Not much is known about this shady character, Nightblade. So I managed to gather all of the courage I could, and approached him for an interview. He's a man full of knowledge, with his game "Demon Legacy" becoming one of the most popular RPG Maker games this year.

An interview by Neophyte

Interview with Nightblade

Not much is known about this shady character, Nightblade. So I managed to gather all of the courage I could, and approached him for an interview. He's a man full of knowledge, with his game "Demon Legacy" becoming one of the most popular RPG Maker games this year.

Neophyte: Alright, so who is the man behind Nightblade? Any background information as to who you are, or what you like to do(hobbies)?

Nightblade: There's little to say as far as who I am in the real world. Just some guy looking to make it on his own. As far as hobbies would go; well, aside from RPG Making, I do enjoy writing on the side, as well as gaming; though I'm unsure if gaming really counts as a hobby.

Neophyte: Tell me about your game making background. How did it all start?

Nightblade: Well, I'll spare you the stories of my daydreaming game making at youth and state that it technically started with RM95. I tried my hand a few times at the program when I was... I think 14 or something, but never really got it to work well. I would give up on it a few years until I heard about RPG maker 2000. This was around the time my computer was dead; so all I had available to me was some crappy laptop that struggled to even play ZSNES. So I downloaded the program and began work on the original RM2K version of "Demon Legacy". Ninety Two remakes later, it would turn into the game I actually finished without half assedly cutting it short.


That's what I call dedication.

Neophyte: What inspired you to make "Demon Legacy"(I take it its your first game)? Why do you think it stands out more than most RPG Maker games?

Nightblade: Initially I was inspired by the sub standard RPG "Grandia 2", but as time passed I worked on my writing and it evolved into what it is now. As far as it standing out, I don't really know how to word it without sounding like some pretentious douche, so I'll tread carefully. One of the more obvious reasons it stands out is because it's completed, another may be because of the villain even some of the most anal critics seem to enjoy,  and lastly I think it appeals to people because of the linearity, which can be both good and bad. You're never really lost or wondering where to go next.  Oh, some people also seemed to enjoy the battles in the game, which were face paced aside from the overly long casting animations...


This game rocks. Seriously.

Neophyte: Well I'm not sure if you're able to answer this, but is there anything you would do different if you were to remake "Demon Legacy"?

Nightblade: You mean for a ninety third time? Well, let's see. For one thing I'd make sure to fix of all the awful text mistakes, including one line in particular I really really wish I remembered to revise. Other then that, and maybe a more consistent graphics style I think it's fine the way it is... Maybe I would even go back and add a few dungeons and some extra story to the time between the next to last and final dungeon.

Neophyte: What are some of the difficulties you face with game making? What aspects of game making do you think you could improve upon?

Nightblade: Finding the right music can really be a pain, while finding the right composer can be an exercise in futility. I find that music is the number one thing that holds stuff back because it's so difficult to find good music that isn't overused. Aside from that there isn't really too much to hold stuff back, I'm really poor at programming but none of the stuff I really do involves any real heavy coding.

Neophyte: So the new project you're working on, "Phantom Legacy". What is this about(without giving any spoilers), and what can we expect from it?

Nightblade: It's a direct sequel of "Demon Legacy", taking place some years after the events of the first game to tie up all of the loose ends left over. Gameplay wise I'm taking a bit of a different approach. While I'm no good at heavy DBS modification battles will be a bit different than in most RPGs. Each character will have a set of unique commands instead of the generic "Attack / Skill /Defend / Item" fanfare. I'm also going for a more action game-ish feel for the dungeons of this game, while trying not to forget that the game is still, in fact an RPG.


The sequel to Demon Legacy.

Neophyte: What do you think of the RM scene(or game making in general) as of today? Is there anything you're looking forward to?

Nightblade: There are some impressive games coming up. The "Story of Palis" looks to be very promising,  "Love and War Act 2" is coming around soon, and then there's Neophyte's(your) game; providing it isn't a elaborate acid induced hallucination promises to be very impressive, and that's only RPG maker.  As far as the game making scene... Well, I won't go as far as to say that it's dying down; because we've had some quality games come out as of late (IE: Balmung Cycle) but what I'm concerned about is the the divisiveness between communities. I think we can have a lot more great games in one place (like the foreign communities) if people would realize that there are people you're bound to not get along with regardless of where you go.

Neophyte: Last question, what advice would you give to somebody just starting out? What have you yourself learned along the way?

Nightblade: Look at how other games do certain things, make a purely BS 20 minute game to get a hang of the features first, avoid ripping off entire lines from Squaresoft games (Fates of Alerha), try out a few approaches and figure out how you do things best. For example: some people do well with extensive on paper planning, some don't, and lastly if someone tells you that you're game really needs work, don't get offended, but at the same time don't do everything people tell you to do just because they told you on the forums and they have 5000 posts.

Neophyte: Thanks for the interview!

Nightblade: I feel like such a tool.


Click here to download Demon Legacy
Phantom Legacy Gameplay

so far i think we've had 5 different people doing the interviews. everyone does it differently, it just depends how they want to present their article.

also, i hear a lot of people talk about good foreign RM games (this interview included!). the only one i've played (that had a simple translation) was Taut and it was good, but is there anything else like this? basically i hear people talk a lot about GOOD FOREIGN GAMES but i am not aware of many.

You don't like my interview, Carius!?
Honestly though, I'm no good at these "themes", so I guess my interview is a little stale compared to some of the others.
GZ, there aren't too many translated foreign games like Taut, but there are lots of general good quality looking games. Some aren't RPGs, so you don't really need to know the language to understand much. There's a game called Heinsen Hill, which is similar to Taut, but that isn't translated either as far as I know. But hey, if some of those communities have WHOLE MAGAZINES dedicated to indie games(where did that guy go anyway), they must have something good going for them.

There's nothing wrong with the interview.  It seems just fine to me.

GZ and I are the ones who do themes, Carius. Each person has their different interviewing style. Nightblade hates all of the interviewers except Neophyte.

If I were interviewing him, I would have added in important questions like,

"Why were you banned?"

"What did you do while you were banned?"

"Why are you so angry?"

"How does that make you feeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeel ~ Bob Dylan"