Background Angle Tests - March 31 2008
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What is the significance of the angled backdrops?
In designing for this title, we kept the game’s main concepts in mind:
- Shedding the conventional on-screen presentation
- A worldview grounded in Japanese urban culture
We over-exaggerated perspectives in order to preserve the unconventional style that the game is based on. For example, we displayed the “104” building and the poster large and extremely angled, so that it would look massive and eye-catching.
The “104” building was drawn in exaggerated perspectives, as if it is falling onto the town. We hoped to depict this tall lanky landmark in the horizontal DS screen by using this bold expression. The design centered on the iron bars in the entrance, rather than the building as a whole.
How did the DS format (dual screens, low resolution) affect the decision to implement exaggerated perspective?
As stated above, we aimed to set the style apart from a typical DS title. Exaggerated perspectives were not used to fit more of a scene onto the screen. In fact, in some scenes, we drastically minimized information (e.g. a diagonal crosswalk underground for which only the intersection shows). Our intent was mainly to break convention.
Explain the challenge and effect of connecting sections of a location, each with a different angle of perspective, into a continuous scene.
The concept of the game was that the top screen was for command battle and the bottom was for stylus action. So, we designed the top screen mainly for visual interest and the bottom for gameplay.
