Tecmo's best known asset is Team Ninja. This development team, formerly headed by the iconoclastic Tomonobu Itagaki, is respected for its attention to detail, fast-action gameplay, and technical expertise. And while Team Tachyon has less renown, it has provided Tecmo with a solid basis for its business: it pioneered the Fatal Frame survival horror franchise, for example.
But while these two internal teams make up the company's highest-profile content, there's another business unit within the company devoted to externally-developed games. Gamasutra recently had the chance to speak with producer Koichi Yamaguchi, who's in charge of the externally-developed, Western market-targeted games coming from Tecmo's Japan offices, alongside Tecmo U.S. VP John Inada.
Yamaguchi's projects include Again, the company's intriguing upcoming casual, western-targeted DS adventure game, under development by external team Cing (which developed Nintendo's Hotel Dusk).
How does this business unit allow Tecmo to expand its business? How does the company decide which games to bring to the U.S.? And can Tecmo get casual gamers interested in a murder mystery? The answers to these questions and more follow.
Although not nearly as jam-packed as March, April is still a great month for new game releases with many exciting upcoming titles slated for release.
Replies(5)
I might get Splinter Cell on PC but I have a big stack of games I still need to play..
Yea, April is dead for me. It's May that I'm waiting for. But that's no big deal, I have plenty games I still need to play right now to keep me busy til May (RDR and ModNation). Conviction looks great from everything I've seen, but alas I don't even have the time and money to play all the games I want on my PS3 so forget trying to keep up with two consoles. Plus, honestly, I'd never want to own a 360. But Conviction does look awesome, so yay to those that get to enjoy that. (Also don't have a computer powerful enough to really be a gaming computer either).
May though. That's gonna be a nice month.
Most devs released all there games early year as to miss the christmas rush and get those final touches plus Fiscal year is ending so that's also impacting hugely on this months releases. Shame there is nothing worth picking up but E3 is coming very soon so we will need to get our diarys open :).
Looks like April and May are great months to catch up on - or thorough enjoy already finished or unfinished - games. Demon Souls NG+++, MAG Platinum, Final Battle for Valkyria Chronicles, here I come.
i am going to wait til Splinter Cell goes on sale for around $20 online before i pick it up. slow month for me as well. still have a lot of catching up any ways. still haven't played GOW3, FFXIII, and need to finish The Witcher and BF:BC2.
Gives me time to finish FFXIII and play GOW III again while waiting on May when 3D Dot Game Heroes, Red Dead Redemption, MGS Peace Walker, and Mod Nation Racers are all set for launch.
May should give Splinter Cell and Monster Hunter a great opportunity for early sales as the competition seems weak.
If you have a PS3, this Month and more will be Dull unless you like LBP3 X 17.Just keep playing God of War i guess Vhero.
Tecmo released a new video of Again - Eye of Providence, planned for this coming month. The player will follow Jonathan Weaver, a FBI agent and the action will take place in the early 90's New Jersey.
Developer Cing is no stranger to crafting mystery adventure games on the Nintendo DS. Their newest title, Again: Eye of Providence, continues their puzzle-heavy legacy while overhauling the art-style. With all the flair of a cheesy CSI TV show, Again offers fans of story-heavy quests a chance to unravel the enigma of a serial killer by stepping into the shoes of a paranormally gifted FBI agent.
19 years ago a killer going by the alias of Providence began a string of murders which remain unsolved to this day. It's up to FBI agent J and his partner Kate to grill everyone from grizzled police detectives to withdrawn witnesses in order to shed light on a fresh crime which closely resembles the original Providence murders. Are they dealing with a copycat killer or the resurgence of the infamous homicides?
