During a recent interview with DenFamiNicoGamer, the president of Nihom Falcom - Toshihiro Kondo - revealed how the company has dealt with “online flaming” for many years due to the misconception the Japanese developer did not like Nintendo.
Even prior to the release of Ys VIII on the Nintendo Switch, the president explained how the developer’s local publisher, Nippon Ichi Software, received a call of concern from Nintendo's PR:
Recently right before releasing Ys VIII on the Nintendo Switch there was a bit of online flaming going on. Our publisher Nippon Ichi Software even got a phone call from Nintendo’s PR asking “Are you guys okay? and “Is Falcom okay?” But we didn’t think much of it.
The false accusations originally stem from the Nintendo DS generation when the system was at an all-time high and Falcom chose to publish games on the PSP instead:
At the time the Nintendo DS was extremely popular, so there was a flow of all the companies going with DS. After looking at the lineup of games that were selling on DS, we had a bit of a difficult time picturing our products fitting in there. Family-oriented games and games focusing on a younger audience were the ones becoming hits, after all.
In the end, the reason we decided to go with the PSP was because we determined that PSP users and Falcom fans simply overlapped. Although it was from there that people started saying “Falcom hates Nintendo."
He explained how the developer had even been approved by Nintendo to make games for the DS and said one had been planned out:
When the DS was booming, I went with former president Yamasaki (former Falcom president Shinji Yamasaki) to greet them in Kyoto. At the time we even had their approval for development.
However, when we visited Kyoto that time, we went with newly written plans for a command-based RPG type of Ys game. It’s a shame that we couldn’t make it happen…so we went that far and still had to be told “Falcom is hating”?
With Ys VIII now available on the Switch, hopefully it's clear Nihom Falcom maintains good relations with Nintendo.
[source siliconera.com]
Comments 44
This is exactly the kind of behavior that scares companies like these away from developing for Nintendo consoles.
Freaking LOOOOOOVE Ys VIII. Playing through it for the first time.
It surprises me that he doesn't mention the technical side of things - there's not a chance any of their new games at the time (Oath in Felghana, Trails in the Sky, Xanadu Next) would even have been able to run on a DS. We only just got Gurumin on 3DS and that's a 2004 game.
Seeing as most of the iconic JRPG series were being released on the DS and they were nowhere to be seen could have easily fueled the perception that Falcom simply didn't care about DS.
Also, hearing the "NINTENDO KiDDY!" argument from an industry figure sure is.... something to say the least.
I don't get the part where they said they didn't release any games on DS, the fact is they did, they just didn't do it as much. Also they did it through other publisher like Atlus amd Rising Star Games instead of Nippon Ichi Software (NIS).
Ok, now that we understand Falcom's position in the past and technical limitations are no longer an issue, how about bringing the whole series to Switch so we can FINALLY play the entire series in one place! I LOVE this series but you literally have to own like 3-4 consoles just to be able to experience the whole timeline. Even Steam doesn't cover everything. I would happily shell out to have a physical collection of Origin/1/2/3/4/5/6/7 all on the Switch alongside Lacrimosa of Dana. I know 5 doesn't have any type of official english language release but I feel like they have a perfect opportunity to announce an official remake of 5 for Switch and spend the next year or more releasing all the previous titles. I'm fine with upgraded versions of the PSP/PS Vita titles on Switch as they would be an excellent fit. Please make this happen Falcom, pretty please!
And yet some of the best rpgs of the last decade are on the DS... But none of falcoms. I mean even the greatest rpg of all time, chrono trigger, was ported to DS, and it's the best version of the game to-date by the way, but that platform wasn't hardcore enough for you?! I call major bs there. I mean this story, between the lines, sounds slot like they met with Nintendo who were supportive and then they flipped them the finger and went with Sony instead, doesn't this kind of reinforce the haters?
Guess you guys missed the DS boat. Just don't miss the switch boat hey? I want your games on my switch!
I just can't find a copy of Ys viii anywhere right now, except ebgames where it's $90 AUD, and even then online order only.
@retro_player_22 Most likely because Falcom had basically nothing to do with those, they were developed by other companies with very little involvement from them.
@TreonsRealm As of today (Because Celceta just released) Steam actually does cover everything except V, though I'm sure if it gets a remake that'll appear as well.
@retro_player_22 oh man Ys strategy probably shouldn't exist if you read the reviews... Maybe they wish it didn't happen.
So uhh...can we have Trails in the Sky games now?
Personally, it's not that he doesn't like Nintendo. Thay just don't care. They assume they know their "fanbase" really well. They don't even consider Nintendo fans as an audience for their games. I feel like Ys VIII is just a one off. I hope I'm wrong though
https://nintendoeverything.com/falcom-says-switch-is-very-successful-but-unsure-if-its-fan-base-is-on-the-system-yet/
@Drake - That's cool that they just did Celceta, I didn't know it launched today. My personal issue with Steam is that they are all limited to Windows which prevents myself and many others from playing them. Everything being on Steam though makes it a much higher chance of them potentially coming to Switch which is aces in my book. Thanks for the heads up.
@bolt05 Really? Wow maybe that is it. I never got to play the game cause it never got release here in North America but I never thought it would be that terrible.
@Drake ku It's still their IPs though, even if they are not involve the permission of rights for them to be release had to come from them. Besides Legacy of Ys was awesome on the DS, I just wish they bring the other remakes for DS.
@Varkster I doubt online complaints scare developers/publishers of any significance away from developing from particular platforms. If they're that thin skinned, they're not going to stick around.
A shame they had to go through that. All fan bases are like this which really sucks. We should be appreciating the people who make our hobby possible.
That being said, the NDS is still one of the best systems for JRPG fans. In fact, I would say it is a must have if you love JRPGs (Well, the 3DS is better since you can play everything on it). So many excellent JRPGs: original, sequels and remakes.
I think a lot of people in the west don't realize that the PSP and Vita were a LOT stronger in Japan than they were in the west. Up until only a few years ago PSP and Vitas were still pretty common sights around Japan on trains and at cafes and such. But when I was in high school and college in the US I knew only a handful of PSP owners and only 1 person with a Vita and the sections for them in the local game stores were small.
Welp, theres only one way to show they love Nintnedo!!! Bring over all the YS remakes and YS Origins!!!!
Didn't they do a remake of Ys 1 and 2 on DS? I seem to remember playing it and liking it even though it wasn't rated great. Plus the DS wasn't getting very many RPGs for like the first 3 years. It started to take off I think once Etrian Odyssey came out, then the RPG games had more releases.
All I can say is I had never played an Ys game before, but I'm LOVING Ys VIII on my Switch!
well we all make mistakes
"We determined that PSP owners and Falcom fans overlapped," more like Sony payed you a bunch of money to stay on board. It was very unbusiness-like to not publish on DS when nearly everyone in Japan had one and it was the most convenient thing to publish for the DS. Plus, with Nippon Ichi as the publisher, it was all the easier as they already had a foothold in DS territory.
It's a bit like the Cuphead publishers refusing to leave the Xbox: they simply are tied to the money.
@Atariboy I don't think the hate would get to any developer because that wouldn't make sense, but I do see how a developer can think that there may be a noticeable decline in sales if they release the game on a system where consumers see them in a negative way.
Falcom, come on over to Nintendo. It's Ys-y money!
We just heard YS VIII is the best selling version in the west. Which is incredible for a platform that hasn't been groomed before.
I think that is going to kind of change their perception of what they hold to be true.
@Varkster I certainly see sense in that.
'With Ys VIII now available on the Switch, hopefully it's clear Nihom Falcom maintains good relations with Nintendo.'
This makes it sound like the problem was miscommunication. The problem was a load of cretins flaming a developer just because they weren't releasing many games on a system.
Why did it have to be one or the other. Couldn't they have released the games on both systems? I mean, the DS library does have a lot of gaps in the more action-oriented and mature genres, but great JRPGs are one genre that the system has in spades.
@Varkster If this behaviour would scare developers/ publishers away, they weren't in this industry; it has nothing to do with Nintendo fans. There are people like this on all platforms. #Bayonetta
All that salt... People seem to ignore that very few of the games released by Falcom on the PSP would even be possible on the DS. Only Ys I&II were 2D, all the 3D ones would require rewriting from the grounds up, and even the 2D ones would look like a pixellised mess.
In comparison, getting them to work on the PSP was much easier.
And you can play every single ys game sans V on the Vita, the only downside is that VIII was first released there, so it's missing some of the extra content of later versions.
Wouldn't mind some sort of Ys collection for Switch, though.
Cya
Raziel-chan
Well if they got flamed, good. The DS was the place to be for portable gaming back then and they had lots of capable software that would work and really other than Ys 1+2 (which I had) they did nothing despite ample complaining for more. People got mad the stuff only hit the PSP, and well obviously more powerful it could take those games better, but things could have eaisly been designed for DS either conversions of older stuff or new but they didn't bother.
Ys VIII was my first Ys game and I'll gladly check out whatever else makes its way to the switch
@Kosmo It probably reminds you of how Nintendo keeps throwing money at Sega to keep Bayonetta a Switch exclusive huh?
I’d love to see Popful Mail come to Switch too.
Then the Switch version of Ys VIII became the best selling version in the west.
So er...may need to rethink that strategy lads.
Here's hoping their Legend of Heroes games come to the Switch.
I can understand that Falcom's ARPGs weren't technologically capable of running on DS, but the reasoning that "well family and kids games were the hits on DS so we didn't think our games would fit the platform" is absurdly laughable. From the top 70 DS games we have:
DQM:Joker
DQM:Joker2
FFIII
KH 358/2
DQIV
DQV
DQVI
DQIX
FFIV
FFXII
Right...Ys just didn't fit the audience. Because the audience was already busy with half the Squaresoft catalog. My bet isn't that they didn't feel they fit next to Kirby, and more that they wanted to avoid challenging FF and DQ for the same audience on the platform.
It's just a figure of speech, we always say a company hates Nintendo if they don't release their games on Nintendo systems. It's not meant to be taken literally
@TreonsRealm I recently bought a bunch of the Ys games on Steam for cheap during their summer sale, but I’d definitley rebuy them on switch. Preferably physically in one or two collections. That would be amazing.
@Firelork when did they say that?
@TreonsRealm I mean that is to be expected on a Mac though.
Ys 8 is my first. I enjoyed it. Very different from what I expected to to be but I really enjoyed how it all came together.
Port the PSP and Vita libraries and the cash will flow.
All those wining cry babies, need to go out more. Closed rooms dont have enough oxygen..
crying over a company who didnt bring a game on the DS come on, grow up, go play with lego or something.
They still haters!
Nah, issa joke.
@Trajan - I actually use Linux (bailed on Windows in 2011) which makes things difficult for "mainstream" releases on Steam which is why I generally use Switch for console games. That's why I hope they eventually bring the bulk, if not all, of the Ys series to Switch.
@MonkeyKing It's not the same situation at all. SEGA pulled the plug on Bayonetta 2 and it solely exists because Nintendo backed it. They didn't pay anything for a Nintendo exlusivity because in a way it is their game. Also, the recent Bayonetta PC port contains data from the Switch remaster that Nintendo worked on and allowed for use.
As for Bayo 3, once again Nintendo is paying for development instead of SEGA, so it makes sense it's a Switch exclusive.
For the Ys series, SONY just threw money at Falcom to pay for an exclusivity. Same crap as with the Tomb Raider "timed exclusive" fiasco, or Crash N Sane trilogy. If Sony was actually involved in making the game, having it on different platforms would be a feat. Same as Minecraft, but Microsoft likes money so Minecraft is everywhere.
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