Preparing Sega-CD's Launch Titles

Back in his office, Nakayama Takuya poured himself a cup of coffee.

You have to eat one bite at a time, and walk one step at a time.

The hardware of Sega-CD is just a new stage; what truly makes this stage shine are the "star performers" on it.

Among them, RPGs are the most suitable for their large file size and have the greatest influence on the game market.

In today's gaming industry, when it comes to the top players in the RPG genre, besides Enix, which is already deeply tied to Nintendo, it's Square, which Sega has invested in.

He picked up the phone on his desk and skillfully dialed a number.

When the call was connected, a slightly tired but still energetic voice came through.

"Moshi moshi, this is Square."

"Sakaguchi-san, it's me, Nakayama Takuya." Takuya leaned back in his chair, his tone relaxed as if greeting an old friend.

Sakaguchi Hironobu on the other end of the phone was clearly surprised, then laughed, "Oh! It's Executive Director Nakayama, what a rare guest. Calling me at this hour, do you have some earth-shattering idea now?"

"I wouldn't dare call it an earth-shattering idea, I just wanted to check on an old friend and find out what's going on." Takuya leaned back in his chair.

He crossed his legs and asked, "How's Final Fantasy IV going? Hope it hasn't turned your hair gray from worry?"

Upon hearing this, Sakaguchi Hironobu let out a long sigh, a sigh filled with the bitterness and helplessness of a creator.

"Don't even mention it, Mr. Nakayama. We're currently importing the art assets into the program bit by bit. This is the most time-consuming part, every single frame of animation..."

Every special effect needs to be polished repeatedly. Only after this part is completed can we begin segmented testing.

"That's why I made this call specifically to check on you, Sakaguchi-san." Takuya chuckled, then changed the subject, his voice carrying an irresistible allure.

"I have something here, a project that will make developing your next Square game much easier, yet deliver a hundred times more stunning results."

Sakaguchi Hironobu was silent for a moment on the other end of the phone, then gave a wry laugh, "Executive Director Nakayama, you're joking. We haven't even filled the gaps in Final Fantasy IV yet, how can we have the energy to think about the next one? If another project comes along, I'll really have to buy hair growth tonic for these guys."

This bittersweet complaint from a programmer only deepened Takuya's smile.

"What if I told you that this project could completely free you from the constraints of cartridge capacity?"

There was an immediate silence on Sakaguchi Hironobu's end.

Takuya knew that the fish had begun to notice the bait.

He slowly cast his second line. "What if I told you that your music is no longer based on analog sources, but can be recorded directly from a symphony orchestra?"

"What if I said," Takuya's voice was low, like a devil's whisper, "That you could stop painstakingly telling stories pixel by pixel and instead add long, smooth, cinematic animated cutscenes?"

"Gulp."

Takuya could even clearly hear a sound of swallowing saliva coming from the other end of the phone.

After a full five seconds, Sakaguchi Hironobu's voice rang out again, tinged with a barely perceptible hoarseness and tremor. "Executive Director Nakayama —what are you talking about? Are you describing something that's just a fantasy?"

This goes beyond what a game developer should know about the current era.

"I never make jokes like that." Takuya leaned back in his chair, leisurely swishing it around.

Sakaguchi Hironobu was silent for a moment, then his tone instantly changed from exhausted to extremely urgent. "A new console?! Your Sega's new console?!"

"You could say that," Takuya said mysteriously, "A new stage that can make everything I just mentioned possible. So, Sakaguchi-san, are you interested in making Square the first star to appear on this new stage?"

"Yes! Of course!" Sakaguchi Hironobu practically shouted. He was no longer the exhausted man he had been; he seemed to have been injected with a powerful stimulant. "When can we meet? Friday? No, too late! Tomorrow! I'll go to Shinagawa tomorrow!"

"Don't rush, Sakaguchi-san," Takuya chuckled. "Good things take time to prepare. I'll take it to Square on Friday."

"Okay! Friday it is!" Sakaguchi Hironobu agreed immediately, as if afraid Takuya would change his mind. "It's a deal!"

Then, he took out a thick manuscript from the safe in his office.

Unlike ordinary documents, this manuscript was bound in a hard black cover, with only two words written in the center, "Chrono".

Trigger.

He made a copy of the manuscript, put it in a brown paper bag, and went straight to the console Game Development Department.

Takuya's gaze swept across the crowd, and he quickly found the person he was looking for.

Rieko Kodama.

She was sitting in front of a development machine, holding an MD controller, staring intently at the screen.

On the screen, a battle scene from <Golden Sun 3: Dark Dawn> was playing, with gorgeous psychic effects intertwining and colliding, and various numerical values constantly fluctuating.

Takuya didn't say anything to disturb her, but just stood quietly behind her for a while.

It wasn't until the battle ended and Rieko Kodama picked up her pen to write something on the test form that she noticed a figure behind her in the reflection of the screen.

She turned around, a hint of surprise flashing across her face. "Executive Director? When did you arrive?"

"Just arrived." Takuya smiled and pointed to her screen. "Judging from your progress, it should be going smoothly, right?"

"Hmm." Rieko Kodama nodded, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, her expression regaining its usual competence. "We're currently conducting segmented testing, polishing each chapter and system module separately. There aren't any major issues; it's mostly minor adjustments. We expect to complete the initial version integration by the end of next month and enter the overall testing phase."

She paused, then added, "After all, this is the third installment in the series, so we didn't make any major overhauls. The main goal was to ensure that the trilogy provides players with a complete and consistent experience."

"Well done." Takuya greatly admired her professionalism and meticulousness, which was precisely why he had come to her.

He handed over the brown paper bag he was holding.

"What is this?" Rieko Kodama asked, taking the item with a puzzled look. It felt quite heavy in her hand.

"A new story, a... a very big project." Takuya's tone was calm, but what he said made Rieko Kodama's heart skip a beat.

She instinctively opened the paper bag and pulled out the photocopied manuscript.

"Special Director, this is—"

"On Friday, you'll temporarily hand over your work to your deputy," Takuya said, looking into her eyes and enunciating each word clearly. "Come with me to Square."