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In 2000, EA Games published the first SSX - 'SSX'. It was an arcade style game where you did tricks and raced on a snowboard, with aesthetics and sound that very much reflected the times. In a series that'd total 7 games at the time of it's final release, the SSX franchise has to be one of my favourite franchises to this date.
It's also what led to me exploring similar titles, working my way through the Jet Set Radio games (2 titles, Jet Set Radio and Jet Set Radio Future as of writing) and Tony Hawks amongst others trying to re-capture what I'd enjoyed about SSX. The music, the visuals and the characters I adored.
Jet Set Radio and Bomb Rush Cyberfunk follow a different aesthetic, though still fit within those familiar sharper edges of early 2000s alternative videogames.
There's an increase in games taking cues from these titles, such as Tricky Madness (clearly taking it's inspiration from SSX Tricky, 2001), HYPERyuki: Snowboard Syndicate and Bomb Rush Cyberfunk (which I personally adore).
Unfortunately, EA has not revisited SSX since 2012. Jet Set Radio hasn't had a release since 2002 (though a remake is in the works as of writing). At some stage in 2022, I began thinking about how I would make a game like that.
Below is what I've come up with so far.
SHIBUYA PUNK
Where it Started
Jet Set Radio (known in some regions as Jet Grind Radio) is known to be the originator of the loud genre known as Shibuya Punk, or Grind Fiction. It first surfaced in the 2000s, with intermittent revivals in the 2010s. We're seeing a return of this today, with titles like Bomb Rush Cyberfunk, No Straight Roads, Hi-Fi Rush and Butterflies.
It has common elements with Y2K Futurism, Speculative Cyberpunk/Futurism as well as taking many cues from Hip-Hop and Afrofuturism in how it adapts elements of black culture.
What IS Shibuya Punk?
Often in Urban Settings, Shibuya Punk is highly stylised and vibrant. It often has an association with music, some kind of sport (such as In-Line Skating), Graffiti, or some combination of the three.
Key themes are typically self-expression, individuality and rebellion, with stories revolving around anti-authority, freedom of expression and anti capitalism.
Characters are often some type of outcast or are a part of an alternative culture, facing adversity or pushing back against the norm.
Examples of Media
Jet Set Radio / Jet Set Radio Future.
Scott Pilgrim vs The World
Sonic Riders
Splatoon (Franchise)
Bomb Rush Cyberfunk
Butterflies
No Straight Roads (Franchise)
Mirror's Edge
Persona 3 and 4 + remakes (Thematically)
Persona 5 + Royale
Hi-Fi Rush
Lethal League Blaze
HyperFunk
Notably, SSX is not considered Shibuya Punk. However, titles such as HYPERYuki: Snowboard Syndicate show how the concepts can come together. This genre is something that I believe can and does work hand in hand with Snowboarding, an extreme sport, especially looking at the 'Big Air' and big energy the original SSX Titles held.
INITIAL THOUGHTS - 2022
Originally, this project started in 2022 as a 'What If' around the idea of what I'd do given the reigns on a new SSX Game. Looking at previous title's logos, some existing designs. Unfortunately, I didn't get especially far at this stage.
RELATED IDEAS - 2023-2025
With my Hobbies tending to involve the creation and writing of characters, inevitably there have been designs and incomplete concepts for characters inspired by or based on SSX, Bomb Rush Cyberfunk and other Grind Fiction games. Below are a few of these.
RABID is a character designed to exist in the world of Bomb Rush Cyberfunk.
Their latest design (Below) has notable tweaks from the original, where I tried to limit the pallet to warm purples and reds.
Unlike other characters in universe, RABID is not a character I depict with a 'Boost Pack'.
CUP!D, like RABID, is designed to be a graffiti artist in the world of Bomb Rush Cyberfunk. I chose to focus on softer, lighter colours and an angelic aesthetic, while looking more at Y2K styles.
I also took the time to design a 'boost pack', an item that exists within the universe to allow faster movement, to reach higher places, and to do tricks otherwise not possible without.
In 2024 I began trying to design a character inspired by SSX. This wasn't my first attempt, not by a long shot, but it was the first time I referenced actual Snowboarding gear to mimic the style of the 2012 game. It was a significant departure from the series' more cartoony roots.
Unfortunately I didn't progress much farther.
(Below) Historically I'd made characters more casual, similar to the classic titles and On Tour (2005).
