Resident Evil 5 producer is worried about Western developers

by Griffin McElroy { Jan 4th 2009 at 4:00PM }

The fine folks at Capcom don't have a whole heck of a lot to be concerned about -- their shares are still selling at fairly epic prices, and they've got a pretty solid release schedule lined up for the first half of 2009. Still, Resident Evil 5 producer Jun Takeuchi recently said in a Famitsu interview that he's worried about "the movements of Western developers," specifically the movements into Capcom's home turf, Japan.

Takeuchi hopes that 2009 will see an improvement in Japan's domestic games market, stating, "it's not good if Japanese developers are making games that can't be enjoyed by Japanese people." Capcom seems poised to lead that charge -- Takeuchi hinted that Capcom's unannounced plans for this year's releases might just "surprise" their fellow countrymen. We hope they've got Mega Man X9 somewhere up their sleeves. Man, Japan would never see that one coming.

Tags: capcom, japan, jun-takeuchi, western

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

ice~ @ Jan 4th 2009 4:05PM

Capcom's got nothing to worry about. They're a great company. Even they're remakes are great games. And their '09 line up looks decent

SoulBlade @ Jan 4th 2009 4:05PM

I would love more Capcom surprises and games. They've consistently been one of my fav companies since I played the original Mega Man.

As for his concern over Western Devs, well yea.. competition will do that, and when you get comfortable and stop trying, you're bound to be caught off guard. This applies to Capcom as well, though not to the same degree as others in Japan. Competition is good and should make you better at what you do.

OMGOMG @ Jan 4th 2009 4:08PM

Worried about Western developers? How about making game for the next generation that aren't merely the same game with better graphics. That's what we saw with Ninja Gaiden 2, and that's what RE5 looks like as well.

Right now, the pinnacle of new and intriguing development of games is in the US and Britain.

TwEE @ Jan 4th 2009 4:29PM

"Right now, the pinnacle of new and intriguing development of games is in the US and Britain."

Really? Like what?

The Dark Wayne @ Jan 4th 2009 4:41PM

like everything

Haggard @ Jan 4th 2009 4:48PM

Britain = LittleBigPlanet.. uh, GTA4 and Fable 2, and Wipeout HD basically are the older games but on current-gen consoles.

In america it's a bit easier, you've got Harmonix who made a genre relevant practically overnight and then made it into an awesome social experience; Valve consistantly innovating in shooters, Ubisoft Montreal making games that, if not perfect, at least tried something new (yes I realise Montreal is in canada).

OMGOMG @ Jan 4th 2009 4:49PM

Well, MGS4 for one.

Yes, yes, it was Japanese-developed. But I think nobody disagrees that MGS4 was the best "game" of the series. But Kojima brought Ryan Payton purely to appeal to the Western audiences.

We saw a functioning camera, something Japanese developers seem to not know how to nail down. The game felt more like a Western developed game, in my opinion.

Also, Nuts and Bolts was without a doubt the most unique game this year. The vehicle building was simply top notch and extremely addicting.

Bioshock and GTA also brought storytelling to brand new heights. Never before have I felt so intertwined with a video game character than in these two games. The decision to kill the man who killed Niko's family and friends was one of the toughest decisions I've had to make as a game. It felt like I truly had this decision to make in real life.

Dead Space, Prince of Persia, Far Cry 2.

Want me to keep going?

Maverick Saturn @ Jan 4th 2009 5:39PM

To be honest, both Western and Japanese developers bring out the same games with better graphics and to fool us, they change the title as if its suddely now a new IP, its like Resident Evil to Dino Crisis, because the zombies have been changed to dinosaurs makes the gameplay different? Nope, not really. All the games you've mentioned have been done before in some other way or form, and every now and again both Japan and Western developers create something a bit new which recieves mixed reactions because gamers are not entirely sure how to relate to it, like Little Big Planet for example or Locoroco or Braid.

There are big names in gaming both on the Japanese side and Western side and if those names were to drop, you would definatly notice the difference in the games market, take Namco for example on the Japanese side, Namco has done a lot, and not everything has been great, but thier games are enjoyed nonetheless, and take Take2 on the Western Side, what would we do without Take2? Japan isn't all about RPGs and the west isn't all about FPSs and the UK isn't all about Fifa.....actually, maybe it is :S

Mr Khan @ Jan 4th 2009 5:42PM

But all western games chase the same ideal, rarely do you find something that pursues art over technical prowess (like Prince of Persia), generally it has something to do with guns, outer space, zombies, or "maturity," with all the junk that comes with it

Maverick Saturn @ Jan 4th 2009 5:43PM

What I will agree to however is the fact that devs do try thier best to introduce little things into gameing, like dead space does with gravity, gta does with gameplay physics and realism, lost planet does with heat mechanics, gears does with cover and dash mechanics, Shadow of the Collosus does with climbing and gripping mechanics. Alternativly a good story goes into prospect as seen in Bioshock, but a good story to one is a crap one to another, so that depends on what you like, but generally we can all tell what is a 'crap' story or a game with none for example Haze.

Josh @ Jan 4th 2009 5:56PM

Honestly, there's innovation in both Japan and the West. If anyone says otherwise, it's just because they prefer the games of one region over the other.

Like OMGOMG here, he obviously prefers Western games over Japanese ones, so he sees more innovation in the West than in Japan.

I'm the opposite, so I see more innovation in Japan than in the West.

But really, innovation, creativity, and new ideas are everywhere. It just happens that if you like a certain type of game, you'll be more excited by developments in that area, and so you might get the impression that that's where all the innovation is going on.

GundamWingEW @ Jan 4th 2009 6:08PM

Lol I hope the OP was joking...

TwEE @ Jan 4th 2009 6:12PM

Not knocking any of these games but..

LittleBigPlanet = basic side scroller with a level editor. Level editors have been around for years, in all sorts of genres, I was making my own mario levels in wrecking crew for the nes in the early 90s late 80s... I do apreciat them making the level editor a big part of the game, sinse I love level editors, but most people dont.

GTA4 = Driver has been out sinse the ps1. I know Driver wasnt as fleshed out as GTA4 what with the lack of minigames and what not, but GTA4 seems like a polished bigger version of whats been out for years.

Guitar Hero/Rock band = I may be wrong but didnt Japan go through the whole rythm game faze a while back . Didnt they have guitar games years before the west did, like in the 90s?

Valve shooters = classy shooters.. In a crowed genre they do stand out.

Fable 2 = Great game, great facial animations on the main character (though you never get to see them unless you wedge your character and camera in a corner or something), but its bigger version of the first game (with some light sim elements), which was a nice action/rpg (whos selling point was the fact that your characters apearance changes with your stats).

Prince of Persia (GoW, Lotr) = DMC, which looked like a fun take on beat em ups.. but never really got into these games.. got no opionion either way..

All these games are the resolt of the natural evolution or progression of older games and genres, this is not a east/west thing at all.

As for Nuts and Bolts, after playing viva pinata for the last week and loving it, Im willing to give Nuts and bolts (and Rare) a shot.

PSN: Erdie @ Jan 4th 2009 6:13PM

I never really looked at how few of my games are Japanese-developed this generation. Looking only at my PS3 games I see Canada, Canada, Britain, Britain, Britain, US, US, US, US, US, US, Japan. Very few are shooters.

One of which is Haze, which is a trainwreck not worth the $10 I paid for it. Curiosity killed me on that one.

Anyway, I also agree with the same game, new graphics thing. Sure, the whole world is guilty of that, but seeing games like Animal Crossing: City Folk really fades the line between similar and identical.

TwEE @ Jan 4th 2009 6:14PM

I spell goood.

Snowblind @ Jan 4th 2009 6:40PM

Just to point out, GTA predates Driver.

Josh @ Jan 4th 2009 8:02PM

TwEE, yep, Guitar Freaks http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guitar_Freaks came long before Guitar Hero.

The Dark Wayne @ Jan 4th 2009 8:16PM

also to point out, you can just rotate the camera and see your heroes face at any time in Fable 2

BBB @ Jan 4th 2009 11:31PM

you joking right ? American developers can only produce FPS. so boring for people who have no interest in them. Granted there are some other good games, such as castle crashers. I've always thought Japanese tried to focus more on the experience and americans focused on the technology. Capcom has been moving towards an american style, and so I believe they do have something to fear. Americans just gotta thing differently. I mean ...everything is rehashed. Just look at Hollywood. Ju-ON, the departed ?? where did those movies originated from ? Not american minds I'll tell you.

Ihavepants @ Jan 5th 2009 12:54AM

"American developers can only produce FPS"

Hmm, no. But nice trolling! 9/10.

TwEE @ Jan 5th 2009 2:02AM

Snowblind.. You consider the first two GTA games to be sandbox games? Can I call Roger Rabbit for the Nes a sandbox game?

The Dark Wayne, Im not sure if we're talking about the same thing, but if you move the camera in front of you while close to a wall it zooms in really close to the face.. If theres another way to zoom in the camera let me know..

Haggard @ Jan 5th 2009 2:49AM

Also Prince of Persia isn't a beat 'em up.

Demaar @ Jan 5th 2009 8:43AM

Couldn't have said it better myself. Besides, why should he care WHO consumes his games? Shouldn't he simply be glad that they're selling and someone cares about what he's developing?

SytheMaster @ Jan 5th 2009 12:48PM

@ TwEE just click and hold the right stick and the camera will flip to the front of your charector and zoom in.

Skefington (gamertag) @ Jan 4th 2009 4:10PM

'We hope they've got Mega Man X9 somewhere up their sleeves. Man, Japan would never see that one coming.'

I'll see your sarcasm and raise you a deadpan 'Yes they would, Mr McElroy, yes they would'.

Superstar90 @ Jan 4th 2009 4:10PM

He's not really worried about them.

He's worried about them turning into zombies.

Maverick Saturn @ Jan 4th 2009 5:30PM

Zombies rule :D

Mr Khan @ Jan 4th 2009 4:14PM

Wii/DS will be their saviors, and the Japanese developers that figure that out faster will grow to greater relevance. Western developers have no clue when it comes to Wii/DS development, but the Japanese are getting it, and that's where the money will come from

HD consoles are dominated by Western development because the PC was the Western domain, up until console gaming finally caught up with it with the 360 and PS3. These western developers which sat on the bleeding edge with tiny markets suddenly find huge markets to work in, while the Japanese developers, used to working in constricted environments, cannot compete with the sort of bleeding-edge, reinvent-the-wheel philosophy of high-end western development, and the western developers live or die by the capabilities of the platform in question, so they can't figure out how to work on Wii/DS without simply making retarded versions of what they're doing on other platforms

Jacksons @ Jan 4th 2009 6:45PM

I would think the reason behind the lack of any large project US development on the Wii is based on what sells. It'd be fruitless to sink that kind of money into development, only to be consistently outsold by family games like Game Party and Carnival Games. I don't know how well good games like Zack and Wiki do here, either. I saw that on clearance for $15 in a matter of weeks.

But yeah, in the case of Japan, why wouldn't they focus more on Wii/PSP/DS? The monthly hardware charts are enough to illustrate why that should be their primary concern.

Mr Khan @ Jan 4th 2009 6:59PM

But Zack and Wiki profited, which is the whole point. Certainly something like Mirror's Edge sold more, but EA lost money on it

Popfrogs @ Jan 5th 2009 12:47AM

"Western developers have no clue when it comes to Wii/DS development..."

Give them time bro, they will eventually learn the fine art of shovelware.

Bass Masterson @ Jan 4th 2009 4:19PM

Why is it that whenever someone 'sells out', they immediately blame the person they sold out to?

It's not as if Western developers attacked the Great Wall and stole trade secrets. People like Konami _decided_ to give their property to Western developers to try to make more money. Capcom _decided_ to make RE more 'Western' to make more money.

It reminds me of the people who complain when their favorite British actor/writer goes Hollywood, and blame the Hollywood system. Blame the person who decided to bank.

Maverick Saturn @ Jan 4th 2009 5:29PM

Or you could blame the system in Britain, the actor / actress just wants the best for himself / herself, and if the Oscar award is in America, thats where they will go, however, if Europe joined together for once and stopped whining about silly things, we could have out own hollywood right here in Europe and our own form of Oscar awards just as good as the one in America, meaning British actors wouldn't have to go to America to get better roles and awards. Same goes for the music industry, American's give European's hell to get to the top of thier charts, but its easy as hell for them to get to the top of ours, whos to blame for that :D

But you have a point and I agree with you 100%

JoeTheBlow @ Jan 4th 2009 4:40PM

Pretty ironic that the west takes something the Japanese were formerly the best at manufacturing and make them faster, flashier and better.

Would you guys like some cheese with your whine?

Adolph @ Jan 4th 2009 4:43PM

FUCK JAPAN.

Yeah I said it.

They are a tiny % of the market. The games they produce are rarely any good any more. Another RPG with Random battles........Or Casual game where you tease your brain........or some crazy sexual octopus raping children garbage.

Fuck Japan and its games.

Western game developers have evolved past Japan. I rather play Metroid Prime 3 than Cho Aniki 3 any day. I rather play Grand Theft Auto 4 than Dragon Quest X any day.

FUCK JAPAN.

Superstar90 @ Jan 4th 2009 4:46PM

calm down lol!

Dopple Boppler @ Jan 4th 2009 4:52PM

As much as I like Metroid Prime 3, there are numerous reasons I'd rather play that than a Cho Aniki game, none of which involve Metroid being the better game and all of which involve penises.

Haggard @ Jan 4th 2009 4:53PM

Does your username have anything to do with the sweeping generalisations you're making about an ethnic group?

OMGOMG @ Jan 4th 2009 4:53PM

Oh no. An Adolph is condemning a country.

This is not good.

ikiryou @ Jan 4th 2009 5:03PM

@Adolph: Shave the tiny mustache, ditch Eva Braun and go get a crackwhore. You seriously need to get laid.

Maverick Saturn @ Jan 4th 2009 5:24PM

'Rarely any good' is dependant upon who likes those games, I doubt the RPGs you say are crap would be seen the same way by FF fans who will swarm by the millions to pick up the next title.

Personally I'd rather have a PS3 and 360 adaption of Monster Hunter then Fable 2 or Oblivion, but then thats just my opinion :)

Mr Khan @ Jan 4th 2009 5:39PM

I try not to generalize (Metroid Prime, my favorite game of all time, is a western title, after all), but i tend to associate Japan, aside from JRPGs, with a focus on color, creativity, fun, and actual replay value, whereas western games are focused on realism, technical prowess, serious business, and artificial replay value (via online play)

Their games keep the industry fresh, outside of JRPGs, which have long since stagnated.

Moptimus Slime @ Jan 4th 2009 5:40PM

wow, you can play Dragon Quest X already? Whats it like, oh great Spaceman of the future?

Also, the 3rd game in the Cho Aniki series was the fighting game that Seanbaby, Shane Bettenhausen, and Crispin played on episode 9 of Broken Pix3ls. And that actually looked awesome (if not extremely FABulous)

also ironic, your profile has your name as adolph_vega. Vega is a character from the Street Fighter series, which is developed and published by CAPCOM, which is a JAPANESE COMPANY. So yeah, ironic troll is ironic

Steve @ Jan 5th 2009 2:04AM

Adolph, I thought Japan was part of the same Axis during WWII. Why the diss all of sudden?

Ethan @ Jan 5th 2009 5:51AM

Just a hint. Ditch the application to the Vienna art school, now.

ChiTownRuler23 @ Jan 4th 2009 5:26PM

them fighting words!

Josh @ Jan 4th 2009 6:05PM

This comments section is going to turn into a horribly played-out flamewar, and it could all be avoided if people would just play what they like and not feel some divine obligation to force their preferences onto others.

I hate to say it, but it's embarrassing to be in this fandom sometimes.

Mr Khan @ Jan 4th 2009 6:13PM

This is true. Virtue is to be had in both communities. The west innovates through immersion, and immerses via technology. The East innovates through gameplay mechanics, and generally their innovations are gradual

But fans of one side are loath to acknowledge the other, seeing them as stagnant. Detractors of the east crave that reinvention of the wheel, while detractors of the west generally scoff at the bland, lifeless worlds they create