The pursuit was to create a game with the kind of interaction and gameplay that only analog can provide!　Interview with "Shadowverse EVOLVE" Producer Tadato Kimura on the differences between digital and digital players.

The competitive online TCG "Shadowverse" became a real card game "Shadowverse EVOLVE" and was released on April 28, 2022.

The game is a collaboration between Cygames, operator of the "Shadowverse" app game, and Bushiroad, which has expertise in trading card games. Please read the article here.

⇒ This is the TCG to play in GW! We report from Akihabara on the release day of "Shadowverse EVOLVE," a major TCG title that was filled with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a signing session by Tadato Kimura, Producer! There is also an interview with Chairman Kiya!

Akiba Research Institute interviewed the producer of "Shadowverse" and the creator of "Shadowverse EVOLVE", Tadato Kimura.

Shadowverse EVOLVE" started with an approach to Chairman Kitani

─ On April 28, the analog trading card game version of "Shadowverse EVOLVE" was released. A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at the AKIHABARA Gamers main store on that day, wasn't it?

Producer Tadato Kimura (Kimura P): Yes, it was the first time for me to experience such an event, which is not often done for digital games (laughs). It was a good experience for me because it is not something you get to experience very often. We were very grateful that so many fans came on a weekday morning.

I was also surprised that the people who came to the game lined up almost directly for Kimura's autograph session.

P. Kimura: I don't usually do signings, but I have never made an analog game before, so this project has given me a lot of new experiences.

─ I heard that you yourself used to be an analog TCG player.

P. Kimura: I still do. I mainly played "Magic: The Gathering. I've even won a few Grand Prix tournaments on the second day.

─ ─ Shota Yatsuoka, one of the development members of "Shadowverse EVOLVE," is also a famous "Magic: The Gathering" player, isn't he?

P. Kimura: Yes, Hachijuoka-kun is also a "Magic: The Gathering" connection. We have a professional "Magic: The Gathering" player team called Team Cygames. He also helped us with the production of this game.

─ As an analog game player, how did you feel when you saw the IP "Shadowverse" that you have nurtured for many years being sold in stores as a card game?

P. Kimura: It's a strange feeling. It's a strange feeling to see the characters that I have worked with for so many years through the "Shadowverse" series in a card game on store shelves, and I am deeply moved.

─ ─ Mr. Kitani of Bushiroad thanked you for the speedy development and getting the game ready in time for Golden Week.

P. Kimura: I don't like to talk about how quickly production progressed, because people might think that I'm making the game at random (laughs), but I want to reassure them that we are making it properly.

──Wasn't it at the time of the dinner with Mr. Kitani that you were approached by Producer Kimura about making an analog TCG?

P. Kimura: Yes, I made the proposal during the dinner, and he was very enthusiastic about it, so it became a reality.

Arranging an analog TCG

─ What was the idea behind the idea of making an analog TCG of "Shadowverse"?

P. Kimura: Many of the card games in the world are created as analog TCGs, and then digital versions are created from there. We are only working on the digital version, but when you create an analog to digital TCG, there is a sense that you have to faithfully reproduce the analog version. Shadowverse" was originally designed as a digital game, so you can't just bring it to analog. That is why I thought there was a possibility to create a new analog game. I thought there would be places where it would be difficult to play as is. I thought that because we were porting the game from digital to analog, we could offer something optimized for analog games. Rather than daring to do an analog version, we thought that since other TCG titles usually have both digital and analog environments, it would be desirable to have an environment where the game can be played in both.

───How is producer Kimura involved in the development of "Shadowverse EVOLVE"?

P. Kimura: As I mentioned earlier, the game was first created at my initiative. The game designer of "Shadowverse", Mr. Miyashita (Naoyuki Miyashita, Cygames), was originally an analog card gamer, and we decided on the format of the game with him. I was involved in the product's content, what kind of game we wanted it to be, and its promotion.

─ You have made some drastic changes, such as the integration of classes (leader types).

P. Kimura: That part of the change was not my opinion, but rather something that came out of our discussions. The basic system is that cards of different classes cannot be used, so we felt that if there were too many leader types (depending on the play style), the percentage of cards that could not be used would increase when purchasing packs. So we had to reduce the number of classes.

─ ─ Vampire and Necromancer were merged to become Nightmare, and Nemesis and others were not adopted. Was there a bottleneck due to the unique digital processing?

P. Kimura: The Nemesis is the best class that can be used in a digital card game. We are thinking of utilizing this aspect in other ways, such as having Nemesis cards appear as cards of other classes, and having them act like Nemesis cards. I don't want to do an analog process of counting and referencing artifacts, so I'm thinking about it a lot.

─ ─ Single card sales were already very exciting at the stores, but I guess the different designs of Ultimate Rare cards are an element unique to analog TCGs, aren't they?

P. Kimura: The greatest appeal of analog card games is that you have the real cards at hand and can own them. Of course, there are different pictures in digital games as well, but rare cards with attractive pictures in analog games are very exciting.

─ What do you think is the charm of "Shadowverse EVOLVE" that you were able to express only with analog cards?

P. Kimura: I wanted to make it a communication game because it is played face to face. I wanted it to be a game of communication, so I wanted to make it a game where players can communicate with their opponents. Shadowverse EVOLVE" has a "quick" element that allows players to act on their opponent's turn. The ability to move on your opponent's turn allows you to read each other, which I think is an appealing feature of analog games.

─ ─ It is only in analog games that you can say "Wait a minute, I'll use this card there" during the opponent's turn, isn't it?

P. Kimura: Yes, I think that is the best thing about analog games and the biggest difference between analog and digital games.

───The sense of time spent in one play is also quite different, isn't it?

P. Kimura: That's right. Compared to the digital version, where you have to play a number of games, I think the game is designed so that players can spend a little more time on each game and enjoy it.

───It seems that even simple processes such as "random selection" and "card generation" are difficult to reproduce in the analog version. Wasn't there a lot of hard work involved?

P. Kimura: Well, once the game was created, it seemed like the right thing to do, but at first it was difficult in many ways. I think people are playing the game naturally now, but the big question was how much to change from the digital version of "Shadowverse". The question of how much to change was always a problem that haunted us during development. Actually, the rules have changed in a surprisingly large number of ways.

I felt that we were able to keep the playability of the game close to the original.

P. Kimura: I think that when you play the game, you will feel that it is the "Shadowverse". Actually, at first the game was a little more like the digital version, but I felt that it lacked the fun of the analog version, so I made some drastic changes. There are no evolution rights or anything like that now, and it was one of the points where we made the most adjustments, such as whether all cards should be able to evolve.

What are the future developments that you are interested in: ......?

─ I think that multiplayer matches are one of the unique elements of analog games. Is "Shadowverse EVOLVE" intended to be played by multiple players?

P. Kimura: This is not so much a concept as a plan, but rather we are leaving room for users to freely enjoy the game. I myself used to enjoy multiplayer games with trading card games that did not have official rules, and I feel that there is potential for a style of game where not only one-on-one play but also multiplayer play is possible. The card texts are also written in advance, such as whether the target is one opponent or all the opponents, so now, first of all, we want users to play freely.

─ What do you think about the user movement, such as digital players playing the analog version and vice versa?

P. Kimura: We don't want to make it so that people have to play both to enjoy the game, so there is no problem if they play only one of the two. We would like to have some kind of synergy, such as giving away cards of the other version at one tournament, or holding an analog tournament as a side event of a big digital tournament. We are thinking of holding an analog tournament as a side event of a big digital tournament. I think that if people play either analog or digital, they will naturally become interested in the other without us forcing them. Both are part of Shadowverse.

─ ─ From your point of view, do you think there are differences in the conditions for strong players between digital and analog card games?

P. Kimura: I think that in card games, the strongest players are those who can pay attention to the smallest details. In analog games, the level of detail is higher, and you have to manage the whole game by yourself. In terms of playing, I think there is a difference in that you have more information about your opponent in analog games. I think that people who can read information from their opponents' moves, facial expressions, and atmosphere are stronger in analog card games. I think there is a subtle difference between that element of the game as a versus game and pure reading in a digital game. Even in "Magic: The Gathering," there was often a difference between those who were strong online and those who were strong in a face-to-face match. It is true that there are differences, but they are also very deep and difficult to understand.

──Digital players are very strict about managing their playing time, and with complex decks, they are often pressed for time.

P. Kimura: I think there is no doubt that people who are good at playing fast are strong in digital. If you finish your turn early, you can cut down your opponent's thinking time.

─ ─ Do you have any suggestions for how you would like the analog version of "Shadowverse EVOLVE" to be enjoyed?

P. Kimura: We are happy to have players play in any way they want. You can mix and match classes, or you can build your own deck from the packs you just opened. I think the beauty of analog is that you can play with many people and play in any way you like.

─ Do you envision so-called shield games (where players build decks from opened packs) or draft games (where each player selects one card from a communal card pool to build a deck)?

P. Kimura: Yes, we are thinking of doing something like that in the near future. For now, we would like players to enjoy normal play.

─ ─ Do you have any last messages for us?

P. Kimura: We are able to release "Shadowverse EVOLVE" thanks to everyone who has supported "Shadowverse" so far. I think there are many interesting features that are different from the app version, so I would be very happy if you could play the game.

(Reporting, writing, and photography by Kiri Nakazato)

Product Information

Shadowverse EVOLVE Booster Pack #1 "Dawn of Genesis

On sale now

Price: 385 yen per pack (8 cards), 6,160 yen per box (16 packs) (tax included)

Planning: Cygames, Inc.

Publisher: Bushiroad Inc.

Six Shadowverse EVOLVE Starter Decks

Starter Deck #1: "Reishi no nymph princess" (Class: Elf)

Starter Deck #2: "The Grudge Sword Demon" (Class: Royal)

Starter Deck No.3 "Mystical Alchemy" (Class: Witch)

Starter Deck No.4 "Claw Fang of the Serpent Dragon" (Class: Dragon)