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1-Iain McCaig is a renowned concept artist whose work helped visualize the world and characters of Project Windless. Since 2021, the KRAFTON Montréal Studio team behind the project has collaborated closely with him on the visual direction of the franchise. Some coverage has referred to him as a design director, but KRAFTON's own announcement credits him as the concept artist behind the world and character designs rather than naming him among the studio's leadership. He is one of the most recognizable visual artists in modern entertainment, best known to film audiences as the designer of Darth Maul, Padmé Amidala, and Queen Amidala for the Star Wars prequel trilogy.
1+Iain McCaig is a renowned concept artist whose work helped visualize the world and characters of Project Windless. He began working on the project in 2021, well before KRAFTON Montréal Studio was founded in October 2022. KRAFTON credited that early collaboration to an internal group it called Team Windless. Some coverage has referred to him as a design director, but KRAFTON's own announcement credits him as the concept artist behind the world and character designs rather than naming him among the studio's leadership. He is one of the most recognizable visual artists in modern entertainment, best known to film audiences as the designer of Darth Maul, Padmé Amidala, and Queen Amidala for the Star Wars prequel trilogy.
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33 Role On Project Windless
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5-McCaig's design work shaped the look of the game from its earliest days. The Nhaga Eater concept trailer released by KRAFTON in September 2022 was built around his concept art, three years before the formal State of Play reveal. KRAFTON has credited his sketches as the visual foundation that informed the trailer's tone, including the design of the towering Rekon warriors and the predatory Nhaga antagonists.
5+McCaig's design work shaped the look of the game from its earliest days. The Nhaga Eater concept trailer released by KRAFTON in September 2022 was built around his concept art, more than three years before the formal State of Play reveal. KRAFTON has credited his sketches as the visual foundation that informed the trailer's tone, including the design of the towering Rekon warriors and the predatory Nhaga antagonists.
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77 McCaig's contribution gives Project Windless an immediately distinctive visual identity. The aesthetic blends Korean fantasy iconography with a darker, more tragic register than typical Western fantasy, an approach KRAFTON has described as "stranger, darker, and more tragic" than what audiences expect from the genre.
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99 Career In Film And Television
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1111 McCaig spent decades working in Hollywood as a concept and storyboard artist. His credited contributions include:
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1313 ProjectRoleStar Wars: Episode I – The Phantom MenaceDesigned Darth Maul, Queen Amidala, and Padmé AmidalaStar Wars: Episode II – Attack of the ClonesConcept artistStar Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the SithConcept artistThe AvengersConcept designHarry Potter and the Deathly HallowsStoryboard and concept designTerminator 2: Judgment DayConcept designJohn CarterConcept design
1414 Style And Influence
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1616 McCaig is widely regarded as one of the most influential creature and character designers of his generation. His approach combines anatomical detail with strong silhouette, a discipline he developed across decades in film. For Project Windless, that translates into Rekon warriors with a clear avian skeleton and weight, Nhaga antagonists with a serpentine geometry that reads at distance, and battlefield environments that feel lived-in even in pre-alpha footage.
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1818 Why It Matters For The Game
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2020 Bringing a designer of McCaig's caliber onto a debut studio's first title is unusual. KRAFTON has used his name and the early Nhaga Eater concept trailer as part of the studio's pitch for serious AAA ambitions. The visual continuity between the 2022 concept work and the 2026 reveal trailer is one of the clearest signals that the game has been in committed development since well before its public announcement.