When director Tez Okano first pitched the game to Sega's management, they initially didn't believe he was serious about making the game and thus didn't give him a budget. When he pitched the game a second time, this time clarifying that he genuinely wanted to make the game, Sega president Hisao Oguchi agreed to give him a budget. Okano worked on the game in secret for two years before presenting the finalized version, believing that "anything could have happened" if somebody found out about the game's development. Due to Sega's financial status at the time, they authorized the game's release under the belief that it wouldn't hurt the company's image.