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Toshihiro Nagoshi

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Toshihiro Nagoshi
名越 稔洋
Nagoshi in 2014
Born (1965-06-17) June 17, 1965 (age 59)
Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi, Japan
Alma materTokyo Zokei University
Occupation(s)Game producer, designer, director
Years active1989–present
Employer(s)Sega (1989–2021)
Nagoshi Studio (2021–present)
Notable workSuper Monkey Ball
Like a Dragon
Daytona USA
F-Zero GX
Binary Domain
Signature

Toshihiro Nagoshi (Japanese: 名越 稔洋, Hepburn: Nagoshi Toshihiro, born June 17, 1965) is a Japanese video game producer, director and designer. He was the chief creative officer[1] for Sega until 2021 when he became creative director. He went on to be the general director of Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio,[2] and later became a member of the board of directors for Atlus.[3] He joined Sega in 1989.[4] After 30 years in the company, Nagoshi left Sega to join NetEase in late 2021, where he founded the studio Nagoshi Studio.[5]

Career

[edit]

Working at Sega AM2

[edit]

Nagoshi graduated from Tokyo Zokei University with a degree in movie production and joined Sega shortly thereafter, working for the second arcade department (AM2) under Yu Suzuki as a CG designer.[6] His first title as a designer was Virtua Racing. It was then when he found his niche at Sega due to his study of movies being useful at adjusting and implementing the right camera angles in early 3D games; this was a major turning point for him at Sega. Before that point, he stated, "It really didn't take long for me to feel like I had come to the wrong place. But when I said I was lucky before, it's because during the time I began working, 2D was on its way out, and the industry was switching to 3D." According to Nagoshi, despite the fact the change to 3D had occurred, "nobody had actually studied the techniques needed to work in a 3D space." He knew the basics and gave them advice; it was easier for him to apply his knowledge after the transition to 3D took place.[7][8] Afterwards, he worked on Daytona USA, where he was made director. He came into this role after managing to edit a preview movie of the game for an arcade show. Daytona USA was the first game to use the Sega Model 2 arcade hardware which produced very advanced graphics and was developed jointly with General Electrics, which was located in the US. When Nagoshi paid them a visit, he happened to see a NASCAR race, which inspired Daytona USA initially. Tom Petit, president of Sega's arcade division in America also was in favour of NASCAR.[9] In Japan, only F1 racing games were popular, though Nagoshi decided to not develop one. He also says that he stayed persistent in creating a more difficult kind of game. The development of Daytona USA brought great responsibility for Nagoshi as he was promoted into leadership positions relatively fast. His next project, Scud Race, became once again a very technologically advanced game, however due to expenses, made less money than Daytona USA, though still made profit. Afterwards, he mentioned he did not want to make any racing games anymore, thinking that he graduated from the genre. Next, he worked on Spikeout, a cooperative beat em 'up with up to four players. It was well received by players, although arcade operators complained that it didn't bring in much money, due to the players not needing many credits if they properly work together. Shenmue was the last time he worked with AM2 and Yu Suzuki; he first was a supervisor on the project but was dissatisfied with how the game went and asked for his own development division, which later became Amusement Vision. However, he was called in by the CEO at the time to get the game finished, and as a result, he had to serve as producer and director on the final months of development. The CEO knew that Nagoshi was the only person that Suzuki trusted.[10] Nagoshi has said that there is no developer that he learnt more from than Suzuki.[8]

CEO of Amusement Vision

[edit]

In 2000, Sega restructured its arcade and console development teams into nine semi-autonomous studios headed by the company's top designers.[11] Nagoshi became president of the studio Amusement Vision, and he was not sure on how to approach his new role at first. He thought that consistently making profit would be for the best. His approach worked, as he was promoted to officer alongside Yuji Naka and Hisao Oguchi, who also ran profitable studios in the form of Naka's Sonic Team and Oguchi's Hitmaker.

Nagoshi became interested in console development as a result of Sega leaving the hardware business. Specifically, he was interested in developing for Nintendo and acquired information about the GameCube at an early stage. The CEO of Sega at the time complained that games became too expensive to make, and Nagoshi told him that they couldn't do it any cheaper. As a type of protest, he developed a very simple and inexpensive game that just needed a lever to control with no buttons, just to prove that it was possible. That game was Super Monkey Ball, which initially launched as just Monkey Ball in the arcades. It didn't sell well in Japan, but became a hit overseas. The CEO was impressed, assuming that Nagoshi had the western market in mind, which Nagoshi didn't at all. As a game developer, Nagoshi wanted to know how Nintendo worked, and wanted to be a sub-contractor for them. After some thought in regards to which Nintendo franchise he wanted to work on, Nagoshi ended up developing an entry for the F-Zero franchise, which was F-Zero GX. While Nagoshi could not convince Nintendo on several things, Nintendo was considerably impressed by the final product and asked for the source code of the game, as the game achieved a much higher quality than they anticipated. The game also sold really well, which gave the team confidence in being a third party developer. When asked about the differences in how Nintendo and Sega developed games, he would sum it up with Sega being more flashy and having a more light-hearted attitude when it comes to new ideas. Nagoshi says that if he started working at Nintendo instead of Sega, he would have already quit the videogame industry.[8]

Development of Yakuza and company promotions

[edit]

Nagoshi decided not to compete with big western companies such EA, Activision and Rockstar and decided to double down on the Japanese market instead. With the game Ryu Ga Gotoku, which then was localized as Yakuza in western markets, the only market left was the Japanese adult male[citation needed]. After a reorganization, Nagoshi's team became bigger after the non-sports staff of Smilebit moved to Amusement Vision, thereby falling under Nagoshi's responsibility. Amusement Vision and Smilebit had different cultures and strengths, so Nagoshi thought it'd be best for the staff morale to start from scratch and to develop a new IP in the form of Yakuza. By 2005, Amusement Vision was called New Entertainment R&D, which Nagoshi managed. The game had a difficult development cycle, as the first pitch was rejected by the higher-ups, due to expecting something different out of Nagoshi. At the time, Sega and Sammy merged to form Sega Sammy Holdings. The new owner and CEO of Sega Sammy, Hajime Satomi saw footage of Yakuza that was forcibly sneaked in a preview of upcoming Sega games, despite that it wasn't officially a project yet. Despite Sega executives viewing the game as an unprofitable risk due to its lack of broader appeal, Satomi took an interest in it.[12] Through perseverance and Satomi's backing, Nagoshi managed to get the project started. It was his most personal project, as the people in the game are often named after people that Nagoshi knew personally. The main character Kazuma Kiryu is named after someone very dear to him.[13] The stories are also based on his real life experiences in dating, partying and overall just having fun.[10]

When developing the Yakuza franchise, Nagoshi learned the difference between nurturing one IP and making many types of genres during his time at Sega AM2 and Amusement Vision. He thought it was very valuable to see both sides.[8] As of 2009, Nagoshi supervised all research and development of consumer game development at Sega.[14] In 2010, Nagoshi's project Binary Domain was revealed, which was his desire to tell a science fiction story, while also developing a game that actively competed against popular western games at the time.[15][16]

In February 2012 it was announced that Nagoshi would be promoted to the role of chief creative officer at Sega of Japan, as well as being appointed to the company's board of directors. He took up these positions on April 1, 2012.[17] In October 2013, once Sega Sammy purchased the bankrupt Index Corporation under the shell corporation, Sega Dream Corporation, Nagoshi was appointed as a member of the board of directors for the reformed Atlus.[18] As CCO, Nagoshi keeps being close to the games that his studio at Sega develops and stays up to date on the newest systems and technologies, although that is getting harder for him as he gets older. For the scripts of the Yakuza games, he still stays very involved, writing and adjusting whenever he feels like it.[19]

In 2014, Nagoshi was involved in the multimedia kids franchise, Hero Bank, a superhero game that has money as a very important theme despite being aimed at kids.[20]

With the 2016 game Yakuza 6: The Song of Life the story of Kazuma Kiryu ended. Nagoshi wants to continue to explore different types of drama and expand the overall playerbase further.

In January 2021, it was announced by Sega that Nagoshi would not be chief creative officer anymore but instead would take creative director as a position.[21]

Establishment of Nagoshi Studio

[edit]

In October 2021, it was announced that Nagoshi would be leaving both Sega and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio along with series director Daisuke Sato. The series producer and writer Masayoshi Yokoyama would become the new studio head in place of Nagoshi who was in the position since the beginning.[22]

Nagoshi, Daisuke Sato, along with several other former SEGA employees established a new studio called Nagoshi Studio, which will be a subsidiary under NetEase Games.[23]

Personal life

[edit]

Nagoshi grew up in Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi, in a small port town. He had a close relationship with his grandmother more than anyone else. His father was known to be in perpetual debt, something for which Nagoshi was frequently ostracized by other children. As an adult, he elected to leave his hometown for Tokyo and enroll into Tokyo Zokei University. Nagoshi has said that his interest in video games and game development was sparked when his girlfriend at the time gave him a Famicom with a copy of Super Mario Bros.. After gradually working his way up at Sega, he decided to return to his hometown in an effort to repay all of his father's numerous debts. In a tragic turn of events, a fire burned down his childhood home and claimed the life of his grandmother. His parents were physically unscathed, though his mother was left mentally scarred to such an extreme extent that she allegedly could not even recognize her own family. As a result of this, Nagoshi's relationship with his father deepened. Nagoshi has said that these events served as the primary source of inspiration for Yakuza's narrative.[13]

Asked about his personal appearance, fashion style and how it changed over time, Nagoshi says he adapts to what his current girlfriend is into.[24]

Games

[edit]
List of video game production credits
Year Title Director Producer Notes/Additional Roles Ref.
1990 G-LOC: Air Battle No No Designer [25]
1991 Rent a Hero No No [26]
1992 Virtua Racing No No Chief designer [19]
1993 Virtua Fighter No No CG designer [13]
1994 Daytona USA Yes Yes Chief designer [10]
Virtua Fighter 2 No No Stage designer [27]
1996 Scud Race Yes Yes [27]
Virtua Fighter 3 No No
  • Character modeling director
  • Supervisor
 [27]
1998 SpikeOut Yes Yes Chief designer [27]
Daytona USA 2 No Yes [27]
1999 Shenmue No No Supervisor[a] [27][19]
2000 Slashout No Yes [27]
Planet Harriers Yes Yes [27]
2001 Daytona USA 2001 Yes Yes Design director [27]
Spikers Battle No Yes [27]
Monkey Ball Yes Yes [13]
Super Monkey Ball Yes Yes [27]
2002 Super Monkey Ball 2 Yes Yes [27]
Super Monkey Ball Jr. Yes Yes [27]
2003 F-Zero GX No Yes [27][28]
2005 Spikeout: Battle Street No Yes [27]
Super Monkey Ball: Touch & Roll Yes Yes [27]
Yakuza No Yes General supervisor [27]
2006 Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz Yes Yes [27]
Yakuza 2 Executive Original concept [27]
2008 Ryu ga Gotoku Kenzan! Executive Original concept [29]
2009 Yakuza 3 Executive Original concept [27]
2010 Kurohyō: Ryū ga Gotoku Shinshō Executive Scenario writer [30]
Yakuza 4 Executive [27]
2011 Yakuza: Dead Souls Executive [27]
2012 Binary Domain Executive [31]
Kurohyō 2: Ryū ga Gotoku Ashura hen Executive Scenario writer
Yakuza 5 Executive [32][33]
2014 Hero Bank No Yes [20]
Like a Dragon: Ishin! Executive [34][35]
2015 Yakuza 0 Executive [27]
2016 Yakuza Kiwami Executive [27]
Yakuza 6: The Song of Life Executive [27]
2017 Yakuza Kiwami 2 Executive [27]
2018 Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise Executive [27]
Judgment Executive Story [27]
2020 Yakuza: Like a Dragon Executive Story [36]
2021 Lost Judgment Executive Story [37]

Select executive work

[edit]
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2003 Sonic Heroes Development division [38]
Sonic Battle Executive management [38]
Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg [38]
2004 Shining Force: Resurrection of the Dark Dragon Executive producer [38]
2006 Sonic Riders Development support [38]
2007 Nights: Journey of Dreams Chief producer [38]
2008 Sonic Unleashed [38]
Valkyria Chronicles
Thunder Force VI [38]
Phantasy Star Portable [38]
Phantasy Star 0 [38]
The House of the Dead 2 & 3 Return [38]
2009 Wacky World of Sports [38]
Sonic and the Black Knight [38]
Puyo Puyo 7 [38]
Phantasy Star Portable 2 [38]
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games [38]
7th Dragon [38]
Bayonetta [38]
2010 Valkyria Chronicles II [38]
Vanquish [38]
Super Monkey Ball: Step & Roll [38]
Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode I [38]
Resonance of Fate [38]
Sonic Colors [38]
Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing R&D creative officers [38]
Sonic Free Riders Chief producer [38]
2011 Super Monkey Ball 3D [38]
Sonic Generations [38]
Puyo Puyo!! 20th Anniversary [38]
Rise of Nightmares [38]
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games Executive supervisor [38]
2012 The House of the Dead 4 Chief producer [38]
Hell Yeah! Wrath of the Dead Rabbit Executive producer [38]
Phantasy Star Online 2 Executive supervisor [38]
Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II Chief producer [38]
Rhythm Thief & the Emperor's Treasure [38]
Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F Executive producer [38]
2013 Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games Executive supervisor [38]
Sonic Lost World Chief producer [38]
2014 Puyo Puyo Tetris [38]
Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F 2nd Executive producer [38]
2015 Tembo the Badass Elephant [38]
Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX Executive supervisor [38]
2016 Puyo Puyo Chronicle Chief producer [38]
Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice [38]
Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games Executive supervisor [38]
2017 Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA Future Tone Executive producer [38]
Valkyria Revolution [38]
Sonic Mania [38]
Sonic Forces [38]
2018 Puyo Puyo Champions [38]
Shining Resonance Refrain [38]
Valkyria Chronicles 4 [38]
2019 Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 [38]
Team Sonic Racing [38]
Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz HD Executive management [38]
Sakura Wars Executive producer [38]
2021 Virtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdown Creative director [39]
Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania Executive management [40]


References

[edit]
  1. ^ Director and producer for last 6 months of development
  1. ^ "The Man Who Won't Leave Sega: Toshihiro Nagoshi". Gamasutra. December 7, 2011. Archived from the original on April 7, 2019. Retrieved October 19, 2014.
  2. ^ "特別インタビュー：龍が如くスタジオディレクター名越稔洋監督のゲーム作りとは". IGN Japan (in Japanese). September 10, 2016. Archived from the original on June 28, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  3. ^ "Who's in charge of Atlus now that Sega owns them?". Siliconera. October 31, 2013. Archived from the original on April 22, 2019. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
  4. ^ "Profile: Toshihiro Nagoshi". Spong.com. Svend Joscelyne. May 12, 2010. Archived from the original on April 7, 2019. Retrieved October 19, 2014.
  5. ^ "Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi confirms departure from Sega". Eurogamer.net. October 8, 2021. Archived from the original on November 14, 2021. Retrieved November 14, 2021.
  6. ^ "Toshihiro Nagoshi Interview – Summer 2006". Engadget. Video Games Daily. June 22, 2006. Archived from the original on August 12, 2018. Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  7. ^ "EXILE SEKAI Interviews Yakuza Creator TOSHIHIRO NAGOSHI (Part 1) – The Image of Yakuza – OTAQUEST". February 6, 2019. Archived from the original on September 7, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  8. ^ a b c d モゲ, 齋藤. "セガ・名越稔洋が語るクリエイター活動30年史。200億稼いだ『デイトナUSA』開発秘話と、初めて明かす師・鈴木裕への想い【特別企画 前編】". Famitsu.
  9. ^ Horowitz, Ken (2018). The Sega Arcade Revolution: A History in 62 Games.
  10. ^ a b c Brown, Nathan (2018). Collected Works – Toshihiro Nagoshi. United Kingdom: Future plc. pp. 83–93. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  11. ^ IGN Presents the History of SEGA – IGN, April 21, 2009, archived from the original on August 24, 2012, retrieved June 26, 2020
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  13. ^ a b c d 稔洋, 名越 (2010). 龍の宿命 『龍が如く』を作った男 名越稔洋. Japan: 角川学芸出版. ISBN 978-4046537065.
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  18. ^ "Atlus parent company Index Corporation being restructured within SEGA". SEGA Nerds. Lee Sparkes. November 1, 2013. Archived from the original on July 27, 2015. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
  19. ^ a b c December 2018, Nathan Brown 28 (December 28, 2018). "From Shenmue to Yakuza, Toshihiro Nagoshi looks back on an illustrious career of Japanese game development". Edge Magazine. Archived from the original on January 7, 2019. Retrieved June 26, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  20. ^ a b Comments: 0, rawmeatcowboy | (June 19, 2013). "Hero Bank – more details, interview with producer Toshihiro Nagoshi". GoNintendo. Archived from the original on June 28, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  21. ^ "Yakuza director Toshihiro Nagoshi is Sega's next creative director". January 31, 2021. Archived from the original on May 8, 2021. Retrieved May 8, 2021.
  22. ^ Plunkett, Luke (October 8, 2021). "Yakuza Creator Confirms He's Leaving Sega, Former Series Producer Joins Him". Kotaku. Archived from the original on October 8, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  23. ^ "Nagoshi Studio". Archived from the original on February 28, 2022. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
  24. ^ Johnston, Lachlan (February 6, 2019). "EXILE SEKAI Interviews Yakuza Creator TOSHIHIRO NAGOSHI (Part 1) – The Image of Yakuza". OTAQUEST. Archived from the original on September 7, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  25. ^ How Tech Limitations Shaped the Yakuza Series – IGN, September 17, 2016, archived from the original on June 28, 2020, retrieved June 26, 2020
  26. ^ "メガドラ迷作『レンタヒーロー』がまさかの舞台化！…ていうかナゼこれを舞台化しようと？ 重度のセガマニアな劇団主宰が語る作品への"偏った愛"【舞台化希望タイトル募集！】". 電ファミニコゲーマー – ゲームの面白い記事読んでみない？ (in Japanese). January 18, 2018. Archived from the original on August 24, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  27. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab "Toshihiro Nagoshi Video Game Credits and Biography". MobyGames. Archived from the original on May 15, 2021. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  28. ^ "Producer Nagoshi shows off F-Zero – News". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  29. ^ "龍が如く 見参！". GameStaff@wiki (in Japanese). Archived from the original on June 30, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  30. ^ "『クロヒョウ龍が如く新章（３）』（ＳＥＧＡ，名越 稔洋，浅田 有皆） 製品詳細 講談社コミックプラス". 講談社コミックプラス (in Japanese). Archived from the original on June 28, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  31. ^ Zimmerman, Conrad (February 23, 2012). "Binary Domain: Life, robots and everything between". Destructoid. Archived from the original on December 14, 2013. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  32. ^ "Yakuza 5 'Welcome to the World of Yakuza 5' developer interview, part one". Gematsu. June 25, 2015. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  33. ^ "Yakuza 5 'Welcome to the World of Yakuza 5′ developer interview, part two". Gematsu. August 7, 2015. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  34. ^ "世界に誇る二人のトップクリエイターがこだわる"ゴージャスな演出"とは？". ダ・ヴィンチニュース (in Japanese). Archived from the original on June 28, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  35. ^ kevingifford (August 21, 2013). "Yakuza's producer and director discuss the new Ishin side-story game". Polygon. Archived from the original on June 27, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
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  37. ^ McWhertor, Michael (May 7, 2021). "Yakuza team announces Judgment sequel Lost Judgment". Polygon. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  38. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax ay az ba bb bc bd be "Toshihiro Nagoshi Video Game Credits and Biography". MobyGames. Archived from the original on May 15, 2021. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  39. ^ "Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown Dural and End Credits". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
  40. ^ "Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania (Credits) (Windows)". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
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