I mean, besides the general what-I-consider-good-development-vs-bad-development thing that has mostly been covered, there's some things that will almost always catch my attention and get my interest. Things that appeal to me, if you will.
These are almost always superficial and generally tacked on things to that which I consider necessary to interesting and well-rounded characters. Someone used the word "dynamic". That's a good word.
But, when it comes down to it, the superficial is what appeals to me.
I ain't perfect.
Ugly
I love ugly. There is a place for beauty, but I have a thing for gross. Give me the rough and tumble, give me the walleye, give me the imperfect and I will be watching everything you do. It takes a special kind of fortitude to play the truly ugly (Zhi doesn't count, she's like ugly-lite or diet ugly), and I have nothing for respect for those who pull it off. There was this guy who once made this character who was a horrible, grotesque, pus-oozy sort of dude. Sores, a cripple, disfigured: dude had a super rough life, and it showed. And I was in love. End of story.
(as a side note, perfectly plain characters who are not hiding beauty behind a pair of glasses or waiting for a makeover also earn love. I think those characters are, in some ways, hardest to portray -- so seeing them done well makes me giddy)
Eccentricity
Show me a character whose eccentricities make sense and are well thought out, and I'll be humping your leg. Example: dude made a sailor who was about as superstitious as was possible to get. Oh yeah, I mean, this guy wasn't a badass by any means, but the sheer amount of portent-reading and paranoia made him a badass. From an ooc perspective, at least.
Special Snowflakes
Did you just cringe? I'm sure one of you did. Before you recoil too far away in horror, keep in mind it's part of the whole thing. Neko-vampire-dragon-love-babies aren't what I'm talking about. Characters that do things that I, at least, consider to be daunting or undesirable in a general sense? Yes, please. Like, um, taking an unpopular race and making sweet, sweet love to its generalized culture and habits to the point that I want to make one, like, yesterday. Or putting a spin on the established culture that is still believable. Doing something out of the ordinary in a way that doesn't scream LOOK AT ME LOOK AT ME will, oddly enough, make me look at you. And then maybe hump your leg. Quietly.
Gimmicks
Having your character have a thing that they do that becomes what they're known for without it being obnoxious. I'M GOING TO DO A TERRIBLE THING AND NAME NAMES. Gus Pumpkinweed with pumpkins. Verad with the selling and acquiring of junk. Quick, easy to identify, and made to be interesting. (I need to rp more with Verad, really) You get a feel for the character like that while still being able to see depth -- you know there's more to the character while still being absolutely fascinated with what's on the surface. Grabby hands all over. (this might look like eccentricity, but it's not, I swear. Just trust me)
Boring
Mostly because it's made interesting. Some of these characters I have a hard time pinpointing of why I find it interesting, but essentially it's something dull and trite that has become absolutely magical. Generally when I see this it's because the person doing the writing either has some idea of what they're doing or they're just naturally talented and either way I fall to incredible envy and admiration.
Sense
People who have obviously taken pains to have their character make sense, no matter how outlandish the concept might be, are wonderballs. Like I don't care how freakish your character is. If I can take a glance over the history or whatever and see 'oh wow, this fits in while being freakish' -- yeah, I'll swallow just about anything. It goes along with everything prior in this list. I mean, the preceding are great on their own, but making it make sense will earn you my slavish rp devotion.
There's probably more, but those are my main ones. Highly opinionated, and therefore ultimately useless except in regards to me, personally (and those who express similar opinions, of course).
But then again, things that appeal to people are like that.
These are almost always superficial and generally tacked on things to that which I consider necessary to interesting and well-rounded characters. Someone used the word "dynamic". That's a good word.
But, when it comes down to it, the superficial is what appeals to me.
I ain't perfect.
Ugly
I love ugly. There is a place for beauty, but I have a thing for gross. Give me the rough and tumble, give me the walleye, give me the imperfect and I will be watching everything you do. It takes a special kind of fortitude to play the truly ugly (Zhi doesn't count, she's like ugly-lite or diet ugly), and I have nothing for respect for those who pull it off. There was this guy who once made this character who was a horrible, grotesque, pus-oozy sort of dude. Sores, a cripple, disfigured: dude had a super rough life, and it showed. And I was in love. End of story.
(as a side note, perfectly plain characters who are not hiding beauty behind a pair of glasses or waiting for a makeover also earn love. I think those characters are, in some ways, hardest to portray -- so seeing them done well makes me giddy)
Eccentricity
Show me a character whose eccentricities make sense and are well thought out, and I'll be humping your leg. Example: dude made a sailor who was about as superstitious as was possible to get. Oh yeah, I mean, this guy wasn't a badass by any means, but the sheer amount of portent-reading and paranoia made him a badass. From an ooc perspective, at least.
Special Snowflakes
Did you just cringe? I'm sure one of you did. Before you recoil too far away in horror, keep in mind it's part of the whole thing. Neko-vampire-dragon-love-babies aren't what I'm talking about. Characters that do things that I, at least, consider to be daunting or undesirable in a general sense? Yes, please. Like, um, taking an unpopular race and making sweet, sweet love to its generalized culture and habits to the point that I want to make one, like, yesterday. Or putting a spin on the established culture that is still believable. Doing something out of the ordinary in a way that doesn't scream LOOK AT ME LOOK AT ME will, oddly enough, make me look at you. And then maybe hump your leg. Quietly.
Gimmicks
Having your character have a thing that they do that becomes what they're known for without it being obnoxious. I'M GOING TO DO A TERRIBLE THING AND NAME NAMES. Gus Pumpkinweed with pumpkins. Verad with the selling and acquiring of junk. Quick, easy to identify, and made to be interesting. (I need to rp more with Verad, really) You get a feel for the character like that while still being able to see depth -- you know there's more to the character while still being absolutely fascinated with what's on the surface. Grabby hands all over. (this might look like eccentricity, but it's not, I swear. Just trust me)
Boring
Mostly because it's made interesting. Some of these characters I have a hard time pinpointing of why I find it interesting, but essentially it's something dull and trite that has become absolutely magical. Generally when I see this it's because the person doing the writing either has some idea of what they're doing or they're just naturally talented and either way I fall to incredible envy and admiration.
Sense
People who have obviously taken pains to have their character make sense, no matter how outlandish the concept might be, are wonderballs. Like I don't care how freakish your character is. If I can take a glance over the history or whatever and see 'oh wow, this fits in while being freakish' -- yeah, I'll swallow just about anything. It goes along with everything prior in this list. I mean, the preceding are great on their own, but making it make sense will earn you my slavish rp devotion.
There's probably more, but those are my main ones. Highly opinionated, and therefore ultimately useless except in regards to me, personally (and those who express similar opinions, of course).
But then again, things that appeal to people are like that.
