These two Breath of Fire III interviews originally appeared in The PlayStation magazine just prior to the games release in September 1997. Although five members of the team are listed, the majority of the interview is centered around director Makoto Ikehara, who had been involved as a planner since the first game, and would go on the direct the next two sequels as well. Topics covered include the transition to the PlayStation, new mechanics, and how the Breath of Fire series fits into the larger context of RPG game design.
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Blue Stinger – 1998 Developer Interview
In this 1998 pre-release interview for Dreamcast launch title Blue Stinger, Climax Graphics president and designer Shinya Nishigaki shares how the project got started, thoughts about genre, and his approach to level and world design. I’ve also added composer Toshihiko Sahashi’s commentary from the Blue Stinger OST. In the course of translating these I discovered a more in-depth interview in the Blue Stinger jp strategy guide, which I hope to translate in the future!
Bloody Roar 3 – 2001 Developer Interview
This interview with Hudson director Kenji Fukuya covers the making of the 2000 arcade & PlayStation 2 game Bloody Roar 3, the critical and commercial apex of Hudson & Raizing’s flashy and outlandish series of 3D fighting games centered around the unique gimmick of “beastorization”, with a particular focus on the developers’ efforts to refine the series’ unique traits while straddling the lines of depth and accessibility.
Bloodstained – 2015 Developer Interview
This interview with Koji Igarashi about Bloodstained first appeared in game*spark, and was conducted when Igarashi returned to Japan after a week of promotions in the US. There have already been a number of excellent interviews with Igarashi about Bloodstained, but this one contains some exciting new insights into the character design and project conception.
Blazing Star – 1998 Developer Interview
These two Blazing Star interviews from 1998 discuss the stage design, characters, and its relationship with Pulstar. The first interview was featured in Neo Geo Freak magazine, and the second was conducted by Japanese fans at an old forum. I’ve also included the story and character descriptions. The character info has never been available in English before, and helps clarify the cool Matrix-y story, which actually informed much of the stage and boss design.
Battle Garegga – Arrange OST Composer Commentary
This composer commentary on the Battle Garegga remixes for the Saturn port was found at the old Raizing homepage. It’s a light piece and comes off mostly as a Garegga/Namiki love-in, but is a fun read given the big names involved. I’ve also added Namiki’s commentary from the Battle Garegga THE MADNESS liner notes, which I had translated awhile ago, but never officially posted.
Battle Garegga – Story, Characters, Setting
I translated the Battle Garegga backstory for STG Weekly #18. The story was much more “intense” than I expected, and there were some funny dramatic readings on the show. I’ve pasted the entirety of the text below here, but for the period-appropriate experience, I’ve also mirrored the original HTML files from Raizing’s website.
T3-KAMUI Battle Garegga Interview (2001)
This brief interview from the August 2001 issue of Arcadia with T3-Kamui, the current Battle Garegga WR holder with Gain, is a neat window back in time. Kamui has since demolished the 19m score she talks of here, and continues to play Garegga today. In 2013 attended Stunfest in France and demonstrated her awe-inspiring skills and international shmup camaraderie.
Battle Mania – 2004 Developer Interview
This long interview with VIC Tokai alumnus “Takayan” details the history of the cult developer and sheds light on several of their more well-remembered games. Originally featured in the book “Lost Games”, the main focus here is on Takayan’s own Battle Mania series, a pair of off-the-wall Mega Drive shooting games that defied adversity to establish themselves as VIC Tokai’s most beloved and sought-after titles.
Battle Bird – 1987 Developer Interview
Battle Bird – 1987 Developer Interview Battle Bird was a stereoscopic 3D arcade game with a proprietary cabinet, developed by Irem with assistance from their sister/parent company Nanao. Its exact history is quite hazy, as it appears very few cabinets were produced, but this short interview helps shed some light. It doesn’t answer the mystery… Continue reading Battle Bird – 1987 Developer Interview