The Heavy Burden on Yasunori Mitsuda's Shoulders
Sakaguchi Hironobu opened his mouth, hardly believing his ears.
He looked at Nakayama Takuya for help, only to find that Takuya was looking at the young man named Mitsuda with great interest.
"Yasunori Mitsuda- kun, right?" Takuya spoke up, his gentle voice instantly breaking the silence. "I listened to that demo you submitted last time, the one with the Celtic flute as the main melody. It was very interesting, full of fantasy and adventure."
When his name was called Yasunori Mitsuda looked up abruptly, his eyes filled with shock.
He never imagined that this executive director of Sega would notice the work of one of his interns.
A hint of approval flashed in Nobuo Uematsu's eyes.
He had only mentioned it to a music producer he knew, saying he wanted to find a talented young person to help him, but he didn't expect the producer to take it so seriously.
Seeing this, Takuya couldn't help but smile.
Sakaguchi Hironobu, Rieko Kodama, Akira Toriyama, Nobuo Uematsu, and now Yasunori Mitsuda.
The Mew team that captivated countless players in its past life has now completed the final piece of the puzzle.
This feeling is indescribable.
"Since Uematsu has said so," Takuya declared decisively, "Then it's settled."
He turned to Square's president Miyamoto Masashi, his smile becoming meaningful.
"President Miyamoto, the project plan is finalized, but I have one small request."
"Please speak, Mr./Ms. Executive."
"I want to see a trailer by the end of May." Takuya held up two fingers. "Two minutes long, the kind that will drive gamers all over the world crazy. We're going to take it to CES in Chicago."
"The end of May?!" Sakaguchi Hironobu had just picked up his water glass, almost spat it out upon hearing this. "Nakayama -san!"
We haven't written a single line of code yet!
Takuya leaned back in his chair, winked at him, and smiled with a hint of slyness.
"It doesn't matter."
"Didn't you already have a clear idea of this dream? Just bring the vision from your dream to life."
After leaving Yu Suzuki's laboratory, Nakayama Takuya turned and walked through several corridors with different project code names to the Development Group Three.
"Stop blocking it! Go ahead and block it!"
"Oh no, this combo is going to take us down!"
"Perfect! That's the timing! Follow up with the super move!"
Nakayama Takuya smirked, put his hands in his pockets, and leaned against the doorway with great interest.
Directly in front of him was a modified arcade cabinet, on which two huge and exquisitely detailed human figures were fiercely fighting.
A young man wearing a white T-shirt and school uniform, with flames burning in his hands, was using a series of moves to pin a blond man in a red European-style suit to the corner.
The fluid movements and delicate pixelated figures, each frame brimming with power and beauty, stand in stark contrast to the rough polygons we just saw. They are two completely different forms of visual art, each striving for its own ultimate expression.
"Executive!" A young man wearing glasses and with messy hair like a bird's nest was the first to spot him and quickly stood up.
His shout silenced the entire area instantly. Everyone turned to look at the doorway, and the developers who had been making a ruckus just moments before were suddenly at a loss.
"Keep going, keep going, don't stop." Takuya waved with a smile and went inside. "I just came to check on things, you don't need to worry about me."
He walked over to the testing machine and looked at the screen where the winner had already been decided.
The fiery youth struck a cool victory pose.
"Kyo Kusanagi." Nakayama Takuya looked at the arrogant young man in a school uniform on the screen and called out his name accurately.
The third team leader, Shimizu, who had just realized what was happening, asked, "Executive Director, what brings you here?"
"Come listen to what's going on here, it's much more lively than Yu Suzuki's place."
Takuya's gaze remained fixed on the screen. "I remember in the proposal I gave you, I only drew a sketch of Kyo Kusanagi. You did a great job with it, even better than I imagined."
His gaze shifted to the fallen blond man on the other side of the screen. "Is this the final boss, Rugal?"
"Yes, Executive Director." Seeing that he didn't seem to be blaming him, Team Leader Shimizu grew bolder, his tone revealing barely concealed excitement. "It's designed entirely according to the core story framework you provided. A mad arms dealer, also a collector of martial arts techniques, codenamed R. He hosts the King of Fighters tournament to attract the world's top fighters, defeat them, and then cast them into his private collection using alloys."
Takuya nodded; he was very satisfied with this design.
"So, in the end, Kyo Kusanagi's Japan Team won, and then they'll have their final battle with Rugal on his aircraft carrier." Team Leader Shimizu pointed at the screen, as if showing off a treasure, "After defeating him, he'll activate the carrier's self-destruct mechanism, and everything, along with his collection of fighter statues, will sink into the sea."
"It seems like death, but it leaves room for future return, right?" Takuya chimed in.
Team Leader Shimizu nodded vigorously. "Yes! That's exactly what we meant! We even added a detail to the explosion cutscene: a dark shadow will flash by in the flash of light, enough to keep players guessing for months!"
Upon hearing this, the other group members all smiled knowingly.
Clearly, they were very proud of this design.
"Very good." Takuya's praise eased the atmosphere in the entire development team considerably. "So, how did you decide on the game's name?"
"Let's call it <The King of Fighters '92> for now, since it's coming out this year—" Team Leader Shimizu replied somewhat uncertainly.
"No." Takuya shook his head, interrupting him decisively. "Don't add a year. A year will limit its lifespan, turning it into a fast-food product that needs to be rushed every year. What we want to create is a brand that can last for ten years, a series with a complete worldview and storyline. We can't let a name with a year limit our progress."
He glanced around at the developers who were listening intently, and said, word by word, "This first generation will be called <The King of Fighters 1: The Killing Under the Feast>."
Danger lurks beneath the surface of a grand feast!
Team Leader Shimizu silently repeated the name in his mind, and his eyes instantly lit up.
Compared to a dry, unambiguous year, this subtitle is full of storytelling and suspense, instantly elevating the game's quality by more than one level.
"I understand, Executive Director!" he responded excitedly, "Use subtitles to tell the story of each generation!"
"That's right." Takuya nodded, his gaze shifting from the excited Shimizu team leader's face back to the game console. "A good name alone isn't enough. The combat is what truly keeps players engaged. Let's see how many of my ideas you've actually implemented."
"Yes! Please take a look, Mr. Executive!"