PlatinumGames president Kenichi Sato has stated that fans can expect to see big things from the company in 2020, with the year marking "the beginning of a new stage".
Speaking to Japanese publication Inside Games, Sato said PlatinumGames will be operating at "full speed" over the next 12 months. The firm is currently working on Switch exclusive Bayonetta 3, but also has two original IPs in production, both of which are totally owned by the studio.
That's not all; PlatinumGames is also looking to move into self-publishing, which will reduce its reliance on external partners like Sega and Nintendo. It is therefore highly likely that this "new stage" Sato refers to will have much to do with PlatinumGames securing its independence and shifting away from the kind of 'for hire' work which has seen IPs like Bayonetta, Wonderful 101 and Astral Chain fall under the ownership of other companies. This arrangement also resulted in the cancellation of Scalebound, a game that was being produced on behalf of Microsoft.
It's clear that PlatinumGames wants more control over its own destiny, which of course comes with added financial risk. 2020 is certainly going to be an interesting year for the Japanese outfit.
[source videogameschronicle.com, via inside-games.jp]
Comments 32
Just hope they will keep the Switch in mind with any new IP they will publish.
Without Nintendo as a publisher, this could mean less Switch games.
Oh really now? 🧐🧐🧐
Right after announcing a Sony exclusive... Please don't mean what I fear this means...
@Trmn8r If you're talking about Babylon's Fall, that was announced years ago, way before Astral Chain and Bayonetta 3. Also, it's published by Squeenix, not their choice of platforms.
@DrDaisy Maybe, maybe not. The Nintendo fanbase is still pretty huge for Platinum, they'd be unwise to ignore it.
Just get Babylon’s Fall and Bayo 3 out the door and I be happy.
I think of all the cult, critically acclaimed games Platinum has made that I adore for their innovation and experimentation...
...and then realise most people just buy COD, Assassins Creed, and Pokemon every year instead.
I hope they aren’t too revolutionary that they innovate themselves out of business.
Love platinum. This is great news.
Just release Vanquish on the Switch already!
@WhiteTrashGuy That depends on SEGA, since Vanquish is a SEGA IP (SEGA published Bayonetta & Vanquish)
@link3710
I sure hope so. I've just seen a trend of when this happens and they get independence they often spurn the company they rode with. See Bungie, Insomniac, Rare, Square. From what I've heard, Platinum loves Nintendo, so let's hope it keeps going forward.
To be honest I'd be interested to see how that might effect the quality of the games they make.
Some of the last good developers left are the ones who don't publish their own games.
l just get more and more excited for Bayonetta 3
I feel like they are going to start to self publish this year.
I one of the new IPs is for Nintendo Switch too. And if the article is saying that Platinum Games was making games for under Nintendo and Sega's belt I hope they are in form of Phantasy Star Online 2 or anything in this series or if it's not one of those specific then please do one similar to them.
I hope this means we’ll get to see something from Bayonetta soon even if its just a trailer.
Bring Nier automata over to Switch
@Trmn8r Babylon's Fall is also coming to PC, so it isn't exactly Sony exclusive.
@Link3710 Babylon's Fall was actually announced at E3 of 2018, while Bayonetta 3 was announced at The Game Awards of 2017. So Bayonetta 3 was first, but you are correct about it being announced before Astral Chain.
@Trmn8r Rare was bought out by Microsoft only after Nintendo refused to take them, not the same. But in general, the examples you're pointing at had a significant history of issues that led to the relationship breaking, while Platinum seems far more likely to just want to expand their game production volume while leaving their existing relationships intact to keep them stable.
@MajorTom whoops, my bad. But yeah, my point probably should have been more that none of their collaborations with Squeenix or Sega have come to Nintendo products in the past either.
@MajorTom No one really counts PC as part of the "console war". That's the same weak argument people make about Microsoft having zero exclusives because they release it on Windows as well.
Regardless of platform, if Platinum make it, I’ll play it. Very excited for Bayo 3 despite only having played the first one. Eh, the second one will go down in price eventually.
I would actually like to see Mad World make a comeback. That was a fun game on Wii.
I fully expect Bayonetta 3 to be a 2020 release if not i will be shocked
Wish them all the best because they make some great games. Exiting to see what they do with bayonetta 3.slinky 😊🙄😂
We hopefully get a switch port for the wonderful 101
@nessisonett maybe 30% if we're lucky. Still waiting on that Mario kart 8 price drop... how long has it been now?
I keep hoping they’re maybe working on MGS Revengeance 2 too...
Vanquish is the only game I would be interested in.
It’s all well and good to say you’re going to self-publish, but they rely on Nintendo and others because their games don’t always do well enough for them to survive self publishing.
As an aside, I really wanted to like Bayonetta 2, but it just feels like a bunch of QTEs and memorizing when to smash which buttons. I’d love insights on how I could enjoy it more.
Good on them! As a company moving forward it's a big deal. As a Nintendo fan... getting worried
How about some news of any kind about upcoming switch games? The only first party Nintendo games this year so far is Animal Crossing. What else? There's 10-11 more months without releases.
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