"Huh? Are we abandoning the galgame project?"
The team was taken aback when Aoki Haruhi presented the initial draft of his new project proposal.
Akanishi Ken opened the proposal before him, its cover dominated by the title:
[ Elite Academy ]
"Yes," Aoki Haruhi nodded.
[ Elite Academy ] was a reimagined version of Kairosoft's [ Famous Pocket Academy ] from his previous life.
This 2013 mobile simulation game allowed players to manage a school, cultivating students and helping them succeed to boost the institution's reputation and ranking.
Despite being a 2013 mobile title, Aoki Haruhi had deliberately placed it at the top of his post-launch development list after careful consideration.
First off, Kairosoft is a rather unique game company. They've always stuck to one genre: pixel art simulation management games. From their early days simulating running a bookstore to simulating running a game company, simulating running a ramen shop, and simulating city building... in short, they all share a distinctive style that you recognize as Kairosoft's at a glance.
In terms of graphics, Kairosoft's pixel art style would fit right in even on the 1990 Red and White Machine. With Aoki Haruhi's own refinements, it might even reach the pinnacle of pixel art for this era.
Another reason for choosing Kairosoft games is that they are simple, small in scope, and have short development cycles, making them ideal for quick cash.
Famous Pocket Academy is arguably one of the top 10 most popular Kairosoft games, with explosive download numbers and relatively low development difficulty.
Pixel art style, high replayability, great fun, simulation management, short development time, low development costs... it's practically a game tailor-made for this era.
For a small company like Pokeni, with only twenty employees, Aoki Haruhi couldn't find a game better suited for their first foray into the market than a Cairo-style game.
In its early days, Kairosoft had only nine employees but managed to produce nearly six simulation management games in a single year, making them a paragon of productivity. Their lightweight design, small scale, agile development, and low costs were all hallmarks of Kairosoft's success.
Aoki Haruhi estimated that developing a [ Famous Pocket Academy ] might take less than two months from start to finish, with costs potentially kept under eighteen million.
Once they successfully developed the first [ Famous Pocket Academy ], subsequent "reskinning" would be much easier.
While each Kairosoft game had its own unique features, their core remained the same: simulation management. The main categories either focused on terrain mechanics or numerical depth, requiring relatively little additional development work.
By establishing a foothold with a Kairosoft-style game, they could later expand into other genres and develop new titles.
Once they had sufficient funds and technical expertise, Aoki Haruhi planned to set their sights on developing AAA blockbusters.
Just thinking about the brilliant future beckoning them made him feel a thrill of excitement.
After hearing Aoki Haruhi's explanation and carefully reviewing the game proposal for Elite Academy, everyone nodded in agreement.
"Indeed, given our company's current situation, developing a quick simulation management game like Elite Academy is a good choice," said lead artist Sakata Taiji, staring at the proposal and tilting his head in thought.
"But President, wouldn't it be a shame to abandon Onmyoji so easily?" asked engineer Senkawa Hiroichi, a straightforward man sitting nearby. He voiced the question on everyone's mind.
Indeed, according to the typical growth trajectory of game companies, there was no reason not to develop a sequel to a successful game.
Especially now that Onmyoji had achieved the impressive sales of 100,000 copies, there was even less reason to abandon the idea.
Except for Valve's boss, who can't count to three, any game that becomes a hit should at least have three installments.
Otherwise, it would be foolish not to cash in on the opportunity.
Regardless of how well the sequel performed, the original's popularity alone would guarantee a substantial player base.
Aoki Haruhi was well aware of this.
"Mmm-hmm," he shook his head. "I haven't abandoned it. My idea is to continue developing Onmyoji 2, but not as a galgame."
"Huh?!"
The senior executives present were all taken aback.
"Why is that?" Senkawa Hiroichi asked.
"Of course, it's for the company's long-term development," Aoki Haruhi said with a frown. "Once Pokeni is branded as a galgame, it will be very difficult to pivot in the future. We still have a chance to change our image through Elite Academy before players form a fixed impression of us."
"Why?" Senkawa Hiroichi was utterly bewildered. "Why can't we just keep making galgame games and become the dominant force in that market?"
Ah, this useless fool, Aoki Haruhi thought, wanting to slap him to death.
"That's because the President has higher aspirations," Ishino Mika said, standing up to defend Aoki Haruhi. "Simply put, galgames still carry a negative stigma. Even if we were to become the best in the galgame market, what would that achieve? Koei started with galgames, didn't they pivot later? If we can, why shouldn't we try to expand into broader markets?"
In the 1980s, Koei developed some galgame titles, such as NIGHT LIFE. While technically galgames, they were more like instructional guides, akin to educational resources on sexual positions.
However, Koei quickly abandoned this venture, shifting its development focus to the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Nobunaga's Ambition series, achieving tremendous success.
In fact, NIGHT LIFE could be considered Japan's first small-scale galgame.
"Exactly," Aoki Haruhi nodded. "If our company relied solely on galgames without the resources to support and expand into other areas, we might see short-term gains, but it would ultimately hinder our long-term growth."
"Conversely, if we first establish a flagship non-galgame title and diversify into sufficient areas, releasing some galgames afterward would be less problematic."
However, it's very difficult to transition away from galgames once you've started in that genre.
Aoki Haruhi's ambitions extended far beyond this.
If possible, he hoped to make Pokeni the number one company in Japan.
After a meeting that lasted over four hours, Pokeni finalized the development of two future games:
First, Elite Academy.
Second, Onmyoji 2.
In a way, Pokeni had transformed from a single-project game company into a two-project one, marking a small step in its expansion.
But for Aoki Haruhi, this was just the beginning.
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