Exploring the Secret Behind Konami’s MSX Games (September 1988)
Akira Yamashita/山下 章 is a game journalist whom I covered in the past. He was a writer for Micom BASIC Magazine who later become one of the founders for Studio Bentstuff. One of his regular features he wrote for Micom BASIC was a series of game reviews titled Honki de Play, Honne de Review (which translates to Serious Play, Sincere Review) where he would not only write an in-depth review of a recently-released game, but would also interview the developer to discuss the concepts behind the games themselves.
For the September 1988 issue, rather than reviewing a specific game, Yamashita-san decided to do an overview of Konami’s MSX library, focusing primarily on their shoot-’em-up lineup. Most westerners (specifically North Americans) are only familiar with the MSX thanks to the fact that Metal Gear originated on that platform, but Konami has actually produced a variety of quality games for the MSX that rivaled what they were also released on the NES and arcades at the time. I’m hoping this article will inspire some of you readers to explore the rest of Konami’s MSX library as well.
I might consider translating more installments of Yamashita-san’s Serious & Sincere series of articles in the future.
The Konami Building at Port Island, Kobe. The first floor is the lobby and the second floor is reception office. All floors above those are dedicated to the development departments. There’s a PC floor, a Famicom floor, an arcade floor, ect.
When you mention “Konami” to anyone involved with the publishing business in Japan, they’ll immediately think of the Konami building at Jimbocho, Tokyo, but that’s mainly the division of Konami involved with sales and advertising. The development department of Konami that makes their games for the arcades, PC and Famicom [NES] is actually located in a huge building in Kobe. If I was going to write to write an article for my “Serious & Sincere” series, then I thought I would fly over to Kobe and talk to the actual developers (although, Mr. Kage, who accompanied me for this interview, wanted to go to Jimbocho to meet Ms. Kamio).
We’ve arrived at the much rumored Port Island [an artificial island in Kobe] after four hours of commuting from Tokyo via the Shinkansen bullet train and such after 4 hours. In fact, this was the site of the Portopia tournament held several years ago. The place is very similar to Heiwajima in Tokyo [another artificial island] but without the boats. The Konami Building is located at the north side of the island, although the design is a bit different from the one depicted in their TwinBee. The surrounding area is peaceful and full of greenery. A couple of nearby middle-aged women that were dropped off from a sight-seeing bus began chatting when they saw the Konami Building.
“Such a lovely building! But what does Konami sell?”
“My kid really likes them. I think they make candy.” (This story also includes some embellishment)
Even though we weren’t under a strict schedule, we quickly proceeded to Konami Industry’s headquarters, where we interview Mr. Fukutake, the manager of the MSX department about various things. In this article I decided to mix my own opinions with the comments of Mr. Fukutake himself.
Up to this point, my Serious & Sincere article series were focused on showcasing the merits and exploring the development of specific games, for this installment I’ve decided to focus on Konami’s MSX library in general.
The Branding and Colors of a Software Publisher.
Akira Yamashita (right) interviewing Shigeru Fukutake. The interview was held in a seemingly luxurious VIP room with an exceptionally large marble table in the middle.
As our readers might be aware of, the development period of recent gaming software is pretty long compared to software from long ago. The days in which a single programmer can sell a single program by him or herself are now gone. Most software publishers now have a development department that divide their work by coding, story writing, music and graphics.
The long development process naturally means that every single game in development will be given full focus and the games that were planned with much “emotional attachment” will go through a long-term effort from the developers until it finally sees the light of day.
Have you noticed that their “emotional attachment” have materialized in their recent games in such interesting ways?
Those are the “colors” of a software publisher. It’s possible to imagine the kind of games a publisher releases just by mentioning their name. For example, Koei is known for their strategy games, Riverhill Software is known for their mystery adventures, Telenet is known for their colorful side-scrolling games and Dempa is known for their arcade ports.
How is the “emotional attachment” and the “colors” connected? There is a single answer. Each software house has its own idealized image of a game from its staff members. The ideal of that game in this instance is an approximation of the company’s “colors”. The energy they use is to pursue this ideal game must then represent the “emotional attachment” of the staff.
There are many examples of “colors” when it comes to other industries. In the Japanese TV industry, Tokyo Broadcasting System is associated with dramas, Fuji TV is associated with variety shows and Nippon Television is (perhaps) associated with giant battles. For the record industries, we have Canyon for idols, CBS Epic Sony for pop music, Crown and King for enka and Scitron is known for their video game music albums (we’re kidding about Scitron).
The fact that there is such “color-coding” for publishers that let us know their intentions might be a good thing for consumers like ourselves. In a sense, the PC gaming industry might had already entered a more mature age compared to the days when software publishers would flood the market with the same type of game depending on what was trending at the moment.
Moreover, with the progress of such “color-coding” is leading to the establishment of “brand names” for PCs and software. In other words, purchasing a game from a particular publisher will determine whether it’ll be a sure bet or not.
It would be no exaggeration to say that when it comes to brand names, Konami’s brand is the strongest among MSX game publishers. Mr. Fukutake, the manager of Konami’s MSX team, has the following to say on the matter.
“That’s correct. The fact that our users can trust us makes us happy as creators. We’re striving to maintain Konami’s brand image that we established.”
The Way Konami Games Are Made
The rarely-seen development room of Konami’s MSX department. This room was only accessible to employees who were assigned an ID card..
Up until now, the development process of Konami’s MSX games seemed to had been a secret. Here will be explaining the development process as answered by Mr. Fukutake himself.
First of all, there are two types of MSX games produced by Konami. The first kind are arranged conversions of existing arcade games (such as Gradius or TwinBee), while the other kind are original types (which include Metal Gear, The Maze of Galious and many others) . Arranged ports of arcades seem to progress by measuring the hardware capabilities of the MSX, but the original games are naturally much more interesting. The process is a bit different in which it seems that the person who comes up with the game’s characters is also the person assigned to do the planning and the story. In other words, the person who came up with characters such as Popolon or Pengin-kun was in charge of planning and facilitating the development of Knightmare or Penguin Adventure.
The planner will then lead a team formed by around four or five employees and then they will proceed with the development of a single game, which lasts somewhere around four to six months. With somewhere between 20 to 30 personnel employed by Konami’s MSX development department, that means there are’s a total of 5 or 6 teams each working on 2 games a year if you think about it simply, which explains Konami’s surprising release pace.
The only exception here are the music staff. A sound technology department within Konami is responsible for all the music in their arcade, PC and NES games. That’s why the music in all Konami games have a certain unified image to them.
The Relentless Obsession With Shoot-’Em-Ups
The main subject is finally here. When talking about Konami games on the MSX, the most important thing to mention is their shoot-’em-up line represented by the Gradius series. As someone who likes Konami’s shooters, I make sure to always buy them when they’re released (never got one as a gift) and enjoy them.
However, in an industry which believes the theory that shoot-’em-ups are never hits, Konami is one of the rare exceptions to that belief. All the games in the Gradius series released thus far (Gradius, Gradius 2, Salamander and Parodius) have all have a track record for staying in the top ten best-selling MSX games for extensive periods.
This seems to be a phenomenon unique to the MSX market when comparing it to other market. Silpheed for example, which I consider to the best shoot-’em-up for Japanese PCs, didn’t chart that much and I heard that the shoot-’em-up masterpieces on the Famicom that were Gradius and Zanac, weren’t quite hits.
Why are Konami’s MSX shoot-’em-ups the only ones that are selling? There might be many reasons, but the primary reason is because Konami makes its games with the key point being firmly “fun shooting”. A variety of stages, unique power-up systems, crisp music and a miraculous balance, all blend perfectly to create Konami’s unique flavor. Mr. Fukutake says “No matter what, we live and breathe shoot-’em-ups. Everyone in our staff are enthusiastic fans of shoot-’em-ups. We wish to continue our lineup no matter how much the market changes.”
Perhaps this passion for betting on the shoot-’em-up genre might be the secret that has lead to the creation of masterpieces.
The Difficulty of Difficulty Settings
One of the components that determines whether a shoot-’em-up is fun is the difficulty level. On one hand, if you make it too easy, you won’t get to savor it much. On the other hand, if you make it too hard, it will become inaccessible. Thus, the difficulty of a shoot-’em-up, much like an RPG, must be adjusted with fine-tuning.
Mr. Fukutake reveals Konami’s policy for difficulty adjustment.
“For arcade games, we make them easy to get into in the beginning. But since shoot-’em-ups for the MSX are meant to be played at home, we make them difficult from the very beginning.”
Indeed. Konami’s shoot-’em-ups are considerably difficult (only hardcore players might argue otherwise). If anything, the difficulty is adjusted to a level that it can only be cleared with continues the first time. Without enough practice, it is difficult to complete them without using continues.
But unlike an arcade game, such as Gradius II, where dying once means that you’re done for (it’s not impossible to recover, but it’s difficult for ordinary players), here it’s only a setback that can be managed with a continue. You press the F5 key [at the game over] while thinking that “this time” [you’ll beat it]. It is an experience that only people who played Konami’s shoot-’em-ups on the MSX will be familiar with.
I think Konami adjusts their difficulty settings around this continue feature to some extent. Perhaps they’re aiming for the same sense of satisfaction when you clear one of their shoot-’em-ups that a player would also feel when solving an RPG or an adventure game. At the very least, I found myself impressed by the continue feature without knowing it when I’ve completed the game after struggling during a hard battle.
This is not something that could be managed easily even with the know-how. It’s not flattery or anything. It’s what I expect from Konami.
For me, the only Konami shoot-’em-up I was unreasonable with its difficulty was Salamander. Even if you keep continue, the sense of hopelessness is strong after dying once, unless you bring up Player 2′s ship as a decoy and start gradually recovering all your power-ups again. There are special weapons that only be used when both players’ ships unite, but they’re not very practical since they have limited uses and they feel pretty weak. And finally, the true ending is locked away and is accessible by having a Gradius 2 cartridge on the second slot. Isn’t that a bit too much?
Konami’s Future on the MSX
There is more stuff that I want to write about Konami, but I can’t due to the limited amount of pages. So I decided end this article asking Mr. Fukutake about Konami’s upcoming MSX games.
“Gaming trends will keep changing in the future, but we don’t just want to pursue what’s popular, we want to make whatever we want and keep on making something that is true to Konami. Since games are expensive, we want to make products that suit their prices so that you won’t be disappointed with your purchase. How do you maintain such level of quality and not shatter the image we’ve created thus far? That is our next challenge.”
Indeed, the quality must remain above a certain level, but that’s easier said than done. Not just Konami, but any company that has grown in size will have a certain quota of games to release for the year and because of the reliance on external staff to meet this quota, there’s a risk that the quality will deteriorate. Although it’s not noticeable, some companies in the Famicom business are already going for a “quantity over quality” strategy (I won’t mention any names though).
I don’t want Konami’s MSX team to fall into the same trap. On the contrary, I believe Konami, who are the best brand on the MSX, must continue producing quality games and lead the MSX market as their mission. As long as Konami keeps pumping out quality games, the MSX will never fade away.
No matter what, please continue making games with the industry in mind. Never forget your original intentions. I’m looking forward to the upcoming Snatcher and their newest shoot-’em-up Parodius, as well as the supposedly “unachievable” SCC II.
I would like to thank everyone who helped me out with this article and I apologize for my rough words.
Konami’s Shoot-’Em-Up Series
Gradius [English title: Nemesis] - The MSX version of Gradius was released shortly after the Famicom version. It was notable for the additional boneyard stage, which did not exists in the original arcade game. At any rate, the fact that Gradius could be played on an MSX1 was pretty impressive to begin with.
Gradius 2 [English title: Nemesis 2] - The long-rumored sequel to Gradius made its debut on the MSX. New weapons, such as the upward laser were added, and a new storyline began depicting the conflict against Dr. Venom. It was the first MSX game to employ the SCC chip.
Salamander - The most difficult game in Konami’s shoot-’em-up library. The structure of the MSX version is completely different from the original arcade game, since Stages 3-5 can be played at any order. I was glad to see that some of the music and the power-up system from the revised Life Force edition of the game were incorporated.
Parodius - A shoot-’em-up parody that turns everything into a gag. The bosses are all unique like the giant drunk penguin, the badly-drawn monk and the eyeball. It’s notable for having the shortest development time of all Konami games, taking less than two months for the master version to be completed.
Other Notable Konami Games
Majō Densetsu [English title: Knightmare] - One of Konami’s earliest MSX games from the pre-Megarom era that was lauded as a masterpiece among players. The idea for the game is believed to be an arrangement of Konami’s arcade game titled Finalizer.
Yumetairiku Adventure [English title: Penguin Adventure] - A sequel to Konami’s early hit Antarctic Adventure that greatly improves upon its predecessor. The cute design of the penguin protagonist made it popular among female players.
Akumajō Dracula [English title: Vampire Killer] - Although based on a Famicom game, it is a masterpiece considered to be one of the top 5 games of Konami. With its high-sense soundtrack and wonderful balance, it still has many firmly-rooted fans
Galious no Meikyū [English title: The Maze of Galious] - The sequel to Knightmare. It employs a system where the player switches between Popolon and his lover Aphrodite. The game is now a full-fledged action RPG with many difficult mysteries to solve.
Metal Gear - A military-themed action RPG like nothing that came before. Its idea of avoiding conflict with the enemy by sneaking pass their blind spots is novel. The game was later ported to the Famicom.
F1 Spirit - A record-setting racing game that continues to sell to this day. The secret to its lasting popularity is due to its 2-players simultaneous mode, the option to choose the parts for your vehicle and its variety of courses.
Shalom - The conclusion to the Knightmare and also Konami’s first adventure game. The top-down exploration screens bring to mind the Dragon Quest series, but the game switches to a side-view action segment when the player confronts a boss.
Gekitotsu Pennant Race - It seems like an average baseball game, but the included WATCH mode is fun. You can create your own team and have it compete against one made by a friend.
Coming Soon: Snatcher, a Cyberpunk Adventure
Konami’s first truly authentic adventure is Snatcher, which appears to be inspired by Blade Runner. There will be an MSX2 version that consists of 3 disks and an original sound cartridge and a version for NEC PC-8801SR computers that consists of 5 disks The programmer in charge is said to be the same person who worked on Gradius 2, so I’m looking forward to it. “It’s an adventure game like nothing that came before” says Mr. Fukutake. In contrast to Parodius, Snatcher has had the longest development time out of any Konami game released thus far (8 months as of this interview). It is scheduled to be released by the end of November.
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