"Yokai Buster: Nabisuke" is a yokai-themed adventure RPG developed by KOHACHI STUDIO. In the game, players join Nabisuke, a mechanical puppet onmyoji, as they travel to a fictional ancient Japan, adventuring and resolving incidents caused by various yokai. Along the way, players can capture and raise these yokai, using them to battle other yokai.
The game has a very unique style, with many developers hailing from the original "Metal Slug" team. As a result, its visual presentation and use of humor strongly reflect the "Metal Slug" aesthetic. According to the development team, this project was originally initiated by the original "Metal Slug" team over 20 years ago but was shelved for various reasons. Today, after acquiring the rights, KOHACHI STUDIO has completed its redevelopment, marking the rebirth of a GBA game that never saw the light of day.
The game's unique planning background and distinctive visual style garnered significant attention upon its announcement. We were fortunate to conduct a written interview with Shinano Ishiguro, representative of KOHACHI STUDIO, to learn more about the stories behind its development.
Here are the details of the interview:
Q: "Yokai Buster: Nabisuke" was originally developed for the GBA but was never officially released. When you reacquired the rights over 20 years later and decided to bring it back, what was the most important element you wanted to preserve?
Ishiguro:In this title, what we most wanted to preserve was the vast amount of beautiful pixel art hand-drawn by the original "Metal Slug" team.
Q: The original "Yokai Buster: Nabisuke" attempted to incorporate GPS, allowing players to find yokai by moving around in the real world. Later, due to the cancellation of related hardware plans, the game was reworked into a standalone RPG. Looking back now, the technical conditions to implement this gameplay are mature, yet you seem to have decided against it. Why is that?
Ishiguro:Back in 2003, the game was already completed in a form that did not use GPS, so porting it directly was a natural choice. Personally, I would also love to see what the GPS-supported version would look like, but relevant materials such as specification documents are no longer available.
Q: The game's setting is defined as "fictional ancient Japan," but actual gameplay includes items clearly not belonging to ancient Japan, such as public phones, bus stops, and mobile phones. Why did you deliberately maintain this anachronism?
Ishiguro:According to planner akio, this kind of anachronistic worldview was quite common in many anime series he watched as a child.
Q: Why did you choose such a complex combination of "mecha × onmyodo × yokai × time travel"?
Ishiguro:To ensure resonance with children playing the game, the opening is set to transport players back in time. We aimed to create a character who could guide children into the world of yokai.
Q: Currently, it has been announced that the game will feature over 200 types of yokai, each with unique skills and attributes. With a collection system of this scale, what are your biggest concerns? Might players struggle to remember so many yokai and end up using only a few of the strongest ones due to power considerations?
Ishiguro:As you mentioned, I heard that balance issues were a problem in the GBA version, so we made addressing this a key focus in the current title.
To address this, we have meticulously rebalanced the game to eliminate power disparities. If you are willing to diligently raise and use a single yokai, it will perform in a way that meets your expectations.
Although the total number of skills is enormous, you don't need to memorize them all. Paying attention to the five elemental attributes is sufficient for basic strategy.
Q: Yokai are not just captured to become combat units; they also originate from various legends and folklore across Japan. When designing a yokai, did you first decide on its gameplay role and then find a suitable legend, or did you start with the folklore and then determine its skills and role in the game?
Ishiguro:Although yokai are based on folklore, they do not necessarily appear in their original legendary forms; instead, we have added our team's unique adaptations. Both their skills and roles often incorporate puns and wordplay, allowing players to experience a worldview that is unrestrained, all-encompassing, and full of personality.
Q: The development team previously mentioned that they didn't want to simply create standard "cute" yokai. How do you define this artistic principle of creating creatures that are slightly strange yet still perceived as cute?
Ishiguro:This might best be described as a unique intuition cultivated by our staff over many years. While focusing on cute characters is great, whenever they start designing, they naturally incorporate a certain subtle (?) unique flavor. The protagonist, "Nabisuke," is a prime example of this.
Q: With over 200 types of yokai, players can theoretically constantly change their teams. If a player captures a yokai they really like early on, have you given special consideration to ensuring it can grow alongside the player, rather than being quickly replaced by stronger yokai later in the game?
Ishiguro:Of course, we designed the game with this premise in mind. If you find a yokai you like, please raise it and use it until the end. Characters below the recommended level receive bonus experience points in battle, so the design prevents them from falling too far behind.
Q: In the demo at "Tokyo Game Show 2026," battles included features like speed-up and auto-battle, which are common conveniences in modern RPGs. On the other hand, this game heavily emphasizes the retro RPG feel of the GBA era. How did you balance the conflict between modern and retro elements?
Ishiguro:In addition to my own repeated playthroughs, we collaborated with testers for multiple trial runs. While cherishing the love for retro games, we continuously discussed the balance expected of a modern game, refining it through numerous iterations to reach its current state. These discussions and adjustments will continue until release, so even we are eagerly anticipating the final form it will take.
Q: As a project conceived 20 years ago, were there any original designs you found unsuitable for today's players during development and ultimately had to change?
Ishiguro:In terms of art design, the characters and backgrounds remain unchanged, but the UI and special effects have been adjusted to fit current screen sizes. Of course, there is also a large amount of brand-new content added.
Beyond design, many elements that were taken for granted in the original game may seem insufficiently explained to modern players. There are numerous such instances—therefore, adding explanations was the most labor-intensive part of this update.
Q: Finally, do you have any messagefor the players?
Ishiguro:In "Yokai Buster: Nabisuke," a wide variety of yokai with distinct personalities will appear.
In addition to the joy of recruiting yokai as partners and forming your own team for adventure, we hope players will notice our team's unique touches in the story, characters, pixel animations, and music. Please pay attention to these details while playing.
During this reconstruction, we are carefully preserving the charm of the original while continuously making improvements so that modern players can fully enjoy it as a complete, standalone game. Development is progressing steadily.
"Yokai Buster: Nabisuke" is a work created by the respected seniors at SNK whom I admire greatly. Because of this, we value the effort they poured into this project and feel a responsibility to deliver it to players worldwide. After an incredibly long journey, it has finally reached the stage where it can meet everyone. Our entire team will polish it to the very last moment, so please look forward to "Yokai Buster: Nabisuke"!
Additionally, we plan to offer demos at the WePlay Culture Expo, held at Hall 2.2 of the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai from November 21 to 22, 2026. Limited-edition gifts will also be available on-site, so we welcome everyone to come and play!