The greatest Keirin star of all time kicked off the Keirin game trend in the 1990s. Uh... What's Keirin? (Chapter markers and more below)
Episode Information
GTV 128 "The King of the 'Rin" Season 7 Episode 6
Original Airdate: May 27, 2022
Produced January 24-29, 2022 and May 18-20, 2022
Recorded at Butsudan Studios and edited on my all new 14” MacBook M1 Pro! Edited and produced with Photoshop and Final Cut Pro, which my job paid for!
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0:00 Muh Sponserz
1:30 Mikarin Cares!
1:46 GTV ID: Always on the Inside Track!
1:54 Chapter 1: Keirin Explained
5:09 CM 1: Art Nature Hair Replacement System f/ Koichi Nakano (Japan, 1993)
5:24 CM 2: Super Keirin (Super Famicom, Japan, 1995)
5:40 Chapter 2: Koichi Nakano’s Keirin-O
9:30 Chapter 3: Super Keirin & Ippatsu Gyakuten
11:13 Chapter 4: Dream for 50 Years Big Thanks!
12:21 Chapter 5: The Post-Keirin Game Era
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Partial transcript
What you are watching is the sport of Keirin! Literally translated, Keirin means “racing cycle.” Invented in Japan in the early 20th Century, Keirin is a variation of traditional Track Cycle Racing, that tests the ability of cyclists on a 1.5 kilometer course at various speeds behind a motorized pace cycle, which by the final lap leaves the track allowing racers to reach full speed. Prize money is offered to the top racers in each competition. The money is tallied up over the course of a season. That amount determines a racer’s ranking, while the top earner is given the title of “King.” The sport became popularized nationwide in 1948, when the Japanese government legalized gambling racing sports, which also included horse, speedboat and motorcycle racing. Other sport betting is illegal. Casinos and other games are chance are also forbidden.
With the boost in popularity, Keirin developed formalized rules and a proper league in the 1950s. Today the sport pulls in an average of 5 million spectators to live events each year, with 600 billion yen in bets places annually. That’s about $5 Billion US. The sport was not too well known outside of Japan until the Year 2000, when Keirin style cycling was included in the Olympics for the first time, and has been featured in every successive Olympiad.
On November 18, 1994, Koichi Nakano’s Kanshuu Keirin-O was released for the Super Famicom by Coconuts Japan. Kanshuu means supervised by and Keirin-O means simply Keirin King, as each top prize money earner was referred to as “King.” So let’s pop this game into the ol’ Super Famicom and see how it goes!
Well… this is not the kind of game you’d expect. Yes is a Keirin game, a Keirin training simulator! Since no one in 1994 outside of Japan knew or cared about Keirin, I’d place this game ahead of every RPG on the “never to be released outside of Japan” list. The massive wall of Japanese text also earns this game a spot on the “never to be fan translated” list, too.
So what is it all about? The game is ‘Supervised by” Koichi Nakano. As such he “consulted” with the designers about the element of training and of the sport, to ensure its authenticity. You don’t actually get to play as Koichi Nakano, only that you will always be safe in the knowledge that he oversaw all of this. To what degree, is never said.
You create your own character, including name and hometown then start training for upcoming races, then eventually enter those competitions and win money. You start on April 1st, 1994 and begin to train for the upcoming Keirin season. You can choose to hit the gym, work hard to increase your power and stamina, getting your bike up to speed, and then maintaining it. It’s basically a lot of A button mashing. A few activities are automatic and you just watch it!
You can also upgrade your bike, check your upcoming races, or just take a day off! Actions takes up most of your day and after you have trained or visited the doctor, the day is over. One of the frustrating parts of this game is that to get the next day to happen, you must return home, rather than simply returning and waking up the next day automatically!