Doll Maker's Diary, Part 20: A Mythical Endeavor and Other Doll Creator Games

Doll Maker's Diary, Part 20: A Mythical Endeavor and Other Doll Creator Games

One of my recent side projects in the Heroine Fan Art Creator was to depict at least one of the STAR Agents as mythical deities or warriors. Even though the story takes place in the present day, I could not resist the temptation to ask the question, "What if the STAR Agents were taken to ancient times where gods and warriors reigned supreme"? I started off with the oldest one, Tiffany Ward, before moving on to her closest friend, Katie Parker, having taken a liking to the whole idea early on. So here they are, clad in armor befitting of a goddess - or an elite soldier in ancient times, come to think of it.

Above: Artwork depicting Katie Parker and Tiffany Ward as archers from a long-lost age. Below: The same characters as ancient mythical warrior goddesses.

I was generally pleased with the result; in particular, Katie looked very much like an angel in the first picture, even though she did not have wings. Then again, considering that inhabitants of Heaven tend to be depicted mostly in gold and white outfits, it makes perfect sense. Both of the warrior goddess artworks, on the other hand, were done primarily in the respective character's favorite color.

Given that the results I obtained were very appealing, it should not be too difficult to imagine applying a similar costume to the doll of your choice. Speaking of myth and legend, there are several other games from DollDivine (the programmer of the Heroine Fan Art Creator) which convey a similar feeling. The Tudor Dress Up Game gives you the opportunity to create a doll in the style of Victorian-era royalty, while the Lord of the Rings Dress Up Game, with its options to create wizards, dwarves, and elves in addition to regular humans, is reminiscent of, well... Lord of the Rings. As for the Game of Thrones Dress Up Game, it easily captures the feel of the HBO series it's based on. There's also a Goddess Dress Up Game where you can create scenes themed after Greco-Roman mythology. However, if ice-skating princesses are more your thing, the Snow Queen Scene Maker game will suit you just fine. Finally, despite having a much more recent period theme (the mid-19th to early 20th centuries, if I am not mistaken), the Velvet Dress Up Game gives you a chance to make a doll which might as well resemble a goddess if you choose the right combination of items and colors. Here are some examples of sketches I made with them.

Above, from top: Examples of artworks made using the Goddess, Lord of the Rings, Tudor, Game of Thrones, Snow Queen Scene Maker, and Velvet Dress Up Games.

And last but not least, I would like to announce a Happy New Year to anyone making virtual dolls with anything from Doll Divine. To that end, my New Year's resolution is clear: I must explore these Flash games further in order to find out all the possibilities that await me. So watch this space.

Confessions of an Automationeer, Part 55: New Year's Resolutions

Confessions of an Automationeer, Part 55: New Year's Resolutions

Happy New Year to all my fellow Automationeers! Here, I will share my New Year's resolutions as an Automationeer. They are as follows:

• Host another CSR round. Having hosted a CSR round once for each of the past three years, I know what it's like to take the reins of this wonderful recurring competition. It's challenging, for sure, but getting it right makes it very rewarding indeed. To have any chance of hosting a CSR, one must either win the previous round or explicitly state that they are ready to host the next round if none of the users finishing ahead of him/her are able to. I have never achieved the former as yet, but it could happen this year - or it might not. Which is why my next resolution is more realistic.
• Try out the latest Content Update for the UE4 version. After what seems like an eternity, the UE4 release will receive lots of new content (fixtures, car bodies, etc.); some of it will be ported over from the earlier Kee Engine version, while the rest will be completely new. This will give me a prime opportunity to...
• Improve my car exterior design skills in Automation. There's a whole forum thread dedicated to Automation car design, and even though it only covers the 90s, the 2000s and the 2010s (so far), it's still very useful when creating designs from these . Anyone - including you and me - can visit it here if they need advice: http://discourse.automationgame.com/t/tips-and-tricks-to-automation-car-design/24960
• Enjoy the benefits of any bugfixes that result from updates. By this, I mean that the bugfixes will make certain car bodies easier to work with. Specifically, most mid-engined bodies cannot accommodate very large engines for their size due to a bug in how engine bay size calculations are handled. Hopefully this will be fixed in short order, along with several others.
• Improve my engineering skills in Automation. This is the area of the game where I am strongest, but I still feel like there is room for improvement. Knowing which engineering (which covers the chassis and engine tabs) and trim choices work best for the demographic(s) and market(s) you're aiming for is the key to developing a highly competitive car in Automation, especially in the campaign mode, where you take control of a whole car company over several decades.

There are other things I would like to accomplish as an Automationeer in 2019, but the five items I have listed above are the most important of all. In the meantime, stay tuned to see whether or not I keep any (or all) of these New Year's Resolutions - I promise you it will be an exciting journey.