It wasn't until his mother's voice, "Dinner's ready!" pulled him out of his game world that Hidetaka Miyazaki snapped out of his reverie.
Before we knew it, it was already dark.
To make everything perfect, Miyazaki deleted the previous save file and started all over again.
Miyazaki has lost count of how many times he's restarted the game.
It's not just because of strategic mistakes that the current chapter is being restarted.
Sometimes, a seemingly insignificant problem may suddenly emerge several chapters later.
By the time it was discovered, the damage was too great to repair.
Fire Emblem is definitely an extremely difficult game.
Hidetaka Miyazaki had seen other people play Super Mario or Donkey Kong, and it was completely different from this.
Its malice is unfathomable, and every step is a trap set to destroy everything he has worked so hard to protect.
One wrong move and the whole game is lost.
Extremely low tolerance for error!
"What's wrong? Isn't that game console fun?"
Seeing that Hidetaka Miyazaki seemed distracted, his father asked him a question out of curiosity.
"I... I don't know..."
Hidetaka Miyazaki had never felt such conflicted and complex emotions before. " Fire Emblem is too difficult, Dad, but not in a bad way."
This game relentlessly torments and ravages him, leaving Miyazaki with absolutely no room to breathe.
Every round and every action is crucial.
In order to overcome the challenge, he really racked his brains and made use of all the characteristics he understood.
Especially as the difficulty increases, the early advantage that Marcus gave him has gradually been caught up.
However, because he has poured a lot of resources into Marcus, the current battle is really difficult.
Only Dieck and Roy can carry the team.
Was my strategy of allocating resources to Marcus flawed?
Miyazaki was gripped by deep doubt.
But if he wanted to correct this mistake, it would mean that all his previous efforts had been in vain.
Everything has to start from scratch.
It's really too difficult and too tiring.
But----
This is so much fun!
When he overcame all obstacles and successfully conquered the current challenge, the intense, overwhelming joy and relief that rushed to his brain captivated Miyazaki, leaving him deeply immersed in the experience.
This level of tension and focus is something that beat-'em-up games simply cannot provide.
"Difficult?"
Upon hearing his words, the father looked at the beautiful machine by the wall with some confusion.
He had assumed his son's winning game would be Sega or Nintendo product, but it turned out to be a machine he had never even heard of.
"Yeah, it's difficult, but it's a lot of fun."
What story does it tell?
The father glanced at the Fire Emblem game box next to the console and casually asked a question.
He knew that his son's favorite genre was fantasy stories.
"Ah! That's exactly what I was going to say!"
When the plot of this work was mentioned, Miyazaki immediately perked up.
But just as he was about to speak to his father, the words caught in his throat and he couldn't utter a sound.
"Yes, what story was it again?"
He still remembered that his name was Roy, the heir to the Pherae family, and that he was ready to lead his friends to defeat their enemies.
But when asked to explain his insights, Miyazaki was at a loss for words.
This is a vast ensemble piece.
Each character is described in relatively few words, but their background, identity, and personality are all explained very clearly.
"A knight named Marcus, when I was almost defeated by the despicable soldiers of the Kingdom of Bern, rushed in from the side and shielded me from the enemy's attack, but unfortunately he was wounded himself."
"And then there's my knight Alan. At first, he was just an ordinary cavalryman, but during our Adventure, he displayed extraordinary bravery, charging into battle several times and eliminating enemy archers hiding in the rear."
"And of course, there's Sister Elen. I remember once when Alan's condition was critical, it was Elen disregarded the danger—"
Miyazaki recounted the stories of those characters one by one, as if they were his own treasures.
But after he recounted the Flash of each character, he suddenly seemed lost in thought.
I can hardly remember their individual backstories anymore.
But every little detail of their Adventure is etched firmly in my mind.
These shared experiences constitute the story of these characters.
"The plot—I wrote it myself—"
He knows which character has a crush on whom, and who has someone they like.
As their relationship progresses, not only are there additional storylines and attribute boosts, but their individual characters are also further developed.
It was as if they were really living, breathing people.
In this game, the storyline is unique for each character.
"That's amazing?"
After listening to Hidetaka Miyazaki's words, the father was also somewhat lost in thought.
That's way too far-fetched.
How can someone be so engrossed in something that's tortured to the point of near death?
What kind of bizarre game is this?
A strange light flickered in Miyazaki's eyes.
Although it was his first time trying it, he had already completely fallen in love with the style.
The more brutal the torture, the more exhilarating the victory will be!
"I wish I could become a game producer someday!"
Hidetaka Miyazaki found himself completely dependent on it.
If I ever make games in the future, I will definitely learn this unique approach.
It's not just the extreme thrill brought by the high level of difficulty, but also the fragmented stories scattered throughout the game.
To truly understand this world, he must take all the NPCs seriously and investigate every seemingly meaningless house on the map.
He also wanted to use this method to bring the wildly imaginative dark fantasy stories in his mind into the game.
"The success of Fire Emblem was predictable, Steve."
The latest issue of Electronic Games unsurprisingly features GAMENOVA, who just made headlines.
Private event.
The official overseas launch of the Japan version of NovaBo, the strategic partnership with SGI, and the amazing new title Fire Emblem are all worthy of being highlighted.
"Ha! I think that's beyond doubt for all players, look at my dark circles."
Steve's eyes were puffy and dark, clearly from staying up all night. "Last night, while trying to complete a full survival save file, I accidentally stayed up until dawn."
"All alive? Are you sure you found all the characters?"
Lin Lixin raised an eyebrow and said something that left Steve completely bewildered.
What—what does that mean?
" Steve, what chapter are you on?"
"Just reached Chapter 12."
Lin Lixin nodded slightly.
"So, do you have Lu, Sue, and Cath now?"
"Dew----"
Steve muttered the somewhat unfamiliar names, " Cath —ah, she's appeared in many chapters. Isn't she a scene NPC?"
"I'm not going to waste my precious storage space making a useless soldier model."