The creaking noise of a metal gate. The pounding of footsteps on cobblestones. The unmistakable swish of sharp iron as it cuts through the air. These are but a few effects that were part of a cacophony of sounds. In a span of time, we watched in amazement as Cygames Osaka gave us a behind the scenes peek at how they developed games like Granblue Fantasy: Relink and Granblue Fantasy: Versus.
Cygames, primarily known for the wildly popular Granblue Fantasy, a free-to-play RPG that spawned several spinoffs, recently invited us to tour their Osaka studio. We first checked out their motion capture (mocap) facility, which is considered one of the largest in Japan.
Cygames Osaka’s mocap studio has room for up to 16 actors that are simultaneously part of a scene. Moreover, 168 Vicon cameras attached to numerous pillars and riggings around the room allow for seamless recording at multiple angles and long-distance tracking in a single take. Accuracy is also a given, as the sheer number of devices ensures that even the most minute details, such as facial expressions and movements of fingers, are recorded.
At a signal from Mr. Tajiri, the assistant manager of the division, we were treated to a short fight scene, as actors portraying Gran and Zeta duked it out on a grassy plain. Gran’s actor ran up a flight of steps, jumping to do an aerial strike before Zeta’s counter pushed him several meters away. The safety of the actors is always paramount, and we could tell that the person portraying Gran loved doing his stunts.
Shortly thereafter, we took a look at the Foley studio. Significantly smaller compared to the mocap section of the building, it was nonetheless an integral part of the development process. For this portion, we took notes from Ms. Lee, the lead foley artist and sound editor, who informed us of the work that goes into adding sound effects in cutscenes that players might overlook.
The scene in this particular instance was that of Narmaya’s introduction in Granblue Fantasy: Relink. In it, Narmaya walks along a rocky path, before unsheathing her sword and doing a flourish. The whole scene lasts no more than 15 seconds, and yet we saw how various sound effects were created. These included a technician walking on pavement to simulate the sound of Narmaya’s bootsteps, the swish of her cloak as it billowed in the wind, and the slightly muted noise as she adjusted her gloves.
In addition to these, there were around five different sound effects layered on top of each other to recreate how she unsheathed her sword: two swords with different sheathes and handles, Ms. Lee swiping at the air with a katana, and a couple of blades scraping against each other to produce the same high-pitched “schwing” when a sword is drawn.
We even asked which common sound effect was actually the hardest one to reproduce, and the answer couldn’t help but make us chuckle–it was punches. Given how the sounds of punches need to be different depending on the impact and where the blow lands, the team actually had to strike various kinds of meat slabs to produce the right effects.
Our Cygames Osaka studio visit was capped off with a quick roundtable discussion with Tsutomu Kokufu, the head of the studio, and Kazuhiro Tsuchiya, the general manager of console operations. A brief session that recounted the company’s history and how Granblue Fantasy’s success led to new media spinoffs like Relink and Versus.
Neither Kokufu nor Tsuchiya was able to provide more details as to the company’s upcoming projects. However, we’ve been told that there are big plans, especially considering how Cygames Osaka is poised to focus heavily on the console game market.
We were able to ask Kokufu-san on how he views the advancements in technology and the overall work process now, and he was ecstatic, jokingly mentioning how requests for additional equipment were readily approved. Perhaps these internal processes, as well as a state-of-the-art facility, will continue to propel Cygames Osaka into the forefront of console game development.
