A Fond Adieu
October 13th, 2006
Capcom announced the dissolution of Clover Studio this week, which came as a shock to fans of Viewtiful Joe, Okami, GOD HAND, and original, daring games. It was saddening, as Clover Studio is the first company in years I’ve been able to feel affection towards, but, according to Wired, it looks like there’s much more to this story than meets the eye!
Atushi Inaba posted a brief note on the Okami Blog sharing some of his feelings, and promising us more details in the near future. I’ve translated the post below!
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Secrets of the Katamari
August 14th, 2006
Ever wonder what the inspiration for the King of All Cosmos was? How Keita Takahashi went from sculptor to game designer? What the ending of Katamari Damacy is meant to signify? Here’s an older interview from Dengeki Online, back from when Katamari Damacy was just released in Japan, that answers all those questions and more! Though it’s over 2 years old, Takahashi speaks openly and gives a good deal of information about the game and about himself that I’ve never seen anywhere else.
Being Satoru Iwata
July 24th, 2006
(Image taken from Omeburo)
Japanese business weekly Shuukan Toyo Keizai published an interview with Nintendo president Satoru Iwata in their July 15th issue.
Mr. Iwata comes off a little more casual than usual in this interview, giving us his personal perspective on the industry and his experiences in it, rather than simply speaking as a representative of his company. With Nintendo single-handedly triggering a boom in the industry, and two titles he helped create selling over 5 million copies, one might expect a smidgen of bravado. Instead, perhaps more than anything else, this interview communicates Mr. Iwata’s down-to-earth humility.
The interview is not officially availible online, but was transcribed by an anonymous 2ch user. You can view Google’s cached page here.
Fifteen Years of Nothing: Arthur Tells All
July 23rd, 2006
As part of a promotion for the release of upcoming PSP title Ultimate Ghosts n’ Goblins (Goku Makaimura), Capcom has released a tongue-in-cheek short movie directed by series creator Takuro Fujiwara. The clip details just what Arthur, the hero of the series, has been doing in the 15 years since his last game. I never thought I could be so moved by the sight of a man in cardboard armor!
View the movie and translated dialogue below!
The Birth of a Goddess
July 15th, 2006
Shortly following its Japanese release, Dengeki Online conducted an excellent interview with Ōkami producer Atsushi Inaba and director Hideki Kamiya. With its Western release just around the corner (09/05/06), I thought this would make a timely translation and a good opportunity to raise awareness about this beautiful and lovingly-crafted game.
Ōkami’s development process also provides an interesting contrast to those of Shadow of the Colossus and Katamari Damacy. While the latter two games were developed by relatively small teams following the unyielding vision of their charismatic directors, Ōkami seems to have been much more of a collaborative group effort. As you’ll see, some of the most defining mechanics and characteristics of the game were only birthed as a result of conflicting opinions and snags in development.
Guidance from Fumito Ueda
July 14th, 2006
Here’s one of my favorite interviews with Fumito Ueda (creator of Shadow of the Colossus and Ico and lord of all he surveys). Originally published at the Game Yarouze! 2006 site, the interview seems aimed at giving guidance to aspiring game designers, but it should be an insightful read for anyone who loves games.
Words from the Father of Katamari Damacy
July 13th, 2006
Keita Takahashi, father of the beloved Katamari Damacy series, spoke with Gpara last year on the inspiration behind the Katamari games and more. Here’s my translation!
Fumito Ueda and Kenji Kaida at D.I.C.E
July 13th, 2006
Director Fumito Ueda and Producer Kenji Kaida, the dynamic duo behind ICO and Shadow of the Colossus, were interviewed at the D.I.C.E conference earlier this year. Here’s my translation of Famitsu.com’s transcript.
I originally translated this article several months ago, and afterwards noticed that Gamasutra had published a translation of the same interview. You might want to read both my translation and theirs, as Gamasutra and Famitsu seemed to have each picked up various tidbits that the other publication didn’t report.