Establishment of AM2 and years as a department
Some time after the release of Power Drift, Sega began to separate the amusement division into the Amusement Machine Research and Development teams, or AM teams. Suzuki was made general manager of Research and Development No. 2, or Sega AM2.[2] According to Suzuki, Sega employed approximately 600 people in research and development, and that AM2 began as a group of around 100 people. He has also stated the reason for this separation was the advent of advanced computer graphics technology.[2] Around the time of AM2's formation, Suzuki's team moved back into the main office, then to an annex a short walk from the office. Even so, Suzuki worked with a desire of secrecy, so much so that Sega president Hayao Nakayama was denied entry on one occasion.
The first project developed by AM2 was Virtua Racing. While development began with 10 people on Virtua Racing, it finished with 25 workers on the project for a year, and the Model 1 arcade system board on which it runs took approximately three years. AM2 also ported the game for the Sega Genesis.[2] Next Generation stated that AM2 "single-handedly chang[ed] the perception of polygons in a gaming environment" with Virtua Racing.[7]
After the release of Virtua Racing, AM2 split into two teams; one began work on Virtua Fighter, while another started on Daytona USA.[2] According to Suzuki, he wanted to develop a game with multiple joint movements, such as a soccer or rugby game. Finding that the Model 1 was not powerful enough to handle this many motions, Suzuki resorted to a game with only two moving characters at a time. With the massive success of Street Fighter II in the industry at the time, he made the decision to make a 3D fighting game to compete.[8] In developing the game, Suzuki identified the need for the game to be realistic, yet fun to play.[9] Virtua Fighter became a huge success in Japan,[10] and its Sega Saturn port sold at a nearly one-to-one ratio with the console itself.[11] For Daytona USA, Nagoshi was director and chief designer, while Suzuki served as producer. The concept for the game was suggested by Tom Petit, head of Sega Enterprises USA, as a way to debut Sega's new Model 2 arcade system board. Sega mandated that Daytona USA had to be better than Ridge Racer
Over the course of the remainder of the 1990s, Suzuki's primary concern in arcades were the Virtua Fighter series and working as a producer for other titles.[19] Subsequently, AM2 released Virtua Cop and Virtua Fighter 2 for the Model 2. Produced in twelve months, Virtua Fighter 2 was an even greater success in Japan than its predecessor.[7] In a 1996 interview, Suzuki stated in an interview his philosophy to be not an imitator, but a pioneer in the arcade industry. He also described the palm tree logo of AM2 as representing reliance and peace of mind.[20] Further titles developed in the end of 1990s included Virtua Cop 2, Fighting Vipers, Daytona USA 2: Battle on the Edge, and SpikeOut. Daytona USA 2 and SpikeOut made use of the Model 3 system board.
