Yoshikawa: The direct catalyst was a conversation with some friends in South Korea. CRT Games, who handled the remake of another one of our properties, Psychic 5, was kicking around the idea and brought it to us, which eventually led to us taking the helm of development.

That timing collided nicely with our own accumulated experience and my personal train of thought. While developing Rushing Beat X earlier this spring, we picked up a lot of know-how on how to build a beat 'em up action game for the modern era. We could already feel from market reactions that there is a stubborn, dedicated fanbase for this genre crying out for fresh titles. Since I personally adore action games, I desperately wanted to carry that momentum forward.

Besides, I firmly believe that IPs sitting in the drawer for ages still harbor plenty of potential. This game boasts distinct characters and a completely unique universe. In particular, places like South Korea and pockets of Asia still hold an intense fondness for it. We wanted to repay that passion while introducing the charm to regions that might have missed it the first time around.

And of course, our ongoing collaboration with Irem ever since the R-TYPE Delta re-release played a huge role. Breathing new life into classic properties for contemporary players gave us the confidence to take on this mountain.

All these factors—the connections, the development reps, and the market pulse—just happened to align right now. We want to make a remake where veteran fans feel like 'it was bloody well worth the wait,' and newcomers think, 'blimey, why didn't I play this sooner?'

Yoshikawa: The absolute hardest part was finding a partner who could actually see the project through to the finish line. Mid-way through, locking down the necessary workforce, budget, and a pipeline that wouldn't collapse under its own weight proved to be a proper headache. Translating raw passion into a functional working environment wasn't easy.

On the development side, G.rev hopped on board from the mid-point to work alongside us, which was massive. On top of that, Taiwan's NADA HOLDINGS expressed a desire to join, turning the entire tide of the project. Once we had a solid structure in place, development picked up serious speed.

Licensing was another logistical puzzle that required someone to play ringleader. Since so much time had bled away, we had to re-establish lines of communication and iron out understandings between Irem and Drew, the original creator of the concepts and characters. I stepped in to bridge that gap and steer the discussions for this remake.

We had to tackle staffing, budgets, and licensing hurdles one by one. Building a cooperative framework across multiple companies to drag this project across the finish line is something we are genuinely proud of.

Watanabe: First off, the visuals. We stuck closely to the original blueprint but polished every minute detail and vastly expanded the animation frames. While we stretched the aspect ratio to fit modern 16:9 monitors, we carefully tweaked enemy placements, camera behavior, and movement so it wouldn't betray the feel of the original arcade cabinet. We also layered in modern 3D lighting effects to give the original art style a bit more visual punch.

Watanabe: Our golden rule was 'don't ruin the original vibe, just make it look lush.' As I mentioned, we introduced 3D lighting processing which simply didn't exist back then. To push that further, we slapped normal maps and emission maps onto the graphics, giving the way light bounces and shadows fall a subtle sense of depth.

We also threw in extra animation patterns to make movement butter-smooth. That said, if you go overboard, it ruins the responsive snap of the controls, so finding that sweet spot was proper tricky.

Watanabe: Green Leaguer is just an inherently fun character to mess around with. We didn't hyper-focus on flattening out the balance differences. It might sound like a cop-out, but our goal is simply to sharpen each character's unique traits and make them feel better to handle.

Watanabe: Ruri is designed as an all-rounder type, very similar to Red. Since she's a fresh addition, we wanted to make sure she was approachable rather than overly niche. Her main gimmick is using pom-poms as weapons. She can handle most situations, though her attack range is a bit shorter compared to Red.

To compensate, her mobility is brilliant. She can pull off command grabs when she closes the distance, or whip out carnival moves from afar, making her adaptable no matter where she is on the screen.

Yoshikawa: I was still just a nipper when the original launched, so I wasn't exactly tracking commercial performance figures at the time. Nor do I have exact sales data or revenue numbers for South Korea lying around today.

However, I've heard plenty of stories from Irem folks and Korean friends about how universally adored it was. It was a staple of local arcades, meaning anyone currently in their 30s or 40s likely pumped coins into it as kids. It's essentially treated as a national arcade treasure over there, and we recognize that fierce affection.

Knowing that people have kept this game alive in their hearts for so long is both a massive privilege and a sobering responsibility for this development cycle. We want to respect those fond childhood memories while ensuring it feels genuinely brilliant to play today.

In that sense, South Korea is easily one of City Connection's most critical markets, and frankly indispensable for this project. We'd love to hear what Korean fans have to say—whether it's nostalgic memories, favorite characters, or what they're hoping to see in this new version. We'll be using that feedback as a vital compass for future development.

Watanabe: The beating heart of this game is undeniably playing together with your mates. Alongside local 4-player co-op, we're supporting remote play across platforms. The Nintendo Switch 2 version will also support shared-screen play, and you can link up local hardware for localized wireless multiplayer.

Watanabe: Spot on. We're launching this across North America and Europe specifically to let more people in on the secret. Drew, the chap who dreamt up the original concepts and characters, is American, which gives the game a natural pedigree overseas. With its flashy heroes and a universe dripping with chaotic humor, we reckon Western players will find plenty to love. Honestly, we're gunning for something that could be dubbed a proper 'post-Ninja Turtles' kind of hit.

It's been wonderful seeing it championed as a hidden gem by overseas outlets over the years. With this remake, we want to deliver that raw character charm and arcade adrenaline to veterans and newbies alike, and hopefully expand the horizons of these characters even further. We're already chatting with Drew about what we can do next beyond just this title to nurture the IP's distinct quirks.

Watanabe: Irem and Drew gave us their absolute full backing for this project. To truly get inside the head of the original creators, they handed over heaps of period documents and notes, and we decided to share a slice of that history with the fans.

Yoshikawa: Bloody oath. If this project performs well, we have an absolute burning desire to push things further. In typical PR interviews, developers usually throw out a safe, corporate 'we'd love to look into a sequel if the stars align' just to appease the crowd. But I'm not blowing smoke here; I genuinely believe this IP has legs for the future. With such eccentric characters and a one-of-a-kind universe, leaving it as a one-off remake feels like a terrible waste.

Of course, we can't promise a sequel is locked in right now. Our absolute priority is shipping this game without compromises so as many people as possible can enjoy it. But if we earn your backing and commercial success follows, our commitment to taking the next step is set in stone. We're already batting around ideas with Drew about what kind of new entry would showcase these characters best. Consider this remake a definitive first step toward evolving the Ninja Baseball Batman legacy.