Adoptables info?

[bluefantasyz.livejournal.com]

As I've been a bit out of the loop for months, I was wondering if I could get a bit more information on these adoptables that I'm seeing everywhere.  The majority are of the template variety, with mostly identical lineart and different colors/hair/markings.  The descriptions usually say something along the lines of "$5 each, tell me which you want, they are only female!" 

From an adopter standpoint, I'm confused as to what the purpose of "adopting" is and what can be done after adopting.  Are you buying rights to a character design or just a pre-drawn picture (that virtually anyone can save off the website)?  Please also give any other information or experience you have from this side.

I'd also like more information from the artist side.  Is this a viable form of income?  Is this what you would consider an honest form of income?  Is this worth looking into for me as an artist, or this likely a fad that will soon blow over?

I admit I'm sick of seeing them fill my inbox, but not really knowing how it started and not understanding them only makes me more annoyed, and curious.  This is my first time posting in this community, so if this is too off-topic, I apologize.

 PS Mods please tag, thank you =3
 

Comments

[shadowedyoshii.livejournal.com]

I stopped using Deviantart, like, three years ago, but I'm under the impression the fad really started there with sparkle dog artists, designing characters and offering the design to other for a nominal fee. I'm under the impression one is selling the 1. species and 2. design/colors of the creature, for the purchaser to use however they'd like.

I'm not a big fan of them, frankly. They all seem to be done in what I'd call new-sparkledog style, that simplistic style with super thin limbs, tiny hands/feet, wispy linework, big hair and humanoid faces. It's not a bad or unappealing style, it just seems like 90% of them are drawn like that.

Then again, whatever people will buy, I suppose! I just don't see the appeal (and bluntly, if I were a less scrupulous person, if I saw a color pattern on an adoptable I liked I could just, you know... copy it). Some of the species can be creative, but they're all pretty generic to me and I personally have fun creating my own characters c:

To each their own, I guess!

[sophie-manx.livejournal.com]

I don't know if I can offer much insight other than I don't get it either. It seems that they are making you pay for something that you could other wise get free on other sites, like chicken smoothie or Neopets. The only appeal I suppose is "owning" the sprite, and it being one of a kind, until (touching on what shadowedyoshii said) someone just copy's it and tweaks it enough to get away with it.

[bladespark.livejournal.com]

Heh. I haven't gotten into selling these just because I would honestly feel like a scammer if I did. The idea is that you're selling the "character" but since there's really no such thing as copyrighting a character (only trademarking, or copyrighting a specific artwork) you're pretty much selling nothing.

I know a lot of people enjoy buying them, and feel they're getting something worthwhile for their money, so if an artist wants to sell them, more power to them, I'm not trying to in any way put down those who make them. But for me, no, I just wouldn't be comfortable doing it.

[glowstick-juice.livejournal.com]

I think purchasable adoptables are more to support the artist than a money making scheme. Essentially, people are paying a designer for her/his designs.

Adoptables have been around for as long as I can remember. They aren't a new trend, though they suddenly seem to be cropping up on FA way more than DA.

[ocelotish]

I think I might have some insight in there!

The adoptables you pay for are primarily just the graphics. There's a little overlap in the RP (if applicable) as only the adopter could RP that particular beastie. Similarly, if the little animals have any sort of breeding system (yellow girl + blue boy = green offspring), only the owner is allow to request a breeding that 'animal' or give permission for it. In essence what you 'buy' is the graphic that you can see on the website for display (and you could potentially save without permission) and the exclusive use of that character in any game.

As for a source of income... I'd say they're good for practice, but the chances of getting a real income off them is slim. Different people will run them different ways, some will have reused artwork, others will do unique art. I'd say they might be worth it for either experimentation, quickie warm-up drawings, boredom doodles, or if you're on a website with a virtual currency (a la Gaia - that seems like they work well there). The other possibility is trying to sell your lineart for someone else to color (and potentially profit from) as an adoptable.

[teahound.livejournal.com]

"The adoptables you pay for are primarily just the graphics. There's a little overlap in the RP (if applicable) as only the adopter could RP that particular beastie. "

Actually (least I've noticed on FA and DA), you're buying a 'blank slate' of a character from most people I've seen offering them. This means you pay however much they ask for the design, and the character itself (personality, etc.) is yours to create and tweak. Heck, people even get commissions done of them if the character is one they like enough.

[ocelotish]

Ah, how different! I must have been in the old school cyberpet community then! It was often free (but now seems to have moved onto other sites with virtual money) and usually you'd get a pre-made design, but you'd usually pay for a custom.

[teahound.livejournal.com]

Oh, you mean like ChickenSmoothie, Neopets, Wajas, Subeta and the like, yes? You're correct about those, but the OP is referring to things like this: http://browse.deviantart.com/?qh=§ion=&global=1&q=adoptables#/dpjjmi

The makers often require the person who wants it to draw it before the maker will declare it the property of the person who wants it, in order to make sure the character will be used. Others just charge money, generally $3-10.

[ocelotish]

Yes, probably the closest to what I'm referring to is Wajas, but more likely it's between the two (an independent artist on a site like that). Eh, either way it doesn't matter.

The DA ones I really don't understand too much, but I have to assume you're paying for the character design.

[sushidragon.livejournal.com]

I'm very old school cyberpet community as well and I don't get the dA adoptables either XD

[ocelotish]

I remember you! ;)

[shukivengeance.livejournal.com]

People create a template design, make a set of them with various markings, some name them and/or give them backgrounds whereas others dont. The designs are sold, thus that person 'adopts' the character and takes it as one of their own.

I've seen really ridiculous terms and conditions some artists tried to impose on this, like you have to draw the bought character within 24 hours of buying them or else they'll sell it to someone else. X:

[kayla-la.livejournal.com]

Why would someone buy an adoptable if they could draw themselves anyway?

[shukivengeance.livejournal.com]

They're paying for a design they like I guess.

What with how the fandom is, if somebody saw an adoptable they liked and instead of buying it they tweaked it to make a character themselves there would be 'omgthief' nonsense everywhere.

I'm sure you've seen "This person stole my unique snowflake" drama before at least once where someone is overreacting over finding somebody else with a character that has the same hairstyle or species or even ear shape. This would be oh so much worse. xD

[kayla-la.livejournal.com]

I suppose. I'm just glad my character is weird enough that it would be pretty obvious if someone tried to 'copy' her.

[isteillia.livejournal.com]

^this.

[kayla-la.livejournal.com]

I was hoping I didn't come off arrogant or something. Kayla as a character is pretty unique looking and it would be pretty obvious if someone tried to yank her... fortunately, I only had that happen on Furcadia way back in the day once, as far as I know. But they were bad at it and didn't fool anybody!

[teahound.livejournal.com]

Because they like the design, I would assume. You can be capable of drawing but incapable of making creative designs.

And it rarely has to be a good drawing, just a drawing.

[biztheshiz.livejournal.com]

I snagged free ones out being a jerk to other people. I never use them for anything.

You're just paying for their design, you do the rest. Paying for it means you get to do whatever the heck you want with it.

I don't think it's really an honest thing to do, selling them. Especially when you don't put effort into them, instead you just copy and paste the lines, tweak a thing or two then splash on color. It's kind of like you're buying what the artist wadded up and threw in the trash bin.

[dilario.livejournal.com]

hahah, I used to do a bunch of them but stopped due to the inevitable drama that comes with them, lol!

Basically I like adoptables because I like to make cutely designed characters, but sometimes other people will come up with a design that I never would have thought of or that I'm really attracted to. I'm pretty picky about them (I think buying them is a little silly, I have never sold any except for "custom" ones - people tell me what colors or characteristics they'd like). Some people just somehow make color schemes or patterns that really appeal to me that I wouldn't have come up with on my own, you know?

I like to make them just because I like to mess around with designs and colors so much. :x I don't post anything like that any more because it got way too crazy, I'd post a sheet of 6 and get upwards of 100 comments sometimes...

[foxombie.livejournal.com]

You know, I'm always tempted to draw these adoptables without paying for them, juuuust to see what would happen. Maybe changing things up just enough that I can pretend that I had thought of it myself. :P It would be hilarious.

[lunasilvertail.livejournal.com]

Actually somebody on Sparklesnark actually did that, and it was drama city. XD

[starryssketches.livejournal.com]

I've 'adopted' characters before but the ones I was involved in were a case of 'whoever draws this character first gets them! and fill out this form with some details' I believe it's a case of you then 'own' the design and are able to do what you want.

But at the same time 'adoptables' to me made me think of something else, as I'm on a My Little Pony collecting forum 'adoptables' are little graphics made by members that are then coloured in to look like a character you pick.

[glowstick-juice.livejournal.com]

Are you on the MLP Arena, too?

[starryssketches.livejournal.com]

Yup, and the Trading Post

[moonfeather.livejournal.com]

Same here on DA. Ive adopted and put up adopts..but never charged money for them.

Am also on the my little pony arena too where 'adopts' mean something else.

[tigrin.livejournal.com]

From what I understood at least in the Lion King community, when you adopted a character you basically adopted the character design, and the name if it had one. The character became "yours", though if you wanted you could turn around and put it back up for adoption, which was always a bit odd to me. I used to design characters for people of a made-up species, though I never used a template. Once you created a character for someone, it was understood to be theirs.. more a good faith thing than any particular legal standing. I personally don't see anything wrong with selling character designs even as a template. I think it's still a creative or intellectual property you can sell, even if it's just the idea of particular colors and markings.

[moonfeather.livejournal.com]

Hello :) I was on that TLK community and was around when you did your adopts, I did some too then. All were drawn originals, no coloured linearts back then.

[uozlulu.livejournal.com]

I think it depends on the terms of use and who's doing it as to whether or not it's a scam. Sometimes I think it's a way to drum up some fast cash quick.

I can see there being an appeal if the buyer has no confidence in their own abilities to create a character design.

Personally I wouldn't buy or sell them because the whole process seems kind of messy.

[drakenbyte.livejournal.com]

I think adoptables are kinda strange, but I actually did them when I played on Pony Island, and they were so extremely popular there that it was kinda unbelievable! This site was mostly comprised of adults, since it was a pay to play site, so people were spending real money on these. Usually 5-10 dollars however.

BUT! There was one called Lupines, which became SO popular, that people were literally paying hundreds of dollars for them. They had to hire an actual staff to keep up with demand.

I do believe though that the reason it became that way was the closed nature of the site. I think on FA and DA, due to just the nature of the sites, (they are open, mostly free sites) that it doesn't gather people with money, so less money is to be made there. Just my two cents however!

[stormslegacy.livejournal.com]

Yea, I do think adoptables means something very different on PI. I have a very very rare seedpony on there...I haven't played PI in 3 years and STILL have people contact me about it. >_

[lichdog.livejournal.com]

I adopted one once, but it was a free adoption, so I don't care haha.

But I really don't like how people will go crazy on a design (and if often looks really bad) and be like U WANT IT? 10BUX O AND U HAF 2 DRAW IT.

What's stopping me from making a character all inspired by it? I mean if it were a unique species and I got to pick the coloration, sure, if I liked the artist enough. But if someone is gonna try to sell some crazy spaggled nuclear waste biohazard dawg that looks like any 14 year old angst ridden hot topic frequenter drew, then you're out of your goddamn mind.

It's like when JessKitt wasa trying to sell like 40-something fursuit designs and I kid you not, one of them was an all white dog.

COME ON!!!! People have design sense too you know. :/

[ukthewhitewolf.livejournal.com]

It all started with DeviantART Points.

Some people started charging Points for their adoptables and after that took off some people decided they'd see if they could get actual money from them and started selling them for $ instead of points.

Frankly, I don't really like the ones for actual money. It just seems ... wrong, somehow.
Virtual money however, like dA Points, doesn't seem so bad.

Seeing as you can buy 400 points for like, $4 and most adoptables don't go above 10-15 points each it doesn't seem as bad.


I have to say I'm planning on having a go myself just to see how popular they really are. >>
Even though I refuse to make sparkly puke ones and will only do more naturally coloured designs.. meh.

[astraldescent.livejournal.com]

As I've seen on FA, an adoptable is someone else making a character design and once you claim or purchase that design you can do anything you want with it. Some have rules and some do not.

On FA they're much more expensive than on deviant art. Personally I've only claimed one that was free.

I'd say its as honest as any other form of selling character designs, really. I know one person on my watchlist has been VERY successful, she sold one and then the guy commish'd another one to match it AND commish'd multiple pics of the two. But then I also have some people on my watchlist who keep reposting them and getting no sales or very few sales.

I do not think its something I personally would do since my art is all traditional and it'd be futile to even try making three or more identical linearts to color differently. I prefer to design characters for myself, as well.

However, that being said, I don't look down on anyone who does do it (obvious, since I have one myself) its just not something that'd fit as well in a traditional style.

[lozpie.livejournal.com]

I've never even seen these before? lol

[sigilgoat.livejournal.com]

here's some examples from FA:

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/4299482
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/4101399/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/4111302/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/4108662/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/4115227/

[lozpie.livejournal.com]

oh they're cute! I can see the appeal c:

[bluefantasyz.livejournal.com]

I appreciate all the input! I'm still confused as to why people want to do these or pay for them, but I guess whatever floats a particular person's boat...

[blacktigerdream.livejournal.com]

I do adoptables on DA but mine are free to first come first serve.

I put a lot of time into mine and I offer slight changes and I add simple items if they are requested. I do have simple rules and a form people fill out since it makes everything easier on me.

I don't understand the buy-able ones though. Those I never got as I would never think to sell mine no matter how much time I put into them.

[bluefantasyz.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was talking about the ones that cost money, or even DApoints (don't you have to buy points?) I've seen some nice free ones, that the makers even upgrade if the adoptable gets enough faves to grow!

[jamjams.livejournal.com]

Most adoptables I have seen were not sold for money but for points on DA.

[blacktigerdream.livejournal.com]

That I do find odd. I have been seeing a lot of those and it doesn't seem that fair to me but then again I am a bit slow on these things.