Big name devs head to Grasshopper

Grasshopper Manufacture, the studio owned by cult developer Goichi Suda, has snared two of Japan’s leading developers from fellow studio Marvelous Entertainment.

Yasuhiro Wada, the creator of the popular Harvest Moon series, and Yoshiro Kimura, whose most recent title was Wii hit Little King’s Story, have both jumped ship to join forces with the No more Heroes and Killer 7 creator.

This move will help us produce games in a more stable manner,” Suda 51 told Famitsu, as translated by 1UP.

We haven’t released a single [original] title in the past year, which is something that caused a lot of regret in my mind. Having these two people join Grasshopper will make us a more sturdily-organized company, and it’ll improve our development, technical, and release skills.”

Wada said of the move: Grasshopper’s games are enjoyed by people around the world, but they aren’t necessarily geared toward the overseas market. They just happen to resonate with oveaseas audiences as well.

I think that’s because this company plays home to a great deal of different cultures that all come together to discover types of fun that everyone can share. It’s not a matter of marketing toward individual countries; it’s about finding the inner antenna that tells you what’s fun and what isn’t.”