Hard to believe it's been 10 years since I first talked about this, yet; here we are. As development continues on this and other Level-5 properties (even as some of them are reaching Duke Nukem Forever/Beyond Good and Evil 2 levels of development Hell), I thought I might do my full thoughts in my own way. Here is a presumptive look at Holy Horror Mansion; presenting the case for and against it as a "new concept" for Yokai Watch.
Let's start with the case for the game. Though I will touch on my concerns of their "biggest IP ever" ambitions in a bit, I'm going to do my best to be as fair as I can. The premise bears some similarity to Yokai Watch; there are factors that do have potential. As a longtime advocate of user generated content, the "Ghost Craft" mechanic intrigues me the most.
On a wider level, the concept of exploring haunted locales is a sound one. From Luigi's Mansion to Resident Evil to even Fatal Frame; the means for doing so in games is endless. The idea that even a lavish high rise can be a vessel for horror is sound. If they pull this off, I think the game could succeed.
Of course, there are admittedly far more factors working against the game. Though there is an obvious flaw that has been addressed before and we shall touch on again in a moment; I thought I would address other major factors working against the game first.
So, here's the issue that's become an increasing problem over the past decade: Level-5 having numerous failed attempts to appeal to audiences in the West. Though it certainly isn't impossible for a developer to grow its audience over time (with both Atlus and RGG Studio having great success this way), Level-5 has continually tried to bypass this step and jump right to the instant success part.
However, Level-5 has continually misunderstood the market they're aiming at. Personally, trying to homogenize the Japanese elements into something more broad was a major issue I took with the EN localization of Yo-Kai Watch; and attempting to double down on that broad "creepy and kooky" design is my main concern. To me, the Level-5 titles that appealed most to me as a Westerner were the ones that just made an interesting game and went from there. My personal favorites, the Ni No Kuni games; are functionally playable Studio Ghibli films (they were even directly involved with the first game and heavily influenced the second). The Professor Layton franchise (which itself is finally getting a new game) combined mystery adventuring with unique puzzles to great effect. I've also heard good things about Rogue Galaxy and the Dark Cloud games, might check those out on my PS Plus sometime.
On the other side of the coin, their obsession with trying to make all their games part of some transmedia franchise has honestly done more harm than good to their brand than anything. Inazuma Eleven is in a "make or break" moment with their newest main game. Maybe DECA Police will work, maybe it won't (have a liking for detective games and stories lately). Dragon Quest was never fully theirs in the first place. Megaton Musashi is still around for now, but who knows how long that will last. The Snack World tried to cash in on the success of Adventure Time; but apart from competition and the pandemic, it largely failed because Adventure Time itself had long since evolved past focusing on wacky catchphrases and shenanigans. Honestly hope Ushiro can work since it's being revived.
Yet, even with the developer rarely achieving more than cult status; they remain persistent in trying to give the West the "next big thing." Still, the game itself has hurdles to clear outside corporate drama. As has been mentioned before, the usage of AI art assets didn't sit well with their existing fanbase or detractors of these apps. I still maintain that if I am to pick up the game, these assets need to be gone.
Outside that blotch on the record (one of several that have tarnished Level-5's once-sterling reputation), there's also significant challenges for the game itself to succeed. Each passing year, it gets tougher to break through in an increasingly competitive market. Even with others trying to spin the game's concept as "managed risk," I would like to point out that aspect of the company has had a less-than-stellar track record in that area. To be more brutally honest, Level-5 hasn't been right about how to appeal to Westerners in the last 10 years. As previously mentioned, the fatal flaw has been trying to brute force their way in rather than building a relationship with their potential audience. Though early releases from Yakuza and Shin Megami Tensei as well as their respective spinoff titles didn't do gangbusters; they had enough of a cult following overseas and at home to grow more popular. This, combined with uniformly positive critical reception helped both RGG and Atlus grow both franchises over time. It's their obsession with multimedia franchises over the last decade or so that's been a problem, which should make a decent transition to my next point.
Talking about this company for a full decade as of this writing, it isn't just Yo-Kai Watch that Holy Horror Mansion has to prove itself for as a "new concept." In their increasing obsession with franchising their games, they've alienated a sizable chunk of their core audience and embraced a whole Jeopardy category's worth of industry pitfalls they once stayed out of. Aside from the AI art assets, there's been cryptocurrency-laden mobile spinoffs; loot box gacha mechanics and multiple (imitates Jimquisition) "live services" out the backdoor. That last one has been in rather critical condition lately. So, there's an uphill battle on this front especially.
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Courtesy: Level-5 |
With all that in mind, it still remains to be seen how Holy Horror Mansion will fare as a "new concept" for Yokai Watch. Looking back a full decade, it's honestly staggering how it's gone from being a phenomenon to a footnote in pop culture history. Though I would not have said all the things I did if I had known what would transpire since then, I still am not a huge fan of the anime and have no need to address any of the subsequent adaptations. Nor do I need to address nameless parties who only see that and Attack on Titan as the only two series worth mentioning even as the latter is more or less over.
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I can only imagine their reaction of the two crossing over in the PuniPuni puzzle mobile game spinoff. |
That aside, it's inherently clear that there is lots of pressure for this to work; let alone succeed. Level-5 has also had issues with their other titles, with Keiji Inafune having quit the company in midst of the new Fantasy Life experiencing issues. He was brought on after the company bought out Comcept, but I have to wonder if their business practices spread to Level-5.
All the same, I do not think that this plan to make this their biggest ever is a good idea. Trying to sell the predecessor as the next big thing didn't work out. Trying to sell this as the biggest ever before it even ships will make anything less a disappointment. I know people in this business aren't known for having realistic expectations (especially nowadays); but that doesn't sound like a good idea. Level-5 has also had a major problem getting things released in recent years; which suggests there are problems with scope, staffing and resource management.
Given how volatile the market has been in recent years (to say nothing of outside factors); I am seriously concerned for the company's future. Every scenario from being bought out by someone else to financial ruin is now on the table. I know the former scenario would potentially mean ceding creative control to someone else; but that would be minuscule compared to the loss of the studio itself.
I may have argued in years' past that Yokai Watch was beyond saving; but I don't think Level-5 as a whole is. In the off chance someone from the company sees this, I believe they should not try to shotgun Holy Horror Mansion into the next big thing. Just release it "when it's done," and let people make their own judgment. Also, get rid of the AI assets in the final game- obvious ethical landmines aside; results of integrating the generative tech into games have been decidedly mixed. Every potential decent use has been outnumbered by people treating glorified open beta tests as official launches, like that time they tried to charge $700 for a juicer.
Here is the overall bottom line- while I am not against the idea of Holy Horror Mansion as a "new concept" for Yokai Watch; I am concerned about how the game is being framed and what impact the game will have on Level-5 as a company, generative AI elements notwithstanding. Depending on what developments come next, I will likely address the game further as more details are revealed. As for the rest of Level-5, they've let slip there might be more delays. I do kind of understand making PS4 SKUs for their games as the console has been quite resilient nearly five years after the PS5 launched, but it's getting stuff out at all that's a concern I and others have at this stage. That will be all for now, and I will see you in April- take care.