Onimusha and Dino Crisis Waiting for Great Ideas, Says Capcom

[Logan Westbrook]

Onimusha and Dino Crisis Waiting for Great Ideas, Says Capcom

As much fun as older games are, figuring out how to modernize them can be tricky, says Capcom exec Chris Svensson.

Onimusha [http://www.amazon.com/Onimusha-Essentials-Playstation-2/dp/B001FBJUYK/ref=sr_1_1?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1287493644&sr=1-] and Dino Crisis [http://www.amazon.com/Dino-Crisis-Playstation/dp/B00000K1VE/ref=sr_1_1?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1287497810&sr=1-1] are two Capcom franchises that never quite made it to the big time. While they're not exactly unprofitable, they've definitely fallen by the wayside and it's been years since either series has had a new release. It would be easy to assume that the series are dead, but Svensson says they're actually just waiting for a killer idea.

Svensson, who is Capcom's VP of strategic planning and business development, said that the publisher has placed them both on the back burner until someone with a vision, and enough influence to make people listen, champions them internally. He said that Onimusha presented challenges because of its very strong Japanese theme, and that the series had seen significant declines in its fan base with each new iteration. He also said that no one could quite figure out what to do with Dino Crisis to actually make it fun again.

"You'd be amazed how many franchises where we're like 'oh that was great, that was amazing,' but the question is how we make that a compelling and contemporary game experience," he said. "As much as I love Dino Crisis, I don't think pre-rendered backgrounds; tank-controlled dinos are going to sell to the level that's going to cover the budgets that it takes to make something competitive in that space."

Svensson does have a point with Onimusha, a game based on feudal Japan is a lot less familiar to most gamers than one based Europe, and therefore has much more of a niche appeal. Still, you'd think that it would much easier to come up with ideas for games involving dinosaurs, even if the technology in previous installments of Dino Crisis is showing its age.

I mean, seriously, they're dinosaurs.

Source: IGN [http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/112/1128727p1.html]



Permalink

 

[ultimasupersaiyan]

If they want ideas then why don't they ask gamers. Hell I have 1000s of ideas for modernizing games as well as 1000s of ideas for new games. Capcom like other AAA game developers are to busy fishing up their butts for ideas (*cough* DMC *cough*) instead of hearing the community. This is one of the reasons the game industry is declining for older gamers like me. I grew up on video games from the NES era and most modern games suck and all the younger gamers who were brought up on PlayStations are content with the crap of today because they don't know any better and buy what they are told to buy (*cough* Halo *cough* Call Of Duty *cough*) instead of giving different games a go. My point is developers, especially Capcom should listen to the consumers and stop telling us what to buy.

 

[scnj]

Let's face it, it couldn't be any worse than the Turok reboot from a couple of years ago.

 

[Infernoshadow211]

If they want ideas then why don't they ask gamers. Hell I have 1000s of ideas for modernizing games as well as 1000s of ideas for new games. Capcom like other AAA game developers are to busy fishing up their butts for ideas (*cough* DMC *cough*) instead of hearing the community. This is one of the reasons the game industry is declining for older gamers like me. I grew up on video games from the NES era and most modern games suck and all the younger gamers who were brought up on PlayStations are content with the crap of today because they don't know any better and buy what they are told to buy (*cough* Halo *cough* Call Of Duty *cough*) instead of giving different games a go. My point is developers, especially Capcom should listen to the consumers and stop telling us what to buy.

You know dude, they just started the Megaman Legends 3 project, with major support from the community.

 

[ultimasupersaiyan]

You know dude, they just started the Megaman Legends 3 project, with major support from the community.

And yet Megaman X9 is still on the back burner.

 

[scnj]

If they want ideas then why don't they ask gamers. Hell I have 1000s of ideas for modernizing games as well as 1000s of ideas for new games. Capcom like other AAA game developers are to busy fishing up their butts for ideas (*cough* DMC *cough*) instead of hearing the community.

The problem is that this is because the community is not a single entity. Case in point, the new Devil May Cry. People are currently shouting that it's too different, but if the opposite was true, the same people would complain that the series isn't evolving enough.

This is one of the reasons the game industry is declining for older gamers like me.

That's a generalisation, and you're projecting your opinion onto other people, making the assumption that they all feel the same way. Unless you have significant statistical evidence to back your claim, don't do that.

I grew up on video games from the NES era and most modern games suck

Again, a generalisation. The previous generations had their share of shovelware and cash ins too, but you're only remembering the good games. Nostalgia glasses are wonderful, but they don't lead to objectivity in cases like this.

and all the younger gamers who were brought up on PlayStations are content with the crap of today because they don't know any better and buy what they are told to buy (*cough* Halo *cough* Call Of Duty *cough*) instead of giving different games a go.

Of course, it could just be that those games are popular because they're actually good games that you just happen to not like. Also, your point about giving something different a go flies in the face of your point about the new Devil May Cry being too different.

My point is developers, especially Capcom should listen to the consumers and stop telling us what to buy.

Are the consumers developers themselves? Probably not. And in a way, developers are listening. Call of Duty sold a shedload, so they're making more. Halo sold a shedload, so they're making more. If these other gamers really wanted more stuff like Psychonauts or Shadow of the Colossus, they'd speak with their wallets as well as their keyboards and buy the games.

If it doesn't sell, the company won't take a risk on it. Financially, there's just no good rwason to.

 

[BrunDeign]

Dino Crisis was basically "Resident Evil With Dinosaurs" in the sense of being a survival horror game (if I remember correctly).

Sadly, the latest Dino Crisis game - from earlier in the decade - actually had what appeared to be zombie dinosaurs (or dinosaurs missing all of their skin) and threw the survival horror out the window for what seemed to me like a more action-oriented title.

However it really shouldn't be hard to create a survival horror game with dinosaurs. With the right music and ambient noises, anywhere can be terrifying when you throw dinosaurs into the mix. Hell the McDonald's play place would be terrifying at night with creepy music and noises playing over your character's rasped breathing. Of course, the carnivores hunting you down could help.

 

[Jesus Phish]

I always liked Dino Crisis. It was one of the few survival horrors that held my interest. Something seemed more scary about it to me than Resident Evil.

 

[marygoodden]

I can see why they'd have trouble with Dino Crisis. The current generation hasn't done great things for survival horror. I don't know whether it's increased graphical or processing powers, but recent entries in the genre have been fairly disappointing, relying on set-pieces and spectacle over gameplay and difficulty.

Dino Crisis was really hard, and that was part of its appeal. I played it as a young teenager with loads of time on my hands. I'd probably be the target audience for a reboot/sequel but I just don't have the time these days.

As for Onimusha, the mechanic (collect power orbs, learn new techniques) might see it dismissed as God of War in feudal Japan.

Which would be a real shame, because I think the setting is sadly underexplored. So many Japanese games in the western mainstream adopt a stylised European Medieval setting. I know that's a generalisation (and there's nothing inherantly wrong with it) but it would be really nice to explore feudal Japan a bit more.

In a game. Please don't make me read a book.

Joke.

 

[Logan Westbrook]

I remember what they did with Dino 3 and Gun survivor 3... I hope to never see those again.

I wasn't a great fan of Onimusha, but Dino Crisis would do with a revival, a proper one, that is.

I don't think a killer idea is what they need, RE5 was awfully written, and yet, they did it because the title still sells, DC is not blessed by that, sadly.

 

[Jared]

Glad to see Dino Crisis is still out there! I loved the first and second game and would be nice to see Regina, or other go out into the wilds once more!

 

[OrdinaryGuy]

If it doesn't sell, the company won't take a risk on it. Financially, there's just no good rwason to.

I agree, but it sure would be nice to live in a perfect world where devs didn't have to worry about making a profitable game.

OT: I, for one, would love to see a new Dino Crisis game. I'm in the same boat as Capcom though; I honestly wouldn't know how to bring the franchise back and get it to fit today's market. At least they haven't trashed the idea yet.

 

[marygoodden]

If they want ideas then why don't they ask gamers. Hell I have 1000s of ideas for modernizing games as well as 1000s of ideas for new games. Capcom like other AAA game developers are to busy fishing up their butts for ideas (*cough* DMC *cough*) instead of hearing the community.

The problem is that this is because the community is not a single entity. Case in point, the new Devil May Cry. People are currently shouting that it's too different, but if the opposite was true, the same people would complain that the series isn't evolving enough.

This is one of the reasons the game industry is declining for older gamers like me.

That's a generalisation, and you're projecting your opinion onto other people, making the assumption that they all feel the same way. Unless you have significant statistical evidence to back your claim, don't do that.

I grew up on video games from the NES era and most modern games suck

Again, a generalisation. The previous generations had their share of shovelware and cash ins too, but you're only remembering the good games. Nostalgia glasses are wonderful, but they don't lead to objectivity in cases like this.

and all the younger gamers who were brought up on PlayStations are content with the crap of today because they don't know any better and buy what they are told to buy (*cough* Halo *cough* Call Of Duty *cough*) instead of giving different games a go.

Of course, it could just be that those games are popular because they're actually good games that you just happen to not like. Also, your point about giving something different a go flies in the face of your point about the new Devil May Cry being too different.

My point is developers, especially Capcom should listen to the consumers and stop telling us what to buy.

Are the consumers developers themselves? Probably not. And in a way, developers are listening. Call of Duty sold a shedload, so they're making more. Halo sold a shedload, so they're making more. If these other gamers really wanted more stuff like Psychonauts or Shadow of the Colossus, they'd speak with their wallets as well as their keyboards and buy the games.

If it doesn't sell, the company won't take a risk on it. Financially, there's just no good rwason to.

You're spot on with the business model point there, scnj. Perhaps it's no bad thing. Because Dino Crisis and Onimusha aren't "sure things" in a sales sense, it means that Capcom aren't rushing out new ones and are waiting until they find good directions to take their franchises in. It'll help them avoid the fate of Tomb Raider, which saw games being rushed out without thought simply because they would sell.

And careful there, ultimasupersaiyan. If you're going to start talking about how things were "in your day", you'd better have a good argument to back it up. I'm sorry you feel that way about Call of Duty, but I happen to think that the recent entries in the series make some extremely provocative and thought-provoking points about war as a game, as well as narrative, and are only able to do so thanks to increased technology.

Don't confuse nostalgia for coherent and informed reasoning. There is no such thing as argument by authority. I have fond memories for my formative game experiences too, but I don't let that blind me to new innovations, or stop me enjoying the evolution of the industry and the technology it both drives and relies upon.

 

[Jaebird]

I think Onimusha can be modernized, it's just a question of which game the developers look to for inspiration. Advertising it, though, may prove to be tricky.

 

[Lord Beautiful]

Capcom is having difficulty thinking of how to modernize it? Nonsense! They've already shown incredible tact in the area of modernization. All they'd have to do to revitalize Onimusha is start from the very beginning of the story and retcon the established origins by making Samanosuke an emaciated heroin dealer with limited fighting prowess and no respect for his homeland's authorities. Oh, but don't worry fans, he eventually becomes the Samanosuke you all know and love, but this origin is much cooler than the original and will certainly sell more copies.

As for Dino Crisis, I never played any of the original titles, and so I don't have quite as much of an appreciation as I have of Onimusha, which I've been playing since the first entry.

By the way, the very first thought I had when I saw the picture in the OP was "y halo thar." Am I alone in thinking this?

 

[Void Droid]

They should base the next DC game on an island, with the twist that it's a theme park or something like that, maybe have a storm or someone cut the power causing them to escape. You could at one point try to get to the reactor and start it back up. Seems like a very original setting to me.

 

[Odjin]

The reason DC went down has not been the problem with modernization, it has been the problem with totally going astray of the original game mechanics and turning it into mainstream crap. If they go back to original DC game mechanics and step up story, interaction, graphics and sound to todays standards then it would float again. Make another DC-3 crap and it drowns straight after leaving the launchpad.

 

[supermariner]

I always loved Dino Crisis
not 3 though
don't be ridiculous
and a current generation console version could really be capcoms salvation after resi evil 5
(which wasn't that bad really, but wasn't as good as 4 or as long or likeable. so pointless but profitable)

 

[Midniqht]

Honestly? I'd be totally happy if they rebooted Dino Crisis from the beginning. Maybe then I'd actually be able to beat it