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What do you guys think of Koei Tecmo?

Jimrpg

Member
I've been collecting Vita titles (and PS4) over the past six months, and I realised I bought a whole lot of Koei Tecmo games without realising it, I might have picked up something from almost every one of their series. Looking at their catalog of games, I find that they release a lot of things that I'm interested in.

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They also seem pretty dedicated to developing each line of games as the Warriors series, historical strategy series like Nobunaga, RoTK, Dead or Alive series, Atelier series all seem to have a dedicated group of fans.

While I haven't played all the games I've picked up yet, Nioh is taking a heck of a long time to beat, what I've noticed is that each game has a niche that they're extremely good at. For Nioh that's the combat. Across all KT games they seem to have really great presentation, Nioh's artistic cinematics are just beautifully done. Nobunaga's Ambition and RoTK also look like beautiful games.

One negative is that they're not very good at telling a coherent story. DOA5 and Nioh are a complete mess. But aside from that I feel like KT makes a lot of games I'm interested in. I think they deserve more love around here.
 

Renna Hazel

Member
Still salty about Ninja Gaiden 3, but am hopeful for 4. Considering trying Nioh while I wait. Also enjoy some of the warriors games.
 

Luminaire

Member
Always liked them, even when they were separate companies. Hits and misses come along, but they've really seemed to pull their shit together.
 

Forkball

Member
TECMO BOWL BABY

They have a lot of interesting properties, but don't really do a lot with them. So many games focus on the Three Kingdoms period or Sengoku era, two moments in history that are filled with amazing stories and fascinating characters... and make samey Musou games. Even with the more serious strategy games, it's hard to find consensus on the best ones. It really seems the quality goes up and down instead of consistently improving over time. Not to mention their outrageous pricing. They live to milk a niche.

I haven't played it yet, but Nioh seems really interesting. I want to see more of those titles from KT.
 

RalchAC

Member
Most of their series are a known quantity, but they're good at what they do. They seem to be getting a bit more ambitious nowadays, which sounds nice.

I appreciate that they're one of the few JP 3rd parties that support new systems from the get go and for a long time.
 

Jimrpg

Member
Still salty about Ninja Gaiden 3, but am hopeful for 4. Considering trying Nioh while I wait. Also enjoy some of the warriors games.

There are definitely Ninja Gaiden influences in Nioh but just don't expect the same game.

The early part of Nioh is very Dark Souls but once you get more skills and weapons it becomes more Ninja Gaiden like I think. I have not played enough NG really to be confirm this though.
 

kunonabi

Member
I've been playing a lot more of their titles recently due to their recent Nintendo efforts and I've been playing just about everything they've been putting out for the last couple years. Probably my second favorite publisher at the moment.
 

Jimrpg

Member
TECMO BOWL BABY

They have a lot of interesting properties, but don't really do a lot with them. So many games focus on the Three Kingdoms period or Sengoku era, two moments in history that are filled with amazing stories and fascinating characters... and make samey Musou games. Even with the more serious strategy games, it's hard to find consensus on the best ones. It really seems the quality goes up and down instead of consistently improving over time. Not to mention their outrageous pricing. They live to milk a niche.

I haven't played it yet, but Nioh seems really interesting. I want to see more of those titles from KT.

I think this is a pretty common sentiment with them. I think there was a time when they would bring out six warriors games a year and charge near full price for them.

But I think the Atelier series is also starting to get more exposure now, particularly now that its on PS4 and PC (and maybe Switch?). Same with the historical strategy games that are also on Steam now that might get people to take a look given there are a lot of strategy enthusiasts on that platform.

And Dynasty Warriors 9 next year offers a revamp of the warriors formula, so I'm liking their game catalog right now.
 

JeffZero

Purple Drazi
Koei makes some of the non-narratively focused games I play with the Dynasty/Samurai/Gundam Musou franchises.
 

Renna Hazel

Member
There are definitely Ninja Gaiden influences in Nioh but just don't expect the same game.

The early part of Nioh is very Dark Souls but once you get more skills and weapons it becomes more Ninja Gaiden like I think. I have not played enough NG really to be confirm this though.

Oh I'm definitely not expecting it to be Ninja Gaiden, but it seems like something I may enjoy and it is from the same team. Everyone compares it to Souls but I've never played those games so this should be a new experience for me.
 

Jimrpg

Member
Do those vita ninja gaiden games work for psvita tv?

Well its hard to believe but just the US/Asia/Japanese versions work with the PS Vita TV.... and my PAL ones DON'T! Of course you could probably henkaku/white list it to work I think.

There are a bunch of EU/PAL vita games that DON'T work with Vita TV which is really stupid.
 

jrcbandit

Member
They consistently deliver subpar ports on PC without showing any sign of improving.
Haha, exactly what I was thinking. They also release a ton of subpar musou games that rely solely on the licensed property to sell without expanding the gameplay, making an interesting story, etc... One of my least favorite developers, although I was pleasantly surprised by Nioh.
 

Zukkoyaki

Member
I respect the hell out of them even if I don't personally enjoy any of their franchises aside from Ninja Gaiden.

Not only are they masters of their particular niche, the Musou genre, they have a good variety to their line-up thanks to Gust, Dead or Alive and the Three Kingdoms series.

They're also probably the most productive publisher on the planet. They crank out stellar games are a remarkable rate.

I'm glad that Nioh garnered them a lot of attention and put Team Ninja back on the map. I also like how they're taking a risk with Dynasty Warriors. As good as their present is, I think they have an even better future. Other than Bandai Namco, they're probably this generation's best third party Japanese publisher.
 

Gren

Member
I haven't bought a game from them in a while (PC isn't their forte), but I admire them. They're a fairly large Japanese 3rd party that knows its market & isn't constantly trying to chase that AAA-life (looking at you, Capcom).
 

Jimrpg

Member
They consistently deliver subpar ports on PC without showing any sign of improving.

I think it'll improve ultimately, if PC gets announced for DW9 day and date with the PS4 version, I think you'll get a good port as it was developed at the same time as the console version.

Most of these other games have been quick ports of existing console games and they were never going to rewrite the game to unlock frametimes and resolutions.
 
They're an awesome publisher that puts out unique games.

Admittedly I don't lay their full range of titles and stick to NiOh and Dynasty Warriors, but I'm glad they exist. It's super important to have variety in any platform.
 

Strings

Member
Big Gust fan, and enjoy a lot of their Warriors spin-offs (DQ Heroes, One Piece musou, etc), so yeah - I like Koei Tecmo.

They need to do more SRPG collabs though, because Pokemon Conquest and Yo-kai Sangokushi were awesome. Even Dynasty Warriors: Godseekers was pretty good.
 

TreIII

Member
Between Musou, DoA, Ninja Gaiden, Nioh, Fatal Frame and more, they've quickly become a consistent presence in my gaming life over the last 15 years. I've grown to love having them around!
 

Jimrpg

Member
Between Musou, DoA, Ninja Gaiden, Nioh, Fatal Frame and more, they've quickly become a consistent presence in my gaming life over the last 15 years. I've grown to love having them around!

Thanks for reminding me, I still have to play Fatal Frame Maiden of Black Water!
 

Mephala

Member
In terms of gameplay I quite enjoy their combat. Whether it is Dead or Alive or Ninja Gaiden or Musou.

They certainly know their target audience but I do wish they try to improve the quality of their games. Some of the backgrounds and textures stand out like sore thumbs next to their character models.

If they just up their game on PC versions.
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sensui-tomo

Member
i'm a huge fan of the koei part of KT (love the musou line of stuff they release). Tecmo on the other hand.... I want my MONSTER RANCHER.
 
i keep buying their games by chance.

they really love historical settings, as do i. they're also very good with art and 3d modeling.

they haven't abandoned making hardcore games, i can't thank them enough for that.

Nioh is a goty.
 

Jimrpg

Member
In terms of gameplay I quite enjoy their combat. Whether it is Dead or Alive or Ninja Gaiden or Musou.

They certainly know their target audience but I do wish they try to improve the quality of their games. Some of the backgrounds and textures stand out like sore thumbs next to their character models.

If they just up their game on PC versions.
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Yep I absolutely agree on this.

DW8XL looked like a mid tier PS3 game, with barely better character models on PS4/PC.

DW9 still doesn't look amazing, though they certainly improved some aspects of it like their backgrounds and weather effects.

Nioh doesn't look great either, so it looks like it had to give up a lot to get to 60fps.
 

Prophane33

Member
They've been one of, if not my favorite, publisher since the 8-bit era.

I can't think of a console I own where I didn't buy most of their releases (heck even the original Xbox and Xbox 360). Even imported Nobunaga's Ambition games on DS, 3DS, and Vita. The very first PS4 game I bought was the Japanese version of Samurai Warriors 4-II. In fact, the only two games that I've ever gotten all the trophies/achievements were two of the Dynasty Warriors games back on Xbox 360 (DW7 and DW6: Empires).

Some of the only games I've double-dipped on (buying disc and digital versions later on) are Koei titles. I would say there's likely only one other person here who's as big if not a bigger Koei fanatic than I am.

Here's just a random sampling of whatever was near me at the time:

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(also I realize I do have a lot of stuff from the Tecmo-wing of the company, such as every DOA game, sans the Xtreme stuff)

Edit: Also, I realized years ago that I'll buy any game with the word Musou (or warriors) slapped on the cover.
 

Archtreyz

Member
I love Dead or Alive as a fighting game franchise, but I hate how fan-servicey it is. I know, I know, it's a large part of the appeal for some people, but still.
 

RM8

Member
I like DOA. I'd like DOA more if the tone was a bit... different, but that's asking for a completely different series, lol. I'd buy DOA6! I hope it's a thing, eventually.

I love Dead or Alive as a fighting game franchise, but I hate how fan-servicey it is. I know, I know, it's a large part of the appeal for some people, but still.
Ah, this, exactly.
 

Forward

Member
I actually remember Tecmo Knight, from the arcade. Ground 'n pound enemies' heads off, all day.
That ought to make me feel even older and esoteric than remembering arcades.
 

Jimrpg

Member
They've been one of, if not my favorite, publisher since the 8-bit era.

I can't think of a console I own where I didn't buy most of their releases (heck even the original Xbox and Xbox 360). Even imported Nobunaga's Ambition games on DS, 3DS, and Vita. The very first PS4 game I bought was the Japanese version of Samurai Warriors 4-II. In fact, the only two games that I've ever gotten all the trophies/achievements were two of the Dynasty Warriors games back on Xbox 360 (DW7 and DW6: Empires).

Some of the only games I've double-dipped on (buying disc and digital versions later on) are Koei titles. I would say there's likely only one other person here who's as big if not a bigger Koei fanatic than I am.

Here's just a random sampling of whatever was near me at the time:

QkCQOvS.jpg




(also I realize I do have a lot of stuff from the Tecmo-wing of the company, such as every DOA game, sans the Xtreme stuff)

Edit: Also, I realized years ago that I'll buy any game with the word Musou (or warriors) slapped on the cover.

Any particular reason in getting the Japanese versions other than just to play them earlier? I suppose they'd be nice titles to import because the games are not overly reliant on story.


I love Dead or Alive as a fighting game franchise, but I hate how fan-servicey it is. I know, I know, it's a large part of the appeal for some people, but still.

Well I think the core game is not that bad... its only once you start getting into the DLC and the spin off game where its really noticeable.
 
They make shitty PC versions and I don't like most of their games anyway. Ninja Gaiden is dead. Only thing I've enjoyed from them was Nioh recently.
 
Their PC ports need some work, and they should probably cut those prices every now and then as well. How Dynasty Warriors 8 XL CE, one of the worst ports I've ever experienced, is still full price, 3 years after release, is beyond me.
 
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