Much has been written about the decline of the Japanese game industry, with even the big heavyweight franchises such as Metal Gear Solid, Final Fantasy, PES and Resident Evil largely regarded as being disappointing at best. But what has been your favourite, or best if you want to differentiate between the two, Japanese game of this gen? Also, do you see the situation with Japan improving at all next gen or is it going to get worse and worse? I'll answer this topic myself once there's been a few replies.
Deadly Premonition. Important because of the incredibly high quality of storytelling. Something Japanese games have struggled with this generation.
Super Mario Galaxy, by a million, million miles. The only other two Japanese developed games I own are Resi 5 and MGS4, both of which were majorly disappointing in their own ways. A lot of the genres you would typically associate with Japanese development were never really my cup of tea to be honest (turn based RPG's, beat 'em ups, the DMC's & Ninja Gaiden's of the world etc), the general decline of Japan hasn't really effected me. That being said, I can only see the gap between the east and the west getting bigger and bigger (home console wise, they obviously care a lot more about their handheld's over there)
Yet to play MGS4 or SMG, but Vanquish is by far the best I've played, an absolutely sublime five hours that destroyed Gears of War 3 for me.
I really enjoyed Lost Odyssey back in the day, favourite JPRG this gen, can't believe it's been 4 years already. I guess Deadly Premoniton was also quite the experience, so says Mr. Stewart. I've actually enjoyed quite a few Japanese games this generation, even if MGS4 wasn't up to expectation, it was still one of hell of experience, if not the best one this gen. And you just have to look at the Wii to see that Japan isn't going anywhere, Nintendo have still released a lot of stellar games for it.
I'll need to think about this, Deadly Premonition, MGS4 , Katamari forever and Valkyria Chronicles are springing go mind.
Probably would say SMG2 was my fav. Theres also been plenty of good Japanese games on handhelds that I have really liked.
I'd go with Deadly Premontion too. But also, Japan still seems top for great fighting games. Marvel versus Capcom 3, Tekken 6, BlazBlue and Battle Fantasia have all given me much pleasure this gen. I have noticed my own tastes in rpgs have violently switched from East to West though. That could just be a personal thing though.
Super Street Fighter IV. King of Fighters XIII. Shadows of the Damned. Binary Domain. Valkyria Chronicles. Bayonetta. Super Mario Galaxy. There have been a fair share of great Japanese developed titles this gen, they just don't get the attention they once did because Western tastes have drifted away from the genres they're best at. I would agree the Japanese developers are in a rut, but I see Western design unfortunately headed towards a different rut - where everything is a shooter. The West has been a lot better at staying on the cutting edge technology wise, and it seems like most Japanese developers are still running behind the curve, and only in the last couple of years have started to adapt to current hardware. Games like Vanquish are a perfect example because they cater to the West, and although it isn't nearly as impressive as many Western games graphically, it makes its own unique claim on the TPS design with its manic gameplay. I think the Japanese in a lot of ways are more resistant to evolving their gameplay formulas, which is what has mostly left them behind, but everything cycles, so I expect people get interested in their style of game again in the future.
Vanquish. It's like combining bullet hell with third-person shooting. Awesome and it's everything I want from videogames. Also shows how Japan can outdo the West in a Western genre.
By this gen, does it include the DS? Etrian Odyssey/The Dark Spire, bringing back old-school RPG goodness. I think they're Japanese. Oh. My. God. I got as far as bullet hell and I need to play it.
My favourites have been Valkyria Chronicles, Pokemon Black/White, 3D Dot Game Heroes, Yakuza 3, Corpse Party and Bayonetta. Pokemon however has probably been the best from my perspective because its based on a 16 year old formula and yet they have managed to keep the series feeling fresh. Final Fantasy has been the one that has fallen the most this gen (which isn't to say I didn't enjoy 13)
I think I only own five or six Japanese games then gen so far. Although Vanquish and Bayonetta are still on my to buy list. I will have to try the demos again to see if I can convince myself to bump them up in priority. Also I'm really looking forward to Ni no Kuni and The Last Guardian next year. So I think I'd have to say MGS4 is my fav Japanese game of this gen, even though it's my least favourite in the series. Maybe Japan should support PSN and XBLA more? I can barely think of a single Japanese PSN game.
Noby Noby Boy comes to mind.. not sure if many consider that a game though. They want to fill their super tiny apartments with games..
Also they have no equivalent anywhere near as good as Steam. Edit: We're using Pokemon as an example of keeping development fresh? All right.
