I was wondering what aspects people like or are drawn too in a robot mode. For example I prefer them to have a visor or faceplate than a full human featured face like Jazz or Prime I’ve Prowl or Ironhide. If you want to double dip and get both like Soundwave then all the better. However I could never get behind the live action style head designs.
Another thing that catches my eye is when the robot mode introduces a colour not present in vehicle form. While many do this it’s mainly white/silver/grey/black... monotone looks but Bluestreaks red I fine very appealing. The G2 Accelerators are good for this. Rapido and Skram come to mind as favorate uses of a new colour.

Also chest gimmicks and shoulder canons are something I loved the look of as a kid. So I guess it’s not much of a surprise that Soundwave’s design is one of my all time favorates.

so is there anything you guys really like?

 

I like how Sideswipe's chest becomes the front of his alt mode, he has a unique location.

 

I dig the live action designs especially Blackout's look. Never dig the more humanoid look in the latter except Lockdown. Brute or soldier types should stick with faceplates(G1 designs)

 

My favourite TF designs are ones where the vehicle mode looks properly integrated into the robot mode, as if neither mode has many if any parts exclusive to it. It's why I think designs like Optimus are so classic because aside from the hands and head the entire body is more less visible in both modes.

On the other hand, I also don't mind TF designs with obvious or stylish kibble. Wings, shoulder pads, things that would be present of typical robot designs only made of vehicle parts. Bonus points if it's not 1:1. (like if the robot has wings, but no wings in alt mode)

I also like when alt mode design elements are used to embellish the robot mode details without actually trying to represent those aspects. I.e. TFA Sentinel's fake headlights and grill on his chest, TM Megatron's fake scaly dino head chest that's clearly not his actual all-metallic T. Rex head, Wedge's adorable little scoops on the sides of his helmet, etc. They're not trying to represent the alt mode parts, they're just there to give otherwise "blank" areas visual interest and style.

I agree. It can also make the robot mode feel like more of a "surprise."

 

For some reason, I really like some of the design stylings of the off-screen movie toys like ROTF Brawn, DOTM Skyhammer or to a lesser extent, ROTF Stratosphere. I'm not sure what specific things I like the most about them, but I still kinda like them as they're not too undynamic and blocky like most G1 toon bots are, but they're not too jagged and exposed like most of the Bayverse designs; Yet they're still interesting enough to be distinguishable.

These guys are kinda like what I see what TFs would looks like in reality, if that makes any sense.




Another minor thing I'll like to mention, is that I also like when higher attention is putted on how to make the character moves, with designs that looks realistically articulated. When you look at most of the G1 TFs as they appeared in the G1 cartoon, most of the articulation points are generic and undefined, with joints that requires the animators to "figure it out" how to move. It's not that they're bad designs per say, but I do like when higher attention is putted on how the joints will actually move.

 

In figures, I absolutely love when panels/parts come from different parts of the alt-mode and form up the chest, or the legs, or any body part in an intuitive way.

The panels that fold around into Ice Cream Truck Mudflaps chest....oh yeah that's the stuff.

T30 Sky-Byte (I own LG Gelshark) might not have great articulation but damn I like how it looks and the way that they modernize the old TMII era design to be more integrated between modes is really cool. His 'normal' arm unfolds in three parts into part of the shark shell, and the hand folds into it with the fingers protruding as tech detail on the shark mode. The chest folds over and past his waist on a double joint to actually become the shark head. The top-fin of the shark being a sort of 'mohawk' on his head is a clever conceit on the 1999/2001 and 2014 molds for this design.

TR Kups magic legs.

A lot of SS Blackout.

Any toy that manages to evoke the impossible physics of the animation and feel dynamic in my hands, and come together looking good.

SS Dropkick gets an honorable mention for this, his legs are really cool.

 

Personally, I don't mind the jagged designs of the first three Bay movies and Bumblebee. I think that they look okay; but past that (AOE and TLK), I hate every single design besides Lockdown. The Bumblebee designs, though, are by far the best; a perfect mix of G1 and Bayformer designs that look pretty dang cool.

 

I've never liked the visor or faceplates. It's part of why I've never been a fan of Optimus Prime.

As the MTMTE comic went on, a lot of the main cast had visors and faceplates making them unrelatable...Chromedome, Brainstorm, Rewind, Tailgate, Getaway, Atomiser...

I really despise facial hair on Transformers. Though Sentinel Prime is my favourite Bayformer. A great character with a great voice performance elevating him further. Scourge gets a pass too.

I never liked the one dimensional sadistic Decepticons like Blitzwing and Shrapnel. The sunglasses type visor just made them look more of an asshole.

My favourite face type is the human looking ones like Prowl, Hot Rod and the Seekers.

A nice colour scheme can really enhance a design. ROTF Nightbeat is one of my favourite repaints of all time. Same with Botcon Dreadwind.

I have no problem with kibble. Boring unreadable designs like Kup don't appeal to me.

 

We might be different on the faceplate and visor thing ( although I do agree it can be hard to relate too.) but on the facial hair I’m totally with you. Seems like a really weird design choice. Why not regular hair if they are doing that.

 

No hair at all. No cosplay either ala Windblade, movie Drift, Crosshairs or Hound. The Prime no nose thing or any other modern stylised aesthetics.

I prefer the traditional Transformers aesthetic ala G1 and the Unicron Trilogy. Obviously not everyone agrees but that's just how I feel.

Art is relative so there are no definitive right answers just personal preference.

 

First thing I think of is Door Wings, like the Jazz, Skids, and Prowl molds.

 

I've been thinking about this thread all day.
When I think of of my favorite designs, most of them have something in common - Mouthplates and visors.  
But that aside, I'm such a sucker for well integrated kibble. I like my boys with a healthy amount of car (or what not) stuck in them, but sometimes it looks so dang unnatural.
Good examples: Basically any seeker ever. Optimus Prime.
Bad examples: Like half the Alternators line. Most early 3P figures.

For toys... If you can evoke the impossible ala MS-01's disappearing tires or the Takara Inferno mode's disappearing ladder, you win my heart. The engineering, man.

 

oh for sure. What someone likes or dislikes is all just personal preference. There should be no negative judgement for that. People like different things. I’m more impressed at how many different designs there are for transformers in general. I think it’s awesome.

 

I like seeing parts of the vehicle in the robot designs as in the first years of G1. Their alt mode doesn't need to be a mystery. I don't like faux parts on toys to achieve this look. I want the robot to look like someone cut the vehicle into chunks and used those to build it. No parts need to be hidden, I'd rather see the wheels on Optimus's legs than use panels to hide them from some angles.

 

I love Starscream’s head and the flipped up wings of the 84’ seekers who n robot mode. Iconic!

I love how Optimus’s grill resembles abs and his windshield pecs. Very superhero.

Loved Ironhide’s head- very Roman soldier

I am a huge fan of the 86’ cast designs. Very humanoid.
Hot rod in particular: handsome head, triple forearm blasters, a wings from a spoiler, and muscular legs.
Cyclonus with the horns looks like an evil knight
Galvatron looks like royalty. A evil King.

 

I've always been quite fond of robots with mono-eyes. They strongly emphasize the inhuman and robotic aspects of their designs, and they just look badass in general. Shockwave just wouldn't look right without his single ominous optic
gazing down at you all coldly and cynically.

Also quite a fan of funky overhangs that add a lot to the silhouette, like with G1 Track's missile-mounted hoodie and Movie Blackout's big turbine assembly.

 

I've always liked transformers with Asymmetrical robot modes. Not so much when the alt mode is also that way, that can be cool too. But I prefer it when the alt mode looks normal and then they transform in a way that gives the character a totally asymmetrical robot mode.

Having the hood or head of the alt mode depending on if it's a vehicle or a beast, end up as the chest of the robot mode is fine but really kind of the most obvious place for that to end up. It just seems a bit more interesting when it ends up as a shoulder piece, or part of X-Brawn's one massive arm!

That might be because I've always kinda viewed transformers as THREE toys in one... with the third being a puzzle. Once you figure out how to transform one Transformer a certain way it gets easier when so many other characters do the exact same or similar thing with their transformations. But Asymmetrical transformations tend to be more unique and a bit more challenging to figure out.

 

I really like faceplates. Especially swappable ones like on Leader TLK Megatron. Awesome feature.

I don't really like door wings if they don't serve a function.

I do like Beast mode head arms. Especially if they're removable. Ala Fuzor Skyshadow, BW Megatron, etc

I also like flip out gun arms. Prime Cliffjumper, aoe Bumblebee, movie Terradive.

It was more so aesthetic than engineering, but asymmetry is why I loved a lot of the Transmetal 2 designs from Beast Wars. Ramulus is still one of my favorite figures in my collection.

 

This is more character specific, but I really like it when Optimus has tires on his shoulders.



That's just really cool to me.

 

I wish I could agree but the more I look at that Optimus the less I like it. It's like trying to hard to be war within and G1 Optimus Prime at the same time. I even see a bit of armda Prime in there with the double barel wrist cannons(Those I do like).

I think car bonnet section as the upper body like on Jazz and Prowl always looks good. I always like it when the robot mode displays it's vehicle mode wheels on the arms and/or legs I don't like it when they vanish into the robot mode like G1 Optimus. Stuff like flying vehicle mode rockets on the heels of the feet are cool too. Though I'm not overly keen on large wings on the character I think they just make the bot look a bit to big