Former Clover members start up new studio
by Ludwig Kietzmann 
{ Feb 15th 2007 at 9:10AM }
You know something's rotten in the games industry when the reward for producing a magnificent adventure like Okami is the complete liquidation of your studio. All is not lost, however, as the former members of Capcom's Clover Studios have moved their aspirations to fresher soil. GameDaily BIZ reports that the team's new studio, Seeds, is currently in the process of hiring new employees to join a current roster of 51.
Amongst those lies a designer trifecta: Viewtiful Joe's Atsushi Inaba, Resident Evil's Shinji Mikami and Devil May Cry's Hideki Kamiya. Seeds has yet to announce any projects, but a cel-shaded, survival-horror title (with a guitar-wielding protagonist) would certainly be a good start.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Myke @ Feb 15th 2007 9:40AM
Amazingly great news, seriously, I hope they get right to work!
R.I.P. Clover Studios
shase @ Feb 15th 2007 9:42AM
please Seed dont become MS's bitch like Mistwalker has... Funny how Mistwalker wanted to become independent from SE and then became a "bigger empire"'s bitch.
Charles @ Feb 15th 2007 9:58AM
I need to buy Okami. It certainly looks better than any of the Mega Man This or Street Fighter That in recent years from Capcom. But, that's just my thoughts.
JodyAnthony @ Feb 15th 2007 10:01AM
i am sure they won't be like mistwalker. look closely on some of the pages, lots of x, triangle, circle, square, L1, L2, R1, R2 symbols everywhere. plus on the very first page, the D-pad shape is clearly the Playstation d-pad.
....which means I will probably have to get a ps3 after all. :(
Intentless @ Feb 15th 2007 10:14AM
JodyAnthony... A bitch is a bitch whether it be for MS or Sony...
32_Footsteps @ Feb 15th 2007 10:23AM
I dunno... Clover made very pretty games, but I always felt they were lacking in the gameplay department. I know alot of hardcore gamers bemoan their failure, but I never found them capable of doing anything more than "decent."
Duscrom @ Feb 15th 2007 10:30AM
So it's bad if they become MS's bitch, but okay if they become Sony's bitches.... eh, whatever..
I have to agree.. Okami is pretty, but rather boreing to play.
LunarDuality @ Feb 15th 2007 10:36AM
Yeah, who would wanna be the "bitch" of a multi-billion dollar company? I'm sure their bank accounts are all cursing the day they made those deals!
ackmondual @ Feb 15th 2007 10:37AM
Onami was them? Nice game so far. Great artwork, altho it reminds too much of Samurai Jack. Nice story, altho it reminds me too much of Samurai Jack and Actraiser. Fun gameplay altho it reminds me too much of OoT and Bully.
SP5710 @ Feb 15th 2007 10:49AM
Don't act like you don't like the ballbuster :)
JodyAnthony @ Feb 15th 2007 11:09AM
I didnt mean that they were better than mistwalker because they would be working with sony instead of microsoft, and if anyone actually thinks that I meant it that way and that I am being a sony fanboy please keep in mind that i write for 4colorrebellion.com, a very nintendocentric site. (for the record, I AM a nintendo fanboy, so you can call me that all you want)
Flynn @ Feb 15th 2007 11:19AM
Oh well that's nice to know. I found it a little weird when the studio was liquidated right after making a hit game. Hmm. Strange.
It does hint strongly to being in favour of Sony consoles, which is a disappointment - only because I don't own anything past PS2 (not because I hate Sony or something silly like that.)
Blue_Falcon @ Feb 15th 2007 11:25AM
@12
Okami was a hit in regards to critics, but wasn't exactly a huge money-maker for Capcom, if knowledge serves me correctly. I believe the same applies for the last three Viewtiful Joe games they did (VJ2, Double Trouble, and Red Hot Rumble)...same applies to God Hand.
They made some great games, but weren't exactly raking in cash for Capcom.
ZenGaijin @ Feb 15th 2007 11:30AM
Okami 2 confirmed.....What to soon?
chenry @ Feb 15th 2007 11:51AM
"a cel-shaded, survival-horror title (with a guitar-wielding protagonist)"
Sounds good to me, someone do it.
nick @ Feb 15th 2007 11:58AM
Okami is awesome, I am still playing it. It is a little easy but long and well thought out. Clover made some really great games, and the team sounds great. I can't wait for more from them.
shase @ Feb 15th 2007 12:44PM
Okami was a really good game imo. Its ratings are justified but I personally thought it was a bit long for an action game (same length as some RPGs) and the later half of the game i thought it lost some of the magic..
samfish @ Feb 15th 2007 2:43PM
"i am sure they won't be like mistwalker. look closely on some of the pages, lots of x, triangle, circle, square, L1, L2, R1, R2 symbols everywhere. plus on the very first page, the D-pad shape is clearly the Playstation d-pad."
D-pad aside, I don't really see it.
I'm not sure why they'd WANT to work with Sony, though, considering that every title they released for the Playstation2 was pretty much a flop.
The sales comparisons for both Viewtiful Joe games on the GC and PS2 should show that enough...not to mention that a game like Okami (and even Godhand) are perfect fits for Nintendo's core audience.
I really hope they don't end up in Sony's pocket. It'd be such a shame to see what'll almost certainly be great games being ignored by the legions of Sony's wannabe gangsta white fanboys because it isn't "hardcore" enough.
JodyAnthony @ Feb 15th 2007 3:49PM
samfish:
http://www.seeds-inc.jp/site/staff/simazaki.html
look in the header image.
Stuka @ Feb 15th 2007 6:53PM
I'm hoping this means multi-platform sequels to Okami and God Hand (or if Capcom holds the rights to those franchises, spiritual successors). And for those of you saying 'WTF' to a God Hand sequel, if that game had better controls and some more polish, it would have been frigging awesome. An Okami sequel would be a no-brainer on Wii, although the graphics-whore in me hopes it's on PS3/X360.
Where ever their games end up, it's good to see Clover reborn and still making games.
scipio_major @ Feb 18th 2007 8:11AM
The story I had heard was that Clover was "liquated" and that all the talent had left Clover just after Okami went gold. My opinion is that I'm glad that Capcom didn't try to trade on the Clover name if the people who inspired and drove the studio are gone.
mushiking @ Feb 15th 2007 8:09PM
"The sales comparisons for both Viewtiful Joe games on the GC and PS2 should show that enough...not to mention that a game like Okami (and even Godhand) are perfect fits for Nintendo's core audience."
umm gee... could it be cause it was a year old when it came out on the ps2? why do you think ported in the first place? cause it wasn't selling on Gamecube either.