This year, the Chicago Electronic Consumer Exhibition was postponed.
It was said that at first, the organizers didn't have enough funds and weren't very keen on holding this event, even considering shutting it down permanently.
Later, after collecting some sponsorship fees from game giants, it was able to be held.
However, the date had to be pushed back; the electronics exhibition, originally scheduled for July, was delayed until September.
Then Sega said, "Can it be pushed back a bit more?" because they wanted to release a very important product at the exhibition.
Of course, others didn't know what it was, but Aoki Haruhi could roughly guess—
Sega Saturn.
A 32-bit game console.
It was considered Sega's trump card.
An ambitious work developed to seize the console market.
So, to give Sega face, the entire Electronic Consumer Exhibition was postponed by another month, moving it to October.
Just thinking about how each company would bring out their hidden treasures at this exhibition, Aoki Haruhi felt a chill down his spine.
1994 was destined to be a century-long battle in the game world.
Sega's saturn, Sony PS, 3DO's 3DO, and even Apple wanted to get involved.
It was a struggle for supremacy!
In such a situation, Pokeni seemed a bit insignificant.
Damn it…
We are clearly going to promote a world-class masterpiece like diablo ii!
…
However, when Aoki Haruhi thought about facing Sega, Sony, 3DO, and a bunch of other big names at the same time, he felt a bit flustered.
The Sony PS was about to be released, but the pokémon 3d world here was not yet complete.
Not to mention the new game promised to Nakayama Hayao for the saturn console, Pokeni simply didn't have enough staff.
Besides the troublesome Chicago Electronic Consumer Exhibition, Hayao Miyazaki also made it difficult for him to choose.
If it was just Old Miyazaki inviting him to travel and stay on Yakushima for 7 days, that would definitely be impossible.
Who wants to have a two-person world with a grumpy old man?
But with Joe Hisaishi, it was different. Aoki Haruhi felt a strong urge to try it, thinking about being able to get Joe Hisaishi to produce music in the future.
The schedules conflicted, and now was the time to test Aoki Haruhi's time management skills!
Aoki Haruhi thought carefully and decided to go to Yakushima first to spend a few happy days with the two masters, and then fly to Chicago.
In Chicago, he could have Takashi Kazuma, the company's operations director, prepare for battle in advance.
At that time, Takashi Kazuma could explain and demonstrate the diablo ii part.
…
Compared to those, the first thing to arrive was the PV for “LIFE-LINE”:
One month after Pokeni's CL was released, major TV stations broadcasted the new PV for LIFE-LINE.
Sunlight pierced through the clouds, spilling onto the ground.
The world was all white.
However, in this white world, there was a peaceful and quiet town in the distance.
The outer walls of the town were Gray, as if frozen, lifeless.
One could tell at a glance how dilapidated and decaying it was, with hardly anyone on the streets.
At the same time, a sorrowful and melodious BGM sounded, like the cold wind in winter, making the entire game atmosphere even more mournful.
Atsushi Shirakawa composed “Light Snow” for “LIFE-LINE.”
At the same time, the male protagonist's voice sounded in the picture.
Since the voice actor for Okazaki Tomoya in CL was the same person, it gave the audience a sense of déjà vu that Tomoya was back.
“This is an inconspicuous town, very desolate. Although you can hear the sound of tides outside, it only makes this town feel even more lonely.”
“No sound, no superfluous words.”
“No bustling scenes as imagined.”
“Loneliness exists here at all times.”
“However, I think this is exactly the place I want to find.”
As the male protagonist's words fell, the camera pulled back.
A young man, dressed in thick clothes, gently held a little girl's hand.
The two left a trail of footprints in the snow.
Walking towards the town in the distance.
“Is this where we can find happiness?”
The male protagonist asked softly.
“My daughter, Nare, has suffered from severe eye disease since childhood. What she sees in her eyes is completely different from mine, and she cannot perceive this world.”
“However, my daughter and I share the same desire to pursue happiness.”
“For this goal, we have been wandering.”
“Is this where we can find happiness?” The male protagonist asked again.
“What kind of world is it in my daughter's eyes?”
The BGM suddenly changed, becoming lively and cheerful.
Because the whole world had changed.
The scene was not quite the same as the world perceived by humans.
So this part of the content should be describing the world through the daughter's eyes.
The snow on the ground was not white, but pink.
The sky was filled with an infinite array of vibrant colors.
The entire game world became bizarre and colorful, and the people had strange shapes, not human, but more like pieced-together pigments.
It was as if Master Miyazaki Hayao had spilled his paint palette, directly splashing it onto the already drawn game world.
Coupled with the lively and cheerful BGM, the entire PV atmosphere immediately became relaxed and pleasant.
Following this, the main characters in the game appeared one after another.
The PV screen switched back and forth between the “Normal World” and the “Colorful World.”
At the end of the PV, the male protagonist held his daughter's hand, his face full of smiles, and the two ran across a pink bridge.
Towards the direction of the endless sky.
In the sky, a city of dazzling colors floated.
“Perhaps, this is the answer we are looking for.”
“Happiness or sorrow, which one will arrive first?”
Click.
The PV ended abruptly here.
The Pokeni logo appeared at the end of the promotional video.
“LIFE-LINE”
“Life is a journey of miracles.”
“Sorrow and happiness, which one will arrive first?”
“Furuhara Tsubaki's comeback work.”
“Available for sale in major game stores starting November 8th.”
“Stay tuned.”
…
After watching the PV, Hiruta Masato, the president of Elf Society, trembled his fingers and almost knocked over the coffee cup beside him.
“I… amazing!”
The opening PV originally gave him the illusion of still being in CL, because both games were drawn by Hayao Miyazaki, so they seemed somewhat similar. Except for some scenes and character parts, the visual experience truly felt very much like CL.
And that sad atmosphere made Hiruta Masato feel an urge to cry.
Mainly because CL was too deeply ingrained in people's hearts.
But what he never expected was that from the part where the daughter's eye problem was introduced, the art style of the entire world changed.
Bizarre and colorful scenes, full of endless imagination.
Huge, strange, and beautiful creatures floating in the sky.
Pink snowflakes covering the ground…
The whole world was different, and the originally silent town seemed to come alive.
No, to be precise, this was no longer a town, but an unknown land full of endless charm and hidden treasures.
The father and daughter were like two brave adventurers exploring in an Different World.
This imagination was truly stunning.
“This is Hayao Miyazaki!”
This was the Hayao Miyazaki that Hiruta Masato knew and remembered.
In CL's script, because it needed to be realistic and depict life, the space for Old Miyazaki to display his talent was actually very limited.
But when it came to LL, the female protagonist's world in her eyes was unique. This setting alone gave Hayao Miyazaki unlimited vast space to showcase his talent.
Thus, Hiruta Masato could clearly feel the differentiation of LL.
“Master Miyazaki is indeed Master Miyazaki.”
It was as if he had suddenly let himself go.
What kind of game was this? It was clearly a Hayao Miyazaki animation!
Other things aside, this visual sense alone was very rare.
“Is this still a galgame?” Hiruta Masato could no longer describe the feeling in words.
Other things he didn't know for now, but one thing he was very clear about—
Just based on the visuals and setting in this game, Hayao Miyazaki's fans could praise it for years.
“It seems LL is going to be a huge hit again!”
…
As soon as the PV came out, Pokeni players immediately exploded into discussion.
“Wow, the LL PV is too amazing, isn't it?”
Players' first reaction was naturally a visual one, which was the same as Hiruta Masato's.
Because this was also everyone's most intuitive memory.
“Hayao Miyazaki's art style is truly impressive, and to describe the bizarre and colorful scenes in the unique eyes of the daughter, he made thorough preparations.
It is said that to draw these parts well, Hayao Miyazaki's hair turned white.”
“Huh? Isn't Hayao Miyazaki's hair already white?”
“Hmm… it's not important, these details are not important. What's important is that the art style of this game is indeed very surprising. Hayao Miyazaki is truly a national treasure master.”
“Yes, that's right. At the beginning, I thought LL was a story with a similar setting to CL: an ordinary town, seaside, snowy ground, daughter…
I was thinking at the time, isn't this Tomoya and his daughter Ushio?
When I saw this, dead memories resurfaced, killing me again.
Tears were constantly welling up in my eyes.
But at this moment, the art style suddenly changed, and the whole world became colorful.
Can you imagine how I felt at that moment?
I was suddenly pulled out of the abyss and directly lifted into the sky.
And it was the sky of a fairy tale kingdom.
Pink bubbles were floating all around.”
“Hmm, very interesting. This part alone makes me want to get LL.”
“But have you ever thought that this game is very likely to be a tear-jerking game, no less impactful than CL?”
“Sadness, you saw the word ‘sadness’, right? Don't be fooled by the colorful world later; that's just the world in the daughter's eyes, and it doesn't have much to do with the real world.
Moreover, from the initial atmosphere to the final monologue, there is actually endless sadness embedded within.
‘Happiness and sadness, which one will arrive first?’
See, how straightforward.
This is already explicitly telling you that this game is a tear-jerking masterpiece, definitely a crying game.
And it's also a work by Furuhara Tsubaki.
Don't be fooled by the process in the middle!”
“But isn't the end of the game very lively and cheerful? Ever since the whole world changed in the daughter's eyes, I felt that the atmosphere of the PV at that time was truly joyful.”
“Run, you fools! Haven't you played Pokeni's game? The more joyful it is at the beginning, the more happiness it makes you feel, the harsher the knife will be later.
Sometimes I even think, if there weren't those earlier joys and happiness, making you feel warm and wonderful, then you wouldn't be moved by the later heart-wrenching scenes.”
“Perhaps you would still be moved. But without the previous foreshadowing and contrast, the later emotional impact wouldn't be as strong.
It also wouldn't make people want to kill Old Thief Furuhara.”
“Yes, this is the old thief's usual trick, don't fall for it!”
The LL game PV was so well done that it made people feel uneasy, wondering if there would be a trap inside.
Players discussed a lot on the pokeni Community forum, but in the end, they didn't come to a conclusion.
“In short, the final actual effect will still depend on the release. You can't know the truth without truly experiencing it in the game.
Think about it, when the CL PV came out, how many people looked down on this game, thinking the setting was too ordinary, and that Old Thief Furuhara had run out of talent?
Now, prejudging that LL must be a tear-jerking game might also be premature and a wrong judgment from everyone, who knows?”
“Impossible! Is this your first day knowing Old Thief Furuhara? This game clearly has the words ‘sadness’ displayed on the screen, and you still want to deceive yourself and tell everyone this is a joyful game?
It's clearly self-deception.”
“If this LL game doesn't make me cry, I'll eat shit standing on my head!”
“Pfft… Do you want to bet that big?”
“What if Furuhara Tsubaki saw this comment and changed the ending overnight?”
“Just to make me eat shit? Then I'm willing. Sacrifice me for everyone's happiness.”
“Ah~ I'm really going to cry, this game player is too good, isn't he?”
…
Besides the heated discussions about the game visuals and whether LL would be a crying game, the most frequently mentioned topic by players was the character design.
Other things were fine, but the focus was mainly on the male protagonist.
The male protagonist in LL was different from the galgame male protagonists that everyone knew. In LIFE-LINE, Hayao Miyazaki specifically added a pair of black-rimmed glasses.
This instantly lowered the male protagonist's attractiveness by several levels, forming a stark contrast with Pokeni's previous male protagonist images.
Even the male protagonist dubbed the ugliest in Pokeni's history, the “Quilt Man,” besides being wrapped in a quilt all year round, his face was actually good-looking.
“Huh? I never expected Pokeni's game male protagonist this time to be so ordinary, and he even wears a pair of black-rimmed glasses.”
“Can such a male protagonist really conquer beautiful girls?”
“This is the first time I've seen a male protagonist wearing black-rimmed glasses. Could this be Hayao Miyazaki himself?”