Siliconera Interviews Tai Yasue!

[Sign]

How did you pick the worlds? You have the Hunchback of Notre Dame world; the Musketeers, which isn’t as well known; and Fantasia, which is a key film.

Tai Yasue, Director: Each world has its difference and meaning. Notre Dame had a lot of user feedback. A lot of users wanted Notre Dame to be added, so we listened to them and we put that in. For The Three Musketeers, we thought it would just be interesting that Mickey, Donald and Goofy were dressed differently. [They] were sort of themselves but in a different way. We thought that would be sort of fresh.

For Fantasia, we wanted players to play with the music. We have some nice classical music, so I guess a music-centric game.

I remember reading in another interview that you were originally thinking about having the original Tron world in the game, and then you decided to go for [Tron] Legacy. Sora was supposed to go to the original Tron world and Riku would go to Legacy. Can you tell us about that?

That was Fantasia and Fantasia 2000, but we also considered Tron, too. I think we wanted Tron: Legacy at the very beginning, but for Fantasia and Fantasia 2000, we were thinking about that. Sora was going to go to Fantasia and Riku was going to go to Fantasia 2000.

We wanted Sora and Riku to go to the same world but in a different way, but at the very end, we looked at a lot of music and locations in Fantasia and thought that was really rich, and we wanted to concentrate on the best locations, so we concentrated on one Fantasia.

A lot of fans are happy to see The World Ends With You characters in Traverse Town. It was kind of cool how you had Joshua explain what was going on between Sora and Riku.

Well, actually, Nomura wanted The World Ends With You added and we wanted to sort of change Traverse Town. We always use that world, so we wanted to make it fresh and new in a way that would work. The fields for example were buildings that looked sort of like Shibuya with a lot of graffiti and we had a change of look.

For previous Kingdom Hearts, we’ve used a lot of Final Fantasy characters and we wanted a departure from that for Traverse Town, so The World Ends With You was a natural selection.

What was it like programming the AI for all the different Dream Eaters?

We actually used a different AI system for [Kingdom Hearts] 3D. During Birth by Sleep, it was script-based, but for 3D, we used a new game flow tool. For one Dream Eater, there’s actually several “characters”. Several personalities. So if you have your mascot characters, they would do different things. We were able to have the freedom to make a wide variety of tweaks and changes for the Dream Eaters.

For the mascot Dream Eaters that you carry along with you, they actually change along the way if you pet them and stuff. So it really depends on the character. They might just sleep, they might be really useless, or they might be angry all the time and attack a lot. Overall, there was a lot more AI than Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep.

What are you going to do with all that AI for a future Kingdom Hearts game? What are you going to do with all this tech that you developed for 3D?

Well, there are a lot of ideas coming along. I’m not really in a position to talk about the next Kingdom Hearts, but I think AI is something that we really have put more power into. For the next-gen consoles like the PS3 for example, there’s a lot more things you can do compared to the 3DS, just because there’s a lot more CPU power. So, if we were to make a game for the next-gen [systems], for the PS3 for example, we would rather like to utilize that part.

Source: Siliconera

[Narukami]

I'm sort of glad they didn't go with the Tron/Tron: Legacy and Fantasia/Fantasia 2000 idea. I think they would have had trouble finding other worlds to give the same treatment with.

And the more I hear about Symphony of Sorcery, the more excited I get to play in it! :P

[King Chaser]

What was it like programming the AI for all the different Dream Eaters?

We actually used a different AI system for [Kingdom Hearts] 3D. During Birth by Sleep, it was script-based, but for 3D, we used a new game flow tool. For one Dream Eater, there’s actually several “characters”. Several personalities. So if you have your mascot characters, they would do different things. We were able to have the freedom to make a wide variety of tweaks and changes for the Dream Eaters.

For the mascot Dream Eaters that you carry along with you, they actually change along the way if you pet them and stuff. So it really depends on the character. They might just sleep, they might be really useless, or they might be angry all the time and attack a lot. Overall, there was a lot more AI than Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep.

Skyfoxx, read this!!!!

I think this was one of the better interviews lately. Not spoilery, but talked about decisions behind the game. Very well done :3

[Master Spockanort]

I loved making my DE's angry during the Hockomonkey fight. xD They'd have a frustrated bubble over their heads and were practically like "F U SORA WE'RE GONNA ATTACK BECAUSE YOU AREN'T!"

[Memory Master]

I'm really impressed with the detail they put into all aspects of the dream eaters. I think the ultimate success of their hard work is that you really start to care about the dream eaters, where as I didn't feel the same level of protectiveness for party members in the other games because I knew they would be okay. But in KH3D well:

First time one of my dream eaters got KO'd, I was fighting some nightmares and I didn't really think much of the timer and then when I saw it dissapear forever, I swore I would never let another one of my precious angels suffer such a cruel fate.

[alexis.anagram]

I wasn't aware the Dream Eaters could vary in personality and behavior like that. Neat. O:
That is something interesting to think about with regards to future titles, then. I'm glad the developers are taking AI elements into consideration seeing as the lack of interactive personalities has been a kind of problem with the series, particularly the portable installments. In particular, it would be nice to see a similar concept applied to regular party members like Donald and Goofy in the coming games.

I also think it's funny that the interviewer mixed up the Tron worlds and the Fantasia worlds. Oops. :>

[King Chaser]

I also think it's funny that the interviewer mixed up the Tron worlds and the Fantasia worlds. Oops. :>

I don't blame them. I remember hearing about them wanting Sora to go to the original Tron world and Riku to Tron Legacy.

[alexis.anagram]

I remember hearing about them wanting Sora to go to the original Tron world and Riku to Tron Legacy.

Really? Because I did too. Now I'm wondering if that was ever actually said...

[skyfoxx]

Skyfoxx, read this!!!!

I did read it before even coming to the forums. However, I still despise the idea of having the Dream Eaters start out totally useless. (they'll just fall asleep and not fight at all? Really?) I mean, make them a little more powerful at the very beginning :/

[Hillboy]

For one Dream Eater, there’s actually several “characters”.

Our Dream Eaters are Tripolar

[Dakota]

Tai yasue kept saying ps3 at the end of his interview I know the ps4 Xbox 720 ect should be comming out soon but sense he said it twice I guess it could e an idea that they still want to stay with Sony for kingdom hearts 3

U know what I really hope that the next part of the interview actually has something to do with kingdom hearts 3 at all I mean like I know it sounds kind of stupid because it's the thing that everyone wants but we already know all of this right now so what's the point they may still Be in the whole kingdom hearts 3D stage but soon they're gonna have to step it up cuz we're nearing the end of the whole KH 3D thing and give us at least some small hints of it other then saying the nex game is kh 3

[Sign]

i can hear yasue-san's voice inside my head while reading all his interviews 8D

Really? Because I did too. Now I'm wondering if that was ever actually said...

They did actually, so you're not imagining things!

— Did you plan from the beginning to use Tron Legacy as a world?

Nomura: It was decided around the time the project was beginning. We had planned for Sora to visit the original Tron world and for Riku to go to the Tron Legacy world.

kh3d interview archive comes in handy!

Tai yasue kept saying ps3 at the end of his interview I know the ps4 Xbox 720 ect should be comming out soon but sense he said it twice I guess it could e an idea that they still want to stay with Sony for kingdom hearts 3

Him saying PS3 twice doesn't exactly mean anything...

U know what I really hope that the next part of the interview actually has something to do with kingdom hearts 3 at all I mean like I know it sounds kind of stupid because it's the thing that everyone wants but we already know all of this right now so what's the point they may still Be in the whole kingdom hearts 3D stage but soon they're gonna have to step it up cuz we're nearing the end of the whole KH 3D thing and give us at least some small hints of it other then saying the nex game is kh 3

The next part of the interview is about game design and gameplay. It was mentioned at the end of the article.

Forget about KH3 for now~ (and don't double post please)

[Narukami]

Here's part 2, which discusses Flowmotion, Drop, the 10th Anniversary and what lies ahead:

Kingdom Hearts 3D’s combat is fun, but what drove me crazy at first was the “Drop” mechanic. In the middle of the first boss fight in Traverse Town I got “dropped,” so I tried to switch back really quickly and the boss’ health regenerated.

Tai Yasue, Director: [Laughs] Nomura wanted it to be a bit thrilling in a way, so we added a time limit. It’s a little bit different in the North American version. We tweaked it, it’s not a big difference, but Sora and Riku’s HP will become full at the beginning of the boss battle, so if you’re dying, you can start over, too.

We didn’t really want to lose the character of the game. It’s one of the parts that’s sometimes stressful. When you’re successful, when you beat the boss at the last few seconds it feels really good.

I got the hang of it later on and how you can use it to boost your character. That’s when I felt it worked, but at the beginning when someone doesn’t know what’s going on, it’s like, “Awww…”

[Laughs] As you go along, you earn a lot of drop bonuses, so we wanted the characters cooperating. A feel for cooperation, and we did that using the Drop system, I think.

While Kingdom Hearts 3D uses the deck command system, I found myself using more Flowmotion attacks. They seemed to overpower everything. You can bounce back and forth between enemies, and it negates almost all of your commands.

At the start of the game, the Flow-Motion may feel powerful, but as you progress, at the later stages, the Deck Commands are really powerful. Flowmotion is used more when you want to escape, so there’s a difference in meaning and strategy. At the very beginning, really, we wanted to introduce Flowmotion, so the Deck Commands are a little weaker, but as you progress, that balance changes.

I see what you mean because in the beginning I used Flowmotion a lot. One of the most interesting thing in Traverse Town, when you go underground, there’s all of those grind rails. I know you can ride those and find the correct path to the top, but I just jumped all the way, by doing an infinite wall-jump using Flowmotion. Did you plan for that?


Oh, we did. We planned for that. Kingdom Hearts isn’t a game where you have to do one single thing to clear it. We wanted options–you can go this way or that way. It’s not just one route, you can go up the wall, you can slide down a ramp. You don’t need only need to use the Deck Commands, you can use Flowmotion or you can use Reality Shift. We just wanted to provide a wider range of options and really wanted users to pick which strategy they use.

In some places, though, like Prankster’s Paradise, I feel like it almost “breaks” the level. Like when you flip the world upside-down. All the really good treasure chests are at the top, but you can avoid doing all the platforming by horizontal wall-jumping across.

I guess, but if you want the treasure chests, you have to actually switch it over. One of the concepts for Flowmotion is a lot of freedom. And when we say “freedom,” we wanted the player to feel free to do what they want to do. You could use a lot of map gimmicks, but if you don’t want to you can use Flowmotion too.

What other tweaks did you make to the North American version, other than to the Drop mechanic?

I think that’s just the major change; we haven’t changed that much. We wanted the Japanese version and North American version to be pretty similar. I think there’s a Drop bonus that was added. I think it’s called “Drop Speed Down” in Japanese, but I don’t know what the English name is. We added the drop bonus and that’s about it. Not a lot of major changes.

Going back to Prankster’s Paradise when you’re playing as Riku, all the time, there’s this wall of text that tries to explain Chain of Memories. Kingdom Hearts started with a very simple mythology that’s gotten more complicated over time. What’s your view on how to make the mythology more accessible?

I really think it depends on the player. Some really want to know everything. For [Kingdom Hearts] 3D, you’ve got the Mementos, and you don’t have to see them if you don’t want to. You can skip it. At the same time, if you want to read it, you can go in and see it.

We developed the game so that hardcore players who want to understand it can do that, and people that just want to play lightly—who play all the Disney worlds, experience the Disney story–they don’t really have to see all the deep stuff.

There have been 10 years of Kingdom Hearts and kids who started playing the series when they were 10 are 20 now. Since we’re still focusing on the same characters, how are you going to make the Kingdom Hearts story follow an audience growing up with the franchise.

In 3D, we introduced the Memento system to cover that. In future titles, we’re going to really have to think about that.

I think for Kingdom Hearts you can really enjoy the lighter aspects. It’s about coming to terms with Riku’s darkness. It’s about friends. There are a lot of easy themes too and when you go to a Disney world each one has a story that is really accessible. If you want to understand everything it might be a little complex, but if you want to play lightly I think that’s possible too. Obviously, we want new players to access the game in a way so we’re going to have to think about that. I can’t really talk about our new titles yet, but for 3D we tried to do that with the Memento system.

Do you have any other plans for the 10th anniversary?

Not at the moment, no. [Kingdom Hearts] 3D is definitely our 10th anniversary title.

Without spoiling it, can we talk about the ending a bit?

I would just like to say that, this time the game is more centered on Riku and how he comes to terms with the darkness. Kingdom Hearts 3D really connects to the next Kingdom Hearts–Kingdom Hearts 3. And in a way, I think you’ll be able to see a glimpse of the future by playing Kingdom Hearts 3D.

Source: Siliconera

[King Chaser]

I thought some of those questions were a bit abrupt. "We used flowmotion like this. WERE YOU MEANT TO MAKE PLAYERS DO THIS!?"

[MinerKing]

Kingdom Hearts 3D really connects to the next Kingdom Hearts–Kingdom Hearts 3.

I smiled when I read this. This gives me hope.