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[Nirolak]

Bandai Namco America has uploaded the God Eater teaser to youtube. I think things are pointing towards a western focused console game at this point...

Let's step back from the individual product and its genre for a second. Is this not the behavior you would expect?

Like, let's look at the scenario here:
- Namco had a notably successful product (by their standards) with God Eater 1.
- The series has been selling progressively less over time.
- The game's main audience is on a dead product line with an unclear remaining lifespan.
- The Japanese dedicated game market is completely imploding.
- The Japanese mobile market is the largest mobile market in the world.
- There's a new Nintendo platform coming to replace the 3DS in six months.
- The worldwide console market is pretty healthy, and Namco has had success selling games like Dark Souls, Dragon Ball XenoVerse, Tekken, and Naruto overseas, while also seemingly getting worthwhile sales for most of their other series given they keep localizing them.

As such, they spend TGS announcing a high production value mobile game and teasing a higher graphics quality console game for mysterious platforms that presumably include PS4, PC, and maybe others.

What else did you expect them to do? Make a Vita-first game and hope the Vita is still going strong in 2020 when they need to release God Eater 4? Release a 3DS game in Fall 2017?

Even if your answer is "Well the NX!" you would still expect them to be making something of this visual quality.

 

[Psycho_Mantis]

Let's step back from the individual product and its genre for a second. Is this not the behavior you would expect?

Like, let's look at the scenario here:
- Namco had a notably successful product (by their standards) with God Eater 1.
- The series has been selling progressively less over time.
- The game's main audience is on a dead product line with an unclear remaining lifespan.
- The Japanese dedicated game market is completely imploding.
- The Japanese mobile market is the largest mobile market in the world.
- There's a new Nintendo platform coming to replace the 3DS in six months.
- The worldwide console market is pretty healthy, and Namco has had success selling games like Dark Souls, Dragon Ball XenoVerse, Tekken, and Naruto overseas, while also seemingly getting worthwhile sales for most of their other series given they keep localizing them.

As such, they spend TGS announcing a high production value mobile game and teasing a higher graphics quality console game for mysterious platforms that presumably include PS4, PC, and maybe others.

What else did you expect them to do? Make a Vita-first game and hope the Vita is still going strong in 2020 when they need to release God Eater 4? Release a 3DS game in Fall 2017?

Even if your answer is "Well the NX!" you would still expect them to be making something of this visual quality.

I think its obvious NB are looking for overseas sales. The limit for GE in Japan was around 600k and is in decline, while a console game catered more to the West may have a far higher potential.

 

[Chris1964]

Let's step back from the individual product and its genre for a second. Is this not the behavior you would expect?

Like, let's look at the scenario here:
- Namco had a notably successful product (by their standards) with God Eater 1.
- The series has been selling progressively less over time.
- The game's main audience is on a dead product line with an unclear remaining lifespan.
- The Japanese dedicated game market is completely imploding.
- The Japanese mobile market is the largest mobile market in the world.
- There's a new Nintendo platform coming to replace the 3DS in six months.
- The worldwide console market is pretty healthy, and Namco has had success selling games like Dark Souls, Dragon Ball XenoVerse, Tekken, and Naruto overseas, while also seemingly getting worthwhile sales for most of their other series given they keep localizing them.

As such, they spend TGS announcing a high production value mobile game and teasing a higher graphics quality console game for mysterious platforms that presumably include PS4, PC, and maybe others.

What else did you expect them to do? Make a Vita-first game and hope the Vita is still going strong in 2020 when they need to release God Eater 4? Release a 3DS game in Fall 2017?

Even if your answer is "Well the NX!" you would still expect them to be making something of this visual quality.

GE2 sales were similar to GE1. I don't think there is an attempt moving from Vita to PS4 that has worked. Every time west will save declined Japanese sales and it doesn't happen.

 

[Nirolak]

I don't think there is an attempt moving from Vita to PS4 that has worked. Every time west will save declined Japanese sales and it doesn't happen.

I think there's an argument to be made for just canceling the series that are dying, yes, with perhaps the exception of going fishing on phones.

But, assuming they're not doing this, there's not many options on the table here long term. Like what do they do when the Vita stops existing? I'm open to suggestions.

 

[Oregano]

Let's step back from the individual product and its genre for a second. Is this not the behavior you would expect?

Like, let's look at the scenario here:
- Namco had a notably successful product (by their standards) with God Eater 1.
- The series has been selling progressively less over time.
- The game's main audience is on a dead product line with an unclear remaining lifespan.
- The Japanese dedicated game market is completely imploding.
- The Japanese mobile market is the largest mobile market in the world.
- There's a new Nintendo platform coming to replace the 3DS in six months.
- The worldwide console market is pretty healthy, and Namco has had success selling games like Dark Souls, Dragon Ball XenoVerse, Tekken, and Naruto overseas, while also seemingly getting worthwhile sales for most of their other series given they keep localizing them.

As such, they spend TGS announcing a high production value mobile game and teasing a higher graphics quality console game for mysterious platforms that presumably include PS4, PC, and maybe others.

What else did you expect them to do? Make a Vita-first game and hope the Vita is still going strong in 2020 when they need to release God Eater 4? Release a 3DS game in Fall 2017?

Even if your answer is "Well the NX!" you would still expect them to be making something of this visual quality.

I'd absolutely expect them to make this a Vita-first product at this point because 1) God Eater 2 was a PSP game so it could still be a significant step up, 2) The bulk of the audience is demonstrably on dedicated handhelds in Japan and 3) They have no indication the brand will be successful in the west(so far GE2 isn't looking great from what we know).

It absolutely makes sense for them to try make inroads on mobile and console but by dropping their built in audience altogether they risk destroying altogether. In terms of selling products you want to fade away instead of burning out.

I think its obvious NB are looking for overseas sales. The limit for GE in Japan was around 600k and is in decline, while a console game catered more to the West may have a far higher potential.

They can aim for that but I'm not sure that's a realistic goal.

 

[Chris1964]

I think there's an argument to be made for just canceling the series that are dying, yes, with perhaps the exception of going fishing on phones.

But, assuming they're not doing this, there's not many options on the table here long term. Like what do they do when the Vita stops existing? I'm open to suggestions.

One option is continue releasing series deigned for handhelds on Vita and let them die when Vita dies and the other option is move them to PS4 and kill them before their time. If these are the only 2 options I'd go with the first. If Japanese companies really want to hunt western market they must create suitable IPs because what they do now doesn't work.

If Monster Hunter was on Vita and not 3DS we would say bye bye soon too.

 

[Nirolak]

I'll defer to people who have used their Vita more.

Would this run acceptably on one (you know, assuming the kind of compromises you'd expect out of a downport)? The geometry is pretty simple on individual objects, but the lighting model seems a bit beyond scope and there's kind of a lot of stuff in general.

---

I'd absolutely expect them to make this a Vita-first product at this point because 1) God Eater 2 was a PSP game so it could still be a significant step up, 2) The bulk of the audience is demonstrably on dedicated handhelds in Japan and 3) They have no indication the brand will be successful in the west(so far GE2 isn't looking great from what we know).

It absolutely makes sense for them to try make inroads on mobile and console but by dropping their built in audience altogether they risk destroying altogether. In terms of selling products you want to fade away instead of burning out.

One option is continue releasing series deigned for handhelds on Vita and let them die when Vita dies and the other option is move them to PS4 and kill them before their time. If these are the only 2 options I'd go with the first. If Japanese companies really want to hunt western market they must create suitable IPs because what they do now doesn't work.

Okay I could see the argument for just milking them out and letting them die, which I feel is basically the same argument as killing them off, just about one entry later than they currently are.

 

[Shizuka]

I'll defer to people who have used their Vita more.

Would this run acceptably on one (you know, assuming the kind of compromises you'd expect out of a downport)? The geometry is pretty simple on individual objects, but the lighting model seems a bit beyond scope and there's kind of a lot of stuff in general.

It doesn't look like something impossible for the Vita to run, just search for a Killzone Mercenaries video for a quick comparison.

 

[Hero of Legend]

Or instead of just risking it on PS4-only and trying to somehow keep it afloat on Vita they can try on NX, which signs point to being a VERY powerful handheld and Nintendo handhelds have the highest chance of success in Japan I think is fair to say.

That and also I don't think any game like it on PS4 has done well in the west (Toukiden Kiwami to put it mildly cratered did it not?). It might even be getting to a point where they may be FORCED to put it on NX as it being likely the only viable platform for it period, I think again is fair to say. Monster Hunter did outstanding on 3DS in Japan of course, but also did pretty damn well in the west with Generations continuing the success and without the huge push that MH4U got at that.

Just my viewpoint. Toukiden is also another that might need to head in that direction.

 

[Arzehn]

I'll defer to people who have used their Vita more.

Would this run acceptably on one (you know, assuming the kind of compromises you'd expect out of a downport)? The geometry is pretty simple on individual objects, but the lighting model seems a bit beyond scope and there's kind of a lot of stuff in general.

Well, I was more surprised when Valkyria: Azure Revolution was announced for Vita. It's one thing to have the idea that you're going to have the game run on both the Vita and PS4 from the get go rather than decide to add Vita down the line.

As long as it's still arena based and not totally free roam I don't see them dropping Vita altogether.

 

[Oregano]

I'll defer to people who have used their Vita more.

Would this run acceptably on one (you know, assuming the kind of compromises you'd expect out of a downport)? The geometry is pretty simple on individual objects, but the lighting model seems a bit beyond scope and there's kind of a lot of stuff in general.



---


Okay I could see the argument for just milking them out and letting them die, which I feel is basically the same argument as killing them off, just about one entry later than they currently are.

Well I just think it would make more sense if Rage Burst and Ressurection hadn't both bombed on PS4 in Japan or even if the franchise had positive momentum in the west(they obviously couldn't tell when they made the decision).

 

[Ōkami]

Like what do they do when the Vita stops existing? I'm open to suggestions.

Everything is set for the WonderSwan to make a comeback.

 

[Man God]

Namco has got some interesting decisions ahead of them. They're actually in a pretty good place if you think about it. Naruto and DBZ Xenoverse do surprisingly well worldwide after a decade of those series games being rather niche out west. Then they have Souls, which should be good for another few sequels at least. They've carved out a stable home for Tales. It's mainly stuff like God Eater where they need to fish or cut bait. I think trying a mobile game is a great idea. Someone is going to hit with a hunting style game on mobile one of these days. You can see countless ways to successfully refresh and monetize such a game if it were ever to truly hit.

 

[Oregano]

Namco has got some interesting decisions ahead of them. They're actually in a pretty good place if you think about it. Naruto and DBZ Xenoverse do surprisingly well worldwide after a decade of those series games being rather niche out west. Then they have Souls, which should be good for another few sequels at least. They've carved out a stable home for Tales. It's mainly stuff like God Eater where they need to fish or cut bait. I think trying a mobile game is a great idea. Someone is going to hit with a hunting style game on mobile one of these days. You can see countless ways to successfully refresh and monetize such a game if it were ever to truly hit.

Tales is probably only slightly better off than God Eater.

 

[Man God]

Tales has gone back down to series averages in Japan and I imagine does pretty well worldwide. Pretty good considering they can't cost that much to keep churning them out at this rate.

 

[Oregano]

Tales has gone back down to series averages in Japan and I imagine does pretty well worldwide. Pretty good considering they can't cost that much to keep churning them out at this rate.

That's assuming they're not going to further decline though.

 

[Man God]

That's assuming they're not going to further decline though.

Absolutely true but for the time being they are keeping the Tales train on the rails, full steam ahead.

 

[Sandfox]

Namco has got some interesting decisions ahead of them. They're actually in a pretty good place if you think about it. Naruto and DBZ Xenoverse do surprisingly well worldwide after a decade of those series games being rather niche out west. Then they have Souls, which should be good for another few sequels at least. They've carved out a stable home for Tales. It's mainly stuff like God Eater where they need to fish or cut bait. I think trying a mobile game is a great idea. Someone is going to hit with a hunting style game on mobile one of these days. You can see countless ways to successfully refresh and monetize such a game if it were ever to truly hit.

Naruto probably has nowhere to go but down and we'll see about Xenoverse 2.

Tales has gone back down to series averages in Japan and I imagine does pretty well worldwide. Pretty good considering they can't cost that much to keep churning them out at this rate.

I don't think this is true. Aren't the current numbers actually lower?

 

[Man God]

Naruto going up as high as it did never made any sense considering the reputation of the series as it went along. It was this successful but niche sort of game in the west until a few years ago when it exploded. It started before they got popular on Steam so it wasn't just that either!

 

[DriftingSpirit]

Even with the state of the manga, Naruto has always been fairly popular overseas. It isn't surprising that it has done well.

 

[Takao]

Back when the NPD actually gave data, the Naruto PS2 games would debut >100k even years after PS3/360/Wii released. The series did so well in the west that you had things like Ubisoft buying the Xbox license, or Bandai Namco making PSP entries exclusively for release here. The expansion of Ninja Storm is probably just a consolidation of Naruto games in general. Back in the 00s, you had loads of games from three different publishers across Nintendo, PlayStation and Microsoft platforms. Now you have one.

 

[Jarod McChicken]

That and also I don't think any game like it on PS4 has done well in the west (Toukiden Kiwami to put it mildly cratered did it not?). It might even be getting to a point where they may be FORCED to put it on NX as it being likely the only viable platform for it period, I think again is fair to say. Monster Hunter did outstanding on 3DS in Japan of course, but also did pretty damn well in the west with Generations continuing the success and without the huge push that MH4U got at that.

Monster Hunter is Monster Hunter. How many years of Nintendo and Capcom combined efforts did it take (plus the 3 or 4 games that paved the way on PS2 and PSP before that) before Monster Hunter was able to sell around 150K in the US like MHG did last month ? And even after all those years, MHG likely barely reach 200K at retail (Aqua revealed the game collapsed way below 50K in August) so what are we expecting exactly from IP with no or little history in the West and way smaller marketing and awareness like Toukiden or God Eater anyway.

Also, since the discussion right now is about Bandai Namco games, another relevant tweet from our favorite leaker about #soulsfatigue and all that.

#BandaiNamco are extremely pleased with Dark Souls 3 sales. They predicted a mere 2 million yet the game outperformed at 3.5 million sold!

 

[Nirolak]

Back when the NPD actually gave data, the Naruto PS2 games would debut >100k even years after PS3/360/Wii released. The series did so well in the west that you had things like Ubisoft buying the Xbox license, or Bandai Namco making PSP entries exclusively for release here. The expansion of Ninja Storm is probably just a consolidation of Naruto games in general. Back in the 00s, you had loads of games from three different publishers across Nintendo, PlayStation and Microsoft platforms. Now you have one.

I mean, Jeff Bell was even bragging about how big Naruto was overseas back at E3 2007:

Those 8-14 year olds are now 17-23 and part of the prime console buying audience.

The series also did an age jump on its cast that helped follow the audience.

There was probably something for the manga/anime industry to learn from the series, but that's a different discussion.

 

[Man God]

Back when the NPD actually gave data, the Naruto PS2 games would debut >100k even years after PS3/360/Wii released. The series did so well in the west that you had things like Ubisoft buying the Xbox license, or Bandai Namco making PSP entries exclusively for release here. The expansion of Ninja Storm is probably just a consolidation of Naruto games in general. Back in the 00s, you had loads of games from three different publishers across Nintendo, PlayStation and Microsoft platforms. Now you have one.

It actually mirrors what happened in the US to WWE games/wrestling games in general. When they consolidated into one title and made that multiplatform the numbers grew for a few cycles before receding into a very comfortable pattern.

I'd argue that the last few Naruto titles and DBZ Xenoverse in particular have vastly exceeded expectations of what the franchise was years ago. DBZ sort of makes sense as it is riding a resurgence and Xenoverse scratched a particular gaming itch with its premise. Naruto I guess beyond the healthy interest the manga/anime generates over here the series got a reputation for being graphical showcases and when it finally consolidated into one title people paid attention, especially as the PS360 generation moved on.

 

[gundamkyoukai]

I mean, Jeff Bell was even bragging about how big Naruto was overseas back at E3 2007:



Those 8-14 year olds are now 17-23 and part of the prime console buying audience.

The series also did an age jump on its cast that helped follow the audience.

There was probably something for the manga/anime industry to learn from the series, but that's a different discussion.

I really don't think the age jump had any effect .
Having one game seem to have help more .
Plus it also really well made and looks very nice.

There is nothing the manga\anime industry can learn from time jump if we talking about sales in Japan .

 

[~Cross~]

I don't think this is true. Aren't the current numbers actually lower?

Berseria had a worse opening week than Zesty but still sold through most of its stock and is showing to have better legs than it. Its lower than xilia, but those were probably aberrations more than a new normal.

 

[Sandfox]

Berseria had a worse opening week than Zesty but still sold through most of its stock and is showing to have better legs than it. Its lower than xilia, but those were probably aberrations more than a new normal.

Even then ToB is selling worse than the "average".

 

[DriftingSpirit]

Well, what is the average?

 

[leatherhat]

Interesting given the current discussion:

http://gematsu.com/2016/09/toukiden-2-ruins-update-free-play-version-announced

Koei is releasing a f2p version of toukiden 2.

 

[Ryng_tolu]

Also, since the discussion right now is about Bandai Namco games, another relevant tweet from our favorite leaker about #soulsfatigue and all that.

Saw that tweet and i asked if was sold in or sould throught, but she didn't replied me...

I guess that's sold throught?
If it is, then yes that's amazing.

Monster Hunter is Monster Hunter. How many years of Nintendo and Capcom combined efforts did it take (plus the 3 or 4 games that paved the way on PS2 and PSP before that) before Monster Hunter was able to sell around 150K in the US like MHG did last month ?

MHG sold over 165k last month at retail... Btw keep in mind Monster Hunter digital sales are huge. Hultimate sold less than 190k first month at retail, but including digital was over 290k.

 

[BriBri]

"Square Enix have just announced Dragon Quest Monsters Joker 3 Professional for Nintendo 3DS releasing on 9 February priced at 5,670 yen."

 

[zeromcd73]

"Square Enix have just announced Dragon Quest Monsters Joker 3 Professional for Nintendo 3DS releasing on 9 February priced at 5,670 yen."

。

 

[duckroll]

I want to step back from the God Eater 3 platform speculation to address something I find really weird. Many people here hold the opinion that the teaser they showed off is very impressive and indicates they are targeting high production values for the visuals. But... why is that? It's a teaser of a ruined city and a new monster. It doesn't look like gameplay at all, but rather it's clearly a cutscene, which is so vague that at this point we can assume that development just started and that's not indicative of anything other than the tone they want to set for the game - more oppressive shit.

Considering the sort of teaser videos we get from Japan for everything from mobile games to browser games to handheld games to console games, how can we really draw any sort of conclusion from that tiny teaser that shows nothing at all?

 

[Oregano]

Monster Hunter is Monster Hunter. How many years of Nintendo and Capcom combined efforts did it take (plus the 3 or 4 games that paved the way on PS2 and PSP before that) before Monster Hunter was able to sell around 150K in the US like MHG did last month ? And even after all those years, MHG likely barely reach 200K at retail (Aqua revealed the game collapsed way below 50K in August) so what are we expecting exactly from IP with no or little history in the West and way smaller marketing and awareness like Toukiden or God Eater anyway.

Also, since the discussion right now is about Bandai Namco games, another relevant tweet from our favorite leaker about #soulsfatigue and all that.

If Bamco and Koei Tecmo are aiming significantly lower than Monster Hunter Generations' 200k then why are seemingly willing to gut their Japanese fanbase?

Further if they are aiming that low for the west do they really gain any tangible benefit from focusing on PS4/Steam? They can easily achieve those numbers on the smaller platforms.

I'd say they are definitely aiming higher, regardless of whether the do achieve it.

"Square Enix have just announced Dragon Quest Monsters Joker 3 Professional for Nintendo 3DS releasing on 9 February priced at 5,670 yen."

Surprised they're bothering. Can't see it doing too well considering how bad the OG release sold.

I want to step back from the God Eater 3 platform speculation to address something I find really weird. Many people here hold the opinion that the teaser they showed off is very impressive and indicates they are targeting high production values for the visuals. But... why is that? It's a teaser of a ruined city and a new monster. It doesn't look like gameplay at all, but rather it's clearly a cutscene, which is so vague that at this point we can assume that development just started and that's not indicative of anything other than the tone they want to set for the game - more oppressive shit.

Considering the sort of teaser videos we get from Japan for everything from mobile games to browser games to handheld games to console games, how can we really draw any sort of conclusion from that tiny teaser that shows nothing at all?

I think its more based on how Bandai Namco communicated around the teaser. I didn't think the teaser was reflective of the actual game at all.

 

[duckroll]

I think its more based on how Bandai Namco communicated around the teaser. I didn't think the teaser was reflective of the actual game at all.

What are they communicating? They simply had a teaser for God Eater 3 because it is what fans expect, since they only had God Eater Online to show and announce at TGS. What did they communicate beyond that?

 

[Mr. Pointy]

GE3 is probably Vita/PS4, with a chance of a NX version and then a PC version in the West. I doubt the actual game will look as good as it does in the teaser.

Spoiler

What if it's a launch title for the Vita Pro? :O

 

[Oregano]

What are they communicating? They simply had a teaser for God Eater 3 because it is what fans expect, since they only had God Eater Online to show and announce at TGS. What did they communicate beyond that?

Well the fact that graphics is the one point they emphasised and the fact that it got announced in America at the same point would be weird if it was primarily a Vita game. I'm not ruling it out though, it would be aa no brainer not to ditch that Vita audience.

GE3 is probably Vita/PS4, with a chance of a NX version and then a PC version in the West. I doubt the actual game will look as good as it does in the teaser.

I don't think NX is even on their radar. They probably won't want to split their player base across platforms anyway.

 

[dracula_x]

I'll defer to people who have used their Vita more.

Would this run acceptably on one (you know, assuming the kind of compromises you'd expect out of a downport)? The geometry is pretty simple on individual objects, but the lighting model seems a bit beyond scope and there's kind of a lot of stuff in general.

Okay I could see the argument for just milking them out and letting them die, which I feel is basically the same argument as killing them off, just about one entry later than they currently are.

Well, it definitely looks like a portable game (in terms of visuals).

 

[Jarod McChicken]

Saw that tweet and i asked if was sold in or sould throught, but she didn't replied me...

I guess that's sold throught?
If it is, then yes that's amazing.

MHG sold over 165k last month at retail... Btw keep in mind Monster Hunter digital sales are huge. Hultimate sold less than 190k first month at retail, but including digital was over 290k.

With 1 million owners on Steam and something close to 400K (I think ?) in Japan alone, I wouldn't be surprised if this is sold, but usually Bandai Namco shared shipped numbers for Dark Souls and other games, so not sure.

Thanks for the correction about MHG first month.

 

[duckroll]

Well the fact that graphics is the one point they emphasised and the fact that it got announced in America at the same point would be weird if it was primarily a Vita game. I'm not ruling it out though, it would be aa no brainer not to ditch that Vita audience.

But God Eater is already on consoles. I mean, the expectation is obviously that it will continue to be on the platforms it already is on. I just don't see anything in the announcement that is unusual or that "hints" at anything. God Eater is already on PS4 and Vita. I think people expect God Eater 3 to be on PS4 and Vita. I think they intended to announce that God Eater 3 is in development to let fans know that they have to wait a little longer but they are not being forgotten. That's about all there is to take from the announcement.

 

[Psycho_Mantis]

It actually mirrors what happened in the US to WWE games/wrestling games in general. When they consolidated into one title and made that multiplatform the numbers grew for a few cycles before receding into a very comfortable pattern.

I'd argue that the last few Naruto titles and DBZ Xenoverse in particular have vastly exceeded expectations of what the franchise was years ago. DBZ sort of makes sense as it is riding a resurgence and Xenoverse scratched a particular gaming itch with its premise. Naruto I guess beyond the healthy interest the manga/anime generates over here the series got a reputation for being graphical showcases and when it finally consolidated into one title people paid attention, especially as the PS360 generation moved on.

Whats impressive with Naruto is how NB have been able to milk it. Its been getting new releases almost yearly and the games still go on to sell 2 million or so.

 

[Nightengale]

But God Eater is already on consoles. I mean, the expectation is obviously that it will continue to be on the platforms it already is on. I just don't see anything in the announcement that is unusual or that "hints" at anything. God Eater is already on PS4 and Vita. I think people expect God Eater 3 to be on PS4 and Vita. I think they intended to announce that God Eater 3 is in development to let fans know that they have to wait a little longer but they are not being forgotten. That's about all there is to take from the announcement.

Agree with duckroll.

It's a teaser that establishes that a high budget mainline GE is in development and that it will come west side as well. Beyond that, platform, scope etc is way too early to tell.

 

[Oregano]

But God Eater is already on consoles. I mean, the expectation is obviously that it will continue to be on the platforms it already is on. I just don't see anything in the announcement that is unusual or that "hints" at anything. God Eater is already on PS4 and Vita. I think people expect God Eater 3 to be on PS4 and Vita. I think they intended to announce that God Eater 3 is in development to let fans know that they have to wait a little longer but they are not being forgotten. That's about all there is to take from the announcement.

I mean I guess so but reading around I'm definitely not the only one who got that impression.

 

[duckroll]

I mean I guess so but reading around I'm definitely not the only one who got that impression.

Sure, and I think the impression is a lot of projection. I'm trying to figure out why people have this odd impression. There's nothing special about the reveal at all. Nothing was emphasized. It was a throwaway announcement at the end of a stage event for the mobile game.

 

[LiveFromKyoto]

- The game's main audience is on a dead product line with an unclear remaining lifespan.

I notice you've been saying this 'dead product' stuff for at least a year in these threads...and yet the system sales continue to be stable, new colours were announced, and multiplatform Vita releases frequently outperform PS4 versions.

Sure, it's hard to know what its future is like as phones have become more powerful and the NX looms. But isn't it time for people to admit that it hash't been a dead console, just a still viable platform left at sea by what was a then-ailing Sony who had to make hard decisions about investment capital? People on the internet have been saying "LOL deadfail" for years and yet here we are coming up on its 5th anniversary and it's selling just as much as it was last year, with no replacement to kill it off in sight.

 

[Datschge]

I don't think this is true. Aren't the current numbers actually lower?

Tales is currently at the level it was at the end of the PS2 gen as well. The big question is if the console market in Japan allows the sales heights of Destiny on PS1, Destiny 2 on PS2 and Xillia on PS3 to happen again. But aside that Tales sales are actually incredibly stable and predictable considering the overall market.

 

[Jarod McChicken]

Tales is currently at the level it was at the end of the PS2 gen as well. The big question is if the console market in Japan allows the sales heights of Destiny on PS1, Destiny 2 on PS2 and Xillia on PS3 to happen again. But aside that Tales sales are actually incredibly stable and predictable considering the overall market.

And as always you have to add the (little or not) digital sales that did not exist during the PS2 era.

 

[Sandfox]

Tales is currently at the level it was at the end of the PS2 gen as well. The big question is if the console market in Japan allows the sales heights of Destiny on PS1, Destiny 2 on PS2 and Xillia on PS3 to happen again. But aside that Tales sales are actually incredibly stable and predictable considering the overall market.

The last original Tales game on PS2 was Abyss and that sold like 700k on the PS2. The games that sold on par with the current games are Legendia(the black sheep of the Tales series) and the Destiny remake.

And as always you have to add the (little or not) digital sales that did not exist during the PS2 era.

IIRC ToB is actually the first Tales game to be available digitally in Japan.

 

[Datschge]

The last original Tales game on PS2 was Abyss and that sold like 700k on the PS2. The games that sold on par with the current games are Legendia(the black sheep of the Tales series) and the Destiny remake.

Destiny R is a full blown mothership title that even started the dreaded one-year-after re-releases that the Tales console releases use since (we can debate whether Berseria is still part of it, though the staff pattern fully support that). Excluding it because it's not "original" and didn't do the sales of previous titles higher up the sales downward slope within a given gen doesn't paint the full picture. And even then PS3's install base is a far cry from PS2's install base, so if we were normalizing that as well as the max achieved by Destiny 2 vs. Xillia we'd end up with a number far lower than Tales currently achieves.

 

[Shahed]

I notice you've been saying this 'dead product' stuff for at least a year in these threads...and yet the system sales continue to be stable, new colours were announced, and multiplatform Vita releases frequently outperform PS4 versions.

Sure, it's hard to know what its future is like as phones have become more powerful and the NX looms. But isn't it time for people to admit that it hash't been a dead console, just a still viable platform left at sea by what was a then-ailing Sony who had to make hard decisions about investment capital? People on the internet have been saying "LOL deadfail" for years and yet here we are coming up on its 5th anniversary and it's selling just as much as it was last year, with no replacement to kill it off in sight.

Dead product line, meaning no successor. Vita may be doing fine for now, but it will taper off. And Sony's line of handhelds will die with it. Meaning any software that targets it and whose audience is on the Vita will either have to transition elsewhere, maybe have slight genre shifts or just simply disappear altogether.

That's what Nirolak is saying. Sure Vita is doing okay now. But what about in 2018? Companies have to make decisions now for later software.