I thought I'd share some thinking on art direction for a personal project of mine. Much of my inspiration was taken from Katsuhiro Otomo, the man behind Akira. The imperfect shapes and lines intend to bring out the hand drawn look and feel of animations seen throughout the 80's and early 90's.

The mechanical sakura flower merges machine with nature, indicative of a time set far into the future. The sakura flower also leaves an east asian cultural impression.

And finally, the colours used in this key visual hopes to further connect the game to comic book styles. It also makes it easier to emphasise key elements with colour, should the need arise in future. A good example of this can be seen in Platinum Games' Madworld.

Why did I choose to go with this art direction?

Viewers fully appreciate the blood, sweat and tears poured into every frame as they watch films like Akira or Ghibli's Spirited Away, which in turn adds to their enjoyment and overall appreciation for the film. 

As I develop the environment and characters of the game, I hope to leave players with a similar impression; revealing much of the process, as well as the outcome.