"Square is still developing so many games for the Mega Drive?" a journalist from Popular Mechanics asked, surprised.
"The Mega Drive's installed base is still significant," someone explained. "We have to keep supporting it. Besides, a project on the scale of FF7 can only be undertaken once. Betting everything on one big project is risky. A normal company fills its product line with mid-sized titles. The combined development cost of these Mega Drive games is probably about equal to FF7."
"But this also means Square hasn't completely abandoned 16-bit platforms."
"Of course not! The Mega Drive has tens of millions of units installed globally. Would you abandon that if you were Square? Money isn't hot to the touch."
Square's press conference lasted exactly twelve minutes from start to finish.
Five announcements: one next-gen bombshell, four standard updates for current-gen platforms.
Remember the launch website domain: twkan.com
The structure was flawless: first, FF7 was used to raise everyone's expectations to the highest possible level, then four sequels in established genres proved the company's production capacity and stability.
This approach gave Sega the prestige it sought with Jupiter while minimizing the company's risk.
The discussion in the hall reached its peak intensity after Square's departure.
The FF7 trailer was repeatedly referenced.
Several photographers huddled together, reviewing the screen shots they had just taken, debating which composition would make the best magazine cover.
"The CG cityscape shot—a panoramic aerial view," the NetGeneration photographer pointed at his camera screen. "This one has the perfect lighting angle."
"I'll take the combat scene—the moment the summon beast appears," the GamePro photographer said pragmatically. "Readers love that kind of action."
"Are you guys really just thinking about covers? What if Sega drops something even bigger at their press conference this afternoon?"
"What could possibly top the impact of the FF7 trailer today?"
No one answered.
It wasn't that it was impossible; the bar had already been set.
Three o'clock sharp: Koei.
The Koei logo materialized on the big screen.
The atmosphere in the hall, compared to the fervor after Square's exit, showed a visible drop in energy.
Some attendees took the opportunity to go back and get more coffee, while others lowered their heads to organize their interview notebooks, now filled with notes from the first half of the event.
The producer who took the stage was a Japanese man in his fifties, wearing gold-rimmed glasses and a navy blue suit with impeccable tailoring. His tie was meticulously tied.
He delivered a brief self-introduction in English with a heavy Japanese accent, then switched to Japanese, handing the floor to the interpreter.
"Today, Koei is bringing three titles."
There was no preamble, no vision statement, not even a courtesy remark.
This kind of directness wasn't uncommon at today's press conference, but Koei's directness differed from Capcom's Yoshiki Okamoto's "I have so much to say, so I'll say it quickly" approach. This was the directness of someone who knew exactly what they wanted to say.
Knowing they weren't the main act today, they wouldn't waste anyone's time.
First up: Romance of the Three Kingdoms V.
A strategic map of the East Asian continent appeared on the screen, dotted with cities and territories color-coded by faction.
Logos for four platforms—DOS, Windows, PlayStation, and Jupiter—lined the bottom right corner.
The Three Kingdoms genre has a stable audience in East Asia.
In Japan, it goes without saying. Koei has been milking this IP for over a decade, with each iteration selling numbers that make smaller developers green with envy.
But in North America, the name "Three Kingdoms" is virtually unknown.
Most of the American journalists in the audience couldn't even tell you who Liu Bei, Guan Yu, or Zhang Fei were, let alone understand the gameplay improvements in this new game.
A few people in the front rows were hunched over, flipping through their notes, while some in the back were pulling out their phones to check the time.
The Japanese press section, however, showed a flicker of interest.
An editor from Famitsu stared at the four platform logos in the lower right corner of the screen for a couple of seconds before jotting something down in his notebook.
"PC and console releases simultaneously. Koei's approach is different from everyone else's."
"Their PC sales are their foundation. The Windows version of Romance of the Three Kingdoms alone sells over 100,000 copies in Japan, and with the existing user base from the PC-98 era, PC sales alone are enough to sustain this product line. PlayStation and Jupiter are incremental revenue. They won't lose money by releasing on those platforms, but they won't die if they don't."
Second game: Sangokushi Eiketsuden.
Platforms: PC-98, PlayStation, Jupiter.
The visual style is noticeably different from the main series.
Character portraits are more anime-styled, and Q-version general units are placed on a grid-based tactical map.
Combat sequences switch to a separate screen, showing two generals clashing. While the animation isn't particularly detailed, the rhythm of the combat is well-paced.
"Is this a simplified version of Romance of the Three Kingdoms?" a Popular Mechanics journalist whispered to the person next to him.
"It's not simplified; it's a different gameplay style," replied a freelance writer who had covered the Asian market for three years. "The main series is grand strategy, while this is a tactical RPG with story-based scenarios. In Japan, it's called the Eiketsuden series. It sells decently—no hit, but the profit margins are good. Since it's part of an ongoing series, a lot of development assets can be reused, keeping costs low."
Third game: Taikou Risshiden II.
PC-98, Windows, PlayStation, Jupiter.
Japanese Sengoku period.
On the screen, a young samurai in straw sandals stood in the streets of a castle town, surrounded by various interactive NPCs and facilities.
Screenshots from management, diplomacy, and combat systems flashed quickly across the screen.
Three games showcased in five minutes.
The applause from the audience was sparse, not exactly cold, but certainly lacking the enthusiasm typically reserved for major publishers.
The Koei representative bowed gracefully and exited the stage, showing no trace of embarrassment.
"Koei's been the same for ten years," a Famitsu editor remarked, putting away his pen and leaning back in his chair. "Three Kingdoms, Sengoku, Three Kingdoms, Sengoku. They just keep recycling those two themes."
"And there's the Uncharted Waters series. They're living large off that." The colleague flipped the page to the next developer's section. "The core user base for the Romance of the Three Kingdoms series in Japan is around 300,000 to 400,000 people. They buy every single installment—their loyalty is insane. It doesn't sell well in the West, but the Asian market is more than enough. Have you ever thought about it? Where's the competition? Who's challenging Koei in this niche?"
"Nobody."
"So why change? Find a plot of land where no one's fighting over it, cultivate your fields well, and enjoy steady harvests every year. That's far less stressful than competing with Square and Capcom in those crowded, popular genres."
"Yeah. At lunch, I wandered through the other halls. Koei's booth was tiny, just two or three demo machines tucked in a corner," the Famitsu editor recalled. "But you know what? There were actually people lined up in front of those machines."
"What kind of people?"
"All Japanese distributors. And there were two people who looked like Chinese Americans, flipping through Koei's North American branch brochures."
Please Support me by becoming my patreon member and get 30+ chapters.
[email protected]/Ajal69
change @ with a
Thank You to Those who joined my Patreon