Ghostwire: Tokyo, the upcoming game from Japanese developer Tango Gameworks, takes advantage of Tokyo’s technologically advanced environment while incorporating traditional Japanese landmarks such as shrines, shrines, and torii gates. The combination of the here and now and the traditional is what sets the company apart from previous games, and Ghostwire: Tokyo is not a horror title like The Devil Inside series.
Director Kenji Kimura, producer Masato Kimura, and concept artist Kenta Muramatsu spoke to WIRED about how they’re incorporating modern and traditional aspects of Japanese culture into the game, which will premiere on the 25th. March.
Looking for inspiration
Kimura said that he was inspired by books like Valis by Philip K. Dick; Paragraph by Connie Willis; Flowers bloom and fade, Reality in dreams by Chohei Kanbayashi; and The World, the Flesh & the Devil: An Investigation into the Future of the Three Enemies of the Soul of Reason by J.D. Bernal.
“The way these books use an understanding of things like spirit, soul, mind, conscious and unconscious, and death is close to what I myself have felt,” explains Kimura. He is also affected by Tool’s “Pneuma”. The lyrics of the song left a strong impression on him and it’s one of the songs he listens to most often while walking.
He said, “When I listen to it, the thoughts of life and death in my mind are naturally linked to the thoughts that I have tried to express in it. Ghostwire: Tokyo. ”
Kimura tries to go for a walk or listen to music often because it helps to clear his mind. When he was thinking about a quest with a specific character, one of the songs he heard was “Waving Goodbye” by Sia. It’s another example of lyrics that fit naturally with what he has in mind for the character’s feelings.
Muramatsu also walks around the city and visits shrines, temples, and other sites. “Just looking at the pictures, you just have an image of what those things look like,” explains Muramatsu. “But when you actually go there and see how they look from different angles, that’s all the inspiration for creating in-game art.”
Tango Gameworks had the idea of using Tokyo as a setting for the game long before focusing more specifically on the Shibuya area. Environment in Ghostwire: Tokyo closely resembles the real-life city, so the team can refer to Tokyo itself.
The blend of tradition and modernity extends to the real world. Tokyo has many modern buildings located close together, but if you go to the next block or between the alleys, you can find a temple or other traditional structure. For the team at Tango Gameworks, the game’s setting is their everyday lives. But the mix of traditional and modern structures is part of the appeal for those who don’t live in Tokyo.
To keep players immersed, the team designed Ghostwire: TokyoAkito’s main character, looks like an ordinary Japanese. However, the team also had to be careful not to make him blend in with everyone. By default, Akito wears a light blue jean jacket over his white shirt, with a small bag slung over his shoulder, along with beige jeans.
