GamesRadar:Are there any aspects of Okamiden that you think will surprise fans of Okami?
ME: During the development of Okamiden, we focused on bringing quality graphics and sound to the DS, and making the brush techniques easy to execute. We believe that we were able to accomplish those aspects well and hopefully we%26rsquo;ll surprise Okami fans with the result. The game has already launched in Japan and it has been very well received by both our fans and the press.
GR:Did you have any difficulties localizing Okamiden for release outside of Japan? Do you feel there was anything lost in translation?
ME: Just like the original Okami, Okamiden has some expressions and nuances in the language/character dialogue that are deeply rooted in Japanese culture. The localization lead on the project mentioned that keeping the Japanese touch in the English version of the game was something that was very challenging. Since he is also a big fan of the original Okami, he was very familiar with the Okami world, and through his and the team%26rsquo;s efforts, the final game quality is near equal to the Japanese version.
GR:What was the hardest challenge to overcome in adapting Okamiden to the DS, and what aspect of Okamiden are you most proud of?
ME: The specs of the Nintendo DS are quite different from the Wii and PlayStation 2, which are the platforms Okami was released onto. Our team worked really hard and pushed the capabilities of the DS to the limit in order to fully realize the beautiful Japanese art-style graphics and sound. There isn%26rsquo;t one area where we didn%26rsquo;t try to get the most out of the system specs. Starting with the director of the game, Mr. Matsushita and the entire development team put all their creative forces into making Okamiden, and that is what I am most proud of.
GR:Besides the Zelda series, did any other games provide inspiration for Okamiden?
ME: Mr. Matsushita and I both love the Zelda series, but we did not set out to emulate the Zelda games. Drawing inspiration from playing many different high-quality action-adventure games, we set out to create an original title. So we can%26rsquo;t really name a specific game that we got inspiration from.
GR:If you could take any direction you wanted, on any platform you wanted, what would be your vision for the next entry in the Okami series?
ME: Where we go next with the Okami franchise is something that Capcom will need to decide on as a company, so it%26rsquo;s difficult for me as a producer to speculate on the future. However, in my personal opinion, I think it would be interesting to bring it to the Nintendo 3DS. That said, for now, I would like for everybody to pick up Okamiden on the DS in early 2011 and have fun with the game %26ndash; I hope that the people who play the game enjoy it. Thank you very much.
Eshiro-san was tantalizingly coy in some of his responses, so if you're interested in more details on Okamiden as we get closer to its US launch,Capcom Unityhas tons of Okamiden updates including developer blogs and all things Okami fan-related (yes, someone already has a Chibiterasu tattoo).
Nov 1, 2010
