神河当時 - 2004年の振り返り、R&D編

This past year was my very first full one as a member of Magic Research & Development, and what a year it was. Granted, I knew my way around the department by the time I started--I had played in the Future Future League and chimed in with random design and development thoughts long before I actually started the position--but there were plenty of opportunities for me to learn. Here’s a quick recap of 2004 from my eyes here in R&D.

Earth’s Formation
About this time last year, the set we called “Earth”--now known as Champions of Kamigawa--was finishing up development. The lifespan of the set inside the company to this point had been a tumultuous one. Many people--myself included--were unsure we’d be able to pull off a Japanese-themed set well, especially one that was going to use the overall look and feel of the cards as the major theme as opposed to some widespread mechanic-based hook, like the tribal theme in Onslaught or the pervasiveness of artifacts in Mirrodin.

Luckily my pessimism was due mostly to my lack of exposure to what would be the final names and art--my decks all featured blank cards with names like “Planar Samurai” and “Trampling Tree.” As the finished artwork started showing up in our card database, along with the evocative card titles our expert creative team cooked up, my eyes really opened to how potentially cool this set could be--and how wrong I was for doubting its potential. I have learned to trust my coworkers, that’s for sure! Of course, I’d have to wait a few months before the cards were made public.

引用元
MY YEAR IN R&D: 2004 Posted in Latest Developments on January 7, 2005
https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/latest-developments/my-year-rd-2004-2005-01-07

2004年を振り返る記事は一昨日とりあげましたが、あれはトーナメント視点でした。これはそのR&D視点編です。

日本モチーフの次元を作成するにあたっては不安がつきまといました。もっともこれは、開発中はアートがなく、カード名も素っ気ないものだったためです。後に、完成したカードで、フレイバーに富んだカード名やアートを見て、それらは吹き飛んでいます。

フレイバー重視のトップダウンデザインのセットだからこそのエピソードです。

また、これ以外にも、当時まだ発売されていない『神河謀叛』『神河救済』のことにも言及しています。開発は2004年時点でも行われていたからです。やはり、『神河謀叛』において、忍者が重要視されていたことが伺えます。