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The original was posted on /r/anime by /u/turin-dono on 2024-07-02 17:28:45+00:00.

After a certain discussion, I did some research and found Kui-sensei’s interview she gave in Famitsū magazine (29. February 2024). I decided to translate the whole interview into English, as I couldn’t find any translations. I already posted the translation on r/DungeonMeshi but I wanted to share it also with people outside that community.

Few remarks beforehand:

• ’m not a native speaker of English (neither Japanese nor German for that matter) and my translation may have some grammar errors or misspellings.
• This is actually my first time translating a longer Japanese text into English.
• I used a free Japanese OCR reader on the internet to extract the whole interview and then I let ChatGPT translate it. I used that as a base for my translation. I changed the sentence structure or words where needed (I did some sort of quality check). Usually, I’m not a big fan of those automatic translators, but it does speed things up. My comments will be notated in [] brackets.
• I suffer from Usher Syndrome 2A, meaning my sight isn’t the best – I might have missed something.
• I do speak Japanese (acquired N1 successfully).
• Yes, I am procrastinating on my bachelor thesis

SPECIAL INTERVIEW

The original author of Dungeon Meshi is quite a game lover! A special interview is provided to commemorate the special feature!

We had a talk with author of Dungeon Meshi, Kui Ryōko-sensei just about the games

The manga Dungeon Meshi has reached its conclusion in its 14 volumes. Its author, Kui Ryōko, turns out to be quite a game fan! We asked her to be interviewed for this special feature, to which she kindly agreed to. The extent of her gamer spirit is beyond imagination… We are pleased to present this valuable interview with a number of compelling titles.

PROFILE

Kui Ryōko has been active as a dōjinshi artist on pixiv and Comitia, and made her debut in March 2011 with Ryū no Gakkō wa Yama no Ue Kui Ryōko Sakuhinshū “The School of Dragons is on the Mountain – Kui Ryōko’s Anthology”. In 2012 she published Kui Ryōko Sakuhinshū Ryū no Kawaii Nanatsu no Ko “Kui Ryōko’s Anthology: Seven Sweet Kids of the Dragon” and in 2013 won the 17th Japan Media Arts Festival Manga Division Excellence Award with Hikidashi ni Terrarium “Terrarium in Drawer”. In 2014 Dungeon Meshi started its serialisation in Harta (Kadokawa) magazine, with serialisation ending in September 2023. A total of 14 volumes of the manga are currently on sale.

Playing “Wizardry 6”, I thought to myself, “I want to draw stories and drawings like this”

My formative experience with games was with “Wizardry” my father used to play

-         This time, rather than talking about Dungeon Meshi, I would rather like to talk with you about video games, as I heard that you are quite fond of them.

Kui-sensei:       I may be biased [about games she likes, I guess], but I’m looking forward to this interview.

-         When I first read Dungeon Meshi, I felt that its setting where a party consisting of characters like a human, an elf, a dwarf and a so-called hobbit venture deep into the dungeon was reminiscent of a classic fantasy RPG.

Kui:      That’s right. My father played various games on the NES console, starting with “Wizardry”, and that was great entertainment for us, so it might have been something like a formative experience [in gaming, I guess] for me. When I was a child, these games were too difficult for me to play by myself. However, as I was growing up I started thinking, “I liked the atmosphere of that game” and "I want to draw something with that kind of atmosphere” and that was probably what inspired me.

-         Did you watch your father play games?

Kui:      A lot. Among the various games, “Wizardry" was a bit different from the fun-to-watch games like “Dragon Quest”, “Ultima” and "Fire Emblem”. Its first-person perspective with the continuously identical scenery made it seem like a rather plain game to my childish mind. However, I also remember finding great enjoyment in the monster illustrations found in its strategy guides and stared at them for hours on end.

-         Yes, the strategy guides had illustrations that you couldn’t see in the game itself.

Kui:      Growing up, I started playing RPGs and other games by myself, but because of times like taking entrance exams and when I started living on my own, I distanced myself from games for a while.

-         Yes, that’s right. Many people have experiences like that, don’t they?

Kui:      I started playing games again when the serialization of Dungeon Meshi was decided. Learning that “Wizardry” itself has various influences from other works, I felt I should depict [my work] with a good understanding of those currents. So, while checking out computer games and TRPGs, I ended up exploring various works.

-         So. you started studying games because of Dungeon Meshi.

Kui:      I also liked novels like “The Neverending Story” and “The Lord of the Rings”, so I was already familiar with fantasy. However, I hadn’t really thought about why similar terms appear in games here and there, so I thought to myself, “Come to think of it, why is it like that?”

-         So, from there, the world expanded. Regarding the title Dungeon Meshi, and there is also the English title which is “Delicious in Dungeon”, I assumed it was a nod to “Dungeons & Dragons”.

Kui:      The English title was actually chosen by my editor, and indeed, as far as I heard, it was consciously referencing “D&D.” In fact, I only became aware of tabletop RPGs as an adult. When researching the history of games, you inevitably come across the name “Dungeons & Dragons”. So, I read rulebooks and replay novels, and even played some computer RPGs based on “D&D”. Since I didn’t have anyone to play it with at the time, I feel like I haven’t fully experienced it compared to people who have played it extensively.

-         Earlier you mentioned that you had dabbled a bit with PlayStation and such. Are there any games that left a lasting impression on you?

Kui:      That would probably be “Final Fantasy VII.” The “Final Fantasy” series had amazing graphics, and I remember being amazed each time a new game came out, thinking, “Is this the limit of graphical evolution?”

In games, even seemingly unnecessary things can bring joy just by being there

-         You mentioned that since the serialization of Dungeon Meshi started around 2014 you began playing various games. For this interview, your editor provided us a list of games you enjoy in advance. Looking at that list, it seems quite diverse. You mentioned you started playing games for manga research purposes, but do you remember the first game you played specifically for research?

Kui:      I bought it more for study and learning, but the first one was “Legend of Grimrock.” “Dungeon Master” was famous as an RPG where you eat meals, so I wanted to play it, but the hassle of playing it on an actual machine was too much [for me]. That’s why I played “Legend of Grimrock,” which is heavily influenced by “Dungeon Master.” Without the serialisation [of Dungeon Meshi], it was probably the type of game I wouldn’t have played. But the volume [of content] and difficulty were just right, so that I had that satisfying feeling of completing the game, becoming a good memory for me. Being able to play with modern graphics in first-person dungeon ambience also served as a good reference. I feel this prompted me to start playing various games.

-         “Legend of Grimrock” was quite a challenging title, especially for those who hadn’t played games in a while…

Kui:      The basic rules weren’t overly complicated. However, at first, I didn’t realize it was an action game, so I would just stand still and get beaten up. Once I understood to use good timing to dodge enemy attacks and strike during openings, it became enjoyable. It hasn’t been translated into Japanese, but since there isn’t much text, I played the English version.

-         And from there, you started playing various games.

Kui:      I used to feel a bit apprehensive about games than were not turn-based RPGs, but I decided to stop being prejudiced and try out any games that looked interesting. As I played games like “Red Dead Redemption 2” and “God of War,” I found their stories intriguing and gradually became more and more hooked.

-         While continuing the serialisation, you even played games…

Kui:      “Red Dead Redemption 2” was an incredibly well-crafted game. I wanted to talk about it with someone, so I convinced my editor and other mangaka to buy it too. [I liked it] so much. I’m grateful that such a game exists.

-         It was right up your alley in terms of preferences.

Kui:      To be honest, at first, it felt a bit “meh.” Not being able to run in the camp, the animations for picking things up or skinning animals, all these little things annoyed me a bit. I wondered if sacrificing playability for realism was just the creators imposing their preferences. However, as I played more and more, I noticed the NPCs changing their actions according to their schedule, finishing their meals properly and the protagonist getting progressively dirtier… Al…

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