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Hiroaki

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Hiroaki

Self-portrait

Hiroaki (ヒロアキ), whose full name is Hiroaki Hashimoto, is an illustrator for SNK. He is best known to fans for his work in Buriki One and the more recent The King of Fighters iterations.

Profile[]

He was born on July 9 in Marugame, Kagawa. He attended Osaka University Arts for a design major but quit after a year to join SNK in 1998. After SNK dissolved, he became a freelancer.[1]

The King of Fighters 2000 was the first title of the series in which Hiroaki participated.[2] He considers Buriki One his most memorable favorite title since he participated in a wide range of activities, from design to motion capture, and was involved since the early stages of development.[2] His favorite SNK characters is Geese Howard dues to his coolness, followed by K' due to how easy it was for him to draw[2] and also commented that he was glad that Mr. Big appeared in The King of Fighters series since in his eyes Mr. Big looks cool with the two women that appear alongside him, being bald and using weapons. From the Samurai Shodown series, his favorite characters are Tam Tam and Neinhalt Sieger.[3][4]

He's considered by many members of the company to be the protege of Shinkiro.[5] Their teacher-student relationship started when Shinkiro asked him to create a poster for The King of Fighters 2000. He was personally critiqued by the veteran artist on his technique and coloring of the piece, which Hiroaki has taken to heart ever since.[4] They continued to bounce back their thoughts and ideas until the company disbanded. In an interview with the company's artists, he relates his biggest pressure for King of Fighters is "matching Shinkiro's quality" as the latter's art has been in the minds of fans for years.

His works for other companies include Advance Wars: Days of Ruin, God Hand (2006), Spikeout: Battle Street as well additional artwork for Super Street Fighter IV. In 2013, Hiroaki was ordained as an Ambassador for Cultural Tourism at Marugame, Kagawa.[1][2]

Style[]

His art is known for its quasi-realistic take on characters, giving them an unique polished look (almost like an oil painting) with humanistic proportions and a metallic feel to them. He strives to sketch the characters he's assigned in "confident and daring poses" so that their fans can feel prouder to use them. His biggest personal lament are the female and popular characters, as he struggles to make them charming as well as not "outshining" the others.

SNK Work[]

Other credits[]

Gallery[]

References[]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Profile" (in Japanese). Hiroaki blog. Retrieved 2019-11-24.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "SNK 40th Anniversary Special Illustration - Guest & SNK Illustration & Message" (in Japanese). 2018. SNK Corporation. Retrieved 2019-11-24.
  3. ↑ https://twitter.com/SUPER_HIROAKI/status/1288908382867341312
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Hiroaki". SNK. Archived from the original on 2008-04-18. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
  5. ↑ "Artist profiles: Hiroaki". FightersGeneration.com. Retrieved 2019-11-25.

External links[]


Trivia[]

  • He likes the manga series Fist of the North Star and Kinnikuman and cites them as an influence for his enjoyment of drawing muscles.
    • On that note, he went to school with two artists that eventually became known in SONY and CAPCOM, and noted that they were obsessed with drawing muscles. He considers them to be his lifelong rivals.
  • He's a huge fan of Bruce Lee and cites him as his another influence. In his college dorm, him and his friends would re-enact Bruce Lee's fights. He used to practice his famous poses in front of the mirror all the time.
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