Dishonored 2 would like to remind everyone that it's coming out tomorrow, gratifying us today with a great launch trailer:
But also a set of images presenting the clothes of the characters.
Fashion in the streets - By the members of the studio
Before starting to create fashion, we think about the characters, their age, their origin, their history, their role ... and how to make them coherent with the characters of the first Dishonored. The fashion in Dishonored 2 is very much about the characters. We have kept the Victorian side of the first Dishonored, but adapting it to a more southern country, with more lightness in the fabrics and more colors. But the origins of a character, its history, its social position or within a faction ... That's what we thought for this new concept.
The style in the world of Dishonored is based on a connection between two distant periods in terms of knowledge, tools and materials. The world shows traces of an industrial revolution that never took place. The inventions are all at the prototype stage, which allows us to experiment a bit with techniques and appearances. As a result, we were able to explore and design unexpected things.
When your artistic director (Sébastien Mitton) comes from a line of Italian tailors and couturiers who grew up with the sound of scissors and sewing machines, it encourages you to create costumes adapted to all the morphologies present in the game. it is this love of a job well done that motivates us every day. Even if the area is different, the philosophy is the same, especially in terms of the attention paid to the fabrics, the silhouette and the character.
For Dishonored 2, we drew inspiration from different sources to feel a southern influence on our classic Victorian creations. Burberry, for example, is a good example of British couture culture and expertise. The company, which created the first gabardine in 1879, continues to design new techniques that allow jacket owners to feel comfortable in their movements. Form and function, without forgetting the technique!
We also find references in the "pulp" culture. For example, JC Leyendecker, a renowned illustrator, has always attached great importance to the silhouette of his characters in the thousands of drawings he has produced. He had a perfect command of the way the fabric folds according to its weight and thickness. Likewise, depending on the body type of the character, the costume will not react the same if it is worn by someone with a different anatomy. We think like the real tailors, in terms of silhouette, desired cut and even the shape of the pleats and the cuff.
During the meetings, Sébastien Mitton insisted on a specific point with the teams: "In old films, when a scene takes place in a bar, for example, we can immediately identify everyone's profession: the butcher, the postman, banker, office manager, driver ... Today, when entering a bar, it is much more difficult to determine the profession of those present. " It makes the world a little less varied, of course.
His aim, therefore, was to present the function of the characters according to their costume, but not only, because he also attaches great importance to the people inside the costumes. Their anatomy and body language are essential components in detailing their history, and this adds many levels of detail to the game.
Fashion fits into the aesthetic and feel of the game, it's a perfect mix, because the fashion is just as detailed as the universe. In addition, our world contains different people living in different places; rich neighborhoods and other poor ones, guards facing off against Howler gangs ... Their costumes are adapted to where they live.
We also took into account the time. For example, in the past, and in our game, aristocrats never take off a layer of clothing: neither shirt, jacket, jacket, even though the heat becomes unbearable. While the working class will not hesitate to do so, and their bodies will reveal tan lines.
There are more factions and social classes in Dishonored 2, which has allowed us to experiment more and create more varied-looking characters. People show more skin, and some of the workers are shirtless, which increases the richness of the world and enriches the visual aspect of the storytelling. We have spent a lot of time studying anatomy, whether it is that of workers or aristocrats. Even though two figures are dressed in aristocratic clothes, it is easy to guess which one was born with a silver spoon in the mouth: one can notably quote here the differences between Jindosh and Stilton. We think someone's body says a lot.
Everything is taken into consideration, not just fashion, and we don't take inspiration from potential next trends to design the game's outfits. We just stick to the principles established at the start of the project, giving priority to the characters, which allows us to have a game that will not age, and whose fashion will remain interesting.
Delilah
It's always tricky when a character reappears after several years. Our goal is to stay true to the original concept, but also to give it a bit of a new look, while representing the intentions of the storytelling.
To Delilah, she has a sinister appearance, tinged with a hint of mystery. In terms of her costume, we played on shapes: triangular shapes that oppose waves of more feminine vegetation. After finding the perfect balance, we modified the silhouette while remaining true to its original appearance, and from a visual point of view, it is a real achievement.
Emily kaldwin
Particularly difficult was the design of Emily's costume. Everyone had become attached to this 10-year-old girl in the first Dishonored. She is now a young and fiery 25-year-old Empress, and although she reigns over the Empire of the Islands, she is a night adventurer who roams the streets and jumps from roof to roof. We had to take that into account and design a specific costume capable of representing his authority, but without hindering his mobility.
While browsing a Vogue magazine, Sébastien Mitton came across a photo of Ruby Aldridge, taken during the Celine fashion show in fall 2011. He said: "Bingo! Here it is, our inspiration!" Her beauty and unsettling gaze were at the origin of Emily's first illustrations. In addition, the work Jona did for InAisce was able to inspire her for the technical side of jacket design, while paying attention to the distinctive line and harmony between the different fabrics when they coexist.
Corvo Attano
The original Corvo costume was designed when the universe of Dishonored 1 was still set in London in 1666. This costume was largely inspired by the long coats worn by highwaymen. The universe having since evolved a lot, it was the occasion to modify the costume of Corvo to be more coherent with the style of the other characters.
As with Emily, we looked at form and function (father of the Empress, Master-Spy, Assassin ...). Form, silhouette, agility, stature, maturity: these were our guidelines for Corvo. We wanted to make him cooler and more imposing, the kind of daddy that Sébastien Mitton dreams of being! As he was satisfied with it, we can say that it is a real success!
