For younger generations of players,"Sangokushi Taisen" might be an unfamiliar name, but over a decade ago, it was one of the most discussed games in the Chinese arcade player community. In fact, I still clearly remember the scene when I first encountered "Sangokushi Taisen," remember the first rare general card I pulled, and remember the group of players gathered around the cabinet who would strike up conversations upon noticing shared interest, along with their QQ groups used for discussing tactics.
In fact, as Sega'sPopular arcade game series launched in the 2000s and continuously updated thereafter, "Sangokushi Taisen" is truly special: on one hand, it maximized the advantages of arcades, using the Romance of the Three Kingdoms background known throughout the Asian cultural sphere, allowing players to become "strategists" who directly command generals and armies on the battlefield, battling players from across the country.
On the other hand, it also possesses theWith a sense of "ritual" and "ownership," players manually move cards containing chips on the machine to control formation and movement. After each round, you randomly receive a general card with exquisite artwork. This arcade performance combined with traditional trading card mechanics became the prototype for future gacha mobile games.
And the designer and producer ofThe person behind the "Sangokushi Taisen" series is naturally not simple; his name is Yasuhiro Nishiyama. As a key figure in Sega's former arcade division, besides being the producer of the "Sangokushi Taisen" series, Yasuhiro Nishiyama holds many other prominent titles—for example, he is also the producer of "maimai," the most well-known rhythm arcade game in China, and Sega's famous manga-adapted racing game "Initial D."
Amidst technological iterations in the game market, Yasuhiro Nishiyama possesses extremely keen business acumen. When Sega began embracing the mobile game market, he was responsible for the development and operation of several service-based games, including "Chain Chronicle." It can be said that fordefining Sega's IPs in the post-2000s era, he holds an extremely important position.
In 2024, Yasuhiro Nishiyama left his longtime employer and founded his own game company, "Sugorocks." A year later, this game producer from the golden age of arcades partnered with GENDA, a well-known Japanese offline entertainment product development company that had taken over Sega's arcade business, to jointly establish the publishing company "Get Wrapped Up Inc."
When we met Yasuhiro Nishiyama at the business hall of this year'sChinaJoy, he was busy promoting "Sangokushi BOND," the first "buy-to-play" game under Get Wrapped Up Inc. Interestingly, this game seems to share many similarities with "Sangokushi Taisen."
Mr. Yasuhiro Nishiyama
Q: Here, could Mr. Nishiyama please give everyone a brief self-introduction?
NishiNishi:Hello everyone, my name is Yasuhiro Nishiyama, and you can also call me"Nishi-P."
Previously, I was responsible for developing many different types of games at Sega, from "Sangokushi Taisen," "maimai," "InitialD" and other arcade games to mobile games like "Chain Chronicle."
In 2024, I founded Sugorocks. In 2025, I co-established the game publishing company "Get Wrapped Up Inc." with GENDA. Currently, I am also the producer of the new title "Sangokushi BOND."
Q: Mr. Nishiyama has been active on the front lines of the industry for a long time as a core member of Sega's arcade development department. What made you decide to leave your familiar work environment and establish your own game company?
NishiNishi:As a game producer, my career has entered its latter half. So, while I still remain competitive, I wanted to try some new challenges—this is the main reason.
Sega gave me a vast stage on which to grow, for which I am deeply grateful. Because of this, I wanted to challenge things that weren't fully attempted within Sega and make them successful. I believe this is also my way of repaying Sega.
In independent development teams or startups, we can decide what distance to keep from the community and how to communicate externally. Of course, we must also bear the responsibility and risks ourselves. This change in environment has a significant impact on development and excites us greatly.
Moreover, I have always believed that"Games are a culture that connects people." Establishing a company itself is not the goal; I want to continue creating games and communities that allow players to build more connections with each other in my ideal way. This is the challenge I am undertaking.
Q: The "Initial D," "maimai," and "Sangokushi Taisen" series produced by Mr. Nishiyama can all be said to be the most popular arcade games familiar to Chinese players. Why do you think these arcade products achieved such significant success outside of Japan?
NishiNishi:These works share a common trait: we have always cherished the"heat"—it naturally draws people in and heats up the atmosphere. Someone shows surprise in front of the screen or cheers involuntarily—we have always strived to create such moments.
If this heat is conveyed not only to Japanese players but also to Chinese players, it would be a great honor for me as a producer.
Q: As a creator who personally experienced the golden age of arcade games, how do you view today's arcade market? Is this form of gaming really declining as many people think? Does arcade gaming possess some irreplaceable quality?
NishiNishi:The form of the arcade market has changed with the times. But I believe that the value only arcades can create truly exists even today.
Players exclaim in front of the screens and shout to communicate with each other—this "on-site heat" cannot be reproduced by online games alone. In "Sangokushi BOND," I have consciously incorporated the spectacle and heated atmosphere accumulated from my arcade game development experience.
Q: During our last meeting, Mr. Nishiyama mentioned that the birth of the "maimai" series seemed to have some strange connection with the Chinese market. Could you share more details about this with us?
NishiNishi:My impression is that"maimai" has long enjoyed enthusiastic support from players in Chinese-speaking regions, especially within the rhythm game community in mainland China. Rather than the development team actively doing something, players independently developed unique strategies and scoring cultures, which were then fed back to the Japanese development site—creating a virtuous cycle. Frankly speaking, the passion of Chinese players has helped us time and again.
Actually,The initial inspiration for the "maimai" project actually came from China.
When I brought amusement equipment to China, I saw players in arcades moving their bodies vigorously and enjoying the games to the fullest. At that moment, I strongly realized that there existed a way to play here that was different from Japan, allowing players to"express themselves" through gameplay.
Seeing them, I suddenly thought: let's make a game where players can stand in front of that washing machine—that is, "maimai"—a game where you move your body freely.
Of course, limited by hardware and communication conditions, development took considerable time. But I always believed that players would love it.
After launching the initial project, I left the team, but I have always been grateful to the development team that continues to support this series today.
Q: We know that during this ChinaJoy, Mr. Nishiyama came to Shanghai largely to promote his new title "Sangokushi BOND." Could you briefly introduce this game to us? What connections exist between it and the previous "Sangokushi Taisen" series?
NishiNishi:"SangokushiBOND" is an army battle game based on TCG mechanics, set in the world of Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Players need to collect general cards, compose armies, and compete in three-round matches based on the three-way counter relationship between Cavalry, Archers, and Spearmen, striving to cause greater damage to the enemy castle.
The unique aesthetics of competitive games upheld in the "Sangokushi Taisen" series, such as "love and respect for Romance of the Three Kingdoms," "fairness in battles," and "heated atmosphere during spectating," have all been fully inherited by this title.
But unlike those attached to arcade cabinets,Unlike the "Sangokushi Taisen" series, this title has shifted to PC, specifically the Steam platform, resulting in significant changes to the game's form. We are grateful to carry on this legacy and will faithfully pass it on in our own way.
Q: "Sangokushi BOND" is the first title led by Mr. Nishiyama after establishing his new company. We are very curious: did changes in the development environment bring any unexpected opportunities and challenges to this work?
NishiNishi:The biggest difference is the speed of decision-making and the distance from players. In large organizations like Sega, even just coordinating a global simultaneous release requires aligning numerous departments. Now, precisely because the team is small, we can quickly judge localization directions or specific specifications while taking responsibility for our own decisions.
Of course, we do not have the budget and organizational capabilities of large corporations. Precisely because of this, we hope to seriously engage with the community, promptly listen to player voices, and quickly reflect them in the game, turning this into our advantage.
Q: Actually, including myself, when many players think of the "Sangokushi Taisen" series, the first thing that comes to mind is the "card collection" gameplay. "Sangokushi BOND" also inherits this element. However, it is also a "buy-to-play" game. Given this, why retain the "trading card" elements?
NishiNishi:FromThe greatest joy of the trading card experience that has continued from "Sangokushi Taisen" lies in understanding the personality and skills of each general and gradually mastering their usage. This is also an aspect we continue to cherish in this title.
Therefore, in "SangokushiBOND," we continue to integrate this experience into army composition and general recruitment; however, buy-to-play and the joy of collecting cards are not contradictory. We will preserve the card collection experience but will never allow players to purchase combat advantages through spending money—everyone encounters generals under the same conditions and fights following the same rules. This is a principle we will not compromise on.
Q: As a strategy card game, does "Sangokushi BOND" prioritize entertainment or strategy? Will there be situations where certain generals are particularly powerful, satisfying multiple level-solving approaches? When designing the game, what kind of experience did you most hope to bring to players?
NishiNishi:Strategy is at the core of this game. However, if there are too many things to think about, strategy games can become exhausting. Therefore, our design approach is to wrap the strategic elements in entertaining features such as the visual presentation and personalities of the generals, and the heated atmosphere during battles.
Our goal is not to design any single general to have an overwhelming advantage. The game is based on the three-way counter system of Cavalry, Archers, and Spearmen, combined with strategic positioning and recruitment timing, making it difficult for one side to dominate. The current balance is still in development; if we were to rate its completion level, it would be approximately40%. I want to state this frankly.
Furthermore, I believe that"Games where only winners can enjoy fun" cannot last long.
Regardless of victory or defeat, players should feel"I want to play another round." This is what makes a truly excellent competitive game. To achieve this, we designed not just strategy, but also the joy of spectating, emotional attachment to the generals, and experiences that make players want to communicate and share after matches.
Currently, the overall completion level might be aroundaround 70 out of 100. Or rather, none of the games I've made in the past have ever reached 100 points. Sometimes, retaining a bit of roughness is actually the most interesting state.
Q: We noticed that this title also adopts online battle gameplay similar to the "Sangokushi Taisen" series. Regarding PVP and online battles, what do you prioritize most?
NishiNishi:What we value most is"Fairness." As long as players are playing this game, everyone competes under the same conditions. The game does not allow payment to provide any strength advantage whatsoever.
Another point is our desire for players to maintain connections with each other even after battles end. We have prepared"BOND System," where players can follow each other and exchange items after matches. Our goal is to help players build connections through battles.
Q: The currently revealed "Sangokushi BOND" is still in Steam's "Early Access" phase, and the price is very affordable. Why adopt this format? Additionally, how much content is expected to be added in the full release?
NishiNishi:Our company was founded relatively recently, so our first priority is to bring the game we want to present to as many players as possible and let them get to know it. That is why we adoptedWe chose "Early Access" because we want players to feel that the design, including the price, is fair and reasonable, and to start incorporating player feedback from an early stage.
We cannot currently promise exactly how much content will be added in the full release, but we will continue to increase the variety of generals and tactics, and there is still significant room for improvement in balancing precision. We will take the feedback received duringfeedback received during "Early Access" and reflect it concretely in the full release.
Q: Actually, there is another personal question I am very curious about. From "Sangokushi Taisen" twenty years ago to today's "Sangokushi BOND," does Mr. Nishiyama personally hold any special attachment to "Romance of the Three Kingdoms"?
NishiNishi:Yes, undoubtedly. At that time, Japanese civilization had left very few historical records, while Chinese civilization from the same period preserved rich stories, character relationships, and diverse cultural aspects. I find this very appealing.
As a Japanese person, being able to engage with and create content around this theme is something that should be approached with great respect. My feelings on this matter have remained unchanged since "Sangokushi Taisen."
Q: Finally, do you have anything you would like to say to Chinese players?
NishiNishi:Since the era of arcade games, throughthe theme of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," we have gained immense strength from Chinese players. Their enthusiasm has repeatedly driven our games forward.
"SangokushiBOND" is a work where we reshape the world of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" with new challenges. It is currently still in the "Early Access" phase, which is precisely the moment when everyone's voices can most easily reach the game.
This time atChinaJoy meeting everyone directly made me deeply feel the passion of Chinese players once again. For developers, this passion is an irreplaceable source of motivation.
We do not wish for "SangokushiBOND" into a game created solely by us, but rather hope to cultivate its growth together with everyone.
We welcome your honest opinions. I would be very happy if we could continue to create new history together with everyone in the future.
If this interview has sparked your interest in Yasuhiro Nishiyama and his game Romance of the Three KingdomsBOND, you are more than welcome to check it out for yourself. Below are the store link and official content channels for Romance of the Three Kingdoms BOND:
Steam Store Page:https://store.steampowered.com/app/4375230/
Weibo:https://weibo.com/u/4038189436
Bilibili:https://space.bilibili.com/3706937858329002
HeyBox:https://www.xiaoheihe.cn/bbs/user_profile_share?user_id=d2656cd016cd&h_src=heyboxapp
Xiaohongshu:https://xhslink.com/m/8MrkklKwV3z