Wada: "We have to be global"

In an interview with 1UP, Square Enix president Yoichi Wada has said that in 2009 the company cannot afford only to do well in Japan but now has to think global.

"…we need to start aiming for games that can immediately sell two or three million copies — not just in Japan, but worldwide," he said.

"For better or worse, the game marketplace has become one of very high stakes. Our games are completely global now; we have to be global, both in terms of the consumer marketplace and where the games are developed.

"Being ‘global’ up to now simply meant Japanese companies would export game systems and titles overseas, but that’s no longer the case — you have to consider every possibility available, from selling Japan-made games overseas to selling overseas games in Japan," he went on.

"I think this is a sign that the game business is starting to resemble most other industries. For a game publisher, you have only two choices: become a global business, or work in an extremely narrow niche. I think that’s a decision every company is facing."

In October last year, Wada called for a Japanese alliance so that the Japanese games industry would be better equipped to face the challenge presented by the Western market.

Full interview with Wada through the link.

By Mike Bowden