Concepts for cgtalk's video game art contest

[Adam]

Hey - a friend and I are working on cgtalk's latest contest, "design a video game character or characters based on a twisted fairy tale." Well, my friend and I chose John Henry (tall tale, close enough) :P Anyways, this is my first sketch of him:
http://bombshelter.ghostopsmod.com/pics/jh/concept01.jpg
He was supposed to have chains between his wrists, but i forgot to put them in...also, that thing on his left hand is supposed to be a railroad stake attaching his hand to his hammer forever...or something :-P Should he be more zombified, etc? Any feedback you guys have would be great!

[usagi yojimbo]

looks good but i the light source is kinda inconsistant, i think the hammer would be a lot darker and thw shadow on the forehead wouldnt be like that.

he looks pretty zombified to me, but i dont really know the character youre basing it on

[Adam]

he's based on John Henry ;) you're dead on about the lighting problem though - i kind of just stopped paying attention to my lightsource when i started markering in the hammer...woops :P it was a pretty quick sketch, but i really need to keep an eye on that stuff...

other things i'm pretty sure i botched:
- the feet
- the damn suspicious bulge on the outside of his right thigh :P
- the left arm is a bit stubby
- balancing the stuff i shade with pen and the stuff i shade with marker

[Adam]

new hammer design (quick and dirty)
http://bombshelter.ghostopsmod.com/pics/jh/concept02.jpg

[empty]

he looks too much like Steel, from dc comics

i think you need to design is attire to move away from that association. don't leave him barechested. maybe have him wear a ammo belt over his shoulder with railroad ties or a "utility belt" with smaller hammers. just something that will make not see Steel. i remember fairy tale books that showed john henry with a hammer in each hand, maybe you should take that idea and put a holster with two hammers on each side, like an old west double holster.

i know it's in progress, but in the final version, don't leave it in greyscale markers. this adds to that Steel association. even just slight color would make i visually different.

ass for the hammer, i like the left side more than the right. it seems more solid and heavy duty. i don't understand what the three pipes would be for. seems to me they might get snagged on something when he's swinging it. if you want support like that connect them them to the hammmer all the way through.

the one thing i don't like about the left side is the bolts. remember, john henry was supposed to be able to do is job faster and better than a machine. if he's slamming that hammer down constantly with so much force behind it for 24 hours straight, those bolts are gonna stick out lick that, they're gonna flatten over that time period. if you want bolts put them around the side, even though i wouldn't suggest it, cuz, again, they might snag as he swings it.

just my thoughts.

good luck with it. i'd like to see it pushed more.