Platinum Games' new CEO wants to create "new ways to play" or shut the company
Larger, riskier - and live service - games
Platinum Games' new CEO Atsushi Inaba says that he wants the company to "create new games on a larger scale" which "can be enjoyed and loved for a longer period of time." In an interview with Famitsu, he discussed the need for the studio to move beyond the "one-off" experiences the studio is known for and towards, its implied, live service games.
In the interview, as translated by VGC, Platinum co-founder Inaba spoke about Project G.G., the next major project from Hideki Kamiya.
"Project G.G. is still in the stage of testing various things, so I can’t tell you much about it, but when it comes to future game production, we want to focus on creating games that are different from the past," said Inaba.
"I would like to focus on creating games that can be enjoyed and loved for a longer period of time. Of course, we would like to cherish and create small but brilliantly conceived games such as Sol Cresta, and games in which you can enjoy the process of clearing the game by going through one-off, well-designed stages, such as Bayonetta.
"However, the projects that we are trying to create for the future will be different in terms of their structure. Considering the changes in the market over the next five years or so, I think it is absolutely necessary for us to do this. I’m sorry for being so vague, but I think that’s all I can tell you right now."
In 2020, Platinum took investment from Tencent, and later the same year opened a new studio focused on "live ops". Currently, Platinum have three announced games: character action sequel Bayonetta 3, retro shmup Sol Cresta, and four-player co-op action-RPG Babylon's Fall for Square Enix. The latter two are due to come to PC.
Platinum are beloved for games like the Bayonetta series, and for co-developing Nier: Automata, but a lot of their more recent work has been solid, licensed fare such as The Legend Of Korra, Transformers: Devastation, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Their original games, meanwhile, have tended to be mid-budget. That Inaba wants to make larger, unique games is risky but exciting.
"[Former CEO Kenichi Sato] laid the foundation for the company, but I’d like to return to the original ethos of PlatinumGames," said Inaba. "If we can no longer create new ways to play, then there is no reason for us to exist, and if that happens, I think it would be better to dissolve the company, no matter how profitable it is."
"I’d like to go back to our raison d’etre and create new games on a larger scale in a more pure manner. In the past, even if we wanted to create our own IP, it was difficult to do so, and even if we could, it would be on a very small scale... we could only make indie-class products. In the future, I would like to get rid of all of that and make larger games from our ideas, and succeed in at least one thing."
Babylon's Fall is due for release this March.