Itagaki on Creating Globally Appealing Games

Tomonobu Itagaki means business. He isn't one to fool around or pull any punches. The man calls it as he sees it. No mercy. Of course, what else would you expect from the famously outspoken head of Team Ninja? When it comes to game development, Itagaki-san knows exactly what he's doing ... even if what he's doing isn't very conventional.

Considering the first Dead or Alive was on the Sega Saturn, and both of Itagaki's first 3D Ninja Gaiden games were on the Xbox, you'd think his choices when it comes to supporting gaming hardware couldn't get any stranger. And that's where you'd be wrong.

As everyone with a DS is probably well aware by now, the next Ninja Gaiden game will be gracing the system, and will be fully stylus controlled. It may sound crazy, but it's really one in a long line of ideas that has kept Itagaki-san and Team Ninja highly competitive on a global basis. Says Itagaki in an interview with Gamasutra:

In Japan, there is a saying "kachoufuugetsu", which is "flowers, birds, wind, and the moon." That basically is a vague summary of things that human beings might find appealing. You look at a flower and say, "Oh, this is beautiful." You look at a bird that can fly, whereas humans can't, and we see it as a symbol of freedom, something to aspire to. The wind, you know, if you were to have a cool wind blowing, that would help to convey your mood at that moment. And looking at the moon, you may think that not only is it visually beautiful, but it may bring to mind things like wanting to see the moon, wanting to go to the moon, and wanting to know what's there. That sort of inquisitiveness.

So, I think that if you look at those key human emotions that cross national boundaries, and don't rely on the circumstances surrounding each country, then it's relatively easy to make a game that can be enjoyed anywhere.

Just prior to this, Itagaki-san commented on the tendency of American developers to create games that they think the public wants ... something that, in his opinion, keeps them from releasing software that truly enjoys a worldwide appeal.

You can check out the full interview with Itagaki at the link above. From the differences in PSP and DS design to creating high quality visuals for games, the talk covers it all. This is by far the most interesting interview yet with the man, and definitely a recommended read for Team Ninja enthusiasts.

Screencap courtesy of Gamasutra.