â??Developers must think globallyâ??

Takashi Fuji has emphasised the need for developers to think internationally in an exclusive interview with Develop.

Fuji, the director of development at Tokyo-based iNiS, commented: “Up until now Japanese developers have been focused on putting all their effort into making games for the Japanese market. But now that market isn’t as big as the American and European marketplaces.”

iNiS, remade its domestically-popular Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan! for the western market as Elite Beat Agents, released in Europe only a few days ago.

“Back in the PlayStation 1 or SNES eras, everyone was playing Japanese-developed games, and so I don’t think there were many people who were conscious to the outside markets like America,” he continued.

“But now, all sorts of people are gamers. I think this is definitely the era where you won’t be able to make good games unless you listen to all sorts of people and take into account lots of different ways of thinking.”

Check out the full interview for more on thinking globally, designing for peripherals and ‘happy’ games.