As previously announced, Takashi Tokita appeared at GameStart 2019 as a guest. During the convention, Tokita held a special talk, sharing his 35+ years of experience in the gaming industry. In addition to the special talk and an ONINAKI Special Stage Event on 12th October, Tokita also attended the media preview for GameStart and answered questions from QooApp and other media.
▍Who is Takashi Tokita
Takashi Tokita started his career in the gaming industry at a company called ZAP for two years, porting arcade games to console. He later worked part-time at Square as a part-time graphics designer and eventually became a full-time Square employee.
Tokita shared that as a child, he grew up during the booming of the manga industry and as a child, he wanted to become a mangaka. During his high-school years, the manga industry created the anime industry and he shifted his goals from being a mangaka to being a voice actor. He even went as far as attending classes for aspiring voice actors.
■ Working at Square
In 1985, Tokita joined Square as a part-time employee. The first game he worked on was Alien 2 for MSX. In the same year, he also worked on the original Final Fantasy game (FF) for NES. Recalling the times when he was working on FF, Tokita stated that it was hard designing the characters to make them unique. He pointed out that the goblins your see in the game were restricted to 32×32 pixels and he could only use three colors.
After becoming a full-time employee, he was tasked with the role of lead designer for FFIV. The FFIV team only had 14 members and they had a year to create the game. Tokita shared that the experience he had studying to be a voice actor, he would often voice the different characters in his mind when designing the game. Over time, this helped shape the RPG elements in the game.
■ Chrono Trigger
Regarded as one of the greatest RPG of all time, Chrono Trigger was a dream project that brought together the creators of the Final Fantasy series (Square), the creators of the Dragon Quest series (Enix), and Akira Toriyama, the creator of the world-renowned Dragon Ball series.
Before being brought in to work on the Chrono Trigger series, Tokita was working on his own very first game, Live a Live. The game was made to be a rival title to Chrono Trigger, but unfortunately, the game was not a big success. After Live a Live launched, Square told Tokita to help out with the development of Chrono Trigger. Tokita recalled those moments and explained that at first, it was quite spiteful, but it was truly a great experience being able to work alongside Akira Toriyama.
Tokita also joked that he never would have expected Square would, later on, merge with Enix to create the Square Enix we know today.
▍Media Q&A
■ Favorite / Most Significant Game?
T: This is a very difficult question. All the games I develop are like my children. You can’t pick a favorite. But the most memorable ones are the first one and the latest one. Live a Live is the first game I directed so it is significant to me, and ONINAKI is the latest game so it is still fresh in my mind.
■ Coming Up with ONINAKI?
T: The rebirth and reincarnation theme of the game was inspired by the staff. On day one, we knew wanted to create an RPG, because we are Tokyo RPG Factory, and we knew we wanted the game to have a reincarnation/rebirth theme.
▲ONINAKI Special Stage @ GameStart 2019 (L) Takashi Tokita (M) Host (R)Ryutaro Sasaki
Specific details like the combat system and gameplay was a continuous process of trial and error during the brainstorming session and the development process.
■ What Makes JRPGs Different and Why is it so Popular?
T: Manga in Japan influences anime and anime in turn, influences JRPGs. Players are given the opportunity to become the protagonist of a manga/anime world which is what makes JRPGs different from most RPGs.
I think that due to the wide variety of manga and anime genres in Japan and JRPGs having embraced those different themes and genres creating games with more mature themes that appeal to young adults as well, giving it more popularity around the world.
■ Will Chrono Trigger or Other Titles Ever Get a Remake?
T: Every year, when it is one of the game’s anniversary, many fans ask us that question. It makes me happy knowing that fans are still into the series after so many years. We are always thinking of ways to bring the series back, but there are no solid ideas right now. Please keep these requests coming in the future.
■ What is Next After ONINAKI?
T: I am currently working on a new project and also fantasizing about another one. I can’t reveal anything right now, but please look forward to future announcements.
ONINAKI is already available on PS4, Nintendo Switch, and PC.