JApan

After flicking through Photoshop tutorials, I discovered the perfect way to create vectored images that would surpass my previous attempts using the Pen tool, which creates shapes using linked anchored points and some algorithms designed to create curves.

The best part about this tool is the fact it works essentially like how it does in Illustrator, but I can use it with my greater experience in Photoshop for easier modification and utility.

Through some experimentation, I came up with some designs for this derpy foxxo. I didn’t really like him, but I needed some kind of decal to put on the front of my mug, at the very least for example purposes.

After some additional work I came up with a design for a doggo. There was some additional challenge thoug, as this decal wrapped all the way around the mug.

Eventually, I came out with these two.

I wanted to create a novelty mug to place on the desk as a nice piece of additional clutter, but I was also thinking a lot recently about adding a mascot. I began with the structure of a mug.

I began making this structure from a video I found on youtube. It involved extruding parts of it to make the beginning of a handle and then bridging them together, along with extruding the base cylinder shape into itself to make the cup more shapely. I didn’t really feel like using someone else’s method as some parts of it were difficult and strange to get used to, for example, the anchor points for the handle when i wanted to loop were off a bit despite showing itself as 50% of that polygon.

I started off with a basic cylindrical shape, but used a boolean to cut the well of the mug into it, the cylinder also had way more additional width segments.

Though, if it wasnt for the video I watched, I would never had known how to create the handle using bridges and loop point selectors,

...along with a very important thing I had forgotten about entirely: Subdivision. Which proved to make the shape as smooth and cuvaceous as possible with little effort.

I began with a large cube which I then selected the sides from, and by using the Split tool, I separated the sides into separate layers.

I used the Knife tool to cut the shape of a pannel out of the wall, before Extruding the shape, Splitting, and then copy/pasting it across the wall to give a pannelled effect.

Next was to create the door, which was made through a system of careful modelling and use of the Knife tool, along with a Boolean to cut a hole into the panneling. The door Handle is made using a Bend, along with some altered Cylinders.

I felt that in the final piece, I might want to remove the lower section of panels, so I separated them from the upper parts, and created a grouping for them separately, so I can show or remove them independently.

Another piece is this very appealing light switch which I made away from the rest of the room, before attaching it to the wall next to the door. I made use of a few Bevels to give the panel it’s curve, along with making cylindrical booleans to cut holes in places where the screws are meant to be. The screws were halfed circles, squished down, and with an Extrude hole cut into them.

I almost forgot that I made a skirting board to put at the bottom of the walls. I simply cut a few lines in the original wall using Knife, split, made a new wall without the lines cut into it, and places the skirting board in it’s correct place. Very simplistic, but it doesn’t need to be much.

I copied and pasted the wall over to the other side, where the other wall is meant to be. I edited it a bit with the removal of the door and switch. It also has the removable lower panels as the other side does.

This additional wall was created the same way as the first wall with splitting it from the base shape. The Extrude cut into it is where the placeholder monitor is going to be incorporated into it.

The monitor itself was made in a different file some time before I made the office room. By comparison to some of my later pieces it’s not all that great. Although, it was one of the first places I began to experiment with materials and texturing. The screen part is made using a high-reflection map, whereas the plastic part used a lower-reflection map with the addition of a plastic-style bump map. There is a panel below the screen which I didn’t pull off very well that is meant to be made out of metal but I could never figure out how to make it look good enough.

For the ceiling, I split the upper part of the base cube off and began by using the Knife tool to create a grid pattern. I think in the future I might experiment with deformers that could do this for me, as it was extremely time-consuming, and very tedious. Once I had a grid pattern set up, I extruded the larger squares out of it to again create a paneling effect. I’m not going to split all of them from the ceiling, and instead I’m going to split the ones I might find some other use for.

Closing in, I began to create this elaborate desk from 3 carefully modelled cubes which were then point cut and merged into one shape. On the desk you might notice a mug. There will be more on that on a later post.

I felt that there would be difficulty in editing the desk with such things as texturing and additional modeling if I kept the whole thing as a singular structure, so I split it in half using Loop Selection, and began focusing my efforts on one half of it until it was finished and I decided on using a Symmetry and having it appear on the other side.

To add some more detail to my desk, I needed some handles to give it the appearance of having some sort of cabinet system below. I started with a disc polygon which I loop cut, moved and extruded to give this sort of shape.

I needed more of a grabbing point, which is where I selected and split an area of the disc, moving it upwards to create that effect. The thinness of the grabbing point won’t seem all that evident in a rendered game due to perspective and shadows.

The handle wasn’t exactly the cleanest looking, so after this point, I added a subdivision layer-

-and placed it on a nearly-finalised desk.

Japanese offices are known for their no-nonsense, 100% professionalism environment, and are, thus, very depressing. Here are some example images.

Most, if not all, apartments in Japan are designed for efficient use of small spaces over everything else. Storage is usually in panels underneath the floorboards, and bathrooms are usually a tiny square accomodating for shower, sink, mirror and toilet all at the same time. Stationary beds are usually replaced by fold-out futons that are held in storage until they need to be taken and rolled out for sleeping. Due to an abundance of regular earthquakes in Japan, many people opt to use earthquake poles on wardrobes and other pieces of high furniture to keep it from collapsing during an earthquake. If an object is closer to the ground, a good replacement for a pole comes in the form of a tiny square pad that sticks to the wall or the ground.

A lot of the pictures I’ve seen of Japanese apartments are really quite depressing, as they often equate to just a chair and a computer in an otherwise empty room.

Capsule hotels are a native Japanese form of stay usually for the most thrifty of tourist, costing less than your average hotel. A person rents a comfortable bed in an array of bunks lined up in a wall and separated like capsules, giving them their name. Each capsule usually has things like adjustable lighting, USB inputs, small shelves, and some complimentary slippers and earbuds. There is a shutter at the front of the pod that can be lowered to provide a sense of seclusion. Guests are provided with locker space somewhere near the beds and some floors are split into male and female placement. There are also communial shower cubicals and a commons room for use by anyone.

The desk chair was the first thing I made for this project, so it does show a lack of polish in some places, such as the leg pieces aligning poorly.

Though I am quite proud of such things as the cushion looking good enough to sit on, with it’s underside coming to a very flat surface for where it then connects to the legs, along with the back being ever so slightly curved in the middle.

You’ll probably notice that the chair looks like an absolute pain to sit on, due to the back looking like it could put strain on your lower back, the cushion looking very flat to sit on, and the fact that it’s an office chair with no way for it to move about due to the lack of wheels. The idea is that your chair is often swapped out over the course of the game, in order to indicate how well the project is going. It will start looking this crap, but later it will look something like this:

Please, no references to that awful show.

I want my game to be set mostly in one single area from which you can monitor the entire project from. I took some inspiration from the small apartments and pod hotels that are common in Japan, along with the working conditions present in most Tokyo offices with some references to some more traditional Japanese culture, such as how the ground is higher in the living area to create a well where you can leave your shoes and change into slippers, as is the etiquette in Japan. Everything here is very compact and designed to be as efficient as possible with the multiple monitors displaying different things which allow you to quickly switch between stations for different parts of management for the project, to the futon that rolls out of your bedroom wall. I plan on making this all in Cinema 4D, or, at least the office space. It looks quite barren for now, other than the monitors that are already there, but i feel the inspiration for more clutter will come to me as I make it.

People refer to each other by their last name and an honorific (”San”)

It is ritual to exchange business cards to people upon meeting them first time and they must be kept in a special business card holder, least you want to appear as rude.

Most people find it difficult to talk face-to-face due to the amount of social cues and anxieties about professionalism, and usually write excellent emails to each other instead.

Many Japanese people have reservations about expressing extreme or actual opinions and instead either refuse to make any statements or talk around giving a direct answer.

Japanese people rarely maintain eye contact as this could appear as a threat or challenge.

Bowing is completely necessary when greeting someone formally, though some Japanese people will shake hands with Westerners instead. The lower you bow, the more respect is shown.

In any meeting room, the most highest ranking officials sit furthest away from the door.

Group achievements and goals are emphasised most over individual achievements.

Many people are accustommed to overworking themselves into the latest hours of the night, even to the point of death, becoming such a phenomenon that a term was invented for it: “ Karōshi”.

43% of Japanese people aged 18-34 are virgins 64% are not in a relationship

Men are afraid of women and rejection, and instead indulge in hobbies such as games and anime.

Having opposite-sex friends is uncommon and could be interpreted as cheating by a significant other.

Schools generally separate boys and girls, making it difficult for both genders to begin talking to each other.

Japanese people must confess love at some point throughout the dating period, though usually before, in order to eliviate any confusion as to whether they are in a relationship or not.

Japanese girls are encouraged more to confess love to the boy. If a boy were to do it, the girl would likely reject him as there is a strong japanese culture of keeping women as chaste and pure as possible.

There are no public displays of affection (PDA) in Japan. If two people are dating you would have no way of knowing without spying on them.

Japanese find showing relationships through cuddly pictures on the internet annoying and it's considered being a show-off. Something I can definitely understand.

Internet dating is extremely uncommon and uncomfortable for the Japanese. People prefer to use marriage agencies and matchmaking services, which is where I come in.

People are conflict adverse and do not express strong opinions, making it difficult for people who are unable to read whether the other person is interested or not.

Common for people to go on 3 dates and then decide whether they want to be a couple. Before that there are no displays of affection.

Christmas doesn’t hold the kind of weight that it does in Western, Christianity-based cultures, and so the event is taken as less of a religious holiday and more of a consumerist one. Due to it’s disconnect from traditional Western ideas, the Japanese do some very strange things on Christmas day.

Japan holds more commercial views on Christmas, focusing on lights, trees and dressing up like Father Christmas for whatever reason.

Christmas Eve is also more of a romantic holiday similar to Valentines day, where it’s impossible to get reservations anywhere.

Another more perculiar fact about Japanese Christmas is the massive promotion of KFC as a “Christmas food”, again, tying into the consumerist side of things. It is so popular that Christmases in Japan account for 5% of annual revenue for KFC. They also like eating Strawberry Shortcake for some reason.

Eating While Walking

It’s considered barbaric and embarrassing to be walking while eating or drinking in Japanese culture. Dispite the abundance of lucrative produce in the various vending machines scattered across the country, many Japanese find themselves more likely to eat their food there and then, standing beside the machine, in order to avoid being seen as uncivilised.

Chopsticks

Movement and placement of chopsticks have great significance in Japan. The act of sticking chopsticks in food and passing things between others using chopsticks can be seen as a bad omen as the same action resembles a tradition done at funerals.

Horse Meat

As the role of horses became obsolete in the 20th century, the Japanese found the potential for horse meat to become a delicacy and even today it is served in many restaurants and has many cooking applications.

Sharing Drinks

In a group setting, it’s seen as more polite to serve drinks to others than to pour for yourself from the bottle. It seems even if you’re that thirsty, you’ll have to wait for your drink to be poured for you.

Loud Eating

In early Japanese history, language was adapted from Chinese languages in both spoken and written words, this form of Japanese is called “Kanbun” and could be considered an equivalent to the West’s Latin influence. Modern Japanese is broken up into three alphabets: Hiragana, Katakana and Kanji.

Kanji comes from Chinese characters in the form of singular symbols meaning specific things.

Hiragana is a simplified version of Kanji where each character corresponds to different sounds, such as vowels (a,e,i,o,u) along with the consonants (ka ki ku ke ko, sa shi su se so, etc)

Katakana is designed similarly to Hiragana but made in order for Japanese speakers to understand foreign words and pronounceations. It is also used to portray sounds similarly to onomatopoeia.

The word for Soy Sauce in Japanese is written in Kanji as 醤油, written in Hiragana as しょうゆ, and in Katakana as しやうゆ.

For Westerners from Romantic languages, there also exists Romanji, which is a way in which Japanese words are spelt.

The Term “budō“ is used to address martial arts in Japan, though traditionally, the term means a way of life that encompassess physical, spiritual and moral self improvement. This relates into the similar aspect of buddhist belief of self improvement in all aspects of life, and shows also how the Japanese percieve martial arts as more of a tool for personal growth and discipline instead of a weapon to hurt others. Examples of Japanese martials are Kendo, Judo, Karate and Aikido.

Many people from all walks of life gather in crowded cities at night to relax and have a good time with the various activities present in places such as Tokyo.

In some of the more out of the way spots there reside alley bars, which serve food and alcohol in uncomfortably snug seating areas full of everyone from salaryman office workers to university students. Another enjoyable activity for the Japanese that matches drunken lunatics here in the West is their passion for Karaoke. Instead of a stage in the corner of your local pub or social club, the Japanese can rent a private rooms in Karaoke-specific establishment and enjoy embarrassing themselves in front of friends and family instead of in front of the entire local community.

Due to the Buddha’s more ambiguous perspective on prize gaming, Japan never gained the stigma on gambling that was reinforced by the Catholics here in the West, leading to copious amounts of casinos lining the streets of Tokyo, in addition to a more popular and local game known as Pachinko which combines arcade video games with slot machines. According to Government surveys, more than 3 million people in Japan have likely suffered from gambling addiction.

On the subject of arcades, that too is another lucrative passtime in the eyes of Japanese youths who don’t know the value of money or even a good Steam sale when they see it. Gaining popularity in the 70′s with classic games like Space Invaders and Pac Man, arcades quickly took the world by storm.

With all due respect, the Japanese have invested deeply into making arcade games a very physical experience, with machines that take your picture and distort it, to capsulated simulator-like experiences.

The Japanese hold a very deep stigma over tattoos and people with tattoos, looked down upon by society, and even banned from public places such as bathhouses, gyms and spas.

Interestingly enough, this wasn’t always the case. In 300 A.D. it was recorded that it was a part of the lives of Japanese men to tattoo their faces and bodies. Coincidentally, many cultures at this time also began to tattoo their prisoners, slaves and criminals with the indication of the crime they had committed, drawing into the stigma of tattoos in relation to criminality.

Eventually though, going into the Edo period, many Japanese woodblock artists decided to convert their tools in order to create lavish body art on themselves, inspired by Chinese novels such as Suikoden which depict heroic characters covered in tattoos. This gave way to a whole new style of tattoo art called “irezumi” . Even certain merchants would get tattoos to show off their wealth, due to displays of wealth through jewelry being prohibited.

Eventually this practise was adopted by the Yakuza as a symbol of loyalty and comittment to the gang, for tattooing to eventually become banned in 1863. This did not apply to foreigners, however, so many portside tattoo parlors began to open, with many Western travellers and merchants paying for their services.