Today let me share with you the continuation of Mr. Yoshiki Okamoto's conversation with Mr. Keiji Inafune. This time around, it's about the design of Mega Man X.
First, Inafune-san explains that when he had designed the characters of Mega Man, he had to show them to Tokuro Fujiwara-san in order to receive his approval.
Inafune-san reveals that to speed-up this process, he would draw three designs in which there's one that he liked the most. So that Fujiwara-san would choose it as well, Inafune-san would add things that Fujiwara-san didn't like in the other drawings. For example, he'd put the color pink or corners.
Furthermore, Inafune-san says that Fujiwara-san chose the name "Mega Man X" for the next game that Inafune-san would work on. He also said that it was for the Super Famicom.
Inafune-san reveals that he gave the task of redesigning Mega Man to his junior colleague, and focused on the design of Zero. He admits that Mega Man's design was originally done by Mr. Akira Kitamura, so Inafune-san wanted to create something of his own too. He designed him as the main protagonist, although he knew that he wouldn't be able to convince his bosses to turn him into one. This is why Zero became Mega Man's companion.
Inafune-san also recounts that although Zero died in Mega Man X2, he wanted very much to revive him. Moreover, when he did so, he changed his design a little to make him look stronger. Afterward, he passed on to his colleagues the task of designing the rest of the series with his approval, of course, and the only thing that he didn't allow was to redesign Zero, which was his own creation.
Next, Inafune-san shares that his most favorite Mega Man series is actually Mega Man Star Force, although he admits that it's already for the 30-year-olds. Therefore, Capcom has to design a new one for the children of today or simply something that is the same as before for the 30-year-olds and up.
Okamoto-san says that it's like the case of Pokémon, which launches something new every year, with Nintendo's full backing behind it. Inafune-san responds that he believes that success depends on the point of view of the person, but, indeed, a game that sells sells. For example, a game that sells 10 million copies may be enough to be considered a success, but it could also be considered to be still insufficient.
Okamoto-san points out that a game sells 10 million copies in a month and only 200,000 or 300,000 the next, and that's it.
Inafune-san responds that selling games for consoles is really a short battle. These games aren't expected to continue to sell afterward.
Okamoto-san says that this couldn't be so in the case of Monster Hunter. It had to sell continuously and for a long period of time. Players couldn't play it for only 12 hours and that's it. They had to play it for over 500 hours.
Moreover, he explains that he liked very much the feeling of hunting a rare monster by exploring its world, but when this component was changed so that the monsters would appear based on a predefined time, Okamoto-san felt that the game lost something important.
Still, Okamoto-san thinks that maybe this was done so that newbies and casual gamers could play Monster Hunter.
This is all. It seems that there's a continuation of their conversation. Let's wait for it in their next video.
Cuentos del Productor de los videojuegos Yoshiki Okamoto: La continuación de la charla con Keiji Inafune, el creador de Mega Man, sobre Mega Man X y más
Primero, Sr. Inafune explica que cuando diseñaba los personajes de Mega Man, tenía que mostrarlos a Sr. Tokuro Fujiwara para recibir su aprobación.
Sr. Inafune desvela que para acelerar este proceso, dibujaría tres diseños en cuales hubo uno que fue lo que le gustó más. Y para que Sr. Fujiwara lo elegiría también, Sr. Inafune añadiría las cosas que no le gustaban a Sr. Fujiwara en los otros dibujos. Por ejemplo, pondría el color rosa o esquinas.
Es más, Sr. Inafune cuenta que Sr. Fujiwara eligió el nombre «Mega Man X» para el siguiente juego que Sr. Inafune trabajaría. Además, dijo que fue para la consola Super Famicom.
Sr. Inafune desvela que le dio la tarea de rediseñar Mega Man a su subordinado, y se enfocó en el diseño de Zero. Admite que el diseño de Mega Man originalmente fue hecho por Sr. Akira Kitamura así que Sr. Inafune quiso crear algo propio también. Le diseñó como el protagonista principal, aunque supo que no podría convencer a los jefes a volverle en uno. Por eso, Zero se volvió en el compañero de Mega Man.
Sr. Inafune también cuenta que aunque Zero murió en Mega Man X2, quiso mucho revivirle. Además, cuando lo hizo, cambió un poquito su diseño para parecer más fuerte. Después, le pasó a sus compañeros la tarea de diseñar los siguientes de esta serie con su aprobación, por supuesto, y solo lo que no permitió fue rediseñar Zero, cual fue su propia creación.
Siguiente, Sr. Inafune comparte que la serie de Mega Man más favorita de él es de verdad la de Mega Man Star Force, aunque admite que ya es para los 30 años. Entonces, Capcom tiene que diseñar una nueva para los niños de hoy o simplemente lo mismo de antes para los 30 años y más.
Sr. Okamoto cuenta que es como en el caso de Pokémon, cual lanza algo nuevo cada año, con el gran apoyo de Nintendo detrás. Sr. Inafune responde que cree que el éxito depende del punto de vista de la pesona, pero eso sí, un juego, que vende, vende. Por ejemplo, el juego que venda 10 millones copias sea suficiente para considerarse un logro, pero también podría considerarse que todavía no es suficiente.
Sr. Okamoto apunta que un juego vende 10 millones copias en un mes y el siguiente solo 200 mil o 300 mil, y ya está.
Sr. Inafune responde que vender los juegos para las consolas es de verdad una batalla corta. No se espera que estos juegos se venderían continuamente después.
Sr. Okamoto dice que en el caso de Monster Hunter no podría ser así. Tenía que vender continuamente y por un termino largo. Los jugadores no pudieron jugarlo por solamente 12 horas y ya está. Tenían que jugar lo por más de 500 horas.
Además, explica que le gustó mucho la sensación de cazar un monstruo raro por recorrer su mundo, pero cuando se cambió este componente para que los monstruos aparecerían basado en un tiempo predefinido, Sr. Okamoto se sentió que el juego perdió algo importante.
No obstante, Sr. Okamoto piensa que tal vez se lo hiciese para que los novatos o los jugadores casuales pudieron jugar a Monster Hunter.
Ya está. Parece que hay una continuación más de su charla así que vamos a esperarla en su próximo vídeo.
First, Okamoto-san and Inafune-san reveal that they haven't met in 20 years. Okamoto-san recalls that he was around 42 years old the last time he met with Inafune-san, who was 38 years old.
Next, Okamoto-san asks Inafune-san the reason why he left Capcom.
Inafune-san responds that he has a reason that can be thought of as cool. He says that he left Capcom, because the studio was already secure, so Inafune-san had no more challenges to overcome.
He also says that he's observed that the studio does well in the market when it's in a precarious situation. Further, Inafune-san felt that only maintaining existing franchises instead of creating something new didn't appeal to him, because he's a creator who wants to launch new products.
He also points out that during that time he continued to create new games while launching the next games in the Mega Man series. But the time came when this was not anymore allowed.
Okamoto-san also shares Mr. Tokuro Fujiwara's response. He says that first Fujiwara-san told him that whenever he revealed to anyone that he wanted to leave Capcom, this person would leave earlier than him. Next, Okamoto-san reveals that actually Fujiwara-san's reasoning is approximately the same as his.
Okamoto-san relates that Mr. Kenzo Tsujimoto, Capcom's President, had told Fujiwara-san that only the arcade games that could sell well should be ported to consoles.
Fujiwara-san had gone to consult with his colleagues at Capcom about this direction of the studio, but, in the end, he couldn't accept it, and left Capcom.
It seemed to Okamoto-san that Tsujimoto-san wanted everyone to leave the studio. Inafune-san responds that the management's mind can be understood.
Afterward, Okamoto-san points out that these days if they were to ask the youngest child in a group which game he plays, his answer would be Monster Hunter. But the truth is that it's a game for 40-year-olds. And Mega Man is for 50-year-olds. Therefore, Capcom should launch a game that could capture the market of 10-year-olds.
Inafune-san responds that what he thinks is the core of Capcom is that there's a path to winning, or the player can come to the realization that he could win. And Inafune-san believes that this idea should be communicated well to children.
Finally, Inafune-san says that given that he's been trained by Capcom to do what he had done, it's frustrating for him that he should think about something else. Of course, everyone wants to do what he wants, but as what Okamoto-san has concluded, we also want everyone to be able to enjoy our creations.
Primero, Sr. Okamoto y Sr. Inafune desvelan que no han quedado por 20 años. Sr. Okamoto recuerda que tuvo alrededor de 42 años la última vez cuando quedó con Sr. Inafune, quien tuvo 38 años.
Siguiente, Sr. Okamoto le pregunta a Sr. Inafune la razón por la cual dejó el estudio Capcom.
Sr. Inafune responde que tiene una razón que pueda considerarse genial. Dice que dejó Capcom porque el estudio ya estuvo seguro, entonces Sr. Inafune no tuvo ningún desafío que se quedó para vencer.
Además, cuenta que ha observado que el estudio va bien en el mercado cuando está en una situación peligrosa. Asimismo, Sr. Inafune se sentió que solo mantener las franquicias existentes en vez de crear algo nuevo no le atrajo tanto, porque es un creador quien quiere lanzar nuevos productos.
También, apunta que en ese tiempo siguió creando nuevos juegos mientras lanzando los siguientes juegos de la serie Mega Man. Pero vino el tiempo cuando ya no se permitió hacer esta cosa.
Sr. Okamoto comparte la respuesta de Sr. Tokuro Fujiwara también. Dice que primero Sr. Fujiwara le dijo que cuando desveló a alguien que quiso dejar Capcom, esta persona saldría más temprano que él. Siguiente, Sr. Okamoto desvela que de hecho la razón de Sr. Fujiwara es aproximadamente igual con él.
Sr. Okamoto cuenta que Sr. Kenzo Tsujimoto, el Presidente de Capcom, le había dicho a Sr. Fujiwara que solo los juegos de recreativa que pudieron venderse bien debían portarse a las consolas.
Sr. Fujiwara se iba consultando con sus compañeros de Capcom sobre esta dirección del estudio, pero, al final, no pudo aceptarla, y dejó Capcom.
Le parece a Sr. Okamoto que Sr. Tsujimoto quiso que todos ellos dejasen el estudio. Sr. Inafune responde que se puede comprender la mente de la gestión.
Después, Sr. Okamoto apunta que hoy en día si ellos pregunten al niño más joven en un grupo cuál juego juega, su respuesta sería Monster Hunter. Pero la verdad es que es un juego para los 40 años. Y el Mega Man es para los 50 años. Así que Capcom debe lanzar un juego que podría capturar el mercado de los 10 años.
Sr. Inafune responde que lo que le parece que es el núcleo de Capcom es que hay un camino para ganar o el jugador puede llegar a la conclusión que podría ganar. Y cree que se debe comunicar bien esta idea a los niños.
Por último, Sr. Inafune dice que ya que se ha entrenado por Capcom para hacer lo que había hecho, es deagradable para él que debe pensar en otra cosa. Por supuesto, toda la gente quiere hacer lo que quiere, pero como lo que Sr. Okamoto ha concluido, también queremos que toda la gente podría disfrutar nuestras creaciones.
Today let me share with you Prof. Joi Ito and team's general meeting this morning about the recent developments in Web3 technology and the people behind them.
Comugi-san began with his usual news reports (no available link yet), where we learn that the infrastructure necessary to run Web3 technology has been advancing very quickly and in a way that people are becoming accustomed to using it. Comugi-san also highlights the fact that companies like Sony in Japan are investing money into the Ethereum cryptocurrency to make this a reality.
As for today's presentation, Mr. Hiroki Shirokura of Tokyu Fudosan shares the projects that they've done involving NFT, a Web3 technology, as applied in their real estate businesses. He mentions that aside from developing condominiums, they also provide services that include hotels, resorts and homes for the aged.
More specifically, he says that in 2022, their team sold NFT's to visitors of their ski resort in Hokkaido, so that they could ride the lift much more quickly. At the time, the NFT was getting a lot of attention from media, which is why this initiative proved to be a lot more successful than they imagined.
In 2024, they again used NFT technology to allow the resale of golf tickets at their golf course. He reveals that customers tended to cancel their golf ticket reservations more frequently whenever it rained.
Next, he explains that a key use of NFT that their team has found challenging to implement, but believes would accelerate its mass adoption is the NFT wallet, which also uses Web3 infrastructure in order to make payments in contexts like world expos and similar types of events.
Afterward, he shares another project that they started in 2023 called Tokyu Stay, which is a web service to handle hotel reservations. He adds that while hotels usually allow customers to cancel their reservations, they've opted to let customers resell them through the website instead. Other customers can then reserve the rooms tagged for resale in Tokyu Stay at a much cheaper price.
Shirokura-san explains that this initiative began from the perspective of the hotel. He reveals that their data show that 80% of hotel reservations are done by Online Travel Agents (OTA), who could make reservations even before they complete their payments to the hotel.
Because of this, it becomes an issue for the hotel if a customer had reserved on February 1st for a room on October 1st through the OTA, but eventually decides to cancel it.
Shirokura-san says that if the hotel has 100 rooms and given 31 days in a month, approximately 2,700 rooms would be in-use or operational. However, if 50% of its customers were to cancel their reservations, it would be a huge loss for the hotel.
Shirokura-san further explains that reservations done earlier are cheaper, while those made later are more expensive.
Next, he says that there are currently about 300,000 users of the NFT wallet. They can take advantage of their hotel business' resale feature through this wallet, although, for the most part, customers use it to get hold of the NFT, which is in the form of a QR code, to indicate that they've made a room reservation. They then show this NFT when they come during during their room's reservation date.
This is all. While there are many more things that Comugi-san, Shirokura-san and Ms. Mariko Nishimura had said during the general meeting, I should already stop here.
