Introduction

This time I wrote this post as the job was being developed. This way you’re going to see how the order is developed, from the first sketches to the final result, I hope I won’t miss anything… What stress!

Also, notice this is not a Photoshop tutorial where I explain everything in depth (for that I already wrote a really detailed tutorial about mascot design in Photoshop). My goal here is to show the way I work. Below is the final design I did for Mafia Death.

About the Client

I want to keep your attention, so to give it a mysterious touch, I’ll just drop some info:

• Client: Mafia Death, an online game based on mafia stories.
• Order: Design of five characters and design of logotype. The characters must work separately and jointly.

Descriptions:

1. The Boss: The family’s chief, he only has to raise his eyebrow and you are a dead man. He is not very talkative, not specially strong physically… His better weapon is his brain.
2. The Bodyguard: He is the brawny of the team, the one who fixes the loose ends. His favorite sound? The crack of a breaking neck. If you notice him parking in front of your house, you have less than 10 minutes to make your last will.
3. The Latin-Lover: He is in charge to negotiate the important deals. A smart guy, attractive, athletic, with a fine taste for clothing and women, latin appearance and charm. He has a weakness for blondes and is quite independent. If you go out at night with him, tell your parents you won’t arrive home before noon.
4. The Girl: Only her sensuality matches her wickedness, she is cold and calculating. She is a precision weapon. She succeeds both between men and women. The last one who mentioned her affinity with Angelina Jolie is dead.
5. The little mad guy: His slogan is: "Surviving is irrelevant, what really matters is how many ones you can annihilate". His mind is so insane that he is only useful in desperate missions. Joe Pesci fan. One more important thing: Don’t ask about his scar.

Summary

1. Sketching the First Three Characters
2. Sketches of the Rest of the Team
3. Scene Composition
4. Cleaning the Sketches
5. Inking the Characters
6. Coloring The Boss
7. Coloring The Latin-Lover and The girl
8. Coloring The Little Mad Guy and The Bodyguard
9. Final Illustration
10. Closing Words

Day 1: Sketching the First Three Characters

I love Mafia films, so I didn’t need to look for any references and we directly went for the sketches. Mi idea was to find a mid point between the elegance of “The Godfather” and the modernity and daily look of “The Sopranos”.

I asked my friend Miguel Ruiz to help me with the sketches, I sent him descriptions for each character and the image below is what he sent me back.

The first thing that hits you in the eye is the style, it is not the usual SOSFactory style. But don’t worry, because in the end everything will match. What really matters now is the character´s attitude, their pose, facial expression, the clothing… that each character transmits what it must transmit (have a look to the descriptions at the beginning of this post):

1. The Boss: I think this one is great, it is exactly what we need. He has a relaxed pose but transmits a lot of strength by his look. His legs look a bit short to me and his waist is a bit wide, but it is an excellent starting point. (editor：admin)