/vt/ - Virtual Youtubers

>>74824754
One thing to note with regards to TF2's style is that it thrives because it's built uniformly in an environment where each of the characters are made to match one another. While that's not bad designing on its own, and in fact is really good for recognizability and cosplay, you need to also keep in mind that the only reason why you remember their designs is because TF2 is also an already-successful game made by a highly successful company, and the cast is generally carried design-wise by both its success and fans' favorability to them. I'd argue if TF2 wasn't as well-known or as well-crafted of a game as it is, many people would mock the designs for being uncreative and generic.

I'd say another simpler example is something like pic related. If you look at this concept, it's mostly just a few major components:
>Waist-length jacket
>Loafers
>Baggy pants
>Crazy hairstyle
The first three are extremely easy to replicate, and any person who can get their hands on those can find a way to color match them to whatever they're aiming for. The accessories are present, but those are all similarly extremely easy to make while also being flashy enough to stand out. While opening the jacket up might be considered hard for some, a common cosplayer might simply give up on trying to deal with the heart-shaped bending of the coat, and instead just use white fabric and plaster it over top to make the shape they want anyways, still getting the full aesthetic. In fact the only part of his design that would be genuinely hard to do is the wig, but people sell the wigs online anyways, and worst case scenario, if that's the /only/ barrier for a full cosplay, people will bite the bullet, look up guides, and spend whatever money they need to to get that one component done, knowing that's going to be /the/ pain in the ass. And again, if this series wasn't as massively popular and widely renown as it is, this would /also/ be mocked for being a generic gakuran with a little heart-shaped chest "thing". Both cases work well conceptually, it's ultimately about making your simple work stand out, but also recognize that simple isn't a guarantee of success, just a modifier for design theory.