New Yakuza

[inthesky]

Why would they? Japan has moved towards digital mobile gaming in a massive way especially in the last five years even Sega, that's where everyone is making their money now. Its cheap to make and the returns are enourmous. The only traditional outlet they are comitted to is the nintendo handheld systems and even that may not last long. That's the reality of Japan and asia at the moment. Most of the consumers are playing mobile games now and not getting systems in their droves. If it continues which it should since this was predicted a while back it then remains to be seen if the japan companies can adapt if they want to continue making console titles.

Oh no, I have a good idea of what the reality is. It is a disaster. It's not something console titles can adapt to. Certainly not without major changes or casualties - franchises made dormant, structural changes like DLC or free to play integration, relegation of developers to mobile (hello Itagaki), and we already have these and still the consumer landscape isn't good. Apparently this past week's sales in Japan were noticeably bleak.

In any case, something's got to convince more of the gaming populace in Japan to pick up a next gen console if we're worried about console gaming, and that's not happening without more games. And then of course there is little reason, at least on the surface, to make that departure if you're a Japanese third party pub/dev and make low-risk high-reward mobile games. So, barring some radical realignment of tastes in the West (appreciation of Japanese games increases) and Japan (appreciation of console gaming increases, hey why not, apparently the guy working on Mana games wants to make a console Mana game, which takes major guts) or some structural change in localization practices there isn't anything to adapt to, I don't think.

Its Japan - that place is now Handheld central . Shame SEGA Japan haven't woken up the fact that its West and America when the main consoles sales are and you need Multi Platform games that are made with the west in mind . One day SEGA Japan may get it , but it may take until Yakuza 10 for that

You actually bring up an interesting thing I hadn't thought about - the irony in the West, namely America, purchasing so many consoles but being unable to put forth the requisite demand for the console games Japan is making. But that is no mystery.

You can always hold out hope against hope - against all odds the Tales franchise came back from dormancy in the West and now it regularly gets Limited Editions in the West and lots of general promotion. But this is bigger than one franchise, and I can't tell you what in the world would help the consumer division. Stop with the failed risks, sure, but that's a lot easier said than done.

The question of multiplat though is not something I'm sure is essential. For one - multiplat more often than not means PS4 and Xbox One, barring any seismic shift in Nintendo's third party relations and image, and even then we have to account for the concept of developing a game on three systems, which is costly and each has different infrastructure and blah blah blah.

[Team Andromeda]

Nintendo's third party relations and image, and even then we have to account for the concept of developing a game on three systems, which is costly and each has different infrastructure and blah blah blah.

The Wii U is dead format for 3rd parties and only good for Nintendo . The XBox and PS4 share much the same spec for CPU much the GPU (just differnce on shaders ect) and it isn't that much for a effort to get code running on both platforms and nowhere near the trouble of getting code to run on both the PS3 and 360 .


Not every game needs to be multi , but all the major Platform corps have their major IP and their big budget AAA games multi platform and with made with America in mind . Its the only way you can get the big sales and make the big money . SEGA Japan needs to wake up to this or it will lose out big time for another generation sadly

[ROJM]

Oh no, I have a good idea of what the reality is. It is a disaster. It's not something console titles can adapt to. Certainly not without major changes or casualties - franchises made dormant, structural changes like DLC or free to play integration, relegation of developers to mobile (hello Itagaki), and we already have these and still the consumer landscape isn't good. Apparently this past week's sales in Japan were noticeably bleak.

In any case, something's got to convince more of the gaming populace in Japan to pick up a next gen console if we're worried about console gaming, and that's not happening without more games. And then of course there is little reason, at least on the surface, to make that departure if you're a Japanese third party pub/dev and make low-risk high-reward mobile games. So, barring some radical realignment of tastes in the West (appreciation of Japanese games increases) and Japan (appreciation of console gaming increases, hey why not, apparently the guy working on Mana games wants to make a console Mana game, which takes major guts) or some structural change in localization practices there isn't anything to adapt to, I don't think.

Console hardware sales and games on them has shrunk over a decade now in Japan while the mobile market has gotten bigger down there and seen tremendous growth. Bigger than the handheld market. And that includes the rest of asia as well. If the big companies want to adapt than they will most likely have to start ignoring the Japanese market altogether and re shift to the west again if the console sales grow bigger and the japan console sales grow weaker... but i doubt that will even happen.

[Mariano]

Never said he didn't but he was treated poorly at Sega towards the end according to some people. So it makes no difference if he had put a PR spin on it. It ammounts to the same thing. Nice Sega... Sega not even a shadow of their former glory where all the legends of sega are now gone and their subsidaries are nothing but a glorified PC COMPANY or "bad" Sega where we had games like SHENMUE,SONIC JSR and countless others bursting out of the seams and being released in the west as well.

Oh no i didnt said he wasnt treated poorly by them XD, in fact i dont know what happend between them if somethig did, but you get me wrong i wasnt comparing the SEGA from the 90 and from today, if that is the case i prefer the SEGA from the 90 just like you . I was just saying that the SEGA from today is much better with the yakuza franchise than without it, like it is they key franchise is japan at least.

[ROJM]

Oh no i didnt said he wasnt treated poorly by them XD, in fact i dont know what happend between them if somethig did, but you get me wrong i wasnt comparing the SEGA from the 90 and from today, if that is the case i prefer the SEGA from the 90 just like you . I was just saying that the SEGA from today is much better with the yakuza franchise than without it, like it is they key franchise is japan at least.

I know what you were saying but i'm making an obvious fact. Sega with Yakuza as a company really isn't comparable to the Sega in the early noughties before the DC died. So whether Suzuki is being polite it just isn't true that its nice anymore.
As for YAKUZA, while it is a key game in japan its not the game they soley rely on anymore. PSO 2, that vocaloid game and several digital social games are bringing in the big money these days. ISHIN really didn't do well for a YAKUZA title. 

[Mariano]

I know what you were saying but i'm making an obvious fact. Sega with Yakuza as a company really isn't comparable to the Sega in the early noughties before the DC died. So whether Suzuki is being polite it just isn't true that its nice anymore.
As for YAKUZA, while it is a key game in japan its not the game they soley rely on anymore. PSO 2, that vocaloid game and several digital social games are bringing in the big money these days. ISHIN really didn't do well for a YAKUZA title.

Again, i am not comparing the SEGA from the 90 and the SEGA from tody with yakuza i agree with you obvious fact, and about Yu suzuki i was just mentioning a phrase he said, i was not trying to said anything between lines if you think that.
About the yakuza franchise in japan i think is still profitable for them because they will do another game it semms, but you already know that, i am not sure if hatsune miku sells more for them than yakuza or if it is a more profitable game, maybe Aki could help us with that. In the end we are agree man, we dont need to expand this topic.

[Ben]

Yakuza may be profitable but it's a declining franchise with a gradually shrinking fanbase.

With the end of releasing the games in the West, it's one of many indicators that Sega has given up on growing this franchise at all and are pretty much just content to run it into the ground until the well dries up.

Looking at Aki's link for how Nagoshi and his producer describe the next Yakuza game;

The pair also say bustling urban environments will be a thing, and that they hope to make a game that their target male audience can enjoy. They’re currently holding auditions for men to portray some of the game’s city dwellers.
Read more at http://gematsu.com/2014/07/next-yakuza-game-ps4-ps3#8AXUcsul5R4Jh3Q8.99

lol not exactly breaking new ground.

[ROJM]

Again, i am not comparing the SEGA from the 90 and the SEGA from tody with yakuza i agree with you obvious fact, and about Yu suzuki i was just mentioning a phrase he said, i was not trying to said anything between lines if you think that.

leave it as that then.

About the yakuza franchise in japan i think is still profitable for them because they will do another game it semms, but you already know that, i am not sure if hatsune miku sells more for them than yakuza or if it is a more profitable game, maybe Aki could help us with that. In the end we are agree man, we dont need to expand this topic.

Miku sells more. Easily.
YAKUZA is a franchise in Japan but its getting stale. Its hard to tell because the spin offs don't make the money as much as the main series does. And it appears that the wider fan base doesn't want to play the spin offs they want the main game/concept of the series. YAKUZA is a key title for Sony because the third title help shift PS3's in Japan. So unless the sixth one fails to do a similar feat that's when people can say that its fanbase is shirking. Until that happens no one can say based on the sales of a spin off game that not many were going to get anyway.

[Aki-at]

Thanks, Aki, knowing that does make me feel a lot better. :D

There's a ridiculous amount of over the top moments in Yakuza 5. It's a game you should definitely try and probably one of SEGA's best games last generation, well the simple virtue of having Virtua Fighter 2 seals that deal, but yeah, buy it when you can brother!

[inthesky]

Yakuza may be profitable but it's a declining franchise with a gradually shrinking fanbase.

With the end of releasing the games in the West, it's one of many indicators that Sega has given up on growing this franchise at all and are pretty much just content to run it into the ground until the well dries up.

Looking at Aki's link for how Nagoshi and his producer describe the next Yakuza game;

lol not exactly breaking new ground.

I sort of agree; I don't imagine they've had previous difficulty with that demographic. But I've seen this comment translated elsewhere as "allow male gamers to more fully enjoy this game" so, there's that.

Then of course, the revelation as to what exactly he's talking about.

[Aki-at]

They're going for male auditions just like they have auditions for women.

[Ben]

I'm not referring to that bit about the auditions (honestly I wasn't even aware that it was even controversial until now) but more the bit when Nagoshi's asked to talk up the next Yakuza and declares it to be about "bustling urban environments" and "for males." Which to me is sort of like if Square-Enix were asked what fans should look forward to about the next Final Fantasy game and they said that it would "have cutscenes."

To me it just reeks of treading old ground and lacking inspiration. I'd have loved to have played Yakuza 5, sadly Sega didn't see it that way. I don't know if it's less of a retread of Yakuza 3 than Yakuza 4 was; I hope so. My point is though that I don't see how anyone involved in the making of the Yakuza series these days is inspired to continued; their efforts to branch the series out have all done far worse, and so they're pretty much stuck just releasing the same game every year to the same (shrinking) audience.

[Aki-at]

My point is though that I don't see how anyone involved in the making of the Yakuza series these days is inspired to continued; their efforts to branch the series out have all done far worse, and so they're pretty much stuck just releasing the same game every year to the same (shrinking) audience.

- They are all getting paid.
- They are, I imagine, doing their dream job of making video games.
- They are working on one of the few remaining third party Japanese console games.
- They are working on what is considered a prestigious series in their native country.
- They are commercially and critically successful in their homeland.
- They have a legion of 500,000+ fans that turn up for each mainline installment.

I'm sure there are more reasons, you might as well argue how could From Software motivate themselves to develop countless Armoured Core and dark fantasy titles, what a drag it must be for them doing what they like to do. Not everyone is looking to develop the next Grand Theft Auto or Child of Eden.

Though I don't quite see the merits in this discussion, there is still a large contingent that enjoy the Yakuza games, like there are those who enjoy the Persona games or Harvest Moon games or Miku games and their respective developers/producers will continue to make games geared to those demographs as long as budgets allow it. Not everyone is looking for the next NiGHTS or Uncharted to play.

[pirovash88]

To be honest, the last yakuza I played was 3 and I didn't finish it cause I thought it was boring.. Not sure if I missed anything with 4.

[Ben]

- They are all getting paid.
- They are, I imagine, doing their dream job of making video games.

I know you're not being entirely serious here, but you also get paid picking fruit off of trees, lol.

And their dream job of making video games can also apply to shovelware like Ninjabread or Superman 64.

Anyway I'm assuming that most game developers are creatives who want to stretch their wings a little. Maybe I'm wrong. I'd think that working on the same thing every year (no matter what thing) would get tiring. Not even just being specifically about Yakuza.