First, we would like to say thank you for the overwhelming interest in our VOV-A6 creation story, at the end of which we asked what else you would like to know about.
We decided to continue this series with the story of the creation of our mascots
The Twins
One of the most popular questions regarding The Twins is what inspired these characters' creation. The answer may not be as obvious as it seems at first glance.
When creating them, we started with the character of Sechenov. Since he is a genius and an important figure in the world of the game, but only a scientist, he should have personal guards. He doesn't really trust people, and given the slight tension with the government, he wouldn't allow someone from the outside to be assigned to him.
So it would have to be robots.
They should look impressive, but not intimidating, because Sechenov himself is a man of peace and science, he has no purpose of scaring anyone. So the decision was to make his guards feminine and elegant, but yet dangerous and powerful.
Unlike the VOV-A6, whose design was approved almost straight away and didn't change dramatically, The Twins went through many iterations and the early concept design bears little resemblance to the final version.
It took the team about 8 months to finalize the character. Each element received 50 comments and edits. Ideas for the image were born literally on the fly - the movements, every small element of the costume from the joints to the horn coming out of the star in the forehead, was worked out meticulously.
Speaking of movements.
There has been a lot of speculation and conclusions about what The Twins' fighting style is inspired by. Collectively, our players concluded that it is ballet because the game features ballerinas with the same design as the Maya Plisetskaya Theater characters.
This statement is true, but only partially.
The first inspiration for the main fighting style for The Twins comes from rhythmic gymnastics, and only later on in the development was influenced by ballet.
In particular, rhythmic gymnastics with a ribbon seemed so elegant and smooth that the twins were added special manipulators, which turn into whips and become, literally, an extension of their hands.
Ballet dance is also emphasized by pointe shoes, which can transform into fight-oriented pointy heels, and the mirrored mask, which, in addition to its plot justification, is also symbolic.
Twins characters embody ballerinas and gymnasts who remain cool-headed while experiencing extreme pain and pressure, that is never shown in public. Each movement feels easy and light, no matter how hard it is to perform it.
To convey the ballerinas' movements as authentically as possible, we invited a real ballerina from the Bolshoi Theater to act as a mocap actress
We first introduced the Twins characters in a E3 trailer in 2021 and it immediately caused quite an unexpected stir.
You may also notice that the design of the Twins, which is only shown in one frame, is still different from the final design because we continued working on improving it and bringing it to perfection until the release.
We'll be honest, we didn't expect such positive feedback on The Twins, but are insanely grateful and happy that the work of so many months has paid off.
Of course, after the release and even a little before it, the Twins became cosplay favorites.
And with this article, we have prepared a cosplay guide, especially for you! Share your Twins with us!
DOWNLOAD IT HERE
