Parafolk Reference Illustrations
Hello,
I hope you had a nice week. The weekend is here along with a new Patreon post!
We won an award!
Woahhh! Thanks so much to everyone who voted last week! We won the most anticipated Canadian game award! That's crazy! We feel deeply honored to have everyone's support. This award is dedicated to you Patrons, without which we couldn't make this game. Cheers!
Parafolk Reference Illustrations (For Patrons only. Please don't share)
Hi guys, it’s Léa!
As we told you in the previous posts, we spent some time improving the Parafolks. Now they have better proportions, a cleaner 3D model, a new system for the textures and improved skin textures. You’ve seen the most recent result in our Holiday outfit video.
Today I would like to talk more about the creative process behind the new skin textures of the Parafolks.
Our first art style was really simple and the body and face details were not very visible. We chose to push the sketch-like aspect that we liked and base our body textures on 2D illustrations with a visible painty effect: brush strokes and pencil lines. Thanks to those techniques, we are now able to have more details and visible volumes.
On many reference illustrations that we liked, there was a mix of dark and light pencil lines highlighting the shadows and lights on the characters. It quickly became a very important part of the art direction of the Parafolks; these details are visible on their skin, hair and clothes.
She painted the details directly on our 3D model in a software called Substance Painter: it’s easy to use and allows us to have the artsy effect that we like! Here, the skin texture is colored for showcasing purposes, but in game the skin is in grey and white and we apply color on it with the color wheel.
Since we are painting the skin based on 2D illustrations, we needed to have a lot of consistent references for skin textures in the art style that we chose. For this reason, we worked with an amazing artist: Lesly Oh.
She worked with us for a short contract in December in order to create the concept arts that we needed for references. It’s really helpful for us to have them for skin details and body shapes. Sonia and I can focus on recreating the designs in 3D, painting our 3D models in our software and reproducing the skin details from the illustrations. This way, we were able to save a lot of precious time.
Our instructions for Lesly were to create many illustrations to represent a wide array of characters with different body types, facial features, body hair and ethnicities.
These are some of the concept arts, we will show you more in the future!
Keep in mind:
You will still be able to change the bodies and the faces thanks to the sliders just like we’ve shown you in Maggie’s reveal video!
These are artworks helping us create the 3D characters, not the final 3D result.
If you want to check out Lesly’s work it’s here: https://linktr.ee/LeslyOH
We hope that you liked this inside look at our creative process! Our next step is to create more body shapes for our base 3D model and integrate all these new skin textures. We can’t wait to show you more about it!
Take care! (ㆁωㆁ*)
Léa
PS: We would like to share with you the early designs for the Parafolks’ pre-teens, kids and toddlers. This is very confidential, please don’t share. We can’t confirm yet that they will look exactly like that. We are not ready to work on them yet, but it’s the vision that we have for them at the moment.
Comments (161)
While I like the new design, I'm a sucker for the flatter look too. Would be nice to have an option like a low graphic mode or something to remove some of the textures.
Toddlers and children are really cute.
The Toddler looks so cute
Seriously love the style for the characters.
I love the art style you guys are using for the Paras!
I really like the design for these characters. I prefer them to be the style.
Just dropping in to say if you are wondering how to implement shades and lights for each skin tone: Just have a selection of pickers (like you do with skin color) for the undertone regions. Remember, palms of hand should be lighter than hand skin.
All these look fantastic guys! Keep up the amazing work. I'm so excited to have pre-teens!
This. Is. Amazing.
Can't stop looking at that pre-teen consept art. So many game-changing possibilites and features to be dreamed of. ♡
I'm happy to hear you're considering pre teens, I think it will make the transition from child to adult more meaningful and realistic and it will be fun for family players.
This is all... just... O-M-G... Toddler, Kids, Pre-Teens and Teens!!?!? OMG!!!! This all looks amazing! Keep up the good work!! <3 <3 <3
Oh my gosh, the toddler 😍 what a precious little bean!
Omgggg the toddler concept drawings 😍especially the B version of the diaper so adorable!
Congratulations!!! And the models look amazing.
Omg the toddler looks so cute and chubby ;-; i‘m hoping we get chubby toddlers ❤️
YESSSS
I really hope there is a part one and two for the toddlers and teens like a baby, then baby stage toddler, then a older toddler Then with teens you have a preteen then they age up into a regular one
OMG THE BABY
these skin textures look so warm and alive, i love them!! excellent work :D
did you say pre-teens?
Oh my god!!!! Those toddlers look incredible!! I literally gasped when I saw them aaahhhh! Congrats on the award and on all your progress!
The toddler reference is my favourite one, but that's only because I love toddlers and babies the most 😍. Speaking of babies, I can't wait to see what babies will look like. Once again, amazing work
*gasp* look at the toddlers omgggg
I really wish parafolk with darker skin could have lighter palms and soles, as that's how they are in real world.
Do toddlers usually have man boobs? 😂
Listen, some of them are chunky lmao
A stage between adult to elderly could bring an more realistic feature to the game. The jump seems so drastic
I'm hoping they do like kinda a gradual aging. I hate the like, one sec their an adult, next sec their an elder
It's so amazing! I'm really excited about the preteens and how they will interact with the world and how the puperty is going to change their emotions!
Happy to see pre teens are included! You don’t see them that often in simulation games
I'm unreasonably excited to have a pre-teen life state. Like it's probably the worst years of childhood but so important.
All the men have really small nipples and that makes me wonder if we'll be able to choose a size of them. A kid in my school was bullied because his nipples weren't as small as the ones on the concept sketches, so I think allowing to choose like 3 sizes will normalise different sizes and allow better representation.
What a glow up so far with the Paras! They're looking amazing. (:
I'm new here and I can't wait for launch day. I don't know if this was mention but will you offer different types hair textures?Not just generic but really put in thoughts in the styles. Afrocentric styles like locs, braids, twists, curls, bantu knots etc. Still looking around. Loving what I'm seeing so far.
I'm soooo excited for this game. You make so big steps forward!!
C'est joliment dessiné beau travail!! Que cette année soit riche d'inspiration et de créativité!!
I think these illustrations look great and will bring significant improvements to the anatomy of the Parafolks. Really great work and looking forward to seeing these in action.
This post brought tears of joy to my eyes! I'm so happy with the art style! I was elated to see a pre-teen and the toddler is so precious! Great job. This is going to be incredible.
Congratulations :)
I love the art style and the illustrations are gorgeous. Would have been interesting to see less fit bodies as well as they all appear in pretty good shape, even the chubby one and the old woman/man. Not saying old and chubby people can’t also have muscle and perfect posture but it would have helped to see a broader spectrum of what a para might look like. I’m thinking old people might have a curved back which affects their height and the way the have to hold their head to look straight ahead. Hope this makes sense. Their skin may be very wrinkly, full of spots/imperfections/signs of aging. Slightly bend knees in standing position.
i hope we have gradual aging and if not that then i hope they can do what they did with preteens, i like a full life cycle makes more sense for what youre saying, newborn, baby, toddler, child, pre teen, teen, young adult, adult, and slowed aging for elders, because the older you get the more likely that will happen, where you need a cane ect, am i even making sense lol
This just looks so amazing and you guys are just doing such an amazing job! I know when this game comes out, it is probably going to be the best simulation game on the market. I cannot wait to see more!! I love these designs so much and I am so excited to see what y'all have in-store for us!!
I love the pre designs, they look awesome, go on like this i know this will be a fabulous game.
THEY LOOK AMAZING omg I can’t wait to see more of them!
I would die for that toddler🥺
Im so excited about this! I can't get over my love of the concept! It's gonna be one of the most visually stunning games :D I love that the characters are so realistic. I love the body hair, that the elders are not unattractive, it just makes me so excited ! Great teamwork!
I Love the design!
These look amazing! I'm so so so glad we get preteens! :) <3
If toddlers look this adorable, I wonder what the concept art for babies looks like 😩. Can’t wait to see the update for next week!
They all look so good!
Congratulation! The designs are perfect fit for the game. 👍
Hey I was wondering if it's possible to make hair length a slider like you have in build mode with the bed (making it bigger or smaller). It's okay if it's not possible but I think it would add a lot more to the game, especially because that way, the para's hair could grow with time! They'd have to go get a haircut to keep it short haha. So grateful for all your hard work, thank you!
I believe hair growth is not planned, so I don't think hair length sliders will be a thing.
OMG the bodies look amazing! Keep working hard and making us happy haha. I want to play this game so bad!
This is amazing, and I am very curious for more info on the life stages that might exist in the final game. 🥰
There will be an option for “nudity “, with no censored..?
It's not planned to have nudity since the rating of the game is Teen (13+)
I'm so proud you won! You deserve this recognition for your great work. I hope with all my heart that it will not be the last, but the first of a long list. I really like this overview of the different body sizes, it's very good to put these differences forward in order to create a really diverse environment and therefore more enjoyable to discover.
Would it be too much trouble to put in the option to be braless and the consequential sag that goes with it? Maybe a tube bra to cover female nipples (what a ridiculous double standard society has constructed anyway I digress) when the braless option is chosen and all torso apparel has been taken off? The level of sag varies upon life stage as well as size although I assume including size would make things a lot more complicated and harder, I don't want to put more stress on the team :)
That's something we will be looking into!
OMG I love them all, they all look so good!!
Thanks so much for putting in a pre-teen age. I thought it was always missing in The Sims.
I'm loving the details on the baby.
Omg we are having pre-teens I’m excited. I can’t wait to more skin tones I am loving this keep the great work
The fact that you will include preteens I just can't even process, I'm gonna play this game so much when it comes out might not leave the house for months.
This game just keeps getting better and better!!
This looks sooooo awesome!!!!
I’m dying to make Maggie my wife 😍😭
Hey, sooooo If we are getting pre teens. What are the chances that we'll get middle aged people 😗
If they have a young adult and adult life stage I feel as though that covers said bracket, in the sims for example the adults have subtle winkles that you choose to exaggerate in create a sim if you would like. What I want to see is the choice for saggy granny titties, some nans like the support, others have lived long enough with those damn braces and give up on them. My omi certainly did :'D
This is so exciting !!! Everything looks absolutely charming, just like the rest of the game ! Truly ! Also, am I the only one wondering if there will be a life stage in-between toddler and child ?? 🤔 💭 😬
I DEFINITELY want a "preschool" stage. (My IRL kids are 7 and 4 so it's pretty fresh on my mind how much kids change those first few years.)
I love the way everything is developing.
Seems like I’m the only one who liked the original style better... hopefully it will grow up on me with time!
THE BABYYYYY 🥺🥺🥺🥺💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕
the friggin toddler 🥺 *grabby hands*
I didn’t know this was a Canadian game! Just joined!! That makes me so much more excited bc I’m Canadian lol!
Congrats to the well deserved award! I love how the art style improved from the Maggie reveal video to the last one. Also the kids are so cute 🥰
The toddler design is my favorite! So darn cuteeee. You guys have done and continue to do such amazing work.
CUTE <3
Congrats on the award, you deserve it! Everything is looking amazing so far, and I love the art style. I look so forward to these updates every week and I can’t stress how thankful I am - we all are - for them. And PRETEENS?!?!? AHHH!!!!!!!
The little toddler is really cute. Supper excited to see more as it progresses
These look great! So excited for pre teens and all the life stages. My one criticism would be the back of the old female. It looks very masculine to me and the sides look strange- not anatomically correct. Instead, it would be nice to see a small crease of back fat below the bra strap as that’s more realistic to me. Just my observation!
its just a reference im sure the real thing won't be as muscly looking.
I hope kids can be muscular in this game. Imagine a kid who wants to be like his dad who’s a body builder. And so the kid ends up being a really young body builder. I feel like kids should be able to do more then they can in most games.
I’m obsessed with the preteen, child and toddler ideas! They look so good. The way the art has truly come to life and realistic while still your style is impressive.
Wow very detail and I looooove that there is gonna be a change of pre-teens!
omg, this is awesome! <3
I absolutely LOVE the art style and the attention to detail by including different body types. Also PRE-TEENS!? I'm so excited! I'm assuming thats a life stage between child and teen? I always thought it was odd that other games jump from a child that looks like 8 years old straight to someone who looks 16. Pre-teens makes aging seem so much more realistic. I can't wait to play this game someday! Updates like this make supporting y'all on Patreon so worth it <3
Oh my gosh the babies so cute.
THANK YOU, LESLY!
These are all so gorgeous! 😍 And the toddlers are so cute it SLAYS me.
The children look adorable!
That adorable little toddler!! I can’t wait to make a parafam
I’m in love with this new art style. The body concepts looks super cool as well!
Yes! This is so exciting. Thank you for showing some diversity in body!
the variety in body types and the fact that teens don’t look like adults >>>>> im-
These aren't teen, these are pre-teens it is between the child (boy) and teens
I love this insight in how it’s going! Thank you for sharing, it looks awesome so far 😁 I really appreciate all the love and care you put into everything you do. And I’m so excited about the pre-teens! 😁
I absolutely love the art style! Thanks for showing us so many steps of the development of the Paras, it's very interesting :)
This is so cool
The baby design has me literally gushing with anticipation!!!
I am. Vibrating. With excitement.
Félicitations !! .. le travail que vous faites est merveilleux et le style me plaît toujours et bien plus ;))
Wonderful work! I'm loving the body concepts and can't wait to see more!!
I can't deny that the parafolk art style has definitely grown on me; keep it up!
Aaawn I’m so happy that you worked with LeslyOH for the concepts, her art is amazing!!! Congrats on the award!!
Congratulations, you guys! You've earned it! These look amazing! Thank you so much for all your efforts!
Leslys art style matches PERFECTLY, it’s unique and fits the aesthetic you guys wanted! I was definitely blown away when I saw the updated parafolk in the Christmas video. I love the concept arts and I screamed when I saw the kids and toddlers! They look so adorable!
I love, love, love, love, love these designs. Can't wait to see more Parafolk in game. Also, congrats on winning most anticipated Canadian game, well deserved!
You're thinking about including pre teens? Thank you, I love it! 😍
That toddler is adorable!
Oh my god this is too cute! Ahhh! How adorable!
The kid designs look incredible!!
Oh my god I love them
I’m so excited for baby, child and teen Paras, because I believe the family play style will be crucial to this game’s success. I think the diaper in the second example is better, the first one looks more like a loincloth to me.
OMG THIS BABYYYYYY
OMG IM IN LOVE !
THOSE ARE THE CUTEST TODDLERS EVER!!! Those chubby cheeks and the little cow’s lick! Aw, I CANNOT WAIT FOR THIS GAME TO COME OUT
💗
Congratulations! 🥳
Congratulations! 🥳🥳🥳 And everything looks amazing. I’m so excited!
toooooooooooddlers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ok, well, now that i let that out. first congrats on the award, i voted for you guys and i'm really happy you all won! now, these bodies look so great! legit screamed when i saw them lol can't wai to see them in game! i have a question, though. the bodies are very much like a drawing, which i like, it's beautiful. i'm wondering if you guys are planning on making the texture of the world around them more like a drawing/sketch too, or if that's only for the bodies. right now the world looks more like it's "clay" or something like that, which is also nice! anyways, nice job!
Thank you Mari! We recently worked a lot on the Parafolk art style but we plan to improve the environment art style in the future as well. We'll test different tweaks to see what works best but the style between the characters and the environment won't probably be exactly the same. We think that the sketchy look of the characters make them stand out well in their environment so it's easier to spot your Paras on the screen. But even if the styles do not totally match, we're making sure that they still work well together
Gosh those body design are so cute. 😍🥰
That toddler boy is just perfection 😍
OMG the toddler and kids are so cute!! I love the art style and this makes me hyped all over again!
Also, it’s so exciting thinking about how I’ll be able to change my Paras height. Like I’m a very short adult, and it would be so cool to really be represented in a life sim where my kids could be taller than me lol.
I had a feeling there were going to be preteens and I'm very excited for their addition to the life simulation world! Kids don't just jump into teenagers!
Omg the concepts look so amazing. I really love the detail, in short I feel confident that I'll be able to make really nice looking paras of all body types. And the toddler concept is just blowing my mind, it's so adorable! 😍
OKAY PRETEENS???? best friday ever
Great work. I'm happy to support the team every month. I been supporting since Alex was the only one working on the game. I'm glad I got to be part of the early development when I found out about it. Thanks for everything that you do.
Oh god, I love those designs for kids. They look amazing
Congrats 👏 The art looks so good. The toddlers are adorable 😍
Congrats this looks so amazing. I can't wait
Congratulations! Ah, to finally see some parakids, I'm so happy! <3
Preteens??? Omg yes!! This is so exciting 😆😆 and the toddler is so freaking adorable 🥰
Oh I love Lesly's Art! They look so beautiful 🥰 Also, congratulations on the award 🥳
Thanks for sharing! It's so good to watch the game develop! I'm so excited to see more on the other age groups in future as well! You certainly deserve the award for anticipation!
Congrats! Everything looks amazing! Can't wait!
I love Lesly’s work! If that’s the art style you’re going for I can tell I’m going to completely love it. That said, I’m gonna need more of those toddler designs. Too cute!
Congratulation you guys!!!!❤️ I’m so proud of how far you have come!
Congrats on the award! Maggie looked sooo much better in the new video in comparison to the first one. The new models look great as well, very detailed and realistic :)
Congratulations! Also, OMG THE TODDLERS ARE SO CUTE!
Oh it all looks so amazing! THIS IS GOING TO BE THE BEST GAME EVER
Congratulations! The toddlers are going to be so adorable in this beautiful art style.
This looks beautiful but OMGGG LOOK AT THE BABY 😍😍😍🥰🥰
Ah! The kids look so cute. I love the style already honestly
I think having the option to remove body hair would be a nice little detail. All the work that is put into this game is so inspiring and exciting! I can’t wait to preorder!!
Congrats 🥰 it looks so good! 😍
Congrats guys!!! I can’t wait to see what the babies will look like and what we can do with them. The toddler is absolutely adorable!😩❤️
Excellent! Congratulations on a well-deserved award!! ❤😁❤
Pre-teens :D
I’m so in love with this!! 🤩👏🏻♥️♥️ and as you all well know. You deserved to win and I’m so proud of you all! This game is gonna be the best! 🙌🏻 love you all! - Tinks 🐇🌹
Congratulations on the award!!! You guys deserved it ❤️
Congratulations on the award!! ❤️
She looks really good in comparison! Congrats on the well deserved award!
looks so good! and congratulations, well deserved :)
The toddler is so cute. I just wanna squeeze them!!!
Congrats on the award!!!