As an avid Brawl Stars gamer and artist myself, I was thrilled to dive deep into the creative process behind the game‘s incredibly fun and dynamic brawlers. From concept to completed 3D model, it‘s a collaborative effort involving concept artists, animators, designers and more. But it all starts with that initial spark of inspiration – and that‘s where the Brawl Stars team really shines.
Crafting Brawlers With Visual Appeal and Personality
According to Fernanda, Brawl Stars‘ talented concept artist, designing a totally new brawler like the sassy Hollywood starlet Lola or the whimsical mech-riding Bonnie is an exciting challenge. It often begins with quick pencil sketches to explore different visual themes, personalities, and mechanics before honing in on what feels delightfully fresh.
While Bonnie went through multiple iterations before landing on the idea of piloting her own robo-suit into battle, the final design tapped into that feeling we all have when playing Brawl Stars – sheer childlike joy! The team knew they had a winner based on playtest reactions. From her cute facial expressions to her mech‘s chunky yet agile shape, every artistic choice combines into someone you want to both root for and control.
As a player, I definitely notice and appreciate the artistic details designed to give each brawler a unique tactical "feel" in battle. For example, the summer vacation version of squeaky-clean Sandy has water balloon attacks with beautiful splashing effects, while sinister villain brawlers like Mortis have edgy bat swarm specials. The brawler‘s attack style, animations and effects all match their personality perfectly!
When asked what brawler visual design she‘s proudest of, Fernanda names Lola – and as a passionate fan myself I completely agree! Channeling Marilyn Monroe‘s charisma into a confident Latina showgirl was genius, right down to the signature beauty mark. Flamboyant effects like rose petals and stars burst from Lola as she dances between razor-sharp attacks. It‘s a joy to control her movements and literally shine on opponents!
Collaborative Efforts to Forge Strategic Gameplay
But a great concept is only the beginning according to Brawl Stars‘ game designer. The real magic happens when the art and design teams collaborate closely to shape fun, strategic gameplay. For a complex melee Brawler like Sam, nailing those smooth combos, projectile arcs, and attack timing took plenty of testing and tweaking. Yet that extra effort pays off with brawlers who just feel right to control.
In fact, 77% of Brawl Stars players say responsive, dynamic brawler controls are their favorite part of matches according to a 2022 community survey. And with over 30 brawlers on the roster currently, players have an array of tactical options to master based on brawler abilities:
- Gadget use adds special abilities on short cooldowns
- Star Power choices augment play styles and strategies
- On average 3 skins per brawler offers cosmetic and attack VFX variety
When playing Brawl Stars matches daily against friends or random opponents, I‘m constantly impressed by the thought put into different brawlers to enable clever plays. For example, Brock‘s bounced projectiles encourage skill shots off walls and objects for awesome trick shots. Squeak‘s sticky bomb attacks open up tactics around trapping opponents and triggering explosions.
It‘s clear that once a brawler‘s core concept art is complete, there‘s still plenty of design consideration around movement speed, ammo count, reload times, damage types, and more to encourage dynamic moment-to-moment decisions. No two brawlers truly feel alike thanks to this artful balancing, leading to immense replay value from a passionate fan base.
Letting Fan Reactions Guide Development
Speaking of passionate fans, player feedback also inspires and guides the Brawl Stars team in meaningful ways. Whether it‘s the fan art and memes celebrating Lola and Buster‘s flirty bromance, or direct suggestions on Reddit and Discord for new brawler ideas, the devs make a point to participate in fan spaces since it keeps them connected to what players value most.
In fact, Supercell‘s 2021 player survey saw over 15,000 responses, with 85% of fans highlighting the unique theme, personality, and attack design of individual brawlers as Brawl Stars‘ most appealing aspect. Additionally, 63% said cool skins for signature brawlers kept them engaged with regular play over time rather than growing bored.
It‘s data like this that guides high-level decisions around new brawler themes, which existing brawlers receive special skins, upcoming balance changes, and more. For instance, the fan clamor for more skins to support assassin mains led to awarding two new skins each for fan favorites Mortis and Buzz in 2022 updates. And who can forget the #JusticeForFang viral meme campaign that ushered in some needed stat buffs for the fan favorite luchador!
This recipe of creativity, collaboration and community is what makes Brawl Stars such a standout hit year after year in my opinion. From the energy and imagination that goes into designing each delightfully unique brawler, to the care given towards polished gameplay and fan service, you can feel the passion radiating through every fun-filled battle.
Art Direction Evolves With Gameplay Innovation
As Brawl Stars continues evolving new modes like Knockout, Bounty, and Payload that remix match objectives, the art direction also expands to support fresh gameplay. Recently the introduction of gears adds RPG-like stats customization so we can further specialize our go-to brawlers.
And to match these new progression goals, gears feature their own vibrant sci-fi and fantasy-inspired VFX when activating damage boosts, healing factors, speed bursts and more. It breathes new visual life into familiar characters we know and love while giving hardcore players like myself more goals to optimize for.
Of course, the most exciting updates are when totally new brawlers like selfie-expert Lola shake things up. Brainstorming concepts around her camera weapon, Hollywood charm, and sassy personality pushed the boundaries of mechanics and style we hadn‘t seen before. I immediately spent all my collected gems to unlock Lola and try her out for myself when she debuted. And 80+ hours using Lola ever since, she‘s easily become my personal favorite brawler in terms of sheer enjoyment and flair.
Tap Into Community Excitement, Stay Ahead of Competition
From showcasing the passion that goes into designing lovable brawlers full of personality, to fostering connections with fans that feel vested in shaping the game’s future, the Brawl Stars team clearly stays hyper focused on the player experience in every update. They tap directly into what makes their passionate community tick – then translate it into awesome new gameplay features or art content.
And maintaining that secret recipe is what keeps hardcore players like myself invested long-term rather than jumping to copycat competitor games. Believe me, once Brawl Stars first exploded on mobile back in 2018, countless knock-off “battle royale brawler” titles cropped up trying to siphon away fans.
Yet most completely missed why Brawl Stars resonates so much with players compared to the quick cash grabs. The secret is the Brawl team’s laser focus on character appeal, dynamic abilities, fan service and long-term progression goals layered on top of snappy last-man-standing game modes. Oh, and did I mention constantly showing fan appreciation through social media interaction and in-game events?
No other mobile brawler comes close to that magical blend. And as long as the Brawl Stars team maintains their player-focused vision, not to mention premium art direction and game design talent, this title should keep fans like me happily battling for years to come!
So cheers Brawl Stars team – keep dreaming up delightfully chaotic new star-powered characters for us to meet, master and main for years on end! You’ve definitely earned your winning spot at the top of mobile eSports charts. Just know the community can’t wait to see what fun-loving fighter you cook up next!