There are like 20,000 posts on Steam. I have no idea how many other threads on other sites. 15 pages of the same people going back and forth on a single thread doesn't really speak to a huge number of players. My entire point was just that people outside of fantasy fans would be more familiar with the LOTR movie experience. Not saying it's the correct concept. Just saying that it makes sense that Larian may have implemented humans with pointy ears without thought simply because of this perception.
That said, I'm not trying to resist Larian changing the looks of elves (including drow) to match D&D descriptions. I wouldn't mind at all if they changed a lot of the images of the character models we have to choose from. Halflings, for example, look weird. I'd kinda like to see them look a bit differently.
Halflings are supposed to be, according to https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Halfling, "small in comparison with the members of most other races, standing somewhere from 2′8″‒3′4″ (81‒100 cm) tall and weighing on average between 30‒35 lb (14‒16 kg). In many ways, halflings resembled small humans and usually had the same proportions as the typical human adult. Most halflings had dark hair and eyes, regardless of their skin complexion which, although commonly ruddy in hue had a similar range to humans. Nearly all male halflings were incapable of growing true beards, though many had long sideburns. Halfling hairstyles were often complex, with strands woven together or braided. Although halflings had an affinity for collecting valuables, they did not prefer to wear these on their person, instead preferring more comfortable clothing."
This is what elves SHOULD look like, though, in Forgotten Realms based on the same website https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Elf: "Elves stood on average 5′4″‒6′0″ (1.6‒1.8 m) and weighed 130‒170 lb (59‒77 kg). USUALLY, true elves were a naturally slender and athletic race. Elves had a similar range of complexions to humans, with wood elves typically coppery or pale skinned and wild elves having darker pigmentation. Often, elven hair was dark, either brown or black, with copper red or blond hair also found amongst wood elves, although orange or even green hues were not completely unheard of. Elven eyes are commonly brown, hazel, or an emerald green. Elves, like their cousins the eladrin, were fair and beautiful, handsome, and had pointed ears and no body hair except eyebrows, eyelashes, and hair. Elves matured at roughly the same rate as humans, though they were not usually considered past adolescence until they reached 110 years of age. Unlike humans, elves did not age dramatically as their lifespan came to a close, with the most obvious changes being a change in hair color, alternatively graying or darkening. Most elves remained healthy and full of life up until their death, which, if age-related, was usually between two and nine centuries."
So, not really seeing anything there saying they HAVE to look different from humans with pointy ears. It just says they are usually slender and athletic and that they have pointy ears and are beautiful or handsome.
Comparing a film where actual families can sit down and watch a movie with there kids vs a video game is rubbish. You want to know what the common elf people generally would think of? It would be this:
World of Warcraft was a major critical and commercial success upon its original release in 2004 and quickly became the most popular MMORPG of all-time, reaching a peak of 12 million subscribers in 2010.[4] The game had over one hundred million registered accounts by 2014[5] and by 2017, had grossed over $9.23 billion in revenue, making it one of the highest-grossing video game franchises of all time. The game has been cited by gaming journalists as the greatest MMORPG of all-time and one of the greatest video games of all time and has also been noted for its long lifespan, continuing to receive developer support and expansion packs over 15 years since its initial release. Third paragraph down, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_of_Warcraft
Description for each edition of d&d changes, for example Eladrin: 4e
5e
All elves originated from the Feywild, Eladrin stayed while Wood/Wild (Green elves) left along with drow (brown elves? Lolth did something and brown elves turned purple/blue/black, not related to eye color, and no im not going to look this rubbish up). Long term exposure to material plane changed how they look but generally still look like stupid elves with pointy ears and triangle shaped faces. 3.5 has diagram of it, someone posted the pic on this thread. Go through the pages of this thread and look at the pictures.