411 Interview - Muramasa: The Demon Blade Producer Yoshifumi Hashimoto
Posted by Tommy Coloma on 11.18.2008
Yoshifumi Hashimoto talks about Muramasa: The Demon Blade, the upcoming Wii action RPG that is being developed by the creators of Odin Sphere.
In recent years, good old-school 2D side-scrolling platformers on consoles have been few and far between. Fans of the genre have been forced to live with the fact that those types of games have been forever relegated to handhelds. New 2D Mario, Metroid, and Castlevania on your television screen? Only in your dreams! Of course, there are exceptions - Capcom has seen fit to "update" some of its older franchises such as Mega Man and Bionic Commando. Nintendo even made an effort to give one of its 2nd-tier franchises (Wario Land) the console treatment. But for the most part, if you're a big fan of the genre that saw the height of its popularity peak in the 16-bit era (some may even argue that it peaked during the NES days), you will spend most of your time staring at a small screen. Except for one or two downloadable games that are set for release next year (Cave Story anyone?), the future is pretty bleak as far as quality 2D platformers on consoles is concerned.
Fortunately, VanillaWare, creator of Odin Sphere and obviously no stranger to visually stunning hand-drawn games, is hard at work creating a side-scrolling action RPG that will help to fill the void. In Muramasa: The Demon Blade, players take control of either a male ninja or female kunoichi and progress through a side-scrolling adventure reminiscent of such classics as Legend of Kage and Genpei Toma Den. Seeing the potential that this game holds for platformer fans, I jumped at the chance to interview Yoshifumi Hashimoto, the producer of Muramasa: The Demon Blade, at TGS last month. Read on to see what he had to say about how the game plays, the differences between the main characters, how the RPG elements work, the story, as well as who the game caters to.
Can you tell us a little bit about who you are and what you do at Marvelous?
I used to work on 2D arcade games at a different company. I went drinking with Wata-san, the director of Marvelous, and we decided to work together. So now I'm at Marvelous. After joining, I worked on such titles as Harvest Moon, Rune Factory, and the new Avalon Code.
What role did you have in the creation of the Harvest Moon games?
Wata-san was the executive producer and I was the Producer.
Odin Sphere?
I did not work on that directly.
Alright. Tell us about Muramasa.
It's a Japanese-style action fantasy RPG. Within the Edo period there was another specific period called the Genroku period, and the story takes place in that time. You'll be able to choose between a male and female character.
What are the differences between the male and female characters?
Basically, the female starts from a place called Kyo - it's where Kyoto is today - and she is going to Edo - where Tokyo is now. So she is going up north, and the male character is actually going down from Edo to Kyo. You'll see a little crossover, like in the middle you'll go through a city and you'll see the other character in the back drinking tea or eating.
So they're basically going in reverse?
When you go through the stages, there are some stages where you'll think that there are supposed to be enemies, but there are none, and you don't know why, but when you play the other side, you'll find out that the other player already defeated that enemy and moved on.
Did you want gamers to play one character first and then the other?
It's totally up to the player.
Will the player be satisfied after finishing the game with just one character?
They'll be satisfied, but if they play it again with the other character, they'll see more depth to the story.
I noticed during your playthrough yesterday that the character's swords can break in the middle of battle. What happens if both weapons break down?
You'll be able to hold three katanas at the same time, but if all three break, you'll have to tough it out. But, your swords will recover after a certain amount of time.
Can you tell us about the RPG elements in the game?
First of all, the demo that we showed yesterday and the one that's on the floor - they are more action-oriented. We just put some of the action stages together. The action part is like the encounter in typical RPGs. So in the real game, you'll fight and then you'll be in a section where you can walk and talk to other people. While there you'll be able to set up your items or change your weapons and then go into another section to fight.
Are there going to be sub-missions and stuff like that?
There will be sub-quests. If you talk to certain people, they'll give you a mission, and it's up to you to fulfill that plot if you want.
Tell us a little bit about the story.
Within this world there are swords called the Demon Blades which possesses special powers. The female and male characters want to obtain them for their own purposes. The Japanese mythological creatures that you find in the game are also trying to gain more power.
Were there any games that you got inspiration from?
There isn't a certain one game that I can come up with. Of course, Vanillaware worked on Odin Sphere, and it took place in a more Medieval time. There are a lot of games that take place in that time, so I though that it would be a nice change - a breath of fresh air - to make a Japanese fantasy and have people learn more about different cultures and different mythologies.
A lot of the 2D games these days cater more to the hardcore audience. Is that going to be true for this game? Is it catered to the hardcore - the ones who played games like the original Ninja Gaiden back in the day?
It is a core game. Not as much as Ninja Gaiden, the old series, but more like Legend of Kage and Genpei Toma Den - something in that sense. It's an action game that everybody can play. It does have some difficulty to it, but its simple controls allow you to do great things.
Well, this question is going to be asked eventually, so I might as well get it over with - did you incorporate any motion control elements into the game?
We did have it in the beginning. We might add a little bit, like allow you to use your remote to put your sword back in its sheath - something along those lines just to make things a little more fun.
Thank you for your time. Is there anything else that you wanted to throw in before we go?
I mentioned at the show yesterday that Muramasa is a Japanese style game - style as in the art-style. Vanillaware and Marvelous wanted to make a fantasy game that incorporated Japanese culture. It's not really geared towards Japanese people. I actually think that people abroad who are not familiar with our culture will enjoy this game more because it will be really fresh for them. Also, a lot of people grew up with the games like that i mentioned earlier [Legend of Kage and Genpei Toma Den], so I think they'll have a kick out of playing this game. Please look forward to it.
