C3 Exclusive Interview | Bandai Namco on Tamagotchi & Nintendo

Ms. Sanae Honma, Producer: I started out in sales visiting various retailers across country when I first entered the company. I was in charge of setting up pop stands and in-store displays. Later, I moved on to work in promotions where I managed and planned various gaming events.

C3: Were any of the team for this game involved in the original Tamagotchi project?

Ms. Honma: Yes. Basically, Nana On-Sha was the main developers for Tamagotchi Connexion: Corner Shop, but we added Dimps this time to the project of Corner Shop 2. Together with Nana On-Sha, we received a lot of new input.

C3: Could you please explain to our readers how this DS version of Tamagotchi differs from the original idea of looking after a small, digitised animal?

Ms. Honma: The Tamagotchi toy allows you to raise a small digital character, but we took that feature out of the DS Tamagotchi game to focus on a bigger theme of the Tamagotchis. Utilising the keywords, "grown-up" and "dreams", we've included contents that would allow the player to grow and have fun with their Tamagotchis.

C3: In what way does the game take advantage of the DS's features? Were there any problems during development or aspects that had to be left out due to time constraints?

Ms. Honma: Since our target audiences are children, we had a difficult time deciding just how much we need to explain in regards to controls and gameplay. Since we didn't want the game to be too difficult to the point where kids would give up, we spent a lot of time incorporating the stylus in a type of intuitive, hands-on gameplay where players can literally tap away through the whole game. By the way, this is also where "puchi puchi" from the title came from.

(*Note* "Puchi puchi" is a Japanese onomatopoeia indicating a popping or tapping sound. The Japanese title of Tamagotchi Connexion: Corner Shop 2 is Tamagotchi no Puchi Puchi Omisechi Gohiki Ni.)

C3: The sequel to the million selling game is due for release in Japan soon. What will be added to this new version to differentiate it from the first DS game? Will gamers be able to use the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for multi-player fun?

Ms. Honma: In the first instalment, we included many shops that were geared towards a female audience, such as the Flower Shop and Accessory Shop. However, in Corner Shop 2, we went with a unisex approach and included shops such as the Gas Station and Sushi Bar in an attempt to target male users as well. However, looking at recent sales results, the male and female user ratio did not dramatically change at all. I think for the next time, we will just focus on creating the game with mainly the female audience in mind. As for Wi-Fi Connectivity, we felt that the usage of Wi-Fi is still not that wide spread amongst girls in our target age group, so we decided not to include the Wi-Fi feature this time.

C3: Considering the success you have had so far with the first DS game in Japan, will you aim to keep Tamagotchi on Nintendo systems, or will a multiplatform stance be taken instead?

Ms. Honma: Since the DS is still very popular amongst girls in our target age group, as well as the overall Japanese market, we are only considering developing for Nintendo's hardware at this time.　However, if other platforms prove to be popular in the future and if we can come up with an innovative concept to incorporate the unique features of that particular hardware, we would gladly consider the possibilities.

C3: What are your thoughts on Nintendo's Wii? Would you consider developing a new version of Tamagotchi for the system, and if yes, how do you think the unique control system and features such as WiiConnect24 could be implemented?

Ms. Honma: With all the unique features that the Nintendo Wii has to offer, I think the developers would definitely like to try out various ways to work with these new features. However, I believe utilising too many new features may complicate gameplay, causing a burden on casual users. For this reason, just like what we did with the DS version, we believe it is important to keep the simple, straight-forward controls in the Wii version as well. By the way, the Wii version will not be a part of the Corner Shop series and information on this has already been released in Japan. It will be a multiplayer party game featuring a board game theme.

C3: Other than Tamagotchi projects, what else are you currently working on, or will soon start work on?

Ms. Honma: Before working on the Tamagotchi projects, I was involved in titles mainly targeted at elementary school-aged girls, such as Futari ha Puricure and Cinnamon Roll. However, looking at the Japanese market recently, there seems to be a saturation of games targeted towards the female audience. In the future, I would also like to try working on titles aimed at a male audience.

C3: What games have taken your interest recently?

Ms. Honma: I tend to like games that fall into the simulation category. At the moment, I'm playing Derby Stallion on the PSP, as well as Animal Crossing: Wild World on the DS. I also reserved my copy of Pok