When looking at the recent news coming out of Japan from Square-Enix, it is quite easy to become lost and not know which announcements are pertinent to US gamers. Spanning from a partnership with a US based studio, to Dragon Quest 10 being developed for the Nintendo Wii, recent press releases have been the talk of the Internet and have major implications for US gamers.

With the announcement that Square-Enix will be publishing Supreme Commander 2 from Seattle developer Gas Powered Games, the first play for a traditional American studio has been made. While the publishing of a RTS game may seem like an odd way to start, it remains a crucial stepping-stone into creating titles specifically for the American audience. Yoichi Wada has continued to be one of a vocal minority in the need for a change in the way that Japanese developers operate, and this seems like the first logical step in showing that Square-Enix “practices what they preach.”

Publishing giants Activision/Blizzard and EA have become such a large influence on the US development industry that the chances of smaller studios having their games published without being involved with either is an increasingly rare occurrence. If Square-Enix finds success in their partnership with Gas Powered Games, the possibility for smaller US developers to operate in the difficult game market by partnering with Japanese developers will become a feasible strategy. By having access to new licenses, it is possible that a second genesis for some franchises could occur, leading to a strengthening of both the Japanese and American development industry.

The news that Dragon Quest is making its way to all Nintendo platforms is quite an interesting one that speaks a lot for the state of both the American and Japanese markets. When it was first announced that the series was making its next official entry on the Nintendo DS, it left many gamers a bit taken a back. However the move to DS and ultimately to the Wii is an almost forgone conclusion. The market penetration of the Playstation 3 in Japan is nowhere near the mass market that the Dragon Quest brand appeals to. While the Final Fantasy brand seems firmly planted in the Sony camp, bringing one of the most popular Japanese franchises to the Wii and DS instills an even larger vote of confidence then the announcement of FFXIII for Xbox 360.

Square-Enix is definitely a company that always has the bottom line in mind and has survived because of this frugality. While not known for their originality, the bolstering of said bottom line with the decision to bring Dragon Quest 10 to the Wii, as well as their willingness to work with new creative partners is one that I respect. This is an important move both for growth and survival; because those companies who fail to adapt to the changing market will certainly have their fate decided with an acquisition by either Activision or EA.

-Eric Wall

Tags: Game Industry, Gas Powered Games, Japan, Square-Enix

Subscribe to the Check Your HUD RSS Feed