Category: Videogames

Capcom’s Keiji Inafune Hates Japanese Game Development, Capcom

Late last night I read this fascinating NY Times interview with Capcom global head of production Keiji Inafune. Since 1987, Inafune has helped create some of Capcom’s best games. It was shocking to hear him go off on Capcom and the Japanese game development scene. Check out this opening salvo:

I look around T.G.S., and everyone’s making awful games. Japan is at least five years behind.

It’s like we’re still making games for the last generation of game consoles.

Capcom is barely keeping up. The ideas, game play, design — there’s no diversity, no originality.

Wow…just wow.

I hold Inafune in the highest regard, but I’m not sure that I completely agree with him here. Certainly the videogame business — particularly game development — has shifted to the West. I’ve always chalked that up to the popularity of first-person shooters (and Japanese developers’ inability to make good games in the genre) and Microsoft’s gaming efforts. Gaming has been mainstream in Japan far longer than it has in America. The types of games that are popular have changed since the Sony PlayStation and Microsoft Xbox brought more Westerners into the mix. Personally, I’d love it if more Japanese developers made awesome turn-based RPGs…but perhaps I’m just old.

Read the entire interview if you have a moment. It’s really good. When you’re done, I’d love to hear your thoughts on Inafune’s words. Shout it out (please) in the comments section!

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Coffee Talk #216: What Was Your Favorite TGS News?

Tokyo Game Show 2010 is over and there were so many interesting happenings at the show. What was your favorite bit of TGS 2010 news? As for me, I was thrilled with Team Ico’s announcements. The new trailer for The Last Guardian is fantastic — I think I’ve watched it around 43 times already. I’m also super psyched that Ico and Shadow of the Colossus are being re-released in HD (not so interested in 3D though).

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, The Miz and Bryan Danielson putting on a refreshingly old-school wrestling match last night, “Sugar” Shane Mosley’s horrific fight against Sergio Mora, or The Beatles vs. The Rolling Stones, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Tokyo Game Show 2010 is over and there were so many interesting happenings at the show. What was your favorite bit of TGS 2010 news? As for me, I was thrilled with Team Ico’s announcements. The new trailer for The Last Guardian is fantastic — I think I’ve watched it around 43 times already. I’m also super psyched that Ico and Shadow of the Colossus are being re-released in HD (not so interested in 3D though).

Now it’s your turn! Was there anything at TGS 2010 that made you especially happy, excited, or giddy (special bonus if it made you all three!)?

Bobby Kotick Wants to Sell You Cutscenes

In a move that’s certainly smart but will also add to his reputation as an evil bastard, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick plans on selling discs containing cutscenes from Activision games. He recently told GameSpot:

If we were to go to our audience and say we have this great hour-and-a-half of linear video that we would like to make available to you at a $30 price point or $20 price point, you’d have the biggest opening weekend of any film ever. Within the next five years, you are likely to see us do that. Now that may be in partnership with somebody; it may be alone. But there will be a time when we capitalize on the relationship that we have with our audience.

Would you buy a disc filled with cutscenes? There are a number of gamers I know that would love to watch Final Fantasy XIII’s cutscenes without playing the game. A lot of those gamers would also publicly denounce this practice simply because Kotick brought it up. Is it an ingenious move on his part? Or is it eeeeeeeevil?

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What Are You Playing This Weekend?

Originally, I thought this was going to be another weekend of Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep, but a funny thing happened on the way to Friday — another Square Enix RPG! I’m not going to say what it is now, but you’ll be able to figure it out from this article’s images. For the most part, I’m really enjoying it, but there are portions that piss me off. Some of it so 1993: you’ll encounter a boss, but won’t be powerful enough to defeat it, so you have to run around like a dick for an hour to level up or search for a weapon that makes things easier. While JRPG veterans are used to this kind of thing, I don’t think it will fly with younger gamers.

Anyway, let me know what’s on your weekend playlist when you have a moment.

Coffee Talk #215: Who Are Your Favorite Internet Writers?

Let’s be real — this can’t possibly be the only web site you visit on a daily basis. Don’t worry, I don’t get (too) jealous when you spend time reading other sites. Having said that, I’d love to hear about some of your favorite Internet writers. Whether it’s games, sports, tech, or whatever, let me know who some of your favorite scribes are. Here are some of mine:

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, J.Lo as an American Idol judge, WWE banning Soma (even with a prescription), or Britney Spears’ engagement rumors, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Let’s be real — this can’t possibly be the only web site you visit on a daily basis. Don’t worry, I don’t get (too) jealous when you spend time reading other sites. Having said that, I’d love to hear about some of your favorite Internet writers. Whether it’s games, sports, tech, or whatever, let me know who some of your favorite ‘net scribblers are. Here are some of mine:

  • Games: Christian Nutt (Gamasutra), Chris Kohler (Wired), Brian Leahy (Shacknews), and Dean Takahashi (VentureBeat) [Full disclosure: Kohler and I do a stunning karaoke duet of “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me”, Christian and I used to be roommates, and Leahy…well, most of you know.]
  • Tech: Om Malik (GigaOm), James Kendrick (JKonTheRun), MG Siegler (TechCrunch), and Fake Steve Jobs (FakeSteveJobs)
  • Sports: Bill Simmons (ESPN) and Doug Fischer (The Ring)

Now it’s your turn! Who are some of your favorite Internet writers?

Ico and Shadow of the Colossus in HD…and 3D!

At Tokyo Game Show 2010, Sony announced that Ico and Shadow of the Colossus will be hitting the PlayStation 3 on one Blu-ray disc that’s full of HD and 3D goodness.(Check out the trailer above!) I loved Ico and really liked Shadow of the Colossos on the PlayStation 2; I’m thrilled that they’ll be available in high definition, but I don’t care to play them in 3D (yet).

What do you guys and gals think of this collection? Are you interested in playing it in 3D?

Ninja Gaiden 3 Revealed…With a Piece of Concept Art

At a private Tecmo-Koei dinner in Japan, Team Ninja’s Yosuke Hayashi unveiled Ninja Gaiden 3 with a piece of concept art. I love it! It reminds me of E3 meetings in the late ’90s when European developers would show me sketches of their game on a flip-book and bore me to tears about heady concepts that would never see the light of day. For some reason, when Team Ninja shows off concept art, I take it a bit more seriously.

Here’s what GamePro’s AJ Glasser had to say about the brief introduction to Ninja Gaiden 3:

The game is so early in development, the developer only showed journalists a piece of concept art. The image, however, defines both the new game’s direction and the new identity of Team Ninja.

Glasser also spills details on the upcoming Dead or Alive game for Nintendo 3DS. Kindly check out her article if you have a chance. Also, let me know if you’re interested in Dead or Alive and Ninja Gaiden games that aren’t created by Tomonobu Itagaki.

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