Translation: Rockman EXE 4.5 Official Complete Guide Interview

Emergency Meeting
[Capcom Product Development 2]

The 4 New Official NetBattlers Gather in Osaka

The Officials that were called in this time are the winners from the Next Generation World Hobby Fair – Tokyo event that ran on June 19th – 20th, 2004. The four arrived in Osaka and received their training in a building housing the Product Development 2 department. The ones responsible for training them were the developers, Mr. Masahiro Yasuma, and Mr. Masakazu Eguchi (AKA “Mr. Famous” Eguchi). The training didn’t just stop at “Mega Man Battle Network 4.5“, but also became a rich conversation about future prospects of the series.

Official NetBattlers – Personal Data

You become part of a more real Battle Network world!

— “Mega Man Battle Network 4.5 Real Operation” (*henceforth “4.5“) is a game that explores a new concept unlike the games up until now. Before, the players experienced the series only through the eyes of its protagonist, Lan. What inspired you to begin development on it?

Yasuma: In “Mega Man Battle Network 4” (*henceforth “4“), there was a hidden mode called “Operation Battle”. You could connect the BattleChip Gate to the Game Boy Advance (henceforth “GBA”), and by slotting in a NaviChip, you could enjoy battles with a totally new feeling of control. That feeling of control felt as if you were actually Lan controlling MegaMan, and the sense of realness from that felt like it was full of possibilities. Even though it was just a bonus mode you could play in 4, I might’ve felt like I wanted to use that system to make a full game.

— So your inspiration was Operation Battle.

Yasuma: Yes. So, we ended up going ahead with a Battle Network where all of the battles were like Operation Battle. But a normal Battle Network game that just had battles like Operation Battle wouldn’t be very interesting, would it? Since the GBA already had the real feeling of becoming your PET, we thought maybe we should follow this to its logical conclusion. So we changed the game itself from one from Lan being the center of things, to a game where players would take Lan’s place. Essentially, if we took the PET screen and made it into the game’s screen, and divide the game in such a way that the real world wouldn’t appear. You become part of a more real Battle Network world! That was the concept.

Eguchi: That’s right. I think even in 4, players became Lan when they battled. The series was already established with that familiar feeling of reality. When I heard that it could become more real, I thought that would be interesting. In practice, it’s not just changing how you battle, but also being able to communicate with your Navi. It gives you a taste of what it’s like to be Lan.

I think it’d be great to become close with your favorite Navi!

— There’s a feature where you can tell your Navi about the person you like, the subject you’re worst at, and other things like that. It’s pretty interesting, isn’t it?

Yasuma: Wouldn’t it be nice having MegaMan be the only one who knows these things about you? It’s kind of like sharing your secrets and becoming closer. It fills our yearning to become Lan, too. The Schedule was put in because I thought it’d be interesting to have a feel of interacting with your Navi more often. Since you get to choose your own Navi, I think it’d be great to become close with your favorite Navi! Isn’t it great if the things you talk about were stuff you’re familiar with?

Eguchi: Having them ask all sorts of things, then talk about them is really fun. Not just the schedule, but the girl you like and other things like that. It sure would be bad if your Navi spread all of this around, though. Actually, I thought of having your Navi tell your opponent about the girl you liked and stuff when doing a Network Duel, but I decided against it. That would have definitely made the Navi feel more alive, though.

Rather than being connected online, you’re connected in reality

— So this time, with the days of the week and time both working together, as well as the setting being only in cyberspace; it gives the impression that during development, being online was in mind.

Yasuma: We weren’t really aware of popular, successful games like that. If I had to say, I suppose their (the in-training four Kanto Officials) viewpoint would be networks expanding from things they’re familiar with. Battling, shaking hands where you can see the other person’s face, trading chips with them… You know, using Network or other connectivity like that.

Eguchi: Rather than being connected online, you’re connected in reality.

Yasuma: Of course, the online aspect will expand, but we need reality too. The system of “4.5” brings reality into the game, and that expands things. BattleChips stay the same, there are NaviChips, you can exchange them, and trade them hand-to-hand in person. We’ve tried that kind of thing out a while back in Battle Network. In “Mega Man Battle Network 3“, you could buy candy and there’d be Lotto Numbers inside. We were looking for a way to have the game mix with reality like that, while have the network expand. With “4.5”, it gives the sensation that we could try that for real.

Eguchi: With “4.5“, the BattleChip trading, and making friends through NetBattles; something that we always made of top importance in Battle Network, had become the main focus. In “4“, you use Lan as your stand-in to control MegaMan in battles. In Real Operation, you’re battling your own Navi against your opponent’s Navi, so people coming together and interacting has been given more attention.

Yasuma: Right. Up until now, it was always “My MegaMan, your MegaMan”, but now it’s “Eguchi’s JunkMan, your Roll.” …I think having it like that deepens communication more. Plus, up until now, the games basically had story as their focus. But our goal was being able to have a MegaMan you raise during the story, then fight against a friend’s MegaMan. With “4.5“, having your Navis fight together was our primary objective. Winning the tournaments is just a way of making your Navi stronger. Of course, the games are made so you can play them even if you’re alone, but our ultimate goal was battling with friends. The rival being your friend, basically.

Role-playing feels good

— How do you want 4.5‘s battles to be enjoyed?

Yasuma: We want everyone to be like the Lan they see in the anime. Looking for a chip when MegaMan is doing his best on-screen, thinking: “Not this one, not this one either… This one!” We want people to do that sort of thing. Also things such as “Oh no! I dropped the chip!”. Takara is producing a binder, so wouldn’t it be nice to look at it with pride like it’s your own folder? Lan must have something like this inside that backpack of his. Also, believe in your Navi! They fight mostly of their own will, so you can just sit there and think, “wow, they’re doing it.” But that’s limited to your enemy’s strength. When you use a chip and finish off an enemy, it’s like you’ve saved them, and it feels good. That’s the true charm of it.

Eguchi: In my case, it’s a little embarrassing, but I think role-playing feels good. I’d become someone from the Battle Network world, just like Lan. Starting Network Duels with “Battle routine, set! Execute!” and saying things like, “Sword! Slot in!” (laughs) I’d say it every time! (laughs) I wish tournaments could have that atmosphere. I also wish you could pretend-play Battle Network’s battles. Not like having everyone gather at someone’s house, but like how you’d used to take toy guns and play around, saying things like “this is my territory!”. Being able to play like that is nice. And rather than playing inside your room, you’d go outside with others and scramble around in a park or something; bump into someone and having an unexpected battle.

I’d like to make Navis more and more real in Battle Network’s future

— Do you have a dream of what you’d like the Mega Man Battle Network series and Navis to become in the near future?

Yasuma: Maybe something like: starting without a Navi and having to make one yourself. I think it’d be nice to be able to do that. From there, it’d be nice if there were some sort of space like the cyberspace from Battle Network’s world. A public internet that’s like a cyberspace everyone could go to, without it being in your Game Boy. That would be fun. And there would be new chips from Capcom hidden there. Days of the week and such would be linked closer between the real world and cyberspace…

Eguchi: That’s just a real PET, isn’t it? Can we do that? I definitely yearn for a world where you’ve got a Navi in your PET and they act independently. Rather than inputting with the keyboard, you’d give your Navi a command and they’d respond and tell you what the other Navi said. Then you’ve got internet battles. In cases like, if you live in Kanagawa and couldn’t go to Tokyo to battle in tournaments. As long as you’ve got internet, then you can always battle with your friends. Now, wouldn’t that strengthen your bonds?

Yasuma: Also, I’d like to make Navis more and more real in Battle Network’s future. There’d be a Navi in your Battle Network, but they’d be in your phone sometimes too, so you’d order them: “I’m going to play Battle Network now, get in the GBA.”

— So they’d go into your desktop PC and such.

Eguchi: If requirements were the same between PCs and phones, they’d probably be compatible. I feel like it’s possible.

Yasuma: Although we have the dream of expanding the games’ network, for now, the desire to have children enjoy a new way to play with 4.5 is stronger. Our role is to put out fun games. But of course, I think that if we cooperated with companies like Takara and Shogakukan, we can connect the game to all sorts of things. We could expand the Mega Man Battle Network world in ways not just limited to the boundaries of the game.

Eguchi: If something’s possible, I want to try it. In all sorts of ways. “4” and “4.5” have different rules, and there might even be another new set of rules in the future. How about we continue expanding from here on out? Battle Network isn’t over yet, after all.

The Officials’ Training is Finished…

The 2 Training Supervisors and the 4 Officials Become Closer

After the training was finished for the 4 Officials, they spoke with the 2 Training Supervisors about whatever they wanted. In-between everything, Design Supervisor, Yuji Ishihara, joined in and things got lively.

The 4 Officials, after a fulfilling day, were deepening their bonds through Network Duels even on the way home. From here on out, perhaps they’ll frequently interact with each other through the Battle Network series.