Kerbals.

The Design of the Kerbal Astronaut

Kerbals are our avatars for the conquest of space, and need to be visually appealing. Certainly the little space game would be far less successful were it not for the Kerbals. Kerbalkind serves to humanize the game in a more effective way than even a human space program could accomplish.

The key is the excellent design of the Kerbals. Their overall proportions suggest youth and adorableness. Their large head, massive eyeballs, and short stubby legs all remind the player of a small child or a toddler. But the proportions are nevertheless still different from the human toddler. The Kerbal torso is very nearly as wide and long as it is tall. The legs are slightly taller than the Torso, while the arms are nearly twice that length.

The main thing that reduces the cuteness of the kerbals and makes them a more comedic character is the eyes and the mouth. Sure, they're big, but their pupils are absolutely minuscule. Further, the eyes are offset a few degrees, and the pupils another few from that. This gives the impression of lazy-eyes. The mouth, meanwhile, is generally a giant grin instead of a small smile that a more cute-oriented character might have.

These features result in a character that represents a sort of adult-child hybrid. And who else is an adult-child hybrid? I mean this in the nicest way possible, referring only to the enthusiasm and occasionally the wild concepts: space fans.