Twinkle Girl Was the First Robot Master Created for Mega Man: Dual Override

Twinkle Girl was only revealed earlier this week, but she’s already become something of a sensation on social media, inspiring plenty of fan art along the way. As it turns out, Capcom has a bit of a soft spot for her, too.

In a new interview with Famitsu, director Shinya Ikuta revealed that Twinkle Girl was actually the very first of Dual Override's new bosses created.

"Twinkle Girl was the first one we made," Ikuta said. "The entire staff is very attached to her."

The discussion came up when Famitsu asked about Twinkle Girl being the first female Robot Master since Splash Woman debuted in Mega Man 9. According to series producer Shingo Izumi, her creation reflects the team's interest in broadening the types of characters that can exist within the classic series.

"In the past, I think there was a stronger image of robot heroes being boys," Izumi explained. "But nowadays, female heroes are perfectly normal, and there's also the advantage of being able to bring out more personality in the characters. We adopted it as one way of expanding the variety."

Ikuta echoed that sentiment, saying the team didn't want to be overly restricted by precedent when coming up with Dual Override's cast. 

"I really feel that expanding the range of designs is a good thing," he said. "Just like we were talking about earlier, we tried not to be too bound by the previous games and approached the characters with a freer way of thinking."

"Rather than thinking, 'Let's make a girl character,' our goal was to create an appealing enemy robot," Minamitani said. "When we worked toward that, she came about naturally."

There's another ingredient behind her personality, too. Ikuta revealed that all of Dual Override's bosses are being brought to life with motion capture. 

"We're using motion capture for every boss this time, so I'd like people to pay attention to how lively their movements are," he said.

The team also confirmed that Robot Masters are designed first, with their stages built around them afterward. For Twinkle Girl, that meant an exhibition-themed setting filled with fireworks to match her character.

"We create the stages after coming up with the bosses," Ikuta explained. "For Twinkle Girl, we focused on a stage design that matched the character, with an exposition theme and fireworks constantly being launched."

Speaking of bosses, Ikuta also commented on the much-anticipated results of the Robot Master design contest. He says, “We’re currently preparing to announce it in a venue where it can reach as wide an audience as possible, so we ask that you wait just a little longer.”

Hopefully it won’t be too long before we see the winner. If not, hey, maybe another Robot Master or two in time for Tokyo Game Show? 

Twinkle Girl has already set a pretty high bar, so here’s hoping the rest of Dual Override’s lineup gets just as much love.

Source: Famitsu