🎤 Interview with Takahiro Ueda

2023年 3月 16日
Indie Tsushin 2023 March issueThis article was featured in our 2023 March issue. Check out more articles and interviews in the full issue.

Takahiro Ueda was kind enough to speak with us about working on the digital board game, Tails of the Kyuubi!

English (Translated)

Translated by Renkon

Screenshot of マゲームス３ (Magames 3). Mage-chan and Shifu-san are standing on the left, and to the right is a field of squares filled with enemies. The characters and enemies have number flags over them. At the bottom is a row of numbered cards.

(2021) マゲームス３ (Magames 3)

Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

I make games at my own place. I try not to get hung up on details, and put my heart into the things I want to make. Before I started making games, I belonged to a voice acting agency and did theater.

Can you introduce Mage-chan and Shifu-san?

They are Shifu-san the Thief and Mage-chan the Mage, and they form the comedy duo Shifu-Mage! Shifu-san is the funny man and Mage-chan is the straight man in their acts.

Shifu-san is bright and active, but he's not very good at being a thief, so he's always getting into trouble. Mage-chan is always getting on his case about it, but since Shifu-san is her only friend, she is secretly very happy that he invites her to go on adventures together.

How did you get started making games?

I didn't stand a chance of working for a game company because I had no prior experience making games, so I figured that I had no choice but to make games on my own.

Screenshot from 数直線上のカルク (Suuchokusenjou no Calc). Mage-chan and Shifu-san are standing on the left, and a giant ape enemy is on the right. Above them is a number line going from -10 to +10. The pointer is currently at +10. In the center is a row of played number cards, and at the bottom are the player and enemy hands.

(2021) 数直線上のカルク (Suuchokusenjou no Calc)

What does your general game-making process look like?

I think about what I wholeheartedly want to play, and from there, I prepare the necessary components one by one. I start with the visuals. If I started with the game system first, it is hard to get a feel for if it is fun or not using only placeholder images. In order to have fun playing, I start with the visuals. After that, I create the system and start playing immediately.

It is as if I start with only the most succulent parts of a dish and then snack on it for the rest of the meal. This method is fine for small-scale projects, but it would be quite difficult to complete medium- or long-term projects this way.

Can you tell us about some of your favorite games (analog or digital) and genres?

My favorite digital games are Undertale and Yamafuda! 2nd Station. My favorite analog games are Mahjong and Figure It.

I seem to like games that are logical and require a bit of luck.

Screenshot of the board from Tails of the Kyuubi. Shifu-san is at the starting position, the Kyuubi has only two tails, and there is a scattering of powerful foxes around the board.

(2022) キュウビのしっぽ (Tails of the Kyuubi)

Please tell us about Tails of the Kyuubi!

Tails of the Kyuubi is a game where you travel around and around the board. You will clear the game if you can complete ten laps around the board before you run out of dice. But every time you clear a lap, more fox pups will appear, and they will interfere with the player's progress.

Roll the dice to either slip past the pups or do battle, and aim for the goal. The battle scenes are cute and comical, and are a big feature of the game.

What was the most challenging part of making Tails of the Kyuubi?

The performances. Until now, I didn't put much effort into directing scenes, and focused on making the game systems fun. However, because of the simple rules in Tails of the Kyuubi, I thought we would need something more to make it interesting. So right away, I approached the illustrator ICHI, and asked them to create something fun separate from the game system.

Screenshot of 串焼き職人~初夏の風に吹かれて~ (Kushiyaki Shokunin ~Shoka no Kaze ni Furikakete~, Shishkebab Master ~Sprinkled with Early Summer Breeze~). A pink-haired chef is spearing different food ingredients on a skewer from a giant grill. To the side is a line of customers waiting for their orders.

(2022) 串焼き職人~初夏の風に吹かれて~ (Kushiyaki Shokunin ~Shoka no Kaze ni Furikakete~, Shishkebab Master ~Sprinkled with Early Summer Breeze~)

When playing Tails of the Kyuubi in Hard Mode, I feel a real tension over whether I'll be able to clear the game or not, and I feel it's balanced quite well. How did you work on balancing the game this way?

I would adjust the number of dice and test it out, and then repeat that process.

Originally, I only considered the probability of landing on an enemy square, and whether the player would risk taking damage or rerolling. At the time, there was only the Normal Mode, with a scoreboard for players to compete using the number of remaining dice at the end as their score.

However, I realized that if players don't care about their score and just want to clear the game, they could brute-force their way through by rerolling. Since the number of steps required to clear the game was set at 160, I thought that it would be possible to alter the play style by manipulating the numbers and relying on a bit of luck, which led to the implementation of the Hard Mode.

In contrast to the Normal Mode that anyone can easily clear, I feel that players can get a sense of barely squeaking by in the Hard Mode.

Screenshot of ぐるぐるカードバトル (GuruGuru Card Battle). Mage-chan and Shifu-san are standing at the bottom of the screen and looking up at a pyramid-formation of cards. Five card paths are open: Random Buff, an open path, a shield, a Level 2 battle with a bird, and Draw Again. At the bottom of the screen is the player's hand of elemental cards.

(2021) ぐるぐるカードバトル (GuruGuru Card Battle)

Your previous Unity Room games also feature board game-like designs, and use things like dice and cards. Do you play a lot of analog games? Please tell us about the advantages and appeal of designing digital games that resemble analog games.

I love analog games, but since I don't have many friends, I hardly ever play them. It's very sad.

I'm not good at games that require difficult controls, such as action and shooting games. In card and board games, carefully selecting your next move is more important than the controls. So I think one big advantage they have is being able to play and have fun just by clicking, dragging, and dropping objects.

Can you tell us about any other games you worked on in the past?

I made a card game that is based on the card game, War. If you play it in your browser, it is called 「山ぐるぐる札ぐるぐる」 (Yama GuruGuru Fuda GuruGuru). If you are looking for it on smartphones, it is called 「ぐるぐるカードバトル」 (GuruGuru Card Battle). It is the debut title of Shifu-san and Mage-chan, and the story is about their first encounter. Both the browser and smartphone versions are the same game, but the smartphone version goes up to three stages.

Screenshot from ペアダイスバトル (Pair Dice Battle). It is a battle encounter with two enemies (a cat and bird). Both enemies, Mage-chan, and Shifu-san have rolled a dice that chooses from a list of attacks.

(2021) ペアダイスバトル (Pair Dice Battle)

Can you tell us about anything you are currently working on?

Currently, I am working on a new episode, called 「オロチのあたま」 (Heads of the Orochi), for the smartphone version of Tails of the Kyuubi. I'm planning to make it more battle-oriented than the Kyuubi arc.

And another project I have been working on since last year is a remake of 「ペアダイスバトル」 (Pair Dice Battle), which was originally made for a past Unity1Week game jam. The new version will be called 「ペアダイスバトルRE」 (Pair Dice Battle RE) and will release as a smartphone app.

Do you have any messages for your players?

Additional episodes are coming to those who have purchased the smartphone app, so if you are interested, please get Tails of the Kyuubi!

Screenshot from ビートドッジ (Beat Dodge). Shifu-san and Mage-chan are on the left side of a green field, and on the right is a giant tanuki enemy. At the top of the screen are arrow keys matched to the rhythm.

(2022) ビートドッジ (Beat Dodge)

Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us!

日本語 Screenshot of マゲームス３ (Magames 3). Mage-chan and Shifu-san are standing on the left, and to the right is a field of squares filled with enemies. The characters and enemies have number flags over them. At the bottom is a row of numbered cards.

(2021) マゲームス３

自己紹介してください。

マイペースで自由気ままにゲームを制作しています。あまり物事にとらわれず、自分が作りたいものを作るように心がけていますね。ゲーム制作をする前は、声優事務所に所属して演劇してました。

マゲちゃんとシフさんのご紹介もおねがいします。

ThiefのシフさんとMageのマゲちゃんのお笑いコンビ「シフマゲ」で、主にシフさんがボケてマゲちゃんがツッコみます。

シフさんはお調子もので明るく活発な子ですが、ポンコツシーフなので色んな場所でトラブルに巻き込まれます。シフさんに振り回されてマゲちゃんはいつも悪態をつきますが、マゲちゃんにとってシフさんは唯一の友達なので、冒険に誘ってくれて本当は嬉しく思っています。

ゲーム作りを始めたきっかけはなんですか。

ゲーム制作未経験でゲーム会社に応募したらかすりもしなかったので、もう自分で作るしかないと思ったからです。

Screenshot from 数直線上のカルク (Suuchokusenjou no Calc). Mage-chan and Shifu-san are standing on the left, and a giant ape enemy is on the right. Above them is a number line going from -10 to +10. The pointer is currently at +10. In the center is a row of played number cards, and at the bottom are the player and enemy hands.

(2021) 数直線上のカルク

ゲームを作るときに、どのようなプロセスで作成されていますか。

全ては自分が遊びたいの一心で、その為に必要な物を逐次用意していきます。まずある程度のビジュアルから作成します。システムから作っても絵に変化がないと楽しいと思えません。楽しく遊ぶためにもビジュアルから準備します。その後、システムを作ってすぐに遊びます。

先に美味しいところだけ料理してつまみ食いをするので、小規模な企画だと乗り越えられますが、中長期の開発では完成させるのが結構辛いです。

もしよろしければ、ご本人にとって一番好きなゲーム（アナログでもいいし、デジタルでもいい）や好きなジャンルをご紹介お願いします。

デジタルゲームは「UnderTale」と「ヤマふだ！にごうめ」、アナログゲームは「麻雀」と「Domemo」です。

ロジカルな要素と適度な運が必要なゲームが好きなのかもしれません。

Screenshot of the board from Tails of the Kyuubi. Shifu-san is at the starting position, the Kyuubi has only two tails, and there is a scattering of powerful foxes around the board.

(2022) キュウビのしっぽ

この度の「キュウビのしっぽ - ボードゲーム」という作品についてご紹介お願いします。

キュウビのしっぽは周回型すごろくゲームです。所有しているダイスが無くなるまでにフィールドを10周するとクリアですが、一周する毎にプレイヤーの進行を妨害する子狐が現れます。ダイスを振って子狐達を掻い潜り、時にはバトルをしてゴールを目指します。かわいくてコミカルなバトルカットインも大きな特徴です。

「キュウビのしっぽ」を作成するにあたり最も挑戦したことなどはありますか。

演出面です。今までは演出には力を入れず、ゲームシステムだけで楽しさを追求していました。しかし今作は、シンプルなルールゆえにシステムだけでは面白くなりづらいと思いましたので、急遽イラストレーターのICHIさんに声をかけて、ゲームシステムとは別の楽しさを出すようにしました。

Screenshot of 串焼き職人~初夏の風に吹かれて~ (Kushiyaki Shokunin ~Shoka no Kaze ni Furikakete~, Shishkebab Master ~Sprinkled with Early Summer Breeze~). A pink-haired chef is spearing different food ingredients on a skewer from a giant grill. To the side is a line of customers waiting for their orders.

(2022) 串焼き職人~初夏の風に吹かれて~

「キュウビのしっぽ」のハードモードをプレイしたときに、クリアできるかできないかのところで緊張感があり、素晴らしいゲームバランスと思いました。どのようにゲームバランスを調整しましたか？

ダイスの個数調整とテストプレイを繰り返しました。

元々は危険なマスに止まる確率を考慮して、リスクを排除しながら残りダイス数を競うノーマルモードのみでした。しかし、クリアするだけならリダイスし続けるだけのゲームということに気付きました。そこで、クリアに必要な歩数は160歩と決まっていたので、出目操作と少しの運要素で別の遊び方ができるのではないかと思い、ハードモードの実装に至りました。

誰でも簡単にクリアできるノーマルモードがあるおかげで、ハードモードではギリギリのところを攻められたと思います。

Screenshot of ぐるぐるカードバトル (GuruGuru Card Battle). Mage-chan and Shifu-san are standing at the bottom of the screen and looking up at a pyramid-formation of cards. Five card paths are open: Random Buff, an open path, a shield, a Level 2 battle with a bird, and Draw Again. At the bottom of the screen is the player's hand of elemental cards.

(2021) ぐるぐるカードバトル

過去のUnity Roomのゲームでもサイコロやカードを利用したボードゲームのようなデザインが印象的です。普段からアナログゲームをプレイされますか？アナログゲームのようなデザインにする利点や魅力などについて教えてください。

アナログゲームは大好きですが、友人が少ないためほとんどプレイできていません。とても悲しい。

私はアクションやシューティングなどの難しい操作が必要なゲームが得意ではありません。カードやボードゲームは操作よりも選択が重要となるので、クリックとドラッグ&ドロップだけで遊べることが大きなメリットだと思います。

もしよろしければ、これ以外に作成したゲームについてご紹介お願いします。

トランプゲームの戦争をアレンジしたカードゲームで、ブラウザ版だと「山ぐるぐる札ぐるぐる」、スマホ版だと「ぐるぐるカードバトル」です。シフさんとマゲちゃんのデビュー作であり、二人の出会いの物語となります。両方とも同じ作品ですが、スマホ版はステージ3まであります。

Screenshot from ペアダイスバトル (Pair Dice Battle). It is a battle encounter with two enemies (a cat and bird). Both enemies, Mage-chan, and Shifu-san have rolled a dice that chooses from a list of attacks.

(2021) ペアダイスバトル

今はどのようなプロジェクトを進めていますか。今作っているゲームなどをもしよろしければご紹介お願いします。

現在、スマホアプリでキュウビのしっぽの追加エピソード「オロチのあたま」を制作しています。キュウビ編よりもバトル寄りになるように構想しています。

もう一つは、過去にunity1weekで制作した「ペアダイスバトル」のリメイク版「ペアダイスバトルRE」を昨年から進めています。こちらもスマホアプリです。

プレイヤーの皆さんへ何かメッセージがあれば一言お願いします。

追加エピソードはスマホアプリを購入して下さった方への還元作品となりますので、興味が沸いたら買ってください！

Screenshot from ビートドッジ (Beat Dodge). Shifu-san and Mage-chan are on the left side of a green field, and on the right is a giant tanuki enemy. At the top of the screen are arrow keys matched to the rhythm.

(2022) ビートドッジ

この度はインタビューにご協力いただき誠にありがとうございます。

MagechanYou can follow Takahiro Ueda and ICHI on Twitter. Visit Ueda's homepage and Unity Room profile for more games.