Recreating Therion from Octopath Traveler in 3D

Introduction

I’m Placido Obama Mexia, a senior 3D character artist from Spain, currently working at Firesprite, a PlayStation studio based in Liverpool, UK. My passion for video games began in my childhood when I first played Final Fantasy VII on the PSX. The cinematic scenes and the storytelling left a lasting impression on me, inspired me to pursue a career in the video game industry. As I grew older, I realised that 3D art was the perfect medium to combine my love for video games with my creative skills.

My journey into 3D art started at a private school in Spain, where I was introduced to tools like 3ds Max and ZBrush. These programs provided me with the foundational knowledge needed for 3D modelling. To further develop my skills, I watched online tutorials, constantly challenging myself to improve and expand my capabilities.

The inspiration for my focus on character art came from the video games I played as a child, such as Tekken and Final Fantasy. The detailed and dynamic characters in these games made me aspire to contribute to the industry by designing and bringing characters to life.

Throughout my career, I've had the opportunity to work on several projects, including Street Fighter V, Godfall, and more.

Therion Octopath Traveler

My goal for this project was to recreate the 2D character of Therion from Octopath Traveler in a 3D style similar to Final Fantasy while also incorporating my own creative direction. I have always been a fan of Therion's character design, and ever since the game was released, I felt inspired to recreate him in a new way that blended two of my favourite gaming aesthetics.

To begin, I researched and collected various pieces of concept art from Octopath Traveler to understand the original design elements of Therion. I then gathered references that matched the quality and style I aimed to achieve, drawing inspiration from Final Fantasy’s character models. This approach allowed me to maintain the essence of Therion while integrating my own artistic interpretation, ensuring the final result was both familiar and unique.

Head & Face

For the head and face, I used character models from Devil May Cry 5 as a primary reference, and I also looked at renders from Final Fantasy VII Rebirth to guide the aesthetic direction. Using these as a foundation, I developed my own interpretation of the character’s face, aiming to balance the original design elements with a more realistic style.

I created the character from scratch in ZBrush, focusing first on the base structure before refining the details. To achieve realistic skin texture, I used custom Alphas that I developed, which included both individual pores and arrays of pores. I then used Texturing XYZ face Alphas to blend everything seamlessly.

For the hair, I used Maya’s XGen to create the groom, carefully shaping the hairstyle, lashes, and brows to match the character’s original design while giving it a realistic touch. I studied the main characteristics and proportions of the character and translated them into a more lifelike style, maintaining key features that would make the character recognisable while enhancing realism.

Body

I began by creating the high poly model in ZBrush, focusing on the overall shape and structure of the body, belts, and dagger. Once the high poly was complete, I moved to Maya for the retopology process. After refining the low poly version, I imported it into Substance 3D Painter for texturing. When everything was finalised, I brought the model into Unreal Engine for the final presentation.

All the intricate details, such as the necklace, buckles, and embellishments, were hand-sculpted in ZBrush. To enhance realism, I used detail maps in Unreal Engine to create more believable materials. For the clothing, I started with Marvelous Designer to establish the basic shapes and the fabric. I then refined and art-directed these folds in ZBrush to achieve a more natural and dynamic look.

The most challenging part of the project was recreating Therion from scratch in 3D, especially designing the poncho. I wanted it to be versatile, allowing for different outfit variations without causing intersections between them.

For retopology and UVs, I used Maya.

Texturing

For texturing, I used Substance 3D Painter. I prefer to create my own material, starting with fill layers as the base and gradually building up some details using a noise mask until I’m pleased with the result. For the skin textures, I studied scans and as many references as possible to closely mimic real skin. For the waistband, I aimed for a silky material using a bit of metalness and experimenting with roughness until I achieved the right balance.

Lighting & Rendering

For the final presentation, I downloaded some rocks and an apple from Megascans. Then I set up the sky using the environment lighting mixer tool in Unreal, which allows me to have a simulation of a real sun. Afterward, I added 4 rect lights in Unreal to draw attention to the character’s details. These additional light sources helped create depth and contrast, ensuring the character was the focal point of the scene.

Conclusion

The project took me around six months to complete. One of the biggest challenges was balancing my full-time job while finding time to work on it and staying motivated throughout the process. It required my time management and dedication, but it also pushed me to grow as a character artist. I used the experience to expand my skills, particularly in rigging, which was something I had been wanting to learn.

When translating a 2D concept into 3D, one of the most important things is to stay as close to the original design as possible while using your creativity to fill in any gaps in the concept art. It’s about finding the balance between staying true to the source material and adjusting to ensure the character works well in 3D.

My advice for aspiring young character artists is to take things step by step. Don’t rush into big projects if you’re not ready; instead, focus on smaller projects that will allow you to develop your skills. Completing smaller projects will not only keep you motivated but also help you build a solid foundation. Consistency is key, working consistently and building on each experience will get you to where you want to be.

As for tutorials, I recommend checking out Ilya Gagarin’s videos on creating characters from scratch. His tutorials provide a guide to creating characters, covering everything from modelling to final presentation.

Placido Obama Mexia, Character Artist

Interview conducted by Amber Rutherford