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[Spiegel]

Speaking of Square Enix, back in Week 50 (December 2012), we had a discussion about how Square Enix only had two announced 3DS games: Dragon Quest VII and Gyrozetter.

It's now about a month since Dragon Quest VII released and we're down to Gyrozetter.

Since I mentioned I would wait to bring the topic back for discussion until around now to give them a chance to announce more games, I felt I should follow through and bring it back up since they haven't.

Well, which game from S-E do you think the 3DS is missing?

Saga is dead
A big FF game? They already have 5 FF in development

XIV
Lightning Returns
Versus
X HD
New one to be announced at E3


Next 3DS games are probably going to be DQM, Itadaki Street and Bravely Default 2. Maybe some PSX/PS2 port too. And DQXI, of course, but this is for 2015.

 

[disco]

Well, which game from S-E do you think the 3DS is missing?

Saga is dead
A big FF game? They already have 5 FF in development

XIV
Lightning Returns
Versus
X HD
New one to be announced at E3


Next 3DS games are probably going to be DQM, Itadaki Street and Bravely Default 2. Maybe some PSX/PS2 port

Theatrhythm Dragon Quest!?!?!?

 

[Nirolak]

Judging by their recent comments they're either focusing on console games or full fledged games from iOS/Android this year. I doubt we'll see much support for the 3DS or Vita from SE this year. Although I could see Tabata making a Vita game. Kinda of 'test the waters' game for Square to see whether or not to bother with the platform. I see this only because of Tabata's comments about the Vita. I would say 3DS will at the very least get a BD sequel in the coming years and a DQ11.

Well Tabata showed something at that conference where they unveiled Lightning Returns that couldn't be reported on.

More in general what's the last SE (Japan) game announced that wasn't a facebook/ios venture?

I think it would be Dragon Quest VII on October 30th.

 

[Man-is-Obsolete]

More in general what's the last SE (Japan) game announced that wasn't a facebook/ios venture?

Or a remake or a game set in the XIII universe?

 

[Nirolak]

Well, which game from S-E do you think the 3DS is missing?

Saga is dead
A big FF game? They already have 5 FF in development

XIV
Lightning Returns
Versus
X HD
New one to be announced at E3


Next 3DS games are probably going to be DQM, Itadaki Street and Bravely Default 2. Maybe some PSX/PS2 port too. And DQXI, of course, but this is for 2015.

I was kind of thinking just anything in general of their choosing.

I mean it is the flagship in their home market and they have done very well on handhelds historically.

New IPs, successful brands like FFTA and CC, or maybe some revivals. Anything really.

 

[grimshawish]

Since I mentioned I would wait to bring the topic back for discussion until around now to give them a chance to announce more games, I felt I should follow through and bring it back up since they haven't.

Remember this. Its an odd one but DQ was so close to release that more this year can not be discounted. The joke ofc would be 'hey FFXV is 3DS!' but these days its not the series for that.

I have a feeling BD will be Christmas in the West this year (with a push from Ninty too); other than that its hard to say. I could see a FF game, continuing on from the DS remakes but also a possibility of a spin-off type game.

Guess we'll see. Can't see 3DS being empty to them whatsoever though.

 

[Nirolak]

Remember this. Its an odd one but DQ was so close to release that more this year can not be discounted. The joke ofc would be 'hey FFXV is 3DS!' but these days its not the series for that.

I have a feeling BD will be Christmas in the West this year (with a push from Ninty too); other than that its hard to say. I could see a FF game, continuing on from the DS remakes but also a possibility of a spin-off type game.

Guess we'll see. Can't see 3DS being empty to them whatsoever though.

I don't doubt they will have at least something for Fall, I just expected them to be more active on the platform now that the dedicated handheld war is long over.

 

[Man-is-Obsolete]

Remember this. Its an odd one but DQ was so close to release that more this year can not be discounted. The joke ofc would be 'hey FFXV is 3DS!' but these days its not the series for that.

I have a feeling BD will be Christmas in the West this year (with a push from Ninty too); other than that its hard to say. I could see a FF game, continuing on from the DS remakes but also a possibility of a spin-off type game.

Guess we'll see. Can't see 3DS being empty to them whatsoever though.

It is hard to look past the sales potential world wide of a big console release game. Sure a 3DS game would sell well in Japan, but it wouldn't do great outside of Japan. However, on the home console they have the ability to appeal to a worldwide audience, including Japan, and that is where I think they are focusing a lot of their energy.......that and quick and dirty iOS games for that easy cash.

 

[Nirolak]

Or a remake or a game set in the XIII universe?

Hmm... that is actually a hard question.

TGS 2011 maybe with that Pikmin Vita thingy?

 

[Man-is-Obsolete]

Hmm... that is actually a hard question.

TGS 2011 maybe with that Pikmin Vita thingy?

Army Corps? What about Bravery Default, or was that prior to TGS 2011?

 

[Mario007]

Well Tabata showed something at that conference where they unveiled Lightning Returns that couldn't be reported on.

Really? I didn't know that at all. All I remember Tabata saying is that the future of FF will be shown by Nomura soon. I'd say it's definitely handheld bound if its from Tabata, he has already expressed interest in Vita and had admired 3DS previously too.

 

[metalslimer]

Square Enix's internal Japanese development I think is just completely tied up. Bravely Default 2, Dragon Quest 11, and the next Dragon Quest Monsters are probably already in development, but what does Square have left to use?

They are working on primarily on fixing the 14 disaster and:

Verus 13 (which may have become the PS4 game) and if not then
FF15 PS4 which would take an enormous amount of staff
Final Fantasy X HD
FF13-3

Their operation seems devoted on around the FF brand. Once FF14 comes out (and flops) I think we'll see many more games announced (not necessarily for 3DS though). The truth about 3DS is that if the game isn't really popular enough in Japan to make it's money back, then there are much better platforms to put it on for western sales.

The handheld war is over, but it's somewhat of a hollow victory for Nintendo outside of Japan.

What I'm truly interested in is what's up with the 3DS lineup in general. Sure there MH4 which will be huge, but Shin Megami Tensei 4 is the only dated 3rd party major release for the next 2 months.

 

[lupin23rd]

Hopefully they'll announce remakes for FFV and FFVI at some point. Assume those would be 3DS if they happen.

Spoiler

2D remakes on Vita would be a dream though

 

[Nirolak]

Army Corps? What about Bravery Default, or was that prior to TGS 2011?

I think Army Corps From Hell, Lord of Apocalypse, and Bravely Default were all announced at TGS 2011. Gyrozetter 3DS may have been at the same time.

I think that's the last time they did something that fit the criteria of A.) not a browser/mobile game, B.) not a XIII game, and C.) not a remake/port.

Really? I didn't know that at all. All I remember Tabata saying is that the future of FF will be shown by Nomura soon. I'd say it's definitely handheld bound if its from Tabata, he has already expressed interest in Vita and had admired 3DS previously too.

I could be hallucinating, but I remember duckroll mentioning to me that there was a 5-10 minute or so dead period when Tabata was on stage that none of the press reported on.

 

[pieatorium]

More in general what's the last SE (Japan) game announced that wasn't a facebook/ios venture?

KH 1.5?

 

[shinra-bansho]

It makes sense to try and get XIV right; they probably want to repeat XI's success and profitability.

nor Mana revival

That saddens me.

 

[Man God]

I have been thinking about the same thing for months now, Nirolak.

I can get why SE is hesitating with localizing stuff for the 3DS but this lack of announcements for what is clearly the dominant system in Japan this go around is bizarre. They didn't have a period like this at all last generation for the DS until the console really started to wind down.

I get that they're in a slightly less experimental phase; we're probably not going to get another FF:CC title, nor Mana revival, nor crazy RTS FF sequel. But there really should be something. An FF 3D remake. TWEWY 2. Something safe like FFTA3 or a PS2 remake or Dissidia port/third version.

 

[Nirolak]

Square Enix's internal Japanese development I think is just completely tied up. Bravely Default 2, Dragon Quest 11, and the next Dragon Quest Monsters are probably already in development, but what does Square have left to use?

They are working on primarily on fixing the 14 disaster and:

Verus 13 (which may have become the PS4 game) and if not then
FF15 PS4 which would take an enormous amount of staff
Final Fantasy X HD
FF13-3

Their operation seems devoted on around the FF brand. Once FF14 comes out (and flops) I think we'll see many more games announced (not necessarily for 3DS though). The truth about 3DS is that if the game isn't really popular enough in Japan to make it's money back, then there are much better platforms to put it on for western sales.

Bravely Default is made externally by Silicon Studios though, and Square Enix made a lot of their handheld output that way in the past anyway, so even if their internal staff is tied up it shouldn't really be killing their handheld output.

I mean Kensuke Nakahara, Bravely Default's director, is even from Silicon Studio. The game is much closer to DmC in terms of development (Ninja Theory making a game for Capcom with some oversight) than Square Enix actually developing the title. It's also more separated from Square Enix than a lot of past handheld games they've made where they have internal directors and an external development team.

 

[Nirolak]

I have been thinking about the same thing for months now, Nirolak.

I can get why SE is hesitating with localizing stuff for the 3DS but this lack of announcements for what is clearly the dominant system in Japan this go around is bizarre. They didn't have a period like this at all last generation for the DS until the console really started to wind down.

I get that they're in a slightly less experimental phase; we're probably not going to get another FF:CC title, nor Mana revival, nor crazy RTS FF sequel. But there really should be something. An FF 3D remake. TWEWY 2. Something safe like FFTA3 or a PS2 remake or Dissidia port/third version.

Right, it's not even that one or two of those things is missing, but that they have absolutely none of them.

 

[metalslimer]

Bravely Default is made externally by Silicon Studios though, and Square Enix made a lot of their handheld output that way in the past anyway, so even if their internal staff is tied up it shouldn't really be killing their handheld output.

I mean Kensuke Nakahara, Bravely Default's director, is even from Silicon Studio. The game is much closer to DmC in terms of development (Ninja Theory making a game for Capcom with some oversight) than Square Enix actually developing the title. It's also more separated from Square Enix than a lot of past handheld games they've made where they have internal directors and an external development team.

Sure and like I said they probably have more external Dragon Quest games coming, and Bravely Default 2. It's worth noting that these games take a lot more staff to make than a DS game. But let's exclude Square Enix for a second, every 3rd party seems relatively empty on 3DS considering how dominant it is. And Nintendo basically has most of their 2013 lineup set already for 3DS. The effects of the western market are bleeding through, so unless your game is going to sell really well in Japan why would you make it a 3DS game? So now couple this with the fact that more and more 3rd parties are targeting sales globally and the lack of 3DS titles makes complete sense.

 

[Sammy Samusu]

I would say they are already working on DQXI, TWEWY2 and BD2.

 

[Man-is-Obsolete]

Right, it's not even that one or two of those things is missing, but that they have absolutely none of them.

Again I think S-E has become a lot more international, especially after the Eidos acquisition. They look at something like Tomb Raider being a run away success and probably feel their best platform is the home console and thus will probably hear a lot more at E3, or perhaps sooner at GDC to show off their engine some more. I think looking at how the 3DS is doing in Japan and basing your development decisions on that is myopic. Sure dev costs are higher for next gen games but the rewards are also much higher. It's the same thing in the movie industry, sure there is a more efficient way to make money than releasing a $200+ million movie, but the reason why there are so many is because the reward potentially is a $1 billion dollar gross. A studio will take that 5 times earnings over a $5 million dollar movie making a $50 million any day.

 

[Mario007]

I think Army Corps From Hell, Lord of Apocalypse, and Bravely Default were all announced at TGS 2011. Gyrozetter 3DS may have been at the same time.

I think that's the last time they did something that fit the criteria of A.) not a browser/mobile game, B.) not a XIII game, and C.) not a remake/port.


I could be hallucinating, but I remember duckroll mentioning to me that there was a 5-10 minute or so dead period when Tabata was on stage that none of the press reported on.

Hmm, that is interesting. I hate when Square does something like that, if you're willing to talk about it then it should be reported on.

 

[DaBoss]

Sure and like I said they probably have more external Dragon Quest games coming, and Bravely Default 2. It's worth noting that these games take a lot more staff to make than a DS game. But let's exclude Square Enix for a second, every 3rd party seems relatively empty on 3DS considering how dominant it is. And Nintendo basically has most of their 2013 lineup set already for 3DS. The effects of the western market are bleeding through, so unless your game is going to sell really well in Japan why would you make it a 3DS game? So now couple this with the fact that more and more 3rd parties are targeting sales globally and the lack of 3DS titles makes complete sense.

I think Capcom & Atlus are the only third-party really putting stuff for the 3DS and have stuff in the future. We'll probably see more about third-party lineups once this quarter is done and they reveal some tidbits of information.

EDIT: Looking at the list Nirolak posted, I forgot Level-5 lol.

 

[disco]

Again I think S-E has become a lot more international, especially after the Eidos acquisition. They look at something like Tomb Raider being a run away success and probably feel their best platform is the home console and thus will probably hear a lot more at E3, or perhaps sooner at GDC to show off their engine some more. I think looking at how the 3DS is doing in Japan and basing your development decisions on that is myopic. Sure dev costs are higher for next gen games but the rewards are also much higher. It's the same thing in the movie industry, sure there is a more efficient way to make money than releasing a $200+ million movie, but the reason why there are so many is because the reward potentially is a $1 billion dollar gross. A studio will take that 5 times earnings over a $5 million dollar movie making a $50 million any day.

I think I may give up gaming sooner rather than later.

 

[Nirolak]

Sure and like I said they probably have more external Dragon Quest games coming, and Bravely Default 2. It's worth noting that these games take a lot more staff to make than a DS game. But let's exclude Square Enix for a second, every 3rd party seems relatively empty on 3DS considering how dominant it is. And Nintendo basically has most of their 2013 lineup set already for 3DS. The effects of the western market are bleeding through, so unless your game is going to sell really well in Japan why would you make it a 3DS game? So now couple this with the fact that more and more 3rd parties are targeting sales globally and the lack of 3DS titles makes complete sense.

If the 3DS's performance in the West is actually notably effecting the 3DS's library, I feel that would actually be a rather interesting development, since I feel it didn't really crush the output present on the PSP or late-life DS. I could be having a perception problem there though.

As for what Japanese publishers are making, here's what I came up with.

Square Enix:
-Gyrozetter

Capcom:
-Ace Attorney 5
-Monster Hunter 4

Atlus:
-Shin Megami Tensei 4
-Devil Survivor 2: Break Record

Level 5:
-Ghoul Watch
-Guild 02
-To be fair they just released like five games.

Namco Bandai:
-Digimon World Reigitize
-Smash Bros 3DS (published by Nintendo)
-Disney World

Sega:
-Well, nothing, but you know...

Tecmo Koei/Gust:
-I'm not sure. I'm not seeing anything on Wikipedia, but I imagine they're not very complete on this subject.

Nippon Ichi:
-Nothing

Idea Factory/Compile Heart:
-I'm unsure who catalogs what they make extensive.

Marvelous AQL:
-Kaio: King of Pirates

Spike:
-Conception 2

Konami:
-There is Castlevania, but it's a Western developed game.

Please fill in if I'm forgetting anything, since I'm sure I am.

I would say they are already working on DQXI, TWEWY2 and BD2.

I would say they're definitely making at least the first and third, but I mean, if that's the sum total that would be weird.

I'm a bit hesitant on TWEWY 2 even though I think it'd by far make the most sense on 3DS, since this also seems like the kind of thing they'd like to spring on us with a teaser site, a week of build up, and a reveal as a mobile title.

Again I think S-E has become a lot more international, especially after the Eidos acquisition. They look at something like Tomb Raider being a run away success and probably feel their best platform is the home console and thus will probably hear a lot more at E3, or perhaps sooner at GDC to show off their engine some more. I think looking at how the 3DS is doing in Japan and basing your development decisions on that is myopic. Sure dev costs are higher for next gen games but the rewards are also much higher. It's the same thing in the movie industry, sure there is a more efficient way to make money than releasing a $200+ million movie, but the reason why there are so many is because the reward potentially is a $1 billion dollar gross. A studio will take that 5 times earnings over a $5 million dollar movie making a $50 million any day.

I definitely agree that this may be what happened, but I think trying to determine if it actually has is the most interesting part, since it helps show the potential future of handheld support as well as help determine what a specific publisher might do in the future in general.

But yeah, the evidence on Square Enix is starting to build, but I'm not sure if I'm fully confident of this occurrence yet given their development difficulties.

 

[Man-is-Obsolete]

I think I may give up gaming sooner rather than later.

And I don't think anything I pointed out is all bad, because just like the blockbusters pay for the passion projects in the movie industry, games like Tomb Raider allow for things like Bravery Default to get commissioned. We have more indie games than we ever had, at least they are more accessible than ever have been, and publishers are taking some of their bank roll and publishing more and more of these indie titles as well. Blockbusters are a necessary evil, there has never been a more exciting time in gaming IMO.

 

[Hero of Legend]

I've been thinking SE might get Racjin to bring a SaGa to 3DS after they did SaGa 2 and 3 on DS. The original or Romancing SaGa could be next?

Also yeah for the potential SE 3DS games:

Bravely Default 2 (very successful launch of BD, I think a sequel was heavily hinted anyway)
TWEWY2 (this should happen after the iOS game and the Kingdom Hearts 3D heavily featuring the characters)
Before Crisis remake (this was a thought up by an employee as what he would want to make, this was a mobile game, ala Kingdom Hearts Re:Coded, that was remade by h.a.n.d.)
Dragon Quest Monsters... something (pretty sure Terry's Wonderland did well, plus we got at least two on DS)
DQ11 (you know it's happening)
Final Fantasy V (next up after FFIV on DS)
Chocobo something (where the fuck is Chocobo Racing?! I would think we will see Chocobo again on 3DS for real this time)

ATM those are my guesses for their line-up.

 

[Man God]

I'm absolutely 100% positive that Marvelous is making the next HM game for 3DS and Rune Factory V right now for release in the next 10-18 months, but this basically goes without saying at this point.

 

[Nirolak]

I'm absolutely 100% positive that Marvelous is making the next HM game for 3DS and Rune Factory V right now for release in the next 10-18 months, but this basically goes without saying at this point.

Right I think there's some amount of things we can assume, just like more Dragon Quest games can be put in the 3DS category.

However I limited what I listed to announced games since well, that's what's announced.

@Man-is-Obsolete: Sorry I stealth edited my response after you already replied since that list took me a while.

 

[DaBoss]

I remember at the E3 2010 3DS reveal they had a Chocobo Racing game listed there. It's probably vaporware.

 

[disco]

Please fill in if I'm forgetting anything, since I'm sure I am.

Namco have that Disney X Animal Crossing clone that was announced the other day.

And I don't think anything I pointed out is all bad, because just like the blockbusters pay for the passion projects in the movie industry, games like Tomb Raider allow for things like Bravery Default to get commissioned. We have more indie games than we ever had, at least they are more accessible than ever have been, and publishers are taking some of their bank roll and publishing more and more of these indie titles as well. Blockbusters are a necessary evil, there has never been a more exciting time in gaming IMO.

I guess, I was just being a little melodramatic. I do hope a second wave of exciting small Japanese 3rd party 3DS projects do come though - I have a terrible feeling that S-E really has moved on permanently to new emerging platforms (just like how they happily moved to the DS back in 2006/07).

 

[Man-is-Obsolete]

See I have fond memories of DQ8 and after seeing Ni No Kuni I would love for DQ XI to return to the consoles. I think it is due for shake up after DQ X anyways, and it could have a huge impact if they released the next version on next gen consoles.

 

[pieatorium]

Please fill in if I'm forgetting anything, since I'm sure I am.

Konami : Castlevania 3ds

 

[Nirolak]

Namco have that Disney X Animal Crossing clone that was announced the other day.

Good catch. Totally forgot.

Konami : Castlevania 3ds

I left out Western developed games since they generally don't tend to be especially relevant in the Japanese market, but yes, that is technically upcoming.

 

[pieatorium]

I left out Western developed games since they generally don't tend to be especially relevant in the Japanese market, but yes, that is technically upcoming.

Right I just went with Japanese publisher upcoming release

Spoiler

Actually i forgot it was western dev'd

 

[Man-is-Obsolete]

@Man-is-Obsolete: Sorry I stealth edited my response after you already replied since that list took me a while.

All good, I saw your reply.

Good discussion material though. I think the similarities between the Movie business and Gaming business is crossing over more and more, especially as publishers become more and more seen as production houses than actual developers. Again I don't think that is a bad thing, especially since the Movie industry today is a lot more diverse than I think people give it credit.

 

[hiska-kun]

Media Create:

01./00. [PS3] Dynasty Warriors 8 # <ACT> (Koei Tecmo) {2013.02.28} (¥7.560) - 203.224 / NEW <68,23%>

03./00. [PSV] Senran Kagura Shinovi Versus: Otome Shoujotachi no Shoumei # <ACT> (Marvelous AQL) {2013.02.28} (¥6.980) - 94.324 / NEW <93,37%>

07./00. [PSV] Phantasy Star Online 2: Special Package <RPG> (Sega) {2013.02.28} (¥5.229) - 61.227 / NEW <89,39%>

----

21./11. [3DS] Paper Mario: Sticker Star <ADV> (Nintendo) {2012.12.06} (¥4.800)
22./14. [3DS] Tousouchuu: Shijou Saikyou no Hunter-Tachi Kara Nigekire! <ACT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2012.07.05} (¥5.040)
23./05. [PSP] Toaru Majutsu no Kagaku no Ensemble # <ADV> (Bandai Namco Games) {2013.02.21} (¥6.280)
24./16. [WIU] New Super Mario Bros. U <ACT> (Nintendo) {2012.12.08} (¥5.985)
25./15. [3DS] Inazuma Eleven Go 2: Chrono Stone - Neppuu / Raimei <RPG> (Level 5) {2012.12.13} (¥5.500)
26./17. [PS3] Call of Duty: Black Ops II - Dubbed Edition <ACT> (Square Enix) {2012.12.20} (¥7.980)
27./00. [PSV] Ninja Gaiden &#931; 2 Plus <ACT> (Koei Tecmo) {2013.02.28} (¥6.080)
28./19. [NDS] Pokèmon Black 2 / White 2 <RPG> (Pokèmon Co.) {2012.06.23} (¥4.800)
29./22. [PSV] Demon Gaze <RPG> (Kadokawa Games) {2013.01.24} (¥6.090)
30./21. [WIU] Nintendo Land <ETC> (Nintendo) {2012.12.08} (¥4.935)
31./23. [3DS] Super Mario 3D Land # <ACT> (Nintendo) {2011.11.03} (¥4.800)
32./13. [WIU] Tank! Tank! Tank! <ACT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2013.02.21} (¥5.040)
33./00. [PS3] Risen 2: Dark Waters <RPG> (Ubisoft) {2013.02.28} (¥7.329)
34./26. [PS3] World Soccer Winning Eleven 2013 <SPT> (Konami) {2012.10.04} (¥7.980)
35./27. [3DS] Style Savvy: Trendsetters <ETC> (Nintendo) {2012.09.27} (¥4.800)
36./25. [3DS] Puyo Puyo!! Puyo Puyo 20th Anniversary (Special Price) <PZL> (Sega) {2012.12.13} (¥2.940)
37./29. [3DS] Aikatsu! Cinderella Lesson <SLG> (Bandai Namco Games) {2012.11.15} (¥5.040)
38./30. [3DS] Magician's Quest: Magical Town <ETC> (Konami) {2012.12.20} (¥4.980)
39./28. [PSP] Monster Hunter Freedom 3 (PSP the Best) <ACT> (Capcom) {2011.09.22} (¥2.990)
40./31. [WII] Dragon Quest X: Mezameshi Itsutsu no Shuzoku Online # <RPG> (Square Enix) {2012.08.02} (¥6.980)
41./00. [PSP] Stellar Theater Portable # <ADV> (CyberFront) {2013.02.28} (¥6.090)
42./32. [PSP] God Eater: Burst (PSP the Best) <ACT> (Bandai Namco) {2011.09.15} (¥2.800)
43./24. [PS3] Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage 2 # <ACT> (Koei Tecmo) {2012.12.20} (¥8.190)
44./43. [PS3] Call of Duty: Black Ops II - Subtitled Edition <ACT> (Square Enix) {2012.11.22} (¥7.980)
45./37. [PS3] Battlefield 3: Premium Edition <ACT> (Electronic Arts) {2012.12.13} (¥9.240)
46./42. [WII] Mario Kart Wii <RCE> (Nintendo) {2008.04.10} (¥5.800)
47./33. [3DS] Pokèmon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity <RPG> (Pokèmon Co.) {2012.11.23} (¥4.800)
48./36. [PSV] Genkai Totsuki Monster Monpiece # <TBL> (Compile Heart) {2013.01.24} (¥7.140)
49./00. [WII] Super Smash Bros. Brawl <FTG> (Nintendo) {2008.01.31} (¥6.800)
50./45. [PSP] World Soccer Winning Eleven 2013 <SPT> (Konami) {2012.11.01} (¥3.980)

Top 50

3DS - 20
PS3 – 9
PSP - 7
PSV - 6
WII - 4
WIU – 3
NDS - 1

SOFTWARE

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
|System | This Week  | Last Week  | Last Year  |     YTD    |  Last YTD  |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
|  ALL  |  1.276.000 |    836.000 |  1.271.000 |  8.544.000 |  8.730.000 |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[Nirolak]

Right I just went with Japanese publisher upcoming release

Spoiler

Actually i forgot it was western dev'd

Between Konami Digital Entertainment San Mateo (social games), Mercury Steam, Kojima Productions Los Angeles, and PES Productions in London, Konami is investing a surprising amount in Western development.

 

[Zenaku]

Rune Factory 5 was pretty much confirmed as in development. I wouldn't be surprised if Senran Kagura 2 was in the works, since it was hinted at (and Versus has finally released). Not sure if they'd qualify for the list, but it could be late 2013/ealy 2014 for either.

 

[pieatorium]

Between Konami Digital Entertainment San Mateo (social games), Mercury Steam, Kojima Productions Los Angeles, and PES Productions in London, Konami is investing a surprising amount in Western development.

Capcom said they were looking to expand in the west a sometime last year aswell no? Has anyhing come of that yet?

 

[Nirolak]

Capcom said they were looking to expand in the west a sometime last year aswell no? Has anyhing come of that yet?

Well, Capcom Vancouver is pretty big these days, but otherwise they still seem to be going through partnerships like Ninja Theory, Spark Unlimited, and Dontnod.

 

[pieatorium]

Well, Capcom Vancouver is pretty big these days, but otherwise they still seem to be going through partnerships like Ninja Theory, Spark Unlimited, and Dontnod.

Yeah the partnerships are still a thing but I thought they were specifically saying they wanted to expand alot more than their current size and that the west was easier to do this in than Japan. I can't find the quote/article though so maybe I got my wires crossed somewhere.

 

[vareon]

I remember at the E3 2010 3DS reveal they had a Chocobo Racing game listed there. It's probably vaporware.

It's one of those times when the 3DS' future looks bleak and the game just disappeared...

 

[Takao]

capcom probably wanted to buy slant six and ninja theory but then they released their games

 

[Man-is-Obsolete]

Yeah the partnerships are still a thing but I thought they were specifically saying they wanted to expand alot more than their current size and that the west was easier to do this in than Japan. I can't find the quote/article though so maybe I got my wires crossed somewhere.

They got to do something to replace the talent that left, and there is a lot of it outside of Japan.

 

[pieatorium]

I actually thought Vigil would have been a good fit for them, game/experience wise anyway.

 

[Nirolak]

Yeah the partnerships are still a thing but I thought they were specifically saying they wanted to expand alot more than their current size and that the west was easier to do this in than Japan. I can't find the quote/article though so maybe I got my wires crossed somewhere.

I think you might be combining two announcements.

There's this one: http://www.capcom.co.jp/ir/english/data/explanation.html#qa_12_2q

Regarding the allocation of your development resources, how many developers do you have now and what are your plans for the future?

As of September 30, 2012, we had about 1,500 game developers. Regarding our priorities, we will continue to allocate people to content development in the Home Video Game sector while recruiting and training more people to create games in our Mobile Contents and PC Online Game sectors.
Our goal is to increase the number of developers by 1,000 over the next 10 years. We want to further improve the quality of our games by maintaining an internal game development team.

---

If you increase the number of game developers to 2,500, about how much will you invest in development activities?

The purpose of increasing our game developer team is to create a larger percentage of our games internally. Therefore, we believe that there will be no significant change in total development expenditures mainly because we will be shifting outsourced operations to our own workforce.

And this one: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=30590066

&#8220;Capcom must increase sales in the Consumer Online Games Business outside Japan, where the market for these games is larger and there is much more growth potential, in order to maintain growth. Acquisitions and partnerships are one of the important strategies for increasing our market share overseas. We aggressively seek the opportunities of acquisitions and partnerships for the purposes of creating game content with universal market appeal and acquiring technologies and know-how required for our &#8216;Single Content Multiple Usage&#8217; strategy. However, a merger with a large Japanese game or toy manufacturer is not being considered as a serious option since it would not make a significant contribution to growth in our overseas sales. Furthermore, this type of merger also poses the risk of limiting our activities involving the licensing of game content."

Technically they didn't say where they would hire the 1000 developers, but yeah, I don't think it's out of the question that includes some acquisitions in the West to get there.

Edit:

They did say they wanted to lock up partnerships with Ninja Theory and Dontnod though, which may include acquisition: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=507515

I then asked Jones for his thoughts on Capcom&#8217;s drive to collaborate with Western developers and to create a family of worldwide partners, to which he replied, &#8220;There are very few good independent developers, and if you get the chance to lock one or two down and continue to work with them, as a publisher you have to do that.

&#8220;Because firstly you&#8217;ll never have enough internal capacity &#8211; given the expense involved in making games &#8211; to keep your portfolio level where it needs to be. Guys like Ninja Theory and Dontnod who &#8211; in the case of Ninja Theory have a proven track record of delivering quality products more or less on time, and at an expected level of quality &#8211; I mean yeah, you have to keep working with those guys.&#8221;

 

[serplux]

If the 3DS's performance in the West is actually notably effecting the 3DS's library, I feel that would actually be a rather interesting development, since I feel it didn't really crush the output present on the PSP or late-life DS. I could be having a perception problem there though.

I definitely agree that this may be what happened, but I think trying to determine if it actually has is the most interesting part, since it helps show the potential future of handheld support as well as help determine what a specific publisher might do in the future in general.

To be fair, the 3DS does have two of the heaviest hitters in Japanese gaming coming up at some point this year; perhaps they're waiting for the announcement of the release date of MH4 and Pokemon, and then will set their own plans accordingly. It's a bit too early for any of the Japanese companies to be announcing their holiday lineups, and the summer is going to be dominated by Nintendo stuff (Mario & Luigi, Mario Golf, DKCR 3D)/Monster Hunter (although there probably are a few 100k games that haven't been announced yet). Plus, the 3DS in the West has a very good lineup, and the base is going to build a lot with both Animal Crossing and Pokemon coming up this year, along with a steady stream of 100k sellers or more. The 3DS is going to receive a lot of support in its lifetime.

 

[pieatorium]

I think you might be combining two announcements.

Yeah I was starting to think that or that i had maybe mixed in another companies statements heh. thanks for the links.