Kei Shigema is a novelist and game writer who's worked on numerous projects over the years, including the likes of Asura's Wrath and Scarlet Nexus. But he's best known for Lunar: Silver Star Story and Lunar 2: Eternal Blue, a pair of Sega Saturn and PS1 classics that are now getting a long-overdue remaster. Shigema says he's beyond excited that these beloved JRPGs are getting another chance, even if he's a bit apprehensive about how modern audiences might respond.
"When I saw Grandia being remastered first," Shigema tells 12DOVE through an email interview, "I thought, 'That’s so nice. I’m jealous!'" Grandia was, of course, developed by the same studio as Lunar in Game Arts, and Shigema himself would contribute to the sequel – but it's Lunar that's truly his baby.
"I had been hoping for a Lunar remaster as well," Shigema continues, "so I was thrilled when it was announced. At the same time, I can’t help but wonder – will today’s players still enjoy a game from 30 years ago?" Shigema only consulted for the production of the new Lunar Remastered Collection, which launches next month, but he's nonetheless cognizant of its importance in helping a new audience find these old games. (As a fun aside, he also requested that a scene from the CD version be kept in the remaster.)
"Movies, novels, and manga can be enjoyed in their original form, but games require the hardware they were originally released on, making them far less accessible. While watching old playthrough videos can give you a general idea of what a game is like, as the question suggests, games are ultimately media that must be 'experienced,'" he says.
"Nothing compares to picking up a controller and playing for yourself. That’s why this remaster is so exciting – it brings that experience back for a new generation. I hope that after playing Lunar, players will look up at the moon and think, 'Ah... so that’s where my adventure took place.'"
Shigema describes his time working on Lunar as "the happiest and most fulfilling period of my life," and says "one of the biggest lessons I learned was that games cannot be made by one person. It takes a team of talented developers coming together to create something far greater than what any individual could achieve alone." That experience inspired him to found Gekko Inc, a "game scenario company" that's worked on titles like the 2018 Secret of Mana remake and even the recent Switch RPG, Mario & Luigi: Brothership.
The legacy spawned by Shigema's work on Lunar is still in force, and a whole new generation will have an opportunity to see how it started when the Lunar Remastered Collection hits PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC on April 18. Expect more from our interview with Shigema in the days to come.
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