Arcade history is filled with celebrated designers, but the medium’s lasting appeal also rests on the many developers who steadily shaped its machines and experiences behind the scenes. Shinichi Ogasawara is one of those important figures, with a career spanning roughly three decades across Sega and international arcade development.
Ogasawara began as an assistant on Rail Chase 2 in 1994 before moving into planning, directing and senior game-design roles at Sega’s AM3 department.
His credits include Gunblade N.Y. (1995), The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) and Jambo! Safari (1999). After working on varied projects at AM3 successor Hitmaker during the early 2000s, he returned to arcade shooting games with Let’s Go Jungle in 2006, followed by Let’s Go Island (2011) and Transformers: Human Alliance (2013).
His work on games designed with international audiences in mind led to a close relationship with Sega’s Western development operations. In 2014, shortly before the organisation became Sega Amusements International, Ogasawara moved from Japan to its Cardiff, Wales base. Working with Patrick Michael and the in-house R&D team, he has contributed to video releases developed across Japan, China and the United Kingdom, including Mission: Impossible Arcade (2021).
Ogasawara is now Senior Game Designer for both Sega Amusements International and Hong Kong-based 3MindWave. The two organisations have collaborated on arcade projects since ATV Slam in 2019. In this interview, Ogasawara and 3MindWave founder and CEO Pang Shu discuss their careers, creative process and the making of Apex Rebels.
Pang Shu’s route into arcade development
Shu studied game development at university in the United Kingdom. While there, he experimented with beginner PlayStation projects, which sparked his interest in pursuing games professionally.
He later spent five years in Japan, beginning as an intern and progressing into programming. That period gave him direct experience of Japanese development methods, technical practice and production culture.
After returning to Hong Kong, Shu joined Wahlap Technology. He was tasked with establishing the company’s Hong Kong arcade-development team and supervised several third-party studios in Japan and South Korea. Six years before this interview, he founded 3MindWave in Hong Kong as a studio focused on new arcade experiences and experimental forms of play.
Shu says the company’s central ambition is to continue producing high-quality arcade games and contribute to the industry’s next generation of interactive entertainment. Its team combines arcade experience with a strong interest in pushing the boundaries of what arcade projects can offer.
How Apex Rebels took shape
Apex Rebels began when Paul Williams, CEO of Sega Amusements International, approached 3MindWave about co-developing a racing game. Sega supplied the initial concept, building on the companies’ previous work together.
The development brief was straightforward: create a racer that would be immediately approachable while offering enough depth to reward practice, with children and parents both in mind. Ogasawara, Shu and the wider team reviewed more than 100 tracks from classic games before sketching and testing over 40 original layouts. Repeated iteration reduced that pool to four final courses.
Classic racing influences and strategic routes
The team drew on several different sources. For design ideas, Shu cites Hades, PUBG and Marvel Snap. Their interest in roguelike structure influenced the game’s replayability: there is no single perfect route or universal winning strategy. Instead, players choose between race lines with different benefits and drawbacks, creating room for tactical decisions across repeated runs.
Racing references included Daytona USA, Rage Racer, OutRun 2 SP, Storm Racer G, Asphalt 9 on mobile and PC, and OnRush on console. The team also considered design principles discussed in videos by creators including Masahiro Sakurai.
Classic 1990s arcade-racing touches were encouraged through close collaboration with Sega Amusements International personnel, including Ogasawara and Patrick Michael.
Aero Drift rewards calculated risk
One of the game’s defining techniques is Aero Drift. Ogasawara says its resemblance to flying-car ideas associated with Indy 500 and Daytona USA: Circuit Edition was coincidental rather than a direct influence.
Shu instead identifies the Japanese anime Future GPX Cyber Formula as the key inspiration. The team wanted to capture the excitement of a boost-based manoeuvre while making it meaningful within a race.
Aero Drift lets players take a shortcut and potentially gain a major advantage, but a failed attempt can cost considerable speed. The mechanic therefore rewards players prepared to accept a calculated risk.
Early versions restricted the technique to specific areas, much like anti-gravity sections in Mario Kart. During development, steering assistance and camera adjustments were added to give players more control and make the manoeuvre easier to understand and use.
The developers also point to the sponsorship boards as a place to look for secrets, while Shu suggests paying attention to the AI cars.
Four tracks, four distinct settings
Motorland Sakura was primarily Shu’s idea. The project was originally budgeted around three tracks, but testing showed that a fourth course could provide a strong balance of turns, straight sections, drifting and boosting. Additional resources were committed to complete the expanded four-track line-up.
- Slam Circuit: an autumn setting with yellow and brown leaves.
- Akina Ring: a summer landscape of sun-baked brown grass and beige sand.
- Bàak Speedway: a spring course surrounded by green forest.
- Motorland Sakura: a Japanese spring setting with pink cherry blossoms and red torii gates.
The contrasting seasons and environments were designed to make each circuit immediately recognisable. The Sakura course uses Japanese shrine imagery and a springtime palette to complete that variety.
Cabinet plans and international production
At the time of the interview, Apex Rebels was available as a Deluxe cabinet. Shu left questions about a lower-cost Standard model to Sega Amusements International. He also said that 3MindWave had long wanted to create a Super Deluxe special-attraction version of its projects, and welcomed the news that a Tokyo amusement theme park R&D manager enjoyed the game at IAAPA 2023.
Ogasawara describes the production cultures he has experienced as markedly different. Japan allowed substantial time for fundamental R&D, with collaboration involving plenty of debate. Work in Wales, carried out with Sega Shanghai, placed him in a mentor-like “Sensei” role, although he notes that he is not a master. At 3MindWave, the emphasis is on rapid decisions, inspiration and brainstorming in a start-up-style environment.
Ogasawara has also worked with independent Sega veterans, including Hiroki Nunokawa of Nuno Design on the Mission: Impossible Arcade Super Deluxe concept, and Kenji Sasaki of Bitster on Drone Racing Genesis. For now, however, he wants to concentrate on 3MindWave, praising its software, cabinet and production divisions as innovative and highly capable.
Favourite projects and future ambitions
Outside current development work, Ogasawara has been playing Battlefield 2042 and Nintendo NES Pinball. He stopped playing Starfield and Cyberpunk 2077; the latter did not support Japanese in the Hong Kong region.
Among his earlier concepts, he would like to revisit Jambo! Safari, saying he was too young at the time to make the open-world game he imagined. He would also like to explore the “romantic comedy-action” direction of Let’s Go Jungle and, if possible, upgrade Target Bravo (Operation Ghost) with AAA-level graphics for the G.H.O.S.T. team.
Of his Sega Amusements projects from the 2010s onwards, Ogasawara names Transformers: Human Alliance as his favourite.
Looking ahead, he would like Sega Japan titles to reach Western markets and Sega Amusements International products to be sold in Japan. He is interested in new-generation arcade products from his own organisations and companies such as Adrenaline Amusements. He says Apex Rebels and Drakons: Realm Keepers have had a significant personal impact.
Sega Amusements International is pursuing a “play for fun” approach, while its headquarters shares useful information about location trends in Western regions. Ogasawara believes 3MindWave can become one of the leading current arcade R&D studios, with a passion reminiscent of Sega’s 1990s development era. Together, he says, the companies are working towards a new generation of arcade software and cabinets.
Apex Rebels is available for arcade locations as a Deluxe cabinet. For more Australian arcade coverage, visit the RETROCADE Arcade Blog. Readers comparing dedicated driving cabinets can also explore racing arcades and the Arcade Machine Buying Guide.
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