Project Sekai is a rhythm game developed by Colorful Palette, a subsidiary under Craft Egg, and published by Sega. Within the game several groups are transported to SEKAI, a dimension that reflects their personalities, style, and facilitates growth. Vocaloids inhabit it and assist groups in finding their true feelings. Once these feelings are realized, a song will be born.
The group I focus on most is 25ji Nightcord-de, born of Mafuyu Asahina's feelings. They work on Nightcord, the equivalent of our world's Discord, to create music.
Their music and Sekai embody the meeting of emptiness and warmth. Although the members struggle with their secrets, pasts, and fears, they continue to work and create together. In time, Mafuyu's feelings are uncovered and their song, [Kuyamu to Kaite Mirai] is born.
My History with Project Sekai
I began playing rhythm games in 2015 starting with Love Live School Idol Festival. I got really attached to the characters and the anime so I ended up playing it for many years. However, as it aged and I got more skilled at the game, I wanted something more difficult. I tried a variety of other rhythm games but none of them clicked quite like Love Live did. Finally, due to my connection to Vocaloid, Project Sekai filled the hole that LLSIF left. I began playing it just a couple weeks after the English launch. Steadily, I've become more attached to the characters than even those of LLSIF.
In high school my only real interactions with people my age came from Skype and later, Discord. When you have a bunch of mentally ill teens in a group chat, things get messy. I never had to talk anyone down but there were arguments, sometimes over serious things, sometimes over incredibly stupid things. 25ji captures the feeling of that age, of keeping things close to you because you don't think others will like the person you actually are. Of sticking together even though you may not get along well. Of 1 AM Discord calls, hence the name. They're a group with a story and concept I haven't seen before, one that I believe resonates with a lot of people around my age who struggle with mental health and connecting with others and have turned to the internet. It also represents the style of vocaloid song I like most. Some of my favorite producers have been covered by or comissioned for 25ji.
Songs I want for 25ji
This is a playlist with a variety of songs I hope to see covered by 25ji at some point. Some have already been added to the game while others remain to be assigned!
My Profile
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Yoisaki Kanade
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Composer.
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Kanade has a natural talent for composition, in part due to her early exposure to music through her father's work. Her music is something she has confidence in, though she can be exacting throughout production. She spreads joy to others through music, attempting to give them warmth and peace.
Although this may seem positive on the surface, this desire stems from a deep trauma following her father's hospitalization. In a way, she follows in his footsteps, not taking care of her health in favor of overworking herself.
My Thoughts: 25ji comes in pairs of sorts, Kanade and Mafuyu, Ena and Mizuki. Together they all represent different reactions to trauma, depression, and mental health. Kanade is the character I relate less to my personal experience. She reminds me most closely of my high school self. She's homeschooled, much like I was, and rarely leaves her room. That said, she's relentlessly focused on honing one skill while I've always been more of a jack of all trades. I like her a lot, but I've never known or been someone quite like her.
Asahina Mafuyu
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Lyricist. |
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On the surface she seems to be the perfect girl. She's top of her class, kind, reliable, and friendly. She's altruistic, aiming to be a doctor so she can care for others despite the strain of her studies.
Underneath she feels empty, pushed into a role she doesn't want and beset on all sides by high expectations. Although she loves her mother, she simultaneously fears her words and abuse. She retreats into SEKAI and hides, only given hope again by the other members of 25ji. Music is her retreat from stress and a lifeline when others have failed.
My Thoughts: I find Mafuyu to be a great depiction of mental illness overall. The thing about Mafuyu's story that's especially compelling to me is her friends offer help and support without magically fixing her. Even after the story of 25ji is concluded, she's simply talked down from suicide. She still has to deal with the situation that causes her depression and PTSD. One song isn't going to fix everything. What it can do is improve things, little by little. It's a refreshingly realistic take considering a lot of other stories either magically fix everything or don't let any hope shine through.
Aside from this, I've come to be very fond of transmasc headcanons for Mafuyu (accordingly, I'll be using he/him for Mafuyu in this paragraph). There's not a lot of canon evidence. Mafuyu does sing alongside Mizuki in the 25ji cover of Villain, a song about gender identity. But really, I just find the idea of trans Mafuyu to be really compelling. Mafuyu has to put on this image of being a perfect girl. It's one he feels trapped in and causes him a lot of distress. He can't seem to figure out who he is or what he wants from his life long term. To me, that rings true for my own experiences as a trans person. When you have opposition and your safety is on the line, it's necessary to push down who you really are. But as Mafuyu talks to his friends in canon, his preferences and opinions do start to shine through. Perhaps another preference could be about gender as well? I'm actually working on a fanfic for this as I haven't found any that 100% satisfy my own headcanons. That will eventually be linked here! But I need to do a lot of stuff before it'll be anywhere near ready.
All that's to say, Mafuyu my beloved.
Shinonome Ena
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Artist. |
Ena is the kind of girl who keeps up with trends. She's always stylish with a good eye for angles and the best lighting. She loves all things sweet and can often be found in a trendy bakery or cafe.
However, her looks are often seen instead of her artistic talent. She's prone to egosurfing and looks for every bit of recognition she can gain. She wishes to stand up to her father, a renowned artist, and prove the worth of her work. At times she can be self-centered and angry but this comes from a desire to gain the best from herself and others.
My Thoughts: Ena is someone I find deeply relatable. Ena's struggles for recognition, and the way she's constantly hurt by social media, are something I can relate to. Posting art onto Twitter often feels like posting into the void. You'll get one like, if that. A thousand impressions can result in no interactions. It's disheartening and it makes you wonder if anyone sees the 10+ hours put into a piece. Meanwhile a random selfie or a lucky tweet you put no thought into can blow up if the algorithm finds it favorable.
I also relate to her anger. I seem level headed online, but I'm the kind of person who's very quick to anger. It's an emotion that feels more comfortable to me than grief or emptiness, in part because it's something I can work with. Yet, at the same time, it's not really sustainable. Ena doesn't create her best work when she's angry. She just grows more frustrated and alone. It's a form of protection, one that's temporary and not permanent.
Akiyama Mizuki
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Editor. |
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Mizuki is a bit mischevious at heart, prone to teasing their friends and taking them on somewhat random excursions to spark 25ji's creativity. They love all things cute and have taken to modifying their clothes to their taste. They're the most outgoing, attempting to get along well with everyone.
At the same time, while they do get along with all sorts of people, there's not many that Mizuki allows to truly know them. Their true self and identity remain a mystery, as does their pain. Though they are a glue that helps 25ji to come together in difficult moments, they are perhaps the most afraid of this newfound closeness.
My Thoughts: Mizuki is by far my favorite character in Project Sekai, not just in 25ji. I find their struggles with gender and transphobia to be relatable, though I appreciate that they get a lot of moments to shine outside just their struggles. The way Mizuki doesn't let anyone in because they're afraid of what will happen if someone knows who they truly are is something I still struggle with. I wouldn't say I think I'm a bad person at my core. Rather, I existed in a lot of social circles in my teens that were very ruthless about cutting people off and going public with shaming and drama, often over very stupid things. I've never been someone who fit in from the very start so letting people in is still difficult. I also relate a bit to Mizuki's gender expression. I take an "all things cute and pink" approach to my space IRL.
