Ryo Hazuki
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- Masaya Matsukaze (Japanese)
- Corey Marshall (English, games)
- Austin Tindle (English, anime)
| Ryo Hazuki | |
|---|---|
| Shenmue character | |
 Concept artwork for Ryo Hazuki by Kenji Miyawaki | |
| First game | Shenmue (1999) |
| Created by | Yu Suzuki |
| Designed by | Kenji Miyawaki |
| Voiced by |
|
| Motion capture | Masaya Matsukaze |
Ryo Hazuki (Japanese: 芭月 涼, Hepburn: Hazuki Ryō) is the protagonist of the Sega video game series Shenmue. Throughout the story, Ryo travels through 1980s Japan and China in pursuit of his father's killer. Across the first trilogy, Ryo obtains allies who help him in his quest. He has also appeared in other games as well as the animated adaptation of the first two games.
Ryo was created by Yu Suzuki following an attempt to create a Virtua Fighter spin-off game starring Akira Yuki until he decided to create an entirely new IP, Shenmue. However, Ryo uses the same martial arts employed by Akira. In the Japanese version, Ryo is voiced by Masaya Matsukaze, who also recorded his motion capture. In the English version, he is voiced by Corey Marshall.
Critical response to Ryo was mixed. His quest to find the people who murdered his father was praised for its innovative feel and his fighting style was praised. However, Ryo's characterization was often the subject of negative response for being too stereotypical.
Character Design
In 1996, AM2 began developing a 3D Saturn RPG with the working title Guppy.[1] This became a Virtua Fighter spin-off title Virtua Fighter RPG: Akira's Story, a role-playing game starring main character Akira Yuki. AM2 planned a "cinematic" approach, including voice acting and elaborate combat sequences.[2] Suzuki researched locations in China, and constructed four acts with the themes "sadness", "fight", [sic] "departure" and "starting afresh". In this version of the story, Akira would overcome his grief following his father's death, travel to China, defeat an antagonist, and begin a journey with a new friend. Suzuki recruited a screenwriter, a playwright, and film directors to write the multi-part story.[2] In 1997, development moved to Sega's then upcoming console, the Dreamcast,[3] and the Virtua Fighter connection was dropped in favor of the new IP Shenmue with a new lead.[4]
Planner Eigo Kasahara came up with Ryo's name as well as the ship's name 'Genpuumaru' which the protagonist uses in the end of the first game. Kasahara also considered "Ryo Kamizaki" in the making of the game when interacting with Suzuki. The protagonist's house was based on a real house meant to look like a 500-year old temple.[5] While designing his personality, Suzuki wanted him to give him a strong sense of justice similar to that of a samurai.[6]
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Originally, Ryo could unleash a move similar to the Shin Shoryuken (真 · 昇 龍拳; lit. "True Rising Dragon Fist") used by fighting game character Ryu from Street Fighter. A gamer who claimed to have been involved in the development of the original Shenmue revealed that Ryo could perform it in the first game. However, the requirement for this cheat was to input it within three frames which was impossible using legitimate means. According to the gamer, the input time was set just long enough for input during development, but producer Yu Suzuki put a stop to it and the trick never made it into the final version.[7]
Yu Suzuki said Ryo was defined by his liking of martial arts which he shares in common with other characters. Ryo was always meant to be portrayed as an immature character in his initial appearances as he was more obsessed with developing his martial arts rather than his own education. While initially considered a blank canvas, Ryo's arc appears during Shenmue II when meeting the heroine Shenhua. His growth was also reflected on his body and gave the player a more notable approach when playing the game. He brought parallels with Kazuma Kiryu and Haruka Sawamura from the action series Yakuza who also age across their games. However, Suzuki felt that showing Ryo's childhood would be difficult as a result of the need of showing his child persona model.[8]
Ryo's design was made by Kenji Miyawaki. Originally, his idea for the character was that of a young man wearing jeans and a white jacket following the request for a role-playing game protagonist. However, the staff found it too plain and wanted to avoid him look cool for the time the game was being made. A leather jacket was created after giving more time into consideration. The staff approved it even Miyawaki did not find it appealing and common attire.[9]
For Shenmue III, there was not a major change in Ryo's personality since it starts shortly after Shenmue II. His interactions with Shenhua offer a major contrast between their different growths.[10] Suzuki tried portraying Ryo more realistically by giving him the option of interacting with friends or recovering his health by consuming meals. There was also a major focus about how Ryo can train to become stronger in gameplay fashion by taking medications despite sharing the same moves from previous games.[11] Suzuki expressed his discomfort with Ryo's 3D model as he wanted it to improve it since the early development of the game.[12] While the story of Shenmue starts with a revenge quest, Suzuki did not specify how the narrative would end.[13]
Casting
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All games in the Shenmue trilogy were made with motion capture artists who also voiced the characters. In Japanese, Ryo is voiced by Masaya Matsukaze, known for working in the tokusatsu series Denji Sentai Megaranger. Matsukaze was a rookie voice actor when he started working on Shenmue.[14][15]
For the following games, Matsukaze received mixed reviews for his take on Ryo in the anime, leading him to believe fans have their own views of the protagonist especially since it had been decades since his last take. He tried using a higher pitch to make Ryo sound cool, which he found difficult due to his age. Matsukaze was glad he reprised his role in Shenmue III after several years which also started by the time he was contacted about the anime adaptation. Suzuki praised Matsukaze's work in the anime for still fitting the character.[16]
In all the US games, Ryo was voiced by Corey Marshall whom Suzuki approved. He wanted Ryo to be given a more "wild" tone in Shenmue III.[17] Marshall recalls being in college in New York and saw an ad to which he responded. He was then sent to Japan to record the dub. While Ryo has appeared in other spin-off games, Marshall did not work on them and instead the game staff members used voice clips.[18]
For the anime adaptation of the game, Austin Tindle voiced Ryo in the English dub.[19] According to Brittany Vincent from IGN, Tindle offered a "much more fluid, laid back version of the character" when compared to Marshall's original Ryo.[20]
