So, while I’m not super thrilled with Linkle – I am kind of grateful they didn’t base her appearance off Zhurong/Zhu Rong from Koei’s Dynasty Warriors series (or literally any character from Team Ninja’s Dead or Alive series).

If you’re confused why she’s blond and amazon cosplaying… so is basically everyone else since she is based off Lady Zhurong from the actual Romance of the Three Kingdoms novel, who looked more like this:

And this is how she looked in Koei’s Romance of the Three Kingdom’s game.

It is an eternal mystery, the answer to which is probably known only to a small cabal of Creepy Marketing Guys.

– wincenworks

A friend suggested to me to bingo Tier Harribel from Bleach in her final form. And it kind of broke my mind. Not just by how amazingly bad it is, but how it builds on top of problems with her previous appearance.

Initially it seems that the two main issues with her original design are the bared belly and the jacket that is boobsock-y (also underboob-y, in manga)…

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…then we get to see what she looks like with that top open and, well…

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Hopefully I’m not the only person who finds the face to be the least shocking thing she kept hidden under that top.

And yes, apparently her bingoed form is also more underbooby in the manga.

Obviously none of her male friends get such an “empowered” update.

~Ozzie

Preemptive warning to those who are typing lore-heavy responses:
The fact that she’s a supernatural creature rather than a mortal human and that the white bone-like parts (including the nipples, *shudder*) are remnants of her older form does not justify the obvious sexualization of the design.

edit: Thanks to @icykitty for pointing out I forgot to cross out the most crucial bingo square here: “More advanced armor = skimpier”.

It didn’t take long for people to point out that Linkle looks distinctly like Elf from Dragon’s Crown, only with crossbows and some small style changes:

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But personally my bigger issue is why does Linkle need thigh high boots, ridiculous dual crossbows (good luck reloading) and to look so adorable when Link looks like this:

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I mean it’s Hyrule Warriors – the core gameplay is literally smashing armies and bosses in a war across Hyrule.  So there should less this:

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More this:

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– wincenworks

More on Hyrule Warriors

This Dragon’s Crown Statue Is Freaking Me Out

This Dragon’s Crown Statue Is Freaking Me Out

@ajhasaplan submitted:

Front page of Kotaku.

What in the shit.

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The history of this Dragon’s Crown statue is a wild ride that keeps on going.  Originally it appears it was unlicensed, then it was licensed for an exhibition and limited release only within Japan in 2013. And when the world saw how the stylized Amazon looked like when she was represented as something three dimensional, they were horrified.

Now apparently the figure is going to be given a second shot – no word on if they’ll be selling this outside of Japan.  But the article provides a pretty great summary of how opinions have warmed:

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But really what I love about this statue is that it highlights just how limiting this kind of character design is.  It’s not horrifying because they’ve departed from the original design principles, it’s horrifying because in a 3D form that encourages examination – it’s no longer shielded by distraction and the expectation of acceptance due to it’s dependence on tropes.

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Seriously, nothing about this design was ever anything less than horrifying – it’s just (poorly) concealed behind distractions and rhetoric about it being some sort of statement about the fantasy adventure genre.

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Seriously whether it’s the question of where does the rest of her body go, or what is happening with her “armor” everyone one of these action shots is a moment of horror in the making.

– wincenworks

This Dragon’s Crown Statue Is Freaking Me Out

This Dragon’s Crown Statue Is Freaking Me Out