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[SLoWMoTIoN]

It's simple. Japanese games focus on gameplay and not on telling a story to make a political statement like most western releases.

 

[hariseldon]

How so? I would say upcoming Astral Chain's combat system to control two characters to pull of combo is more unique than anything western developers done with their combat system.

Astral Chain really makes me want to buy a Switch. I have never owned a console and have been gaming since the late 80s.

 

[Starlight Lotice]

Japanese games have longevity as they want you to value your games.

Western games were diverse but I feel they got bit by the Hollywood Bug and are now making their games more style over substance.

 

[shaddam]

I like catgirls

 

[petran79]

Both have their ups and downs but I feel Fortnite and Minecraft have done far more damage than any Japanese game

 

[Senhua]

Japanese video games usually created by entertainer (Kamiya-san tweet) while western by artist (Druckman comment)

 

[SLoWMoTIoN]

Japanese video games usually created by entertainer (Kamiya-san tweet) while western by artist (Druckman comment)

What do you mean by that Lucy from Elfen Lied?

 

[Outrunner]

Your point being?

 

[SLoWMoTIoN]

Your point being?

There are politics in plenty of japanese games. Some even push said politics. Have you heard of a series called Metal Gear?

 

[brap]

There are politics in plenty of japanese games. Some even push said politics. Have you heard of a series called Metal Gear?

Metal... GEAR?

 

[Outrunner]

There are politics in plenty of japanese games. Some even push said politics. Have you heard of a series called Metal Gear?

There is a difference between complementing a good Gameplay with a plot with fictional politics, and making a game that entirely revolves about making a political statement about whatever it is that the west is Reeeing about.

Also you reminded me of this:

 

[HaveButOneLife]

imo on average its the opposite. most japanese games that release over there look like last gen games. hell some look like ps2 games

their top notch japanese games are something else tho. from software games especially. infact its mostly just from software nowdays. it used to be a lot better for japan tho in PS1/PS2
era.

nintendo is hard to gauge because they work collectively to make games in many regions. its mostly japan but they do have staff from all over

i think your statement is definitely 100% accurate for games upto the ps3 generation. its been a bit downhill for them since.

Even calling them last gen is an exaggeration.

 

[Fuz]

What western games do better, difinitely: female voices

 

[sublimit]

Personally what attracts me more in Japanese games is that they never take themselves too seriously even when the overall stories have a serious tone. They will always have bizarre and funny moments unlike 99.9% of Western games who are so serious and overdramatic. Even when there is humor it feels forced and like it's there because it was just another box to tick.
In general due to keeping budgets fairly low they take more chances than Western games both in terms of gameplay as well as presentation.
Gameplay is also far more solid because (unlike Western developers) Japanese developers begin from concept based on gameplay rather than stories or settings. It's the gameplay that will define the story and setting not the other way around and by doing so their gameplay is far more solid and interesting.

Art-wise i also think Japanese are far more creative and have far better aesthetics. Western artists tend to either rely too much on photorealism and keeping the art "grounded" or they go the complete other way and become too artsy and pretendious for my taste (a lot of Western indies fit into this category.)

 

[SLoWMoTIoN]

There is a difference between complementing a good Gameplay with a plot with fictional politics, and making a game that entirely revolves about making a political statement about whatever it is that the west is Reeeing about.

Also you reminded me of this:

SMT deals with extreme classism and so does plenty of other JRPGs. To say Japanese games don't make political statements is innacurate.

 

[SLoWMoTIoN]

Metal... GEAR?

Metal Gear (video game) - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[Paasei]

Japanese are better in not caring about a political agenda / message. They just want to create games that are made for fun and nothing else. And therefore do not take themselves too seriously.
Western games experiment more with different art/graphic styles, instead of 9/10 times the typical manga look or the 500012312451 installment of any franchise i.e. Mario(although they are fun, don't get me wrong please).

 

[EightBit Man]

SMT deals with extreme classism and so does plenty of other JRPGs. To say Japanese games don't make political statements is innacurate.

I always saw the Shin Megami Tensei games as titles dealing with ethics, philosophy, and the question of religion, and it's spin-off Persona series with psychology and the question of individual freedom.

 

[Outrunner]

SMT deals with extreme classism and so does plenty of other JRPGs. To say Japanese games don't make political statements is innacurate.

Or maybe that's your interpretation of SMT, but go ahead. Show me a japanese equivalent of this debacle:

 

[Alexios]

Way better melee combat systems generally. Well, combat systems in general, outside the finest examples of western tactical/turn based/strategy type classics (which the rest of Western devs don't ever reach the heights of either) and of course F/TPS (which Japanese devs don't make much of, but those who do can get it right still, from later Resident Evil games to Splatoon for two radically different examples that focus on shooting, so it's not a matter of being unable to make them or anything). Better platforming and overall character controls too, in Western games you often have the same old standard F/TPS type controls for every game, which offers nice immediate feedback but lacks some character presence no matter how many context animations and physics interactions are added on top of the game, characters like Mario or Link feel much more grounded to their worlds and behave in physically fun ways from their oldest to their newest iterations. On the other hand I guess the average JRPG does have simple character movement so maybe this goes both ways but that's not their focus. This helps all games feel good, from Dark Souls to Super Mario.

Edit: also anything arcade they do better, from racing to lightgun games to shooters to beat em ups to fighting games to whatever else, obviously!

 

[Hudo]

There is a difference between complementing a good Gameplay with a plot with fictional politics, and making a game that entirely revolves about making a political statement about whatever it is that the west is Reeeing about.

Also you reminded me of this:

You know, I kinda start to understand why Kamiya just blocks everyone.

 

[Helios]

Is this the monthly Japanese circle jerk thread?

 

[Lionel Richie]

Japanese games are just better at everything. Western games do feature nicer graphics and there are some high points this generation that reach the level of based nipponic games (The Witcher 3, The Talos Principle and Inside immediately come to mind).

 

[Mr Nash]

I like that Japanese games aren't afraid to be games with big numbers flashing on screen, shouty announcers, bright peppy music with a catchy melody, etc. Western games worry about immersion too much. Know what immerses me in an experience? Having fun. Japanese games feel like they embrace that far more. Western games have an overly serious tone much of the time, which can be a bit off putting.

 

[Psajdak]

Is this the monthly Japanese circle jerk thread?

No, I just wanted to make a thread that Danjin44 will 100% post in.

 

[Stefan.North]

Japanese games tend to be over the top often. At least older ones. And that is good.

Before 6th gen they were also 'twich-ier', and that is also good.

 

[sublimit]

Japanese games are just better at everything. Western games do feature nicer graphics and there are some high points this generation that reach the level of based nipponic games (The Witcher 3, The Talos Principle and Inside immediately come to mind).

The Witcher 3 was an anomaly in the Western game development scene. If other Western companies like EA,Activision,Bethesda,Ubisoft and others knew what CDPR was doing they would have advised them not to do it. It shouldn't have existed and i think not even CDPR will be able to ever recreate what they have achieved with TW3 as Cyberpunk will soon prove this.

 

[NahaNago]

I'd say that the west are better at creating complete game worlds. Japan tends to create interesting worlds but skip how the fantasy or scifi interacts with daily life. Final Fantasy tries to get past it but still fails .

 

[Myths]

^ Yeah.There’s a lot missing you wish they’d have gone more into specifics about the world. I don’t always buy into “it’s fantasy or mythology so less details on its impact.”

I think western games offer more immersion and first person experiences while Japanese seem to prefer third person games. Japanese game in general feel better to play.

I think western games push genres forward and have been more innovative while Japanese games are more about refinement.

This is interesting as I once read a very in-depth article discussing cultural difference, specifically individualism vs collectivism. It sums up the design philosophy pretty accurately.

 

[Senhua]

What do you mean by that Lucy from Elfen Lied?

 

[Amael901]

Western Gaming

- broken on day of release
- content being cut to be sold as DLC
- multiple patches that still don't fix all problems
- micro-transactions
- focusing on 'shiny' at the expense of a consistent frame rate
- online play modes still not working properly weeks after release
- corrupted save game files
- double digit GB patches
- downgraded graphics relative to prior 'reveal' at E3
- 30fps racing games
- annual updates
- liberal use of cut-scenes and QTEs
- bland military open world games
- mandatory subscription fees to access online play
-Friends never want to talk about anything that isn't politics/Social Justice
-an upcoming games only hype is wether characters are straight or gay
-people complaining about no dub in a japanese game



Japanese

-focus on a single mechanic that's refined as much as the dev can manage
-mastery of the core mechanic is demanded because the game pulls no punches, it doesn't give a shit if you complete it or not
-by design they're often competitive if not directly against other players against yourself so you can never truly be "done" with a game

 

[EightBit Man]

I enjoy both, and was never really concerned where a game comes from.

My experience has been a bit of a pendulum. In the 90s for example, I didn't care either; a good game was a good game. Be it a Earthworm Jim, Sonic the Hedgehog, Secret of Mana, DOOM, Final Fantasy VII, etc.

I think I became very much aware of games' origins thanks to the advent widespread nature of the internet. And maybe too much aware. There have been periods when I was completely negating the merits of "the other". It's more of a thing you're into at the moment I guess.

Nowadays I try to reconcile as much as possible, though I shall always have a soft spot for Japanese games because those are the ones I grew up with when I was very young.

 

[SLoWMoTIoN]

Or maybe that's your interpretation of SMT, but go ahead. Show me a japanese equivalent of this debacle:

I think you we are saying different things altogether at this point. The thread title is "what do japanese games do better and vice versa" but you are merely saying they have no politics because western games (some) carry social justice warrior revisions such as female soldiers? If you meant modern western games do wacky social politics trash better I agree with you.

I always saw the Shin Megami Tensei games as titles dealing with ethics, philosophy, and the question of religion, and it's spin-off Persona series with psychology and the question of individual freedom.

It depends on which one. 2 and 4 deal with classism. For the most part religion is more of an idea given life that wipes off most of humanity because devilman inspiration. Also nihilism. Strange Journey's was essentially earth being pissed off at humans ffs. Persona hasn't really focused on psychology after 3 either and has actually become extremely cartoonish.

 

[Lionel Richie]

The Witcher 3 was an anomaly in the Western game development scene. If other Western companies like EA,Activision,Bethesda,Ubisoft and others knew what CDPR was doing they would have advised them not to do it. It shouldn't have existed and i think not even CDPR will be able to ever recreate what they have achieved with TW3 as Cyberpunk will soon prove this.

Yeah it definitely feels like a singular event. Ubisoft actually tried to copy a lot of it in Odyssey and it just wasn't there. The Witcher is a really hard series to replicate, especially the third one because the sheer amount of meaningful content is just bonkers. But I'm actually optimistic on Cyberpunk, I believe they will deliver.

 

[Psajdak]

Now I regret playing Okami 10 years ago, seeing that that Hideki Kamiya guy is human garbage.

 

[Outrunner]

Now I regret playing Okami 10 years ago, seeing that that Hideki Kamiya guy is human garbage.

He really isn't.

 

[Psajdak]

He really isn't.

But, but he calls people insects...

Isn't that something only someone who is filth to end all the filths would say?

 

[EightBit Man]

What's wrong with insects? (he probably don't like them)

That man has pretty much set up impenetrable walls on social media, as people asked him the same generic questions over and over and over again. On the other hand, if I were a person like him, I would just leave it behind. I don't use social media, but could understand the position he's in.

 

[joe_zazen]

Now I regret playing Okami 10 years ago, seeing that that Hideki Kamiya guy is human garbage.

You should start a Twitter campaign to get him fired. You should then start a second one to get yourself fired given the support you have shown this human garbage by playing his games.

 

[joe_zazen]

What's wrong with insects? (he probably don't like them)

That man has pretty much set up impenetrable walls on social media, as people asked him the same generic questions over and over and over again. On the other hand, if I were a person like him, I would just leave it behind. I don't use social media, but could understand the position he's in.

He has a bit of samurai in him. He wont surrender.

 

[BlueAlpaca]

The Japanese try to make games as opposed to b-movies.

I wonder what western developers think of their games vs. Japan's? You'd think they'd at least try to learn...

 

[Danjin44]

The Japanese try to make games as opposed to b-movies.

I wonder what western developers think of their games vs. Japan's? You'd think they'd at least try to learn...

In recent western games I feel like western developers much more concern about giving us "mature" and "immersive" experience. I mean look at RDR2, R* spend crazy amount of man power resource to make their world as detailed as possible with very detailed animation and with very mature and movie like story but they entirely forgot about they are making video game, they didn't think how the control would feel when you actually playing the game or the gun play or having nice mission structure. No, none of that because their number one goal was giving us mature and immersive experience.

This just my opinion but I feel like western developers think for most part Japanese games are "immature" because their games much more about having fun more than telling us mature story.

 

[#Phonepunk#]

better overall. as a kid i owned an Atari 7800. i had E.T. for the 2600 cos it was backwards compatible.

then i played Super Mario Bros. it blew my mind. it was not just better, it was on another dimension, the smooth scrolling, the technical mastery of it all. plus the bizarre juxtaposition of western tropes. Japanese media seemed to excel at mashing together various bits of iconic western culture in the most amazing of ways.

this is one reason they excel so much at using Christian imagery. so many Japanese games are about witches, and fighting demons, and the kabbalah, and the tree of life, and all this esoteric western stuff. Bayonetta's opening cutscene has her in a nun's habit reading some holy text. classical spirits and demons are used all over videogames and dark fantasy. stuff that western game companies aren't really all about because in the west, Christian imagery is a no-go, it is too political, etc. Japanese culture brings an outsider perspective, it is more playful, it can be sexy, yet still respectful of the lore. it is pretty dope.

tbh i feel this about a lot of Japanese stuff. music is quite similar, i got into Shibuya-Kei, heavily influenced by 60s London mod style, French chanson/Serge Gainsbourg, tropicalia, all these international, romantic western influences. it is no coincidence that the US and Japan have a strange interdependent relationship over the past century, the US basically resetting Japanese culture via violent destruction, and Japan rising to become a technological and cultural superpower in it's wake, the two of them reconciling through techno capitalism. i grew up in the 80s so there was more Japanaphobia around the games, "invasion from the East", fearmongering towards Nintendo, etc. the Atari magazine even used racist buckhtoothed comics to brainwash kids against Japanese games. disturbing last vestiges of Cold War propaganda...

currently, i feel the same as i did as a kid playing Super Mario. only now it's Katamari Damacy or Bloodborne or Shadow of the Colossus or something. the very level of high quality stuff is too cool to ignore. it makes the more pedestrian, less fantasy focused western fare tame by comparison IMO.

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

That's... not real, is it? I would be that much more amped to play the game if girls swear at you. Not that I get off on that or anything...

 

[SLoWMoTIoN]

That's... not real, is it? I would be that much more amped to play the game if girls swear at you.

No, it was more of a joke that you'd get once you played the game.

Not that I get off on that or anything...

I don't have a list of videogames were girls curse at you sorry.

 

[Isa]

I agree with much of what has been said. I've been back and forth through the years in what "style" I tend to genuinely prefer, as in the early 80's to the 90's I adored the NES and Genesis with the later being hugely appealing stylistically. That same epoch also shared some amazing style with am emphasis on offensive imagery and content in western games as well. Roadrash, Need for Speed, Earthworm Jim etc. I loved much of the humour and soul put into western titles like Space Quest VI, MechWarrior 2, Command and Conquer. Towards the late 90's into the noughties I went back to consoles with PlayStation, and was in love with Jrpgs and survival horror titles. The Dreamcast was also a huge fave with SO many influential features and unique games which were typically all fun to play.

I swung back to Xbox and pc in the early 00's thanks to some genuinely compelling worlds with the likes of Oddworld, KotoR, Jade Empire, Morrowind, Enclave. Also the west was doing platformers better in my opinion with Jak and Daxter/ Ratchet and Clank. At that point Mario had lost its appeal to me. But after the deluge of military shooter copycats and most western rpgs just being buggy uninspired messes I went back to Japanese developed titles and had a blast. I guess what I'm trying to say is that for me personally its been a long journey with each having their own merits, but I find that for such a small country they still have such a large impact on modern entertainment, whereas even when compared with the far larger "western" label, the latter is generally lacking for me.

I'll always be attracted to bright art styles and unique looking worlds and concepts which is just better from Japan imho. The fact that I get excited at whatever style of game is revealed from there though, as opposed to western titles is saddening. I feel the west has lost its creativity and edge which has me wondering if it will ever truly get that talent and freedom back. Overall Japanese titles have left a far longer lasting impression on me, with characters, stories, music, and lines that I've not forgotten over decades. As an added bonus I still get some quality character designs emphasizing beauty and sex appeal which is greatly appreciated. My most anticipated titles are mostly Japanese games as well, with only Outer Worlds and Cyberpunk standing out in my mind as must plays.

 

[Belmonte]

The Japanese try to make games as opposed to b-movies.

I wonder what western developers think of their games vs. Japan's? You'd think they'd at least try to learn...

Not sure about AAA devs but western indie developers must love japanese games also since the majority of them seems to be much more influenced by Japan than the west.

 

[KiteGr]

The Japanese games focus more on gameplay, while western devs focus on realism and making their games more like movies.

Western Rpg makers mostly focus on allowing you to to have freedom over your story, when Japanese Rpg makers mostly focus on more linear longer adventures.

Western games seem more politically charged, trying to push stuff "S.I.W.s" (strong independent women) wherever they can. Japanese game devs don't seem to have that microbe yet, focussing on making the games fun from most possible aspects. However they seem to often forget there exist the other sex in their audience, they rarely offer any fanservice for them and they assume you've chosen a female Main Character because you want to see her ass or something.

Finally, the majory of Japanese games don't seem to nicle and dime their audience with microtransactions.

Speaking of Minorities...

- japanese : better fighting games.
- western : better sports games.

Currently both suck from over-monetization!

 

[SLoWMoTIoN]

Currently both suck from over-monetization!

Nah. The new YS' gameplay did look pretty bad though. Which is weird since Dana played just fine.

 

[Otterz4Life]

The Japanese try to make games as opposed to b-movies.

I wonder what western developers think of their games vs. Japan's? You'd think they'd at least try to learn...

Kojima says hello...