Game Developer: Japanese Games Need "Drastically Innovative Ideas"

My games would lean more Tokyo if the damn things were region free. As it stands, I can only play what happens to get localized. Overall I wish developers would stop trying to cater to a certain "market" and focus on making a game fun. It seems like every developer keeps trying to make AAA blockbuster interactive experiences, and they forget about what makes a game a game in the first place.

For every 'unique' Japanese game released, there are five more that adhere to every stereotypical cliche that people make fun of. It is those games that seem to get all the focus. Either way, my game collection has a tip in the favor of Western though there's a hefty amount of Japanese games there as well.

I'm about half and half. U.S. games can fall into ruts as well (albeit not usually for an entire decade) like how every big title is either a multilayer heavy FPS or is redesigned to fit the Gears profile. For example, Mass Effect, a third-person shooter/RPG designed by Bioware, and Splintercell, a third-person stealth game created by Ubisoft, are both made into third-person cover-based shooters with a heavier focus on action (though, it might just be a Canadian thing). These games were made into more accessible iterations of their respective franchises while JRPGs are still made for fans of JRPGs and no one else with a handful of exceptions. 

 @Eelcire - PS3 Games are Region Free. Granted, that doesn't make them easier to read, but they are Region Free.

@sickVisionz - Lost Planet 2, from some reviewers is simply Monster Hunter squeezed into a Lost Planet skin.. and I'm still waiting for North Americans to decide they like Monster Hunter

The Japanese market is incredibly insular. They find something they like, and iterate on it to death. Arcades outside of Japan are a thing of the past. The Japanese still haven't figured out online gaming the way North America has. They're stagnant and no longer the leaders in the industry (mostly). It makes sense that they should look to the West for innovations that they can take and make their own. North American developers did the same thing, so why would it be so bad in reverse? The Japanese economy has been in the crapper as well for so long that the Japanese games that can be marketed in the West have an extra revenue stream coming in. Certainly this path is not for every game, nor is it always successful, but money is money.

If you skim through enough Giant Bomb reviews of games that are "mad Japanese", you will not find the term being used in a very positive light. The term becomes synonymous with stagnant last-gen systems and game mechanics that Western developers figured out how to do years ago. (This isn't always the case, sometimes I'm sure they're just referring to the charm of the game..) People will defend bad control schemes as part of the game's legacy. It's a load of BS.

I find it interesting that you cite those four games as "interesting and different". Persona 4 is the 4th sequel in a branch of another extremely long running RPG series, almost as storied as the Square's Final Fantasy. While they continue to tweak things there's plenty similar between P4 and P3 and back down the line. Valkyria Chronicles was a failure at least in the West until they dropped the price by 50%, and the sequel's only coming out on the PSP. Demon's Souls was received fondly for BEING old school in how punishing it was, and Monster Hunter Tri is just another iteration of Monster Hunter which they still can't sell on this side of the ocean.

When the Japanese do something extremely well, however, few can match it. I don't think we'll see a Western Nintendo for a while yet. We're finally getting to the point where certain developers are successful enough that they can release a game "when it's done" - both Valve and Blizzard are in this boat.

Looking at my own games collection, I'm about 50/50 on which side of the ocean my games are made. If a game's good, I'll play it.

@Whiskeyjack said:

"Persona 4 is the 4th sequel in a branch of another extremely long running RPG series, almost as storied as the Square's Final Fantasy. While they continue to tweak things there's plenty similar between P4 and P3 and back down the line. Valkyria Chronicles was a failure at least in the West until they dropped the price by 50%, and the sequel's only coming out on the PSP. Demon's Souls was received fondly for BEING old school in how punishing it was, and Monster Hunter Tri is just another iteration of Monster Hunter which they still can't sell on this side of the ocean. "

Ok stop here a few things.
 
1: Persona 3 and 4 are drastically different from Persona 1 and 2 and other than the Shin Megami Tensei tag being slapped on and the various "easter eggs" hidden in the games have almost nothing in common with the rest of SMT.  So your comment about them being similar going back down the line really does not hold water on any level.  
 
2: Valkyria Chronicles is a good game but it is also just the most recent reinvention of games like Tactics Ogre and Final Fantasy Tactics that have been around since the 90's.  It wasn't anywhere near as fresh as I have seen fans call it and most of it's fans are also dyed in the wool japanophiles who love anime and buy every XSeed game.  In other words they are a very distinct minority in the western gaming market.  Most of us have gotten tired of this type of game by now, myself included.
 
3: Demon's Souls was not old school on any level beyond how hard it was.  In my opinion it was actually the most innovative game released in the last two years on a console and while it's "hard core gamer" rep might have caused alot of sales the game itself was excellent and that is why people love it and kept playing it.  It still has an active community online in japan now over a year later and the US players are still going along as well though not quite as strong.  By the way it also proved that the Moster Hunter bad controls arguement was a load of crap.
 
4: Ok your right about Monster Hunter.  They really really need to address the pure crap controls of this game especially if they plan to stay on consoles.

Well, I don't mind Western games that have are creative and are interesting and immersive to play--hence the reason I love games like the Uncharted series, God of War series, and Assassin's Creed, to name a few--but I no doubt will say that a large part of my gaming life (over 20+ yrs) have seem to lean far toward the 'East', if anything else. Nintendo started my gaming like back 1987--w/ the NES--and Sony (and still a bit on Ninty, in terms of handhelds)keeps it occupied today--w/ my PS2, PSP, and PS3--both of which are Japan-based. Hell, I'd go so far to say that about 90% (if not more) of current game collection is developed/published by Japanese game companies. And some of my most favorites series/games are of Eastern influence: Tekken series, Gran Turismo series, MGS4, and in particular, as of recent, the Ryu ga Gotoku (Yakuza in the West) series. Out of the 6 games in that series alone, I have actually imported 3--and hope to do so w/ the last one released in JPN--and then turned around a gladly repurchased them when they were (finally) localized for the western market b/c I enjoy the unique way the story was told and the whole feel of the game.  
 
Is it possible they maybe could use some an injection of change? Maybe? But do I want them take too much  'inspiration' from the land of ModernHaloGear (aka the FPS-eccentric Western market)? Hell, no.  
 
It's nothing wrong w/ take ideas from the West if it helps rejuvenate some creative venues, but don't try to make yourselves something you're not.  

I really don't care who or where the game is made. As long the game is GOOD and isn't a bad remake of an old game.