Punch Kick Snare is a 2D fighting game project that harnesses who I am as an artist and as a person. A music based project like this was something that I had worked around in my brain since my senior year of high school. I wanted to integrate hip hop and its surrounding culture deep into my designs for this project - each character is based around specific artists/groups from the 80's - early 2000's era of hip hop.

I designed Quest to be the posterboy for this project, similar to how Ryu is so closely associated with Street Fighter. I was inspired by rap artists like Nas, A Tribe Called Quest, and MF Doom when designing him, and hinted at them throughout his design. His name is the most obvious reference, naming him after A Tribe Called Quest. I designed his outfit after I saw a picture of Nas in an Astro's jersey with a bright orange puffer vest, and his kneepad is loosely based on MF DOOM's mask. I wanted to sprinkle references to the music that inspired me throughout the entire character. 

With Quest being the protagonist, I wanted to fully kit him out with a weapon that helped further drive the aesthetics of the game and who he is as a character. I think most people associate old school hip-hop with the visual of someone carrying a boombox over their shoulder. I wanted to take that imagery and push it to fit within the realm of combat. I took inspiration from boomboxes, cassette players, and Walkmans when thinking about the details of the Kaboom-box.

I wanted to drive home the weight of the Kaboom-box and the force it takes to move it through space. Quest controls space with large swinging moves, which makes him a monster at all ranges. I wanted him to be the 'all-rounder' or 'shoto' of this game, so he has the tools to succeed in most match-ups. 

For Trixie, I wanted to capture hip hop's graffiti and breakdance culture. I also wanted to hone in on speed with her - both gameplay and personality. If she's running around the city doing throwies and tags, her visuals need to be fast, too. I kept her outfit loose and sporty with a bright and active color palette. My elevator pitch for her was 'graffiti artist street ninja', and I tried to drive that home with her silhouette. Artists I was inspired by were Run D.M.C, Salt n Pepa, Missy Elliot, Aaliyah, and Lisa 'Left Eye' Lopes.

In order to fully expand on Trixie's character I made sure to incorporate breakdancing and paint into her move set. Nearly all moves are followed by a trail of her spray paint, and she even uses a windmill kick as a means of offence. I wanted to reimagine what uses her paint could have, the top combat sequence shows her using a can of exploding paint like a smoke bomb, trying to drive home the 'graffiti artist street ninja' pitch.

For Baam I wanted to hit a few key design elements. Those being that I wanted a grappler/brute character, a 'big body' character, and I wanted to capture the essence of the Universal Zulu Nation, as their creation was integral to a lot of old hip hop. Baam is heavily inspired by Afrika Bambaataa, who was the founder of the Universal Zulu Nation. I tried to highlight what the Zulu Nation stood for, which was peace, love, and unity, and the overlap with the Panafrican Movement, which stands for the rights and unity for people of African descent globally. I gave Baam more of a rugged/rockstarish look to highlight the psychedelic sounds of Afrika Bambaataa's music. I also adorned Baam with traditional African prayer beads, a mask inspired by traditional African battle masks, patches referencing things like the Panafrican Movement and the Black Panther Party, and brass knuckles that say 'LOVE' to drive home the teachings and social awareness of the Universal Zulu Nation.

I wanted Baam's moveset to feel heavy and momentum-based. He doesn't use any fancy tricks, just his mass. His game plan would be to get close as soon as possible, but with his size, he's vulnerable to zoning and fast targets. He'd be one of the slowest people on the roster, but with his mass, also one of the heaviest hitters. To highlight the Universal Zulu Nation once again in his moveset, I made all the VFX the same color scheme as the album, The Low End Theory by A Tribe Called Quest, a group closely associated with the Universal Zulu Nation.