Monday, 19 January 2002.
Only one day had passed since Zaraki released the "Time Is Running Out" music video, yet the reaction had already become impossible to measure. Most viewers agreed on one thing: the song itself was impressive. That was hardly surprising. Zaraki had already built a reputation for producing songs that were catchy, dramatic, and impossible to ignore. However, the song was not what truly stole the show this time.
The music video did.
Every scene seemed carefully designed to provoke a reaction. The imagery showed an aging console being pushed aside while two newer machines stood proudly beneath bright lights. The message was not subtle. It was playful, theatrical, and exaggerated, but everyone understood what Zaraki was implying.
"Enjoy your time while it lasts," the video seemed to say. "Your time is running out."
Fans who supported ZAGE treated the video like a declaration of war. They replayed the final scene repeatedly, paused every frame, and searched for hidden references. Some viewers claimed that the background contained secret hints about the upcoming ZEPS 4. Others believed that the entire video was a carefully disguised announcement of ZAGE's future strategy. Meanwhile, supporters of the rival consoles were furious. Some called the video arrogant. Others called it childish. A few insisted that Zaraki had gone too far and that ZAGE should apologize for mocking the competition. Naturally, those complaints only made the video more popular. Every angry response created another headline, and every headline encouraged more people to watch it.
By Monday morning, "Time Is Running Out" had become more than a music video. It had become a public argument. People were still discussing the lyrics when ZAGE released another video.
This time, however, it was not a music video, a commercial, or a dramatic announcement. It was something completely different. The title appeared on the ZAGE website and across the company's official television channel:
"Interview with Zaboru Renkonan."
The title sounded ordinary. The video itself was anything but ordinary. It was an internal ZAGE interview, produced without an outside journalist or television host. Instead, the interviewer was Hideo Kojima, one of the most important leaders of ZAGE's Team NOVA. His involvement immediately attracted attention because Kojima was not known for conducting casual interviews.
So why was he interviewing Zaboru?
According to the introduction, the decision had been made through what ZAGE jokingly called a "lottery." Several senior leaders in Japan had supposedly drawn names to determine who would interview Zaboru Renkonan. Kojima had drawn the winning—or losing—ticket, depending on how one looked at it. The moment the explanation was given, viewers understood that Kojima had not volunteered. He had been selected. And unfortunately for him, the person he had to interview was Zaboru.
The video opened inside one of the conference rooms located in ZAGE Tower. The room was large, polished, and unnecessarily dramatic for a simple interview. A long glass table stood between the two men. Behind them, enormous windows revealed the Tokyo skyline, while the ZAGE emblem was displayed on a wall illuminated by blue and silver lights. Zaboru sat comfortably in his chair, looking completely relaxed. Hideo Kojima sat across from him, holding a folder containing several questions. His posture was professional, but his expression betrayed him. His face was already slightly red, as if he was trying very hard not to laugh before the interview had even begun.
The camera moved closer. Kojima cleared his throat. "Hello, Zaboru Renkonan-san," he said. "Nice to meet you. Sorry to bother you, but we at ZAGE TV would like to interview you." His voice was polite, but there was an awkward hesitation in the middle of the sentence. It sounded as though he had rehearsed the introduction several times and still did not know how to make it sound natural.
Zaboru immediately noticed. He pressed his lips together, trying to hold back a grin. His shoulders trembled slightly, and for a moment it looked as though he might burst into laughter. "Nice to meet you too, Kojima-san," Zaboru replied. The two men stared at each other for a second longer than necessary. The silence was already funny.
Kojima looked down at his folder, pretending to review the questions. In reality, he was probably trying to regain control of himself. "Zaboru-san," he began, "is it true that ZEPS 4 will be released soon?" Zaboru leaned back in his chair and nodded slowly, as if he had just been asked to confirm a national secret. "Yes," he said. "It will not be long now." Kojima raised his eyebrows. Zaboru continued, his smile growing wider. "And when it is released, it will change the way people view video game consoles." The statement was bold, but Zaboru delivered it with such confidence that it sounded almost reasonable. Kojima nodded thoughtfully, playing along with the seriousness of the moment. "How many games will be released with it?" he asked. Zaboru immediately laughed. "Secret." Kojima waited. Zaboru pointed toward the camera. "You have to wait for it, okay?"
The answer was not an answer at all, but it was exactly what the audience expected. ZAGE had been teasing ZEPS 4 for months, and every time someone asked for specific details, the company responded with another mystery. Kojima turned a page in his folder. "Very well," he said. "Let us move to another subject." His expression became more serious, although the twitch at the corner of his mouth suggested that he was still struggling to remain professional.
"In the recent Zaraki music video," Kojima said, "you sang a song that many people believe was directed at your competitors. Specifically, the companies behind the X and P consoles." He paused. The question was delivered with a straight face, but his eyes betrayed him. He knew exactly how provocative it sounded.
Zaboru stared at him. For two seconds, he maintained a completely expressionless face. Then his eyes widened dramatically. "Competitors?" he asked. Kojima nodded. Zaboru placed one hand against his chest, pretending to be shocked. "No, no, no. That is not what it means. It is simply a fun way to express creativity. The song does not use any real-life references." Kojima looked at him. Zaboru looked back. The room became silent again.
Kojima slowly lifted another page from the folder. "But the video clearly shows Z3 being thrown away and losing to the X and P consoles." Zaboru's expression remained innocent. Kojima continued, "And the X and P consoles are represented by…" He paused deliberately. The screen suddenly displayed a loud censoring effect. "BEEP!" A second censoring sound followed. "BEEP!" The words were hidden, but nobody needed an explanation. The audience immediately understood that Kojima had said "Xbox" and "I-play."
The censoring made the moment far funnier than simply naming the consoles would have been. It gave the impression that ZAGE was pretending to protect itself from a lawsuit while openly pointing at the exact companies everyone knew they were discussing.
Zaboru's eyes widened again, this time with exaggerated disbelief. "How could you say that, Kojima-san?" he asked. "Of course that is not true at all." Kojima lowered his head, trying not to laugh. Zaboru continued, "Besides, I respect…" He paused and looked toward the camera. "BEEP!" Then he added another name. "BEEP!" He immediately covered his mouth. "Wait," Zaboru said. "I said their names again."
Kojima finally lost control for half a second. He turned away from the camera and pressed his lips together, but his shoulders shook visibly. Zaboru pointed toward the production crew. "Do not worry," he said. "We will censor it." He then pointed directly at the camera. "Please censor that part."
The video did not cut away. Instead, the camera remained focused on both men as they tried to recover their composure. The longer they attempted to act serious, the funnier the scene became.
Kojima took a deep breath and returned to his questions. "So," he said carefully, "the message of the music video is entirely fictional?" Zaboru smiled with exaggerated innocence. "Yes. Completely fictional. It is only a gimmick. A fantasy. A dramatic performance created for entertainment." Kojima nodded.
Zaboru leaned forward. "Besides…" His voice became quieter. He slowly stood from his chair and walked toward the camera. The movement was so sudden that Kojima looked genuinely surprised. Zaboru continued until his face was extremely close to the lens, filling almost the entire screen. Then he whispered, "Is ZEPS 3 really losing to…" The censoring effect appeared again. "BEEP!" Another censor followed. "BEEP!" Zaboru smiled. "No, right?"
He remained close to the camera for another moment, allowing the question to settle over the audience. Then he calmly walked back to his chair and sat down as if nothing unusual had happened. "Despite being an older console," he continued, "ZEPS 3 is still strong." Kojima stared at him. Zaboru folded his hands on the table and nodded with complete confidence. "Very strong."
The statement was technically harmless. He had not directly insulted Xbox or I-play. He had not officially declared that ZEPS 3 was superior. He had not even admitted that the music video was about them. But the entire interview had already said everything.
Kojima looked down at his notes again. His expression had changed. He no longer appeared to be conducting an interview. He looked like a man who had realized that every question he asked would somehow be turned into another attack. Still, he had one final question.
"So," Kojima said, "about the title of the song…" Zaboru tilted his head. "'Time Is Running Out'?" Zaboru nodded. Kojima leaned slightly forward. "Whose time is running out?"
For the first time during the interview, Zaboru did not answer immediately. He looked at Kojima. Kojima looked back at him. The room became completely silent. Then Zaboru slowly grinned.
"For them," he said.
Kojima's eyes widened. Zaboru did not explain who "they" were. He did not need to. The music video, the censored names, the discarded Z3 imagery, and the entire tone of the interview had already provided the answer.
Kojima stared at him for several seconds. Zaboru stared back. Neither man moved. Then Kojima began laughing. Zaboru joined him, and soon both men were laughing openly in the conference room. The camera remained fixed on them as the interview ended without a formal conclusion, a closing statement, or even a thank-you.
The screen faded to black. The ZAGE logo appeared. Then a final message was displayed:
"All statements in this interview are fictional."
A second line appeared beneath it.
"Probably."
By the end of the day, "Interview with Zaboru Renkonan" had become one of the most discussed ZAGE releases of the year. It was not a product announcement, yet it generated more attention than many official presentations. It did not reveal the ZEPS 4 launch date, but it made people even more curious. It did not confirm that "Time Is Running Out" was aimed at Xbox and I-play, but nobody believed the denials.
The interview had been designed as a joke. It had also been a warning.
ZAGE had shown that it could promote itself without giving away important information. It could insult its competitors without directly naming them. It could turn a simple internal interview into a national spectacle, all while maintaining the appearance of innocence.
And the most dangerous part was that everyone understood the joke. The viewers understood it. The fans understood it. The competitors understood it. Even Kojima understood it, which was probably why he looked so uncomfortable throughout the entire interview.
By Monday evening, one phrase appeared everywhere across the internet and in gaming magazines:
ZAGE is savage.
Not aggressive.
Not reckless.
Savage.
They had released a music video that mocked their rivals, followed it with an interview that pretended not to mock them, censored the names everyone already knew, and ended by suggesting that the competition's time was running out.
Zaboru had not made an official declaration. He had not announced a victory. He had simply smiled at the camera and allowed the audience to reach its own conclusion.
And somehow, the whisper had been louder than any announcement but someone really don't take this lightly….
To be continued.
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