KiShin's new releases

December 11, 1990:

During this time, anticipation ran high for the release of two new KiShin video games. One was Kid Icarus, while the other was Final Fantasy. Players eagerly flocked to stores and malls like hungry piranhas sensing their prey.

Tora and Suzuki, the two competitors, had already solemnly predicted this massive turnout. 

Sawa Arata and his group of video game-loving friends joined in the excitement, purchasing both games and chatting enthusiastically.

Sawa Arata asked cheerfully, "Did you reach any interesting endings in 'Metroid'? Discovering different endings was so much fun!"

"Yeah, I did," his friend replied, lowering his voice to avoid attracting attention, "I got the ending where Samus Aran was wearing a sexy pink suit!"

Their friends giggled, and Sawa Arata smiled, saying, "According to the story manual, it's called the Justin Baley Suit."

One of his friends nodded and added, "I checked it out too, and KiShin Merchandise is even selling that suit."

Another friend pondered, "I wonder how it would look on a real girl..."

The group fell into thoughtful silence. Most of them were devoted nerds, especially when it came to video games. Some even went as far as creating their own maps for 'The Legend of Zelda' or 'Metroid.'

They even documented their gaming tips and tricks in a 'Video Game Research' notebook, which they occasionally shared with their more casual gamer classmates.

Their hobbies drew criticism from the teachers at school, who often warned, "Don't play too many video games, or you'll end up like those guys!" referring to Sawa Arata's group of friends.

Nevertheless, they proceeded to purchase their copies of 'Kid Icarus' and 'Final Fantasy.' Like 'Metroid,' both of these video games came with story manuals written in Japanese.

These two video games appeared to be rather complex, the sort that Tora and Suzuki's fans might disapprove of.

After purchasing their games, they all gathered at their secret hideout. Yes, these guys had rented a place specifically for their gaming adventures. Here, they had their own television and video games setup, the hub for their strategic gaming discussions.

Sawa Arata, the group's leader, took the controller first. He inserted 'Final Fantasy,' and the game began with the words, "The world is veiled in darkness. The wind ceases, the sea rages, and the earth begins to rot. The people wait, their only hope, a prophecy... When the world is in darkness, Four Warriors will come...." against a blue background.

The group paid close attention to this message and kept it in mind. Sawa Arata entered his name, and the game started. To their surprise, there was a class selection screen offering Warrior, Thief, Monk, and Mage.

Sawa Arata and his friends exchanged surprised glances, and then Sawa Arata chose to begin as a Warrior.

The game commenced, and, to their astonishment, the gameplay resembled 'The Legend of Zelda,' but it was also distinct. It all began as the Warrior character respawned outside the castle. Unlike 'The Legend of Zelda,' in 'Final Fantasy,' they could interact with non-playable characters, explore the map, and engage in conversations with NPCs.

There was a church and other interesting elements in the game. Sawa Arata and his friends were intrigued by this new style of gameplay, and they discussed it for a while. When Sawa Arata guided his character towards a cluster of trees, they encountered enemies.

Surprisingly, the four characters that Sawa Arata hadn't chosen also appeared on the screen, each one joining the battle against the monsters. This type of gameplay truly captivated Sawa Arata and his friends. It was more technical, resembling 'The Legend of Zelda' and 'Metroid' in terms of equipment acquisition and leveling up.

After playing the game for about an hour, Sawa Arata became so engrossed in the gameplay that he momentarily forgot they had another video game to try.

One of his friends reminded him, saying, "Hey, it's about time we give 'Kid Icarus' a shot."

"Yeah, we've been curious about what that video game has to offer," another friend chimed in.

This snapped Sawa Arata out of his gaming trance, and he nodded hastily, saying, "Right, I'll save the game first." He saved the progress and removed the 'Final Fantasy' cartridge from the slot.

Then, he inserted the 'Kid Icarus' cartridge into the slot, and as the video game booted up, the title 'Kid Icarus' appeared on the screen. When Sawa Arata began the game, he entered his name, but this time, there was no introductory message.

This surprised the group, and one of them mentioned, "According to the story manual, Kid Icarus isn't the name of the in-game character. His name is Pit," while holding the story manual.

Everyone fell into a momentary silence, but they weren't overly shocked. After all, KiShin had a history of using different in-game character names compared to the game titles, as seen in 'The Legend of Zelda' and 'Metroid,' except for 'Super Mario Bros.'

As the game began, Sawa Arata assumed control of his character, who attacked by shooting arrows from a bow. Whenever he defeated enemies, hearts would appear, while some foes dropped different items.

The group took note of this, and Sawa Arata couldn't help but draw parallels between these hearts and the orbs in 'Metroid.' The gameplay was intriguing, resembling 'Metroid' yet possessing its own unique charm.

However, as Sawa Arata delved deeper into the game, its complexity and difficulty became increasingly evident. It was surprisingly easy to meet one's demise, even for Sawa Arata, the dedicated video game addict.

Fortunately, it turned out that the hearts represented a life bar. As long as Sawa Arata collected them, he remained safe—or so he initially believed.

The group was in for a surprise as they played further; they discovered that the hearts served as currency. Sawa Arata and his friends exchanged glances and deliberated on which items to purchase.

Once they reached a decision, Sawa Arata bought an item, which significantly reduced his heart count. They continued to play, and when Sawa Arata entered a particular area, he found himself overwhelmed by enemies, resulting in a "Game Over" message appearing on the screen, declaring, "I'm finished!"

Everyone gazed in dismay, and one of them cursed, "Shinro N. Sony is toying with us!"

"Yeah! How can he design a game with no instructions!"

Sawa Arata couldn't help but agree. At this point, this video game seemed more baffling than 'Metroid,' which was, at the very least, well-crafted.

"I've been a devout follower of Shinro N. Sony for a long time, but this 'Kid Icarus' video game of his is unquestionably the most challenging!" Sawa Arata declared indignantly, his eyes burning with determination.

"Yeah!"

"Now I'm all fired up!"

Despite its difficulty, they all agreed that it was the most intriguing game they'd encountered, so instead of complaining, they resolved to compile tips and tricks for it.

One of their friends, Fukuda Hideo, a former thug, asked in confusion, "Who is Shinro N. Sony?"

The entire group cast puzzled glances at Fukuda Hideo. Sawa Arata sighed disappointingly and said, "Seriously? You really didn't know?"

Another friend chimed in, "You've been with us for a few weeks, and you didn't know who Shinro N. Sony is?"

Fukuda Hideo felt the corner of his mouth twitch and admitted, "No..."

Sawa Arata rushed to say, "You've got to be kidding me! That name practically dominated the ending credits!"

"Yeah! Almost all the names in the 'Super Mario Bros.' ending were 'Shinro N. Sony' and some were 'Mira Sakura,'" another friend added.

Sawa Arata nodded and continued, "Exactly! He's said to be the young founder and co-founder of KiShin!"

His friends nodded in agreement, and one said, "Seriously, Hideo... How could you not know that? Almost everyone I know is aware of it."

Fukuda Hideo could only remain silent in embarrassment.

Then, Sawa Arata spoke up with determination, "Anyway, we'll unravel the mysteries of this 'Kid Icarus' video game, and we'll become a guiding light for those who are lost in the darkness!" he proclaimed dramatically.

The entire group nodded in agreement.

Suddenly, Fukuda Hideo had a brilliant idea. His eyes widened as if struck by lightning, and he thought, 'This is a way to redeem myself!' He hurriedly suggested, "Yeah, and we can create our own articles about our research on video games, especially the challenging ones like 'Metroid,' 'Final Fantasy,' and 'Kid Icarus.' Then, we can sell them to a publisher! We could get rich!"

The group stared at Fukuda Hideo in astonishment. One of them wanted to berate him for being ridiculous but held back, realizing that it was actually a great idea.

"Great idea!!!" Sawa Arata exclaimed with a smile and said, "We'll be making money while doing what we love!" He grew increasingly excited as he added, "We'll prove to our teachers that we're not wasting our time!"

Everyone in the group joined in the excitement, exclaiming, "Yeah!!!"