There! I win!
"Conversation in German" There! I win!
"Conversation in German" Wow, you got me, Emilia.
Since when did you get so good at games?
I don't know, Dad, maybe you got worse.
What can I say?
I didn't think there were game cafés like this in Japan.
Yes, it's a wonderful place.
But you know what else, Dad?
Something nicer happened.
Oh, what is that?
I think there are other high school girls who love board games here in Japan!
That's when I decided...
...to become a game author myself!
That's my dream!
Really? That's interesting.
I know, right?
It's quite rare for you to bring a companion.
A friend, perhaps?
I wouldn't use such a strong word with him.
More like "someone I'm stuck with."
You must have known each other for a long time.
I guess so. Since the Okinawa days...
How long ago was that?
We were in the camp 15 years ago. Getting senile already?
Huh? Did you say something, annoying four-eyes?
I see that you're politeness is still intact.
What?
Who do you have to thank for introducing you to board games?
Did you forget that, too?
A game buddy, as I thought. So has he been to Saikoro Club, too?
Saikoro...? What about dice?
It's the name of my store.
Store...?
I run a board game shop now.
That's the first time I've heard that.
It's the first time I've told you.
Well, there's nothing there you'd find interesting.
Don't worry, I wasn't interested in the first place.
It's fruitless as a business opportunity anyway.
What...?
Board games don't make any money in Japan.
Titles that become bestsellers in Germany make very little money here.
Japan is still very far behind in board game culture.
You should know that very well.
That's...!
In fact, I don't count on the Japanese market at all.
Market...?
Of course, I do some business in Japan.
But there's nothing here worth me visiting in person.
Over ten years have passed and you're still as annoying as ever.
"Consommé flavor potato chips"
What you said is true.
"Consommé flavor potato chips" Digital games were too bright a light in Japan,
and board games were hidden in the shadows for too long.
But the Japanese are catching onto the fact that this incredible thing exists...
Listen to me. Japanese board games have a future.
My shop, the market, and our designers!
I see, the market and designers...
Yeah, remember that, George!
Huh? George?
Wait... could you possibly be...?
Episode 6: A Fledgling Designer is Born!
Even after the trip to Kanazawa with Aya-chan and Midori-chan,
there's still plenty of summer vacation left for us.
"Teahouse Isehan"
Today, the three of us are...
Playtesting?
Wait, your original game is finished?!
No, it's still just a prototype.
I'm going to show the manager and get his feedback, then do some brushing up.
That said, I guess it's already taking shape, somewhat.
Wow, really?!
Yes...
Awesome! I wanna play!
Let me try! Let me try your game!
N-No! It's incomplete...
Huh? Why not? You want to play too, right, Miki-chan?
Um, yeah...
See? Come on, please? Hey, Midori-chan!
I said no!
Oh... Sorry...
But I don't want to show people anything incomplete.
What do you think, Manager?
Hmm...
Midori-chan, have you let anyone else play this game yet?
No, of course not. It's not even finished yet.
I see, just as I thought...
As you thought?
What do you mean, Manager?
Manager!
Well, this is...
Sorry, we're closed for the day...
Did I interrupt you?
You...! What are you doing here?!
Oh, is this someone you know?
So this is your place.
You said you had no interest.
I changed my mind. I thought I should take a look.
Hmm?
Is that a new game? Let me play.
It's still just a prototype...
Oh, are you the designer of this game?
Yes... I am.
What's your name?
Um, Manager? Who is this gentleman...?
Oh, yeah, he's--
My apologies, it was rude of me not to introduce myself first.
I am George Beresford. I am the representative and designer for Bad Dwarf.
Bad Dwarf?! You're...?!
I see you did your research, as always. I'm impressed that you know this idiot.
W-What?! Come on, Manager!
It's Bad Dwarf! They're the famous new game brand from the US!
They're famous for high-quality games rated highly by critics!
And you are?
Um, yes, I'm Midori Ono.
Midori, don't you want people to play your game?
It's not like that...
It's just that this one isn't complete yet...
It's not ready to be played by people...
But you were playing it with Takeru just now. It must be ready.
Well... that's...
This is an opportunity, sure... but...
You can say no. You don't owe him anything.
Midori, why hesitate? Are you afraid?
Huh...?
You're scared that someone will tell you your game is boring. Correct?
--N-No, that's...
--Hey, George! --N-No, that's...
I understand. I've had enough.
--Huh?
--To be honest, --Huh?
I didn't expect there to be a young designer like you here in Japan.
That's why I was interested in what kind of game you'd design, but...
...I'm sorry.
Sorry? What do you mean...
You're not a designer.
A designer should want to have their game played more than anything.
Hey, George!
Why...
Why would someone I just met talk to me like that?!
If you can't let other people play it, it's not a game.
I said it's not finished yet!
Once it's done, of course I'll have people play it...
Then when will it be finished?
When...? That's... I mean, soon...
I'm sorry to break it to you, but that game will never be complete.
You'll never get anywhere if you're just stuck inside your own head.
You will be an old lady and it will still be incomplete.
Remember this: A game cannot be built alone.
Can't be built alone...?
No... a game is a work of art by an author!
Games are created by an author's talent!
That guy will eat his words...
Not even when I'm an old lady, did he say?
I'll show him!
"New message from Midori-chan"
Midori-chan?
"I finally understand. Thanks! You're great!" "Midori: Do you two have time today?"
"Yes, I'm free."
"Aya: Okay, meet at my place!"
Coming!
Welcome--
What's wrong with your face, Midori-chan?!
Huge bags under your eyes...!
I, uh, want you to try something...
Huh?
Try? Try what?
My, ah...
Ah?
Ah...
--Alligator?
--No! --Alligator?
So then, what?
Well, the, uh...
Come on, what is it?!
I want you to try my game!
What?!
But you said it's still a prototype.
Yeah! You got all mad, like, "I said no!"
I, um...
Is there a reason why you're in a hurry?
Well, last night, at Saikoro Club...
Wow, that really happened?!
So then what, Midori-chan?
So I pulled an all-nighter.
I wanted you two to playtest this as soon as humanly possible.
The game is called One Room.
You work to make money, buy furniture and trinkets, and design a room that you like.
Wow! It really is a game!
--Huh...?
--So many pieces of furniture! --Huh...?
--So many pieces of furniture!
Did you draw all of these? You're a great artist!
Really? Thanks...
An interior design game, huh? That sounds super fun.
Yeah, this type of thing is a girl's dream.
Okay, here are the rules.
You start with your room board and five gold.
Five gold?
Oh, gold is the unit of currency, like yen or dollars.
Gotcha.
The game is composed of two phases.
The first phase is the work phase.
You choose how many hours of work you want to do from the cards available.
A poker deck...?
I didn't have time to make the number cards, so this is a substitute.
The numbers on these cards represent labor hours.
Three for three hours?
Yes.
I see!
The starting player picks first and gets money equal to the number of hours.
So if I pick an eight, I get eight gold?
That's right.
Okay, so it's best to pick the biggest number!
Yes, you get the most money that way.
But...
Huh?
...the player that picks the biggest number can't go shopping in the next phase.
Shopping?
After the work phase is the shopping phase.
You can purchase any of the four pieces of furniture available to put in your room.
Like I said, the person who worked the longest can't buy anything.
On the other hand, the person who worked the least
can start buying first and can buy as much as they want.
Oh, I get it!
You get out of work early so you can go shopping sooner!
Yeah, that's the idea. So when you buy furniture, you put it in your room.
You can buy a maximum of 12 things.
When any one player places 12 things in their room, the game is over.
The person who scores the most points wins.
How do you determine score?
Do you see the colored triangle on the top right of each furniture tile?
Oh, yeah.
There are four different colors of furniture, and each color represents a style.
Pink is Asian, blue is Nordic, and so on.
You get more points for having more furniture in the same style.
You see the numbers on the right of the room board?
Those are the bonus points you get for having multiple pieces of furniture in the same style.
I see, so if you have seven, you get 28 points.
Yes, but getting more than that won't get you any additional points.
That's the basic "furniture point" score.
In addition, you get a bonus for buying trinkets.
Trinkets...?
Bonus?
"Cabinet" "Rug" Trinkets have a grey triangle on the bottom right corner.
These only give you one point if you buy them individually,
but they give you three points if you put them together with a certain other thing.
For example, this cushion is worth three points if you own a sofa.
"Sofa" For example, this cushion is worth three points if you own a sofa.
I see! What else is there?
"Desk"
The laptop goes with the desk, and the books go with the bookshelf.
"Bookshelf" The laptop goes with the desk, and the books go with the bookshelf.
"Table" Ooh, a board game! This goes with a table!
Furniture that costs more has more trinkets that pair with it.
Wow!
You've thought this through.
So that's the overview. What do you think?
This is great! It seems like a lot of fun, Midori-chan!
Yes! I can't wait to try it!
R-Really?
Yes! The game belongs to the author! It's created by the author's talent!
I'll prove that!
Come on, let's try!
Yeah!
Y-Yes! Well, for starters...
...Aya, pick a card and decide how long you want to work!
Yes!
Hmm... What to do...
I do want the board game, but then I'd have to get the table, too...
"Sofa" Wait, the table costs how much?! Eleven gold!
Midori-chan, isn't this too expensive?!
I had to set it high. Tables support so many different trinkets.
Grr...
I want to get a sofa, but I can't find the right color...
Yeah, you don't want to miss that sweet bonus score!
That would be important.
Aya, it seems like you're combining things well.
Yep, I got the rules down perfectly!
Okay, your turn to pick work hours again.
Hmm, I might have overspent...
In that case...
...this one!
Okay, I'll go with a nine.
I'll take the four.
Next is the shopping phase, and Aya skips her shopping turn.
Why?
You worked the longest, remember?
Oh, right! I forgot...
Are you okay? I thought you knew the rules perfectly.
Um, yeah...
Okay, that's the end of the game.
Aya got 30 points, Miki 26, and I got 39 points.
So, um... what did you think? Not very good?
Oh, uh... It was fun! Right, Miki-chan?!
Y-Yes!
Oh, no... They're obviously trying to be nice to me...!
Please! I need you to be brutally honest! I won't get mad!
Miki! Aya!
Okay...
In that case...
Um... It's not entirely boring or anything, but...
...compared to the games we've played up until now,
it feels like it's missing something...
It feels kind of monotonous when you actually play it...
Monotonous...!
All the trinkets are the same points, but maybe they should be different.
Oh, I thought so, too!
Also, I'm always worried about the points,
so it didn't feel like I was designing my dream home.
Yeah! I had to give up on a thing I felt was cute because it had the wrong color.
Also...
I know! Pets!
Pets?!
If this were my room, I'd love to have a pet!
Like seven points for a cat!
Oh, but maybe it would claw up the Asian furniture, so negative seven for that!
"Asian" Oh, but maybe it would claw up the Asian furniture, so negative seven for that!
That could be fun!
How about, like, a "chance card" that would change up the flow a little?
Yeah, like trading furniture with someone!
That sounds fun!
Just putting the furniture on the board is a bit boring, too.
Yeah, I wonder if we can get creative and...
Oh, sorry, we're just amateurs, so...
Yeah, we must be saying something completely off the mark, so don't worry...
What are you talking about? Off the mark? You're spot on!
How can they find so many improvements in just one playthrough...?
A game cannot be built alone.
Midori-chan...?
What else?
Huh?
What else? Give me more!
Oh! We're sorry!
We went too far!
Anything! Tell me everything!
I put in so much thought, too...
I put in so much effort to finish this all by myself.
I was certain there was nothing more I could do to improve this,
but... the result is... I hate to admit it, but he's right.
This game is far from complete, but...
We broke Midori-chan?!
My game can be so much more interesting!
I have to admit, I owe you one for this, George.
Hmm?
About Midori-chan.
Oh, yeah...
I was supposed to be the one to tell her what you told her.
I made you become the bad guy. I'm sorry.
You've always been soft on women.
That said, I just did what I wanted to do.
The designer's talents create the game. That's true.
But it takes a village.
Yeah...
Even the most talented genius designer
goes through countless testing sessions before a game is complete.
All designers know how important it is to have someone else play your game.
You can't become a designer while being afraid of criticism.
Yeah...
What's important is whether or not that girl can take the first step.
If there is too much pride, it can be an inhibitor to growth.
Welcome--
Hey, Midori-chan?!
Mr. Beresford...
...you really are a professional.
Everything you said was correct.
I can't complete this game alone...
Midori-chan...
But... I won't give up! I'm not alone!
I will definitely make a game! Something that can make everyone smile!
She's so full of surprises. I guess you really hit a nerve there.
Now it's getting interesting.
Cheers!
To a newborn...
...fledgling designer!
"Next Episode: Opening Up"
Playing a game alone with Maki-chan.
"Next Episode: Opening Up" Before I knew it, we were deep in conversation.
"Next Episode: Opening Up" "Weakling"
"Next Episode: Opening Up" I know that I'm a weakling...