1800’s Western redesign of Vampire Hunter D set in America. Using FromSoftware as the intended studio, I was inspired by Bloodborne’s design aesthetic with Sekiro’s narrative structure.
D’s immortal nature was extremely compatible with the legend of Wyatt Earp having never been shot in any gunfight. The outfit was inspired by Union Officers and cowboys with a bit of lone wandering outlaw flair. He’s holding his famous talisman of protection that he gives to Doris at the beginning of the story to protect her. As an homage to two similar characters: the Man with No Name, D is wearing his bracer as well as Sanjuro’s oxalis crest on his duster.
Wyatt Earp’s Colt Buntline Special was his signature revolver that was a modified version of the original with a 12 inch barrel. Since D was known to have an extra long blade on his back, combining the two felt like a perfect match for his character. Many blades are perpendicular to the main sword to create a cross motif along with it becoming a serrated edge for hunting. The teeth on his back fill with blood as a UI element for his bloodlust.
The sassy, crude, and funny attitude of the original Left Hand and inspiration of Wyatt Earp lead to the solution of Doc Holliday being the best candidate as his personality. The dead man’s hand was also perfect for a dead man that could have his detachable hand resurrect him at will.
I designed Magnus Lee’s outfit as an amalgamation of British Red Coats from the War of 1812, Confederate officers, Balkan Folk costumes, as well as some tinges of Red Westerns/Osterns that released in Russia as competition to the Westerns in the United States. His facial scars were sustained before becoming a vampire. It features smallpox scars that he contracted abroad before moving to the Frontier.
The actual text describes Lee’s cape as having stitched together skin of women who slaked his thirst. I wanted to give a physical representation of that as well as give the answer to the mystery of what happened to his wife, the mother of Larmica. As a boss fight, after Magnus sustains enough damage, his cape will grow and have separate health bars/move sets for front and back.
The Enfield was a rifle that was extremely popular by the Confederates during the civil war. I used this as the base for creating a staff rifle to match Vampire Hunter D’s gunblade.
As the daughter of a Werewolf Hunter, Doris is already pretty capable of handling herself. The charro aesthetic felt like a nice contrast from the more American cowboy style that D had and the more aristocratic nature of Magnus Lee. As a natural resistance to vampires, I chose to give her culturally Catholic roots from her family: this is represented by both her cross earring as well as the many Lady Guadalupe motifs on her outfit. In universe, people are unable to remember vampire’s weaknesses once discovered, keeping it as part of her character made it a permanent fixture.
Heavily considered the aesthetic of burlesque dancers (often featured on cigarette cards) that matched her design in the movie, but decided to go with something more practical and closer to her actual role as a farmer’s daughter that took care of her younger brother.
Live action redesign of Nausicaa. Inspired by dieselpunk, the interwar period, and retrofuturism that the original borrowed from. The Valley of the Wind aesthetic borrows from Greece, while Pejite uses Turkey, and Torumekia’s motifs are from Italy. Staying close within the Mediterranean Sea gave similarities, but have enough cultural contrast to be interesting.
As such an iconic character, I wanted to design Nausicaa to fit this specific world more than simply be a more believable/functional version of the original film’s costume. Maintaining the aviator role and her bright personality were big considerations of the process. Modern Greek costume motifs were also peppered into the aesthetic along with her insect whistle as a focal point.
Exploring different types of technology for the breathing mask. Hazmat suits, gas masks, underwater rebreathers, firefighter oxygen masks and more were considered. Ultimately decided to go with something very close to the original to keep with it’s unique identity.
The main design inspiration for the glider was looking at retrofuturistic cars and interwar era planes. The center console, safety belts, and diesel exhaust were added for functionality and alignment with the dieselpunk aesthetic. With the final glider looking a bit more like a manta ray, this influenced how the Sea of Corruption and Ohmu would be designed going forward.
Asbel is more of a kind hearted rogue that goes after revenge against the Torumekian Empire. As a vassal state of the empire, I used Turkey’s national animal, the gray wolf, to represent Pejite being caged behind the horizontal bars. I opted to keep a more square aesthetic to contrast against Nausicaa’s triangular motifs. Many of the other design flourishes were influenced by clothing of the Ottoman Empire.
Nausicaa is featured at the bottom of the Sea of Corruption. Asbel experiences the last moments of Pejite as it is destroyed by the Ohmu.
A story of two sisters possessed by Yokai in Meiji Era Japan. The prominent way to get rid of Tanuki possession is by worshiping them until they ascend to godhood. Begging the assistance of Tamamo-no-Mae, the eldest allows herself to be used as a vessel in order to start a cult of the Tanuki. The printing press, the telegram operators, and modern day advertising will be a good start to boost the numbers.
Meiji Era Japan is defined by its aesthetic of mixing both Western style clothing along with traditional Japanese garb. The design for the elder sister was intended to look more proper, traditionally Japanese, and well put together. Using the colorways of a fox (kitsune) as a base and adding more regal elements like a crown and other jewelry. The younger sister’s design philosophy is to use far more Western/European articles of clothing, add details of sloppiness/dirtiness, and the overall colorway of tanuki’s (raccoon dogs.) The added alcohol gourd, cigarette, and complexion show additional signs of Tanuki possession, as the victim becomes gluttonous and unkempt.
Transformation ideation on what the characters would look like if the Yokai completely take over.
The Kitsune sister leads her younger sibling with fried tofu, a Tanuki’s favorite snack. The Yokai’s meddling in their photoshoot is sure to cost a pretty penny.