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Emo

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I got into a mental hyperbolic time chamber of sorts over the last couple of days and decided to learn how to draw. This is as far as I've been able to push myself so far

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Changing Seasons -Reload-

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I made this for Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne's anniversary (I love this game)

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I finished the original Final Fantasy VII for the second time yesterday (been about 8 years since I last played it). It still remains one of the greatest games I've ever played, and I think that it is a must-play even if you have played/are playing through the games from the Remake project.

I've been really disapointed with the way the narrative has been told within the Remake project so far, so this was a nice reminder of the game that I initially fell in love with all those years ago. The story feels more focused, compact, and is presented in a way that is clear and easy for players to understand. Cloud is better presented as an awkward person who never knew where he fit in amongst the rest of society and ultimately feels a bit more relatable (I forgot how often he tries to display his sense of humor). Sephiroth is presented as a much bigger deal and has a much more ominous presence because we don't constantly see him on screen and only ever get to fight him once (and as a result, the "One-Winged Angel" track feels warranted when it does eventually play. Thanks Remake/Rebirth for already wearing that track thin). Midgar and other sections like the Gold Saucer don't feel like drags and don't overstay their welcome. The Nibelheim flashback is *so much better* in my opinion and the visual of seeing Sephiroth dealing 3k+ damage while Cloud deals a measly 15 damage is some of the greatest use of gameplay as a narrative mechanic.

Point is, I love this game and can ramble about it for hours. If you have not played it, you owe it to yourself to at least give it a try.

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Because I Will Protect You -Portable-

(I think I'll start posting some of my animations on here because they're probably some of the more interesting stuff I've done lol)

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I realized that it has already been a year since P3R's release. So I sat down, listened to a podcast or three, and made this render over the weekend.

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PERFECT RED

(They say that making art always helps keep your mind at peace during rough times. I suppose making this did help in some ways, but I must admit I still feel kind of sick to my stomach. I can't remember the last time I've felt down like this - if ever.)

(Also, I suppose most people would know the reference for this)

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Was just scrolling through my renders and came across this one. Didn't think much of it back then, but there's something about it that I really enjoy looking at it now. Maybe it's the words that are being spoken here I don't know

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The Tears I Shed for You - Public Release

"The Tears I Shed for You" is now available to read

It is a collection of renders, presented in a novel-style format, that aims to faithfully retell the protagonist and Mitsuru's romance route from Persona 3, all while adding original scenes that were created by myself.

This novel comes in the form of a PDF that you have to download locally. Here are some links + a 'Before You Read':

PDF - https://bit.ly/4itp1jL

4K Still Render Gallery - https://bit.ly/3Dla7eZ

Animation Gallery - https://bit.ly/3VvyXzm

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"He... is more than just a friend to me. I owe him my life."

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The Tears I Shed for You - A 7 Month-Long Labor of Love

I know I haven't posted any of my recent works on here for a long time, but I think I'm happy with just using this platform as a way to just dump my thoughts.

After 235 renders and ~7 months of chipping away at this thing, I've finally wrapped up work on my digital novel centered around Makoto and Mitsuru's romance path from P3R: "The Tears I Shed for You"

I'm kind of shocked that I was able to get this done without giving up or burning myself out throughout the process, considering that I didn't make a dime out of it. I didn't do this for money, or to get my foot in the door at getting some kind of gig as an artist. More than anything, I just wanted to make something that I could look back on one day and be proud of. And along the way, I was fortunate enough to have a following of people who genuinely enjoyed and looked forward to what I was making.

It's a bit crazy when I look back at how this whole thing came to be, because it initially started as just 3 separate renders (the ones attached to this post) that I had made for fun. But when I looked at them, all I could think about was how I could tie them together and tell some kind of story with it. And so what I ended up coming with was a story that has Mitsuru reminisce on the events of her social link, and how her relationship with Makoto has left an impact on her for the rest of her life.

From start to finish, all I ever wanted this to be was basically a love letter to Persona 3 and what I took away from the game. The most beautiful thing about art, or entertainment as a whole, is that everyone is going to perceive things differently - take something different out of it. And for me, what I took away from this game is reflected throughout the narrative I was trying to tell with these renders that I made. I historically never cared for romance angles in games, but this one with Makoto and Mitsuru really touched me for reasons I had such a hard time putting into words for a while. It wasn't just because "they are cute together", or because of the Romeo/Juliet-style of vibe they exude. It was because of how well Mitsuru's social link and her dynamic with Makoto encapsulates what P3 is all about for me, which are the little moments and things that are worth cherishing in life. It's very ironic in some ways that P3 is the only Atlus game (or video game in general) with romance paths that had this kind of impact on me, considering it has an incredibly low amount of romance events compared to other entries. It goes to show more than anything that romance angles can still work incredibly well if they actually complement the overarching narrative and themes of a game/movie/book.

I'll have a post sometime next week with a link to the PDF for the digital novel/comic, along with links to some HQ renders and other things that people may enjoy. After that though, I'm not sure what I'll be working on. I definitely won't be working on something of this scale again, but I may have some one-off stuff that I'll post whenever I feel inclined to do so. Besides, I still have a handful of cut renders and finished renders that I never ended up posting.

Anyways I'm not sure how I want to end what ended up being a pretty long ramble, but I'll be back on here next week to share the links for "The Tears I Shed for You". Cheers!

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A Mitsuru smile to brighten up your weekend :D

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Empress Rank 8

"I shouted... all manner of things about him."

(I realize I've been terrible at keeping my posts up to date on here. Dealing with multiple social media platforms is more challenging that I would've thought.

I'll most likely only post my best or personal favorite renders on here, while I post everything else on Twitter)

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- The Promised Day -

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Empress Rank 7

"I felt so indecisive about what I wanted from him..."

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Empress Rank 7

"He often brought out a side of me that I always wanted to keep private."