Core Magazine with Yuji Naka talk:

Sega subsidiary director Yuji Naka appeared at Nintendo’s Spaceworld pre-show event this afternoon in Tokyo and briefly agreed to speak about Nintendo’s new console. Therein, he was asked about the appeal of the GameCube and what impact he believes it will have on the market.

He responded, “The gaming industry is in a depressed state, but I think the GameCube will trigger a resurgence of players. Nintendo is focusing on fun original software with multiplayer compatibility, and I think people will be delighted with the GameCube. In terms of Sega software, Super Monkey Ball will be available at launch. We believe the GameCube could trigger an industrywide turnaround, and we’re proud to be a part of it.”

Sega and its subsidiaries have emerged as Nintendo’s strongest third party developers. Do they believe in Nintendo’s claims of easy software development on the GameCube? Naka-san contunued, “I believe it’s true. If today’s showing is any indication, we’ve been able to transplant Sonic Adventure 2 and Phantasy Star Online easily to the GameCube. The short translation time is allowing us to focus on adding new elements to both games.”

Speaking of Phantasy Star Online, when can players expect Sega’s network RPG on the GameCube? Naka-san revealed, “Because it involves the modem which Nintendo has control over releasing, I can’t give a specific release date yet. However, we’ve been working with Nintendo on the online aspects and scheduling a release date. On the development end, we’ve been focusing on adding new elements lately, and we look forward to bringing network gaming to the GameCube in the near future.”