Support NeoGAF

Jea Song · May 3, 2014

Ok I know he lefted Sega awhile back to make his own studio prope or something but what the heck has he done since?

I wish he kept at sonic team and Sega developing new titles or making actual good sonic games. To me along with Yu Suzuki, he totally dropped off the radar since the dreamcast failed.

I wish all these forgotten developers could do something with the indie community and make great games again.

RagnarokX · May 3, 2014

Well, for some reason he was given credit for creating Sonic when he was just lead programmer, and after getting rid of everyone that actually knew how to make good Sonic games and running Sonic into the ground he left to make his own company and still didn't know how to make games.

Aaron Strife · May 3, 2014

He's made a few smaller titles with PROPE but yeah not really anything of significance.

Coxy · May 3, 2014

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=703045

he's working on some kind of small action game for PS4 and xbone

Sylverstone14 · May 3, 2014

The last game I can recall PROPE coming out with was one of the StreetPass games (Monster Manor) on the 3DS.

Also, speaking of Naka and PROPE, where in the world is Rodea the Sky Soldier?

Morgadeth · May 3, 2014

Prope developed StreetPass Mansion/Monster Manor on 3DS released last year.

edit beaten

stuminus3 · May 3, 2014

Yuji Naka, Yu Suzuki. One of these things is not like the other.

AcceptableGhost · May 3, 2014

Sylverstone14 said:
The last game I can recall PROPE coming out with was one of the StreetPass games (Monster Manor) on the 3DS.

Also, speaking of Naka and PROPE, where in the world is Rodea the Sky Soldier?

I think it was completed and not released.

clem84 · May 3, 2014

Too bad he's not working on PSO2

Hades Hotgun · May 3, 2014

RagnarokX said:
Well, for some reason he was given credit for creating Sonic when he was just lead programmer, and after getting rid of everyone that actually knew how to make good Sonic games and running Sonic into the ground he left to make his own company and still didn't know how to make games.

Wait, didn't Naka get axed by Sega in Japan, then get hired by Cerny in the US, and go on to make Sonic 2, 3, and Knuckles while the other original Sonic team worked on all the shit Sonic games like CD, 3D Blast, and Sonic R?

I would trash Naoto Oshima as the guy who doesn't know how to make games WAY more than Naka.

RagnarokX · May 3, 2014

Aegis Vanguard said:
Wait, didn't Naka get axed by Sega in Japan, then get hired by Cerny in the US, and go on to make Sonic 2, 3, and Knuckles while the other original Sonic team worked on all the shit Sonic games like CD, 3D Blast, and Sonic R?

I would trash Naoto Oshima as the guy who doesn't know how to make games WAY more than Naka.

Naoto Oshima created the character, Yuji Naka did programming, but the real man who made Sonic what it was was Hirokazu Yasuhara.

Sonic the Hedgehog (1991) — Game Planner
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992) — Game Planner, Object Placement
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (1994) — Director, Lead Game Designer
Sonic & Knuckles (1994) — Director, Lead Game Designer
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles (1994) — Director, Lead Game Designer

He designed the gameplay and levels. Sonic 2 was designed in the US by Sega Technical Institute. Naka hated working with Americans and for some reason had enough sway with Sega to force them to make Sonic 3 Japanese-only staff. He was producer for Sonic 3 and he felt that after 2 games they'd done enough and wanted to radically change Sonic into something different (which eventually became the awful Sonic 3D Blast) but he relented and made a 2D sidescroller due to pressure from Sega.

Both Oshima and Naka get too much credit. Oshima made Sonic CD without Yasuhara and it shows. Sonic took a major turn for the worse when Naka got more control and Yasuhara left.

Takao · May 3, 2014

Prope has been busy:
http://prope.jp/game.html
http://iprope.com/index_j.html

How much of that involves Naka is a mystery.

Killer Yakuza B · May 3, 2014

The PROPE games I've played have been very good. Fishing Resort in particular was fantastic, but even "smaller" games like Let's Tap, Ivy the Kiwi and Let's Catch were good, decent games worth checking out. I even go as far as saying that Fishing Resort and Monster Manor are the best games that Yuji Naka has worked on.

Elfforkusu · May 3, 2014

RagnarokX said:
Naoto Oshima created the character, Yuji Naka did programming, but the real man who made Sonic what it was was Hirokazu Yasuhara.

Sonic the Hedgehog (1991) Game Planner
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992) Game Planner, Object Placement
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (1994) Director, Lead Game Designer
Sonic & Knuckles (1994) Director, Lead Game Designer
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles (1994) Director, Lead Game Designer

He designed the gameplay and levels. Sonic 2 was designed in the US by Sega Technical Institute. Naka hated working with Americans and for some reason had enough sway with Sega to force them to make Sonic 3 Japanese-only staff. He was producer for Sonic 3 and he felt that after 2 games they'd done enough and wanted to radically change Sonic into something different (which eventually became the awful Sonic 3D Blast) but he relented and made a 2D sidescroller due to pressure from Sega.

Both Oshima and Naka get too much credit. Oshima made Sonic CD without Yasuhara and it shows. Sonic took a major turn for the worse when Naka got more control and Yasuhara left.

Which leads to the real question,

What's Yasuhara working on these days? I know he was at Naughty Dog for a while, but isn't he at NST now?

IrishNinja · May 3, 2014

so this is one of those threads where we pretend Naka didn't program the dungeons in Phantasy Star 1 right

for real, i get that he's overcredited on Sonic (despite his contributions) but the backlash seems entirely based on Let's Tap or some shit, the man was difficult to work with no doubt but he had his hand in some absolute classics.

ioriyagami · May 3, 2014

Elfforkusu said:
Which leads to the real question,

What's Yasuhara working on these days? I know he was at Naughty Dog for a while, but isn't he at NST now?

Where his talents can be really put to good use

EDIT: uhm...so yeah, NST (didn't recognize the acronym)

SegaShack · May 3, 2014

Naka really was a genius programmer. The stuff he did, even for just Sonic 1 should have been impossible. What he accomplished with 3 and Knuckles is just insane. The Sonic games are just flawless in performance, control, speed, collision, etc.

He does not get too much credit because really the games wouldn't even be close to what they are without him.

Joe_Incognito · May 3, 2014

Killer Yakuza B said:
The PROPE games I've played have been very good. Fishing Resort in particular was fantastic, but even "smaller" games like Let's Tap, Ivy the Kiwi and Let's Catch were good, decent games worth checking out. I even go as far as saying that Fishing Resort and Monster Manor are the best games that Yuji Naka has worked on.

Fishing Resort is a masterpiece. I don't say that with an intention towards hyperbole, I actually mean it. The game is so perfect and so zen. My brother and I played it for so many hours. It's one of my all time favorite Wii games.

Oblivion · May 3, 2014

RagnarokX said:
Naoto Oshima created the character, Yuji Naka did programming, but the real man who made Sonic what it was was Hirokazu Yasuhara.

Sonic the Hedgehog (1991) Game Planner
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992) Game Planner, Object Placement
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (1994) Director, Lead Game Designer
Sonic & Knuckles (1994) Director, Lead Game Designer
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles (1994) Director, Lead Game Designer

He designed the gameplay and levels. Sonic 2 was designed in the US by Sega Technical Institute. Naka hated working with Americans and for some reason had enough sway with Sega to force them to make Sonic 3 Japanese-only staff. He was producer for Sonic 3 and he felt that after 2 games they'd done enough and wanted to radically change Sonic into something different (which eventually became the awful Sonic 3D Blast) but he relented and made a 2D sidescroller due to pressure from Sega.

Both Oshima and Naka get too much credit. Oshima made Sonic CD without Yasuhara and it shows. Sonic took a major turn for the worse when Naka got more control and Yasuhara left.

Who directed Sonic 1/2?

RagnarokX · May 3, 2014

SegaShack said:
Naka really was a genius programmer. The stuff he did, even for just Sonic 1 should have been impossible. What he accomplished with 3 and Knuckles is just insane. The Sonic games are just flawless in performance, control, speed, collision, etc.

He does not get too much credit because really the games wouldn't even be close to what they are without him.

Right. He's a great programmer. Designing levels and gameplay... not so much. He's not really the ideas guy. He gets too much credit because he gets credit for the whole shebang. Where Sonic went to shit is when the guy who was in charge of the gameplay and level design and overall concepts left and Naka and Iizuka were put in charge.

Oblivion said:
Who directed Sonic 1/2?

According to Wikipedia:

Sonic 1: Yasuhara
Sonic 2: Masaharu Yoshii

Sonic 1 doesn't really credit a director, and Game Planner Yasuhara is the first credit in the game. Yasuhara is also Game Planner for Sonic 2, but his credit was moved to after Lead Programmer Naka. And then Naka got the producer promotion for Sonic 3 by holding out on working on the project and demanding the promotion and Japanese-only staff.

Support NeoGAF

What's up with Yuji Naka?

Did the right thing

Member

Banned

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Gold Member

Banned

Member

Banned

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Banned

Fetishing muscular manly men in skintight hosery

Member

Similar threads