Born on February 28, 1971 in Kyoto, Nakano was introduced to music by his parents when just three; they offered him Electone organ lessons through the Yamaha Music Foundation program and encouraged him to join some brass bands. Also during his youth, Nakano grew to love video games after playing Taito's Space Invaders follow-up Lunar Rescue in 1979. While he was initially unimpressed by the barren sound of early titles, he enjoyed the chiptunes that begun to appear during the 1980s. He developed a sense of musical individuality further by frequently listening to the radio during adolescence. He combined his passion for gaming and music in 1985 by composing MIDI music using the NEC PC-9801 computer. After leaving high school, Nakano attended a vocational school in 1987 to study composition and arrangement with the hope of entering the developing game industry.