When it comes to defining the visuals and setting of a game, a lot of work goes into making them unique and memorable. But how exactly did you tackle creating the core gameplay and story?
Fukushima: For the core gameplay, Acquire came up with a fantastic initial idea, which we decided to prototype. The proposal outlined something like this: “Imagine a Mario story that’s distinctly yours, filled with adventures on drifting islands.”
Ohashi: The drifting islands concept really intrigued me. Discovering new islands, embarking on adventures, making friends with the locals—it sounded exciting. I loved the idea of connecting these islands and growing your team of allies for new adventures.
Otani: Honestly, it was a brilliant idea. No one at Nintendo had thought of such a concept during our brainstorming sessions. The idea of linking different islands together isn’t something that comes up often. (Laughs)
Ohashi: However, capturing that familiar “Mario & Luigi-like” atmosphere took a while, which pushed back testing this new gameplay element. When we were working on the drifting island concept, it took some time before we had concrete ideas to show Nintendo, and I think they were a bit concerned.
Otani: I’ll admit, I was starting to worry. Fukushima and I kept wondering when Acquire would finally present their proposals. (Laughs)
Fukushima: But Ohashi is the kind of guy who likes to think things through thoroughly before presenting his solutions, so we had confidence in him. Still, we had a number of internal strategy meetings to discuss how long we should wait. (Laughs)
Ohashi: In this game, Shipshape Island is like home base for Mario and his crew. They set off on this floating island on the ocean, stopping at various other islands for adventures. But finalizing the mechanics for this—like how the island would roam around the vast ocean—took quite a bit of time.
Fukushima: Normally, gameplay and story directions are finalized early in development, allowing us to polish the details over time. However, this process took longer than anticipated. While developing the battles and in-game actions, some aspects weren’t finalized, such as Shipshape Island’s navigation, the game’s scope, or the islands’ themes. At times, it felt like chasing rainbows, which was quite demanding.
Otani: We also faced a major difference in development approaches. In previous entries, gameplay was prioritized, with the plot woven in to enhance it, meaning the director led everything. However, Acquire took a different approach: Ohashi focused on the drifting islands gameplay, while an external company worked on the story in parallel. But being an RPG, we needed to mesh the story and gameplay seamlessly in order to make any progress.
Ohashi: The story writing team also had a hard time capturing that “Mario & Luigi-like” quality in their narratives.
But eventually, you did have a breakthrough, right?
Ohashi: Yes, definitely. I think it was when we were brainstorming the plot and decided to assign specific themes to each sea—like the first one centered around “family” and the next on “friends.”
Fukushima: Exactly, that’s when everything started to click. The theme of “connection” really solidified things. Our gameplay involved connecting islands, but it also reflected the bonds between the people on those islands.
