Should Roxas and Ven's design change?

[DokemonStudios]

I mean wouldn't that be confusing if they were in the same room? I was thinking Roxas would cut his hair, and Ventus should look a lot older and have longer hair. (It's not like Ventus is chronologically frozen, his sleeping state looks like normal sleeping) For clothing, I don't think Roxas should change his clothes but keep his black coat, but Ventus might need to change his clothes. (He probably smells bad anyways)

 

[Solo]

Change in wardrobe? There is a possibility. Change in character design? I don't say that it's impossible (after all, what's stopping the team from giving them new looks?), but largely unnecessary.

If the concern is to tell them apart, their current apparel and voice already get the job done. I'd say the only time you could visually confuse Roxas with Ventus and vice versa is when they are both stark naked, and even then it's still possible to tell which one is who by looking at the colour of their eyebrows; Roxas' is brown, like Sora, while Ventus' is blond.

If anything, the semblances between the two of them might also fuel another identity crisis on Roxas' side, knowing that even his appearance isn't his own. More drama! At least his heart and identity are.

 

[Gexus]

I think it's cool having them stay the way they are, since even twins have their unique characteristics which can set them apart. In the ending of KH3D, at Destiny Islands, Jesse McCartney made a clear distinction between the two characters, just by his voice acting, so it'd be interesting to see them together in a room.

 

[Joker'sHeartless]

Eyebrows aside, I still think it would bother Roxas to have another person around who looks so much like him. It's bad enough he, Sora, and Ven have the same face. I think it would be completely within character for Roxas to want to get a haircut in order to assert himself as being his own person.

EDIT: I couldn't help it

Spoiler Show

 

[Genocide]

Technically, Sora should.

 

[Zephyr]

I always imagined that Ventus had the more brighter shade of yellow hair and Roxas had a browner yellow but I guess the in-game renders, artwork, etc. confused me into thinking they were different. Maybe just their clothes alone is enough.

 

[Ruran]

I see your "wouldn't it be confusing" and raise you a "would it be bad if it was confusing?"

Despite looking identical they're still pretty distinguishable. They have completely different personalities and different clothing. Being confused seems like a minor inconvenience really. Besides, having twin characters certainly isn't exclusive to KH. Most stories take advantage of the fact that there are multiple characters that look identical.

 

[ok sunny]

Nah.

They each have their out qualities that puts them out more than others (everyone stated all the differences already). That's probably why nobody else made a thread asking this lol.

It'd be cool for the team to give Roxas a new outfit or something, but it won't change much. But the way they wield their Keyblade is much different! Roxas holds his normally or dual wields, while Ventus holds his backwards. They're both diverse in their own type of combat, so that's easier to distinguish the two.

 

[VenTer]

Ventus and Roxas are 2 completely different people with different personalities. They may have the same appearance, but still different. Notice that Ventus's voice is lower than Roxas's voice. Jesse McCartney can really make 2 voices even if the character has the same look. He can still retain both different character's voices.

 

[Gram]

Eyebrows aside, I still think it would bother Roxas to have another person around who looks so much like him. It's bad enough he, Sora, and Ven have the same face. I think it would be completely within character for Roxas to want to get a haircut in order to assert himself as being his own person.
[/SPOILER]

A fair point I could also Roxas doing something thinking along those lines though him getting a haircut or getting a entire design change unlikely.
As mentioned there distinguishable as is though I wouldn't mind Roxas doing something to further set himself apart. Especially if the meeting goes the route Solosis mentioned with Roxas feeling down that even his face isnt really his own and does something to further assert himself as his own person.

 

[Solo]

Now I'm imagining Roxas getting into a deep depression and starts harming himself. The scars he would use to set himself apart from Ventus. @_@

 

[Gram]

Now I'm imagining Roxas getting into a deep depression and starts harming himself. The scars he would use to set himself apart from Ventus. @_@

O_O.....You have a dark imagination...

 

[Ballad of Caius]

The first time you see Ventus; yes, you see the uncanny resemblance, but afterwards, you can distinguish each other pretty well, seeing as how McCartney does an excellent job at delivering two different voice acting for two characters that physically look very alike. Their hair length and style is a bit different and their wardrobe, too.

 

[Sephiroth0812]

I see your "wouldn't it be confusing" and raise you a "would it be bad if it was confusing?"

Despite looking identical they're still pretty distinguishable. They have completely different personalities and different clothing. Being confused seems like a minor inconvenience really. Besides, having twin characters certainly isn't exclusive to KH. Most stories take advantage of the fact that there are multiple characters that look identical.

Practically this.
I know this may be a somewhat mean train of thought, but I often have the impression that people who complain about Roxas and Ven looking alike are just too lazy to take a closer look in order to differentiate them, which isn't even that difficult to begin with.
It's also interesting that Donald's nephews or Riku and Repliku (or Data-Riku) do not get this much of attention despite it being the exact same issue.

Indeed, KH is actually running on a common train there, as this "feat" of having two identical strangers is actually very common in fictional works, like in video games with Celes and Maria from FF VI, Tidus and Shuyin in FF X/FF X-2 or Luke and Asch from Tales of the Abyss.
Heck, very famous works like "The Great Dictator" from Charlie Chaplin or Mark Twain's "The Prince and the Pauper" (which has also a Disney version with Mickey in a double role) run on that premise alone.

A fair point I could also Roxas doing something thinking along those lines though him getting a haircut or getting a entire design change unlikely.
As mentioned there distinguishable as is though I wouldn't mind Roxas doing something to further set himself apart. Especially if the meeting goes the route Solosis mentioned with Roxas feeling down that even his face isnt really his own and does something to further assert himself as his own person.

Considering how easy it seems to work with Sora and Vanitas, that may possibly be the most feasible route to go if Roxas really gets some identity crap again.
Maybe he can dye his hair red, causing Lea to complain that he isn't the only redhead anymore (or he actually likes it so much that he's over Roxas even more than before), or maybe black, in order to get that brother/sister imagery with Xion going.
Who knows, maybe they can even spin some bittersweet stuff with that like i.e. that a finally redeemed/freed Isa takes "a bullet" of sorts for Roxas since he wants Lea to be happy and knows he won't make it/feels unworthy to be Lea's friend anymore and Roxas later takes the opportunity to pay respect to Isa by giving his hair a blue color.

---

That being said though, let's take a look at what sets them apart and what's actually identical between them:

Identical traits:
- same face (but that goes for Sora as well)
- same eye color (ditto for Sora)
- same body build (although in some artworks and images Ven comes over as a bit skinnier)
- same hair style and color.

Differences:
- shoes (Roxas: sneakers, Ventus: armored boots)
- pants (Roxas has pants going fully down, Ven shows some leg)
- upper clothes (Roxas has two jackets, Ventus a plain black shirt, a vest and a jacket)
- their wristbands (Roxas' has thin, black edges, Ven's has thick, white edges)
- eyebrows (Roxas: brown, Ventus: blonde)
- voice
- battle style (Roxas: Forward wielding + dual wield, Ventus: backhand wielding + shorter Keyblade)

So, all in all, like Solo said, the only time when there might really come up a definitive problem of differentiating them would be if we get a complete nude shot (and that won't happen due to ratings of the games, lol).

 

[Launchpad]

I just don't care about both of them lol
Ven may be a little childish but his story is interesting and he's likable. Roxas is just there and they keep finding reasons for him to just be there and every time he's on screen I wonder why.

Roxas and Ven should fight to the death to see who gets to join team Yen Sid

 

[Dr_Mario64]

Practically this.
I know this may be a somewhat mean train of thought, but I often have the impression that people who complain about Roxas and Ven looking alike are just too lazy to take a closer look in order to differentiate them, which isn't even that difficult to begin with.
It's also interesting that Donald's nephews or Riku and Repliku (or Data-Riku) do not get this much of attention despite it being the exact same issue.

Indeed, KH is actually running on a common train there, as this "feat" of having two identical strangers is actually very common in fictional works, like in video games with Celes and Maria from FF VI, Tidus and Shuyin in FF X/FF X-2 or Luke and Asch from Tales of the Abyss.
Heck, very famous works like "The Great Dictator" from Charlie Chaplin or Mark Twain's "The Prince and the Pauper" (which has also a Disney version with Mickey in a double role) run on that premise alone.



Considering how easy it seems to work with Sora and Vanitas, that may possibly be the most feasible route to go if Roxas really gets some identity crap again.
Maybe he can dye his hair red, causing Lea to complain that he isn't the only redhead anymore (or he actually likes it so much that he's over Roxas even more than before), or maybe black, in order to get that brother/sister imagery with Xion going.
Who knows, maybe they can even spin some bittersweet stuff with that like i.e. that a finally redeemed/freed Isa takes "a bullet" of sorts for Roxas since he wants Lea to be happy and knows he won't make it/feels unworthy to be Lea's friend anymore and Roxas later takes the opportunity to pay respect to Isa by giving his hair a blue color.

---

That being said though, let's take a look at what sets them apart and what's actually identical between them:

Identical traits:
- same face (but that goes for Sora as well)
- same eye color (ditto for Sora)
- same body build (although in some artworks and images Ven comes over as a bit skinnier)
- same hair style and color.

Differences:
- shoes (Roxas: sneakers, Ventus: armored boots)
- pants (Roxas has pants going fully down, Ven shows some leg)
- upper clothes (Roxas has two jackets, Ventus a plain black shirt, a vest and a jacket)
- their wristbands (Roxas' has thin, black edges, Ven's has thick, white edges)
- eyebrows (Roxas: brown, Ventus: blonde)
- voice
- battle style (Roxas: Forward wielding + dual wield, Ventus: backhand wielding + shorter Keyblade)

So, all in all, like Solo said, the only time when there might really come up a definitive problem of differentiating them would be if we get a complete nude shot (and that won't happen due to ratings of the games, lol).

...Or, for a more likely scenario, they're dressed exactly the same. Say, black cloaks for instance.

 

[The_Echo]

I think their clothing separates them well enough as it is, outside of minor differences in their faces. I don't think a haircut is all that necessary.

I'd say the only time you could visually confuse Roxas with Ventus and vice versa is when they are both stark naked, and even then it's still possible to tell which one is who by looking at the colour of their eyebrows; Roxas' is brown, like Sora, while Ventus' is blond.

Their hair and lip shapes are different too. The tips of Roxas' hair split where Ven's don't, and Ven's hair covers his ears more. And Roxas' upper lip has a more pronounced indent.

 

[DokemonStudios]

I'm actually surprised you can guys can find every detail that is different in the designs of Roxas and Ven.

 

[Gram]

I'm actually surprised you can guys can find every detail that is different in the designs of Roxas and Ven.

It's thanks to the countless "Roxas is Ven!" debates of ancient past between the devotees of both. ತಎತ

 

[χ-Blade Master]

Nobody has mentioned this but Roxas is actually just a smidge taller than Ventus and also a bit older. You can see it in their facial structures where Roxas build resembles KHII's Sora while Ventus' resembles more of KHI Sora. It explains why Ventus has a higher pitched voice aside from distinguishing them.