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Stellar Blade Director Draws Inspiration from Taxi Driver Strike and Retro Sci-Fi

• Jacob Chambers
• April 10th, 2024

Stellar Blade, the highly anticipated PS5 exclusive action game, will finally be released on April 26th. In a recent interview, Shift Up director Kim Hyung-tae shared insights into the game’s origins, providing a glimpse into the creative process behind its development. Mentioned were the typical suspects of ’80s and ’90s anime and sci-fi, such as Alita: Battle Angel. However, what caught Hyung Tae off guard was the unexpected existential dread he experienced when he witnessed a taxi driver strike.

During an interview with the PlayStation Blog, Hyung Tae shares the story behind Stellar Blade’s thought-provoking themes of humanity and survival. He explains that the inspiration came from a significant event that occurred during the rapid development of self-driving car technologies, which seemed to foreshadow the imminent arrival of autonomous vehicles. Many taxi drivers were deeply concerned about the potential for these technologies to completely replace their jobs, causing a great deal of fear and uncertainty.

Hyung Tae pondered the situation and said, “While watching their strike, I found myself thinking about how I would react if I were in a similar situation—a world where non-human entities had completely replaced humans.” According to Hyung Tae, “This is where the theme for Stellar Blade originates,” and the event appears to have had a significant impact on him.

We would have probably guessed NieR: Automata or something, so it’s somewhat surprising to learn that such a seemingly ordinary event may have played a role in the development of the scandalous Stellar Blade. What are your thoughts? We would greatly appreciate your feedback in the comments section below.