Japanese Developers Talk Next-Gen

[TheChefO]

http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3144&Itemid=2

"Irem's Kazuma Kujo fears that the drastic differences between the Sony PlayStation 3 and the Nintendo Wii's control inputs will discourage many developers from making games for multiple platforms. He says that the "most interesting thing is that these two systems are launching near-simultaneously." He hypothesizes that developers will only truly succeed in making good games if they focus on one system, and that it will be very exciting to see who decides to focus on which system."


"He says that the differences in the consoles might push gamers to wonder if they even really want a game console at all"

Interesting article that discusses various viewpoints on where they feel Next-gen is headed. Specifically the quote regarding Developers choosing one platform and sticking to it which goes against the trend we've been told to expect.

 

[pegisys]

well the trend isn't between PS3 and wii, it would be the PS3 and the X360, but that doesn't really apply to Japan becasue the 360 doesn't sell well there.

The PS3 and the wii might be fighting it out hard in Japan and the systems are different enough that the games can't be ported easily so devs may have to pick one system to take full advantage of

 

[PeterT]

Level-5's Akihiro Hino, producer of Rogue Galaxy says, "WIIII for Wii!! Final Fantasy XIII for PlayStation 3 looks really sweet!! And there are some big games coming for Xbox 360 at the end of the year!! It's going to be great!!"

Did he really use that many exclamation marks? Anyway, I like this guy

 

[TheChefO]

well the trend isn't between PS3 and wii, it would be the PS3 and the X360, but that doesn't really apply to Japan becasue the 360 doesn't sell well there.

The PS3 and the wii might be fighting it out hard in Japan and the systems are different enough that the games can't be ported easily so devs may have to pick one system to take full advantage of

I'm curious to see how the market there looks in a year or two and how that may sway larger developers like Square. Any guesses on what percentage threshold would exist in Japan for exclusive 3rd party games?

 

[TheChefO]

I thought it would be interesting to reflect back on this story from roughly a year ago given the current sales status in Japan.

We've also seen many more multiplatform titles from the region than were expected - even on xb360 which has not sold well there.

Katamari Demacy
Devil May Cry
Virtua Fighter
Virtua Tennis
Ace Combat

Off the top of my head.

 

[Carl B]

From the region but not for the region... they're looking to tap into the international 360 install base. I'm with Pegisys though in saying that this devs comments don't run counter to the prevailing multi-console logic going on with 3rd party devs in terms of 360/PS3, they're rather painting things in terms of "Wii or not Wii" as it applies to the Japanese market.

 

[DJ12]

Surely the VAST difference in power between the two suggests that developers would have to do completely different versions anyway?

 

[TheChefO]

From the region but not for the region...

And this is the interesting shift.

Prior to this generation, Japanese developers generally did not seperate the two. If they made a game it was for their region with perhaps some westernized influece here or there but not at the expense of their ability to sell in their region (Japan).

Not that any of those titles I've listed are expected to be duds in Japan, but selling on xb360 they surely aren't expected to do well there. In other regions, certainly a possibility as the xb360 userbase is much larger.



Regarding the Wii, I can't imagine a Japanese developer right now that doesn't have a Wii Dev-kit working overtime. Whether J-Devs have fully accepted the multiplat dev mentality remains to be seen but one thing is for sure; if you're a 3rd party Japanese Developer, Wii development has to be a priority. This will cannabalize xb360 and ps3 dev time/games for many j-devs which are not involved with multiplat development (for whatever reason).

Result?

J-game fans will likely have to suck it up at one point this gen and get a Wii.

 

[infinity4]

I thought it would be interesting to reflect back on this story from roughly a year ago given the current sales status in Japan.

We've also seen many more multiplatform titles from the region than were expected - even on xb360 which has not sold well there.

Katamari Demacy
Devil May Cry
Virtua Fighter
Virtua Tennis
Ace Combat

Off the top of my head.

add to that a potential system seller BioHazard 5.

 

[Nesh]

http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3144&Itemid=2

"Irem's Kazuma Kujo fears that the drastic differences between the Sony PlayStation 3 and the Nintendo Wii's control inputs will discourage many developers from making games for multiple platforms. He says that the "most interesting thing is that these two systems are launching near-simultaneously." He hypothesizes that developers will only truly succeed in making good games if they focus on one system, and that it will be very exciting to see who decides to focus on which system."


"He says that the differences in the consoles might push gamers to wonder if they even really want a game console at all"

Interesting article that discusses various viewpoints on where they feel Next-gen is headed. Specifically the quote regarding Developers choosing one platform and sticking to it which goes against the trend we've been told to expect.

I ll alter a bit his concern and say that I am worried that the potential offered by those new control scheems would not be fully exploited due to the multiplatofrming trend that exists.

 

[TheChefO]

I ll alter a bit his concern and say that I am worried that the potential offered by those new control scheems would not be fully exploited due to the multiplatofrming trend that exists.

Potentially.

Or, developers in Japan realize they need to properly utilize the controller to sell and they realize Wii gives them a better opportunity to sell than either xb360 or ps3. Hence if a Wii title is ported to an xb360 or PS3, the ported title suffers.

 

[Nesh]

Potentially.

Or, developers in Japan realize they need to properly utilize the controller to sell and they realize Wii gives them a better opportunity to sell than either xb360 or ps3. Hence if a Wii title is ported to an xb360 or PS3, the ported title suffers.

True.