Wireframe – Issue 20, 2019

Interface

52 / wfmag.cc

Developer Profile / Shinji Mikami

Capcom Quiz: Hatena?

no Daibouken

Game Boy 1990

Mikami took three months to make his first game

at Capcom, the result being a Game Boy trivia title

based on existing Capcom franchises, with the likes

of Firebrand and Dr Wily trying to stop the player

from... answering questions correctly. Look, it’s

never been translated to English, and quiz games in

another language are hard to get a handle on.

Resident Evil

GameCube / multi 2002

It’s not a misprint. Mikami returned to the franchise

he had created to head up development of a near-

complete remake of the original game. Shifting

to the significantly more powerful GameCube,

‘REmake’ was a chance for the director to recreate

the original game in a form closer to his original

vision. It has since gone down as one of the best

remakes in gaming history, so... that’s a bonus.

Disney’s Aladdin

SNES 1993

Cited as one of the SNES’ most overlooked

games, Aladdin is a surprisingly complex take

on platforming action. Less fondly remembered

than Virgin Interactive’s Mega Drive version, the

SNES game has built up a decent following in

the years since its release. It’s not his best work,

but generally speaking, Aladdin showed there

was real potential in the young Mikami’s ideas.

Resident Evil

PS1 / Saturn / PC / DS 1996

It ‘didn’t matter’ if the original Resi sold many

copies – 150,000 each on PlayStation and Saturn

was enough for Capcom. The lack of commercial

pressure on Mikami and his team of 60 meant

the creative juices flowed, a new genre was

established, and Resident Evil went on to sell

millions and create a franchise fast approaching its

10th main entry. 300,000 would have been enough.

Dino Crisis

PS1 / Dreamcast / PC 1999

Sidestepping the zombie behemoth, Mikami

shifted focus to another form of survival horror at

the millennium’s end. Dino Crisis riffed on Jurassic

Park, tasking players with uncovering the secrets

of a research facility overrun with unfossilised

dinosaurs. Real-time 3D backgrounds – originally

intended for Resident Evil – made an appearance

and Dino Crisis went on to sell 2.4 million copies.

Planning to direct

10 titles Mikami planned or directed

‘Planner’ is just another name for ‘director’, right?

01 02

05

03

04