“What I do isn’t exactly like creating artwork.
But if that didn’t happen I might have been making something very different right now.” So that was the beginning of how we started working together. Kojima again, and he told me he was thinking about starting Metal Gear, and I said I was very interested in it. I was good at making models so I thought I might be interested.” “The first interview was for an arcade shooting game that used modeled monsters. “Once I entered the company and after my training period, I had another interview where I was asked what department I wanted to work for.” So I sought to create bigger, realer, more hard-boiled characters and environments for the games industry, and that’s when I decided to apply to work at Konami.”Īs part of the entrance test Shinkawa submitted his portfolio and was interviewed by Kojima. But I always liked games, and back then when I was young all the game characters were simple, like Manga characters. “However, to become a Manga artist, the skill needed for that is quite different from the skills needed to paint, so I had to kind of give up on that. Initially he wanted to become a painter or draw manga. Shinkawa had been interested in art and painting since an early age. He talked about his history at the company, his method for creating characters, and working together with Hideo Kojima. It is nice to look back to when nothing was fixed(when i was pulling my hair), and now looking at the final direction we settled on I hope we managed to create a believable world for Rising.VG24/7 conducted an interview with Yoji Shinkawa, concept artist at Kojima Productions. Looking at the difference from earlier designs, it has definitely come a long way from when the project was first announced! Being a project with so much hype and excitement, as well as considering the dynamics of two studios, each with their own distinct individuality, I could see that Rising could have easily been pulled into a totally different direction. For illustration purposes, I have included two ‘before and after’ designs.īefore: This earlier design shown below is bordering on fantasy.Īfter: A simpler, down-to-earth look more suitable for a military corporation.īefore: Earlier design of the rooftop deck.Īfter: Final design is of a more realistic and functional look. Back then I certainly did think that it would be safer to just fall back on the general direction of the previous MGS titles.
Konami seemed keen to try out a new look while Platinum having made several fantasy titles, the style was somehow open and up for grabs. There was great confusion over the art direction of the game initially. Of course it wasn’t all smooth sailing from the start. By working within the philosophy of modern architecture and the characteristics of the Metal Gear Universe, I tried to create a sleek, functional and believable modern world for Raiden to be in. Instead, I chose to work with concrete and stainless steel to give it a non-military feel, as well as using LED light panels that glow from underneath for the workshops, just stopping short of making it look all too sci-fi. For example, in one of the stages there is this factory(like you always get in MGS), in the usual sense the factory would have been gritty with alot of metal, metal walls, rusty floors etc. The story is pretty much set in non-military locations, meaning that I had to come up with something that would fit the Metal Gear universe and yet be believable. Director Saito-san wanted to shift away from the direction of the previous series, he wanted something more realistic and modern without stepping into the realms of the cyberpunk. The direction was futuristic, very much more than it was in MGS4.Īfter Platinum took over the development of the project, the direction was shifted to a more modern look.
I came across the environmental designs that Konami did before Rising became a joint venture with Platinum Games. I was overjoyed and extremely nervous at the same time because of the immense reputation of this very franchise!īeing a joint production with Konami there were many hiccups from the start. Having played most of the games in the Metal Gear series, I was shocked when asked to do environmental concept designs for Metal Gear Rising. It is my great pleasure to share with you some of the work done for this long awaited game!! Hi guys, this is K here, the environmental concept artist for Metal Gear Rising.