September 19, 2021
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Foreword
- An Introduction
- The Three Involved in the Petition
- Twitter was What Connected the Three
- Why Fujiwara and Kobayashi Hope for a Digital Release
- Composer Kobayashi’s Dream Once the Game is Released Digitally
- Important Links
- Special Thanks and Acknowledgements
- Reminders
Foreword
The following is an English translation of an interview originally conducted by J-CAST News and published on August 14, 2021 at 5:00pm.
Permission to translate and publish this interview on this site, Fire Sanctuary, has been procured from J-CAST News prior to publishing.
All Rights Reserved.
An Introduction
“It’s such a shame that this treasure cannot be passed down to future generations.”
A story of 3 people who stand enthusiastically on behalf of the revival of the legendary game Terranigma
Have you ever heard of the game Terranigma that released in 1995? It’s an Action RPG developed for the Super Nintendo and has been loved by many for its epic story, etc.
On July 21, 2021, kisato, a fan who was mystified by this game, started a campaign on Change.org to collect online signatures for a digital release. The goal would be to release the game digitally so it could be played on modern systems such as the Nintendo Switch and others.
The signatures gathered will be directed to Quintet, the original developer of the game, and Square Enix, the publisher (referred to as SQEX hereafter). Miyoko Kobayashi, the music composer (married name Takaoka), and Kamui Fujiwara, the character designer, have both participated in signing the petition. There are many people both domestically in Japan and internationally who look forward to a digital release.
Toward the end of July, J-CAST News interviewed kisato, who started the petition, as well as Fujiwara and Kobayashi, who are actively promoting the petition. Here, they discuss the start of the petition and their thoughts on the game, Terranigma.
The Three Involved in the Petition
――Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your involvement with Terranigma?
kisato: I was originally a big fan of Terranigma, and have been holding a fan event called the “Resurrection of the Hero Fes” on Twitter every year on October 20th, the original release date, since 2015. I first found about Terranigma from a TV commercial when I was in the sixth grade*. It was a pretty impressive commercial, and I thought the catch phrase was really good, but I was in elementary school at the time, so I couldn’t exactly go out and buy whatever game I wanted. About a year later, a good friend of mine who was playing it at the time showed it to me. The opening was so amazing; I was really excited! After that, I eventually got the game myself, and Terranigma helped create my current way of thinking and way of life.
* 6th grade is the final year of elementary school in Japan.
Kobayashi: I learned the piano at an early age, and started composing at eight. In my school days, I enrolled in the music production company, Cube, composing with a keyboard, synthesizer, and MTR (recording instrument) in a sort of home recording studio. Since it was a game music subcontractor, I learned to make game music from scratch there on the spot, and have composed for about 20 separate titles. After that, I joined Quintet, the developer for Terranigma, and also worked on the soundtrack for the same game.
Fujiwara: I made my first debut as a commercial manga artist in the Shonen Takarajima Weekly magazine by JICC Publishing Bureau (currently Takarajimasha). From there, the writer Eiji Otsuka started giving me work, which expanded the scope of my activities.
Regarding Terranigma, we started talks about it when the Dragon Quest Retsuden Lot’s Crest manga was being published in Shonen Gangan, an Enix magazine at the time. Even though I was working on the character design, I told them that I wanted to get involved with the content anyway, and so I sent them settings at random whenever ideas came to me. Since the game takes place in our own world, I often felt like, “I’d love to explore this place, too!” or “I want to go there!”
――It was something that was made possible because Enix (now SQEX) was a company involved in both games and manga, right?
Fujiwara: Yes, that’s right. I think manga and games are entirely separate businesses now, but it wasn’t as clear back then. SQEX often made games into comics back then, but it’s not as easy to do anymore these days.
The Impact of Terranigma
――Could you tell us what prompted you to start the petition?
kisato: To me, Terranigma is like a great tool for teaching morals. I came to think of nature and animals as dear and precious, thinking more about other people, and more interested in foreign customs and culture. It’s a wonderful game that changed my life.
I thought it would be such a shame if this treasure couldn’t be passed down to future generations. As a fan, I want more than anything for this game to not simply disappear. I also have a great desire to give back to this game and those who created it.
――The game Terranigma must have left a big impact on you.
kisato: There were a lot of things that impressed me and shocked me when I played the game, and that made me really interested in various things. It was also great that I was entranced by the world view illustrated by Kamui-sensei. It was both deep and beautiful. After the opening sequence, you see the package illustration, but from that point on, something began to grow in my heart.
Fujiwara: The illustration that was used for the package is a combination of my original drawing and CG made by a programmer, but it forced me to use a part of my brain that I don’t normally use, so it was the hardest illustration that I did for the game. It’s a piece where all structures lean toward the center that makes it difficult to get the perspective, so it became more about how I could cheat a little bit about that (haha).
kisato: From my heart, I’m really glad Kamui-sensei was the one to provide the art Terranigma. That and Miyoko’s music.
Fujiwara: It’s wonderful. Not only is the melody beautiful, but it sticks in your head forever. It’s a bit different from the repetitive yet memorable NES music of the early days.
Kobayashi: Before getting involved on Terranigma, I was merely composing music like a machine after receiving a piece of paper with a single word written on it. For Quintet’s Terranigma, thanks to Kamui-sensei’s view of the world and character designs, that world opened up to me and expanded my imagination. I think it’s really thanks to him that I came up with good musical phrases.
Twitter was What Connected the Three
――How did you come to know Miyoko Kobayashi and Kamui Fujiwara?
kisato: The catalyst to meeting Miyoko Kobayashi was the full-color Terranigma illustration anthology that I published in 2013 as part of my fan activities. She was interested in our anthology on Twitter, so I sent her a DM to give her a copy as a gift. And that’s how we began talking.
――What part of the anthology were you interested in?
Kobayashi: I was excited when I saw everyone’s art. Even though it’s been almost 20 years since the game came out, I was impressed by the fact that there are fans who are doing this kind thing.
kisato: In 2015, I made the “Terranigma 20th Anniversary Video” with Miyoko. When I told her that I wanted to celebrate the 20th Anniversary, she said, “I’d like to celebrate with you. I want to give something back to the fans.” We also made a 25th Anniversary video in 2020.
――How did you come to know Kamui Fujiwara?
kisato: At some point, he suddenly started publishing Terranigma related material on Twitter. At first, I didn’t understand why he was publicly releasing such precious setting images and visuals from that time. Of course, I was happy to see them, but a part of me was surprised, thinking, “What the heck is going on!?” But then he told me, “I saw the 25th Anniversary Video on Twitter, and it really motivated me.” I was shocked that our video impressed him.
Fujiwara: It’s been about half a year since I saw the 25th Anniversary video, but I thought it would still be okay. I was a little late posting things.
kisato: Miyoko responded, and then Kamui-sensei reached out for the 25th anniversary… I’m really glad to have been active! I don’t think we’d be here if they hadn’t reached out to me.
――How often are you all talking and working together?
kisato: Almost every day. We have a small group meeting in DMs on Twitter.
Why Fujiwara and Kobayashi Hope for a Digital Release
――With what feeling did you participate in the petition?
Kobayashi: As a member of the production team, I thought it would be such a waste if the game–truly one that remains in everyone’s hearts–would be lost to time. kisato mentioned earlier, but this is a game that can help you learn the meaning of life and death. I saw messages from adults who experienced the game as children, and how they wished their children could have the same opportunity they had. It occurred to me that this was a game that needs to be handed down to the next generation.
Fujiwara: As a creator, I don’t think it should be remade or whatever else. But for those who worked on the game at the time, they think Terranigma was a miraculous work that was made in the best environment, at the best time. After this, the hardware changed and the world become one where you needed huge amounts of money to make high-quality games. I think Terranigma was one of the last games that a group of people could make in a small building, a feeling similar to working as a team at a school festival.
――There’s also a desire to retain the atmosphere of those days gone by.
Fujiwara: That’s right. And it makes me wonder: Why does the product have to disappear? There’s also the question of why we can’t get permission when we try to do something about it?
Kobayashi: We can’t do anything about Terranigma, so that’s the problem the three of us want to solve.
――What do you mean, you can’t do anything about it?
Fujiwara: Regarding music, Miyoko was an employee of Quintet at that time, so her authority lies with them. She can’t freely do anything related to music from Terranigma.
But I heard that Quintet, the company that developed the game, has been dormant for some time. I don’t know if they’ll come back, but I don’t think it’d even be a problem if they did. Still, I’d like to find out what’s holding us back.
The current petition deals with the digital port of the game to current systems while also protecting the rights of the IP holder. Back then, nobody thought that games would encompass the entire world; I was merely working under a temporary contract. Now, I would like to resolve this ambiguous contract, draw up a new one, and successfully release a new port of the game.
Composer Kobayashi’s Dream Once the Game
is Released Digitally
During the interview, Kobayashi was surprised at something, and said:
Kobayashi: I’m sorry to break the flow, but just now, we got 5,000 signatures!
The petition had just reached the 5,000 mark. More and more people are still signing the petition even now.
――The petition is really going well, isn’t it?
Fujiwara: Many international fans are signing the petition. That’s one of the reasons why I want this movement to succeed.
――How does that make you feel?
kisato: By holding a fan event every year, we’ve tried to maintain the fans’ passion for Terranigma. Right now, I feel like our efforts might finally come to fruition.
I’m really grateful to everyone who’s gotten excited along with us thus far. It’s all thanks to them that we’re here today!
Fujiwara: Through the petition, I was moved to see that fans are doing all sorts of creative things. I got the impression that there are many extremely creative fans. Some people said that they aspired to join the game industry and even became creators or composers themselves because of Terranigma. I’m very happy that the game has cultivated a lot of creators.
Kobayashi: With activities mostly based on Twitter, approximately 5,000 signatures from home and abroad have been gathered for the petition of a 25-year-old game! Those who remember the game also started talking about it on Twitter, and it makes me feel confident.
At any rate, I’m just grateful that we’ve come this far with the support of a large number of enthusiastic fans. If you haven’t played the game yet, please join us! Seeing such passion from other fans made me want to make something again. It’s really encouraging!
Encouraged by the enthusiasm of the fans, Fujiwara and Kobayashi have started new works for Terranigma. Fujiwara has drawn new illustrations from famous scenes, and Kobayashi has started to create new musical themes to accompany the illustrations. kisato supports them both and plays a large role in encouraging fan activities.
――Can you tell us about your future plans for this movement?
kisato: We haven’t decided on an exact number of signatures for the petition goal. If I were to be greedy, I’d love to get 100,000 signatures, but even if that’s not possible, I’d like to at least break 10,000.
Kamui Fujiwara will hold a solo exhibition from September 3-13, and the 26th Anniversary of Terranigma will be later in October, so we plan to continuing the petition through then. I would like to consider subsequent activities by judging the pace of growing supporters.
Kobayashi: When this petition succeeds in reviving Terranigma and it clears all rights, I would like to have an orchestra concert that I’ve been dreaming of for so long!
kisato: Let’s do this! I also hope we can clear the issues regarding the legal rights and get the game released digitally!
kisato and her colleagues have said they’d first like to aim for a digital release, then endeavor additional ports and possibly even a remake.*
* Please note that the above statement does not, in any way, suggest that there are currently plans for a remake. All this means is that if the petition is successful, we would like to aim higher and for more! Please see this post for more information.
Special Thanks and Acknowledgements
Many thanks go to kisato for her unending patience with me as a simple fan myself. She has been nothing but a positive role model in this movement, and I very much look up to her for her superior judgement in effectively directing fans! Thank you so much for your dedication and enthusiasm for keeping this movement going for so long! I’m only sorry it took me this long to realize it!
Many thanks to Fujiwara-sensei for taking such initiative upon himself to illustrate so many gorgeous, new illustrations for Terranigma. He continues to play an integral role in the Terranigma Resurrection movement even while he’s so busy getting ready for his exhibition next month! Thank you for your passion and hard work!
Many thanks go to Kobayashi-sensei for her kind and cheerful messages about the movement. Her beautiful musical themes from the game have stuck with me throughout these nearly 26 years, and I also share her dream of seeing (or hopefully singing in) an orchestra concert for Terranigma!
Lastly, many thanks to J-CAST News for allowing me to translate their interview originally in Japanese. You can find the direct link to the interview below!
Links
Reminders
Polite request from the Resurrection Team
to all Terranigma Fans:
Please do not repost or use other people’s artwork without permission for your own personal use as avatars, icons, etc. Thank you!
Translation by: Fire Sanctuary
Interviewer, Composition, J-CAST News Editorial Department: Kyoko Takigawa
Translation Courtesy of J-CAST News:
https://www.j-cast.com/2021/08/14418261.html