BothThe World Ends With Youand NEO: The World Ends With You are set in Shibuya, Japan, and explore the subcultures prevalent in this bustling city. One of the main mechanics in the series is the shop system, allowing you to buy clothing for your party. Although equipping said clothing doesn’t affect their appearance, the shops are integral to the game’s aesthetic, with characters commentingon different brandsand the pins you use to fight mostly being branded too.
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As the brands pose such importance, it’s no surprise that, when it comes to character designs, clothing and accessories are key. They let you know more about the characters’ personalities through their preferred brands, many of which mirror real-life fashion subcultures. The series’ art style is cohesive while still allowing each character’s individual designs to shine.
10Lolita Style: Coco Atarashi (NEO: The World Ends With You)
Coco Atarashi is a Reaperfirst introduced in The World Ends With You Solo Remix, before having a larger role in the sequel. In NEO, Coco sported a new outfit inspired by the Lolita fashion subculture, characterized by Victorian-style dresses with lace details and cute accessories.
She wears a lilac knee-length gown adorned with pink roses that match the flower crown on her head. Aside from being aesthetically pleasing, the outfit reflects the cute and bubbly persona that Coco portrays while also representing an alternative type of fashion.
9All About The Accessories: Tsugumi Matsunae (NEO: The World Ends With You)
Known by fans as Hype-chan after her debut in The World Ends With You Solo Remix, Tsugumi Matsunae’s character was explored in NEO, showing her relationship with the Shinjuku Reapers. To save Tsugumi’s soul, her brother transferred it into a Mr Mew plush, which she carries with her.
In terms of appearance, Tsugumi wears a red plaid outfit with a white puff blouse. Before the release of NEO, Tsugumi’s character design garnered attention from fans due to the headphones she wears as well as the Mr Mew plush - two accessories that harken back to Neku and Shiki, the main characters from the first game.
8Math Man: Sho Minamimoto (The World Ends With You)
Sho Minamimoto is a Reaper with a passion for mathematics, and he is the Game Master of Week 2 of the Reapers’ Game. Minamimoto has a primarily black color scheme, wearing a short-sleeved, double-breasted jacket and distressed jeans. The design has a pop of color beneath his hat in the form of a red bandana.
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He also has markings on his face similar to whiskers to hint at his Leo Cantus Noise form, whichtakes the shape of a lion. While Minamimoto has a different outfit in NEO, the core features of his style carry over, and he even wears the same necklace he did in the original game.
7Kitty Girl: Shoka Sakurane (NEO: The World Ends With You)
Originally starting out in NEO as a Shinjuku Reaper, Shoka Sakurane joins Rindo and the party during Week 2, becoming a Player after helping the Wicked Twisters despite being a Reaper. Shoka is a huge fan of the clothing brand Gatto Nero and wears a hoodie of the brand’s mascot, Mr Mew. A nice touch is an earring on one of Mr Mew’s ears, giving a fashionable edge to the piece.
Underneath the Mr Mew hoodie, Shoka wears a cute gingham dress with a black ribbon at the neck. Overall, her outfit highlights her love for Gatto Nero, informing you about her character right away.
6Minamimoto’s Biggest Fan: Nagi Usui (NEO: The World Ends With You)
Nagi Usui joins the Wicked Twisters in Week 1 and has an eccentric personality, especially when it comes to her beloved video game Elegant Strategy. Nagi’s backpack is dedicated to her favorite character in the game, Tomonami, and is decorated with multiple pins and keychains of his likeness.
Nagi wears a white t-shirt dress with kanji on the front that changes depending on the situation. For example, after winning a fight against the Noise, the text changes to “daishouri,” which translates to “overwhelming victory.” She also has one of the cutest hairstyles in the game, with two pigtails tied up in ribbons.
5Best Big Bro: Daisukenojo “Beat” Bito (The World Ends With You)
Beats’ outfit in The World Ends With You is indicative ofhis love for skating, as he prefers items from the brand Wild Boar, which sells skater clothing. Beat has multiple chains on his outfit, including a black one around his neck with a skull at the end, matching the one on his beanie. His little sister Rhyme has a similar skull motif on her hat, linking the two together.
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Beat has a signature style that is carried through into his NEO design, which has a similar skater look. Thanks to his design, Beat may look tough at first, but in reality, he has a heart of gold and cares deeply for his younger sibling.
4Be True To Yourself: Shiki Misaki (NEO: The World Ends With You)
In The World Ends With You, Shiki Misaki has a fashionable outfit that reflects her excitable and outgoing personality; however, it’s revealed during Week 1 that Shiki gave up her true appearance as her entry fee to the Reapers’ Game, with her appearance in the UG being that of her best friend, Eri.
To go along with her newfound look, Shiki put on a front and hid her personality from Neku. At the end of The World Ends With You, you get a glimpse of Shiki’s real appearance in the RG, though half of her face is concealed, and the outfit she’s wearing is simplistic. After 14 years, fans finally got a better look at Shiki’s true self in NEO. The sequel stayed true to Shiki’s first appearance, as she wears a similar green cardigan, but her design was modernized. As one of the founders of Gatto Nero, Shiki wears a shoulder bag of Mr Mew, a plush she created as a young teen.
3Fashion Queen: Kanon Tachibana (NEO: The World Ends With You)
Kanon Tachibana is the leader of the Variabeauties, attempting to stay alive in the Reapers’ Game. Kanon has a fun and youthful sense of style that’s representative of her sweet nature. Her outfit is cohesive from head to toe, as she wears matching diamond-shaped accessories and has the same crying broken heart print on her jeans and her turtleneck.
Even the pink-red color of Kanon’s nail polish is the same shade as the diamond on her beret and the heart and lips on her jeans, showing that a lot of thought went into even the smallest details of her character design.
2Stylish Protagonist: Rindo Kanade (NEO: The World Ends With You)
Rindo Kanade is the protagonist of NEOand inexplicably finds himself participating in the Reapers’ Game alongside his friend Tosai “Fret” Furesawa. One of the most notable aspects of Rindo’s character design is his longline jacket which has various patterns on it, including zebra print, checkers, and leopard spots.
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Although Rindo’s character is different from Neku’s, they share a love for Jupiter of the Monkey, with Rindo’s orange hoodie bearing the brand’s moniker. Unlike Neku, who wears headphones, Rindo dons a black face mask, perhaps symbolizing his difficulty speaking with others in real life, preferring to express himself on social media.
1Legendary Outfit: Neku Sakuraba (The World Ends With You)
As the main character of The World Ends With You, Neku’s design delivers, informing you about the game’s distinctive 2000s style that is reflected in the characters’ clothing. Neku is a fan of the brand Jupiter of the Monkey, whose clothing tends to focus on sporty styles. In fact, in NEO, you can purchase Neku’s original outfit in the brand’s shop.
The highlight of the design is the headphones Neku wears, which directly tie into his character arc, as he uses them to block out the world around him. He may discard the headphones at the end of the game, but they’re still an iconic part of his design.
