In design, it is very important to learn about your subjects. You need to know how they are built, where they come from and what makes them what they are. The same goes for animals. Knowing their skeletons & muscle structure, where their natural habitat is and their usual diet really helps you to design them in a very convincing and believable way. But how do you differentiate between an animal & a creature?
From Animal To Creature – Finding The Line
Everyone can tell the difference between a wolf and a werewolf. While they are very similar in name and often even in looks… Nobody would call a werewolf an animal even though you sometimes can’t even tell the difference between a normal wolf and their counterpart. For most, a werewolf is undoubtedly a creature. With his fangs and often humanoid body it gives most people the creeps. But sometimes it is not that simple. So to make sure we can differentiate between an animal and a creature, let’s take a cow as an example.
A Cow Isn’t Always Just A Cow
As you can see, animals in games, especially when they are more realistic, are very easy to define. While the cow in the right picture from The Witcher 3 is designed and artificially made, everyone will see it as a real animal. If you kill too many of those cows in the starting village to farm gold… The game will spawn a secret boss monster.
While this beast is also related to a cow, it definitely falls into the category of a creature. It looks uncanny, spooky and doesn’t look like a normal cow at all. So does that mean an animal turns into a creature as soon as it doesn’t look like the real thing anymore? No. Definitely not.
If we look at these two examples, Milttank from Pokemon (Left) and the stylized dairy cow from Harvest Moon (Right), it is very obvious that both of them are cows. While they are both very similar with their roundish features and cute appearance, Miltank is generally considered a creature while the dairy cow is a simple animal. But why? It’s quite simple.
Miltank can use various moves to defeat other Pokemons which comes close to magic for those of you who aren’t familiar with the Pokemon Franchise. Pokemons in general also don’t usually make animal sounds but they rather say their names over and over again.
The dairy cow from Harvest Moon is just a simple cattle. You can brush it, feed it, milk it and even get it pregnant to expand the number of farm animals you have. While it looks rather different, it acts just like any other cow would.
As you can see, a cow isn’t always a cow. Just like a creature isn’t always a creature.
Fantasy Animals & Real Creatures
A lot of people would argue that a creature is something that doesn’t exist in real life while animals are exactly the opposite. But that’s not quite right. Most of the time, people call something a creature that makes them feel uncomfortable or is unknown to them. The most famous and popular real-life creatures can be found in the deep seas. They are widely unexplored territories and a lot of animals living down there give people the creeps because of how unreal and spooky they look. Which is why they are commonly known as ‘Deep Sea Creatures’. They look uncanny and look like something straight out of a nightmare.
But just like creatures can be a real thing, fantasy animals are as well. There are many different games out there that have tons of monsters inside them. There are even some cases where people have grown so fond of those fantastic creations that they consider them actual animals and pets.
On your left, you can see Noctis (the main protagonist from Final Fantasy 15) ride a so-called Chocobo. Those birds are very famous in the Final Fantasy universe. They are very loyal companions you can use as mounts to travel through the vast lands of the respective part you’re playing.
Another famous fantasy animal is the Palico Cats from the Monster Hunter series. They are used for various different things over the years and in the latest additions they even fight along your side, buff you or even collect items for you. Either way, neither the Chocobo nor the Palico Cat are commonly referred to as ‘creatures’ but rather ‘animals’.
Making Of – Design Is Everything
Now that we’ve gone through a lot of different animals and creatures to make sure we get the gist of it, it is time that we talk about the design and how artists create both animals and creatures.
Designing Animals
I think we all can agree on the fact that animals tend to be rather cute and adorable. They give us a feeling of familiarity and comfort. We know them in and out. Even the features of fantasy animals are pulled from realism. Using big round shapes is key in order to ensure that the design looks friendly and cute. Of course, rules are there to be broken but if you go too hard on sharp and edgy shapes, your animal could quickly turn into an uncanny creature.
So if you want to create a unique creature, the best way to do it is to pull up a lot of references from the internet. A little bit of bunny here, maybe some deer there and we already have created something entirely new. But don’t be shy to also pull from other sources than animals! Use plants, stones and even buildings to get inspired and create something memorable!
Designing Creatures
As we already confirmed, the line between creatures and animals can sometimes be rather thin. The easiest way to create a creature is to go down the dark fantasy and horror path. Use edgy and spiky shapes, make them look uncanny and spooky and voila! You’ve got yourself a creepy creature people would never dare to touch.
We already mentioned in the ‘designing animals’ chapter, that pulling from references is vital for the design. It’s rather easy to redesign an already existing animal into a new creature. Just take whatever animal you think is best, give it some interesting new features and color patterns… Aaand you’re done!
But the real challenge comes when you try to create a new and fascinating creature. Making something entirely new and still believable, it takes a lot more work and research. Decide where his natural habitat is going to be, what his diet is going to be and make sure to use a lot… and I mean… A LOT… of references.
The Design Needs To Be Believable
Whether you’re designing an animal or a creature, there is one thing you need to consider: Make it believable! No matter how your creature looks, what the story behind it is or in what world they live in, if they don’t fit in, you lose all the immersiveness.
Just look at the Monster Hunter franchise. They have so many if not hundreds of creatures, all of them unique in their own ways. But each of them is believable. No matter if it is Diabolos in the Desert (left) or the Lagiacrus who lives in the depths of the waters. You can immediately tell where they are at home and you wouldn’t question it for even one bit. One way to do this is to look at the color those creatures have. The light and dusty brown of Diablos makes him blend into his environment just like the blue scales on the Lagiacrus skin. If you’ve played the game, you also know that their movement speaks for themselves. The concept artists who created those creatures also made sure that the textures on their bodies would fit their environment. While the Lagiacrus has shiny and almost fish-like scales, Diablos looks a lot like a real-life desert lizard with its rough and leathery surface.
As you can see they have put a lot of thought in their creature design and didn’t just create them randomly. The same should go for your own creatures and animals. No matter if you want them to live on a tropical island or a frozen desert, make sure they look and feel the part!
Being able to differentiate between an animal and a creature is essential for anyone who wants to be a designer. But in the end, it is a very personal opinion if something is considered an animal or a creature. It all comes down to preference, context and style. So no matter what kind of project you are working on, make sure you do your research and understand how the world around your animals and creatures works. If you have any more questions, please let us know!
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