The problem I have with the character creator in The Elder Scrolls Online is not that it lacks power; it’s got that. My problem is that there seems to be little to no way to actually create a character that looks, well, normal. I’ve got tons of sliders to manage, but no matter how much careful massaging I do, there’s a vaguely corpse-like look hanging around characters, like the uncanny valley of unattractiveness.
It’s not alone in that regard, though; both Blade & Soul and Revelation Online offered quite powerful character creators that did not seem well suited to my goals of making a reasonably good-looking character who also looked like a human being. Sometimes I find myself actually preferring slightly weaker creators like Final Fantasy XIV for just that reason; at least I’m not fighting with the game to make a character that I’m reasonably happy with.
Of course, there are lots of creators that have problems, now or in the past; I can’t forget about World of Warcraft’s anemic option list, or the bizarre mask-faces and flipper hands of City of Heroes, or the rather severe body type differences in Star Wars: The Old Republic. So what about you? What character creators in MMORPGs frustrate you to no end?
Every morning, the Massively Overpowered writers team up with mascot Mo to ask MMORPG players pointed questions about the massively multiplayer online roleplaying genre. Grab a mug of your preferred beverage and take a stab at answering the question posed in today’s Daily Grind!
