Strange Doll

[Jacob]

I'm kind of a big geek when it comes to collectibles, and this has been on my mind recently.. Obviously I would never expect a change like this to just happen because a random member like myself asked, but I have a suggestion that I personally think is worth saying before the halloween event ends.


To the staff: Is there any possibility the Strange Doll could be modified to have the black and white 2px border to match the original weird doll? To me at least, that's kind of a big part of why it looks so appealing, and works in lineups even though it'a just a random vector image not animal crossing related.


As a set, I think its important that the backgrounds are already matching, and that looks really nice, but there is a disconnect without the border. I think I've seen some other people suggest this at other points in the events, so I don't think it would take too many people by surprise, especially if a change like that was made before people bought it from the shop.

In order to maybe visualize what the difference would be, I threw together a super quick version of what it might look like with the classic border just to see if it's even worth making the change and suggesting in the first place. Honestly, I think it looks infinite time better, even as such a small change:

Spoiler: Pics

I'm not sure if this is supposed to stay in The Woods, or if it belongs in HQ or even Contact the Staff, so please move it for me if it belongs somewhere else (And I apologize in advance if so).

I guess as an open thread- leave your thoughts below? If you're in support for something like this, do you have anything to add that might support?

 

[That Marshal Fangirl]

That actually looks so much better. Can we fix this please?

 

[Raayzx]

I think it looks better! Its barely noticeable tho

 

[Alienfish]

That actually looks so much better. Can we fix this please?

yes the edges should def match the weird one...please ;;

 

[Stella-Io]

New Woods Expedition 3 poll: Strange Doll have a border or nah?

I hadn't even noticed that the new one didn't have a border like the old one does. I want to say it adds to visibility (what parts of the doll are seen, since the border does cut out very small parts of it) but if they are going to be together then I think they should have a border to match the other one. Need to have that consistency.

 

[Heyden]

I definitely think it looks more refined with the border. Most collectibles have that dark lineart around the image to accentuate it from the border, and the weird doll’s border kind of does that, so strange looks a little disparate. Also it would be cool if they were unique like the OG as a callback

 

[Jeremy]

Using the old border was considered, but we ultimately decided to match its border to all of the other collectibles since it would be more common than the Weird Doll. Weird Doll existed before "collectibles" were even a thing, which is why it looks so different. This became an issue for Strange Doll because it would have to be inconsistent with either the Weird Doll or the rest of the collectibles. I actually considered the idea of updating the Weird Doll to match everything else, but I've been told that people would be upset about this because the ugly border adds to its charm.

Another thing to keep in mind about these collectibles is that they weren't actually intended to be a "set." Since there are so few Weird Dolls, not many users could display them together. For this reason, it would make more sense to have it match every other collectible. There are pros and cons to both borders though. One benefit of the old border is that it better contains the overflowing doll image, whereas most of our collectibles' images don't touch the edges as much. I don't think the decision to use the modern border is set in stone, but it would definitely be odd (weird?) to add a new collectible with the old border. There is actually a subtle reference to the white inner border of the old one, but it's behind the doll and barely noticeable.

We're open to hearing what more people think about this.

 

[Oblivia]

I was originally in favor of using the old frame border, but after thinking on it a bit more I feel it's better to have a border that matches the other 99.9% of the collectibles on the site. I can absolutely understand why those who already own a Weird Doll would want that and the Strange Doll to appear as more of a "set" so to speak, but we didn't release the Strange Doll to be a counterpart to the Weird Doll; it was more so to allow people who don't/will never own a Weird Doll to have something equally cute that also matches the rest of their collectibles. Hope that makes sense!

 

[AlyssaAC]

Both look really good in my opinion, but I will admit, the old border looks much better. I'm in support for the change.

 

[Zane]

it looks good both ways but the more i look at that black border the more it grows on me

 

[LambdaDelta]

sometimes I wonder what it'd be like if everything had the framed border

 

[kikotoot]

I like the lack of a black frame more because this doll is also more colourful. with the yellow black and white of the old one, the black border added to the target-y feel of it, but with the new collectible it would feel like it was there just to mesh with the old doll

 

[Jacob]

Using the old border was considered, but we ultimately decided to match its border to all of the other collectibles since it would be more common than the Weird Doll. Weird Doll existed before "collectibles" were even a thing, which is why it looks so different. This became an issue for Strange Doll because it would have to be inconsistent with either the Weird Doll or the rest of the collectibles. I actually considered the idea of updating the Weird Doll to match everything else, but I've been told that people would be upset about this because the ugly border adds to its charm.

Another thing to keep in mind about these collectibles is that they weren't actually intended to be a "set." Since there are so few Weird Dolls, not many users could display them together. For this reason, it would make more sense to have it match every other collectible. There are pros and cons to both borders though. One benefit of the old border is that it better contains the overflowing doll image, whereas most of our collectibles' images don't touch the edges as much. I don't think the decision to use the modern border is set in stone, but it would definitely be odd (weird?) to add a new collectible with the old border. There is actually a subtle reference to the white inner border of the old one, but it's behind the doll and barely noticeable.

We're open to hearing what more people think about this.

I was originally in favor of using the old frame border, but after thinking on it a bit more I feel it's better to have a border that matches the other 99.9% of the collectibles on the site. I can absolutely understand why those who already own a Weird Doll would want that and the Strange Doll to appear as more of a "set" so to speak, but we didn't release the Strange Doll to be a counterpart to the Weird Doll; it was more so to allow people who don't/will never own a Weird Doll to have something equally cute that also matches the rest of their collectibles. Hope that makes sense!

For the most part I agree that if consistency needs to be broken it should definitely match the newer look of collectible borders, and the more I look at the Strange doll I think the fact that it touches over multiple edges is what is the most off putting (to me at least, I'm sure a lot of people don't even care about a lot of this).

I'm not sure if it's been considered by you guys yet because there are a lot of elements to the Strange Doll that feel worked out, like the subtle white border, size of it, etc, but the white part of the original weird doll border frames the doll in a way that crops it a little bit and actually makes it look fairly different. The hair and leg for example gets cropped and for some reason I think visually it's more compact and looks nicer.

I apologize in advance for tampering with the collectibles when it's nowhere near my job to look into things like this, but I was trying to work it out visually for myself to see if it would look nicer so I made a quick example of what I mean:

Original:

Cropped:

I realize it's so minuscule a change, and maybe a little inconsistent in comparison to collectibles like Tortimer that spill over and aren't cropped like that, but I think that not having the strange doll reach the actual border feels subtly more consistent to both the original weird doll and more modern collectibles...

That's really my two cents, thanks you guys for initially replying in this thread

- - - Post Merge - - -

sometimes I wonder what it'd be like if everything had the framed border

Un-ironically I much prefer the old cake collectible with the border!!

It's cute

 

[MasterM64]

I honestly am a fan of the current/modern design, the Weird Doll looks different for a reason: because it is an artifact of TBT's past. Even though the Weird Doll is special for its rarity, it is just another collectible at the end of the day that has an absurd amount of sentimentality attached to it. To me, the Strange Doll should be reflective of the present TBT and the excitement of what is to come with New Horizons and not a reflection of the old like the Weird Doll. Just my 2 cents I guess.

 

[kikotoot]

I quite agree with everything you said
edit: replying to Jacob

 

[Alienfish]

Gazing thru the thread, I'd definitely prefer the old, closing border around this doll as well. I mean while they are ages apart and amde in different times when it comes to collectibles, I would prefer if they had the same "box" to be wrapped in since they are based on the same thing I assume. It just looks off without a border when the old one has one.. idk.

 

[duckykate]

for us peasants without a weird doll, the border wouldn't match any of our stuff. it would only benefit like 3 people who have the old doll

 

[Corrie]

Maybe there could be a vote with people who have the weird doll, whether they'd care if the border changed?

 

[kikotoot]

I think what's set is the no border thing (which I agree with (the new doll having no border)). if anything there's the cropping that miiiiiight happen but really I like the doll either way.

Really, this doll having a border would be little odd in lineups, as new collectibles will be released, and very very soon you'll have a bordered collectible smack dab in the middle of your lineup. With the weird doll, it's so old that it's basically guaranteed to be your first collectible, and as the first or last collectible, the border works.

having a border, and being a new collectible, would restrict the strange doll's usage too much.

 

[Valzed]

It never occurred to me to consider the Weird Doll & the Strange Doll as a set. To me the Weird Doll is so unique that it stands alone in its own category. I love that it has a border to set it apart from the other newer collectibles. Plus I love that the Weird Doll looks like it might possibly be radioactive and that the border is attempting to contain the radioactivity. I have no sentimentality connected to the Weird Doll because I have only been a member for a little over 2 years so I don't have a sentimental connection to any collectibles from before 2017 when I joined. The Strange Doll, to me at least, is too cutesy to be in a set with the Weird Doll. The bright colors of the Strange Doll make it seem like it's meant to blend in with the newer collectibles. I mean I like the Strange Doll. It's cute and all. However in my opinion adding the same border as the Weird Doll has will not boost the Strange Doll into the same league as the Weird Doll.

Yikes! I've rambled on long enough and that's just my take on the two collectibles.... um... okay, bye.