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Phil Spencer: "I think it would be nice if we found an Asian studio, in particular a Japanese studio, to add [to our studios]"

cireza

Banned
Except those RPGs had no long term benefits for Microsofts presence in Japan, and no long term benefits for the companies who made them, assuming we are talking about Mistwalker.
I can you say that it had no long term benefit for Mistwalker, while it actually helped the company having big projects and money when it was just created ? Of course it helped them.

I’ve noticed a trend that Xbox gamers wanting Japanese games is more about spiting PlayStation than actually buying the software.
WTF... 8 or 9 games out of 10 are Japanese on my Xbox. Can we just have Japanese games ? Not interested in your childish console wars.
 
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Senhua

Member
As a MS stockholder it's better to buy something like SEGA / From Software / even Nintendo to make the quick ROI but as a gamers it's better for them to restart their own studios first.
What actually will happen maybe they only can buy small-mid rate studios like: Experience/NIS/Falcom/Marvelous etc
 

zeorhymer

Member
Uh, I could have sworn they threw money at Platinum and still couldn't get a game out of them. What makes him think that buying a studio would be any different?
 
What is Tomonobu Itagaki up to these days? I remember him being a fan of the x360 back in the day. Phil should reach out to him about developing first party games.
 

Lilseb93

Member
Yah but are Xbox fans going to support your Japanese games? They don't seem to come out in droves to buy these games.
 

Havoc2049

Member
Didn't they have an Xbox Japanese division? What happened to it?

Yes. At one time during the OG Xbox and early X360 days, they had Microsoft Game Studios Japan. It was headed by Yukio Futatsugi; of Panzer Dragoon, Phantom Dust and Crimson Dragon fame.
 

mejin

Member
Who is NiS?

Nippon Ichi Software, from Disgaea series and also publisher of other games too. Especially, the american branch NisA.

I read they were having trouble with Disgaea and since MS is buying devs who are in deep shit. Who knows.
 

CyberPanda

Banned
Nippon Ichi Software, from Disgaea series and also publisher of other games too. Especially, the american branch NisA.

I read they were having trouble with Disgaea and since MS is buying devs who are in deep shit. Who knows.
Would be good to save them so they don’t go bankrupt. Sucks when people lose their jobs.
 

Dabaus

Banned
I can you say that it had no long term benefit for Mistwalker, while it actually helped the company having big projects and money when it was just created ? Of course it helped them.


WTF... 8 or 9 games out of 10 are Japanese on my Xbox. Can we just have Japanese games ? Not interested in your childish console wars.

YOU might be a big fan of Japanese games but the xbox audience at large clearly isnt if we're going by actual sales number and sales splits.
 
He isn't gonna buy no japanese dev.
No japanese dev is that desperate/insane. The best he can hope is to get some chinese second rate studio.
 
The brilliant man who directed Ninja Gaiden on the original Xbox should be given a studio. Action games like Ninja Gaiden was worth begging my dad 24/7 to buy it for me when I first played the demo back in 2004!
 

quest

Not Banned from OT
YOU might be a big fan of Japanese games but the xbox audience at large clearly isnt if we're going by actual sales number and sales splits.
It's not just about the xbox it's also about selling gamepass subs on PC. A few solid eastern studios would help the world wide appeal of gamepass on PC.
 

cireza

Banned
YOU might be a big fan of Japanese games but the xbox audience at large clearly isnt if we're going by actual sales number and sales splits.
Which certainly does not give you a good reason to ask all the time for Japanese games to not be released on Xbox anymore as you don't even play on Xbox it seems. If you don't care about the console why is it so important to make it so we have less Japanese games ?
 
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MS couldn't make great games with Rare or their IP's in almost 20 years

there is no reason to believe they can buy a japanese studio for first party and make it work even if its a good one, when japanese studios make good exclusive games for MS platforms they works as second party so better if they work that way
 

Senhua

Member
There are difference between buying small/nearly bankrupt studios than healthy one. Even for Sony who have good track record to utilize their first party studios, buying healthy one like Platinum / Atlus etc will add nothing to their line up rather than to bar their competitor to get their games, very anti consumer.

The best way for Microsoft is to build their Japan studios and do partnershipl with experienced third party like From Software / Platinum / Capcom etc for the new IP. Something like Scalebound/Bloodborne . That will ensuring the output their exclusive Japanese games lineup without making the third party studios losing their independence.
 
CAVE would be a great choice. Give them a good budget and even give Nintendo Publishing rights when you put it on Switch this year.
 
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Mattyp

Gold Member
YOU might be a big fan of Japanese games but the xbox audience at large clearly isnt if we're going by actual sales number and sales splits.

The large majority of japanese games aren't published on xbox there's a reason for the sales splits, Outside of FF. I would be purchasing them on my xbox over my Playstation if they got a launch also. Also consider double the install base of one console and do attachment rate of these games per 100,000.

Would like to see them pick up Capcom and finally give me Dino Crisis, or SEGA. Go big or go home.
 
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Farrell55

Banned
Konami with all the ip's and Classic games would be spectacular... yeah i know dreaming...
 
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Danjin44

The nicest person on this forum
I think MS should re-try bring Japanese developer make exclusive games for their system. I'm not talking about MS buying Japanese studio, same way Platinum try to make Scalebound exclusive for Xbox and now currently making Astral Chain exclusive for Switch, they could bring Capcom, Square Enix or even Atlus make a exclusive games for their system. This time in smaller scale, I'm thinking nice AA Japanese game from Capcom or Square.

Sony doesn't own any of third party Japanese studio, they just make games for Playstation without Sony have to buy the studio, MS needs find a way to make that happen as well.
 
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Xenon

Member
Phil....

giphy.gif
 

Bernkastel

Ask me about my fanboy energy!
Microsoft, Keep away your dirty claws of Japanese talent.
There are many Japanese developers who have worked with MS in the past and have hardly done anything this gen. I do like to see where Swery65, Itagaki and Futatsugi can go with MS budget.
Hell, Treasure has not made anything this gen and Experience are still working on their Xbox One game.
 

CyberPanda

Banned
There are many Japanese developers who have worked with MS in the past and have hardly done anything this gen. I do like to see where Swery65, Itagaki and Futatsugi can go with MS budget.
Hell, Treasure has not made anything this gen and Experience are still working on their Xbox One game.
Itagaki with MS budget would have done wonders. I feel bad for his studio he opened though, and that god awful game he made. -_-
 

cireza

Banned
Konami is huge and not worth the effort. Better buy smaller ones like Team Grounding/Valhalla Games/White Owl and put budget on them.
This is the way to go. Mistwalker is actually pretty small, but given budget and a proper team, could make so great J-RPGs.

Grounding could be a pretty capable studio in my opinion.

Experience would also be a good fit, I would really like to see this studio actually have the money to do something much more narrative, while staying in the D-RPG genre.
 
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Bernkastel

Ask me about my fanboy energy!
This is the way to go. Mistwalker is actually pretty small, but given budget and a proper team, could make so great J-RPGs.

Grounding could be a pretty capable studio in my opinion.

Experience would also be a good fit, I would really like to see this studio actually have the money to do something much more narrative, while staying in the D-RPG genre.
Mistwalker never really made any console games. Lost Oddyssey was originally developed by Futatsugi before it moved to feelplus with Sakaguchi as producer. Blue Dragon was made by Artoon with Sakaguchi as producer. The Last Story was developed by AQ Interactive with Sakaguchi as producer. Mistwalker never did any of the heavy lifting. It would be great to fund Mistwalker and Arzest for another RPG but I don't think they should buy them. I also think Microsoft should publish Experience games instead of buying them.
Yeah but they could set a sign with it!

Or Fromsoftware where also a fantastic decision
They could also put konami back on Track again, as they did with the Rare studio before
Stop.
 

near

Gold Member
I think building relationships with existing studios in Japan would be more ideal, to be fair I can't think of many small independent studios MS could feasibly buy. The effort they made in the early years of the X360 was commendable, not only did they publish a fair few Japanese developed games, they also purchased timed exclusives which helped build a profile for them in Japan - at least for a while.

Blue Dragon - 2007
Infinite Undiscovery - 2008
Lost Odyssey - 2008
Ninja Gaiden II - 2008
Tales of Vesperia - 2008
Ninja Blade - 2009

In the space of two years they helped pump out some really memorable content, Scalebound issues aside, they should've stuck to this strategy a little longer
 

K1Expwy

Member
I think the mighty Microsoft has been saying and attempting this for 20 years now, and they're still empty-handed.
 
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