Naughty Dog’s Intergalactic Game Has a Lot of Akira Parallels

Gamers are beginning to point out how much Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet has in common with the film Akira by director Katsuhiro Otomo. Gamers want to see much more of Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, but despite having plenty to show in an enigmatic new trailer, Naughty Dog seems like it may stay quiet about the game for a bit longer.

Naughty Dog has embraced a retro-futuristic aesthetic that can be traced back to many different influential media, but Akira seems to be the most notable reference so far, with a story about nuclear fallout and questioning powerful institutions. Intergalactic‘s announcement has left gamers with many questions, but its connections to the iconic anime Akira make it possible to connect some dots.

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A Reddit post shared by ottoDVD spots plenty of direct cinematic parallels between Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet and Akira that have fans wondering what more is in store for the game. In a recent interview with the New York Times about Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, Neil Druckmann stated that the upcoming game was inspired by the classic 1988 film Akira. In the reveal trailer for Naughty Dog’s next big project, a couple of shots already serve as direct homages to the movie, riffing off of Akira‘s style and tone. To begin, players may notice how similar Jordan A. Mun and Akira protagonist Shotaro Kaneda’s approaches to style are. Jordan dons a red cropped varsity bomber jacket just like Shotaro’s, the only difference here is the emblem on the back. The pill on Shotaro’s jacket references his vigilante biker gang, the Capsules, but it isn’t known what the insignia on Jordan’s jacket nods to just yet.

Intergalactic Trailer Pays Homage to Akira

In the video shared by ottoDVD, the 8 shots from Intergalactic‘s trailer shown here feel as close as possible to 1:1 recreations of these Akira setpieces while still maintaining the game’s originality. From the way Jordan and Shotaro are seen glancing at retro-futuristic screens to the way their CD players activate as they pick out what kind of music they want to listen to. Perhaps most notable is the way these characters take off in their respective vehicles, with light trailing behind as they blast away. There are plenty of references within Intergalactic‘s trailer, and not just to Akira. Based on what’s been shown so far, heavy symbolism and references to iconic real-world items could be a significant part of Intergalactic‘s core identity, and some Naughty Dog fans are hoping that there’s much more behind the surface.

Trusting Naughty Dog’s reputation for great stories, some people have proposed the idea that Intergalactic may be a narrative interested in making its use of references a part of some meta-textual commentary. The game’s subtitle: The Heretic Prophet implies that Jordan could be rebelling against a long-trusted institution, and Druckmann’s statements about how the game investigates what happens when people put their faith in various institutions appear to support that idea so far. There’s still plenty more to uncover about Intergalactic.

Intergalactic: The Heretic Propher follows Jordan A. Mun, a dangerous bounty hunter who ends up stranded on Sempiria – a distant planet whose communication with the outside universe went dark hundreds of years ago. In fact, anyone who’s flown to it hoping to unravel its mysterious past was never heard from again. Jordan will have to use all her skills and wits if she hopes to be the first person in over 600 years to leave its orbit.

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Publisher(s)

Sony Interactive Entertainment