Two Sequels Two Years Later

Iwata I've gathered you all here before release of Pokémon Black Version 2 and Pokémon White Version 2 for the Nintendo DS system. Thank you for coming.

Everyone Thank you for inviting us.

Iwata I would like to jump right in by hearing how the idea for Pokémon Black Version 2 and Pokémon White Version 2 came about. Ishihara-san, if you would, please.

Ishihara OK. I'm Ishihara from The Pokémon Company¹. Pokémon Diamond Version and Pokémon Pearl Version² were followed by Pokémon Platinum Version³, and Pokémon Ruby Version and Pokémon Sapphire Version⁴ were followed by Pokémon Emerald Version⁵, so we discussed what kind of product would come together after Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version⁶. 1. The Pokémon Company: In addition to brand management of everything related to Pokémon, the company operates seven Pokémon Centers around Japan. Founded in 2000. Headquarters: Tokyo.

2. Pokémon Diamond Version and Pokémon Pearl Version: Video games released for the Nintendo DS™ system in September 2006.

3. Pokémon Platinum Version: A game released for the Nintendo DS system in September 2008 as the new version of Pokémon Diamond Version and Pokémon Pearl Version.

4. Pokémon Ruby Version and Pokémon Sapphire Version: Games released for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance system in November 2002.

5. Pokémon Emerald Version: A video game released for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance system in September 2004 as the new version of Pokémon Ruby Version and Pokémon Sapphire Version.

6. Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version: Games released for the Nintendo DS family of systems in September 2010.

Iwata Like a difference in color—for example, "How about coming out with Pokémon Gray Version?"

Ishihara Yeah. But lots of players were expecting us to follow the same pattern, so for the first time we decided to try adding a "2" for a pleasant surprise.

Iwata Something else that's different from the pattern so far is that you're releasing two games. When I first heard that, I couldn't help but say, "Huh? Two?!"

Ishihara That sort of surprise is what gives this product its newness. I'd like to have Masuda-san and Unno-san talk about what we aimed for in sequels to Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version.

Iwata All right, Masuda-san?

Masuda I'm Masuda from GAME FREAK⁷. As for why we're releasing two, we thought of a game mechanic to put in when we were developing Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version, but we didn't have enough time to do it. We needed two games for that, so this time we decided to make two. 7. GAME FREAK inc.: The video game developer responsible for the Pokémon series and other titles. Founded in 1989.

Iwata So that's why you made two.

Masuda Yes. A little later, we thought of making them sequels. When you told me that if we were going to release something for the Nintendo DS system, we had to come up with something new, I was really worried. (laughs) Then I thought, "How about sequels?"

Iwata For games to have sequels is nothing unusual, but we'd never taken that direction with Pokémon, so it was new.

Masuda Yeah. And as for why we made it for the Nintendo DS system instead of Nintendo 3DS system, we wanted to make the same gameworld. Both games are set two years later than the first two.

Iwata It's also two years later in the real world since Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version came out.

Masuda Yes. Then I appointed Unno-san to be director and had him start the project.

Iwata Unno-san, would you please introduce yourself?

Unno Sure. I'm Unno from GAME FREAK. I was director of Pokémon Black Version 2 and Pokémon White Version 2. It's nice to meet you.

Iwata It's nice to meet you, too. How long have you been involved with Pokémon?

Unno It's been exactly ten years. I first worked on Pokémon Ruby Version and Pokémon Sapphire Version. Since then, I've been involved with almost all of the main titles, like Pokémon FireRed Version and Pokémon LeafGreen Version⁸. 8. Pokémon FireRed Version and Pokémon LeafGreen Version: Remakes of Pokémon Red Version and Pokémon Green Version with various new elements added. Released for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance system in January 2004.

Iwata After ten years, a big role came your way. Has it changed a lot?

Unno Yes, quite a lot. I had experience as art director, but this time I was in a position to offer instruction regarding the game's fundamentals, so while it was worthwhile, it was a struggle at first.

Iwata Masuda-san, why did you have Unno-san be the director?

Masuda I think highly of his ability as an art director, so I thought he would be able to further reinforce the visual sense of Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version. I thought if someone lent support in planning, we could leave the directorial part to Unno-san. He was all for it, so I asked him to do it.

Iwata So you pulled him out of his comfort zone to have him grow another step. Unno-san, when he first assigned you, what did you think?

Unno I was surprised, of course, but I had told Masuda-san before that I wanted to be director. Every time we made a game, I thought, "Next, I want to develop this kind of gameplay!" Even when we made Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version, which were supposed to be a grand culmination, I thought strongly, "There are still so many ways to expand this!"

Iwata At the time of Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version, I thought it was amazing how many elements you had packed into games for the Nintendo DS system, so this time, I couldn't imagine how you could ever develop it this much further. But this is how it turned out in response to the players two years later.

Unno Yes. We put a number of new play ideas that use communication features into Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version, but this time we also challenged ourselves to develop new gameplay that would have further evolved.

Masuda And having the setting be two years later was just right. Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version had a communication feature on the bottom screen called the C-Gear, and it was easy to imagine how that would evolve two years later.

Iwata In other words, having those various elements—a solid foundation, with a clear direction for expanding it, the idea of setting the games two years later, and the new style of making two sequels—may have made it easier to make progress.

Unno Yes. The keyword this time for Pokémon Black Version 2 and Pokémon White Version 2 was "resonance." In Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version, you communicated with each other in a kind of "interference," but this time it's resonance, so we adopted gameplay that broadens each other's worlds.