In truth, these were all just the wishful speculations of the editors at Famitsu.
The party involved, Aoki Haruhi, had never even considered doing any "expectation management" to lower the players' hopes.
In Aoki Haruhi's view, the game was good enough—it was practically a masterpiece, the pinnacle of galgames. Why would he throw cold water on the players and lower their expectations?
No matter how high the expectations were, could they possibly be higher than the actual experience of playing the game?
It was this very confidence that led to the public relations disaster.
When Aoki Haruhi saw the feedback from the outside world, he was completely stunned.
Huh?
Why does this not match my expectations?
Logically, with such excellent graphics, Hayao Miyazaki's art, and the perfect soundtrack, it should have been enough to resonate with people even without the plot.
The atmosphere of faint sadness should have been conveyed properly.
Miyazaki-senpai said so too.
So why did the actual release produce the opposite effect?
***
On his way to the company, Aoki Haruhi saw many protesters on the street.
"Protest! Aoki Haruhi, please leave the gaming industry and give us back good games!"
"Hayao Miyazaki was harmed because he was misled by Aoki Haruhi!"
The protesters' voices were loud and clear, sending a jolt through his heart.
As a result, he had to wear a mask and enter the company through the underground garage.
As soon as he arrived at the company, he saw a box full of razor blades, as expected.
He couldn't help but frown deeply.
"The game hasn't even been released yet. Isn't it a bit too early to send razor blades now?"
This time, Jun Maeda didn't seem to be too panicked, because he hadn't written the script for CLANNAD.
So the razor blades were for Master Kohara Tsubaki.
However, he was still a little panicked, because he had written the script for LIFE-LINE, and the background settings of these two games had many similarities.
So now, seeing the razor blades, Jun Maeda couldn't help but worry about his own future.
When LIFE-LINE went on sale, his life's safety might even be in danger.
In all senses.
If it was made poorly and couldn't hold up, he would definitely be scolded by the players.
If it was made well, but the core was tear-jerking, he would definitely be scolded by the players again.
No matter whether the game was good or bad, Jun Maeda had already foreseen the razor blade ending.
Next to him, Ayase Akane was directing people to move the box into the storage room. Hearing Aoki Haruhi's confusion, she turned her head and looked at him pitifully.
"What do you mean? Don't you already know why, President?"
"It's because of you! The players are all saying you've ruined Hayao Miyazaki."
"Huh?" This was something Aoki Haruhi couldn't let slide. "How did I ruin him? Isn't this a dream team?"
"The problem is, they don't know that. The game's PV was too plain." Ayase Akane spread her hands. "Who told you not to give the PV a bit more hype?"
Ugh...
What kind of hype am I supposed to give it? CL is a slow-paced, heartwarming game. Every single route is like that. Do you think it has a core selling point built into the setting from the start, like Patema Inverted?
If you want to know what CL's core selling point is, it's obviously the tear-jerking ending.
But you can't reveal that selling point in advance, or it would ruin the explosive emotional impact.
Making the PV this good was already a huge accomplishment.
Damn it.
Are players really this picky now?
Do they really need some super flashy setting to get interested?
What about returning to basics?
What about the essence of life? Do they even understand that?
Aoki Haruhi had imagined countless ways players might send him death threats, but this was the first time he was getting them before the game was even released.
And all because of a teaser trailer.
"Those ignorant humans... when they actually play the game, they'll realize how ridiculous they were being!"
***
The next day at work, as a die-hard P Corporation fan, Hirozawa Furukawa found himself speechless with frustration while listening to his colleagues gossip about yesterday's PV disaster.
During their lunch break, they gathered to share a more in-depth critique.
"Kogahara Tsubakiaki's comeback project... this PV is clearly a failure, isn't it?" Hayamigawa asked cautiously, trying not to strike a nerve.
"Yeah... I guess so," Hirozawa sighed helplessly. Even he felt it fell short of Kogahara Tsubakiaki's usual standards.
In fact, the setting and lore were even worse than when Kogahara Tsubakiaki wasn't around.
Any game made by Mikami Shinji or Ishino Mika would have a better setup than this.
Look at The Witcher—its world-building is grand, its themes are profound, and it possesses intellectual depth.
And look at Ishino Mika's Blanket Man. The mere concept of a man sprouting a blanket from his body, as shown in the PV, is enough to pique anyone's curiosity. Pair that with the Hedgehog Girl, covered in spikes, and you have a perfect match.
Such a chemical reaction would be explosive even without playing the game.
It would be as brilliant as fireworks.
But...
Only CLANNAD...
It was truly a source of endless resentment.
It was a classic case of all bark and no bite.
The same excitement they'd felt hearing about Kohara Tsubakiaki's comeback had now turned into utter disappointment.
Even with Hayao Miyazaki's immense popularity, they still couldn't prop up the game.
Hirozawa Furukawa even had a hunch—
Even if Hayao Miyazaki himself had written the script, it would have been better than this.
"It seems we can't entirely blame Kohara Tsubakiaki for this game. I heard the initial concept, including the script and creative direction, all came from President Aoki Haruhi."
"Eh? Really?"
Hearing this, Hirozawa Furukawa's eyes lit up.
The others also looked as if they had suddenly understood.
"Ah~ That explains it. If the changes and adjustments were made under pressure from the president, Kohara Tsubakiaki would have likely compromised."
"Exactly. I always said Kohara Tsubakiaki's production quality for galgames shouldn't be this poor. If he was coerced by that guy Aoki Haruhi, it would actually make sense."
"Damn it. That damn capitalist."
"Yeah, the industry rumor is that Aoki Haruhi is a decent artist, but his ability as a game planner is severely limited."
"He might have produced hits like Diablo and Pokémon, but have you noticed? The stories in those games aren't actually all that rich or stunning. Some of those games are only good because of people like Shinji Mikami and Gen Urobuchi. Before Gen Urobuchi joined Pokeni, the games Aoki Haruhi directed himself were absolute disasters."
"Ah... So there's such a hateful story behind it all."
"What was Aoki Haruhi thinking? Did he really think his own level was higher than Kogahara Tsubakiaki's? I think even letting Jun Maeda write the script would have been better than Aoki Haruhi creating it himself."
"Sigh, he probably got carried away because P Corporation's games sold so well while Kogahara Tsubakiaki was away. What else could it be?"
"Some capitalists just can't face reality. When a company is doing great, sometimes it has nothing to do with you. Forcing your hand can only lead to negative consequences."
"But, don't you find it strange? It makes sense for Kogahara Tsubakiaki to listen to the President, after all, Aoki Haruhi is the one paying his salary. But why does Hayao Miyazaki also have to listen to him?"
"That... I don't know. Maybe it's because Aoki Haruhi is an eloquent speaker? Or perhaps he's especially good at manipulating people?"
"Hmm..."
Everyone crossed their arms, falling into a long silence.
They still couldn't figure out why CLANNAD had such a generic school setting. Even the promotional video hinted at the game's ordinariness. Multiple routes, multiple female protagonists to romance, a school setting—this kind of thing was nothing new.
ELF had already played this formula to death.
There were relatively few games on the market that plagiarized P Corporation's works, mainly because Pokeni rarely took the conventional path. However, there were countless games that ripped off ELF's Doukyuusei.
Galgames of this genre all shared the same common traits:
A handsome male protagonist and a variety of girls with different personalities, all waiting for you to uncover their backstories. Then you romance them and ultimately end up with one or even several of them, achieving a Happy Ending.
But for Pokeni to do something like this was just a bit much.
It practically destroyed Master Kohara Tsubaki's god-like image in everyone's minds.
How could a god produce such a mortal work?!
This was the reason Hirozawa Furukawa felt so devastated.
Everyone was stunned into silence.
After a moment, his junior, Sugita, asked cautiously, "So, seniors, are you still planning to buy this game?"
"Ah..."
That was a question that truly struck the soul.
This question plunged everyone into an even deeper silence.
Hirozawa Furukawa's brow furrowed deeply. He didn't know how to answer.
He was torn. Given Hayao Miyazaki's original artwork, any producer of Kogahara Tsubakiaki should be buying a copy. According to his old habits, if it were a work by Old Thief Kohara, he'd have to buy three copies: one to play, one to collect, and one to use for proselytizing.
But after watching the PV, he was terrified it would be just another run-of-the-mill galgame. The first game to feature a beautiful girl harem was a huge hit, but the second one wasn't nearly as fresh. Besides, by the time P Corporation produced CLANNAD, countless similar titles had already flooded the market. Even Miyazaki's involvement couldn't change that fact.
He was completely conflicted.
To buy, or not to buy?
That was the question!
***
The latest PV revealed very little in terms of specific plot and information, but the world-building was laid bare—and it's genuinely underwhelming compared to P Corporation's previous, more imaginative settings.
This is one of the main reasons players are so dissatisfied.
[Kogahara Tsubaki + Hayao Miyazaki]...and this is all they came up with?
No one can believe or accept this. To not deliver something breathtaking—even something as shocking as a lightning bolt—is a disservice to such a powerhouse duo.
So, the backlash from players seems inevitable.
Still, there are plenty of "rational and objective" voices, as well as some hardcore P Corporation fans, arguing:
"The game isn't even out yet. Isn't it too early to jump to conclusions? Maybe it looks like a generic harem game on the surface, but has some unique brilliance underneath?"
"Exactly. Pokeni games have always been high-quality. Besides, this is Kogahara Tsubaki's comeback project. He wouldn't risk ruining his own reputation, would he?"
"Is it possible that Kogahara Tsubakiaki felt he'd fed everyone too many delicacies in the past, and this time he's decided to go in the opposite direction? Maybe he's using a more common setting to help players immerse themselves more easily.
Your Name also features students, doesn't it?
And it's still a masterpiece, right?
Even if we're going to criticize him or send him death threats, we should at least wait until the game is released and we've confirmed it's actually terrible.
Only then will it be time to drag Kogahara Tsubakiaki out for a public flogging, and then drag President Aoki Haruhi out for one as well, right?"
In any case, Famitsu Editor-in-Chief Hamamura Hirokazu got one thing right:
The PV had sent CLANNAD's popularity skyrocketing like a rocket.
This was a classic case of "infamy is still fame."
Many game companies would kill to be roasted so thoroughly that they become a national talking point, but they can't even manage that.
It had to be admitted that the combined influence of Kogahara Tsubakiaki and Hayao Miyazaki was simply too immense, and this PV was a certified disaster.
The buzz generated by the PV even caused the once-deserted Pokeni Community forums to suddenly explode with activity.
However, the surge in popularity did not unfold as Aoki Haruhi had anticipated. Instead, it was met with a wave of vitriol:
[I know plenty of people will say, "The game isn't even out yet, don't rush to criticize it." But after watching the PV, I just can't hold back my complaints. No matter how the game plays, it's obviously going to be a school setting with a harem of beautiful girls, right? The PV makes that crystal clear. With a setup this cliché, I could probably write a better script than the author.]
[What was the purpose of this forum again? To let players speak their minds and review games, right? Well, I'm not holding back. When the news first leaked that Kogahara Tsubakiaki was coming out of retirement and Hayao Miyazaki was joining the team, I was incredibly excited. But now? Heh. Great, the PV just crushed half my expectations. My first reaction after watching it was—isn't this just your run-of-the-mill school galgame? Is Doukyuusei not good enough? Even ELF's president, Hiruta Masato, has always publicly stated he's a fan of Kogahara Tsubakiaki, even calling himself his student.]
"ELF used to learn from Pokeni.
How has the situation reversed now?
It seems Old Thief Kohara is just getting worse with age; he can't even match his own level from three years ago.
No arguments accepted. You can watch the PV before commenting."
"Yes, I've seen the PV, and I'm utterly disappointed.
CLANNAD failed to live up to my expectations.
I wouldn't buy it even if it were a work by Kogahara Tsubakiaki and Hayao Miyazaki!"
"The game's background setting is already half a failure, which has seriously lowered my expectations. That thrilling feeling I had when watching the Patema Inverted PV is gone.
This time, I just feel a surge of frustration in my chest, but I don't know how to vent it.
All I can say is that Aoki Haruhi, the incompetent President, has wasted a god-tier Producer like Kogahara Tsubakiaki and a national-treasure-level artist like Hayao Miyazaki.
Although I'm still hoping for a turnaround after the game goes on sale, it seems unlikely to make waves with this background setting.
Blessings to the Pokeni I once loved."
Blessings to the Kohara Tsubakiaki I once loved.
Blessings to the Hayao Miyazaki I love.
Aoki Haruhi, Shine.]
***
Aoki Haruhi covered her face in anguish.
Who could have imagined that the forum she had created to receive praise from the players would instead be filled with such malicious comments?
You bunch of haters!
Wait—just then, a shiver ran down Aoki Haruhi's spine.
She suddenly realized something.
Oh my god!
I'm being cyberbullied!
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