Sony's Japan Studio urged to create more PS3 games
by Andrew Yoon 
{ Nov 2nd 2009 at 1:30PM } 
Sony Worldwide Studios boss Shuhei Yoshida explained to Gamasutra that "their focus was shifted onto the PSP, which reflects the success of the PSP as a platform in Japan ... It's completely opposite of the way how US and European teams moved onto working on the PS3 and we see the fruits of those efforts, while Japan studios shifted their focus onto the PSP." Of course, handheld owners have much to be thankful for: system-defining hits like Patapon and LocoRoco were created out of Japan Studio's dedication to the platform.
However, the next year (and beyond) should be very different for Sony's Japanese developers. With The Last Guardian and Gran Turismo 5 coming from Sony's other Japanese studios, the pressure is on for other developers to follow suit. "We are now re-energizing teams and coming up with new ideas for PS3 development," Yoshida said. "We'll be able to show fruits of this work sometime next year."
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Darth Bradwart, Dark Lord of the Sith @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:37PM
It's about time. SCEE has brought some of the best titles for the PS3. Japan has been lagging behind again.
Ape Escape PS3, please?
Abi @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:17PM
Isn't Demon Souls from Japan?
Maximiliano Guerra @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:31PM
It's from FROM SOFTWARE
Ridgecity @ Nov 2nd 2009 4:49PM
so they won't make any more PSP games? didn't they launch a new PSP one month ago?
Kdiggy @ Nov 2nd 2009 5:33PM
"Isn't Demon Souls from Japan?"
Yes and no. Demon's Souls was made by From Software, BUT it does have the "Japan Studios" logo when you boot it up. I think Japan Studios published it originally.
CH3BURASHKA @ Nov 2nd 2009 5:38PM
The Last Guardian redeems their entire catalogue, blowing the European games out of the water.
At least, I hope.
esposch @ Nov 2nd 2009 6:30PM
@ Ridgecity
That was the PSP Go!
Some said it would be the next Virtual Boy.
Anyway, I think it has more to do with this:
PSPs can play pirated games straight from the memory stick with nothing but a 300mb-1gb file download off the web.
PS3 has not even had a hacking breakthrough after being on the market for about 3 years, and even if it was hacked tomorrow the game downloads would be 10-50gb each, the blank Blu Rays would cost $15 each, the Blu Ray Burner would be $200, and the modchip would be about $120 to get installed. I mean, a dozen legit games (6 black label, 6 platinum) would be the same price as a dozen pirated ones. Kudos to you, Sony (about the PS3, you failed hard at PSP copy protection).
Plus the PSP will be superseded soon - I give it 12 months. The PS3 still has 4 years until the PS4.
tmacairjordan87 @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:38PM
"The platform's greatest hits so far have, instead, come from America and Europe"
You could probably say that for the 360 as well, most of the best games this gen are from the west.
As for Sony Japan, they can start by getting to work on Dark Cloud 3...with or without Level-5. I don't really have that much faith in them anymore on consoles anyways, as White Knight Chronicles looks awful, and Rogue Galaxy was awful.
tmacairjordan87 @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:41PM
Also, Siren was a remake of the ps2 game I believe. So SCEJ has made pretty much nothing worthwhile this gen.
Darth Bradwart, Dark Lord of the Sith @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:45PM
Well, White Knight Chronicles will be the first real game they've done for PS3.
eNrique @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:52PM
How is that White Knight Chronicles looks awful?
Have you played it?
Aren't you one of those that says don't judge the game before you play it?
johnnynumber5 @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:53PM
I've played the import version of White Knight Chronicles and it's pretty awesome. What do you think "looks awful" about it? I also thought Rogue Galaxy was a fantastic game and it actually got more critical praise than Dark Cloud. Level-5 has supplated Capcom as my favorite developer ... ever. I guess you can't please everyone and considering your taste in games and how you often talk down about any type of JRPG it's not surprising to me that you would think that. Level 5 is an important development partner with Sony and I think you'll see those two PSP games (Cardboard Senki/Little Battlers & Ushiro) before another Dark Cloud since it's already been announced they are working on a sequel to White Knight Chronicles. Personally, I think they are the premiere developer of RPGs and are like the new Square Soft. In my opinion Jeanne D'Arc deserves a true sequel as thats the best PSP game ever and my favorite RPG ever.
Kleptomaniac @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:54PM
Level 5 aren't really known for graphically intense games, they spend a lot of their time on the DS and PSP so the PS3 will obviously be harder for them.
Alton Brown [ XBL: LordToastington] @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:57PM
Personally, I found Rouge Galaxy a bit too repetitive for my tastes. I've imported White Knight Chronicles as well and it's decent, but not groundbreaking. Jeanne D'Arc was fantastic, though. The Another World sound pretty awesome too.
tmacairjordan87 @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:57PM
"Aren't you one of those that says don't judge the game before you play it?"
Seeing as I do just that with every game, no I don't say that.
Every time you say you think it ps3 game x looks great I'm going to bother you by saying "how do you know, did you play it?", and you'll likely say no but it looks good. Which is the same thing I do when I say a game looks bad.
It looks like your typical boring jrpg, nothing special about it at all. Which is a shame, because they are the ones who made Dark Cloud 1 and 2, which are great games and not typical jrpgs.
SpyderTaco (PSN: Ar4chNova89) @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:01PM
tmac's reign of white posts knows no end.
tmacairjordan87 @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:05PM
Honestly I expect nothing but white posts when it comes to ps3 topics, as I do not like you Sony trolls and you guys make it your duty to jump on anyone who doesnt' spew Sony love 100% of the time, which I won't do even if I do love my ps3 (even if it is used for exclusives only).
SpyderTaco (PSN: Ar4chNova89) @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:08PM
So you enjoy wasting your time writing paragraphs that make everyone else laugh at you and proceed to click [-].
I fail to see the enjoyment in that.
johnnynumber5 @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:09PM
Nothing worthwhile this gen?
I take it you haven't played Patapon 1 & 2 or any of the four Loco Roco games? It's fine if you don't like them or aren't interested but saying they've made nothing worth while is just being sensationalist. You'd also have to count Gran Turismo PSP, Prologue and Ape Escape on the list.
Siren Blood Curse is more of a reimagining than it is a remake. It's also quite good I might add and it has lots of replay value. I like how they made the story feel believable with the website URL's you can go online and visit and blogs from characters in the game. Really neat game ... not the best ever but it's good and certainly creative. I'd hardly say it's not worth playing.
You'll see Gran Turismo 5 as the first major foray of SCEJ on the PS3 and later in the year The Last Guardian will be the second.
Here are the studios Sony owns and their umbrellas: SCEJ only has 3 studios so you can't expect them to have put out as many titles.
SCEJ -
Japan Studios
Polyphony Digital
Team Ico
SCEE -
Guerilla Games
BigBig Studios
London Studio
Cambridge Studio
Evolution Studios
Studio Liverpool
SCEA-
Zipper Interactive
Naughty Dog
Incognitio Entertainment
Santa Monica Studio
Sony Online Entertainment
Sony Bend
San Diego Studio
tmacairjordan87 @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:09PM
I enjoy speaking my mind even if no one has my back, something you won't do :P
If it pisses off all you sony trolls that's just an extra bonus.
Courtney @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:12PM
@Spyder, it's kind of like level grinding in a JRPG for him. A lot of people don't find the repetitiveness fun, but for a few, it's the best game in town.
SpyderTaco (PSN: Ar4chNova89) @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:13PM
johnnynumber5 wins comment of the day.
tmacairjordan87 @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:13PM
Johnny
The title of the article says "Sony's Japan Studio urged to create more PS3 games", therefore I'm talking about ps3 only. I don't have a psp anymore, I don't care about psp or ds or any other handheld. My only concern and focus is on the big dogs in the house, the 3 consoles.
I'm also not counting GT Prologue, as it's a demo. Come back when GT5 comes out.
Darth Bradwart, Dark Lord of the Sith @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:15PM
Hey, leave Tmac alone!
Japan is hurting the company. The PS3's sales would have been MUCH higher if Polyphony had actually released GT5 in a decent amount of time.
johnnynumber5 @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:20PM
"Honestly I expect nothing but white posts when it comes to ps3 topics, as I do not like you Sony trolls"
A troll is someone who says something for the sake of being incendiary and starting arguments. Someone who is being a dick for the sake of being a dick.
CheeziePotato @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:23PM
We're trolls?
Hypocrisy much, tmac?
tmacairjordan87 @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:23PM
I think I know what a troll is. I said that because that's what Enrique and Spydertaco are, and you're not terribly far behind them sometimes. They are the reason why Joystiq was unreadable a month or two ago (not my words, words of many veteran posters that I've talked to), and while it's gotten better there's still too many of them around.
eNrique @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:31PM
Unreadable a month or two?
Do you realize that I've been reading / posting on joystiq waaaaaaaaay before you started?
I came here pretty much when the whole thing started.
Orion @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:40PM
Good lord, STFU already. Good lord. You say you're not a troll, and yet almost all of the first page is you bitching about the PS3, it's games, or the people who like them. Get a clue from the downvoting and talk about the systems you enjoy in the topics that are appropriate for it.
Good fucking lord...
tmacairjordan87 @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:43PM
Whiny ps3 fanboy is whiny. I think I'll talk where and when I want to, thank you very much.
johnnynumber5 @ Nov 2nd 2009 3:00PM
The article clearly states their focus has been on the PSP. If you look at their list of games this generation (from what I could gather anyway, excluding Japan only releases which there are alot of) the focus has also been heavy on the PS3 with their PSN titles. Even if you discount the PSP games I'd still have to say that Echochrome and The Last Guy are two of the best games on PSN. But, the focus is shifting towards making those high budget PS3 games. They've made some pretty good stuff all the way around considering the resources they have to work with aren't as vast.
PSN:
Echochrome
The Last Guy
Loco Roco Cocoreccho
Piyotama
Trash Panic
PS3:
Siren Blood Curse
Gran Turismo Prologue
Eye Of Judgement
White Knight Chronicles (coming Q1 2010)
Last Guardian (coming Q2 2010)
Gran Turismo 5 (coming Q1 2010)
PSP:
Ape Escape On The Loose
Ape Escape Academy
Ape Quest
Loco Roco
Loco Roco 2
Loco Roco Midnight Carnival
Patapon
Patapon 2
Echochrome
Numblast
tmacairjordan87 @ Nov 2nd 2009 3:00PM
Because I'm not one of the sony trolls bringing this site down.
DamonTheMoney @ Nov 2nd 2009 3:04PM
Tmac, I'm just going to say this, and I mean it in the nicest way possible.
STFU and GTFO.
Ashitaka @ Nov 2nd 2009 4:39PM
"They are the reason why Joystiq was unreadable a month or two ago (not my words, words of many veteran posters that I've talked to), and while it's gotten better there's still too many of them around."
Uuuh, you talked to some veteran posters. And wtf is that? Veteran posters? Is this a job? I want to get paid too.
For fuc k's sake, just shut the fuc k up already. YOU. ARE. THE. TROLL. You're the one who makes Joystiq unreadable.
Kindly leave.
WiredKnight: Keeper of Threads @ Nov 3rd 2009 3:33AM
Ah, good ol' Ashitaka. Late to the party as usual, and with nothing useful to add.
I used to think tmac was a troll too, and I may disagree with some of his tastes in games, but for the most part it's nice to have people like him who can cut through all the bullshit surrounding the so called console wars. I mean look, his original comment on this page was agreeing with what the article said, expanding on it. If you don't like what he said, you must not have liked what Joystiq writers have to say, and in that case, why are you here at all?
... Not that I think he's always right, but in this case he does have a point. I too have been more interested in both SCEA and SCEE produced games, rather than ones by SCEJ, though me and a friend of mine are hooked on Trash Panic's multiplayer and can't wait for GT5. Whether that's due to the quality of each region's games, or simply because of personal preference, it's hard to say.
Also, lol at enrique for trying to pull rank on a gaming blog. What do you want, a medal?
Ashitaka @ Nov 3rd 2009 8:18PM
Ouch, I didn't know there was troll defence force. Kids these days...
Luke @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:43PM
I agree.
Brockway @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:56PM
What about Folklore, Demon Souls (they're in the opening credits), and Dark Mist?
Utmost Nutszo @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:44PM
A new Legend of Dragoon game?
...please?
RagingStormX @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:14PM
I don't see how Sony has dropped the ball on this RPG....there should have been a Legend of Dragoon 3 by now lol
Nobledevil @ Nov 2nd 2009 5:29PM
Right on. Legend of Dragoon was awesome. Well, everything except for the music - I remember wanting to pull my hair out when almost anything from that game's score was playing.
I'm still hoping that if they release it on PSN and it sells like crazy they'll have a reason to make a sequel.
williams.asante @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:45PM
I thought they had a hand in Demon's Souls with Atlus, or was that only for distribution?
PN04 @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:53PM
Demon's Souls is a 3rd party game entirely. I know, it's shocking to see a 3rd party exclusive on PS3 but they do exist.
Martin @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:05PM
@PN04 -- scary how nobody would have said that about the PS2. Times, they are a-changin'.
Scott @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:10PM
I'm confused about this too. JapanStudio is part of the intro splash, but I don't know their involvement. Atlus distributed it in the US. Sony distributed it in Japan AFAIK, but I'm not sure why they'd keep the JapanStudio credit in the US version if they weren't involved.
One thing is clear, it was developed by From Software, who presumably is not JapanStudio.
Another thing that's clear is that the game is super amazing greatness.
Finito (PSN: Wretched_Walrus) @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:24PM
Demon's Souls is not a 3rd party game. According to wikipedia Sony owns the franchise, so in the event of a sequel it will be exlcusive to a Sony console.
Finito (PSN: Wretched_Walrus) @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:50PM
I'd argue Patapon was a better game than a lot of those western console games, even though it's obviously difficult to compare. Still, it's by far my favorite PSP game.
Isn't Japan Studio going to be busy with White Chronicles 2? Maybe they have time for a PS3 Ape Escape.
SpyderTaco (PSN: Ar4chNova89) @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:52PM
True, but look at all of the unique experiences they've brought forth.
- Echochrome
- Siren: Blood Curse -- 1-12
- The Last Guy
- Trash Panic
I don't know about anyone else, but those titles are definitely key on my list.
KSPRAYDAD ... no longer playing games @ Nov 2nd 2009 1:59PM
Really wish they had expanded The Last Guy (more than the one time)....great game.
tmacairjordan87 @ Nov 2nd 2009 2:01PM
That's a pretty weak list when your other partners bring Uncharted 1&2, Killzone 2, and God of War 3 to the table, as well as other AAA games.