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Kensuke Tanaka Interview: Famitsu Weekly April 27th, 2017
Introduction
The following interview comes from within the Weekly Gaming Magazine "Famitsu Weekly (April 27th Edition)" which was released on April 27th, 2017. Within the interview, the Editor has an interview with Kancolle's main producer, Kensuke Tanaka. Within the article, Takana discusses about details regarding his involvement with KanColle's development for 4 years, the collaborations he's been working on with KanColle, additional details regarding the Full Scale Zuiun Project, and finally hints regarding the event including key notes about it's location, the Taiyo-class Escort Carrier, and the new Foreign Battleship.
Ask the Producer
Our editor-in-chief asked KanColle HQ Naval District's Producer Tanaka about the latest news and developments. We also discuss retrospectives on management and development!
Last but certainly not least in our Kancolle special is an interview with the man who commands the Kancolle Management Base, producer and director Keisuke Tanaka. While looking back on the work of the fourth year, we asked him about the upcoming spring event as well as the latest developments and collaborations. (Interviewer: 2 minutes walk from north exit / article management editor)
Thank you for all of your hard work! Kancolle has finally reached its fourth anniversary. Congratulations!
Kensuke Tanaka (hereafter Tanaka): Likewise, thank you for having me. I'm very happy to see such a large special to commemorate our fourth anniversary.
Even so, it's now the fifth year of Kancolle, isn't it.
Tanaka: Indeed. After somewhat overcoming initial difficulties, we'd initially given it 3 years and 8 months. However, last December, we achieved that milestone. It is thanks to all of the admirals and everyone who supported us that we were able to exceed expectations and last as long as we have. I am truly grateful. I hope that in the future, we can continue to move forward in our own Kancolle way.
In addition to new systems, we also have real-life events such as the Naval Reviews, as well as the concerts in Tokyo and Osaka, the start of Kancolle Arcade, and the opening of the Kancolle movie.
Tanaka: Yes. We were relieve to see the movie open without a hitch. Personally, preparations for last year's in-game Saury Festival and the real-life outdoors Saury Festival at Yokohama were very stressful, but I'm very happy that we pulled them off successfully.
I was surprised at the real-life Saury Festival!
Tanaka: Let's enjoy freshly cooked saury while watching the sea! This was the idea behind the event. The voice actresses who cooked the saury, grated the daikon for the topping, and danced the ondo with the teitokus...[1]
That really is Kancolle-like, isn't it. It's true with the Mitsukoshi collaboration as well, but it's really unique, forging new paths that have never been tried before.
Tanaka: Sorry...I mean, thanks, yeah. Last year, the saury catch was abnormally low and good saury were expensive, so we had some trouble with that, but we worked it out somehow, so that was good (earnestly). This year, as far as off-screen developments go, first is the real-life jet airliner collaboration. Then there's the 1:1 full size Zuiun model plan.
....what? Fu-full size, you say!?
Tanaka: A 1:1 Zuiun, that multi-role seaplane scout that comes to mind as a representative of Kancolle, and the experience of seeing it made real is what I want people to feel.
...when will we be able to see it!?
Tanaka: We'll make another progress report in May, and we hope to have it ready for public viewing before this summer. This full size Zuiun is pretty big.
...we're looking forward to it! We're really excited!
Tanaka: For our next event, in the team's words,the spring event, we are putting our best effort into this. [2] This spring, there will be three normal maps and two extra maps, for a "somewhat large mid-sized event".
....We have heard it will be an operation on the northern front.
Tanaka: Yes. It will be in the north, but not AL. The song that's already in Kancolle, “Protection of the Shikon”. It will not be a battle of ships, but about the people who struggled in the northern defense force after the fighting that day. This defensive battle is landed as the motif of this event.[3]
Northern? Not ships, but a defensive battle? i must do research!
Tanaka: Yes, it is the battle where the Type 97 torpedo bomber fought its last, harsh battle... Ah, right. Speaking of new shipgirls, one will appear whose name originates in this area.
...hmmm...who could it be...isn't it about time to open a new operational area?
Tanaka: That's right. This is not related to the name of the ship we talked about earlier, but we're also preparing a new large ship, battleship type. Her name changed in a revolution, but was then changed back.
A battleship! And, revolution!
Tanaka: We're also beginning to prepare to implement kaiboukan [4]. Also, shipgirls born as a cargo and passenger ships, converted to carriers, with a tragic fate. The name ship of that class is currently slated to be implemented.
Tai- ....is that the ship!?
Tanaka: Yes, it's that ship. She had been personified well before Kancolle and the current subculture, one of a beautiful set of three sisters. Ships...are truly wonderful existences.
I guess it's inevitable in some way.
Tanaka: At first, she will be weak, but if you equip and raise her well, it will be possible to use her as a powerful ASW carrier.
So she's an escort carrier. I'll look forward to her! Now then, to finish this, a message to all the admirals who're reading this, if you don't mind.
Tanaka: Kancolle was able to see its fifth year this spring thanks to the support of all of our teitokus. When we started, I could have never forseen this. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Time really does fly. It seems like only yesterday that Shibafu-san, who graciously drew the cover picture for the fourth anniversary, was fretting over how to draw Fubuki, the first of the shipgirls. I hope to continue moving forward, step by step, in a Kancolle-like approach. Pleae enjoy Kancolle and the shipgirls for a fifth year. Thank you, everyone at the Famitsu editing group!
Bottom Section
Kancolle's fifth year will be KanConnect! We'll be following in the Kai-ni corner! [5]
- ↑ Saki Fujita, Tanibe Yumi, Uchida Shuu, and Yamada Yuki attended the festival and put on a performance of doing various activities over at the festival as noted by Tanaka.
- ↑ In the original context, the translation is of an old Japanese motto, "every day is a decisive battle!" Every day is a hard fight!" Which is a wording used to descibe how they are putting thier best effort in the work.
- ↑ Tanaka is hinting at the the nickname of the 11th Tank battalion, who participated in the battle of Shumshu cause 十一 (11) form the word 士.
- ↑ coastal defense ships, often called destroyer escorts (hull class DE) in US parlance.
- ↑ The following pages in the book cover the history of all the second remodel releases in the game
Bonus: A message from cover illustrator Shibafu-sensei
In the bottom left corner of the interview is a small message by KanColle's Artist, Shibafu who was resposible for designing the majority of the Fubuki-class, some Ayanami-class members,1st and 2nd Carrier Division and so forth.
"I'm Shibafu, who drew the cover illustration. With the fourth anniversary, I choose to do a picture of four Special Type Destroyers. The Special Types were the first shipgirls, both for me and for Kancolle, so I have a lot of memories of trial and error with their designs. Please continue to enjoy Kancolle and the shipgirls!"
Special Thanks to BauxiteKing, Mikado, and KonoeYume for translations and Lte7 for helping decipher some of the very hard to read text size of the page provided.