General

Deez nuts confirmed.

[quote=ZGamer]cuddymd is, actually, using "xenophobic" correctly. The definition of this word has expanded to include hatred as well as irrational fear.

I would not go so far as to state that you are being racist - ignorant, certainly, and in either case your question was rather poorly worded. What, for instance, is the typical "Asian" face? Fatty eyelids (thus contributing to the notion that Asians have small eyes)? Pale skin? Round faces? How does one quantify the appearances of a people who span an entire continent as well as numerous archipelagos? There are perhaps some constants in defining the "Asian appearance", but genetics is just as diverse among Asians as it is among Europeans, Africans, and indigenous Americans.

This is very likely why so many Asian (or well-meaning) players take offense. You are lumping a diversity of facial features under one umbrella - "Asian" - and a rather vague umbrella at that. "What's that supposed to mean?" "Do you have something against Asians?" "What, do we look weird to you or something?" "Why is that even a problem?" So on and so forth.

For my part, I simply design a character's appearance based on what class he is, how I've named him, and what sort of equipment he might feasibly use. This is a shallow form of RP - I don't behave any differently when I play my DB compared to, say, my Mechanic - but it is something I take seriously in the process of character creation.

Regardless of my defense for your question, however, I will state that your disregard for political correctness is out of line. We are living in a multicultural society now, and what's more, you are communicating on the Internet - it's much harder to fly candid language here, or even interpret ordinary language "as you mean it" in the first place. Please, try and keep that in mind when you post in this thread.[/quote]

Yeah good points. It's too hard to argue valid points on here anyway

[quote=BobR]@Maxilonius: It always did feel a bit odd that they'd sell the ability to customize characters through face and hair changes but never really incorporate any truly Asian looking features.
It seems they're cutting out a good portion of their paying customer base who might want to make their characters look like themselves, but maybe the Nexon "higher ups" don't care.[/quote]
Personally, I've never met anyone who created a character with the intention of making it look just like him/herself. Perhaps in MMOs which take on a more realistic angle - "The Secret World" comes to mind - but MS was always something of a theme park, and never even tried to take itself seriously until the reveal of the Cygnus Knights (i.e. implementation of the Black Mage plot). The game is so whimsical that, while it would statistically make sense that there would be some players who want to mimic their RL appearance, it is a very difficult thing to actually believe.

@Maxilonius: I'd always read it was the popularity of the Western looking chibi in Eastern cultures that Maplestory was cashing in on for its Asian market, and it lent itself seamlessly to the Western gaming market because Asian looking characters wouldn't have been as popular here. That way they had a winner in both cultures.
Of course they could have re-designed the characters for the different markets, but this way they can sell the same product in all markets without the effort of localizing it.

It always did feel a bit odd that they'd sell the ability to customize characters through face and hair changes but never really incorporate any truly Asian looking features.
It seems they're cutting out a good portion of their paying customer base who might want to make their characters look like themselves, but maybe the Nexon "higher ups" don't care.

[quote=Graystoke]How am I being xenophobic? You don't even know the meaning of that word. It means an irrational fear of foreigners. I'm just wondering why they don't offer more asian faces.[/quote]
cuddymd is, actually, using "xenophobic" correctly. The definition of this word has expanded to include hatred as well as irrational fear.

I would not go so far as to state that you are being racist - ignorant, certainly, and in either case your question was rather poorly worded. What, for instance, is the typical "Asian" face? Fatty eyelids (thus contributing to the notion that Asians have small eyes)? Pale skin? Round faces? How does one quantify the appearances of a people who span an entire continent as well as numerous archipelagos? There are perhaps some constants in defining the "Asian appearance", but genetics is just as diverse among Asians as it is among Europeans, Africans, and indigenous Americans.

This is very likely why so many Asian (or well-meaning) players take offense. You are lumping a diversity of facial features under one umbrella - "Asian" - and a rather vague umbrella at that. "What's that supposed to mean?" "Do you have something against Asians?" "What, do we look weird to you or something?" "Why is that even a problem?" So on and so forth.

For my part, I simply design a character's appearance based on what class he is, how I've named him, and what sort of equipment he might feasibly use. This is a shallow form of RP - I don't behave any differently when I play my DB compared to, say, my Mechanic - but it is something I take seriously in the process of character creation.

Regardless of my defense for your question, however, I will state that your disregard for political correctness is out of line. We are living in a multicultural society now, and what's more, you are communicating on the Internet - it's much harder to fly candid language here, or even interpret ordinary language "as you mean it" in the first place. Please, try and keep that in mind when you post in this thread.

@Graystoke: watching you trying to defend your racism is actually really cringe worthy. "Merely asking a question" doesn't excuse you from being racist. Educate yourself, and learn that you can say whatever you like to convince yourself that you're not being racist. It doesn't change the fact that you are. LISTEN to what other people are telling you. LEARN that if it's offensive to other people, you need to change the way you think, not the other way around. I'm done here, because I can't be bothered to continue replying to someone who's so rigid with the way they think.

Because it's a 2D game...

I'm Black and I made my character Black

[quote=BobR]One more time- The moderators DON'T "dim" threads. If it was a moderator who found something wrong with a thread it would be gone, not just dimmed.
Your thread was reported by other Basilmarket USERS who found something objectionable about it.
Those reports go into a queue where they will be evaluated by the moderators to see if there's anything that needs to be done about it.

And like people have been saying, Google the word "chibi".
It will answer your question and explain why Maplestory characters look the way they do without having to get into anything that sounds like racism.[/quote]

//actually, as @Crystalline mentioned, [url=http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Mukokuseki]mukokuseki[/url] is probably the defining thing. It's easy to draw an Asian looking chibi, but I'm guessing TS wants an explanation for why so much Asian media has characters that don't look... well, Asian.

Can you make a pic of what you think a character of vast majority of Asians will be like?

[quote=Graystoke]Why was this post dimmed? It created an interesting topic point and I learned more about a culture. These mods seem kinda racist and closed minded whoever they are.[/quote]

One more time- The moderators DON'T "dim" threads. If it was a moderator who found something wrong with a thread it would be gone, not just dimmed.
Your thread was reported by other Basilmarket USERS who found something objectionable about it.
Those reports go into a queue where they will be evaluated by the moderators to see if there's anything that needs to be done about it.

And like people have been saying, Google the word "chibi".
It will answer your question and explain why Maplestory characters look the way they do without having to get into anything that sounds like racism.

I think my character looks Asian....sort of....

racism isn't the issue here.. people think you're close to being racist because you specifically mentioned asians, that's the not the problem, the problem is your simple-mindedness.
first of all, it's not nexons fault, there are faces that do "represent" asians a bit more accurately. the thing is, nobody cares for that, the players themselves don't want to look as they do irl.
secondly, how do you propose they go about "embracing" themselves? the characteristics of maple faces only include skin color and eyes, and occasionally lips. there is no bone orientation, face structure, or even a nose. how exactly are people supposed to accurately represent themselves? they can't really, so they pick whatever looks cutest/best looking for them to please themselves.

and although indirectly, there is an option if you really want to put yourself in the game. use a picture of yourself as farm pic. but do you see a significant portion of players doing that? no.
the issue of privacy aside, a lot of players are probably unpleasant looking (w/e this is subjective). so that's just another reason why players don't want their characters looking like themselves. but like i said before, it's not even really possible unless you expect every single asian to pick the JP, JP2, or fierce edge faces.. in which case that would be pretty racist of you.

[quote=cuddymd]Lol? If anything you're the one being dangerously close to being racist[/quote]

How? If you think I am, you're being very foolish. I was merely asking a question. People like you always think that as soon as someone mentions race, they are being racist. When in reality, if you're soooo concerned about people offending other people, you're the one being racist. Learn to look past your politically "correct" ways of thinking and see the world how it really is. But then again, you're probably too brain washed to understand the bigger picture or the fact that I wasn't being racist.

@Cascentric Again, I'm not trying to lump everyone together, I'm was just wondering about the faces. If you want to say that race has nothing to do with what a person looks like, and that anyone who hints that maybe is does is racist, then you're deluded. And again, just to get through to you, I'm not saying they all look alike, that would be crazy.

Rmr that "Asian" represents a vast diversity of people from different ethnic groups, nationalities, races. Although I'm all for representation, even in a game, Asian does not solely == Chinese, Korean, Japanese, which is what I feel you're trying to get at. The eyes in Maplestory actually represent a lot of different eyes very well for a 2D cartoonish-looking game. Assuming that there are a certain, specific set of eyes that an Asian would have is racist.

[quote=Graystoke]Why was this post dimmed? It created an interesting topic point and I learned more about a culture. These mods seem kinda racist and closed minded whoever they are.[/quote]

Lol? If anything you're the one being dangerously close to being racist

@Graystoke: search up mukokuseki

[quote=Graystoke]Just if they are going to offer some faces, why not others[/quote]

I'm just going to leave these here and you can decide for yourself if Nexon intended our characters to resemble us irl:

http://www.basilmarket.com/screen/MapleStory-BasilMarket-Screen-98141.jpg
http://orig05.deviantart.net/1d66/f/2007/031/5/6/bleach___maple_style_by_xsabishi.png
http://fc02.deviantart.net/fs23/f/2008/029/9/5/FFVII__The_MapleStory_Edition_by_ColonelFitz.jpg

@Graystoke: they are chibis. the faces don't look like any race because it is 2d with cartoony details. how do you suggest they make it look asian? this has been mentioned a ton already in your thread, but if you still don't understand than I give up.

[quote=Spatchka]lolol so do you think as an non asian you resemble your avatar? do you not embrace who you really are? why do you keep mentioning asians lol.[/quote]

Did I say I was? I was making a specific point. Game creates by Asians. Player base largely of Asians. Very few Asian faces. Just a thought.

I need realism in my escapist fantasy game.

[quote=fairystories]Why are you expecting Maplestory characters to resemble anyone or anything irl when our characters have disproportionate heads and no necks?[/quote]
Dont forget the noses! We're all like Krillin

[quote=Graystoke] Do they not want their player base to embrace who they really are? Why not at least make it an option? I'm not Asian btw, but I still wonder[/quote]

lolol so do you think as an non asian you resemble your avatar? do you not embrace who you really are? why do you keep mentioning asians lol.

[quote=fairystories]Why are you expecting Maplestory characters to resemble anyone or anything irl when our characters have disproportionate heads and no necks?[/quote]

Just if they are going to offer some faces, why not others

maybe because the game was meant to cater to evryone and not just asians

Why are you expecting Maplestory characters to resemble anyone or anything irl when our characters have disproportionate heads and no necks?

Why was this post dimmed? It created an interesting topic point and I learned more about a culture. These mods seem kinda racist and closed minded whoever they are.

They have overjoyed smile for guys for a reason

@Graystoke: haha no, but it would be a fair assumption on anyone's part. In any case, there's no real "Asian face" or "not Asian face." It's just chibi art and I guess it so happens to be cute to everyone who sees it lol

@iLUVhsDONTu2 I think it's just a common thread for any country or culture to adore creatures that have big, wide set eyes, small mouths, etc. It denotes innocence. Think of babies... gigantic eyes, small head, small mouth. The disproportionate image reminds one of childhood, cuteness, and lovableness. That's why Disney's art always portrays princesses with such large heads, and why Mangas always draw their characters according to a similar motif. It's just how people work and the artists who created Maplestory knew that. Yes, it's more prominent in Japanese art and some Korean cartoon art, too, but much Chinese art doesn't follow this rule specifically, if at all and the artists choose to portray characters more realistically with more proportionate characteristics and features. So no, I wouldn't say it's specific to Eastern nations and countries, although we may recognize their forms of art as far more prominent art simply because we associate the art and culture with each other.

[quote=Graystoke]

@MeiGuiHua Your point being? Korea is an Asian country[/quote]

Yes exactly

@Graystoke: My bad, this wasnt for you, i was talking in a different chat, just mistyped in the wrong tab, Soz.

@hangwithhung Very true, I wasn't saying that it was made for Asians, just that it was interesting a game made by Asians with a player base that was 70% asian (rough estiamate) didn't have alot of asian faces.

@iLUVhsDONTu2 very interesting point.

I don't think this is exclusive to Asians, but I'm under the impression that it's just fun to mess/play around with the appearance of something rather than making something closely resembled to yourself. It's like how kids draw mustaches on the faces in magazines and having a good time out of doing so.

@graystroke not to sound rude but you do realize that the creation of Maplestory comes before the playerbase, right? It's not like Wizet found a playerbase [I]before[/I] making the actual game... the playerbase molds to the game. That being said, it's not necessarily [I]for[/I] Asians.

And even if it were, that doesn't mean it has to resemble Asians, either. I'm sure the majority of Call of Duty players aren't all white, males who've lived through combat experiences and come to MWX just to relive their experiences. Similarly, I don't think players come onto Maplestory to express their "Asianness," if there even is such a statistic in regards to the demographics of Maplestory players...

Game art is not indicative of playership and vice a versa. To think that such a relationship is correlative is... well, rather naive.

Assuming a majority of the people who design MS's hair and eyes are Korean, it wouldn't be surprising to find a lot of the items they designed to be resembling other cultures other than their own. Every country has their ideal standards, and some of the items were designed with those ideals in mind. IMO I think Koreans prefer bigger eyes, pale skin, and most usually long hair, which is pretty rare with eastern Asians but more common within the people in west.

I'm not trolling @cuddymd How am I being xenophobic? You don't even know the meaning of that word. It means an irrational fear of foreigners. I'm just wondering why they don't offer more asian faces.

@AllKorean what are you talking about with colors? I'm taking about faces which has nothing to do with skin tone, I feel like they do a fine job at representing basically the majority of skin colors people have...

@Mephisto it's not like the vast majority of asians have big eyes? It's not a stereotype if it's true. But that's not to say it isn't true And you'd have to be pretty close minded if you think that many Asians have "small eyes" compared to other races. It's not a stereotype, it's just the way it is. And while it is the way it is, that doesn't mean that they all do.

@MeiGuiHua Your point being? Korea is an Asian country

The game originated from Korea

they're chibis..they don't resemble anyone irl including white, black, hispanic, etc people either lol. Unless you are referring to the racial stereotype that all asians have small eyes, in which case you are just ignorant af. Same applies to anime/cartoons as well. Always makes me laugh when people say cutesy styled anime "don't look asian".

Just like how anime characters don't resemble people in Japan.
Like how cartoon characters don't all look like the kids who watch them.
"Why is this cartoon meant for kids but the characters are adults?"
"Why was this cartoon made by adults but the characters are children?"
"Your in-game hair reaches your feet, but your real hair isn't that length. Why did you get that hair? Are you dissatisfied with your current hair length?"
"You have bunny ears on your character even though you're human lololol wut'
That's how outrageous you seem right now.
Who. Really. Gives. A. Damn.
It's a game.

My avatar resembles me 100%.

I seriously hope you're trolling and doing so in an extremely xenophobic way

Oh really? Why is it just Asian people why not all colors, sorry for being blunt, but your insight is a little hurtful

It's a game, so people want to be someone they're not, it goes along with the fantasy of the game.
Besides, people love changing their appearance. Girls with curly hair will straighten it, and girls with straight hair will curl it. Many asian cultures love the whiter skin. And white people like getting tan.
At least that's how I see it.

How would one draw an 'Asian maplestory character' ?

Maybe because it's a game.

I'm not asian, and I resemble the look of an asian.

Inb4 gay marriage