Thick Thighs Save Lives
NeoGAF's Physical Games Advocate Extraordinaire
—In a past interview, you mentioned that the Steam version of Yakuza 0 was doing very well globally. At the time, you said people overseas were buying it partly because it felt exotic. It's been two years since then, but how do you feel the series is positioned now in the Western market?
Yokoyama:
I still think it's mainly people who already like or understand Japanese games who are picking it up.
That said, Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii actually sold very well in Europe, which was completely different from past trends.
—Not the US, but Europe?
Yokoyama:
That's right, I got the sense that pirate culture is deeply rooted in Europe. Of course, we have a larger player base in the US to begin with, but seeing sales unexpectedly grow in Europe was interesting. In this sense, I think people are discovering the series through various entry points, but I don't think it's at a stage where it can be called mainstream yet.
—So you don't feel you've fully reached the market yet, you're still in the process of expanding? I had the impression that it was a series all readers of our English-language edition were familiar with.
Yokoyama:
I think that's probably because that's the kind of readership your publication has (laughs). There is definitely an audience familiar with it, but we still have a long way to go.
Sakamoto:
There are core Like a Dragon fans out there forming communities, so we do have a fanbase, but it's still actually quite small.
—So in terms of your stance going forward, you're still figuring out how to break new ground?
Yokoyama:
Yes, even our merchandise strategy is very different between Japan and the West.
In Japan, we design products under the assumption that people already know the source material, since the series has gone through many phases here. But if we did that overseas, it wouldn't make sense. Right now, our priority is simply to firmly establish the Like a Dragon name and RGG Studio logo.
—You've always talked about "making what feels true to RGG Studio." If the series becomes even bigger globally, will that mindset change?
Yokoyama:
No, it won't. If we really wanted to make a game for overseas audiences, it would obviously be better to make a foreign protagonist and set the story overseas. But if we did that, it wouldn't be Like a Dragon. There would be no point in us making it.
Instead, we have to preserve what makes us us, and communicate that to the world.
If we're not doing that, we might as well dissolve the team right now and make a totally different game.
It ties into the question of what you want to do for a living. If our job as creators is to make games, then RGG Studio's job is to make Like a Dragon and spread it globally.
I think people start making strange things when they misunderstand what their business is supposed to be.
—Does that mean the market is secondary for you?
Yokoyama:
It's not secondary, it's always part of the package. But if it means changing what we create, then that's not the right approach.
More at the link:
The Like a Dragon series still can’t be called mainstream in the West, developers say. “There's an audience, but we still have a long way to go” - AUTOMATON WEST
Interview with Like a Dragon series executive producer Yokoyama Masayoshi, chief profucer Hiroyuki Sakamoto and game director Ryosuke Horii.
automaton-media.com
.
