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Why Robin Makes Batman Better Game Republic, (in)famous for its work on Genji and Folklore, as well as its founder Yoshiki Okamoto, was working on a Tom and Jerry game tie-in with an upcoming movie, according to a new interview.
Believe it or not, Genji developers Game Republic made a game for Microsoft that it thought was worse than Every Party, the team’s lame duck party game that never made it out of Japan. Game Republic president and former Capcom designer Yoshiki Okamoto tells 1UP that the Folklore devs were nine months into a project that Microsoft just wasn’t interested in.
Okamoto theorises that Microsoft had simply given up on the Japanese market. After showing their follow up to Every Party to Microsoft, the publisher passed. But development continued at Game Republic, hoping that the company would come around. Okamoto calls the gamble “a major mistake for us and a bad move for our company early on”.
What we’re interested in knowing is how this mystery title could be any more unappealing that both Genji games? A question for the ages, we suppose.
Gloom and doom time. Well, for Japanese game developers. While the country’s game makers seems to be down on themselves of late, it’s hard to separate that from stereotypical Japanese humility and plain old self-realisation. Here’s Genji developer Game Republic head and former Capcom producer Yoshiki Okamoto talking about whether Japan can catch up with the West:
It’s almost too late. During the Famicom (NES) era, Japanese video games comprised 70 percent of all video games. And currently, it’s like 15 or 20 percent, isn’t it? Now, Western games are more advanced. For games like GTAIV, those guys are spending something like 5 or 10 years to make them. Even if we thought about catching up with them now, they’d still be making progress. But, not necessarily giving up, it’s just not possible to catch up in a single lifetime.
Man, that Okamoto, talk about a downer. Chin up, Japan, chin up.
「日本はもうゲーム先進国ではない」 [IT Media via 痛いニュース][Pic]
Horror game fans have reasons to be moderately excited, as the man dubbed the pioneer of the survival horror game genre, Yoshiki Okamoto, has signed on with Brash Entertainment to create a game based on a popular Hollywood film. Why only moderately excited? There’s no word yet on what movie the game will be based on, it won’t be released until 2010, and there isn’t even any confirmation that it will be another horror game. Okamoto spent 20 years at Capcom, working on titles such as Resident Evil and Street Fighter II, and Game Republic, his studio which will be working on the mysterious game, has most recently published Folklore for PS3. Not really a lot of information to go on yet, but the potential for something fun is present (depending on what “blockbuster title” they choose, of course).
Resident Evil Pioneer Okamoto Partners with Brash on Movie-Based Game [Game Daily Biz]
Movie video game producers Brash Entertainment (Jumper: Griffin’s Story, Alvin and the Chipmunks) has signed a deal with Japanese developer Game Republic (Genji series, Folklore) to work together on a game based on a “popular Hollywood film”. While we’ve no idea what movie the game is to be based on, famed Game Republic CEO Yoshiki Okamoto hints at a fantasy theme. “In collaborating with Brash, we were introduced to a very compelling fictional world and given the freedom to expand it through the game. We are working directly with the creative talent from the film, and feel that the close collaboration will result in an amazing game play experience that immerses the player in an incredible fantasy world.”
Incredible fantasy world with a 2010 release? Warner Bros. 2010 remake of Clash of the Titans would certainly fit the bill, with the original film allowing it the “popular Hollywood” film label, and Brash does have an agreement with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. Just my speculation mind you. We’ll just have to wait and see!
