TALES OF 30th Anniversary - Interview with Kosuke Fujishima

Kosuke Fujishima’s new artwork has been revealed to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the series!

It depicts Cress from Tales of Phantasia, the first title of the series, Luke from Tales of the Abyss, the 10th anniversary title of the series, and Sorey from Tales of Zestiria, the 20th anniversary title.

Along with the artwork, we had a special interview with Kosuke Fujishima.

1. How has your artistic vision evolved over the decades working on the Tales series?

When I started out, I kept my designs simple to avoid excessive graphics load. However, thanks to recent advances in both hardware and software performance, I feel that my designs have shifted from simple to more information-rich.

2. What makes the style of the Tales series so special?

I try to imagine a time far earlier in history than the present day, so I avoid technology that would not have existed in the real world at that time—like zippers, for example. I also take care to design the characters in a way that enables them to not encounter any major inconveniences when traveling.

3. How did you build this visual identity with the other character designers over the years?

Bandai Namco provides me with some direction, so I try to keep that in mind while working. However, if I don't let my own ideas soar, I start to lose sight of the meaning in my work. It's a tough balance to achieve.

4. Looking back, which character was your favorite to draw?

I liked drawing all the characters, but Estelle in particular left an impression on me. She was originally supposed to have long hair, but due to a mistake when reading the image, she ended up having short hair. Also, the way her skirt billows in the finished animation is really beautiful and memorable.

Cress is also a big one for me, as he was the first character ever designed for the Tales series and ended up being a key figure in deciding the overall series direction.

5. Which Tales character design do you feel the most attached to?

I'm particularly attached to Yuri's design. I put a lot of effort into incorporating Japanese-style elements into his design and creating a slim silhouette for him, which was unlike anything we had ever done before.

6. What's your creation process when working on party member artwork?

Having a unified aesthetic to start with makes things easier, but also more difficult.

If you follow the aesthetic too closely, the characters will look like they are from the same world, but then they start to lose what makes them unique.

If I'm aware of any regional differences within a game's setting, I'll incorporate different cultural elements into the designs based on what I imaging about the characters. It's fun to imagine what kind of lives they might lead.