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We interviewed Neva's creative director and creator of the acclaimed GRIS, Conrad Roset, during the presentation of the game in Barcelona, where he talked about the influence of COVID in its conception and the important role of the family, as well as adding action elements and enriching its narrative.
"Alright, I'm in Barcelona, and as you can see, in the background, we have Neva, and I don't think we have a...
I don't know if we have a name for the protagonist so far.
Alba."
"Alba, Neva, and also Conrad, here with me.
So it's really nice to talk with you again, it's been a while, it's been some years, and this feels different.
Both in terms of art, mechanics, story-wise, I guess.
So, first of all, it looks like more based around creatures, nature, in a way different way coming from GRIS."
"Is that something that you wanted to do?
Yes, I will speak in Catalan and not in English, because I will feel more comfortable in Catalan.
We have evolved a lot since GRIS, from many different approaches, from the artistic point of view, the narrative, we have two characters, the nature, as you said, and the whole world behind it."
"What's going on with this world? It's like falling apart, what sort of message do you want to convey?
I guess this is no spoiler interview, but, you know, it's like, as I said, tearing apart, trees, nature has been like...
like there's some sort of virus or something.
Yes, I think it's very important to know the context when this idea came up."
"I had this idea when COVID exploded, and at that time we were all locked down, and it seemed like the world was sinking, so that had a huge influence in Neva.
And Neva talks about two things, first of all, about this kind of context, and there is also the relationship of a mother with a wolf, so this is the combination of these two things, since I had just also become a father during that time, the combination of these two things is the result, Neva."
"I also became a father for a second time at that time.
Pretty much. You mentioned two things I want to ask you about.
One thing is the timing, because we talked in 2019, right before COVID, and you were so happy about the game and thinking about what to do next."
"Let's talk about that first. You said that you wanted to try two approaches.
One might be adding more gameplay, and the other one would be the other way around, like going more narrative in your next game.
I guess you took the first path for this game."
"Yes, something like that.
Yes, we wanted to think about how could GRIS be in action and how could an action game be if it came from Nomada Studio, with our own style Because our action is not like Castlevania or Blasphemous kind of action No, we wanted to create our own narrative, and we wanted to do it in our own way an action way in our own way The narrative becomes very important here, because there are two characters and their relationship."
"GRIS is maybe more symbolic along these lines.
The other thing you mentioned is precisely that relationship between Alba and Neva, and it struck me as interesting that from summer to autumn, I think Neva grows bigger and also more aggressive.
I guess this is also a nod to childhood, and now, two years older, I kind of complicate it."
"So what can you tell us about this relationship, the way you can interact with the creature, wolf, sort of fantastic creature, and what can we expect in terms of growing up, being more aggressive, perhaps out of control, perhaps you have to fight her.
Basically, the game structure is based in the growth of Neva."
"So when I was thinking about the narrative, the design, the mechanics, I was always taking into account the role of a father, because first you have a baby, you try to protect him, then the baby becomes a teenager, the teenager many times is always against the parents."
"So I was always having in mind this idea of the cycle of life and the change of roles.
I saw her help me as well, help me in combat, so that's interesting that she comes to help you.
Okay, final one. Of course I have to ask you about art, specifically.
How are you working with shapes and colors differently here, and is there a clear inspiration for the creatures by Studio Ghibli?
Without a doubt, the main reference is Studio Ghibli, Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, etc."
"Yeah, there's no doubt that one of the main inspiration sources is Studio Ghibli, with Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, but we try to give it our own special touch, with not that much watercolor, and playing more with light.
Thank you so much for your time, moltes gràcies, looking forward to playing this."
