"Precisely because it's a hot potato, it has to be handled by our team!" Oba refused to give an inch, bracing both hands against the table and leaning forward. "The action engine and impact of Shinobi 2—across all of Sega—no, across the entire industry—there are barely any teams that understand them better than we do! We won't make Bandai's flashy, empty RPG stats, and we won't do any card draws either! We'll make the hardest-core, most authentic side-scrolling action platformer!"
Amaba pointed at the sketches, speaking at a breakneck pace, fanatic light blazing in his eyes. "We'll begin the story with Goku meeting Bulma in the mountains and carry it all the way through to defeating the first King Piccolo! Collecting Dragon Balls, entering the World Martial Arts Tournament, tearing down the Red Ribbon Army! Every classic battle from the original that gets people's blood boiling—we'll recreate them all through the highest-quality action stages! The collision detection for the Power Pole's extension, the feel of the Nimbus Cloud's dash—it'll be absolutely faithful to the original, every punch landing in the flesh!"
Hisao Oguchi quickly swept his eyes over the stage layouts on the paper.
It had to be said that Oba's mastery of action-stage design was exceptional. Even from rough sketches alone, one could see the ingenious elevation differences in the terrain and the placement of minor enemies.
But—
"A purely single-player action platformer." Hisao Oguchi raised his head, his gaze still icy. "Oba, you still haven't understood the direction the executive director set just now. The same old question: how will infrared communication be used? Where are the social features? The new handheld isn't some isolated island for you to show off your single-player action design and indulge yourselves."
Oba froze for a moment, his face flushing red.
His