Exclusive Interview with Cygames' CTO: Using Technology to Enhance the Appeal of Social Games

　　Cygames, a Japanese company, is primarily engaged in the development of mobile games, social apps, and smartphone apps.

　　In May 2011, Cygames was founded by several veteran developers who had previously worked on some of Japan’s most popular games. Its first major original title, *The Wrath of Bahamut*, received overwhelmingly positive reviews across major charts upon its release (2 million users).

　　The international version of the game *Rage of Bahamut* has reached the No. 1 spot on the U.S. Google Play and App Store charts, with the number of registered users surpassing 4.5 million. Meanwhile, the Korean, Chinese, and Taiwanese versions of the game have also been released one after another and have gained popularity among gamers worldwide.

　　In addition, Cygames has developed several other games, including *The Idolmaster: Cinderella Girls* (2 million users) and *Saint Seiya: Galaxy Card Battle* (1.3 million users).

　　The company isn’t limiting its games to mobile apps alone; it plans to focus on both apps and browser-based games simultaneously. In this article, we’ll gain some insight into the structure and characteristics of the company’s technology department through an interview with Mr. Eitoshi Lu Yuan, the CTO (Chief Technology Officer).

　　Social Game Info: Hello. First of all, could you, Mr. Ashihara, briefly describe your career?

　　I started out as a programmer at a large game company, where I was primarily involved in the development of online games. Later, while working at various game companies, I met Mr. Watanabe, who is now the president of Cygames, and that led to my joining the company in April 2014.I currently serve as CTO, overseeing everything from front-end to back-end development, as well as the compilation of everything from the most basic applications to servers.

　　Social Game Info: What was the situation like when you first joined the company?

　　Cygames' titles are very popular among players, and the company has a massive user base. However, the company had only just been established at the time, so in order to handle the operation and management of such a large-scale social game, we put a great deal of effort into server load balancing.

　　We use this as a starting point to determine the development team and development strategy, and make adjustments step by step.In addition, Cygames uses the engine from *Bahamut’s Wrath* to develop and operate other titles. This means that lessons learned from the success of one title can be applied to others, and if issues arise, we do our best to prevent them from recurring. Therefore, whether good or bad things happen, they actually help us provide a stable service.

　　■ Stable operation and technology development are the two pillars; Unity has long been conducting research
in this area.

　　Social Game Info: What do you think are Cygames’ unique strengths in terms of technology?

　　Although browser games like *Deep Blue Fantasy* push the limits of performance and require us to give it our all, our primary focus remains on the most routine tasks—laying a solid foundation to ensure the long-term stability of our service.

　　Therefore, Cygames' engineers focus primarily on ensuring that the servers operate stably over the long term. While introducing new technologies is certainly important, if they are overused to the point of compromising server stability, the costs would outweigh the benefits.

　　If there are any other distinctive features, it’s that our company shares information about current projects through our internal social networking service and has made this an integral part of our corporate culture.For example, if a development team posts something like, “We’re having this issue—what should we do?” developers from other teams will quickly respond with suggestions such as, “Try doing it this way,” to help resolve the problem. This kind of interaction is extremely common at our company.

　　As a company grows and its workforce expands, information and understanding can easily become distorted. Information-sharing meetings and internal social networks, such as those used at Cygames, are common at other companies as well. While implementing an internal social network may not be difficult in itself, embedding it into the corporate culture requires a significant investment of time and effort.

　　Social Game Info: Are there any other characteristics of the technical department?

　　Well, I'm not sure if this counts as a distinguishing feature, but our technical team keeps the areas of application and research and development separate
.

　　While striving to provide stable services, we are also dedicating our full efforts to the research and development of a wide range of new technologies. Although the results of our research and development are put into practical use, we proceed with the utmost caution. As mentioned earlier, we must consider the potential problems and consequences that could arise from the reckless introduction and misuse of new technologies.

　　Social Game Info: R&D departments seem to be quite rare in the browser game industry. What do they mainly focus on?

　　For example, although we haven’t released any titles yet, we began researching Unity quite early on. We’ve been exploring this area ever since there were no 3D games in the browser game industry.

　　We are also continuing to work on developing game engines. We began working on a new engine just one year after the release of *The Wrath of Bahamut*, and we now have two game engines on the server side. On the client side as well, we are already developing engines for several game projects currently in the planning stages.

　　Social Game Info: What made you decide to put together a research and development team?

　　If you don’t make an effort to delve into emerging trends, you won’t be able to keep up with the times.In my own case, since I previously worked in the research and development department of a major gaming company, it was only natural that we formed this team. Also, we began researching online games when the Internet was just starting to become widespread, and only later did we gradually develop them into finished products. This was also a key motivation for us in establishing our research and development team.

　　Social Game Info: As mentioned earlier, the hiring process for software engineers is more rigorous. What skills or experience are required for these roles?

　　We are particularly interested in candidates who are proficient in Unity or Cocos2d-x, or who have a natural talent for game programming. We are especially looking for people with experience in PC game development, as a significant portion of a game’s playability depends on the responsiveness of the code. Therefore, we are also seeking individuals with a natural talent for programming.

　　Of course, since browser-based games are web applications, we need web developers; developers with experience in mobile game development are not required. Therefore, we are looking for people with experience and a talent for game development.

　　Social Game Info: So, as a programmer, are there any other essential skills?

　　I want him to be a jack-of-all-trades, but also an expert in a specific area. Ideally, we’re looking for someone who understands infrastructure, databases, networking, back-end, front-end, as well as Unity, Cocos2d-x, and everything else. If you have a broad understanding of all these areas, you’ll be able to resolve issues as quickly as possible when they arise.That’s why, when new programmers join the company, we don’t assign them work in a specific area; instead, we have them gain exposure to various areas so they can acquire comprehensive business knowledge. Last year, all the new hires were assigned to JavaScript, but now they’re working on Flash or server-side tasks.

　　Social Game Info: Aside from skills, what other elements do you prioritize?

　　We view candor not only as a skill but also as a fundamental quality. Candor means taking the time to listen to others’ opinions as a matter of course and being open to accepting both suggestions and feedback directed at oneself.

　　Also, when it comes to development, what’s technically correct isn’t always the right choice for a project. This is because programming accuracy isn’t necessarily linked to a game’s fun and entertainment value—sometimes, it can even work against it.

　　Engineers sometimes place too much faith in the idea that technical accuracy is the only correct answer. But the ultimate goal of a project should actually be to convey the fun of the game to users, so we need people who can question the necessity of technical accuracy.

　　Social Game Info: Could you please say a few more words to wrap things up?

　　Our goal is to create the best work possible and bring joy to the world.

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