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Capcom: Western Developers Focus On Visuals, While Japan Focuses On Gameplay

Capcom director Hideaki Itsuno believes that compared to Western video game developers, Japanese developers have different priorities. Itsuno claims that Western developers start with a game’s visuals, and then work on building its gameplay. According to Itsuno, Capcom Japan gradually builds a game’s visuals but after solidifying its gameplay.

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Rainstorm815027d ago

Really Capcom said this?? Im in Disbelief....Whats so unique about RE6 gameplay? If anything it piggy backs on the "western developers' focus" of graphics over gameplay

Capcom hasnt been a gameplay focused company since the PS2/Xbox/GC generation..

Kin23g5027d ago

Exactly .. look who's talking!

Yi-Long5026d ago

...they focus on GREED!

Letros5026d ago (Edited 5026d ago )

@Yi-Long

Yes I agree, SSF4 and SFxT both have about $50 in DLC on Steam...

AsheXII5027d ago (Edited 5027d ago )

Capcom is not just Resident Evil 6. RE revelations, Okamiden, Dragon's Dogma and Ghost trick are some of the best games of this generation.

Rainstorm815027d ago (Edited 5027d ago )

i like Dragons Dogma but it seems like an attempt to replicate the success of games like Dragons Age and Elder Scrolls.....

grailly5027d ago

thank you for making sense :)
people just like hating on capcom, but they do some great stuff to.

CandyCaptain5026d ago (Edited 5026d ago )

Raiinstorm81, if you think Dragon's Dogma is trying to replicate Elder Scrolls, then you are crazy. Dragon's Dogma I would describe as a cross between Shadow of Colossus, Demon Souls/Dark Souls, and their own IP Monster Hunter. All brought together with rpg elements. The gameplay blows away anything in from the base version of Skyrim. Dragon Age isn't even comparable to Dragon's Dogma, so I don't know why you brought that up. About the only thing the games have in common is that they all have dragons in them.

As for everyone else, I thought Resident Evil 4 acted as a catalyst for how we play many of the games we have today, with various burrowed elements from it that were refined further. Granted Resident Evil hasn't evolved since then, and is now worse then other major IP's.

Look at the past and you would know what he says is at least partially true, Maybe not for capcom now. But before it was true, Devil May Cry, Megaman, Mario, DDR, just a ton of of games. Yeah it should be known that japan puts gameplay first. Demon/Dark Souls is constantly praised as being hard but fair, with extremely tight controls. You don't see that in a game like Skyrim, where in skyrim that hammer swing or sword swing can miss you by 10 feet and it still somehow hits you. If that happened in Dark Souls, no one would be able to beat it, and everyone would hate it.

Though it's important to note not all western games are just graphics, and not all Japanese games are gameplay focused, it sill to say that. A lot of western games have great gameplay, what imdialty comes to mind, are racing games like Forza, and sports games like Fifa and NBA 2k. Then you have the developers that can have their cake and eat it to, like Epic games with their Gears series and UT games, Naughty Dog, Bungie, Insomniac, Sucker Punch, 343 Industries(Halo 4 looks amazing so far from what we have seen), and Bioware. Japan has this too, with the Legend of Zelda series, Final Fantasy series, the Tales series, among others.

Yes what the guy said is essentially wrong. The real determining factor is what the goal of the developers behind the game is, and depending on what they are focused on doing will determine how the game turns out. Which is one of the reasons behind licensing an engine like unreal or crytek's. So a developer can focus on what's important(Gameplay, and story).

InTheLab5026d ago

@Raiinstorm81

I've seen people say that about Dogma plenty of times and it's wrong every time I see it. Dragon's Dogma's influence comes from a manga called Berserk (also a very good anime). The Elder Scrolls did not invent fantasy and let's face it, no one wants to mimic anything Bioware these days.

Rainstorm815026d ago

@ In the Lab

I love the Sword of the Berserk games from Dreamcast and PS2 and the anime is bad ass

@candy

I that capcom was into gameplay over graphics but not this generation, their great games are few are far between, which makes it beyond ridiculous for anyone at capcom to make this statement.....Unless they are still living in the past

JAMurida5026d ago

@ Ashe

Thank you for saying exactly what I was about to just say. Bubble ^

MASTER_RAIDEN5026d ago

what Raiinstorm81 said!
also, lets not forget that okami itself is quoted as being "a poor mans zelda"
and again, RE revelations is irrelevant because thats definitely a game that takes a "western approach".

ALL IN ALL i think Japanese developers feel the need to talk out of their asses because they feel insecure. its about time people started to admit that A LOT of western/european software has surpassed japanese efforts. Ill admit that japan has much more ORIGINAL titles, but not better. non japanese devs are just as amazing as developing games at this point, whether japanese devs like it or not.

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 5026d ago
BrutallyBlunt5027d ago (Edited 5027d ago )

So Resident Evil 5 showed great gameplay? It controlled like crap.

How about we take a franchise like FIFA and compare it to PES. Not only does FIFA offer better visuals it also offers better gameplay. There is an argument to be made about the lack of things in Japanese games as well as Western games but why must we generalize like this? Games are universal and shouldn't be East versus West anyway. What Capcom has shown is their insistance on milking franchises while over-charging consumers for DLC.

grailly5027d ago

PES is konami. I think what capcom is trying to get across is that japanese focus less on visuals altogether. Not saying that japanese games have better gameplay or anything, but I have more and more the impression that western developers focus way to much on graphics.

cyberninja5026d ago

Comparing fifa to pes... pes 2013 plays better than any previous fifa or pes for that matter, just saying.

BrutallyBlunt5026d ago (Edited 5026d ago )

I know PES is a Konami franchise but I used that as a prime example because it's still Japanese and i was able to compare a direct game with it.

PES 2013 by all accounts looks great but look at how many years it took to get there. We still don't know if it will look and play better than FIFA 2013.

The fact is Western gaming has really done well this generation and Japanese studios are feeling it. So intsead of pointing fingers and saying it's solely because of graphics while the Japanese focus on gameplay is the wrong approach. Even some Japanese developers have commented on how many are not doing a good enough job.

Zeixama5027d ago (Edited 5027d ago )

Gameplay and visuals are root infrastructure parts of what is defined as video game. Game developers have to utilize and execute both perfectly. Example: Star Ocean 3 and Mass Effect 2: Both have unique and fun gameplay builds and good layout visuals builds. Capcom sucks both: Lost Planet 2.

fei-hung5027d ago

that and what are they trying to say about the new and all improved DMC?!

note: sarcasm intended

Muffins12235027d ago (Edited 5027d ago )

fallout,skyrim,halo,uncharted, lbp,dues ex revolution,left 4 dead,sims,half life,alan wake(amazing games) ......are you sure about western developers capcom?

amaguli5027d ago

Honestly, I always thought it was the other way around. Western games tend to have better gameplay than Japanese games, but Japanese games tend to have better and unique visuals in there games. I guess each side focus on the weakest points just to get them out of the way.

Blacktric5026d ago (Edited 5026d ago )

So I guess Capcom is somewhere in the middle since they don't focus on either one since 2004.

yeahokchief5026d ago

Yep its ridiculous that this comment is coming from someone at Capcom. All they're doing is copying call of duty. Get real Capcom guy.

Mike_Tha_Hero5026d ago (Edited 5026d ago )

Why is RE6 everyone's go-to game when bashing Capcom? Like they aren't a huge industrial company, and instead a small group of Asian men sitting in a room plotting to ruin your lives systematically by actually improving upon the games.

yeahokchief5026d ago

Of course they're not idiot.

They're too busy systematically plotting how to empty your wallet and they'll do this by whatever means necessary including burning awesome franchises to the ground.

fastNslowww5026d ago

Did he say RE6 is unique? learn to read before attacking. It piggy backs nothing considering past RE games for gamecube, especially RE4.

tee_bag2425026d ago

@ Rainstorm - Well said.
Capcom used to have a trademark gameplay and challenge about them.
Now..

+ Show (9) more repliesLast reply 5026d ago
NukaCola5027d ago

I think Final Fantasy XIII is a good example at flawless perfection in visuals and complete and udder failure in gameplay.

Capcom has a really negative way of thinking this generation and I don't understand why.

megaworm255027d ago

couldn't have said it better

12345bnm5027d ago (Edited 5027d ago )

Yes he could.
He could have said "utter" and not "udder".
You do know what an udder is, don't you?.

grailly5027d ago

I'm pretty sure we could come up with a way longer list of wetstern games with great graphics and balls gameplay, people should stop basing opinions over one game.

RememberThe3575027d ago

We could come up with an even longer list of Japanese games with shit graphics and shit gameplay.

Our opinions haven't been formed off of one game, it's been many games that have let us down over this generation.

swice5026d ago (Edited 5026d ago )

Delete my comment please

jc485735027d ago

it really depends on who is developing.

HammadTheBeast5026d ago

You win.

Capcoms stupid generalization is pointless and stupid.

I don't know why you only have 2 bubbles.

Cocozero5027d ago

I would say Japan focus on fantasy, while western devs focus more on realism.

Thats why graphics are more important to western devs because they want to make it look as real as possible while Japan usually have more unique art styles .

Sephris5027d ago

Ohhhh..this is going to be bad, but I have a friend reading this over my shoulder who said, "of course the Japanese focus on gameplay more. They can't open their eyes up wide enough to see the graphics." I smacked him.

As much as Japan and America have similar interests, our cultures are so completely different that our expectations in games follow suit. Japan will spend serious man hours making a female's boobs bounce in ten thousand directions as she walks. America will spend the same amount of time making sure the blood splatter on the wall looks realistic. Sexuality is more open in Japan than it is here, as well as more acceptable, (save for the pubes! The evil, evil pubes!), while sexuality in America is stifled but murder is death are everywhere. And if you look at the style of games that come out from both countries, at least in general, you can see where the focus is when it comes to graphics and gameplay.

Xperia_ion5027d ago

The American mentality is everything is black and white, the Japanese are more open minded.

Sephris5027d ago

In many cases I totally agree with you. In Japan, if they make a bad mistake that hurts people, they take responsibility for it. In America they try to hide from it by putting clown make-up on Obama. It's rather disheartening to see a country we bombed the hell out of 70 years ago for being a-holes have more values and integrity than what we have now. And these people have vending machines that see used panties. Go figure.

RememberThe3575027d ago

I have to disagree with you. You seem to only see one portion of the population. The vocal minority. Most men I know are men. I mean that in the sense that we take responsibility for our actions and are ready to fight for what we love at any moment. Honor and integrity are critical parts of our lives. I know many women who have the same qualities.

The ramblings of ignorant rednecks do not define this nation.

Simon_Brezhnev5026d ago

You say Japanese are open minded yet Shintaro Ishihara said gay people are genetically gefective and pitiful. LOL

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50°

21 Capcom Classics Are Now Free in Your Browser for a Limited Time

All 21 Classic Games are playable for a limited time 🎮

130°

Metacritic's 2026 Game Publisher Rankings

Jason Dietz: "We reveal the past year's best and worst video game publishers (based on their 2025 releases) in the 16th edition of our annual Game Publisher Rankings."

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metacritic.com
Christopher52d ago

Take note, Sony, you're falling behind by a lot.

-Foxtrot52d ago (Edited 52d ago )

I was just going to say this, their biggest and top rated game here is TLOU2 for PC….it’s embarrassing.

Even Ubisoft and EA are ahead

Kind of surprised Nintendo is pretty low aswell, their biggest game is also a rerelease with the Switch 2 version of TotK.

StoneColdCrazy52d ago

That’s what happens when you start shutting down your own studios and forget what actually made you matter in the industry in the first place. Sony used to set the standard — now it feels like they’ve lost that identity. And if they decide to walk away from the PC market too, that’s going to be another huge mistake — that platform is only growing, and ignoring it now would just put them even further behind.

1Victor52d ago

@christopher:” Take note, Sony, you're falling behind by a lot.”
.
Why single out Sony? Microsoft didn’t do any better than the year before 5th same as Sony 9th and they have acquired activision and other mayor titles that have boosted their score massively from a 9th and Sony a 4th the year before the acquisitions.
Sony does need to do better without a doubt and I do hope they do take note but not the note of buying publishers is the way to succeed.

Christopher52d ago

1. Microsoft didn't get worse.
2. Sony got way worse.
3. Because Sony needs the criticism the most considering their publishing output this generation has been propped up by last gen ports and third-party developers for the most part.

52d ago
thesoftware73052d ago

1Victor,

I don't wanna speak for Christopher, but like most of us we recognize that Sony's output this Gen has been way below their own standards.

Also Sony did buy a fair amount of Devs, I know you will say they were not publishers, and don't compare in size, but they had their fair share of Aquisitions, including the very well established Bungie.

The overall point is with their stellar first party track record of the past, they should not be going down, they are singled out because they are some of the best videogame devs/publisher on the planet...no matter what reasons we attribute to the situation, they are moving in the wrong direction... period.

52d ago
KyRo51d ago

Its widely accept that Sony this generation has been underwhelming. We've had more peripheral releases, controller variants, PS5 accessories than games it feels like. The exclusives were also PS4 and what little output they have put exclusively on PS5 is nowhere near as memorable as what came in every generation before that.

This isn't a Sony hate post but anyone who's older and has been around for a long time gaming will agree that PS5 is by far Sony's worst generation. As much as Xbox is in the gutter, I pray the do bounce back in the hope we get Sony to wake up again.

darthv7251d ago (Edited 51d ago )

If you want to critique MS... you are doing so towards their management. The games output and their hardware have been much better than PS this gen. Sadly... people still hold a grudge against XB because of MS. Thankfully i am not that petty... I've been enjoying their games output in the drought of PS. And add in some NS1/2 games as well to balance things out. Things will change for me once Wolverine hits, and I start using my 5 more. That one I'm looking forward to. And the Marvel fighter... I'm not a GTA player so that has no bearing on my view of things.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 51d ago
Profchaos52d ago

Big part of that has been the live service push resulting in cancellation or flop after flop but when they put out the games their fans want we get amazing stuff like astro bot

Leadership really screwed the pooch trend chasing

1Victor52d ago (Edited 52d ago )

https://www.metacritic.com/...

https://www.metacritic.com/...
Well I apologize I was wrong about not doing worse but my statement of Microsoft getting a boost still stand 🤷🏿

52d ago
1Victor52d ago

Well OBSCURED unlike you I’m honorable enough to recognize when I’m wrong and apologize.
.
@ The software you know there’s no comparison between what Microsoft acquired and what Sony acquired that’s why you tried to get ahead of the conversation, yes we all know Sony can do better than what they have done this gen but they inhaled the poison GAS they thought would bring money for years but we make sure they got the message and quite a few games got cancelled you know as well a hit like that take years to be corrected and by now they hopefully will have taken steps away from the GAS and slowed their approach to them.

bsingle4052d ago

You will say anything when you are in denial that your hardware is dead and nobody wants your platform. Good luck with Helix because nobody will buy it.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 51d ago
SimulationDaily52d ago

But... but... the garbage-mongers always tell us that Square Enix is in trouble! 😂

Christopher52d ago

Square doesn't help that it fear mongers itself with ridiculous 'goals' that they can't reach and then they proclaim failure if they don't reach it. They're quite freaking profitable and people act like they're dying.

SimulationDaily52d ago (Edited 52d ago )

Keep in mind that these "proclamations" are usually third-hand bad translations from somedude who was at the investor conference, posted on Twitter, and picked up by press and youtubers like they were gold, and then when the official translation comes out, they're much softer statements, but at that point, the damage is done.

gold_drake52d ago

to be very fair

being number one on these things does not indicate how "well" their games do selling wise.

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30°

Capcom Insists It Won't Use AI-Generated Assets in Its Games, Will Harness Tech during Development

Capcom has clarified its current stance on generative AI in its videogames. The major Japanese publisher and developer behind popular series like Resident Evil, Street Fighter, and Monster Hunter has revealed that while it doesn't use gen-AI assets in their games, it is exploring ways to use generative AI to streamline the game development process.

Chocoburger52d ago

Using Artificial Intelligence (more like Realistic Stupidity) art assets in your games is a great way to get people to boycott your product. We don't need that ugly, unsophisticated, generic, fake art in our games, good on CAPCOM for not using that garbage.

blacktiger52d ago

Naw you can't fool us, You work with Nvidia, that's a fact! And here you wanted to advertise but now look stupid!