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Inafune: "Words Are Not Enough"
Keiji Inafune, former Capcom developer and industry luminary, has once again spoken candidly about his view that Japanese development studios are behind their Western counterparts.
"Some developers are saying [the] Japanese game industry is still doing fine, but that's wishful thinking," Inafune told IGN. "Words are not enough, we must act and prove it. Unless at least a few titles from Japan make it to the top 10 games of the year worldwide, we won't prove it."
Inafune says that Japanese developers are becoming more aware of the problem, but are slow to change and rectify the situation. "They know they have to learn more from western games and create games that'll sell more in the western market. However, they don't know what to do or how to do it. Even worse, their pride gets in the way, preventing them from learning from overseas developers. As a result, they end up staying in the domestic market rather than going global."
Inafune has long been vocal about his opinion that Japan's video game output has been stagnant, and he has also tried to rally his country to compete with Western developers.
For more on Inafune's thoughts on the Japanese gaming industry, head over to IGN.
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