Tecmo Koei Interview

The Tecmo Koei merger brought together two major players in Japanese development. Their plan? To launch an assault on the western gaming market, and Kenji Matsubara, CEO of Tecmo Koei, is at the helm of it all.

We spoke to Matsubara about how he plans to commence his attack on western thumbs, what he thinks of Sony's pricing decisions and his verdict on the new motion control frenzy, among other things.

You speak regularly of your concerns over the Japanese games market. Have things not started to pick up in recent months?

Matsubara: There's not such a big change compared to last year. The western market is expanding, and the European market has more than doubled [in size] within this decade, but the Japanese market has remained the same. The problem is, as you know, the PlayStation 3 and 360 - the new games platforms - are not as popular in the Japanese games market.

The reason is that gamers are waiting for the right time to buy one. They're waiting for a good title made especially for either platform. But this is a publisher and developer problem - we haven't yet provided such a title to satisfy such users.

Japanese users prefer the PSP, DS or Wii software. I'm sure we have good growth potential with the high-performance consoles within the Japanese market, but we can't yet take advantage of this opportunity - we are still awaiting growth.

What do you think is the reason for the lull in Japanese gaming?

Matsubara: Thanks to Nintendo's DS and Wii, game users are expanding - female and senior game users are joining in. But those casual gamers still prefer casual play and don't go into core games, sports or action games.

Those are areas that Tecmo are very good at. Casual gamers are looking to those types of games gradually, but they still prefer games like Brain Age or Wii Sports. The Japanese demographic has changed compared to five years ago, but most of the casual gamers still prefer casual games.

You're leading your Euro charge with a PS3 exclusive. What was your response to Activision's comments on possibly halting support for Sony's console?

Matsubara: I'm not sure what Activision means in those comments, but Activision sees that the PS3 is a very important platform. In the PS2 days, Sony was dominant, and nothing else came close.

Now, in the PS3 era, I understand that the 360 is bigger, but the PS3 isn't small - it has a big share [of the market].

So from a publisher or developer's view, focussing on a single platform is very risky. Instead we have to focus on providing every title for every platform. That's a key standpoint for Tecmo Koei.

I believe it's not a strategy for us but for everybody. I understand Activision's comment, but in general, the PS3 is still a very important platform.

What do you think of Sony's decision not to drop the PS3's price despite increasing pressure to do so?

Matsubara: Whenever I discuss this with Sony reps I always ask them: "Please cut the price", but I don't have a clear view on Sony's situation. Yes, from a publisher's point of view we would welcome a price cut for PS3, and we are waiting, definitely.

It's definitely a way of boosting the PS3 market, but it's Sony's strategy and I don't know their cost structure. Sony introduced cutting-edge technology in the PS3, that's why people in the industry accept that the PS3 cost is so high, but we'd welcome a price cut.

What's your long-term plan for western market dominance then?

Matsubara: The US and European markets are expanding very fast, so we have to focus on these markets. And our strategy is to expand our library.

We have our current brands like Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive - they are very popular especially in the North American market. And we have Dynasty Warriors as well.

We have to focus on expanding our existing brands, and in addition we plan to create new IP targeting the western market. So we're hiring developers not only within Japan but overseas too, like in Singapore and Toronto Canada. We are pretty much ready to develop titles focussing on a western audience, so that's our strategy.

Are you inspired by the adult-action game approach taken by Platinum Games?

Matsubara: I understand that they are developing some good titles. We see that as stimulating to our development teams. We have to compete, not only against Sega's teams but also western development studios.

I understand that not only Sega but every Japanese publisher is now focussing on the western market. That's why it's very clear for us to compete with many publishers including Platinum Studios.

How will you take advantage of the popularity of Nintendo's formats in the west?

Matsubara: Currently we are working Samurai Warriors 3 for Wii this year, and Nintendo supports this title. Third party titles have struggled to be popular on the Wii platform.

Nintendo understands this situation and so it's provided good support for us. That's why we've chosen to put a big franchise such as Samurai Warriors on Wii. We expect a big hit with that.

What's your take on Project Natal and Sony's motion control?

Matsubara: We are very excited about the future with Project Natal and Sony's motion controllers. At the same time, we have some concerns over the fact that we specialise in making action games, so we have to explore whether we can achieve real-time response from a controller-free system. That's our challenge.

We understand that, for casual gamers playing dance games or some sort of fishing game, this controller-free system can be popular. But for hardcore gamers who like action games, we have to research and develop games that satisfy our core gamers.

An analyst recently said Sony's motion controllers are better suited to the hardcore crowd than MS' Natal. Do you agree?

Matsubara: I expect that, from the beginning, both these types of controls will be more suited to casual games, and later go into more hardcore oriented experiences. That's how, in my understanding, most companies' strategies will apply.

We haven't experimented with both technologies, so I cannot comment on which might be better. But I believe both companies are focusing on the same area - so casual gamers first, then core gamers. We hope that both are successful so that we can expand our business on both platforms.

Will PSP Go to mark the return and rise of PSP?

Matsubara: PSP Go will help in the long run. Digital distribution is in demand from both the users and the publishers. I know there's some criticism of the cost of the console.

PSP Go has opened a discussion about online distribution, and PSP has already been established as a good gaming platform. Not only that but as a good multimedia platform. So I think Sony has a good opportunity to expand the entertainment business with PSP Go.

Mike Jackson