No more heroes III hit new platforms earlier this month with the release of Playstation 5, xbox series, Playstation 4, xbox oneY personal computer (Vapor) versions, so Gematsu sat with No More Heroes series creator and Grasshopper Manufacturing founder Goichi “Suda 51” Suda to discuss the new elements of the game, creating the series finale, if Really series finale, game station Y xbox versions of the first two games, and more.
Get the full interview below.
Gematsu interviews Goichi “Suda 51” Suda
interview transcript
Gematsu: What’s new in the PlayStation, Xbox and PC versions of No more heroes III?
Goichi Suda, Producer and Director: “First, there is the fact that these are different platforms, so I think you will be able to play with improved graphics and a stable frame rate of 60 frames per second.
“Also, the biggest new feature is the addition of Japanese voices. We have an amazing cast of Japanese voice actors in this game. A lot of people watch Japanese anime, so I think you’re likely to hear some familiar voices in this installment. Some fans have said that it feels like a gintamastyle lineup, but many of the gintama the family really got into the game, so that’s one of the main cool things that I’d like everyone to see.
“After playing it in English, you could try playing with the Japanese voices next… A second game in Japanese. I feel like it would be a great way to enjoy the game.”
With No more heroes III coming to PlayStation and Xbox, is there any chance we could see no more heroes 1 Y two come to those platforms?
Sweat: “no more heroes 1 Y two currently only playable on Steam and the changeand I feel like it would be better to make them available to play on a wider variety of platforms, so I’d like to collaborate on that. Wonderful and make it happen eventually. I can’t make any promises right now, but that’s where we are right now.”
No more heroes III it came 11 years after the last numbered entry. What was it like to finally create the sequel that fans have been demanding for years?
Sweat: “Yes, 11 years is a long time; as longer than the usual useful life of a platform itself. The game that we had developed in the Wii I ended up skipping generations and landing on Switch, and it was, um, how to say… We actually felt like we could go back to the world of No More Heroes quite gently. But even within our studio, first, we needed to make sure people knew about no more heroes 1 Y two. What kind of games are they and how much did the fans love them… I feel like that was our real starting point.
“Obviously, we had our own image of what kind of third we wanted to create, but there is also the third that the fans wanted to see; the third they were imagining. So in development we try to make sure that those visions of third overlapped as much as possible.”
Was there something you wanted to do? No more heroes IIIbut couldn’t due to technical or budget constraints?
Sweat: “Well, I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t. That is a difficult one. Of course, there were a lot of things we wanted to do, and I’ve talked about this in many interviews before, but initially we envisioned having 100 bosses and having more playable characters than just Travis; those were some ideas we considered. Also, it was going to take place not only in Santa Destroy, but also in a place called Utopiland. We wanted to create an entire freely traversable map. I was really hoping to accomplish all of those things, but due to factors like the sheer volume of the game, scheduling, budget, etc., we ended up having to cut back on a lot of things.
“But we really wanted to focus on the Travis story, you know? So by having other characters playable as well, I felt like that would dilute Travis’ final battle. Given that what we have now is due to the reduction of all those things, in the end I think it turned out to be a good decision.”
Are you satisfied with how it turned out? Is there something you would change?
Sweat: “Yes, I am satisfied with the game, but since its release, many fans of a Y two I mentioned… (laughs)…
“So in a Y two, you were able to change the Beam Katana, right? You could upgrade it, and you could get new weapons, and selectable weapons were one of No More Heroes‘main features. But we got rid of that for thirdand focused on the Blood Berry instead.
“To be honest… I wish we had added more weapons. I wanted to have three types of weapons and honestly, that’s one of my regrets. So in the future, if we do a remake or a remaster or something like that, maybe 10 years from now or so, I want to make sure we put stuff like that in the game, if it happens. But again, I can’t make any promises at this point.”
You said No more heroes III would be the end of the line for Travis and No More Heroes. But is this really the end? there definitely isn’t No More Heroes to come?
Sweat: “I mean, Hideo Kojima said he was done with Goall solid gear like twice, but we still have more (wink).
“As far as it being Travis’s final game and final battle, I consider it Travis’s retirement or an honorable discharge.
“But, yes… As with all professional wrestlers, a lot of times they retire and then come back. For example, some of my favorites, like Terry Funk or Atsushi Onita, who is legendary in Japan for his deathmatches. They have been removed so many times. Every time they go away, they come back. I’ve seen Terry Funk retire like three times. And each time, he returns to the ring.
“So when it comes to Travis, well… He loves professionals. struggle, and his ‘retirement’ could possibly just be a short break. I don’t know. I’d rather leave it to him and see how he feels about it.”
If you could make a spinoff game on the No More Heroes series in any genre, what would it be?
Sweat: “Hm… for any gender? Right now, it would be with FU, the character that really blew up in third. He became such a prominent character, and I feel like we were able to create the perfect opponent for Travis’s final enemy, but FU…did he really die in the end? Is he still alive? Even I don’t know.
“If FU was still alive… I feel like his story would still have a long way to go, so I’d like to do FU’s story. FU goes to hell and back from hell one more time… I wonder if we could make a hack ‘n’ slash game with that story. That’s probably what it would be.
Travis Touchdown vs. Mondo Zappa vs. Juliet Starling vs. Garcia Hotspur. Who wins?
Sweat: “Wow, that’s hard. I don’t think I’ve been asked that before.
“Hm, who is stronger? You know, I would really like to see that fight. You know, in 2028… Grasshopper will be 30 years old. It would be great to make a Grasshopper All-Stars game, real battle-style, where all the characters would compete with each other. In fact, we’re discussing that in Grasshopper right now. If it ends up happening, then we may know the answer. Who is the strongest…?
Could you share a final message for the fans before signing off?
Sweat: “To all those who have played No More HeroesThank you for playing and for buying the game.
“The character of Travis Touchdown has been loved, watched over and supported by the players, and he made it to the end. third. After that… a lot of people want another sequel, and we just discussed having a possible spin-off, but I would love to have the world of No More Heroes continues in; to see it connected to something. We’ve gotten a lot of similar feedback, but… Travis really does whatever he wants, and even I have no idea what he’s going to do next. But someday, if Travis says that he wants to freak out again, fight again, then I’ll talk to Marvelous and maybe 10 years from now… maybe even further… It could end up being a long wait, or Travis could end up. until you retire. He may live the rest of his life in peace, in paradise.
“But still, I want to thank you all for supporting No More Heroes! We still have no idea what will happen to Travis Touchdown, but I hope you continue to support us! Many thanks!”
