Video Game Tycoon in Tokyo-Chapter 927: The Dispute Over Formulaic Games
Chapter 927 - The Dispute Over Formulaic Games
At a friend's party held in a Japanese home, a group of people were gathered around a game console, watching someone play a video game.
Most of them had little experience with video games. Normally, they spent their time on what they considered to be "meaningful" activities, and both they and their families viewed video games as a waste of time.
But at a social gathering, people always want to find something fun to do, and watching someone else play a game had unexpectedly become a fascinating experience. For people unfamiliar with games, the vivid, lifelike world on the screen gave them a momentary sense of awe.
Just then, someone walked over out of curiosity. Upon recognizing the game on the screen, his expression showed both surprise and a hint of disdain.
"Huh? Are you playing Assassin's Creed?"
"Yeah."
"Mm, it's definitely Assassin's Creed. It's a pretty good game."
The person nodded. "It is pretty good, but honestly, it's a bit too formulaic. That formula makes it lose a bit of its charm. Still, it's definitely a solid title."
...
...
At that moment, the game being played was Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, the second entry in the Ezio trilogy.
With Gamestar Electronic Entertainment releasing more and more games, they had stopped numbering their sequels. Instead, they left it up to players to name them however they liked.
Gamestar just refused to use "2" themselves, and no one could do anything about it.
Rumor once had it that Dragon Quest stopped at the tenth installment because they didn't want to deal with the number twelve.
But Final Fantasy did eventually release a 12th entry, leaving everyone stunned for quite some time.
For a game series to reach its twelfth main installment was extremely rare, something that even Takayuki himself acknowledged as a mark of success. Only a few other companies besides Gamestar—like Surei Electronics and Brown Entertainment—had series that reached that milestone.
Some of the group watching turned to the one who had commented on Assassin's Creed.
"Asakusa, have you played this game before?"
The boy called Asakusa replied with a bit of pride, "Of course. I've played tons of games. My dad grew up on games, and I'm just following in his footsteps."
Someone muttered, "That's not really what 'following in his footsteps' means..."
After bragging, Asakusa continued, "Look, it's fine to play Assassin's Creed, but it's released three titles in a row—one every year. And they're planning to continue with that pace. Honestly, it feels a bit rushed, like a cash grab."
"Do you have any game recommendations?"
"Of course! You guys look like you haven't played many games before, so my top recommendation is definitely Super Mario."
Someone perked up. "Oh, I've heard of that. Isn't it a really famous game?"
"'Famous'? Come on, that series is practically the king of games. Every new entry used to break records!"
"Any others?"
"What kind are you looking for?" Asakusa asked.
One person looked at the screen. "Something like Assassin's Creed. I think it looks really cool."
Asakusa quickly shot back, "What's the point? Cool doesn't feed you. The industry already considers Assassin's Creed a formulaic 'canned' game. Soon, other companies will mass-produce games just like it. You really don't need to waste your time on something like that."
The person playing the game put down the controller. He couldn't take the mockery anymore.
"Asakusa, you don't know anything about Assassin's Creed."
"Oh, I don't?" Asakusa chuckled. "The series is already considered the industry's model for formulaic open-world games. It's Gamestar Electronic Entertainment's template for showing off what a standard game should look like."
His reply was almost instant, but coming from a fifteen-year-old who sounded like an industry analyst, it felt a little unnatural.
That's because those weren't his own opinions—they were things he read on a gaming forum.
It was a review site's forum, filled with loud, opinionated users who loved to dissect every move the industry made.
The kid playing the game flushed with frustration. Then he suddenly remembered something.
"Bet you didn't know the next Assassin's Creed is coming out before Christmas this year. It's going to be something completely new, with brand-new systems."
"New systems? I don't buy it."
"Just wait and see!"
...
Time fast-forwards to December 2014. Assassin's Creed was released right on schedule.
No one in the industry was surprised. This series had become the gold standard for industrialized game production—a benchmark that told developers: "This is what it means to be a real game company."
In other words, Assassin's Creed was Gamestar Electronic Entertainment's way of showing what a baseline, high-standard game looked like.
Any studio capable of making a game to that standard could count themselves among the upper tiers of the industry and earn a bigger slice of the pie.
Those who couldn't match that quality were stuck in the lower rungs—unless they happened to create a fluke hit like some indie games from the original world.
"President, today is the release day for Gamestar Electronic Entertainment's Assassin's Creed. Should we buy a copy and check it out?"
At Surei Electronics' Game Development Division, the department head accompanied Hayakawa Ueto during an inspection of the game and console projects.
With rumors spreading that Gamestar was preparing to launch a next-gen home console—not a hybrid device like the Switch—Surei naturally didn't want to fall behind. Losing ground here would mean a serious drop in game revenue.
"Assassin's Creed, huh? The formulaic one from Gamestar?"
"That's right, sir."
"What's your take on it?"
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