Infinity Nikki released a behind-the-scenes documentary on its development, and revealed that it had some industry veterans on its team for its PC and PlayStation game debut. Read on to learn more about its development process!
Behind-The-Scenes Of Infinity Nikki
A Sneak Peek Into Miraland
Highly-anticipated fashion-centered open-world Infinity Nikki is coming this December 4th (EST/PST), and it released a short 25-minute documentary celebrating the years upon years of work, and showcasing all the passion that went into completing the game through interviews with core team members.
Infinity Nikki began back in December 2019 when the Nikki series’ producer approached Chief Technology Officer Fei Ge and expressed his interest in creating and developing an open-world game where Nikki is “freely exploring and embarking on adventures.” At that time, the whole project was kept secret, going as far as to renting a separate office in order to work undercover. “Then we gradually began recruiting and assembling our initial team, working on ideas, laying the foundation and building the infrastructure. We continued in this way for over a year.”
Game designer Sha Dingyu shared that they felt what they were doing was unprecedented in the way that they had to integrate the Nikki IP and all its dress-up-game core mechanics with an open-world concept, describing the process as challenging, creating a framework from scratch and step by step after years of research.
Despite the challenges that they faced, the whole team was onboard with creating this game from dream to reality. The Nikki franchise started off as a series of mobile games, starting off with NikkuUp2U back in 2012. Infinity Nikki is its fifth installment, and the first title to be released on PC and console alongside mobile. Ge acknowledged that they could have just created the fifth title as another mobile game in-line with the rest of the series, but the development team was dedicated to “pursuing a technological and product upgrade,” fueled by a desire for progress and the evolution of the Nikki IP. Their dedication was so great that their producer even sculpted a miniature model of the entire Grand Millewish Tree out of clay to further bring the idea into fruition. While not exactly a one-to-one diorama model of the actual tree, it represents the passion and love that the producer, and by extension, to his co-workers, has for the game.
The video also contains several snippets of the beautiful lands that players will be able to explore once they step into Miraland, the setting of Infinity Nikki. There is great focus on the Grand Millewish Tree, a wonderful and mystical tree that houses the adorable Faewish Sprites, and its surrounding areas. The residents of Miraland are also shown to be full of life themselves, going along with their day in the background, such as little kids playing magical hopscotch. Game designer Xiao Li shared one of the design highlights is that the NPCs have their own routines, even if Nikki has a mission in progress, giving more of a livelier, and more human world.
A Star-Studded Cast
It is no wonder that one can tell how gorgeous the game is just from its promotional material and how polished it looks—besides the main Nikki series team that has been more or less familiar with the IP since its early days, the Infinity Nikki team has also hired talent overseas who are just as experienced. Firstly, Infinity Nikki’s Lead Sub Director is Kentaro “Tomiken” Tominaga, an experienced game designer who also worked on the hit Switch title, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. They also have concept artist Andrzej Dybowski on board as well, who also lent his amazing skills to another equally critically-acclaimed game, The Witcher 3.
Since the official start of the game’s development last December 28th, 2019, it would have taken the team 1814 full days until its upcoming grand launch on December 4th, 2024. Anticipation is at an all-time high as the release date draws near. Get ready to go on a journey through Miraland with Nikki and her trusty best friend, Momo, this coming December!
Source:
Behind the Scenes of Infinity Nikki: The Grand Millewish Tree Silently Grows
