Interview: Yuji Naka (2009-02-04) by Kikizo

This is an unaltered copy of an interview of Yuji Naka, for use as a primary source on Sega Retro. Please do not edit the contents below. Language: English Original source: Kikizo

He's Back: Yuji Naka Prope Interview
The former Sonic Team president discusses leaving (and returning to) Sega, founding Prope, his upcoming character-based action game, and ancient, unanswered Sonic secrets.

By Adam Doree, February 4, 2009

It's a good few years since we've sat down with Yuji Naka, although it's not been for lack of trying. In fact, you can count the number of interviews he's done since leaving Sega and forming Prope in 2006 on a single, thumbless hand. Until today, the most recent was when one journalist parried the PRs and seized the opportunity at TGS 2008, talking freely to Naka-san on the showfloor. Prior to that, there had only been one brief magazine chat, a one briefer still online, clarifying his Sega departure.

The former president of Sonic Team, who is credited with programming and producing the original 1991 Sonic the Hedgehog, has been hard to track down, obviously. But now that Let's Tap - Yuji Naka's first game developed under the Prope banner - has been announced for North American and Europe, he's been let out of his cage. The publisher, it seems, always wears the trousers in a gaming relationship (unless you're Valve or id Software), and in this case the publisher is his old employer, Sega.

Things have moved on a fair bit since we last spoke with him ourselves, twice back in 2003 and again in 2004, when the company's exit from the hardware business we still relatively fresh in mind. Yesterday, Naka-san was in London to speak to a handful of games media including Kikizo. Time with Naka-san was once again pretty limited, so for now, the following chat addresses some of our more pressing questions, including his upcoming character-based action game, and ancient, unanswered Sonic Team secrets.


Kikizo: I think people were surprised when it was announced that you'd end up working with Sega after all, having left Sega to set up Prope. By contrast, Mizuguchi-san has only worked with other publishers since leaving Sega. Why did you take this direction?
Naka: I'm not sure how it is in the western games industry, but Japanese games development is very small. So as a creator, once you've reached a certain point, you take on more of a managerial position and don't get to make the games any more, and I think that's why people like Mizuguchi-san and I go independent and set up a new company. And so far, it's often been the case that when these people go independent and set up their own company, the creators sort of act 'against' the old employer - almost like a rivalry. But I didn't have that intention - I didn't have that kind of relationship with Sega - so it came quite naturally for me to maintain that strong relationship with them. And I always knew that these [Prope] titles would be published by Sega.

Kikizo: At TGS, and you mentioned that you are working on a character-based action title in the style of Sonic. When do you think we may learn more about this title?

Naka: Well, before Let's Tap came about, there had been two action-adventure games in development - one of which was originally due to be released last year, but in the end that title was cancelled. And there was another one, which was in development for a couple of months. Meanwhile, Let's Tap was in development, and that's been released in Japan now. So this kind of character-based action game is always something that's on my mind, but this is an ongoing negotiation with Sega, so I don't know when it might be released, and there's no guarantee that it will actually be approved. So I can't really comment further on that. But once the time comes, when there is a guarantee that it's going to come out, then I'll be able to start talking about it.

Kikizo: How do you now reflect on Sega deciding to leave the hardware business?

Naka: I was very much against Sega ceasing to develop hardware, and I think at the time Phantasy Star Online was just about to come out. Okawa-san, who was the head of Sega at the time, said that the networked approach to gaming was something we should pursue, and so that game was developed with that concept fully in mind. At the time, internet infrastructure wasn't really up to the standards it is now; not everybody was even online, whereas now, everyone's got it. Chu Chu Rocket was released as a test to see what was possible, and as a result of that we subsequently developed Phantasy Star Online. But yeah, until the very final moments, I was really against Sega leaving the hardware business. In a way I feel that, had that decision not been made, Sega would have gone bankrupt - so maybe it was a good business decision. But at the same time, I also feel like, what the hell - we should have given it a go, and we should have taken that risk. But that is just my personal opinion, because I really enjoyed the hardware side of things at Sega.

Kikizo: Going a bit further back, I wonder if you can clear up some speculation that's been around for years now, that Michael Jackson was involved in the music production for Sonic 3? There is some really quite convincing evidence on the internet. You must surely be the guy to say yes it's true, or no it's not?!

Naka: [laughs] It's best that you ask Sega!

Kikizo: Well, er, it was your game, Naka-san... nobody at Sega would even know any more...

Naka: It's a mystery [laughs]. This information is on a need-to-know basis! [laughs more] One day, when the time comes, I will give you the information!

Kikizo: Well, we'll look forward to that. What's your favourite game ever and why?

Naka: Lemmings. I consider the architecture and the system of the game really quite superior. And the fact that each one of the Lemmings has got its own designated roles and different movements - yet their characteristics are based on real Lemmings, so from a character design point of view also, I find Lemmings quite fascinating.

Kikizo: Well thank you for your time. Now, in my photo, I would like to include the orange socks you are wearing, to show how you have colour-coordinated...

Naka: [In English] Yes - Prope's corporate colour is orange!

Kikizo: And did you choose orange because of Dreamcast?

Naka: Yes. [laughs]

Kikizo: Well, then it's a good choice.