Many players have heard of Kairosoft’s lineup of simulation games, like Game Dev Story and Hot Springs Story, but in an interview that was done in celebration of Kairosoft games getting Nintendo Switch versions, company founder Kazuyuki Usui and company mascot Kairo-kun sat down for an interview on various topics, including a game that was never finished and was simply titled “Life”. (Thanks, DenFamiNicoGamer!)
Here are the highlights:
Apart from what you submitted, were there any other games you worked hard on?
Kazuyuki Usui, founder, via Kairo-kun: “There are several unfinished games never made public. The one I can show was made in high school, an unfinished title called Life.
What a cool name. And it’s on a floppy disk!
Kairo-kun: “In this game, you can walk around and buy things, such as buying games at the game shop. By the way, this was the version I made in middle school.”
Ohh. It looks a bit like Takeshi’s Challenge.
Kairo-kun: “Next is this version.”
Kairo-kun: “What changed was that you could buy solar panel usage rights, which would slowly add money to your account off the electricity you were selling. You could also do a part-time job at a bookstore or buy stocks.”
Wow… Was this a simulation game about saving money and financial activities?
Kairo-kun: “In terms of content, that’s the case. You could start your own game company or draw and sell your own manga.”
And the goal is to eventually become a millionaire?
Kairo-kun: “The game wasn’t finished, so there is no goal decided yet. I’ve always liked games related to financial activities since the past. This game’s been in development for so long, and only now I’m showing it off… I want to finish this game someday.”
How many ways were there to earn and save money?
Kairo-kun: “I don’t remember the exact amount, but there were a lot. You can buy a lottery ticket as well, for example.”
This might not be a game a high schooler should be making. (laughs)
Kairo-kun: “It’s so grand and large-scale that it’ll never be finished. Even the horse-racing was like Derby Stallion, in that you could look at the horses and the race itself.”
If you’re going that detailed on everything, of course it wouldn’t get finished. (laugh)
Kairo-kun: “That’s why there isn’t a goal set yet. If I continue to develop it, I’ll probably end up detailing this protagonist’s entire life.”
How long did it take to make this much?
Kairo-kun: “Around 1.5 years. I was making other games at the same time, so when you think about it, it wasn’t that long. At first it was made with a very unfocused direction, where in the game world you’d go to work, then after retiring you could become the king of gateball, for example… It’s supposed to be a game where you can experience lots of things.”
