... or two of Pokemon Platinum's creators to be exact. Recently IGN.com had the privilege of chatting with two notable members of the Game Freak team in the run-up to Platinum's US release: Junichi Masuda and Takeshi Kawachimaru.
As many of already know, Masuda has been composing music for the Pokemon franchise since 1st Gen. In addition, he has also acted as a game adviser, supervisor, designer (ie. he created the Hoenn region), and most recently as director for Pokemon FR/LG and D/P. His involvement with the Anime series is extensive as well. Safe to say, Masuda is one of the big wigs in the Pokemon world.
Kawachimaru, who joined Game Freak in the year 2000, has worked as a game designer for the franchise since Gen 3. He was also given the opportunity to act as Pokemon Platinum's director.
The interview itself is a good read, but one quote by Kawachimaru stood out to me - mostly because it shares Nintendo's own image with the DSi becoming a more personalized handheld system:
You can read the full interview HERE. Give it a look =)
As many of already know, Masuda has been composing music for the Pokemon franchise since 1st Gen. In addition, he has also acted as a game adviser, supervisor, designer (ie. he created the Hoenn region), and most recently as director for Pokemon FR/LG and D/P. His involvement with the Anime series is extensive as well. Safe to say, Masuda is one of the big wigs in the Pokemon world.
Kawachimaru, who joined Game Freak in the year 2000, has worked as a game designer for the franchise since Gen 3. He was also given the opportunity to act as Pokemon Platinum's director.
The interview itself is a good read, but one quote by Kawachimaru stood out to me - mostly because it shares Nintendo's own image with the DSi becoming a more personalized handheld system:
I think Pokemon has many features that make players feel their Pokemon are their own. Handheld systems have a similar concept; a home video game console is your family's, but the handheld is exclusively yours. So, I think a handheld system is a medium that gives you a strong sense of ownership since you always carry it with you. That's why handheld systems work so well with Pokemon games.
You can read the full interview HERE. Give it a look =)