“Behind the Scenes: Crafting the Perfect Character Designs for Immersive Gameplay”

If you have a fondness for Solid Snake, or more particularly, for Solid Snake’s backside, then your sincere appreciation should be directed towards a certain Metal Gear Solid creator, according to an interview with two industry veterans.

In a 2003 interview originally featured in Hyper PlayStation 2 magazine and now available on Shmuplations, Metal Gear Solid art director Yoji Shinkawa and former Square Enix designer Tetsuya Nomura discussed their creative processes. Shinkawa specifically noted how spending most of his career on action games led to a heightened focus on his characters’ rears.

“I’ve worked on more action games than anything else throughout my career,” Shinkawa states, while asking Nomura what differs in designing characters for an RPG compared to an action game. “Thus, I dedicate a considerable amount of time perfecting the details of the characters’ backsides, as that’s the part players see most during gameplay. Especially the butts,” he chuckles.

In reply, Nomura, who was at the time developing Kingdom Hearts, emphasizes that character designs must function well in motion, an aspect that isn’t as critical in RPGs. “There’s no real design limitations for RPGs, but in action games, you need to ensure it looks appealing while moving. In RPGs, characters execute a broader array of movements and actions, so more than just movement, I concentrate on ensuring their designs seamlessly integrate into the game’s world and atmosphere.”

Apart from Snake’s backside, Shinkawa has been responsible for some of the most visually impressive games over the last few decades, serving as the art director for the entire Metal Gear Solid series, Death Stranding, and currently, Death Stranding 2, where we can all anticipate more outstanding work from the master himself.