Sega's Yosuke Okunari and Hiroyuki Miyazaki talk Game Gear Micro game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/interview…🇯🇵
where'd the idea come from? the Sega Toys division came up with it last year while discussing ideas for Sega's 60th anniversary celebrations; because Okunari was seated next to some of the ppl involved, he pitched in informally & eventually ended up being transferred to the team
why Game Gear Micro & not Saturn Mini, 32X Mini, etc? this wasn't meant as a successor to MD Mini but as a Sega 60th & GG 30th anniversary product; the idea was to make it in ~6 months but as Okunari brought on MD Mini personnel, M2 for emulation, etc it started taking longer
why "micro" & not "mini"? because the emphasis was on the small size & portability, something you could put on a keychain or carry in your pocket
it'll run on 2 AAA batteries or USB; as of the time of this interview in March, they were aiming for 3 hours battery life
it'll run on 2 AAA batteries or USB; as of the time of this interview in March, they were aiming for 3 hours battery life
because it's still in development, the precise duration of the battery life can't be ascertained until M2's done with the emulation
they're aiming for a weight of 60 grams with batteries; the buttons haven't been scaled down exactly & have been adjusted for playability
they're aiming for a weight of 60 grams with batteries; the buttons haven't been scaled down exactly & have been adjusted for playability
the original plan was to put out lots of different units with just one game each, but Okunari thought that was poor value for money so he pushed for at least 3 games per system, and then was able to wrangle the schedule & M2 to bring that number up to 4 per system
as for why those 4 colours: basically, they were the 4 main colours available during the Game Gear's life; they could've offered white, smoke, etc but they didn't want to confuse people by releasing too many different versions
bc it's a Sega 60th produc, all the games are Sega's
bc it's a Sega 60th produc, all the games are Sega's
how'd they choose & separate the games? the black version was seen as the "default" option, so it got three big, accessible games (Sonic, Puyo 2, Outrun) and then Okunari added Royal Stone (SRPG, JP-only sequel to Crystal Warriors) because he wanted one game that was meatier
Royal Stone also has significance as a game Okunari wasn't able to release on 3DS Virtual Console; it was also the highest-rated Game Gear game in the last-ever users' rating column published in Sega Saturn Magazine (the successor to Beep! Mega Drive magazine)
since blue is Sega's colour, the blue Game Gear Micro has games for more hardcore users: Sonic Chaos, a later-era GG Sonic, Gunstar Heroes, a crazy port that M2 produced back in the day, the cult action-RPG Sylvan Tale and Baku Baku Animal, a port of a puzzle game on Saturn spec
the yellow Game Gear Micro was basically just them putting all the Shining Force Gaiden games together, as Gaiden 1 & 2 in particular need to be played as a pair, and then throwing in Nazo Puyo: Arle no Roux as a sort of palate cleanser
(SF Gaiden 1&2 were remade as SFCD, btw)
(SF Gaiden 1&2 were remade as SFCD, btw)
the red Game Gear Micro was chosen in consideration of Atlus: it has Megami Tensei Gaiden Last Bible, a GB game significantly reworked by Sega, plus the GG-exclusive first-person dungeon crawler Last Bible Special... and then GG Shinobi & Columns because they're popular
the initial idea was to specialise the games for each system—a Sonic system, a Puyo system, an action system, etc—but Okunari thought it'd suck if ppl were out & about and were restricted to 4 similar games, so he tried to mix them up as much as possible (save for yellow/SF)
will it support 2-player via cable or wi-fi? no because they wanted to keep the hardware price low
will there be web manuals? yes, as with MD Mini
save states? yes, they're aiming at 4 per game, and they should remain after you swap batteries
will there be web manuals? yes, as with MD Mini
save states? yes, they're aiming at 4 per game, and they should remain after you swap batteries
Game Gear Micro menu screens, the green bar in the upper right is a battery life indicator (the screen's 1.15 inches, btw) 
as with the MD Mini, the Game Gear Micro includes new menu music written to authentic spec—this time, the tunes were written by chibi-tech, M2's composer who recently wrote "Camino a Mi Amor" for Outrun 3DS/Sega Ages & more
(go buy her new EP it is Cool chibitech.bandcamp.com/album/the-mutu…)
(go buy her new EP it is Cool chibitech.bandcamp.com/album/the-mutu…)
the system will also pause as a warning before it goes flat, so you can quickly save
the Game Gear Micro's not getting a general release, it's only being sold online via ebten, Amazon, Rakuten, etc
the Game Gear Micro's not getting a general release, it's only being sold online via ebten, Amazon, Rakuten, etc
they're offering a bonus item for the collectors who buy all four Game Gear Micros: the Big Window Micro, a to-scale replica of the screen magnifier released overseas as Wide Gear—it'll really magnify, but since it wasn't final as of the interview, they can't say by how much
the original plan was to include a Big Window papercraft kit but Okunari figured they might as well do it properly; apparently it ended up being more expensive to produce that first thought, but they thought it was worth doing for anyone who buys all 4 units
Okunari's parting words: from hardware to software to production, this is basically being made by the same team as Mega Drive Mini, so you can rest assured with its quality, and he hopes people buy it so they can prove within the company that the MD Mini's success wasn't a fluke
(oh and as you may have noticed, Hiroyuki Miyazaki was not present for this interview—he participated in the other Game Gear Micro interview that went up at Famitsu, which I'm going to take a look at now, got my wires crossed)
(icymi, here's that second interview, Miyazaki's comments are mostly about the Sega 60th announcements he /hasn't/ been able to make due to COVID, and how he swears he's been doing a lot even though it doesn't look like it)
