A Tribute Documentary about D2 Creator Kenji Eno is on the way

A documentary about 90s gaming visionary Kenji Eno is on the way from documentary maker Archipel.

For those unaware, Kenji Eno was a maverick game developer and musician who founded WARP game studios. With WARP, Eno most famously brought us the excellent D trilogy: D, Enemy Zero and D2, the last of which was on the Dreamcast. All three games pushed the boundaries of what people at the time considered a "video game", the latter two of the trilogy in particular experimenting with multiple genres. Eno sadly passed away on February the 20th, 2013, due to heart failure brought on by hypertension.

On the tenth anniversary of Eno's passing, Archipel, a documentary maker that specialises in documentaries "about Japan's creative minds and culture" on YouTube, plan to honour him with a tribute documentary.

Back in October of last year, Archipel announced the documentary was being worked on, saying they'd recieved some "moving testimonials" about Eno, presumably from those who worked with him in the industry. They followed this up seven days ago, when they provided an update, saying they'd wrapped up shooting and that a teaser trailer will be released soon.

We've wrapped shooting. Happy and honored for all the guests who participated to the project and the conversations we've had about this truly avant-garde creator. Teaser coming soon.

— Archipel | アルシペル (@SailToArchipel) January 16, 2023

Update: On the 20th of February - the anniversary of Eno's death - Archipel finally released their teaser for this documentary. This very sombre clip shows the faces of Eno's friends, colleagues, and family who will be providing testimonials. Many highly regarded creatives from the Japanese video game industry are shown, including Hideo Kojima (Metal Gear Solid), Tetsuya Mizuguchi (Rez, Space Channel 5), Yoot Saito (Seaman), Kenichi Nishi (L.O.L.: Lack of Love), and Fumito Ueda (Ico, Shadow of the Colossus). The teaser ends confirming that the documentary will be out in 2023. Check out the teaser below.

As a huge fan of Eno's work, I'm really excited for this upcoming documentary. Will you give it a watch when it's released? Let us know via our social media channels, or simply by dropping us a comment below.

Related Articles: 

• In White 1999: The Time D2's Laura Appeared as a Model in a Japanese Fashion Magazine
• A Quick Look At Real Sound: Winds of Regret
• The Haunting D2 Music Box

In White 1999: The Time D2's Laura Appeared as a Model in a Japanese Fashion Magazine

Kenji Eno seemed to look at game design differently to other developers. If you've played his major Dreamcast outing D2, you'll know exactly what I mean. He was always pushing the boundaries of what made a game a game. Something he very much championed was the idea of a 'digital actress.' It's a bit of an odd concept to explain, but perhaps the most modern equivalent we have is the likes of Hatsune Miku, a fictional character that has transcended her original source material (as the mascot for a piece of music software) to become a celebrity in her own right, crossing over into other forms of media, almost like she's following some kind of real world career path. 

Laura, created by Kenji Eno, was very similar. She's a familiar face we see in Eno's D trilogy, but in each game she 'plays' a completely different character, in the same way real-life actors play different roles in movies. In D, she is Laura Harris; in Enemy Zero, she is Laura Lewis; and in D2, she is Laura Parton. Despite sharing a similar-looking character model, they are all different characters who are involved in completely separate storylines.

Laura Harris (top left), Laura Lewis (bottom left), Laura Parton (right)

Being the creative genius he was, Kenji Eno's vision for Laura did not end at games. Prior to the release of D2 in Japan, Laura modelled clothes designed by Japanese fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto in the August 1999 issue (no. 268) of the Japanese fashion magazine High Fashion (or simply "HF"). Not only was she included within the issue's pages, she was featured slap-bang on the cover too. 

I can't imagine how stressful it must have been for many hard-working fashion models back in 1999 to have a precious front cover spot pinched from them by a 3D-rendered Dreamcast woman. Below are all the covers of High Fashion from January 1997 to December 1999 (source). Laura definitely stands out amongst the other mortals - a definite case of "one of these things is not like the others".

Video game characters modelling clothes isn't unheard of these days, though. In the last decade, we've seen Final Fantasy XIII-2's troupe of characters model a range for Prada in Summer 2012, while the game's main character Lightning did a virtual shoot for Louis Vuitton in 2016. But this photoshoot of Laura could potentially be one of the first instances of this odd concept to ever occur. 

• Related: DreamPod 88 featuring Video Game Esoterica

I was so intrigued, I tracked down this issue with the promise to myself that I'd document it here for the enjoyment of all who love the more esoteric side of Dreamcast lore, and as an extension, the legacy of Kenji Eno and D2. So here we go. I present to you issue 268 of High Fashion magazine. Feel free to click on any of the scans if you want to view a larger version of them.

A Quick Look At Real Sound: Winds of Regret

The power of sight. I'd wager that pretty much everyone reading this is using it and is dependant on it; and I am no different. As a gamer, a writer and a movie fan, it is sometimes lost on me just how much I take my sight for granted. Without glasses or contact lenses I can't see further than about 6 feet before everything turns into San Francisco Rush on N64, but if the usage of my peepers was taken from me for whatever reason, I really don't know what I would do.

But what of those of us whom have had this life-changing thing happen to them? Or those who were born without the ability to see? Should they be excluded from a pastime like gaming? Accessibility and gaming for the blind and visually impaired is something I personally find absolutely fascinating, and very recently I learned of a game for the Dreamcast which aimed to allow partially sighted and blind gamers the opportunity to enjoy an adventure in the same manner that a sighted gamer might. That game is Warp's Real Sound: Winds of Regret.

Remembering Kenji Eno

Last month a gaming legend passed away. Kenji Eno is not a household name but his influence on games is massive, creating unique works that have such a unique and mysterious feel to them.

Sega fans will know him best for games like D and Enemy Zero on the Saturn and D2 on the Dreamcast. He also created Real Sound: Kaze no Regret, a game on both the Saturn and Dreamcast that was a audio only adventure, so even blind people could play it. The man was also a musician and composed tracks for Sega Rally 2.

Here is a fantastic article over at Gamasutra about his career and influence. Also, a Dreamcast fan e-mailed me an interview with Kenji Eno discussing D2, scanned from an issue of Gamersrepublic. Check it out below.

Finally here's a video review Caleb did way back in 2007 of D2.