We get a reprieve from Shin Megami Tensei V demon digest videos today. However, there’s still news about characters from the game. SMT V Character Designer Masayuki Doi shared insights into Aitvaras. This is one of the new demons introduced in this installment. He’s a little Lithuanian dragon who also is designed to “feel like a mischievous child.”
Here’s Doi’s full statement about Aitvaras in SMT V. In addition to discussing his design, he brought up his Mirage Shot exclusive skill.
Today, I’d like to introduce Aitvaras.
He’s a demon designed to act as another mascot for the series, and it was his charming folklore that made us include him in the game.
Aitvaras are small dragons that appear in Lithuanian mythology. It is said that, while indoors, they’re known to take the appearance of either a black cat or a rooster, but once they step outside of the house, they quickly transform into a flame-tailed dragon or serpent.
Households that Aitvaras decide to settle down in are said to become quite wealthy, but that’s only because Aitvaras are known to steal things from the surrounding homes. In return for these riches, they typically demand their favorite food: omelets! Haha.
In terms of design, we wanted to incorporate all of the above-mentioned quirks, and aimed to make Aitvaras feel like a mischievous child that even adults couldn’t quite control.
His overall appearance is that of a dragon, but we loved the bit about how Aitvaras change indoors, so we decided to give him a helmet-like rooster crown atop his head. We also gave him squishy, cat-like paws beneath his feet. It may look like we stuffed him with every available feature possible, but I do think we captured the caricature we set out to portray.
The quality of the 3D model is also quite exceptional, and I feel our team did a very wonderful job making him blend seamlessly into the game world, as his design may have otherwise caused him to awkwardly stand out. Placing him alongside demons like Jack Frost and Cironnup, who both played mascot roles in past games, is sure to make for some adorable scenery, so I hope those of you who love cute demons add him to your party.
The animations inspired by his folklore are also very fun to watch. In particular, I feel his unique skill “Mirage Shot” is yet another sequence where the skills and talents of our motion and effects team truly shined, just like they did with Loup Garou’s abilities.
The game contains a quest based on his lore as well. Will Aitvaras finally get his mitts on his beloved omelet? Haha, there’s only one way to find out!
In past statements, Doi discussed SMT V demons like Khonsu and Hydra.
Shin Megami Tensei V will come out on the Nintendo Switch on November 11, 2021 in Japan and November 12, 2021 worldwide. Siliconera’s review is also live.
