Shin Megami Tensei: Part 3 The Art of Kazuma Kaneko (People)

Ok Everyone, This one took me a while because I want to show Kaneko's versatility when it comes to designing demons but it also has a bit of history as we'll look into his early designs so we'll be looking at some past designs from the first Megami Tensei games and like SMT 2 and  Nocturne. We'll focus a part of this series to Kaneko's successor. (Masayuki Doi. His works have been mixed among the fans, (Myself included) but he does have a combo of hits and misses and when he hits, he does it well.) But before we do the demons, let's look at his human designs first.

Kaneko's main style is varied but his human designs have a very simplistic look. But what he lacks in making distinct facial features and looks, (Almost all characters have a similar profile look) he makes up for in Fashion! Kaneko is a master of following fashion trends from casual, classy, to the haute couture.

Let's look at the first Shin Megami Tensei Protagonist.
(https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/0/05/Kazuya_render.png/revision/latest?cb=20120921120529)

So from this design, we see Kaneko's usage of color more in emphasizing what our protagonist wears. We see this a lot with many of his human characters. His character's skins are usually pale to emphasize the clothes being the main characteristics of the MC. But notice the patterns and colors of the clothes. They're modern and that's the main separation of clothes seen in Fantasy games like Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts where clothes seem made arbitrarily to emphasize the fantastical elements of the story. Let's compare to the KH2 outfit of one of my favorite protagonists, Sora. (https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/kingdomhearts/images/6/6d/Sora_%28Art%29_KHII.png/revision/latest?cb=20130917025201) The clothes could look pretty normal but with the emphasis on the straps being a major outline and the overly baggy pants being both unrealistic and a tribute to Mickey Mouse (Sora originally wore Mickey's colors of white gloves, yellow shoes, and red pants). Also, the huge zipper lines for Sora's overshirt as well as his trademark shoes also should be noted. Exaggeration is in this aspect of the KH universe, SMT tries to be more subtle but also reflects Kaneko's philosophy.

Now there are some more famous Kaneko characters. Let's look at Madam from SMT II. (https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/5/50/SMTII-Madam.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20090623072243) Madam is the governess of Valhalla, a section of Tokyo Millenium. This design Kaneko made shows his love for Haute Couture designs with a combination of formal dress and abstract patterns and designs. (Notice the chains and overexaggerated collar) But Kaneko successfully makes the design look natural to Madam and makes one feel as if you could meet this eccentric woman someday. Maybe at a high fashion show or a rich dinner party. But even other supporting cast members also have fashionable and modern styles that emphasize their looks.

Isamu from SMT: Nocturne (https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/b/bc/Nocturne-IsamuNiita.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20081210030909) has a very punk and gothic aesthetic from Ripped Jeans, predominantly black clothes, the demonic Belt Buckle (I think it's foreshadowing but if you guys ever play this game, let me know what you think about the Belt Buckle being a foreshadow element. Also, if it helps, the face on the buckle looks similar to Kaneko's design of the demon Azazel.), and cap which covers his right eye. But yet it's fashionable and you could imagine someone wearing this in a contemporary setting.

Kaneko even goes further to period style clothing, specifically 1920's Japan. Heavily inspired by Japan's late Meiji period and Jazz Age Japan, Kaneko features his character designs from the Devil Summoner Series to be just as individualistic from other characters of the mainline SMT series. Shouhei Narumi, Raidou's mentor and friend, is all cut clean and dapper with a 3 piece brown suit. (https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/6/60/DSRK-Narumi.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20170417100235) The bowler, popular for its time, fits perfectly into Narumi's suit and the tie is an individualistic touch but still matches with the overall suit. The curly hair is also a nice touch to focus a little on Narumi's appearance being a bit messy like his personality sometimes.

And for another lady, let's focus on the Narumi Detective Agency's (unofficial) Investigative Journalist, Tae Asakura. (https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/3/3a/DSRK-TaeAsakura.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20090523083854) Tae refers herself to be a modern woman and it's no surprise given her cosmopolitan look. Also inspired by Western Fashion, Tae prefers being individualistic by going with the modern lady's look with her Peter Pan haircut under her lady's bowler. Also, she wears a white blouse to compliment her overall light creme outfit of a business skirt and matching overcoat. Her posture has a sly and curious look to her, reflecting her role as a journalist digging up gossip on all sorts of places including places where other devil summoners congregate to find clues about their own personal agendas. Tae's look reflects the beginnings of the 20th-century woman and Kaneko does an excellent job of coming up with her design and characterization from just a single look.

Lastly, Let's look into Stephen this time. (https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/4/43/STEVEN.png/revision/latest?cb=20121008155542) If you haven't guessed, Stephen in the games is based on the late Stephen Hawking, wheelchair and all. In this game series, Stephen is a scientist who helped create the digital demon database summoning system. So he has knowledge of the demons but in style to Hawking, he has traveled into the multiverse and watches to see what the protagonist does. The Bright Red Suit called immediate attention to him but unlike the ideas of passion and rage, he's quite calm and analytical. Soothing but stern. And his facial features and glasses are also reminiscent of Stephen drawing further parallels from Reality vs. Fantasy. Even his wheelchair is similar to Hawkings but added with more gadgets for Interdimensional transportation and demon summoning.

Now before I go, I want to mention that Part 4 will focus on the Demons of Megami Tensei and include pictures of YHWH and Lucifer as well as other demons that Kaneko has designed so it will take longer than anticipated for this article to come out. But here's a quote from Kaneko to describe his philosophy of SMT.

Profile

"Another thing that bothered me was the trend of the main character always being portrayed as someone special -- a legendary warrior, for example. It was the equivalent of saying you can't succeed unless you're from a wealthy family, and I just couldn't stand that. I wasn't born with special genes, and I'm sure most other players weren't either. No matter who you are, if you're given a chance and have the guts to try your best, you can become a hero... That became the concept of Megami Tensei."