Hold on. Don’t start sending hate mail to Sega just yet. Let’s hear the man out. Yakuza series top man Toshihiro Nagoshi was at the Otemae University in Japan for a special lecture back in 2011. During that Q&A session a student asked him what he thought about the Call of Duty series. Nagoshi replied, “I like it a lot. It’s very well made.”
After a brief pause, Nagoshi continued:
“Of course, there are a lot of different tendencies in games. I once publicly stated that I hate Grand Theft Auto and got a lot of backlash from the internet. I still hate it. And if I were asked if I think it’s a good game, I would say it’s an excellent game.”
So why does he hate it despite thinking it’s an excellent game? It’s all in what the game promotes. “I simply can’t bring myself to promote the emotion that killing is fun and committing crimes is fun.” Nagoshi said. You might think that it seems a little hypocritical coming from a man who heads a game series about Japanese gangers and has a combat system with large men beating the crap out of each other in the streets using their fists and random objects.
In all fairness, upon closer examination, the body count for the Yakuza series is surprisingly low, considering its subject matter. Generally, when a character dies, it takes place in cinematics as part of the overarching story and indeed, while most of the protagonists are gangsters, they often have a strong moral code and the violence they dish out is in self-defence or to protect something. When the player is in control, the violence and crime is reactive, rather than active.
Nagoshi stated that he understood different creators have their own different preferences and some might share his stance and others might not. “I think that’s a good thing. I’m simply saying this is my opinion. But creating things requires resolve — for better or for worse — and sometimes that can cause misunderstandings. I just hope that you all won’t be swayed if such things happen and continue to pursue what you believe in.”
The lecture took place in 2011, and it’s recently become a hot topic on 2ch, Japan’s largest web forum. Of course, at that time, Nagoshi hadn’t seen GTAV yet, but it’s unlikely his opinion on the free-range anarchy has changed.
Considering how hostess clubs show up all the time in the Yakuza games, he might appreciate the strip club parts though.
【大手前大学】 セガ・名越稔洋氏 特別講演(4) [YouTube]
Comments
8 responses to “What Yakuza’s Producer Hates About GTA”
I’ve always found the Yakuza games to be a different, but all round superior gaming experience than Grand Theft Auto.
Probably one of the biggest disappointments in recent gaming is that the series does not appear to be getting localised any longer.
Nice uninformed dig at the hostess clubs though, classic Kotaku.
The fact we’re pretty much definitely not getting Yakuza 5 is sad, but I’m holding out hope they might have a crack at Ishin. The feudal-era Japan setting might actually do better in the west than the modern one.
Yeah, plus the HD remaster package of 1 & 2. The way Kenzan went makes me pessimistic on Ishin, though it does look great and I’ve been trying to keep up to date on the news just in case it happens to come our way.
Hoping is much easier than learning Japanese in my case. 😛
Considering how hostess clubs show up all the time in the Yakuza games, he might appreciate the strip club parts though.
Probably not. Hostess clubs are a cultural thing that are about more than a quick shag or someone gyrating on a pole near-naked. They’re more subtle and “respectable” and could – arguably – be seen as treating and valuing the women in them better and more respectfully.
Yep! And they are a hell of a blast too. There are two in Melbourne, and while it was an expensive night, the girls (Japanese) spoke english and were a heck of a lot of fun to be around. They arent dumb bimbos
What a complete load of horse sh1t. Ever been around a bunch of drunk, horny Japanese business men? It is anything but subtle and respectable towards women.
You’re honestly defending hostess clubs? Their sole reason to exist to is parasitically feed off the loneliness of Japanese salarymen. They provide the fantasy of a girlfriend for hundreds or thousands of dollars at a time. The girls are a product to be sold to the customer, nothing more. They have quotas and the boss is essentially a pimp. Just because they’re classier and more glamorous doesn’t make it any less a member of the seedy underbelly of Japan. Frankly, at least strip clubs are honest about what they are- somewhere for guys to perv on girls without getting in trouble. Hostess clubs exist to sell a lie.
lol this comming from a guy who looks like a yakuza himself lol
I can’t fathom how people need to be explained the difference between enjoyment and objectivity, though it seems like they need a constant reminder.