What are the best video games for character customization?

December 12, 2006 10:41 AM

What video games have the broadest, most flexible character customization features?

I love using create-a-character modes in video games to create simulacra of friends, family and others. You usually find this sort of thing in fighting and wrestling games, but perhaps it's available in other genres as well. What games will give me the broadest range of options to work with? Hairstyles, facial hair and body shape and size always seem to be the categories that are the most lacking.

I'm mainly interested in games for the PS2, but if you know of something amazing on another system, by all means let me know.

posted by Faint of Butt to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (18 answers total)

The Sims 2
posted by dirtynumbangelboy at 10:45 AM on December 12, 2006

I think the latest and greatest Tiger Woods games from EA sports have a pretty wide range of attributes to tweak. At least the PSP version did so I'm sure the console version will be more robust. What cracked me up is when you made your character more muscular, he seemed to take notice and get really impressed with his newfound mass.
posted by neilkod at 10:54 AM on December 12, 2006

Also, check out the Tony Hawk series
posted by neilkod at 10:54 AM on December 12, 2006

I also like the Tiger Woods games for the Xbox. Loads of fun, although I can't seem to anyone not look Asian.

Oblivion for the PC was okay, but I played in 1st person view and never saw it.

I assume you like the process of manipulating the characters by hand, as opposed to the latest trend of having the game take your picture and creepily superimpose it over the model.

Most PC games with any customization options offer the chance to edit the texture maps to great effect.
posted by JeremiahBritt at 10:55 AM on December 12, 2006

MMOs make this kind of thing their stock-in-trade. Here's a couple:

City Of Heroes. Very deep character creator, complete with three axis-based sliders for about ten different facial features. Tens of hairstyles, facial hair options, different base faces, so on.

Second Life. Extensive character shaping, though it has not aged well. I'm sure that a trained and steady hand could create practically any human face, but results are a bit slipshod even for me (and I've been doing this MMO thing for years).
posted by grabbingsand at 11:00 AM on December 12, 2006

URU - Ages beyond Myst
posted by -harlequin- at 11:15 AM on December 12, 2006

Morrowind
posted by iconomy at 11:18 AM on December 12, 2006

Best answer: City of Heroes has a standalone character designer if you just want to play with it.

I've only been able to find the Korean version, but this message board posting explains how to hack it to change it to English.

Caveat: I've never run the standalone designer, but since the download is from CoH's official Korean site, it should be safe.
posted by flipper at 11:19 AM on December 12, 2006

Nintendo Wii! You can spend hours making your character to look like anyone you want!
You can check out this page to see other people's Miis http://miiplaza.net/index
posted by PowerCat at 11:44 AM on December 12, 2006

Thirding the Tiger Woods games, and seconding the Wii.
posted by mrhaydel at 12:58 PM on December 12, 2006

I third City of Heroes and City of Villains. Most of the people I know who play these spend almost as much time with the pretty-pretty-princess stuff as they do playing the actual game.
posted by vorfeed at 2:59 PM on December 12, 2006

Remember that once you cross the MMORPG line, you'll most likely become an addict. I suggest you stay far away from City of X and other MMORPG.
posted by PowerCat at 3:14 PM on December 12, 2006

Unreal Tournament has fairly robust character design capabilities.
Deus Ex: Invisible War lets you play as a man or woman, and the plot unfolds slightly differently depending on your selection.
posted by fvox13 at 3:53 PM on December 12, 2006

You mention it in your post, but any one of the WWE wrestling games for the PS2 has an amazing level of customizability.
posted by MegoSteve at 4:10 PM on December 12, 2006

Soul Calibur III offers a robust character creator, though like most generators it emphasizes costume over physical characteristics.
posted by Iridic at 4:30 PM on December 12, 2006

Karaoke Revolution has a nice character generator. I really like the 5-axis body type designator. It needs more faces to choose from though -- the ladies are not well-represented.
posted by Rock Steady at 4:58 PM on December 12, 2006

While not exactly a character creator, the old Sierra game Police Quest (or maybe it was PQ 2) had a segment with a sketch artist, where you'd tell the artist "no, the woman I saw at the scene had a chubbier face", and the sketch would change to match.. Sierra titles were famous for including lots of little games within games, many of which would've been quite competent little toys if released on their own.

There are some entertaining face creators on the net, many of them are flash-based now. I understand this isn't quite on target for your original question, but it's worth mentioning.
posted by Myself at 5:38 PM on December 12, 2006

Godfather. Game is mediocre, the character customization is amazing, provided you're a dude.
posted by Phred182 at 9:12 PM on December 12, 2006