Lol, Japan...
(Lol, ignorant Westerners...)
On characters such as Ivy:
GC: I know you can’t talk about other characters in the game, but the design and attire of a character like Ivy – whether she’s in the new one or not – are a lot more problematic today than they were when the series began. Is that something you intend to address?
MO: [long pause] I understand that there are different opinions about such characters. So I think what’s most important is how you want to express and design such characters, and not just the female characters. But I still want to keep the body shape and the atmosphere of each character to be the backbone of each character.
GC: Do you have female designers working on the team?
MO: Of course!
It's always funny when Westerners confront Japanese developers about the controversial depiction of women in games, because it is a big and important topic over here. The thing is, it isn't a big and important topic in Japan. They don't care.
The reaction is always the same: slight bewilderment, incomprehension and a very politely phrased answer, that they will keep on doing exactly what they were doing all the years before.
The ignorant follow up question if there are even any female designers among the team was shut down pretty well too.
There are lots of female Japanese designers that design just as sexualized female characters too. Many (most even?) Japanese women, because of the culture they grew up in, don't see a beautiful, sexy or cutely dressed woman as something offensive. On the contrary, many aspire to be just as beautiful or cute.
