Game Development Giant

Pure dnd regularization is not advisable. This has been tested by history. But when it comes to making a purely Japanese-style RPG, Jester shook his head even though he owned Tomonobu Itagaki, the father of "Final Fantasy". , but the problem is that the current Itagaki Tomonobu is just a young boy. The father of "Final Fantasy"'s understanding of game design is still at the superficial level of an enthusiast. At least he has to participate in the entire production of several games. Only then can you mature.

In addition, his hands are basically some American designers, and he is more familiar with some American-style games, so he is not suitable for making Japanese-style RPGs. If he rushes to make a pure-style Japanese-style RPG, then only It would be better to paint a tiger than a dog.

Jester knows that until the functionality reaches a certain level, American-style RPG games cannot compete with Japanese-style RPGs in terms of sales, reputation and quality, because in terms of plot, gameplay, system, and creativity, These American designers who always focus on overall collaboration are very different from Japanese designers who are dominated by personal design style. This gap is determined by design style and will remain so until the future.

This is why when future generations of game players mention a certain game, if it is made by a Japanese manufacturer, the player can quickly tell which designer made it, but when it comes to games from American manufacturers, it is difficult to say The reason why few people know. Because the designer's personal imprint on this game is not deep enough.

Japanese designers emphasize creativity and style, while European and American designers emphasize technology and teamwork. Two thousand years ago, when technological advantages could not compare with the gameplay brought by creativity. Games from Japanese manufacturers dominate the world, and two thousand years later, technology has developed to the point where creativity is completely unable to compete. The decline of Japanese manufacturers is inevitable, such as Sony, the future giant of game consoles. Most of his sixteen most famous global studios are located in Europe and the United States, and the famous Naughty Dog and Santa Monica, the top three in North America, are pure American game companies.

No wonder Keiji Inafune, the father of "Mega Man" and the producer of "Dead Rising", will say in the future that "Japanese games are five years behind Europe and the United States."

Essentially, there is no concept of Japanese RPGs yet.

The first Japanese RPG is still just an unfinished idea in Miyamoto Shigeru's mind, and the other two have laid the rules for Japanese RPGs. Maybe they haven't even taken shape in the minds of their designers, and the development of American RPGs is much earlier than that of Japanese RPGs. In this age when the three major Japanese RPGs have not yet been born, two of the three major American RPGs have already been born. . However, "Witchcraft" and "Genesis" are two games with a strong DND style. In Jester's eyes, they are both very primitive and very unsuitable for transplantation to home consoles. It can even be said that they are not suitable for transplantation. To put it mildly, compared to the three major Japanese RPGs that will be released in the next one or two years, the level of these two games is not at all on the same level.

Maybe saying this will offend some American RPG fans. But this is the fact. Comparing these two games with the three major Japanese RPGs is basically an insult to the three major Japanese RPGs.

Jester thought a lot. He feels that it is unrealistic for him to lead his current design team, which is basically all Americans, to produce a game RPG that can be comparable to "The Legend of Zelda" in terms of sales, but if he is asked to Jester thought about making a game of the same type based on "The Legend of Zelda", using some creative ideas that will only be seen in future games, and richer and more complex game systems to enhance the gameplay. After thinking about it, I gave up.

Because the production of RPG games is too complicated, much more complicated than any other type of game.

A group of people who don't even know how to walk want to learn to run directly. At least Jester has no confidence in it. After all, not everyone is von Braun. If you can directly skip n multiple stages and directly build Saturn 5 to land on the moon, if you take a big step. But in the end, the game was not successfully produced and became a joke in the gaming industry like "Big Sword".

And for Jester. Nintendo is currently just a catch-up, at least in the North American market.

He has the advanced version of the super horse "Balotelli's Adventures in Another World" to help him. Even if "The Legend of Zelda" takes back a little market share half a year later, it is completely acceptable in his heart. With his "Balotelli's Adventures in Another World", for his Mars Entertainment, can always be invincible.

But for RPG, this game type known as the crown jewel of video games, it is impossible for Jester not to be tempted.

Because this is the type of game that can truly reflect the production strength of a game company. Its complexity, gameplay, story, and impact it can have on players are unmatched by any other type of game. .

If you want to make a Japanese-style RPG to compete with "The Legend of Zelda" in sales, it may not be possible for the time being. Then the only way left is to make an exquisite, unique, and completely different from ordinary RPGs. Of course, It is also an RPG game that is completely different from the arpg of "The Legend of Zelda".

This game can be niche, but it must have a unique style. All players who play this game for the first time will immediately feel that this is an RPG that is completely different from any other RPG. The game should make these players marvel like this.

"Oh no! Can RPGs be played like this?"

With this in mind, a game type that only appeared in front of the world for the first time five years later appeared in front of Jester's eyes for the first time.

This is srpg.

Speaking of srpgs, we have to talk about the differences between American and Japanese RPGs.

Generally speaking, when players distinguish between Japanese and American RPGs, in addition to their completely different styles, what is more important is the personality that the two types of games want to express.

American RPGs pay more attention to the gameplay under rules and strategies, while Japanese RPGs pay more attention to the plot and performance. This is why the sales of Japanese RPGs were able to crush American RPGs two thousand years ago. location. Because players can get a more accessible sense of accomplishment and happiness from Japanese RPGs.

This is something that American RPGs with complicated rules cannot give players. What American RPGs lack is exactly what a game should have - giving players happiness.

And strategic. It has always been a missing part of Japanese RPGs, and it is also what American RPGs or American game designers are good at. Since pure American RPGs are not popular, and the team of pure Japanese RPGs is not good at it, what about making a new type of game that is compatible with the advantages of American RPGs and Japanese RPGs?

While thinking about srpg, this idea also popped into Jester's mind.

In his memory, it was two years later that an American game company whose name would no longer be available when he read this information in the future completed the planning of a brand-new creative turn-based strategy game, but not long after, this The game has not officially started production yet. The game company closed down, and for various reasons, the game development plan eventually fell into the hands of Nintendo.

However, Nintendo accounted for 95% of the market share at the time and was a veritable giant in the industry. Other manufacturers were not even qualified to kneel down and have countless projects under development. Naturally, they would not treat such a small company. The development plan was taken seriously, and the person responsible for reviewing it hurriedly browsed it and then shelved it, generally speaking. If it weren't for special reasons, this game might only exist on paper forever.

Maybe God opened his eyes, even God can't bear to let such an excellent game eventually disappear from the world. Not long after, a computer game developer named -s became Nintendo's second-party software developer. The company's president, Kaga Shozo, has always been a loyal fan of DND, and he saw this by chance. The game development plan had been put on hold, so he planned to make a real-time strategy game based on the plan.

His proposal was also approved by Nintendo.

Maybe even Kaga Shozo himself didn't realize how great the significance of the game he made was.

When Jester thought about the SRPG game type, he naturally thought of the founder of this type. It is also the highest achiever in this type of game in the twenty-four years since its birth.

Fire Emblem.

Indeed, this game is niche. The sales volume is not high, but the stability of its die-hard fans is simply astonishing. Before Jester was reborn, he had a die-hard friend of Nintendo. He was the one who said that no conscientious player would refuse high-definition PM. He once told Jester that the only thing that could make him even think about it was If you don’t want to, just buy games for old or new consoles, and there is only “Fire Emblem”.

This game combines the plot performance of Japanese RPG and the strategic characteristics of American RPG. This is undoubtedly of great historical significance. It is also the first real srpg in the world.

"Fire Emblem" has the characteristics of most American role-playing games built by DND at this time.

For example, "Fire Emblem" is set in the European Middle Ages as the background of the story. The system design is simple and clear but yet rigorous, including the weapon consumption, weapon repair, and class transfer systems that the series has inherited since then. Etc., all make the game full of rules and strategic fun. At the same time, "Fire Emblem" also has various characteristics of typical Japanese RPGs. For example, the storyline tells the story of the dragon tribe trying to conquer the world on the fictional continent of Argania, and the Kingdom of Aridia. The king of the kingdom resisted with the sword of light, but suffered the end of the country's destruction. Afterwards, the prince of the kingdom, Malus, began his journey to restore the kingdom with the help of the kingdom's knights.

In terms of other traditional elements of Japanese RPGs, the three-stage career change setting in the game reflects the increasingly mature game system design style of Japanese RPGs at that time. In terms of exploration, players can move freely in the large map and Exploring in a maze full of hidden mines, all these elements are traditional features of Japanese RPGs.

According to Jester, the significance of the emergence of "Fire Emblem" is often underestimated by many people.

Or maybe the pure Japanese RPG style established by "Dragon Quest" and "Final Fantasy" is so deeply rooted in the hearts of the people that the historical significance of "Emblem of Mars" has been infinitely underestimated.

Japanese RPGs and American RPGs have been learning from each other for a long time. It was not until the mid-to-early 1990s that the real integration between the two began.

And "Fire Emblem" is not only the beginning of such a fusion, it also provides a template for fusion and a standard of judgment for latecomers.

Just like the Wright brothers who allowed humans to fly into the sky for the first time, they let people understand all human fantasies about the sky, and they can communicate and observe things from another perspective and in a certain way. The same is true for "Fire Emblem", which brings a new combination model and reference concept to RPG game production developers around the world.

From this point of view, I am afraid it can be regarded as a flight in the history of RPG development.

Jester also believes that if he can launch this game before the Japanese RPG is officially perfected, then although this game will not be as big in sales as "The Legend of Zelda", it will definitely not be as big as "The Legend of Zelda". Such a niche in history.

Because this is a really, really, really great game.

Therefore, after deciding on the first game he wanted to make for RPGs, Jester also took out the manuscript paper that had been spread out on the table and solemnly wrote down the name of the game. .

"Fire Emblem"!

Then Jester picked up the phone, dialed the numbers of Naka Yuji and Itagaki Tomonobu, and told them to immediately finish all the matters in their hands and report to his office immediately. Yuji asked Jester if he wanted to When making games for Sega, Jester smiled and denied it. He promised Yuji Naka that the production of games for Sega would be postponed. This time we will make our own games.

Then, he called Tamahide Yoshiro in Japan and asked him to help find several outstanding playwrights, painters familiar with Japanese style, and composers.

Finally, he called Hu Weili, who was working on the soundtrack for Illusion Studio, and asked him to report to the company immediately after finishing the work at hand to participate in the production of a large project.

After doing this, Jester exhaled heavily.

For him, "Articles of Fire" will be the largest and most difficult game production he has ever participated in. Whether he can reproduce or even surpass the original version of this game, Jester doesn't know, but He knew he could do it.

It must also be done.