Tales of Berseria Illustrations: Special Interview with Minoru Iwamoto

[not_sophie]

Alright, it's FINALLY time for the fourth (and final) character designer interview from the Tales of Berseria Illustrations book. This time it's Minoru Iwamoto, who designed Eizen (hot, we stan) and Laphicet (cute, we stan). He was also the art director of the game itself, so he was very important to how Berseria's art turned out generally. He's the one who insisted to Inomata that it was fine for Velvet to have underboob. Maybe she would have gotten scared and not done it if it weren't for him, just kidding knowing her she'd probably have tried it anyway.

Also this is certainly not the last thing I'll be translating from this book, it's just the last of the interviews. There's still one last section that actually is pretty long that goes more in-depth into the details of each character's design, so that'll be fun whenever I get to it. I'll have to apologize so profusely for my likely-incorrect terminology because I never actually played Berseria or Zestiria in English. Anyway, back to Iwamoto. This guy talks about character design a lot in terms of childbirth so forgive me for any phrasing that seems odd in that respect. As far as I'm concerned it was a little odd in Japanese (though I get the logic of using those words) so it should be a little odd in English. Anyway LET'S GOOOO.

To start with, please tell us about your involvement with the Tales of series.

I started out with Tales of Legendia, being in charge of backgrounds, design sketches, modeling, and the animation for simple event scenes. Since backgrounds require knowing about the story's setting, which also relates to the themes of the work, I was able to look over every part of the game. That was also partially how I came to work as the Art Director for Tales of Vesperia. I was also in charge of Repede's design. As for other games, I did character designs for three Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology games, and did art direction and character designs for Tales of Zestiria and Tales of Berseria.

When you started being involved in Legendia, how many years had you been in the company?

That was my first year. It was my first job after being hired. For character design work, I had actually already gained some experience when I was in school, since I was given the opportunity to work on character designs in The King of Fighters and Guilty Gear.

You were interested in character design work back then?

Yeah. I've liked games and manga since childhood, so I went to art school to try to become a designer myself. When I was in my third or fourth year, I decided to try to get a job, and landed some part-time character design work during the job hunt.

What manga and games did you like as a child?

The first game I ever played, Mappy. I also loved Dragon Quest. Being able to become a featured character in the game to control was a level of interactivity that was shocking to me at the time. I thought, "Games are amazing!" and became obsessed. For manga, I often read Honoo no Toukyuuji: Dodge Tanhei and Dr. Slump when I was a kid.

Those styles are quite different from the art style you have today.

When I'm drawing for work, what would make the players happy is really the most important thing. I don't go all in with my own art style, I fine tune it a little bit.

Kanonno from Radiant Mythology was the first character you designed for the Tales of series, right?

Yeah, it was a tough labor... I came up with 40 or 50 ideas, but Okumura rejected all of them.

Why do you think it was so tough?

Basically, my ideas just didn't fit the Tales of series. My illustrations are a slightly more realistic style, with a focus on three-dimensionality and texture. But the Tales of series has a more simplified style that cuts out elements so characters are recognizable from just the sight of their silhouette. You take away more and more, and as you do, the distinctive features become even more prominent. In Kanonno's case, the underlying theme for her design was established as "spring," so I put flowers in her hair, and gave her skirt and robe shapes that were reminiscent of petals. But it really was a difficult labor, to the point that it seemed like Okumura was about to give up on me one time (laugh). But he also encouraged me, saying things like, "Don't give up!" and even pulling all-nighters with me. By the way, in Radiant Mythology 2, Kanonno's underlying theme was summer, and in 3 it was fall.

In Radiant Mythology, you were also in charge of designing Widdershin.

After I read through the character setting for him, I thought about how I should portray the aesthetics of evil. I wanted him to be recognizable as the last boss in a single glance, but I wanted there to be some depth and coolness to his appearance, too. It was hard to create a design that connected those threads.

Moving on to the mothership titles, your design for Edna in Zestiria is quite memorable.

The first thing I learned about her was that she wasn't a human, but a divine race called as Seraph. Since I was also serving as Art Director, I started by thinking from what the Seraphim were defined as. I was told that in this setting, they were deities that resided in all things, much like the countless Shinto gods. Since Edna is affiliated with the Earth element, I'd normally imagine a buff character like the mythological Titans. But flipping cliches like that around was one of the design concepts in Zestiria. Since I imagined her to be an existence that doesn't move from a sacred mountain, almost as if bound there like a ghost, I thought to make her a fragile girl who speaks dispassionately, without great ups and downs in her emotions. And to bring out a discrepancy in her appearance, I had her wear clunky-looking boots. I also had her hanging a Normin upside-down from her parasol, to give her a bit of a sadist feeling (laughs).

How did designing Zaveid go?

I imagined him as something like a charismatic former delinquent (laughs). Someone who was wild in the past, but has since grown up. But still someone who would step in if his juniors were in some kind of trouble. I thought he'd also be someone who wants the kind of extra power he'd need to overcome any obstacles he would run into. There were a lot of mixed opinions about him being shirtless, though (laughs).

It sounds like you had really made up your mind about that one.

A character's clothing reflects their personality. Since Zaveid has a very open personality, I thought, "he should be shirtless, then." And to make sure women weren't put off by it, I gave him tattoo-like markings and long hair, so you don't just see bare skin.

In Zestiria and Berseria, you were also in charge of Art Direction. What did that role entail?

My job was to make sure the power of the art could be used to easily convey the message of the games. Zestiria's theme was passion, and Berseria's was one's way of life. In Zestiria, we gave the message of facing forward and chasing after your dreams, but Berseria is the story of Velvet's journey for revenge. While burning with her desire for vengeance, she lives life with a strong will. Even though her dream is something the world won't accept, she works hard to push forward with it regardless, which also helps shape the way of life of the other characters. That's the kind of theme we aimed to depict.

How are the initial character settings thought up?

On a fundamental level, they're based on the scenario writer's proposals. From that, we play a kind of word association game in meetings. "What's this character's charm point?" "Their internal appeal?" "What theme is the story trying to depict?" From those kinds of discussions, we're able to come up with the important parts of their designs.

How did you decide the arrangement of the characters in Berseria?

In this game's party, Velvet, the center of it all, is a fugitive. Usually in RPGs, the characters act in order to save the world, but Velvet is the opposite. She acts to disrupt the world's order. Since the party is effectively the "Demon King" side of things, so to speak, I consciously wanted them to have an outlaw-like feeling to them.

There's a lot of black on the designs precisely because they're on the evil side, then.

That's right. The Abbey is white, so Velvet is black. White is a color associated with purity, but on the other hand, there are unpleasant parts to anything that's too pure. The party kind of feels like the image of coloring something in with black.

Were you aware of the connection to Zestiria too?

Yes, it was always going to be set about 1000 years before Zestiria. But if everything were exactly the same, it wouldn't be interesting, and since a long time passed between the two, the continent would have undergone seismic shifts, and the climate and terrain would change, too. While depicting the world with peace and order and having things like Seraphim and a savior, this is a story that breaks all of that apart. It shares the same world and civilization as Zestiria, but the change in point of view dramatically changes things as well.

Was it already decided from the beginning to have a solo female protagonist?

At the beginning of Berseria's development, the protagonist was going to be a male. It was going to be the story of an oni-like half demon man who, along with a child, goes on a journey for revenge. But that sounds a lot like other stories that already exist, doesn't it? So we put a little spin on it by having the protagonist be female instead. It was a difficult request, creating a type of protagonist the series has never had, but Ms. Inomata gave us a design that was exactly what we were looking for. When I first saw the completed illustration, I got goosebumps.

How did you decide which characters to assign to each character designer?

In Zestiria, Mr. Fujishima designed the humans, and Ms. Inomata designed the Seraphim. This time, I gave the characters on the side of the Shepherd, who bring about peace to the world, to Mr. Fujishima. Ms. Inomata designed the protagonist and the most powerful Seraph. The characters I gave to Okumura were ones that were closer to humans. Plus, since those characters were a warrior from the east and a witch who just observes the world, it seemed like they would be characters that would give more freedom to the designer. Okumura is someone who has a tendency to throw you a curveball out of nowhere, but until Berseria, he's had to restrain that quality to match with the setting. I told him, "Whatever you want to do this time is good!" I never would have thought he'd come up with a character who has a skirt made of grimoires, though (laughs). As for me, I designed Eizen because of his connection to Edna, and I was also honored to be entrusted with Laphicet's design.

What kinds of exchanges did you have working with Ms. Inomata and Mr. Fujishima?

Since Mr. Fujishima was in charge of the two characters on the side of good, we tried to have him convey a sense of order, along with the characters having a shared, institutional type of feeling, since they were both part of the Abbey. He had designed the Shepherd in Zestiria as well, but this time around, he's designing Artorius, the Shepherd who was the source of the concept itself. He's the kind of legendary existence people would paint on murals. But I think he was a difficult design. To be strong, but one-armed. With both arms, it's easier to think of Artorius as someone no one could ever match up to, so we had to have him be portrayed with this inexhaustible aura. He's a tall, slim figure, but with a body forged like steel. He's someone without a single weak spot, the most powerful Shepherd from the beginning of Shepherds themselves.

Was the clothing worn by people affiliated with the Abbey ultimately based off of Artorius's clothing?

For the most part. Having everyone wear identical uniforms would make characters look stifling though, so we allowed small arrangements to keep the designs fresh even in the context of wearing a uniform.

What kind of order did Velvet's design call for? Her clothes are in tatters, she even shows her underboob. It seems you told Ms. Inomata to go ahead and give those ideas a try.

I did indeed tell her that (laughs). I can easily imagine a rowdy male protagonist. but since we were going with a female protagonist, I wanted her to be a character who wouldn't be held down by the usual stereotypes. Her harshness and strength of will are always in the forefront of her behavior.

Looking at them from the perspective of the Art Director, what do you think of the other three as Character Designers?

Since Mr. Fujishima is also a manga artist, he's someone who has created trends. Even now, he still comes up with things that are new in terms of design. Every time he leaves me thinking things like, "This is amazing!" or "So this is how he tackled it!" He's the type of designer who tries to draw from a thorough understanding of the setting, even getting down to the little details like the time period and level of societal advancement. Ms. Inomata, as a female creator, has designs that are beautiful, delicate, and have a sense of both color and scent. The way she draws eyelashes, the beauty of her eyes, and her use of colors are all distinctive. she's also very attentive to clothing, and has a flashiness in her designs that's reminiscent of designer fashion. Since her designs have such an out of the ordinary feeling, they fit in well with fantasy settings, and players can get excited for them. I'm glad I chose her to design the Seraphim. Whenever I would explain to her the details about a character, she would quickly sketch something out on the spot and ask, "Should it be something like this?" It would always be amazing, and I'd yell out, "That's it!" in my excitement (laughs).

As for Okumura, he's your senior, correct?

Yeah, by about four or five years. When I joined, my "this is a good artist!" sensor immediately activated, and it drew me closer to Okumura. He's constantly working on improving his art. He actually was a huge influence for me. He always seemed to like things with mecha, three-dimensional objects, and buildings, and he pulls from that to make his designs and backgrounds come alive. Even while usually drawing from that skillset, he has a broad artistic perspective. I'm never going to take my eyes off him!

Now, let's move on to your own character design technique. How do you go about solidifying a design?

First, I check the character setting so I can see what purpose that character is meant to serve in the game, and then I ask about any contradictions or problems I see. Once I have a clear understanding of that, I decide to which degree I should prioritize the different things I want the character to convey, and then go through the process of omission and exaggeration.

When designing, you of course do so while conscious that it will be turned into a 3D model. Do you also keep in mind that it will be turned into a 2D animated form?

I do. On the 3D model side of things, they usually want a character with a high density of detail. However, the 2D animators have to draw such enormous amounts of drawings of the characters that they want to decrease the amount of details. I design aiming for the space between those two conflicting needs in terms of detail while ensuring the character's personality is coming across to the players.

What's the most important thing for you when designing a character?

The most important thing is what's conveyed to people when they see the character. That being said, there's no point to anything if the character doesn't give people positive emotions they can embrace, so I make sure to put a lot of love into each character. But even then, once the character is put into the world of the game, the impression the character gives can change based off of the scenario writer's intent, the voice acting, and the way the game plays. That can make them feel fresh. I like watching how the characters I gave birth to grow and develop. There are characters I draw while thinking, "I want them to convey this," but once they're out in the world, I feel like they belong to everyone who plays the game.

At which moment do you feel the most joy and sense of reward in character design work?

When I feel like a life has been born. There are times when I daw thinking, "So it's this kind of child, then?" But when I actually see that character moving and talking, and get the feeling that "this child actually lives in some world," that's the time that makes me feel really happy.

What kind of character do you want to draw next time?

Since the PS4's hardware has drastically more power for expression, I'd like to design a character with a huge amount of detail to match that. Like a character whose hair style changes a lot. Or something like a character who has oni horns when angry, but they turn into something like rabbit ears when they're sad. I think it would be interesting to make a character who takes advantage of that morphing technology.

As hardware evolves, its ability to express things is sure to increase as well.

Light and shadow, and lighting techniques period are evolving dramatically. Even while keeping with an anime and manga style look, we'll be able to reach a level of expressiveness where it actually feels real.

By the way, what type of characters do you personally like?

I like fighting games, so my favorite characters are ones that are both mentally and physically strong. Since I was born a man, I want to become the strongest, you know? (laughs) So I really like Milla. Other than that, I like characters who make the players happy. Like, for Japanese people, it's in our culture to find characters who are still maturing cute. I think that culture where we find things like developing idols cute is something unique to Japan. A huge amount of people like characters like that here, and I personally like them, too.

Finally, please tell us your thoughts on what makes the Tales of series appealing.

It has to be the lively characters. Matching with their various time periods, the characters all have their own different goals, troubles, and worries. we want to watch and cheer them on, think of them as cute, and admire them. There are RPGs where you play while becoming the main character, but in the Tales of series, you play while sort of looking after the characters. I hope that the things the players experienced through the games can become memories that feel like they truly witnessed them.


[note: The following comments on the character reference sheets and 3D models are not explicitly part of the interview, but were from the bottom of the same pages the interview was on.]


Character Reference Sheet for Animation: Laphicet

They arranged everything well while still having him feel like Laphicet. He was a simple character design in the first place, so I wouldn't accept it if the anime character sheet gave the impression of simplifying his design much more. Still, he looks very cute in motion. I thank the anime designers for that.

3D Model: Laphicet

He's cute. When he moves, he becomes even more cute. When I played as him in the game, I couldn't help but grin. Apparently 3D models are difficult to make if they're too simple, but they did their best and put in details like creases in his clothes to help.

Character Reference Sheet for Animation: Eizen

I feel like he became a little more burly, but this outfit does make Eizen's arms look big, so they probably went off of that impression. Anime proportions tend to bring the head and body a bit lower, so it could also be an effect from that change. Since the lining of his coat also has a pattern, it could be tough to animate.

3D Model: Eizen

He's handsome! Eizen looks cool in motion. it all comes down to movement with a character like this. Whether it's the 3D model, the anime design, or my original design, I wanted female fans to think he looks good, so I'm happy they completed the design so perfectly.


Date of Interview: 2016/8/3