toastyhat:
Okay, some additional character design stuff… We’ve only ever used the first and fifth ones and I’m making the others up as I go so let me know if they do well in trial runs!
TOASTYHAT’S CHARACTER DESIGN GAME MASTERLIST excluding the ones in that other post
1. NAME-a-GRAMS
I come up with these names on the spot don’t look at me.
Okay so in this one you grab a bag of Scrabble/Bananagram tiles, grab whatever tiles you want to spell words you think describe a character you’ve designed, and then rearrange them however you want to spell a name. I expect you could do it the other way around too–make a couple words for the other person to base the character on, and then rearrange them into a name.
For instance: NERVOUS FOX could become VENOS FEROUX… They’re mostly nonsense names but for some reason I think they generally give off the feeling you want from the character. Of course, naming sites with actual meanings can be equally helpful. This is best for fantasy stuff. uvu
2. Circle of Life
One person starts by drawing a character as a young child. Pass to the next person, they draw them somewhat older, pass to the next person, slightly older, etc.
To add a level of complexity, draw the character involved in a different situation each time–maybe they get into a fight as a teenager or somehow end up hiding behind a tree from bandits, or become a circus acrobat…? You catch my drift. Later, spend time explaining what the heck is happening to them!
3. Playlist People
Quite simply, play some music, draw a character who “resembles” the song somehow. If that description is too abstract for you, you can think of it as drawing someone whose theme song it is. You can all use different songs or try drawing characters all for the same song. They might look like they go together in the same story or not! I’ve never tried this one.
4. AU
Again, everyone starts off by drawing a character, then you pass the sketchbooks and draw something on the next page. In this case, though, you’ll be drawing the same character in an alternate universe (rather than being a slightly different age or what-have-you). At the end, see if you can mix and match the various designs so that the universes fit together!
(You can do this as a fanart thing too, by the way.)
5. Talking Heads
On one page of a sketchbook, someone draws a head facing towards the center, with a speechbubble next to it as though speaking to someone. Someone else, without looking at the other drawing, draws a new head also saying something. The dialogue should be vague enough that the speechbubbles could go together–a reference to how the characters feel about each other, an implication about something that happened between them, or a question that will probably go unanswered…stuff like that.
6. Matchmaker
Draw/describe a character. Pass sketchbook to next person who does the same for a new character without looking at yours. Then look at them both together and try to find a way to get them into a relationship–whether romantic or platonic, depending. If you’re doing romantic only, try a bonus round where you pass the sketchbooks again and the third person has to draw the characters’ child.
7. Props
Totally stole the name from WLIIA.
Good practice for drawing objects. Draw a character’s most treasured possessions. The next person might either work off of them or draw the character blind, then have to make up explanations for how that character ended up with those objects.
8. Quickword
Speaking aloud, write a character bio one word at a time–a group of three or four usually works best. You can try and make it serious but more often than not it’s probly going to end up ridiculous.
9. Archetropes
Look up character types on TVTropes and design characters either visually playing the trope straight or subverting it. Additional layer of complexity: figure out whether their actual personality supports or subverts the trope.
10. Headcanons
Establish a base to draw features/outfits on. I’m shamelessly grabbing this from the Homestuck fandom so if you wanna use Andrew Hussie’s bean people, totally go for it. Draw the basic features on your bean, then pass it around the circle. Everyone draws their own headcanons for it!
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And last, there are tons of character/name/aesthetic generators online and you can combine those with any of these games. Heck, you can combine most of these games with each other! Have fun~