ᴄᴀʀʀʏɪɴɢ ᴀ sᴡᴏʀᴅ ʙᴜᴛ ɴᴏᴛ ᴀ ɴᴀᴍᴇ, ᴀ Fɪɢᴜʀᴇ ʀᴜɴs ᴀᴄʀᴏss ᴛʜᴇ ʙʀɪᴅɢᴇ ʙᴇᴛᴡᴇᴇɴ ᴛʜᴇ ʜᴇᴀᴠᴇɴs ᴀɴᴅ ᴇᴀʀᴛʜ.

Oh, ᴀ ᴍᴇssᴇɴɢᴇʀ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇɪᴛʏ ʜᴀs ᴄᴏᴍᴇ!

❀ Previous Theory(until I write about my new, current one)❀

Kunitsu-Gami lore as its own entity: looking at myth of the mountain god and new ideas on Cursed Soh's identity.

Friday, 8 May 2026

Kunitsu-Gami Game Design Commentary 9: Kamaitachi(かまいたち)

■第9回 ”網切”or”かまいたち”か…
当初は網切で考えてたんですけど、分かり易い方が良いってことで”かまいたち”として再考、ボディ自体は網切の名残がありますね。完成版は網切とかまいたちのハイブリッドです。
所謂かまいたちの動物っぽいデザインは良く見るので、そこは外す。畏哭の設定から人っぽさが重要なので、腕を遠くでも分かる大鎌へ。
手が鎌だと色々不便だな、何か生活大変そう…からの泣いている様な顔が面白いんじゃないかと思い意図反映。
背中の小さな顔は色々と試行錯誤したなれの果てです。中盤以降にザコとしても出すとの事で、そんな複雑な事もさせられないって事で攻撃はオミット。結果、背中のオブジェクトはデザインの装飾としての意味も強かったので、動きの演出となり、派手さが増し中ボスとして活躍も果たせています。
■Round 9: "Net Cutter" or "Kamaitachi"...
Originally, I was thinking of it as Net Cutter, but for better clarity, I reconsidered it as "Kamaitachi," though the body itself still bears remnants of the Net Cutter concept. The final version is a hybrid of Net Cutter and Kamaitachi.
The so-called Kamaitachi's animal-like design is something you see a lot, so I decided to steer clear of that. Given the settings for Fearful Cry, human-like qualities are important, so I changed the arms to large scythes that are recognizable even from afar.
If the hands are scythes, it'd be inconvenient in all sorts of ways—life would seem pretty tough... and from there, I thought it might be fun to give it a face that looks like it's crying, so I incorporated that idea.
The small face on the back is the end result of a lot of trial and error. It was mentioned that it'd appear as a small fry enemy from the mid-game onward, so I figured we couldn't make it too complex for that, and ended up omitting the attack function. As a result, since the back object was already strong as a decorative design element, it became a motion effect instead, adding more flair and allowing it to shine as a mid-boss.

Plaque Lore
森林の伐採ばっさいによりどこからともなくなげく声が聞こえるという。 うでには大きなかま眷属けんぞくたちのたましいを背負ったような見た目をしているとされ、自分たちがやられたことを仕返しに帰って来るという。 人だけではなく人の作りだした物や建物までもが切断されてしまうといい、かまいたちが出没しゅつぼつした村では凄惨せいさんな光景が広がるという。
Distraught wails emanate from the desolate remains of deforestation. Armed with a sickle and carrying the souls of their fallen brethren, the Kamaitachi seek revenge upon the humans that eradicated their homes. Be it humankind or human-made, they will demolish everything, leaving behind nothing but destitution in their wake.