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Yuji Naka interview by Gamespot (July 3, 2001)

From Sonic Retro

This is an interview conducted by Gamespot with Yuji Naka. It touches on the subject of Sonic Adventure 2.

The Interview

Gamespot: Was Sonic Adventure 2's constant 60 fps frame-rate a goal, when developing the game?

Yuji Naka: That was definitely a goal, to give players the best experience possible.


Gamespot: How did that influence its design?

Yuji Naka: There were some adjustments to the design to get there, but we [Sonic Team] have been making games for the Dreamcast for two years now, so that experience helped us.


Gamespot: Were you happy with the way the Chao raising turned out in Sonic Adventure 2?

Yuji Naka: In Sonic Adventure they wouldn't interact with each other, you could raise them on their own. But in Sonic Adventure 2 they interact with each other, so they took a step closer to a real artificial life form. So in that sense I'm happy with the progress.


Gamespot: Is there more you'd like to do with the Chao?

Yuji Naka: I'll think about that when we make the next game.


Gamespot: Speaking of which, how will the hardware the next Sonic game is developed on influence its design? For example, the GameCube controller seems to offer some new possibilities for control.

Yuji Naka: What I'd like to do is take the game I want to make and figure out which hardware would best fit it, rather than the other way around.


Gamespot: Are you looking at any hardware right now?

Yuji Naka: In Japan, we have the Java-based games for cell phones, so we're working on that kind of stuff, and also some network applications.


Gamespot: Are Sonic Adventure 2 and Phantasy Star Online ver. 2 Sonic Team's last Dreamcast games?

Yuji Naka: It's a pretty hard question to answer. Right now, we're taking a look at how the Dreamcast is doing. So maybe there will be another, maybe there won't, it's hard to say.


Gamespot: Was there a game you never had the opportunity to develop on the Dreamcast? Would it be something you'd develop on another platform?

Yuji Naka: Not particularly. (laughs) That's a hard question to answer!


Gamespot: Would you ever be inspired to do a sequel to Nights?

Yuji Naka: The fact that so many people look forward to it makes it that much more difficult to make. (laughs) The fact that everyone loved the first one so much makes it that much more difficult to figure out how to make the second one.


Gamespot: Will there be a true sequel to Phantasy Star Online?

Yuji Naka: Right now we're hard at work on the GameCube version. So we're not really sure where we're going to go beyond that. In large part it will also depend on reaction to the games. Network games are a lot more popular in the US than they are in Japan, but for some reason PSO was received better in Japan than it has been here.


Gamespot: Are you ready for Sonic's 20th birthday?

Yuji Naka: I'd like to see Sonic running for another 50 years. (laughs)

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