Yoshiyuki TAKANI / 高荷義之

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About this page
Created on: January 8, 2025
Last edit: –

Profile

Born on December 28, 1935 in Maebashi, Gunma prefecture, Yoshiyuki Takani became a pupil of painter Shigeru Komatsuzaki after finishing high school. He began his career at the age of 19 as a freelance artist, working for various boys’ magazines including Shonen Sunday. Specializing in painting, he illustrated everything from science fiction and medieval Japanese scenes to westerns, dinosaurs and the Tokyo Olympics (1964). But it was above all in the military field that he became famous, and as early as 1963 he began illustrating packaging for plastic models of various military machines, for which the manufacturer Tamiya was a specialist. In 1972, he published his first artbook, devoted to the Wehrmacht and its tanks. Along with Motofumi Kobayashi and Masami Ohnishi, he is one of the most famous artists in the field of military illustration, later illustrating the Daisenryaku series and the magazine Armour Modelling, launched in 1997.

In 1982, Shinji Hashimoto, then working at Bandai (and years later at Square Enix), contacted him to create illustrations for Gundam plastic models, thanks to his work as a model figure illustrator. Other animated mecha series followed, including Xabungle, Dunbine, Macross, Votoms and Evangelion.
In 1983, while Hayao Miyazaki was working on the film adaptation of Nausicaa, Takani produced a first illustration for the film, which appeared in the October issue of Animage, followed by two more colorful illustrations.
His debut in the video game industry seems to have been in 1986, when publisher Ponica contacted him to illustrate two wargames released on PC-88. He followed this up with Metal Gear 2, a series he would return to 2 more times.

His work in the field of video games consists mainly of illustrations depicting either mechas or scenes from the Second World War, generally leaving humans only a limited place – they often serve to represent the gigantism of the machines surrounding them. Nevertheless, he has rarely had the opportunity to have his work featured on the covers of games released in the West, the only known title being Striker 1945 II on the PS1 US version.
Takani’s style is distinguished by his coloring techniques, both by the different color palettes he employs (reminiscent of those of painter Norman Rockwell) and by the way he approaches his backgrounds, contenting himself with suggesting shapes or materials to concentrate on the subject of each of his canvases, approached with greater precision.

Over the course of his career, he has worked on some of pop culture’s most famous licenses, including Appleseed, Armored Troopers Votoms, Aura Battler Dunbine, Evangelion, Godzilla, Gundam, Macross, Mazinger, Space Battleship Yamato, Star Wars, The Five Star Stories and Transformers.

In 2024, after a career spanning 50 years, he is gradually winding down his activities, including his contributions to Comiket and the Victory Show (a military-themed trade show), as well as his Twitter account, website and online store. One of his last works was a cover illustration for an issue of Armour Modelling magazine published that same year.

Sources:
Wonder Art – Takani Style
https://web.archive.org/web/20241126182101/https://www.takani-yoshiyuki.com/
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes premium package
https://tokyo.whatsin.jp/339661
https://x.com/am_modelling/status/1778614168708694475

Games (in alphabetical order)

Advanced Power Dolls 2 / 爺がパワードール２ (PC-98 – 1996)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Daisenryaku Expert / 大戦略エキスパート (SFC – 1992)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)
Manual cover

Daisenryaku Expert WWII / 大戦略エキスパートWWII (SFC – 1996)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)
Manual cover

Daisenryaku VI Integral / 大戦略VIインテグラル (Windows – 2001)
Cover art (Source: credited on the game’s official website)

Edono Kiba / 江戸の牙 / エドノキバ (SFC – 1993)
Cover art, manual illustration (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Gaishin Senki Millennium Sword / 鎧神戦記ミレニアムソード (SFC – 1995, unreleased)
Artwork (Source: mentioned by the artist on Twitter)

Genocide 2: Master of the Dark Communion / ジェノサイド2 (X68000 – 1991, FM Towns – 1993, SFC – 1994)
Cover art for the Japanese version (based on a sketch by Masakazu Fukuda) (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Gundam Side Story 0079: Rise from the Ashes / 機動戦士ガンダム外伝コロニーの落ちた地で… (Dreamcast – 1999)
Cover art for the Japanese version (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

GunGriffon II / ガングリフォン II (Saturn – 1998)
Back cover (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Leningrad / レニングラード (PC-88, PC-98 – 1987)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake / メタルギア2 ソリッドスネーク (MSX2 – 1990)
Cover art (Source: credited on the back of the box)

Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes / メタルギアソリッドザ・ツインスネークス (GameCube – 2004)
Illustration featured in the booklet of the premium package version, exclusive to Japan (Source: credited in the booklet)

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater / メタルギアソリッド3 スネーク・イーター (PS2 – 2004)
Plastic model cover illustration made for the premium package version, exclusive to Japan (Source: mentioned by Konami employee Keiichi Matate on Facebook)

Metal Slug Complete / メタルスラッグコンプリート, AKA Metal Slug Anthology (PS2, PSP, Wii – 2007)
Cover art for the Japanese version (Source: signature found on the artwork)

Omega Boost / オメガブースト (PS1 – 1999)
Cover art and promotional illustration for the Japanese version (Source: featured in one of his artbook)

Over Take / オーバーテイク (X68000 – 1992)
Promotional illustration / manual cover (Source: in-game credits)

Patton Dai 3-Gun / パットン第３軍, AKA Patton’s 3rd Army (PC-88, PC-98 – 1986)
Poster illustration (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Phalanx / ファランクス (X68000 – 1991)
Cover art (Source: in-game credits)

Power Dolls / パワードール (PC-98 – 1994)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Power Dolls 2 / パワードール2 (PC-98 – 1994)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Power Dolls 2 Dash / パワードール2 ダッシュ (PC-98 – 1995)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Power Dolls 3 / パワードール3 (Windows – 1999)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Power Dolls 4 / パワードール4 (Windows – 2000)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Power Dolls 5 / パワードール5 (Windows – 2002)
Cover art (Source: signature found on the artwork)

Power Dolls 6 / パワードール6 (Windows – 2004)
Cover art (Source: signature found on the artwork)

Regional Power II / レジオナルポワーII (PC-98 – 1991)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Regional Power III / レジオナルポワーIII (PC-98 – 1993)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Regional Power III Special / レジオナルポワーIIIスペシャル (PC-98 – 1994)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Sōkō Kihei Votoms / 装甲騎兵ボトムズ (PC-88 – 1988)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Strikers 1945 / ストライカーズ1945 (Arcade – 1995, Saturn, PS1 – 1996)
Flyer illustration / Cover art (Source: Psikyo illustrations – Psi (Gamest Mook 113))

Strikers 1945 II / ストライカーズ1945 II (Arcade – 1997, Saturn, PS1 – 1998)
Flyer illustration / Cover art (Source: Psikyo illustrations – Psi (Gamest Mook 113))

Strikers 1999 / ストライカーズ1999 (Arcade – 1999)
Flyer illustration (Source: credited on the flyer)

Sword Master / ソードマスター (PC Engine CD – 1993)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Tech Win Ban Daisenryaku / TECH WIN版大戦略 (Windows – 1996)
Cover art / promotional illustration (Source: credited in an ad)

Tech Win Ban Daisenryaku 97 / TECH WIN版大戦略97 (Windows – 1997)
Cover art / promotional illustration (Source: featured in one of his artbook)

Toaplan Shooting Battle 1 / 東亜プランシューティングバトル1 (PS1 – 1996)
Cover art (Source: Wonder Art – Takani Style)

Verne World / ヴェルヌ・ワールド (SFC – 1995)
Cover art (based on a sketch by Yoshihiko Tomisawa) (Source: mentioned by Tomisawa on Twitter)

To be confirmed

Star Bearers / スターベアラーズ (PC-98 – ~1993 – unreleased)
Promotional illustration (Source: )

Unidentified games listed in the artbook “Wonder Art – Takani Style”:
Metaboroid / メタボロイド (1988)
Sangokushi / 三国志 (1994)

Profile (aussi disponible en français)
Games
Other video game related works
To be confirmed
Gallery Part 1
Gallery Part 2