――With the Hero franchise, is there any kind of message you wanted to convey through those games?
Mr. Masuda: I would say the true meaning of my message isn’t as good as it sounds.
――Is that right? When I play these games, I get this feeling that the theme is just how one deals with life.
Mr. Masuda: How do I put this… I feel at this time, there are emotional expressions that have only been expressed through manga, or movies, but not games. I don’t think we’re there yet. I think that people have tried to fulfill their [emotional] needs by picking up a game, only to find themselves not finding that fulfillment. So they toss those games away.
In the case of Oreshika, I’m not out here creating a story like what you’d see in a Taiga drama on Sundays at 8 PM on TV. Those sorts of dramas are usually a once-a-year broadcast, lasting for roughly a year. And usually, they cover the span of our history in ten-year chunks, give or take. So even if one were to depict that one decade, time will have advanced by three generations. Games haven’t gotten to that level of depiction yet, unlike manga, or dramas, or movies.
Let me expand further on that concept. We’re talking about the kind of games that would be able to oversee how one generation passes something down to another. As if God himself were watching the whole thing unfold in front of his very eyes. Think about it ―― it’s a fun, thrilling idea, right? I want to create that feeling but with a game system. And honestly, there aren’t a whole lot of games out there yet that are on that scale. So broadly speaking, we’re just not there yet. Like we’re empty, and we’re just waiting for something to fill us.
――I see. On the other hand, perhaps it’s because the mindset you have when you’re creating the game isn’t completely consumed by it?
Mr. Masuda: That’s right. But most products go through a period like this, where they find all of the gaps they need to fill. And then they do so. You basically need to verify whether or not there’s a market for your product. You need to find out if this person will buy your product if you sell it at a certain price. You need to take a survey. Some people will compete with intuition, and what you want, yourself. But at the same time, you’re you. No one can make the exact same product you want to make, and vice-versa.
So when I make things sometimes I ask people, “I think this is pretty interesting, but what do you think?” It’s an exchange of ideas. When I do that, I get the feeling that this thing I’m making now feels slightly more promising.
――Surely, I think some of your games have had very different reactions from people depending on the person. I would say that Hero is the same.
Mr. Masuda: Actually, Hero originally wasn’t that kind of game. Originally, he died in the battle with the Demon King, and he was only revived for a few days. He spent that time doing various things that impacted and influenced both the past and the future.
There was originally one more script, one that drew from the birth of the Hero to gathering his merry band of misfits in order to defeat the Demon King. That specific chunk of time. But it was such a different script and idea, they were like alternate universes of each other.
――That’s nothing short of magnificent!
Mr. Masuda: Yes. But at the same time, I thought it would be a pain in the butt to make. [laughs]
――What? [laughs]
Mr. Masuda: That is to say, it was really kind of awkward and cumbersome to make. And the part up until trying to defeat the Demon King really wasn’t the usual material for an RPG. In the end, I guess I can’t help making an ordinary RPG…
――Certainly. But I really want to play that game! If you’re willing to make it, that is. Please add another twist when you write it. Maybe title it something like Hero Must Die. Before, or something.
Mr. Masuda: Well, as I said, it would have been kind of a pain to make. Maybe I can have someone else make it for me. [laughs]
――[laughs] Then I guess I’ll just have to look forward to some sort of implementation of those ideas in the future, won’t I?
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