Original characters in a game I'm designing

[MisterEightySix]

I hadn't done spriting in years until I decided to make these, but my artistic skills have improved a fair bit from what they used to be back in 2006 when sprite comics were all the rage.

Anyway, as it says, these are characters I created myself for a game I'm trying to put together. The game itself is a hack-and-slash platformer with a Metroidvania-style method of progression and the ability to acquire weapons from bosses a la Mega Man. Most of the information I could provide would be loaded with spoilers, and since I actually plan to put this game together and sell it like a professional, I'm hesitant to say much. So prepare for a lot of ambiguous language. Anyway, to business. 

           
^The main character. Original flavor on the left. When they have a weapon equipped, they borrow design elements like a hairstyle and an accessory (like the spiked collar or the earring) from the boss.

   
^One of the bosses, a sentient rose with a goth punk aesthetic. Something about the shading on her leaves bothers me, but I can't quite place it.

More will come as I get it done.

[Cloud6625]

I think the main character looks cute. The changing hair and accessories is a neat little way to show a change in gameplay as well. Very similar to how Kirby wears his different hats.

The shading overall is just a little bland looking. I'm not sure if that's what you were going for, but I personally like vibrant colors in sprite art. If this was done stylistically than just ignore this, however the variety of colors is nice.

As for your boss character, I would say that on the left leaf you added highlights next to their hair which would most likely either not have highlights or create a shadow instead. I would try adding the highlight on the other side to line up with the right leaf. You could also try making it a more yellow shade to help with contrast.