[Honey’s Anime Interview] Mystic Messenger Development Team Sujin Ri (Developer & Founder of Cheritz Co.), Soojin Kang (Voice Actor), Young Sun Kim (Voice Actor), Ho San Yi (Voice Actor), & Kyuhyuk Shim (Voice Actor)

1:42 AM August 20, 2018

Honey-chan is quite the gamer and we know she has a love for Otome games. So, when the chance to talk with the developer and voice actors from Cheritz Co.’s Mystic Messenger came up, you know she had a lot of questions.

Honey-Chan

Sujin Ri
(Developer and founder of Cheritz Co.)

Soojin Kang
(Voice Actor)

Young Sun Kim
(Voice Actor)

Ho San Yi
(Voice Actor)

Kyuhyuk Shim
(Voice Actor)

Interview with Mystic Messenger Development Team

Why did you get started in making games?

I was studying computer engineering and noticed that there was a demand for online gaming geared toward women, but they were being made by men. So, I decided to fulfill the needs of female gamers.

What is the difference in approach between how male producers make an otome game and how female producers treat the subject?

Otome games made by men are focused on the results. As a woman, it is important to discuss the "why" in getting the answers. The process of getting the result is just as important as the result. Men think how quick can I get to the end. Women want relationships and a comfortable experience in playing the game.

You include popular trends in your storylines including same-sex relationships. Is that tricky for a mass market game?

You have to think about what is currently popular, which helps determine the gender roles. We understand it can be a sensitive topic, but we aim to be fair and don’t leave ethical boundaries.

Did you think that Mystic Messenger would be this popular?

Before the mobile game, we made a PC game and were greatly surprised by the interest in the mobile game. We even had some server issues because of the demand. We also never expected to sell this much merchandise either.

Soojin Kang: I didn’t think our voices would be this loved.

A Korean Voice Actor to come to an event like this (Otakon) is probably a first for Korea. I’ll look back fondly on moments like these.

You are a female game developer running a game company. Does it feel like there are any obstacles because of that?

We feel very strong support in Korea.

Did you have any problems getting into character?

I had to do a lot of recordings that were phone calls in the game and the recording booth was as small as a phone booth. So, the calls made me think of calling my girl.

My character had multiple personalities. I felt that all three were inside me. For example, the first was weak and narrowminded like me as a child, the second was a chic city boy, me overcoming a complex, and the third wanted to be a bad guy. I had practice as voicing a bad guy as the Korean voice for the Moriarty character in the BBC Sherlock series.

The director looks to match the personality with the voice actor. The role I had is a soft, kind, supportive character which I like. I like how my character is honest about his emotions.

Actors like to know the end goal of a role. In this project, I didn’t know what the end goal was until I started it and was able to realize aspects of the character. I found out in a world of Alpha and Omegas, that my character was an Omega and he went home happy.

Final Thoughts

Honey-chan really enjoyed her time talking with the Mystic Messenger team and thanks them for taking the time to speak with their fans and the press. We’d like to thank Cheritz Co. for helping facilitate the Mystic Messenger interview. We were also told a new project is in the works for 2019 and will be ready to learn all about it and pass that info on to our readers.

Writer

Author: Zeke Changuris

I’m a journalist, writer, photographer, video producer, social media manager and above all a storyteller. I’m located on the east coast of the United States but travel the world with the love of my life. I’ve been a nerd since birth with a love of history and science. I fell in love with anime, watching ROBOTECH and Venus Wars in the 80s when our only source was secondhand VHS dubs. A crazy new thing called the internet changed that, giving me access to new and amazing anime every day. I love to write for work and pleasure. I’m living the dream of every kid, getting paid to watch anime and loving every subtitled line.

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