GDC: Final Fantasy, Beautiful Men, and Fighting the Uncanny Valley (PS3)

Final Fantasy XIII is shaping up to be one of the most gorgeous games ever made, but Square Enix has had to fight against falling into the "uncanny valley," says artist Isamu Kamikokuryo.

by David Radd on Friday, February 22, 2008

Isamu Kamikokuryo discussed the process of making art for Final Fantasy in a crowded Q&A panel at this year's Game Developer's Conference. At first, Kamikokuryo reminisced about how he got his job at Square Enix. It wasn't particularly romantic: he followed a simple call for applicants, and submitted a resume with a photograph of one of his oil paintings. He got a call back, and got a job that many fanboys would kill for.

Eventually, the discussion moved on to the high quality graphics that Square Enix has been able to produce in its pre-rendered movies. Asked how the team copes with "the uncanny valley problem," Kamikokuryo noted that it's something everyone on the team is constantly thinking about. "In terms of the uncanny valley, that is something we have to fight against. We can't go there -- that's basically how we feel about it. For all the things we create, many of the section creators get together and we make adjustments so this uncanny valley phenomenon doesn't happen. We don't usually use that phrase, because all the staff has this in mind while we do our work."

Full article available at Joystiq.

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Final Fantasy Versus XIII

Final Fantasy Versus XIII
  • GenreAction RPG
  • Release Date11/30/1999
  • PublisherSquare Enix
  • DeveloperSquare Enix
  • ESRBRP - Rating Pending