SPOnG: You chose to take a first-person perspective with Katana. What other styles of play did you consider and what made you settle with what we see today?
Hisashi Koinuma: Originally I just wanted to make a game with a really unique control method. It later became a Samurai Warriors game because I realised that with the Wii Remote you can perform actions as if you were holding a sword. So, we picked a first-person perspective to really emphasise the feeling that you are actually in the game using swords and bows.
We did try other viewing angles during development; like the classic third-person perspective you see in the other games in the series. But with the control method we had with the Remote, playing the game felt too detached. As well as this, a third-person perspective would really make the game feel like other games in the Samurai Warriors series, and our aim is really to make a game that looks and feels different from the tried and tested.
SPOnG: What were your inspirations for this new title? You mention Japanese history as a basis for many Koei games, were there any periods in particular that influenced your development on Katana?
Hisashi Koinuma: Actually, only some of the game follows the history of feudal Japan. We have taken a lot of inspiration from our history but have really gone about creating some original material based in this time period instead. There are four scenario modes in the game – plus a hidden one – and some of these are based on actual history. Some are not however, and are more original stories that use feudal Japan as a setting.
SPOnG: How much research into Samurai war history is done for each game to make it authentic, and did you do any extra research for Katana’s storyline?
Hisashi Koinuma: We don’t actually have such a large (amount of) time dedicated to researching our games, since Koei have been working on historical games for more than 30 years. A lot of the people who work here have an emphatic interest in feudal history, and we tend to work our projects more around our passion for our historical roots rather than maintaining accuracy. Also, because the influence of the studio allows us to have certain knowledge of history to begin with, we are able to somewhat maintain a faithful atmosphere.
Having said that, for Samurai Warriors Katana our main focus was to make a game that was user-friendly and accessible for the whole family. The nature of the Wii console is to provide entertainment that all members of the family can enjoy, so some work did go into that to make sure this game as good as possible.
SPOnG: What has been the most rewarding thing about working on Samurai Warriors Katana?
Hisashi Koinuma: The most rewarding thing for me was the learning experience I had with developing on the Wii. It was interesting to work with the hardware and understand all the features and elements that make up the console, as developing a game for this is very different to anything I’ve done before. We can take our experiences with Samurai Warriors Katana now and continue to create software for the Wii as we improve our understanding of the hardware.
SPOnG: Finally, are there any future projects we can look forward to?
Hisashi Koinuma: (Laughs) As I work as a general director for some projects at Koei, I suppose there are a few games coming out soon that I am also involved in. Many are secret though! (Laughs) I can say I also have a side project in the works, but that is top secret I’m afraid!
SPOnG: Ah, a bit ‘nudge nudge wink wink’ eh? It’s been a pleasure to speak to you Koinuma-san, thank you very much for your time.
Hisashi Koinuma: Thank you.
Hisashi Koinuma: Originally I just wanted to make a game with a really unique control method. It later became a Samurai Warriors game because I realised that with the Wii Remote you can perform actions as if you were holding a sword. So, we picked a first-person perspective to really emphasise the feeling that you are actually in the game using swords and bows.
We did try other viewing angles during development; like the classic third-person perspective you see in the other games in the series. But with the control method we had with the Remote, playing the game felt too detached. As well as this, a third-person perspective would really make the game feel like other games in the Samurai Warriors series, and our aim is really to make a game that looks and feels different from the tried and tested.
SPOnG: What were your inspirations for this new title? You mention Japanese history as a basis for many Koei games, were there any periods in particular that influenced your development on Katana?
Hisashi Koinuma: Actually, only some of the game follows the history of feudal Japan. We have taken a lot of inspiration from our history but have really gone about creating some original material based in this time period instead. There are four scenario modes in the game – plus a hidden one – and some of these are based on actual history. Some are not however, and are more original stories that use feudal Japan as a setting.
SPOnG: How much research into Samurai war history is done for each game to make it authentic, and did you do any extra research for Katana’s storyline?
Hisashi Koinuma: We don’t actually have such a large (amount of) time dedicated to researching our games, since Koei have been working on historical games for more than 30 years. A lot of the people who work here have an emphatic interest in feudal history, and we tend to work our projects more around our passion for our historical roots rather than maintaining accuracy. Also, because the influence of the studio allows us to have certain knowledge of history to begin with, we are able to somewhat maintain a faithful atmosphere.
Having said that, for Samurai Warriors Katana our main focus was to make a game that was user-friendly and accessible for the whole family. The nature of the Wii console is to provide entertainment that all members of the family can enjoy, so some work did go into that to make sure this game as good as possible.
SPOnG: What has been the most rewarding thing about working on Samurai Warriors Katana?
Hisashi Koinuma: The most rewarding thing for me was the learning experience I had with developing on the Wii. It was interesting to work with the hardware and understand all the features and elements that make up the console, as developing a game for this is very different to anything I’ve done before. We can take our experiences with Samurai Warriors Katana now and continue to create software for the Wii as we improve our understanding of the hardware.
SPOnG: Finally, are there any future projects we can look forward to?
Hisashi Koinuma: (Laughs) As I work as a general director for some projects at Koei, I suppose there are a few games coming out soon that I am also involved in. Many are secret though! (Laughs) I can say I also have a side project in the works, but that is top secret I’m afraid!
SPOnG: Ah, a bit ‘nudge nudge wink wink’ eh? It’s been a pleasure to speak to you Koinuma-san, thank you very much for your time.
Hisashi Koinuma: Thank you.