.hack//Figuarts HASEO 3rd form BLACK / WHITE Interview CyberConnect2 Hiroshi Matsuyama and his fans' dreams come true

After 10 years, Haseo is made into a figure. The realization of "fans" dedicated by fans and Mr. Matsuyama's staff of CyberConnect 2 was said that Mr. Masafumi Harada of Bandai Collectors Division had the efforts of Mr. Harada. How did Mr. Kayako Hayashi of Collector's Division, who is in charge of development of this product, realize the feelings of these two people?
I would like to close that secret in an interview.

――First of all, please tell us how the "Figuarts ZERO .hack//Figuarts HASEO 3rd form BLACK / WHITE" was commercialized.

MatsuyamaFirst, let me explain why this figure is being released now. On November 1st, the .hack//GU trilogy, originally released on PS2, will be released as an HD remastered version for PS4 called .hack//GU Last Recode. The figure is scheduled to be available for order not only for fans from 10 years ago, but also for those who became fans with .hack//GU Last Recode.

- Indeed, this figure is in line with the release of the game.

Matsuyama: But that's not all. Actually, 10 years ago, Mr. Harada was the second producer of the '.hack// series' at Bandai (now Bandai Namco Entertainment). We did a lot of different things with '.hack//GU'.

Mr. HaradaIt was tough (laughs).

Matsuyama: Mr. Harada is now in the Collectors Division. The Collectors Division has the know-how to produce high-quality figures, and I had seen them showcasing a prototype of a Haseo figure at a previous "Tamashii Nation" event. So I said, "Please!" and came to the Collectors Division to visit Mr. Harada.

Mr. Harada: I'd say everything was decided when Matsuyama-san came to our company (Bandai). I felt that the passion we had when we created '.hack//GU' 10 years ago had been rekindled.

Matsuyama: For this figure, we collaborated with the same team that created the game, and just like with the game, we had Harada-san help us realize what we wanted to do. It couldn't have been, "The game is out, so please check out the figure too." We both wanted to pursue our dreams.
Games and figures are not independent of each other, I wanted to work with Mr. Harada as the same project. That's why it's not just a figure. By buying this figure I want to make such a figure that the mystery of ".hack // GU" becomes one.
"Let's continue the" .hack // GU "continuation ten years ago with that kind of feeling.

Mr. HaradaWe want people to love the ".hack" series even more by getting this figure. It's not just a fan item; we aimed to create a figure that would pique people's interest in the game.

[Figuarts ZERO .hack//Figuarts HASEO 3rd form BLACK]

The appearance of "Black Haseo" appearing at the beginning of the game. "Who the he is who?" Is three-dimensionalized into a figure that will be drawn to a good point. From here he struggles to pull the story while suffering

[Figuarts ZERO .hack//Figuarts HASEO 3rd form WHITE]

The appearance of "White Hoseo" appearing in the final chapter of the game Vol.3. Although we do not have weapons in the game, we are doing new color setting etc. It is a figure that makes sense to those who played the game

- For what reason did you choose the motif of this time with the character Haseo?

MatsuyamaFirst, the "Figuarts ZERO .hack//Figuarts HASEO 3rd form BLACK" is the "first form" in which Haseo appears before the player in ".hack//GU". He appears at the beginning of the game as a PKK (Player Killer), who hunts PKs (Player Killers).

Haseo of ".hack // GU" can be said to be the hero of the so-called "theater type". The player follows Haseo 's "Revenge" drama, and the emotions he bare. Why did he have such a feeling, why did it look like this, such a doubt attracts the player.

And as Hasewo continues to make mistakes and grows, players are even more drawn to the "Hasewo Story". The appearance of the black Hasewo, along with the first impression, is an item that reminds us of how he changed in the game.

"Figuarts ZERO .hack//Figuarts HASEO 3rd form WHITE" is a reproduction of what appears as the "inside" of Hasewo in Vol.3. The meaning of this character cannot be understood without playing the game, but on the contrary, it has a big meaning for the player. The point is that black and white are paired in the 3rd Form. The white Hasewo in the game didn't have a weapon, but I set it up for this figure.

- In making the figure, did Mr. Matsuyama request "I want this to do this"?

Matsuyama: That's amazing (laughs). Not only the fans, but myself included, it was CyberConnect2's dream to have our characters turned into high-quality figures... We incorporated opinions from fans throughout CyberConnect2, not only from the staff who worked on '.hack//GU' at the time, but also from staff who were high school students 10 years ago and loved '.hack//GU'.
Especially graphics / modeling related staff love figures and I got a tremendous amount of requests. Although I compiled it, since the person who made the figure is a professional, I also thought that I might be rude, but I hopefully Mr. Harada, Mr. Hayashi good luck (laugh).

【Requests from cyber connects 2】

"Request for Correction" from Cyber ​​Connect to Two with a Very Fine Thought. Using processed pictures or taking photos of other figures as examples ... .... The attentions that are too fine are conveying the feeling that "I am really happy with figures."

Mr. Kayako Hayashi of Collectors Division, who is in charge of development of this product

- It's a very detailed request with enthusiasm. How did Mr. Hayashi receive this and how did it proceed?

Mr. Hayashi: I was very grateful to receive such a concrete image. The level of detail made me want to work even harder (laughs). Of course, we made full use of our "figure creation know-how." We expressed the contrast between the three-dimensional feel of the armor, the muscular look of Haseo, the abdominal muscles and other parts that give a sense of flesh and blood, and the texture of the hard armor through sculpting and painting. I personally like Haseo's "chuunibyou" (middle school syndrome) vibe, his dark and reckless image. He's a character that's really worth making into a figure. He's a character with a refined face, and the design itself is cool and has a lot of contrast, so he was a very easy motif to sculpt. When the painted sample came back, I couldn't help but brag about how cool it was to everyone in the company.

Matsuyama: For the black and white Haseo figures, we created new, high-definition CG "high models" and provided them to the figure development team. CyberConnect2 also re-specified the colors. Some of these specifications differ slightly from the game, but they are not simply color changes; they are incorporated with meaning and "interest" in mind. Mr. Hayashi and the development team brilliantly met these requests. There is a crucial difference between figures and CG. In CG, there is nothing inside the armor; there is no data itself. In figures, there is a body and bones beneath the equipment. And there are also exaggerated expressions unique to figures. I think they have created a product that emphasizes the realism of figures, which is different from CG. In terms of "presence," they were able to express something different from CG.

Mr. Harada: This is a figure that even people who don't know '.hack//GU' will think is cool, right?

[Check colored swatches! 】

A colored sample checked at the time of the interview. In addition to expressions, it is so much fun to check with details of armor, weapons, armor gradation, Haseo's muscle depiction

"5th Form" added in ".hack // GU Last Recode". I would like to expect other Haseo Form to be three-dimensional.

- Is there any further "gimmick" in this product?

Matsuyama: When you play the game, and when you get your hands on the figure, you'll want to learn more about Haseo. We've prepared something for those people. That's the booklet that comes with each figure, "The Black Evil Man's Journal" and "Excerpts from the Investigation File of the Inscription Holder: 'Considerations Regarding the 'Duplicate Phenomenon'."

This is a completely newly written item that can only be obtained here. We are particular about binding. Black opens to the left, the same as the novel, and white opens to the right like a report. "The Black Criminal's Note" is a novel in the form of a note that expresses Hasewo's feelings leading up to the 3rd Form. And, "Excerpt from the inscription holder survey file" Consideration on "overlapping phenomenon" "". This is a report by an "observer" investigating the secret hidden in Hasewo leading up to the 3rd Form.

Mr. Harada: It's a confidential document, but it's included with the figure (lol).

MatsuyamaBuying this will allow you to enjoy new discoveries! Looking at each piece will give you a more three-dimensional understanding. It's fun to think about when in the game this was written, and how it influenced things, as you read. The more dedicated the fan, the more they will enjoy it. This kind of ingenuity is the true essence of '.hack//GU'.

- I would like to hear more stories, but this time it is this far. Please give Mr. Matsuyama a message to the fans at the end.

MatsuyamaThis figure is a dream come true for both the fans and myself, a dream we've had for 10 years. Fifteen years ago, '.hack//' began with the idea of providing customers with various entry points, not just games, but also novels and anime. Now, we've added another entry point: figures. I think this is an evolution of the '.hack//' project. I'm also glad I was able to work with Mr. Harada, and I enjoyed and learned a lot from exchanging ideas with collectors during the figure's creation process, so I hope we can work on various projects again in the future.

──Thank you very much.

[Black and white 2 booklets]

[Other Haseo Form]

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See details in the Tamashii Web Shop(Opens in a new tab)

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※ The photo is a prototype, it differs from the actual product