimate'''s art style was created to be an in-between of being colorful and detailed to avoid many different game worlds from having clashing visuals. All characters were made to fit this type of middle ground: characters like {{SSBU|Mario}} would be given a slightly less colorful appearance but be more detailed, while someone like {{SSBU|Fox}}, whose character design in ''Ultimate'' was based on ''Star Fox Zero'', will have less detailed fur and clothes to be more visually similar to Mario and other characters.  
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==Trivia==
{{ImageCaption|file:SSBUShadingDemonstration.jpg|File:MarioShadingDemonstration1.jpg|File:MarioShadingDemonstration2.jpg|width1=200px|width2=200px|width3=200px|caption=Left: Full picture where the Mario in the two pictures below comes from. Interestingly, ''SSB4'' {{SSB4|Link}} and [[Battlefield (SSB4)|Battlefield]] are used in this photo.
*Masahiro Sakurai showed an early version of {{SSBU|Sephiroth}}'s artwork in a [[YouTube]] video<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKQ2v9kno9I=158s Odds and Ends of Supervising [Graphics]]</ref>, notably with different contrast on the Masamune that was changed to make it look sharper.
Middle: Mario's full body and the placements of shading on his clothing.
Right: Picture showing the shading of Mario's hat and real life figurine used for reference.}} [[Masahiro Sakurai]] and his team wanted the game's style and graphics have more natural lighting, and to have a basis to go off of, they took pictures of character figurines outside to see how their shading will look without being inaccurate. All pictures are concept art which showed the process of ''Ultimate's'' final art style, shown off at CEDEC.<ref>[https://www.4gamer.net/games/412/G041234/20190906163/]</ref>


[[File:SSBU Panoramic.png|thumb|center|1000px|The iconic panorama with all of the fighters on the roster. This canvas is constantly used for promotional material for ''Ultimate''.]]


==References==
Another noticeable example of Ultimate and its art style comes from its panoramic poster, which has all base and DLC characters in the roster. The idea of the panorama was thought of by Sakurai, and was illustrated by ''The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess'' character designer, Yusuke Nakano. Nakano decided that it would be created with all of the roster be evenly distributed from left to right, in order to have something visually interesting anywhere you looked and not have the whole panorama feel one-sided. Also, for Nakano to get all the characters to feel as faithful as possible, he consulted their original creators on what will be their right pose.<ref>[https://nintendowire.com/news/2019/07/04/smash-ultimate-illustrator-yusuke-nakano-discusses-the-iconic-everyone-is-here-mural/]</ref>
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