A New RPG
Nakayama Takuya's fingertips lightly traced the edge of a stack of sales reports.
The sales curve of <Phantasy Star>, which clearly lacked staying power, was like a thorn stuck in his mind.
Technical victories and market strategy stop-losses cannot mask the most fundamental flaw.
An RPG without a compelling story is like a body with a strong skeleton but no soul.
He needs someone who can breathe life into this body.
He recalled Phantasy Star from his previous life, and the game truly began to take off with Phantasy Star IV: The Millennium End. It was also in this game that Sega brought in a female producer.
Rieko Kodama.
That legendary woman who spearheaded the development of "7th Dragon" and created "Skies of Arcadia," the most powerful RPG in the DC universe.
He barely hesitated before picking up the black internal telephone on his desk and dialing the extension for the Arcade Development Department.
The call was answered quickly.
This is Suzuki.
It's Yu Suzuki.
"Suzuki -san, this is Nakayama Takuya. I'd like to ask you about someone from the arcade development team."
"Oh? Executive Director Nakayama called personally, just to poach someone?" Yu Suzuki's voice carried a hint of teasing, but there was no displeasure.
"It's a temporary transfer, but also for Sega's future." Takuya cut to the chase. "Rieko Kodama, is her schedule full lately?"
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, as if someone was recalling something.
"Kodama— " Yu Suzuki's voice revealed obvious admiration, "The core art for <Altered Beast> has just been completed, and she is indeed a rare and very talented artist. She's currently on a break between projects, so, Executive Director, do you need her for your new project?"
Takuya's mind was finally at ease.
"Yes, a very important project."
After hanging up, Takuya dialed an internal line again.
"Please Yuji Naka and the core production team of Phantasy Star come to my office."
A moment later, Yuji Naka and several core programmers and planners behind him arrived at Nakayama Takuya's office, sitting upright like a group of defeated soldiers who still stood tall.
Especially Yuji Naka, the father of Phantasy Star, he lowered his head and stared intently at his hands resting on his knees.
"Your technological achievements are evident to the entire industry," Takuya said gently, breaking the silence.
Instead of addressing the issues first, he offered the most sincere affirmation.
"Your excellent combat effects showcased the powerful capabilities of the MD, which is undoubtedly a huge success."
Yuji Naka's shoulders twitched slightly, but he still didn't look up.
Takuya stood up and walked up to them.
"A team with the best strikers and the best defenders in the world will find it difficult to win a championship if it lacks a midfield maestro who can connect the entire team and deliver passes."
He looked at these brilliant engineers before him.
"You are Sega's sharpest spear and strongest shield. But we also need a top-notch tactical designer. This isn't a problem with any one person, but with the entire team's composition."
Just then, there was a gentle knock on the office door.
Thump, thump.
The assistant pushed open the door, and a woman dressed in a smart business suit with long, flowing hair walked in.
It was Rieko Kodama.
"Special Secretary Nakayama, you wanted to see me?"
Yuji Naka and his team members looked up, their faces showing surprise.
They certainly recognized this talented art designer, who was quite well-known in the Arcade Division, but they couldn't understand why she would be invited to a debriefing meeting of a console RPG team.
"Miss Kodama, please have a seat." Takuya smiled and gestured to the empty seat beside him, then turned to the group, "Let me introduce you all, this is Ms. Rieko Kodama, I believe you have all heard of her."
He didn't rush to explain his purpose, but instead turned his gaze back to Rieko Kodama, his eyes filled with admiration.
"Miss Kodama, in <The Altered Beast>, I witnessed your ability to construct a complete, unique, and highly captivating worldview within extremely limited creative space."
"That talent for 'storytelling' through art is exactly what we need right now."
He turned around, his expression becoming extremely solemn.
"I formally propose that Ms. Rieko Kodama be added to Sega First RPG Development Team."
After he finished speaking, the entire office fell into a deathly silence.
Yuji Naka suddenly raised his head, his eyes filled with shock and confusion.
Rieko Kodama was stunned. She opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but didn't know where to begin.
Amidst everyone's astonished gazes, Takuya slowly walked to the safe in the corner of the office.
He entered the password, turned the handle, and the heavy cabinet door made a deep, muffled sound.
He pulled out a thick manuscript, carefully bound in a professional folder.
He gently placed the document in the center of the conference table.
On the cover, Takuya wrote the words "Golden Sun" in bold, powerful strokes.
In Takuya's office, you could hear a pin drop.
Yuji Naka, Rieko Kodama, and the original core members of Phantasy Star each had a copy of the Golden Sun project proposal, and they were all engrossed in studying it.
Time passed by, and apart from the occasional sound of pages turning, there was no other noise.
Takuya sat quietly in the main seat, observing everyone's expressions.
He used this proposal, which he called "a secret weapon prepared for MD," as a litmus test for his new team.
This was the first project to allow the two geniuses to work together and build team chemistry.
That wasn't just a game design; it was a whole new world.
An exquisitely crafted interactive system centered around Psynergy, capable of influencing the environment and solving puzzles.
An unprecedented gameplay style called "Djinn" allows players to collect, possess, and combine spirits to alter their class and abilities.
And the grand, profound, suspenseful, and epic world-building based on alchemy.
In Yuji Naka's eyes gleamed the fervent light that only a tech fanatic would show when faced with the ultimate challenge. He could almost see countless complex algorithms and data structures racing through his mind.
Meanwhile, Rieko Kodama's fair fingers were gently stroking the settings for the two villages, "Weyard" and "Haidia," on the paper. Her bright eyes were completely ignited by the immense narrative potential contained in the project proposal.
Everyone was awestruck by the exquisitely crafted and intricately interconnected fantasy world depicted in the project proposal.
Takuya chuckled inwardly.
This is a monster-level work that squeezes the most out of the GBA's capabilities; directly porting it to the Mega Drive would be a pipe dream.
However, he believes that as long as the core appeal is grasped and a clever "downsizing" design is implemented, it is entirely possible to reproduce its soul on MD.
The gorgeous 3D summon animations can be replaced with powerful 2D full-page artwork.
Complex 2.5D maps can be simplified into 2D scenes with corresponding details.
Such a great game absolutely cannot be left to future Nintendo.
Takuya cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention.
"This project will be a challenge for all of us."
He first looked at Rieko Kodama.
"Ms. Keiko."
Rieko Kodama immediately sat up straight.
"I need you, I need you and your team to refine the core storyline of this project, making it more detailed and easier for players to understand. It's a fairly traditional RPG story, so the narrative can be a bit childish, but the logic must be consistent."
"At the same time, I'm establishing a completely new art style. I envision chibi-style characters that are 2 to 3 heads tall, which should embody a fantasy style without consuming too much of the Mega Drive's display resources, while maintaining a high degree of character recognizability and emotional expressiveness."
"Yes!" Rieko Kodama nodded vigorously, her eyes filled with fighting spirit.
Then, his gaze turned to Yuji Naka, who was already eager to get started. "Naka, your task is to lead your technical team to perfectly realize all of Keiko's art concepts, as well as the vast game content and core systems in this project plan, within the limited cartridge capacity of the Mega Drive. We need to optimize the algorithm to the extreme; we need to squeeze every last bit of power out of the Mega Drive."
"Also, you should note that this entire story is a 'trilogy,' meaning there will be three games. You'll need to plan the plot and the corresponding numerical design carefully."
Upon hearing that this is a "trilogy," the gloom that had previously permeated the air because of <Phantasy Star> has long since vanished.
Instead, a fierce fighting spirit was ignited by both immense challenges and a bright future.