Papo & Yo’s Monster Has A New Look
Posted by Ben on February 29th, 2012 | 1 Comment | Tags: Papo & Yo , Papo and Yo , Tony Yayo
Update: Vander Caballero posted this comment on the PlayStation Blog about why they made the change to the monster.
I remember going from the first sketches to a 3d model to putting [the old monster] in the engine, but inside of me there was always something wrong with the character I couldn’t describe. Talking to my friend Nilo I realized what it was – I was mixing the monster with my dog! I love playing with my dog and got stuck in the loop of playfulness I wanted to have with my father which I never had. But when Nilo asked me if I see my father in the monster I had to be honest and admit that Rhino, as much as I liked him, was more my dog than my father.
The monster looks a bit scarier now and that is how I felt when I was a kid. When Nilo sent me some concept art for the new monster I saw my father in it and I feel that is a more honest view of my past.
I know many will not like the new monster but I really could not ship with Rhino knowing he is the representation of my father mixed with my dog.
Original: Its been a while since we’ve heard from Papo & Yo, Minority’s ambitious and heartfelt PSN game about a boy and his friend, a monster with an addiction to frogs that changes him from a sweet and helpful creature into something to be feared. When we last saw the game, this was what the monster looked like;
As Minority’s Vander Caballero puts it on the PlayStation.Blog, this version looked “too much like a puppy” according to artist and friend of Vander, Nilo Rodis, a man who has worked on the art for films from both Pixar and Lucasfilm. So, Nilo agreed to help Minority redesign their characters, and as such we now have a glimpse of the final monster, in both docile and… significantly less so forms. I have to say, the redesign’s more exaggerated proportions certainly look good to me. I especially like the way in which he rests on his hands in the first picture.
Papo & Yo doesn’t have a date yet, but it is being shown at GDC next week, so expect more news in the near future.