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[zfunk007]

Hello all, it's been quite a while since I've posted here. But it doesn't mean I love TGL any less! That being said... I have some pretty exciting news that I wanted to share with you all....

I will be interviewing Mr. Moo Niitani himself this week! I'm assuming anyone who frequents this board knows who he is, but in case you don't, he is the founder of Compile and oversaw development of every game they released. He was also the director of The Guardian Legend, so I honestly can't think of a better person to talk to about this game. I was able to track him down through social media and had a friend of mine (who speaks Japanese) reach out to him. He was very warm and accommodating and eager to talk. So the three of us have setup a Skype chat for later this week. Mr. Niitani does speak some English, but it is limited, so my friend will be there to translate when needed.

When the interview is done I plan on doing an article devoted to the interview as well as a full blown video on my YT channel. My channel is called SHMUP Master. The video will detail the making of the Guardian Legend and explain why it is one of the most influential games of all time.

I also reached out to Hardcore Gaming 101 about that video they posted of the Guardian Legend design documents (I noticed there was a thread about them here in this forum as well). They were kind enough to supply me with high resolution scans of all 29 documents. My friend from Japan is in the process of translating them to see if there is any interesting information. I plan on using those in my video as well.

Lastly, I want to ask you guys, the community, if you have any questions you would like me to ask Moo Niitani about The Guardian Legend, or any Compile game. I plan on having my questions done and finalized by Wed with plans on doing the interview either Thursday or Friday. So get them in quick if you have them!

I'm excited! I get to talk to the creator of my favorite NES game! That doesn't happen everyday! 

[optomon]

Wow, amazing. Have to think of something important to ask, chances are he does not remember much.

[zfunk007]

I think you'd be surprised. He seems like a really nice guy and wants to talk about it. We specifically mentioned that the Guardian Legend is the primary topic we want to discuss. So yeah, by all means, if you have questions, let me know and I'll do my best to include them. The interview is set for Tuesday of next week.

[optomon]

If it isn't too late, the one question I'd ask is if they had high hopes that the game would be revolutionary.

[zfunk007]

The interview is tomorrow morning. But I got you covered there

[zfunk007]

Interview went great!

[optomon]

Is there a transcript? That's a great photo of him!

[zfunk007]

Not yet. My friend Jimmy is still working on translating it. It was a long interview and Mr. Niitani spoke only in Japanese (he had trouble understanding the questions in English) so Jimmy had to translate for him on the fly. But hopefully it will be translated before Christmas. I'll post here when it's done. We talked about all sorts of things, but the second half of the interview is just about The Guardian Legend. I plan on releasing the first part of the interview (about Compile and their other games) on my website. The second part I am going to use for my video I am working on for The Guardian Legend. But when I have the full transcript I'll post it here.

Also, if you are interested in some of the takeaways from the interview I posted some in the SHMUP forums. Just scroll down and look for the same screen shot I posted here. The info is below that:

https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=61265&start=30

*EDIT*

Also, I asked him your question. His response was no, they had no expectations at all. With the Guardian Legend, their goal was to make a game that was truly unique, but there were no expectations attached to it. Interesting answer....

[arseniy]

Hey! When you going to post the interview!?
OK. Read on the SHMUP forum it's gonna be next year. Waiting to hear. Please let know here when you release the translated interview!

[deepshock]

Not yet. My friend Jimmy is still working on translating it. It was a long interview and Mr. Niitani spoke only in Japanese (he had trouble understanding the questions in English) so Jimmy had to translate for him on the fly. But hopefully it will be translated before Christmas. I'll post here when it's done. We talked about all sorts of things, but the second half of the interview is just about The Guardian Legend. I plan on releasing the first part of the interview (about Compile and their other games) on my website. The second part I am going to use for my video I am working on for The Guardian Legend. But when I have the full transcript I'll post it here.

Also, if you are interested in some of the takeaways from the interview I posted some in the SHMUP forums. Just scroll down and look for the same screen shot I posted here. The info is below that:

https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=61265&start=30

*EDIT*

Also, I asked him your question. His response was no, they had no expectations at all. With the Guardian Legend, their goal was to make a game that was truly unique, but there were no expectations attached to it. Interesting answer....

I'll definitely give that interview my attention when it becomes public.