Miss Ama: From Concept to Final Design
[h2]Greetings Seikyuians, 👋🏻[/h2]
We had some exciting WIP sketches in the archive of Miss Ama and really wanted to share a progress peek at the creation of her character. ☺️
What you’ll be seeing is conversations between the Lead Artist Ding Xin and Illustrator Hua Ting at Tales of Seikyu; about Miss Ama’s design, creation, artwork and portraits. You'll also see early sketch work variations of her design and inspo + mood boards and how she came to life and entered Tales of Seikyu as our very elegant and poised seamstress. 🧵
[h2]🦜Early Concepts[/h2]
The early creation of a character begins and with it comes a few iterations and sketches, based on influences.
Miss Ama is an Amabie (アマビエ) which is a legendary Japanese mermaid or merman with a bird beak-like mouth and three legs or tail-fins, who allegedly emerges from the sea.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Early Concept Sketches of Miss Ama
[h2]🗨️The Group Chat[/h2]
Over the course of 22 days the art team began steadily refining Miss Ama’s character designs through several detailed review sessions between Lead Artist Ding Xin and Illustrator Hua Ting in an internal group chat.
The discussions began with feedback on the bird’s feather structure and texture, leading to finer linework and improved layering that enhanced the sense of realism and weight. From there, the focus shifted to the Taisho-inspired outfit, exploring a blend of traditional Japanese and early-Western aesthetics. Ding Xin suggested referencing period clothing with lighter silhouettes, fitted hats, and elegant collars to achieve a look that feels graceful and dignified, something to suit the elegance of Miss Ama’s background and personality.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Inspiration Illustrations from Ebay (Hiromi Matsuo)
As the iterations continued, adjustments were made to proportions, posture, and fabric flow, refining the character’s poise and elegance.
Further color reviews focused on balancing tones and contrast, softening over-saturated areas, and harmonizing the floral motifs.
This collaborative process between artists shows the careful attention and artistry behind every design, ensuring each character in Tales of Seikyu embodies both cultural depth and visual harmony.
[h2]👤Portraits[/h2]
Here's a look at the amazing portraits of Miss Ama in all their glory. her journey truly has been a wonderful one. As with all of our characters there's a big team of passionate artists and developers and writers behind them. 🥰
We hope you enjoyed this insight into our creative process, do let us know in the comments below if you would like to see more content like this. 🩷
For lots more Tales of Seikyu news, information, and fun, don’t forget to follow us on X, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, Reddit, and Discord! Oh, and make sure you’re signed up to the Fireshine Games newsletter too.
We had some exciting WIP sketches in the archive of Miss Ama and really wanted to share a progress peek at the creation of her character. ☺️
What you’ll be seeing is conversations between the Lead Artist Ding Xin and Illustrator Hua Ting at Tales of Seikyu; about Miss Ama’s design, creation, artwork and portraits. You'll also see early sketch work variations of her design and inspo + mood boards and how she came to life and entered Tales of Seikyu as our very elegant and poised seamstress. 🧵
[h2]🦜Early Concepts[/h2]
The early creation of a character begins and with it comes a few iterations and sketches, based on influences.
Miss Ama is an Amabie (アマビエ) which is a legendary Japanese mermaid or merman with a bird beak-like mouth and three legs or tail-fins, who allegedly emerges from the sea.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Early Concept Sketches of Miss Ama
[h2]🗨️The Group Chat[/h2]
Over the course of 22 days the art team began steadily refining Miss Ama’s character designs through several detailed review sessions between Lead Artist Ding Xin and Illustrator Hua Ting in an internal group chat.
The discussions began with feedback on the bird’s feather structure and texture, leading to finer linework and improved layering that enhanced the sense of realism and weight. From there, the focus shifted to the Taisho-inspired outfit, exploring a blend of traditional Japanese and early-Western aesthetics. Ding Xin suggested referencing period clothing with lighter silhouettes, fitted hats, and elegant collars to achieve a look that feels graceful and dignified, something to suit the elegance of Miss Ama’s background and personality.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Inspiration Illustrations from Ebay (Hiromi Matsuo)
As the iterations continued, adjustments were made to proportions, posture, and fabric flow, refining the character’s poise and elegance.
Further color reviews focused on balancing tones and contrast, softening over-saturated areas, and harmonizing the floral motifs.
This collaborative process between artists shows the careful attention and artistry behind every design, ensuring each character in Tales of Seikyu embodies both cultural depth and visual harmony.
[h2]👤Portraits[/h2]
Here's a look at the amazing portraits of Miss Ama in all their glory. her journey truly has been a wonderful one. As with all of our characters there's a big team of passionate artists and developers and writers behind them. 🥰
We hope you enjoyed this insight into our creative process, do let us know in the comments below if you would like to see more content like this. 🩷
For lots more Tales of Seikyu news, information, and fun, don’t forget to follow us on X, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, Reddit, and Discord! Oh, and make sure you’re signed up to the Fireshine Games newsletter too.