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[Dre_G_Writer]

With the type of RPG's that western developers make(EU, NA), I've always wondered, what would a RPG that took place in Feudal Japan, but developed by Western developers be like???

I don't even think there is a game like this.

I think about this all the time, and the more I think, the more potential I think the Feudal Era setting has for an Action, open world RPG, while borrowing a bit from other RPGs.

I'm talking a fully fleshed out, open world RPG, with things like, a crafting system, skills trees, leveling up, looting and gear options, dialog choices, numerous weapons, interesting characters, engaging story, branching quest scenarios, exploration and unique/beautiful environments, off the beaten path hidden treasures, rich and engaging lore, combat system, customization and the whole nine.

I love Japanese culture so I read books and articles and watch history documentaries and other shows about japanese culture, past and present.

The whole time period of Japan's Feudal Era is a very unique time in history. There's quite nothing like it.

From the clothes, the architecture, the politics, the towns and villages, the plant life, the land type, cuisine, the animals, the weapons, the martial art styles, the way of life, traditions, language, and their culture as a whole, is unlike any other on this planet.

It's very alien like to some other cultures.

Which is why it would be great to make a game in this time setting because it's such a massive difference from the medieval theme of western RPG's we're so used to today.

I would like to play a great quality game and take a visit to that time period through the eyes of my own character living his or her life as a citizen of the land in that point in time. The Yazuka, and Way of the Samurai series doesn't do it for me.

The more I read into it, and the more I think, man this setting is just perfect for an open world RPG. It's just reaping with potential. Too many ideas too keep track of that could make some great gameplay.

- The role of a vagabond would be perfect for the player since a vagabond is pretty much a nomad. A person who doesn't have a permanent home and wonders from place to place looking for a purpose in life. Like any player controlled character.

(This is a manga called VAGABOND, its a fictional historical following of the life of legendary swordsman Miyamoto Musashi)

- Scenes such as these with their unique architecture could make for some really interesting places to visit.

- I like to imagine the gameplay being in a dynamic open world, where I'm traveling on horse back across a rice field, in the distance I can see some farmers being harassed by bandits and you can hear the farmers plea out for help. It could be the players choice to ignore whats going on, help the farmers from the bandits, or actually join in on the harassment of the farmers with the bandits under the right circumstances.

- Going into towns and bartering with folks, looking for work, and letting folks hire your skills as a mercenary for hire, and meeting interesting characters and even find folks who's willing to journey with you.

- I like the criminal system from skyrim. I like how every town has it's own policing system. This game could borrow some of those ideas with stealing and getting caught or starting trouble won't impact your standing in other town and villages.

- Outside of towns with their own government, laws and policing force, it's lawless and kill or be killed atmosphere, survival of the fittest. Even something as lovely and beautiful as a cherry blossom petal field could have danger and death lurking in it and a band of bandits ambush you from the trees or a pack of wild wolves jump from behind some bushes.

- One thing many legends speak of is many things in their culture, we today take as, superstition. In a video game world, those can become a reality. Japanese superstition can play a vital role to the games world and lore, like spiritual beings, ghost and demons playing a part in the gameworld. there could be quest you can go on where you have to rid a hunted temple of demons and the super natural. Even have unique weapons with super natural properties and cursed weapons and gear with very powerful properties that comes at a cost.

- Feudal Japan is known to have people with legendary combat skills and swordsmanship, in not only katanas, but many other weapons such as chain and sickle, wakazashi, kunai, smoke bombs, hand to hand and more. The time periods mainly close quarters combat would make a great action style melee combat system for an RPG with all type of fighting styles with a variety of weapons and gadgets.

Samurai - The mainly Katana using warriors with greatly fierce strikes that could cut limbs off. This type of warrior that would be more offensive style of combat whos mobile and relentless in their attacks. Using illusion mind games like war crys, glaring eye looks, taunting actions and such to trick the opponent into making a move the warrior wants the target to make to create an opening and slash with deadly intent in an instant.

Shogun - These are mostly generals in military trained army's with heavy armor, more in line of tanks. They can take a lot of punishment due to their armor and punishment training. These warriors are a force to be reckoned while on horse back as the training of a shogun utilizes the acceleration of a horse to multiply a Shoguns power of each strike for a powerful killing blow capable of multiple kills in one strike.

Ninja - Stealthy warriors who stick to the shadows and hide to ambush their targets for instant dealth strikes, and using all types of gadgets like climbing hooks, kunai, poison darts and smoke bombs for a quick get-away if over powered or out numbered. Very agile warriors whos movement are that of super human.

Hand to hand Martial Artist - Type of combat warriors who uses their hands and body and is mostly a parry and counter-attack type warrior. Very difficult to master and use but could be even more powerful than those using weapons through shear mastery of their own body and a combination of all types of hand to hand combat styles. These warriors can use grappling attacks to ground an opponent or throw the opponent off balance for a deadly follow up strike.

Monk - These are more spiritual warriors who have connections to the super natural. They can call upon the super natural beings to aid them in battle either through materializing to attack an opponent or through augmentation of the host's own abilities. These warriors are very skilled at using pole weapons like spears. Mostly using their enchanted holy staffs to strike foes at a far and keep opponents at a distance and do great harm to demons and hostile spirits.

Bandit/Rouge - These warriors are mostly ranged fighters with weapons like a bow or a chain and sickle. They use dirty and cheap tricks in battle like throwing dirt into an opponent eyes, setting spike traps on the ground and throwing fire bombs and uses their environment to their advantage with abilities like parkour to confuse and out maneuver their opponent.

Even foreigners would play a role in the world with their own combat styles
Chinese Monks - They are warriors of chi masters. Can harness the power of chi and bolster their power to that of super human strength for increased offense and defense. Use of a lot of chinese unique weapons like curved bladed spears and chinese curved swords in additional to chinese kung fu and can use chi to extend the range of their attacks so they can be versatile at close or ranged attacks.

Fencers - These warriors are critical hit combat specialist. Always aiming for the vital spots on the human body and ending their target in one-to-two strikes. These combat specialist are very good at counter attacks and step in and out of strike range very quickly. Their unique fighting style usually takes a opponent for a surprise as they would not expect the opponent to dash into range and thrust all in an instant in one swift move.

Far West Riflemen - With the introduction of firearms to the east, deadly precision of firearms is being seen as very powerful weapons with great advantage over targets with traditional non-firearm weapons. The range at which a rifleman can hit its target is staggering, and the power is very deadly. But the weapon's power and accuracy comes at a cost, as its fire rate is very slow since the weapon has to be reloaded after every shot and relies on ammunition. These combat specialist are far range fighters but also have a bayonet on the tip of their weapon for close quarters.

With so many different combat styles and different types of weapons, it would make for some interesting combat gameplay with the mixing up of styles of skills. And there's even more I can think of but those are the most recognizable combat styles.


- Other interesting features like the crafting of medical tonics, poisons and smoke bombs that's popular with ninjas, blacksmiths to craft weapons and armor and clothing. Hunting, looting and fishing for materials, supplies and such. Break down items you no longer need for their raw materials to be used to make something else. I like gathering and crafting.

- There could be all type of different types of combat dojo's to increases combat style skills and also challenge. Want to increase your hand to hand skills even thought you mostly use a bow??? head over to a dojo and spend some of your currency to learn. If you think you have what it takes to challenge the leader of a dojo, that could open up some unique opportunities for you, like getting a new alloy to accompany you on your endeavors, have access to unique weapons and skills or techniques, and open up more quest.

- I think it would be more ideal if the combat was more realistic, and combat wasn't so flashy and fast-action packed, like say, ninja gaiden. More slower and reflex based combat. I picture demon souls combat, how it pays to be patient and strike at an opening than to die by hacking and slashing and getting tired. Combat would have to be balanced so each combat style has an advantage and disadvantage and could be a mix of the styles with the use of different weapons to fill in for weaknesses. It has to be balanced so even a player with a low character skill, could still have a chance of winning against a tough opponent if their battle strategy focuses on the targets weaknesses and leaning on their own strengths. Like a bandit using the dirt in the eye trick to buy some time to use their parkour to get up top a wall or tree and pelt their target with poison arrows to do damage over time along with instant damage from the arrow itself.

- The game could play a reference to real life figures or pop culture with easter eggs or hidden side quest with such figures like Miyamoto Musashi, a real life famous swordsmen, who's personal sword that could be in the game and be crazy powerful, and hard to find, but it has a blood lust curse on it and when its unsheathe, the weapon has a small chance of randomly attacking on its own when your fighting at target,

or something crazy like

a hidden boss that's hard to get to and very hard to defeat, in this old ass hidden tomb belonging to the legendary martial artist group known as the WU TANG CLAN. You would see the boss, sitting in this throne, and would be like 300+ years old, this zombie like corpse of THE MAN WITH THE IRON FIST, who is actually the RZA(rizza) from the WU TANG with his big ass iron hands resting on the arm rest of the throne, and he'd get up off the throne when he sees you and an wu tang instrumental would start playing in the background when he raises his fist with a boxing stance ready for battle, and thats when you see, SHIT JUST GOT REAL!
And you'd be seeing scrolls mentioning the legendary wu tang clan and their accomplishes throughout the entire game and you finally get to find one of their hidden lairs towards the end of the game and find one of the members barried there, but he aint fucking dead.

(RZA from his latest movie, MAN WITH THE IRON FIST)
Interesting shit like that would be gold in a game like this. Unique and interesting situations like that.



- I would like the game to also teach a bit about the japanese culture of that time done really well. Have the player learn a bit about the history of that time period by taking references from actual Japanese history and applying it into the game with the game worlds lore twist to it. So the game is also educational about a culture of a past time. I would like others to be interested and learn more about the culture and come to like it as I do.

As you can see, I am very passionate about this idea.
Man, I have DREAMED for a game like this for the LONGEST!!!! With the next gen consoles. The game could be a very beautiful game graphically, and could handle many animations from the environment to the characters actions, have eargasm soundtracks, voice acted cast, great control that makes each combat style feels unique and gives the characters some weight as your moving around the environment either as you explore or through battle.

Just want it to be a all around great gameplay experience. Make the game be a all around classic game to join the ranks of the legendary games that set the bar.

If I created video games, these are the types of games I would want to create. I'd even do these type of games for other types of settings that haven't been explored much before, like the Persian empire, or Egyptian culture of past times into an interesting RPG.

I would like to see us step away from the saturation of Europen Medieval setting in many RPGs today. Seeing RPGs in a furturistic, cyber punk setting is a step in the right direction. But I feel we can expand on that even further by touching on parts of human history we're haven't really touched on yet.

Edit - Added some more ideas that was sparked from some comments in this thread.

The bolded parts are exactly what holds back an RPG. I feel like I'm playing a 3d board game with this and it does NOT help me with the immersion and/or gameplay wise as these 2 features a demandingly scripted and linear in their design approach.

Well see, the thing is, not all rpgs have the same meaning of a leveling system and skills.

Those are general terms that gamers recognized as character grown over time through trials and over coming obstacles and the acquiring of new techniques.

I for one don't really care for the stat point distribution of a point chart. I believe that's just lack of imagination on their part or lack of resources to put in a better system.

Thus far, as far as character progression, I feel skyrim did this type of feature the best. Your character grew naturally by actually doing the action you want to get better at, as you would in real life. I feel a lot more rpgs needs to build on that as a foundation and build to perfect it even further in my opinion.

But i understand where your coming from. Spending time in menus trying to distribute points into skills your not sure if they're useful or not, but your somewhere a master at the skill even though you've never used it in the game thanks to spending "skills points".

It doesn't really make me feel like my character, earned or learned that skill. Like one second they dont know the skill, and then the next, now they just suddenly know, because a point was spent on a imaginary chart that doesn't exist int the game world. To me that never felt right and can take some out of the immersion.

I'd handle the character growth and progression similar to how skyrim did it with the physically doing it will make you get better at it over time, and going to dojos and teachers and taking lessons can help develop a particular combat style even further, but your character would have to physically do lessons instead of spending cash at a menu to instantly increase your progression bar like how skyrim does it, so the training would be interactive and take time to do.

Not not sure if I would even have an actual level up system in the game, I think it would be better if there were just natural combat style progression.

I would handle the hit points and natural character defense naturally too, by having your character's body become more and more "battle hardened" from the numerous times your characters body has endured being damaged and recovered from healing and thus the body getting stronger through sleep, rest, and eating.

The Body takes damage from battle, and heals up through medical herbs or medical specialist, and as the body sleep and eat, more and more over time to fully "recover", the body gets a little more HP when it wakes up from sleep every few times, Depending on a factor of damaged received, type of damage received, amount of food eaten, types and quality of food eaten, and the amount of sleep your character is getting and the quality of sleep your character is getting on a regular basis would determine HP gain and natural body damage resistance, or pain threshold.

This gives a reason for players to actually want to sleep and eat as it has a direct effect on your character body growth as far as HP and pain threshold(defense)

The perk, skill, or technique system I would do differently from skyrim also, than selecting them from a perk chart. I'd do something similar to the Shenmue route of learning a new technique, as you had to actually do the technique a few times after it being shown to you before you could actually use it in battle. As you the player, not the character had to learn how to pull off the technique with the controller.

In a game like this, I'd have it to where youd have to read a scroll hidden out in the world or given to you and do the skill a few times to learn a new skill or technique that way it makes exploration even more rewarding by finding ancient secret techniques.

or going to a dojo and taking up training in a certain combat style to increase that combat style progression and learning a new technique after passing a challenge or a certain dojo pression threshold.

Or by fighting certain boss like figures, you can actually learn a new technique to try by physically observing the boss character do it to you in battle, if your character's corresponding combat style progression is high enough to have the ability obverse and learn such techniques by simply watching them.

that's pretty much how I would handle character progression if I was to develop this game myself.

I would like to see more evolved character progression like that in video games and less menus with lots of charts and points.

Everything should be in the game, and be interactive by the player so the game is always being engaged by the player and feels even more apart of the world and as if you, the player is actually learning and improving naturally as your in-game character does.

 

[Knurek]

Not exactly Feudal Japan, but isn't Jade Empire the next best thing?

 

[Casimir]

Yakuza Ishin and Ryū ga Gotoku Kenzan! are the closest to the dream game you seem to want, but there might be a MMO that more closely matches that ideal. I think the indie game Kenshi borrows from Japanese weaponry and armor design, so you might want to also look into that.

 

[Ninja Dom]

I remember wanting to play that Samurai Shodown RPG so badly but it wasn't available to me with an English translation on the consoles I owned at the time.

I've also wanted to play the Total War: Shogun games but I don't have a gaming PC. I did play Total War: Shogun iOS and loved that, it was excellent.

Samurai Bloodshow was also excellent and had that lovely music and songs.

But these games are more strategy games than heavily story based RPG's.

 

[sub_o]

As much as I think it will be interesting, it might be better if we let Eastern developers develop games that has settings in East.

It would be very weird to see Chinese or Indian talk like Americans or act like medieval Europeans. Not to say that they are bad, but there are significant cultural differences, in day to day conversations, people from some region might not that direct, or might avoid eye contact while talking. The nuances, the social contracts are sometimes hard to fathom outside of the region, even between Asians.

But same as OP, I really would like to see large scale RPG developed with Asian culture in mind, but not only Japanese or Chinese culture, what about say Nepalese? or Indonesian? Ancient Majapahit kingdom which was one of the biggest Buddhist influenced kingdom in South East Asia sounds like a good setting. Tropical areas, Buddhist architecture, Javanese language.

It's probably hard to sell though, since no one outside the region really knows about it.


Thus, we get another shooter, or another high fantasy, or medieval european settings.

PS: I remembered there was chinese RPG, Return Of (?) Condor Heroes RPG, which is based on Chinese novel. It looked interesting at the time. I don't really like the story though, it tends to be bit too romantic for me.

 

[Serra]

Not exactly Feudal Japan, but isn't Jade Empire the next best thing?

Jade Empire is a pretty good game too!

 

[Sub Zero]

How about Kenshi? It is still in Alpha but it looks very promising. It isn't set in Feudal Japan but it's setting is inspired by it.

 

[Ratrat]

Er, no. It would be awful. The latest Tomb Raider was a bad joke. I don't want to see this any more than I want to see Square Enix make the next GTA.

 

[TheChaos0]

There was Throne of Darkness, it was pretty good actually as far as I recall. (been a while since 2001 )

 

[Some Nobody]

I was with you until the words "slower-paced combat" were read. Go big or go home, I usually say. Plus slow, plodding gameplay fits medieval much more than feudal Japan. But you thought this out VERY well. Nice work.

 

[Mozendo]

As much as I think it will be interesting, it might be better if we let Eastern developers develop games that has settings in East.

Do you feel the same about Japanese RPGs with Western fantasy settings?

 

[Amalthea]

It would just look like stereotypical China with Samurais and every woman is a Gheisha. Just as always when Western companies try to emulate feudal Japan.

 

[Mozz-eyes]

Is this a stealth weeaboo thread?

OP has some good ideas, though.

 

[Dark Octave]

Where's the African RPGs at?

Where's the Aztec RPGs?

So far all we have after all these years is fantasy Europe and fantasy Europe with half Japanese people in it and sometimes an Asian village thrown in.

 

[DrWong]

I don't know...

 

[Celine]

There was Throne of Darkness, it was pretty good actually as far as I recall. (been a while since 2001 )

Seconded.

 

[Triggerhappytel]

Are the Way of the Samurai games like this at all? Are they any good?

 

[sohois]

Way of the Samurai, though Japanese made, is very Western in it's design processes and is exactly what you are looking for.

I believe the 3rd and 4th entries in the series were both published in NA/EU for the PS3, if you wish to seek it out.

edit: Another one that comes to mind, is the Onin No Ran mod for Mount and Blade, though certainly lacking in detail it fulfills many of your criteria. I don't know if the mod has been updated for years, or if it has even been ported to Warband, but I think you should seek it out if you can

 

[FlyingSaucer]

There is no shortage of tabletop RPG which could serve as a basis for a oriental WRPG, too :
- Bushido and Land of the Rising Sun by Fantasy Games Unlimited
- Oriental Adventures for AD&D
- Sengoku by Gold Rush Games, a personal favorite
- Oriental Adventures by WotC
- Land of Ninja (Avalon Hill)
- and the elephant in the room, Legend of the Five Rings

Most of these games are getting pretty old, thought.

Where's the African RPGs at?

Where's the Aztec RPGs?

Good point. I'd be really interested in a African RPG set in the early middle-age African Kingdoms

 

[Fuz]

Leave eastern settings to eastern developers.
It's better for everyone.

Do you feel the same about Japanese RPGs with Western fantasy settings?

Yes.
They don't get it.

 

[Fuz]

Also, shoguns don't fight. The idea is quite ridiculous, to be honest.

 

[Recall]

Also, shoguns don't fight. The idea is quite ridiculous, to be honest.

Variety is not ridiculous.

Everyone just accepts the same old tired shit, fuck that noise, go wild or get out.

 

[Shiina]

Leave eastern settings to eastern developers.
It's better for everyone.

Yes.
They don't get it.

Funny because the Souls games were more or less consistently the best this genre+setting has had to offer for years now.

 

[sub_o]

Do you feel the same about Japanese RPGs with Western fantasy settings?

Yeah, sadly so. Dark Souls aside, because that game's story is more implicit than explicit, I haven't found Japanese developer that managed to give the feeling of European settings.

But I'm asian, so maybe I don't really know what to expect from European settings.

 

[Fuz]

Variety is not ridiculous.

Everyone just accepts the same old tired shit, fuck that noise, go wild or get out.

Oh, variety.
Then let's put in fighting robot nuns too. Because they make as much sense as a shogun warrior.

Also, DS art style it's the only thing western. Story, lore and everything else is not.

 

[Toxi]

While I've seen a few good western-produced Eastern settings, those tended to stay close to the fantasy aspect (Kamigawa in MtG for example). A game trying to emulate that style realistically always carries risk of inaccuracy, and you can't brush off tonal issues as easily.

I was with you until the words "slower-paced combat" were read. Go big or go home, I usually say. Plus slow, plodding gameplay fits medieval much more than feudal Japan. But you thought this out VERY well. Nice work.

Er, why?

 

[Recall]

Oh, variety.
Then let's put in fighting robot nuns too. Because they make as much sense as a shogun warrior.

Also, DS art style it's the only thing western. Story, lore and everything else is not.

Why do people get so upset over devs trying? At least they try, which is better than just going to the same well over and over again to produce the same tired look. If they don't get it quite right, then so be it because every game looking the exact same way is boring.

The word fantasy means you can interpret it how you want, it doesn't have to be just the same euro medieval look.

 

[BajiBoxer]

Most Japanese rpgs are western fantasy inspired settings.

 

[BajiBoxer]

Oh, variety.
Then let's put in fighting robot nuns too. Because they make as much sense as a shogun warrior.

Also, DS art style it's the only thing western. Story, lore and everything else is not.

As opposed to magic using fighting priests?

 

[Mozendo]

Yes.
They don't get it.

I'm going to disagree. Etrian Odyssey, Dragon's Dogma, the earlier Final Fantasy games, and many more Japanese RPGs incorporated the Western fantasy setting in their games pretty great.

Yeah, sadly so. Dark Souls aside, because that game's story is more implicit than explicit, I haven't found Japanese developer that managed to give the feeling of European settings.

And what Japanese RPGs would you say gave the feeling of a Eastern setting?
Most games that I know are either based on western fantasy or a hybrid between fantasy and science fiction (based on overseas localization).

 

[Evil Supremacy]

I would absolutely love this style of game and think the closest we probably have is Way of the Samurai and Yakuza Ishin, would also like to see a Lone Wolf and Cub adapted into one of the storylines in the game.

 

[maomaoIYP]

And what Japanese RPGs would you say gave the feeling of a Eastern setting?

Kengo.

 

[Triggerhappytel]

I was with you until the words "slower-paced combat" were read. Go big or go home, I usually say. Plus slow, plodding gameplay fits medieval much more than feudal Japan. But you thought this out VERY well. Nice work.

Er, why?

Historians have very recently proved that in Japan pre-1900 people never walked and always ran everywhere.

 

[FlutterPuffs]

A Red Dead Redemption style of game set in Japan could work REALLY well. Set it during the Meiji Era.

 

[dan2026]

I'd love to see Rockstar's take on a feudal Japan setting.

If its half as good as Red Dead, I'm in.

 

[valouris]

Oh god please yes. Shogun 2 Total War had a totally different and unique feel just because of the setting. In the hands of a good developer a WRPG in that setting would be awesome.

 

[Dre_G_Writer]

yea man, I've played all of the way of the samurai games, but that game is more of a silly game and it's production isn't high. But I will have to check out some of those games you guys mentioned.

But this would be very different from the usual though. Letting an culture make a game about an entirely different culture, that would be interesting. Jade empire comes to mind.

Like you guys said, seeing games like dragons dogma, souls series, and also the new deep down game had me thinking what would it be like if a eastern game was developed by a western studio who is known for making high production RPGs instead of vise versa. Turn it into a mainstream title thats recognized. Obviously a eastern studio would be involved in the development to help bring along it's setting and lore.

Man I would love to play a game like that.

 

[Dre_G_Writer]

Yakuza Ishin and Ryū ga Gotoku Kenzan! are the closest to the dream game you seem to want, but there might be a MMO that more closely matches that ideal. I think the indie game Kenshi borrows from Japanese weaponry and armor design, so you might want to also look into that.

Question, these are on PC??? Can't exactly search for these on work network.

 

[Nairume]

What about Inindo?

edit:
oh, wait, developed by western studios.

 

[Sgblues]

Question, these are on PC??? Can't exactly search for these on work network.

Kenzan is PS3 only and Ishin is on PS3 and PS4 and both are text heavy in Japanese(also side note they are Eastern made obviously)

 

[Sectorseven]

 

[Ratrat]

And what Japanese RPGs would you say gave the feeling of a Eastern setting?
Most games that I know are either based on western fantasy or a hybrid between fantasy and science fiction (based on overseas localization).

Persona? There are actually a lot, they are just too niche to get localized.

 

[polyh3dron]

I'll only buy it if it has giant enemy crabs.

 

[Zarx]

I would love a Japan themed Mount & Blade style game.

Would love something like that.

OP, if you have a PC, I seriously recommend getting Mount & Blade Warband and downloading the Gekokujo mod.

whelp time to redownload Warband

 

[Tagyhag]

Would love something like that.

OP, if you have a PC, I seriously recommend getting Mount & Blade Warband and downloading the Gekokujo mod.

 

[ElectricKaibutsu]

I would be so into this.

 

[SkyOdin]

Are the Way of the Samurai games like this at all? Are they any good?

The Way of the Samurai games are very unlike WRPGs. They are pretty good though.

The Way of the Samurai games tend to be much shorter than any RPG I have played, instead emphasizing playing through the game multiple times to see a variety of dramatically different story routes. It really is hard to compare them to any other game I have played, but I think they are worth playing.


Anyways, I am really wary of the idea of a western developed RPG taking place in feudal Japan. Most RPG makers in the west are still heavily mired in D&Disms, and the world of western tabletop RPGs has long been infected by a strong strain of orientalism; in particular, there is a strong tendency to exaggerate a handful of cultural stereotypes while not accurately reflecting an actual historical culture.

I don't want to say that no one could do a good job or condemn anyone, but I would be skeptical of such a game. Most RPG developers are still really bad at Medieval European inspired settings.

 

[RedSwirl]

I'd just like a Medieval Japan-themed open-world game period. There's a Japanese series called Way of the Samurai but I've never played it. I heard it's supposed to be really open-ended though. It's surprising to me that there haven't even been very many JRPGs in eastern settings. A few, but the vast majority seem to be western-inspired fantasy. It'd be cool if we could get more of a Japanese fantasy-based RPG depicted like Moribito.

I think a western developer could do it with the right attention to detail. It'd have to be one with a lead who actually cares enough not to do the stereotypical western portrayal of Japan though. A western developer would probably be more likely to make it a truly open-ended game.

When I first heard Ubisoft confirm the next Assassin's Creed wouldn't be set during the fall of the samurai I was disappointed, but after I started playing Assassin's Creed III I actually did start to think the Bakumatsu would be a good setting for an AC game.

A Red Dead Redemption style of game set in Japan could work REALLY well. Set it during the Meiji Era.

I was thinking the same thing: Samurai remake of Red Dead. Main character is a retired samurai with the same bear slash mark on his face John Marsten has.

 

[Wolff]

Always wanted something like that too.

 

[Enjay]

What about Inindo?

edit:
oh, wait, developed by western studios.

God that game was so awful. I remember getting lost in some fire temple. Worst $70 I ever spent.