Some say all works of fiction are rooted in reality, and this is quite literally the case with one boss in the turn-based dark fantasy RPG Billy the Hero. Using photos of his sleeping wife, Thai indie developer JOJOJOJOSoft created a grotesque, three-headed guardian with hands coming out of its mouths.
In an IndieDev Reddit post, JOJOJOJOSoft detailed his process for creating the monster. After sneaking in some reference shots while his wife was asleep, he used pictures of her face and hands to create the body. The monster’s color saturation was first changed to grayscale, followed by layered colors to adjust the lighting and shadows. The developer added textures using pictures of food and raw meat before drawing in other visceral details like veins, tendons, and other fleshy bits. Lastly, a generous helping of red completed the monster’s bloody appearance before the final color grading.
JOJOJOJOSoft revealed there is a reason why the monster looks like his wife. Billy the Hero features a marriage system. In order to propose, players must acquire a wedding ring, which is protected by the boss guardian. He jokingly said that the monster took the longest time to make, as he attributed its creation to his and his wife’s relationship which “took over 20 years to incubate.”
Though many comments praised his ingenuity, a good number raised concerns about the state of the dev’s marriage and possible repercussions. JOJOJOJOSoft replied that his wife is a “very gentle soul” who doesn’t hold grudges. Attached to the reply was a picture of his wife stepping on him, proving that true love transcends all hardships.
While Billy the Hero uses generative AI to upscale images and help with initial localization drafts, JOJOJOJOSoft assures that the game is reviewed and polished by human devs. Aside from his wife, he also uses several real-life objects as inspiration for his work on Billy the Hero. One example has him using hastily-eaten chicken pieces, some French fries, and a tart to create a grotesque, half-body monster with spider-like eyes.
Billy the Hero is currently in development for Windows (Steam).
