Keita Sakai (Concept Art - Lead)

How long have you been with The Evil Within 2 team? What’s your primary job within the team?

We started development in June of 2015, so a little over 2 years. I was in charge of concept art for the overall world designs, as well as Stefano’s artworks.

What’s your favorite memory/anecdote from the process of developing this game?

The birth of my child. I feel like this experience helped me with world-building, in the sense that it helped me step into Sebastian’s shoes as he fought to win back the family he lost.

What was the most challenging aspect of creating your part of The Evil Within 2? What are you most proud of?

The most challenging aspect was creating art that really felt like it was made by Stefano. I am most proud of successfully bringing out Stefano’s artistic style.

If you were involved in developing both Evil games, how did the creative process for the second game compare to the first?

We had two years to work this time, so there were a lot of rapid changes as there always are with game development. However, just like in the last game, the whole development team worked hard and didn’t compromise when it came to bringing to life a great game. Working together so well, and quickly, is something I consider one of Tango’s greatest strengths.

How did you get into video games as a career? Is there one game in particular that inspired you?

I previously worked for about 11 years as a background artist in the animation industry. The game that lit a fire in me and led to my moving to the games industry was Resident Evil 4. The way the game could offer you different things depending on your playstyle, the way the player interactively experienced the game world; that game made me notice these methods of artistic expression that could never be accomplished with standard linear types of media. It completely absorbed me in a way that no other game had done before.

What’s your favorite horror/survival game of all time? Favorite horror movie?

Games: Resident Evil (0, 1, 4), P.T., Fatal Frame

Movies: Saw series, Cube, The Shining

What game(s) are you currently playing?

I’ve been so busy lately that I haven’t really had time to play games…