“The gimmick is the tragedy,” says lead combat designer Hiro Nakata. “Alice is the most powerful fighter in the world for sixty seconds. Then the eye fogs up. Then the tooth aches. She is racing against her own decrepitude. Every fight is a countdown clock to when she turns back into a forgotten old woman on a rock.” Visually, Graias Alice is a masterpiece of contrast. The world outside the cage is vibrant, ugly neon—the standard hyper-capitalist hellscape of fight promotions, energy drink sponsors, and crypto-bro managers. But inside the cage, time slows. The color drains.

If she loses the Eye mid-fight, the screen becomes a blurry, nightmare canvas of gray shapes—she has to fight by sound and touch, like the blind oracle she was born to be. If she loses the Tooth, she can’t call for the corner’s advice or taunt her way into an opponent’s head.

Because in the cage, at least, the future hits back.