"Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver" is one of my favorite games.
So when "Afro Samurai" senior designer David Robinson said he not only credits some design decisions for the anime-based hack 'n slash "Afro Samurai" to "Soul Reaver," but he also worked on "Soul Reaver," I was excited.
"Afro is largely built on the flavor of Soul Reaver -- the dark brooding story, the anti-hero character," said Robinson. "A lot of the constructs come from how beautiful that game was."
I'm sold! But I was curious how "Afro Samurai" came to be, as it's a new step for Namco Bandai. It's coming from the Japanese publisher's first wholly-owned studio in the United States. Robinson's been working on "Afro Samurai" for just under two years, and he started with just a staff of five.
Now, they're up to more than 40, as development nears the final lap. I probed Robinson about working with Samuel L. Jackson, who has done voices for the anime and the game.
So what was it like being part of Namco's first American team?
"We have a lot of independence," said Robinson. "There's a real high bar for pedigree at Namco. 'Soul Calibur,' 'Ace Combat'... there's a huge history of success and professionalism. That was the big thing. We knew we had a lot to prove that a small, American team could literally create a top notch game and not spend a lot of money."
When Robinson first heard about "Afro Samurai," it didn't interest him. Then someone at Japanese animation outlet Madhouse Studios showed him a secret trailer for the anime.
"It was literally life-changing," he said. "From then on, it was Afro or nothing."
Pitching "Afro Samurai" was easy, but Robinson's experiences with the Japanese end of Namco Bandai have proved more than a little interesting. "It's a cultural thing, right?," he said. "[US development is] a really kind of open, crazy, group-like culture, kind of like a football team. They [Japan] are very much more structured. In a typical American meeting, young designers are screaming their heads off and arguing at all levels. At that point, I think they were really kind of surprised how open we are and direct we are."
I was direct with Robinson, too. I explained how I didn't care about "Afro Samurai" until Samuel L. Jackson. He said I "hit the nail on the head" in terms of consumer awareness of the license, and said Jackson has been a big influence.
"Sam Jackson actually stole the original demo tape [for the anime] when he was at an unrelated event, and that's how the series got greenlit," said Robinson. "Sam was like, 'You're not making this without me!'"
Jackson hasn't had much hands-on involvement with the game, outside of voice overs and creative input for the anime, but Robinson has met him.
"We met him in LA," he said. "When you meet him and he talks about [Afro], you think: this guy really thinks he's Afro! I think if there's any character actor that could ever fit [Afro], it was Sam. Especially to go from Ninja Ninja, who's the smack-talking sidekick, to a straight-faced "I will kill you!" Sam does it so well."
"Afro Samurai" isn't the first license Robinson's worked on, either, but the last was a vastly different experience: "Snoopy vs. The Red Baron." "The Snoopy license is 70 years old," he joked. "That's carved in stone. You don't screw with Snoopy! Snoopy can't wear a bandana!"
On this project, however, his team was largely given free creative license. In fact, developing the game started influencing the direction of the series, sometimes to Robinson's frustration. They'd show the creators their character designs and suddenly they'd appear in the series, long before they'd make their gaming debut.
"It's cool, but that's not cool at all! [laughs]," he said.
Later this year, we'll find out how Namco Bandai's first foray into Western development pans out. They certainly have a suitably enthusiastic designer ready to go to bat for them.
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