here are my insights on this whole project, as well as closeups on all the small details you see in this video!
the first “skill” that speaks is VOLITION. in game, it is the voice that maintains the protagonist’s emotional stability so he can continue to function after he crashed and burned the night before the story starts. i thought yuji would also have this attribute, but that the portrait would portray his younger self. in my mind, yuji’s younger self would want the best for him in the present, yet current yuji, post-shibuya yuji wouldn’t recognize his younger self as “him” due to how much sukuna changed his life. as if younger yuji comes from a different world entirely. that’s why the portrait is obscured, to reflect that dissonance between his kid self and his current self.
a majority of disco elysium’s interactions are within the protagonist, between the “skills,” the parts of himself that process emotions, interpret physical experiences, and perceive cultural/scientific information. but because yuji’s sense of self is much more unified than the disco elysium protagonist, the portraits of each corresponding skill still portrays his physical traits (also because i was not going to draw 5 completely new portraits for a one-off scene).
REASON and PAIN THRESHOLD are originally from disco elysium, but RESOLVE is something i made up and find unique to yuji. the indomitable human spirit he has throughout the story is core to his character, so i thought it best to make it a new skill entirely.
the portraits for REASON and RESOLVE are cracked to represent yuji’s wavering in his beliefs post-shibuya. PAIN THRESHOLD remains whole because of his body’s natural resilience and sukuna's maintenance of his form with rct. what can reason do to explain why so many people died by his hand? how can yuji’s resolve in his motivations remain in tact if anything he does completely destroys what he attempts to save?
all three skills come to the same conclusion, but with different reasonings. REASON because it’s yuji’s way of rationalizing his actions against the weight of the lives he took. PAIN THRESHOLD because the pain he inadvertently caused others should be done to him tenfold. RESOLVE because the one thing he can do to make up for the gap between his motivations and his actions is to stop entirely. of course, because this is all in yuji’s head, we view this as irrational. but to yuji, it’s the only reason that makes sense.
the entire sequence is based on the opening to disco elysium itself, especially with the fade from black into the physical world. the sound that plays is actually the noise for when the protagonist’s secondary health bar, morale, is at a critical low. it makes sense yuji would have critical morale in this moment as well, grappling with everything that happened. it also sounds very liminal, which i found to work with the ambience very well!
i also used a cover of the ost for this scene specifically in the anime to separate yuji’s unconscious dialogue with his interactions in the physical world. big thanks to my friend for lending his voice for choso!
yes, i redrew and repainted the window as a separate texture entirely! all the references of this space were taken from google earth (RAMLA painting at Iidabashi Station in Chiyoda, Tokyo). it was definitely a fun challenge trying to translate a ground-level view with one off the ground! i utilized a transfer technique that messed with my brain, as i had to distinguish between the actual lines of the design and the guidelines of my transfer grid.
this quote is lifted directly from the game itself, and it’s the inciting influence on this project’s creation as a whole. SANGUIS RELIGATA is a skill i made up, as i wanted to represent that sort of inherent connection between yuji and choso. it literally means “blood bond” in Latin (pushed through google translate), but i chose this way because of the religious and medical terminology vibes.
full portraits of SANGUIS RELIGATA and EMPATHY!
i referenced an ultrasound and tied in the whole ordeal with kenny through making the umbilical cord look like the head scars as well as “barbed wire.” as if to keep the baby violently contained. scary ass baby...
i threw together EMPATHY at the last minute because i completely forgot i added a line in, but i still enjoy how the final portrait looks! i wanted to express yuji’s bleeding heart and deep understanding for others, but also how it takes a toll on him being sukuna’s vessel.
this passive check here is a medium because while it is easy for yuji to empathize with others, i think he still feels a little bitter over the whole fight, even if it were a misunderstanding.
VOLITION returns with an impossible dice roll. as much as talking about it with someone would ease the heaviness of his guilt, yuji cannot find it in himself to listen to his self preservation. the idea of suffering through the guilt in order to make it worth something to the lives lost, that sort of thinking feels most in line with yuji at this moment.
and that's all! thank you so much for reading through if you're still here! this project got me out of my comfort zone, and i loved each step of the way! from learning how to visualize space with isometric perspective, to learning how to color backgrounds and distinguish surfaces with textures, to editing the text with a mask to make it pop up like actual in-game dialogue, to narrating the work itself! i had an absolute blast working through all these parts, and i truly hope my passion for both these series shines through.
