NC's upcoming subculture title, Astraea Oratio, takes us back to a fictional 89 Tokyo. That rather unusual time period has set tongues wagging, and Dynamis One Art Director Kim In recently stepped up to explain just why the team chose this exact era.

Astraea Oratio made an appearance at Comic Market held at Tokyo Big Sight from the 15th to the 16th. Through an interview with Dynamis One Art Director Kim In, NC pulled back the curtain to reveal some juicy details about the game.

As mentioned earlier, this game is staged in a fictional 89 Tokyo. It leans heavily into the shin-denki genre where daily life, magic, and bizarre occurrences happily collide, tasking players with stepping into the shoes of a magic ministry civil officer crossing paths with a colourful cast of characters. Shin-denki is a sub-genre of urban fantasy birthed in Japan, defined by supernatural elements bleeding into the modern world. It enjoyed a massive wave of popularity spanning from the 90s to the early-to-mid 2000s, boasting heavyweight titles like The Garden of Sinners, Shakugan no Shana, and the Persona series.

When asked why the developers settled on 89 Tokyo as the canvas, Art Director Kim In noted, "Since we are dealing with shin-denki and magic as our themes, we figured Japan and Tokyo naturally had to take centre stage." They added, "The market is already overflowing with titles set in the near future and Western locales. So, we wanted to try something a bit different and tackle 'nostalgia'."

The core pillars of Astraea Oratio are magic, shin-denki, and administration. First off, magic manifests in ways that slip right past ordinary citizens, injecting strange anomalies into mundane routines. Art Director Kim In explained, "Picture a house overgrown with thickets wedged tightly between towering office blocks, or a witch-costumed character standing right in the middle of a bustling crowd while everyone just carries on. We want to kick off and expand the world from those light-hearted, 'Wait, how on earth did that get there?' kind of curiosities."

Moving on to shin-denki, the team leans heavily into a chilling aesthetic. Art Director Kim In elaborated, "We felt shin-denki carries a stronger vibe of winter rather than summer, built on a sharp contrast between day and night. To capture that crisp winter air, we anchored our palette around cool blues." They continued, "We balanced it out by weaving in spring pinks and greens to stop things from getting too gloomy."

Finally, administration was roped in to give the magic a distinct flavour of its own. Art Director Kim In mentioned, "We are pouring our focus into maps and landmark designs that scream bureaucracy. On top of that, we are layering in analogue props like neatly pressed suits, crisp paperwork, ID cards, stamps, nameplates, and business cards to truly nail that official governmental vibe."

Another driving keyword is 'lyrical analogue'. Art Director Kim In stated, "We wanted to directly inherit the texture of the era when shin-denki was all the rage. We racked our brains on how to make such a well-trodden trope feel fresh and new, but eventually concluded that instead of aggressively twisting the material, it is far better to lean into the classic charm the genre naturally owns. We reckon analogue is simply the best vessel to capture that classic essence."

They also mentioned falling head over heels for the lyrical emotional depth woven into the prologue by scenario director isakusan, which ultimately tied the whole concept together into the core keyword 'lyrical analogue'. Meanwhile, the overall art direction and foundational tone were helmed by DoReMi, with feev99 taking charge of the backgrounds.

Art Director Kim In added, "We are grafting that lyrical analogue philosophy onto visuals tailored for modern sensibilities." They also shared, "For real-world locations featured in Astraea Oratio like the Rainbow Bridge and Tokyo Tower, we are dialling up the authenticity through extensive on-site field research. The central district of Minato was scouted on foot several times over."

As touched upon earlier, Astraea Oratio rolled up to Comic Market and showcased a teaser art book at the venue. Art Director Kim In noted, "It was originally crafted as a guide to synchronise understanding among fellow developers and collaborating departments. Once we started properly teasing the game, we thought it would be lovely to share it with the fans too," adding, "We hope you enjoy it as a bite-sized introduction to the world and characters before the main narrative of Astraea Oratio unfolds."