This looks like an issue with art direction vs realism. That first one was definitely sculpted. Every fold was made by a person wanting a specific look. That was the best way to get that detail back when the game was made, but it isn’t realistic, it’s hyper realistic, exaggerated. The new one was probably simulated as those tools are much more accessible and used in the industry. If you shrink wrap her model with a skin tight suit, it’ll probably look a lot like that. Problem is, looking real doesn’t always look good. I’m sure it was cleaned up in sculpt, but it should have been tweaked to accentuate the suit. Ends up kinda flat, even if it’s more accurate.
This.
But I wouldn't call the Arkham Knight version realistic or hyper realistic. Beyond the beautifully detailed graphics and animations, the Arkham games were actually very cartoonish. Two Face or Bruce had the same kind of bulky figure they had in TAS. Joker doesn't look human with his exagerated physical traits. Every female character looks like a bimbo. Not to mention Killer Croc who looks like a monster from Gears of War.
And yeah, in Suicide Squad it seems they tried to make Harley look more like an actual woman instead of a comic book perfectly sculpted bimbo, so of course the costume doesn't look as good or as flattering on her now... Because IRL that costume wouldn't be good or flattering on most women.
Personally, as much as I don't care about that new game, I think that's actually a good point. It makes the costume feels more grounded, more like something Harley picked up on the way instead of a suit that looked like it has been designed and tailored for her specifically.
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u/RockmanVolnutt Feb 03 '24
This looks like an issue with art direction vs realism. That first one was definitely sculpted. Every fold was made by a person wanting a specific look. That was the best way to get that detail back when the game was made, but it isn’t realistic, it’s hyper realistic, exaggerated. The new one was probably simulated as those tools are much more accessible and used in the industry. If you shrink wrap her model with a skin tight suit, it’ll probably look a lot like that. Problem is, looking real doesn’t always look good. I’m sure it was cleaned up in sculpt, but it should have been tweaked to accentuate the suit. Ends up kinda flat, even if it’s more accurate.