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Capcom: Resident Evil Revelations reception a 'signpost' for series future
Resident Evil: Revelations producer Masachika Kawata says Capcom will closely monitor the feedback surrounding this May's home console port of the game, and gauge reaction to determine exactly where to take the series in the future."I think we'll get a lot of input from the fanbase and the media on what it means for Resident Evil, and what it could mean for the future of the series," Kawata told Eurogamer. "We'll definitely be looking at that as a signpost for where we need to be going next." After Revelations, Kawata envisions Capcom focusing more on "the horror aspect and fear in the series." Resident Evil: Revelations first launched on the 3DS in January 2012 and currently has an 82 on Metacritic. Though Resident Evil: Revelations is "definitely a success" in Capcom's eyes, Kawata says, the publisher would have liked to see more sales – but isn't that always the hope in business? "Given the large development costs we had on the 3DS version, we would have liked to have even a little more sales than we did in the end. But that doesn't mean we saw it as a failure by any means," he said.Resident Evil: Revelations will launch on the Xbox 360, PS3, Wii U and PC on May 21.
Capcom's Kawata on bringing Resident Evil back to its roots on 3DS
When a new platform hits the market, designers inevitably start thinking about how to exploit all of the new possibilities at their disposal. For producer Masachika Kawata, it was a chance to take Resident Evil back to its roots. "We all agreed that, this time around, we wanted to make a scary Resident Evil similar to the original," Kawata said during a GDC talk that broke down the development of the recent 3DS survival horror game. That might bring a slightly rueful smile to the faces of longtime fans. Resident Evil 4 gets a lot of love among mainstream gamers and critics; but by admitting that he wanted to make a "scary" game, Kawata seems to be tacitly admitting what many older fans have felt for a while now -- Resident Evil had become an action series.
Super Mario 3D Land, Resident Evil Revelations talks at GDC
Super Mario 3D Land director Koichi Hayashida will present a postmortem talk at GDC entitled "Thinking in 3D: The Development of Super Mario 3D Land." Attendees will be required to cross a pit of moving blocks while being chased by evil purple versions of themselves in order to attend.Or, what will actually happen is that Hayashida will discuss developing for 3D devices, and "share development philosophies learned from Mario creator and legendary Nintendo designer, Shigeru Miyamoto."Another 3DS-centric talk is "Revealing the Truth About Resident Evil Revelations," presented by producer Masachika Kawata. And Cave COO Mikio Watanabe will discuss "Retro and Japanese Social Games on Smartphones," bringing attention to the company's recent endeavors in porting crazy shmups to iOS.
Capcom wants to violate your expectations, but in a good way
Capcom has never been one to shy away from aggressively utilizing its core intellectual properties, however iteration often translates to evolution, which can be interpreted as abandonment by the minds of die-hard fans. But, that might not be such a bad thing. "We think that certainly some people's expectations will be violated, but that's, in our minds, a good thing," said producer Masachika Kawata, speaking on the Resident Evil series during an interview with Gamasutra. "It will hopefully get people to play something that they weren't expecting." Resident Evil has arguably seen more drastic paradigm shifts than any other Capcom franchise, with the upcoming Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City fully embracing the shooter seeds planted by Resident Evils 4 and 5. Kawata views the situation as one of diversity rather than exclusion, however, implying that the Resident Evil franchise has expanded to accommodate many different genres underneath its IP umbrella, including shooters. Of course, survival horror is still an integral part of Resident Evil's brand image, and Kawata's own Resident Evil: Revelations is said to be "core-fan focused" in a way that makes it similar to Capcom zombie romps of yore. Still, every relationship needs a little spark now and again: "I'm thinking that if we would have brought out all these Resident Evil titles, and they were all focused on survival horror, absolutely I think people would be really sick of Resident Evil."
You won't cheer for Umbrella in Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City
In Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City, you play as an elite team of Umbrella tasked with cleaning up the mess in Raccoon City during the events of Resident Evil 2. It's 1998 and even though you'll be playing as these corporate guns for hire, you won't find any endearing qualities about these individuals. They're not here to save the day, they're here to save Umbrella's ass by killing all survivors and erasing all evidence of Umbrella's involvement. %Gallery-125731%
Producer: Wesker not returning to Resident Evil (yeah, right)
It's going to be difficult to be completely spoiler-free for this one, so fair warning. During a panel at Comic-Con, Resident Evil 5 producer Masachika Kawata was asked if Albert Wesker would return in a future Resident Evil title, considering Resident Evil 5 leaves you believing he's gone. According to SIliconera, Kawata says Wesker's days in Resident Evil are over. "Even if you want Albert Wesker to come back there is no chance of that happening," Kawata told the audience. Of course, Kawata forgets that Wesker will be seen in the upcoming Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, which takes place in Raccoon City during Resident Evil 2's storyline. As for Wesker going the way of the Dodo, we'll believe that when we see it. Or don't see him, we should say.
Blackjack game may decide producer of Resident Evil 6
Curious about the direction the next entry in the Resident Evil will follow? By the sound of things, so are the franchise's tried-and-true creators. During Capcom's San Diego Comic Con panel, Resident Evil 5 producer Jun Takeuchi responded to a fan's query about the possibility of a series reboot with a startling answer -- he's apparently playing a long-running game of Blackjack with fellow RE5 producer Masachika Kawata to see who will be in charge of the next Resident Evil title. Seriously.We're not sure if Takeuchi's response was sincere -- after all, he later explained that "it doesn't appear as though either of us is going to be in charge." Still, we wouldn't be surprised if he was telling the truth. There's certainly precedent for this kind of thing. Remember when Satoru Iwata won the presidency of Nintendo from Hiroshi Yamauchi in a high-stakes Cribbage game?
RE5 producer: Mature games will sell on Wii , but need an 'X-Factor' (hint: it's 'Resident Evil')
Mature games can sell well on Wii; just ask Resident Evil 5 (and RE: The Darkside Chronicles) producer, Masachika Kawata. Speaking to VideoGamer.com, he acknowledged that it's not easy for adult-oriented titles to break out on the system, but says it's still possible given hard work and an "X-Factor."One of the roadblocks mature games face on Wii is perception, Kawta said. "People get this perception that on Nintendo Wii all there is are cutesy games. However, when you actually try to develop a game on Wii it costs you money, it's time consuming and it's not the easiest console to deal with." So, real games (i.e. ones that aren't cute) are hard to -- wait, did he just say "cutesy" games aren't games? Well, he has been around blood and gore an awful lot lately, but still."There are good [mature] games that didn't sell, obviously," Kawata admitted. "You need an X-Factor." We presume he's talking about the likes of Platinum Games' excellent MadWorld, which we have to admit probably would have sold better with the "X-Factor" that's served Capcom so well on Wii: the words "Resident Evil" in the title.
Kawata: Resident Evil 6 'could take 8 years'
Masachika Kawata thinks a Resident Evil 5 sequel could be as far away as eight years, but hopes it's closer to four. Speaking with The Gadget Show, the RE5 producer said it could be a long time before Xbox 360 and PS3 owners see Resident Evil 6, if they ever see it at all. A lot can change for games over time, as our flow chart explains (it's 110% scientific, we swear).Over time, games can advance with new ideas and bring our favorite characters into exciting new situations. However, sometimes (much to the chagrin of plenty of our own readers) things don't change enough, while others believe the old stuff works just fine. Preferences. They so crah-zay![Via D+Pad]
Kawata: Darkside Chronicles a 'very dark' Resident Evil
Speaking to attendee's of last night's Resident Evil 5 launch party, Masachika Kawata, producer of the newly announced Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, shed more light on Capcom's Umbrella Chronicles sequel. Kawata addressed the crowd after screening the first trailer for the game."What we're looking to do is go back to a 'very dark' style of Resident Evil," Kawata said. "'Dark' is really a key word for this game. It will be shown in horror, in the storyline, in the emotions that the characters go through." We saw examples of this as Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield fought side-by-side through a zombie ravaged Racoon City, circa Resident Evil 2.He also explained that the development team at Cavia is "putting a lot of care, a lot of attention into [improving] how the camera system works in a rail-based shooter." This was evident in what was shown of the game's strong cinematic presentation, which included dramatic point-of-view shots of zombies feasting and the player narrowly escaping death with their partner's help. Kawata wrapped up his stint on stage saying that more information on the game would be revealed later this year, as everyone involved with the franchise is (rightly) focused on today's launch of RE5.
RE 5's Kawata: Wii couldn't even handle RE 5's intro screen
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/nintendo/Wii_couldn_t_even_handle_RE_5_s_intro_screen'; We all would love to see Resident Evil 5 on the Wii. But, according to the game's producer, Masachika Kawata, the Wii couldn't even handle the graphics of the game's introductory screen. When asked about improvements on the game from 4 to 5, Kawata mentions the biggest improvement are the graphics, as "the title screen of this couldn't have been done on PS2 or Wii." We're not sure we buy that.There's still a sliver of hope that there could be more Resident Evil making its way to Wii, however. During a separate interview with GameTrailers, another producer, Juntake Uchi, commented that Capcom would love to continue to support the Wii with the franchise. And, personally, we'd love to see them hook us up with something other than old ports.Head past the break to watch the video.
