Design Service - Desert Oasis

Well, I’m back in business, for the moment; but, right now, I want to talk about, in addition to new designs, setting expectations.

The most recent SKINR snafu, which apparently the edges are still being ironed out, really brought home in a very graphic manner just how much expectations shape our perception of value.

In this thread:

I posed the question did CCP owe us, their “captive” consumers, accurate representation of the final product (the skin) at the point of sale.

For those not inclined to read/reread the thread this is an example of what I’m writing about:


There are very obvious visual differences between the two images. The image on the right of your screen is what I the designer “designed” and the image on the left is how the game engine during the “snafu” rendered the design when applied in game.

Well, anyone would complain about that kind of difference. And, I, for one, did.

It is my firm belief the skin, when applied for the very first time on a ship should mimic as closely as possible the sales image presented in the Paragon Hub. I won’t waver from this stance.

However, there is a certain amount of latitude I’m willing to indulge.

To my mind, what follows are acceptable, and certainly to be expected, and allowed without complaint, differences, between point-of-sale and application:

Point-of-sale images:


Image Two:

(Please bear in mind, this is a Tootsie’s skin. The color change is intentional and “baked” into the design.)

Images after application, in game:


Image Two:

Now, I personally find this “difference” in execution perfectly acceptable. I’m allowing for the in game lighting, the ambiance of the station, the accumulated grime on the ship.

The Daredevil where color is missing, and the pattern “vanished”…is not.

But, what happens, when eventually CCP redesigns a ship? Changes the layout. The megathron of EVE’s conception, while recognizable, is nothing like the modern day design. Textures, visuals, even the shape is subtly different.

And, if you could go back in time, and design a ship skin on a SKINR, of yesteryear, for the megathron…well, it wouldn’t look good, at all, on the contemporary iteration, without lots and lots and lots and lots (well, you get the idea) of tinkering.

Does CCP owe us, their “captive” consumers that…tinkering?

Honestly, on that question, I am of two minds; but the arguments pro/con fall out conclusively on the…nots.

SKINR is a hotbed of code. I think I would wish CCP to spend their efforts on other areas of the game, tbh, rather than taking every individual skin and somehow “manually” updating each skin to match each ship, after an update.

Unless there is someway to take a static “snapshot” and make it apply when hulls are updated, I think in the end, the more complex a pattern (I’m writing in terms of the overall design of skin) the less likely it is to stand the “test of time”.

And, I think we, the “captive” consumers may just have to come to grips with that.

Life and EVE is a matter of juggling limited resources, cosmetics, in life and in game, are non-essentials.

How long these non-essentials should have as a “shelf-life” is a matter for another debate, and outside the scope of this post.

And considering this whole thread is a “service” thread, showcasing my “goods”, I’ll close it with snaps of a malediction:

This is a work in progress:

And also a Tootsie’s design, so best seen on a 3k screen/monitor, cause it is an active color change skin.

Activating “scroll wheel, Captain, o7”

You can change the color, at any step of the “clicks” and the game will remember.

Since, I’m talking about “truth in advertising”, the pilots viewing your Tootsie’s have the same option. So, we can all look at your ship and see basically…but, not exactly…the same thing. At the same time. :slight_smile:

o7

This topic was automatically closed 90 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.

New Tootsie’s…hot off the production line…

Close up:

Use your mouse scroll wheel for a distance view, and…

…the ship skin changes entirely. Instead of solid gold, you have ivory and gold stars, and a medium blue.

What you see, he sees, she sees, and they see depends entirely upon where “the scroll wheel stops.”

And those stars, against the navy blue background? They really do sparkle…

Available by request:

Tootsie’s Blue:

Use your mouse’s scroll wheel to view close up? And you get an entirely different color combination:

Disclaimer: All Tootsie’s skin are best viewed on a 4K monitor.

Tootsie’s Blue is one skin. That’s right just one skin. You pay for one skin and get two color combinations, :slight_smile:

Available by request:

Tootsie’s 2 Tones

This is one dynamic skin, with two color variations. Seen close up:

And, if you use your scroll wheel to view your ship at a distance:

All Tootsie’s skins are best viewed on a 4K monitor.

Currently available:

As with all Tootsie’s skins, it’s best seen on a 4K screen.

And the “close up” color version:

It’s just one skin. :slight_smile:

This skin is currently available in the Hub. Just use your mouse scroll wheel to watch it change color.

Sometimes you hit upon a color combination you really like, that was the case with “Blue Ghost”.

So, the Succubus version…

This pattern on this hull reminded me of the iridescent beetles you sometimes see.

Maybe its the shape of the hull…

But, just like those beetles in real life, you don’t expect that variation…

… or maybe not.

As with all Tootsie’s skins, it’s best viewed on a 4K screen.

No matter where the mouse’s scroll wheel stops…

…it is just one skin.

The Barghest is a particular favorite of mine.

As seen here, in post 5:

And here, again:

But, after Blue Ghost, I wanted to try something entirely different for a Tootsie’s skin.

So, I started here:

It’s a nice skin in it’s own right, but the Barghest…well, with the Barghest you can add, amazingly enough, an entirely different skin on top of that “basic navy”, like this:

or this:

or this:

or this even:

or…this:

I particularly like this one, that whole camo in the grass snake thing just speaks to me.

Anyhow, with the Barghest and that “basic navy” skin you can pop any number of amazing skins right on top and get two skins, for one price.

The “basic navy” and who knows? Maybe this:

Or even this:

It’s a Tootsie’s skin, and just a scroll wheel away…

Disclaimer (again):

This is a Tootsie’s skin…best seen on a 4K screen. As with all Tootsie’s skins you just use your mouse’s scroll wheel to determine the look you want.

So can everyone else looking at you. What you see, he sees, she sees, and they see are all dependent upon where the scroll wheel lands.

As this is an advanced Tootsie’s it is only available upon request. Everyone ordering one of these skins gets the “basic navy”:

The “add on”, “flip side”, “variation”, however you want to put it, is entirely dependent upon…you.

o7

Currently available for order:

Nightmare - Tootsie’s Blue Ghost

It’s another Tootsie’s skin…

…so it’s appearance changes with your scroll wheel.

Please note in this close up shot there is no hint of orange/rust as depicted in the first two shots.

It’s all up to you, where the scroll wheel lands…

Standard disclaimer: Tootsie’s skins are best seen on a 4K screen. They are dynamic and will change appearance depending upon viewing distance and environment (lighting) in game. Beware!