1-Sine Mora and Black Knight Sword are both a 2D side scroller action. In an era of high end graphics and new gaming technology, what pushed you to go for an old-school approach?

Regarding Black Knight Sword, we've chosen this old-school approach because we are in an era of high end graphics and new gaming technology. Black Knight Sword looks 2D, but it actually uses 3D models. That's how we create this unique strange world. If you play it, you'd probably see that you can do so much more actions than you'd expect at the beginning. We wanted to make it more accessible, so that's why we've chosen this to be a digital distribution title.


2-Is both Digital Reality and Grasshopper Manufacture’s influence equal in the making of this game?

For Sine Mora, Grasshopper provided the concept art, boss characters and environment design and the sound. For Black Knight Sword, Grasshopper developed and Digital Reality provided the feedback on game design.


3-What does it feel to work side by side with the legendary Suda “Suda 51” Goichi?

It's very interesting and fun. Suda is involved in production for all games created at Grasshopper Manufacture. How he is involved depends on the project, but he gets a handle on the development status of each project daily to give great feedback to staff members.
He also writes for INSIDE51, his own section on weekly Famitsu (the leading Japanese videogame magazine). He receives interviews often and he is constantly making his voice heard in one way or another.


4-Tell us more about Sine Mora concept, and why it was switched to a Xbox Live Arcade exclusive?

This was a decision made by Digital Reality.


5-The iconic Akira Yamaoka is working on the soundtrack of Sine Mora. He’s best known for his work in the horror genre, so why is he in charge of the musical score?

Akira Yamaoka manages all the sound of Grasshopper Manufacture. It doesn't necessarily mean that he'd create all the songs, but he oversees the songs and sounds of all projects here. So it's a matter of course to have his involvement in this project as well.


6-Black Knight Sword is fairly dark at a first glance. What’s with the puppet show gameplay? I think you guys call it an Interactive Kamishibai right?

The game is unique with a theatrical stage setting that reminds you of a pop-up picture book. This title with its Gothic horror is also inspired by the collaboration with Digital Reality which is in Eastern Europe. Also, normally you'd imagine a white knight, but our knight is "black". Eastern European animation is the origin of the concept.


7-Can you tell us more about what Black Knight Sword will bring to the table? It is after all a nostalgic way of remaining the 8 bit days of platformers.

The concept was to have the currently 20 to 40 year-old game players reminisce about their time with 2D side scrolling action games on the famicon [Known as Nes in the West]. We hope to create a good game which has a classic nostalgic feeling as well as new and fun sword actions.


8-Any last message to your Middle Eastern fans?

When Yamaoka visited Saudi Arabia for an event the other day, he received a very warm welcome and we were very honored and happy to hear that. We really appreciate that people take interest in our culture and also support us while we imagine it is a completely different world with a different culture from ours. We hope to be able to join events in the Middle East in one way or another.



Thank you so much for your time Rie, or as it would be more proper to say "domo arigatou gozaimasu"