Sukeban Games’ 2024 Interview: Christopher Ortiz, Also Known as kiririn51, Discusses .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND, Inspirations, Fan Reactions, VA-11 Hall-A, The Silver Case, and More

Background: A Small Studio Behind a Cult Classic

Sukeban Games has never been a large operation. What began as a two-person team—Christopher Ortiz (kiririn51) and Fer (IronincLark)—has grown to just six people, a scale the studio intends to maintain. Ortiz describes his role as doing "way too much in this company," a fitting description for someone who has shepherded VA-11 Hall-A from a modest PC release into a title with a vocal international fanbase, persistent merchandise demand, and a presence at Japanese game events.

VA-11 Hall-A first launched on PC before arriving on PS Vita, and later PS4 and Switch. It is currently playable on PC, Switch, PS Vita, PS4, and PS5 via backward compatibility. An iPad version was announced years ago but never materialized; Ortiz says he playtested a build but it "didn't go anywhere for whatever reason," and directs port questions to the publisher, Ysbryd.

The Long Gap: 2017 to 2024

Ortiz last attended a game event as an exhibitor at Tokyo Game Show 2017. That seven-year gap ended with his return to Japan for Bitsummit, a trip he describes in emotionally charged terms—a homecoming, and a reminder that the studio's supporters had not forgotten it. He frames the experience as fuel: proof that Sukeban's audience remains, and a reason not to take that support for granted.

During those years, the studio's follow-up to VA-11 Hall-A, N1RV Ann-A, remained in a prolonged development limbo that fans have compared—half-jokingly—to the wait for Silksong. Ortiz says he still jots down lore, character designs, cinematic ideas, and atmosphere notes for N1RV Ann-A "for a rainy day," and that once .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND is finished, Nirvana's development "will pick up dramatically," contingent on whether the creative spark is still alive. So far, he says, it shows no signs of extinguishing.

The Reveal: .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND

Sukeban Games' newest project, .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND, has been officially announced and is wishlistable on Steam. The reveal drew immediate comparisons to older games—Ortiz notes the volume of such comparisons without objecting to them, though he finds some online comments baffling. What surprised him more was the volume of fanart that appeared right after the announcement. One fan brought a drawing to Bitsummit, which the team displayed proudly on their table.

The team approached the reveal with managed expectations, bracing for possible apathy because the game is not Nirvana. Ortiz describes the months leading up to it as locked-in work without crunch—parties, feasts, travel, and "touching that proverbial grass"—but also marked by insecurities and self-doubt. Now, he says, the task is to buckle up and finish the story.

MerengeDoll, who has worked with the studio as an artist, remains involved; Ortiz praises her ability to pull ideas directly from his brain and give them visual shape, and notes that "there's still a lot of Merengedoll in 45pb." He also says he wants to be more involved in merchandise for .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND now that he knows what he's dealing with, unlike with VA-11 Hall-A, where he mostly gave thumbs up or down after others had made the hard choices.

VA-11 Hall-A's Legacy: Sales, Merch, and Music

Ortiz did not expect VA-11 Hall-A to sell more than 10,000–15,000 copies. The actual scale of its success, he says, was overwhelming, and the studio is still recovering from some of its unexpected side effects. He expected Stella to be the most popular character, since her GIFs often went viral before release, but acknowledges that popularity is unpredictable. He resists turning that intuition into a formula: "The moment a hunch becomes a science the magic disappears."

The soundtrack, composed by Garoad (Michael), came together through a free-form process built on shared musical tastes. Ortiz would react to tracks, sometimes send references, and sometimes Garoad would create original music that inspired imagery in the game, which in turn inspired more music. Ortiz credits this synergy with giving VA-11 Hall-A an identity that has endured.

Merchandise—including vinyl box sets now on multiple pressings and a shirt that keeps selling out—has been handled largely by others, with Ortiz giving final approval. The game's Japanese release via Playism included an art book with a cover Ortiz drew during a difficult period, when the team was focused on surviving Argentina's collapse and listened heavily to Gustavo Cerati's album Bocanada. He calls the homage "a little too overt" in hindsight and says he has been reconsidering his approach to inspirations, something he says will be obvious once people play .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND.

Influences and Industry Observations

Ortiz is candid about his feelings on Grasshopper Manufacture's recent output. He praises No More Heroes 3's combat but not its writing, speculating that COVID and hard deadlines forced the game to become something other than what it started as. He prefers Travis Strikes Again, calling it the best of the newer games and likening it to "reading someone's diary." He hopes Grasshopper focuses on new original games rather than sequels and reboots, while welcoming re-releases of lost media. On Grasshopper under Netease, his hope is simply that the studio gets the money and time it needs.

On importing games and merchandise into Argentina, Ortiz is blunt: he no longer imports anything, citing customs hassles and protectionist policies he considers counterproductive, since there is no domestic PlayStation or Steam to compete with. He notes Brazil does the same thing and wishes both would stop.

What This Means for Readers

VA-11 Hall-A's journey from a PC release to a multi-platform title with a persistent fanbase shows how a small studio's cult hit can outgrow its creators' expectations. For fans waiting on N1RV Ann-A, the clearest signal is that .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND comes first, and Nirvana's development will accelerate only after it wraps—assuming the creative spark survives. The new game's Steam wishlist page is live, the fanart is already circulating, and the studio remains six people by choice. No release date, sales figures, or review scores for .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND have been announced.

Spoiler note: This article discusses VA-11 Hall-A's characters and development history but does not detail plot twists or endings. Readers planning to play the game should be aware that character popularity and structural details are referenced.