Yoko Taro: The game industry's true auteur

Interview by Matt S.

Yoko Taro is a challenging person to interview. He’s the pre-eminent video game auteur going around; a creative that approaches his work with a healthy dose of reflection and transgression, and with an equally healthy taste for the surreal and sublime. His approach to game design also flows into his public persona; whenever he’s seen in public, on panels or stage, video or anything else, he dons a mask based on Emil, one of his more enduring characters from the NieR franchise. In private interviews, he takes it off. I’ve seen the inside of it. It looks hot, heavy, and uncomfortable.

Yoko subjects himself to the mask because he wants people to focus on what he puts into his games, rather than identify them to him personally. That commitment to being seen as enigmatic is why he’s a challenging person to interview. Ask Yoko about his personal influences or sources of inspiration, and he’ll almost always deflect.

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