Against all odds, Nioh– a really difficult action RPG steeped in Japanese mythology and history, with a name that is unfriendly to western audiences, and little to no marketing – has managed to become a worldwide success, with 1 million units sold worldwide.
Nioh had been in development for 13 years before it finally launched- but it looks like that may have paid off for Tecmo in the long run, because Koei Tecmo’s general manager Yasutomo Watanabe told MCV that the game has become the company’s most successful title in the west ever. “It utilised all the resources of our company. We received unequivocal support from our western publisher, Sony Interactive Entertainment, and Nioh is performing very well so far so we are very happy with it,” he said.
“It utilised all the resources of our company. We received unequivocal support from our western publisher, Sony Interactive Entertainment, and Nioh is performing very well so far so we are very happy with it.”
According to him, this is a reaffirmation of Tecmo’s strategy of desiring to expand the appeal for its games to the west. “One of the most important things is to conduct solid market research to identify global and regional trends that can be incorporated in our own development engines,” Watanabe said. “We would also like to pursue partnerships with established brands or IPs to appeal to a wider audience and to grow our brands further. Personally I’m happy to see a lot of Japanese games hit the charts in the west, however there’s no border for entertainment and most people don’t care where a game comes from; they only care if it’s fun.”
That said, it’s not all good news- specifically, if you’re a fan of Ninja Gaiden, it sounds like you are in for a bit of a wait. For now, there was no confirmation on a new game. “We know a lot of our fans in the world have been waiting for the next Ninja Gaiden and it is one of the most important projects for us as well,” he said. “At the moment, we are not in a position to announce anything, but we are hoping to share good news with you once we are ready.”
All in all, it’s good to see that Tecmo’s commitment to making the best possible game with Nioh has been rewarded so resoundingly. Nioh is available exclusively on the PS4.
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