The games people play

“[If] you're over 35, chances are you view video games as, at best, an occasional distraction … If you're under 35, games are a major entertainment and a part of life.” — Kevin Maney, USA Today tech columnist

Game on

It would probably be fair to say that over the years video games — and the people who play them — have been somewhat … misunderstood. This 'phenomenon' can be traced back through the mists of time to the beginning of vid game history, ie, the early 70s, when proto-Space Invader machines began appearing in fast-food outlets around the planet. These first releases were quickly followed by various flavours of lurid tale about the dangers of game mania.

There is not much doubt that game play can be addictive: it produ-ces a similar mental hit to liquor, sports and religion. However, less quantifiable, and seemingly of deeper concern to many citizens, is the fear that repeated exposure to 'ultra-graphic' game scenes slowly fries the circuitry of vulnerable players, rewiring them into ticking sociopathic time bombs.
The jury is still well out on this link though. Even so, it does the game world few favours when developers shoot themselves in the virtual foot by including hidden sex scenes in their product — as Rockstar Games proved quite spectacularly in mid-2005 with its mega-selling GTA: San Andreas.

The slathering match generated by the discovery of raunchy bits in GTA: SA is still grabbing headlines in the US several months on. The public outcry has in fact become so newsworthy that concerned-parent Senator Hilary Clinton is now spearheading a high-profile campaign demanding national laws on adult-themed game content.

If these laws pass, they will mostly focus on restricting sales through an age-rating system. Which, according to a report recently presented to the British games industry, may actually do a whole lot of nothing. It appears parents, the main buyers and supervisors, largely ignore ratings, concentrating more on how many hours their children play than what they play.

The US situation raises the question of whether some potential lawmakers might not be operating under a heavily pixelated cloud of … misunderstanding. A quick peruse of the 2005 market survey issued by America's leading lobby group, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), reveals several surprising counter-claims to the dodgy image of game(r)s:

1. The average player is 30 years old, and the average buyer, 37.
2. Seventy-five percent of heads of household play video games.
3. Ninety-two percent of those under 18 purchase with a parent.
4. Forty-three percent of PC and console gamers are women.
5. Nineteen percent of PC and console gamers are over 50.

Admittedly this information is for the US, a nation with a well known affinity for electronic entertainment, but the values are largely supported by reports from other countries — with the notable exception of Japan. It is not that Japanese surveys dispute the American figures; it is more that there is little published research available, despite the market's enormous size.

This is no small trial for a writer, but, fortunately, we have the ideal people to probe right here in Kansai: the staff at Kyoto's Q-Games. Q-Gamers are in a unique position to know, counting both Sony and Nin-tendo among their clients. They also happen to include company presi-dent Dylan Cuthbert, who at the tender age of 33 already has 12 years of Japan experience.

As someone on the high side of 35, I certainly have one point from the ESA report I want Q-Games to clear up: While the average player spends 6.8 hours a week on games, they also devote more than triple this amount of time, 23.4 hours, to sports, study, creative and cultural activities. So, it is possible to be a gamer and have a life too?

Localised content

The Q-Games office is not exactly what I imagined — but then again how should the premises of an operation that spends millions of dollars developing cutting-edge games technology look? In any case, what you get is a wide-open expanse of office space dotted with the 20-odd workstations of the company's mix of Japanese, American, British and French staff.

The main sound is the surprisingly audible hum of computers as employees go purposefully about their corporate mission 'to create the game of the future'. And, yes, Q-Gamers look like they probably do have lives. The finishing touch on the scene is the sight of Pu-chan, Dylan's doggy companion, cruising the office. I am warned he has a thing for plump calves.

Duncan, the PR and recruitment manager, shows me to the Q-Games boardroom table, which is, luckily, also a table tennis table, and we are soon joined by Dylan, director Takahiro Matsuya and senior progra-mmer Ryuji Nishikawa. Dylan starts things off by explaining one reason there is such a dearth of local information is Japan lacks a body such as the ESA.

It seems the absence of an organisation to gather statistics, lobby legislators, etc, is also hampering games companies. Local software revenues are on the slide, which is being caused, in no small part, by an opposing growth in the unregulated chuko (used) market. The problem here is that no royalties are paid to the original developer — a situation off the radar of most Japanese lawmakers.

While at first this may seem like Bill Gates complaining that Micro-soft is not scarving enough loot, over the longer term, less cash in means fewer new titles out. Of course, rather than legislation, another obvious solution for developers would be to hit consumers with fresh concepts to encourage them to buy new.

Q-Games is way ahead on this, however. Dylan advises me to tune in to www.q-games.com over the next couple of months for news of a sizzling new release. Tantalisingly, for now, this item is “top secret”.

I suspect Dylan might spill if plied with sufficient pints of the right in-centive, but I do not want to risk being toasted to maintain contractual obligations regarding (big clue) Nintendo and its DS console.

Well, if the details are a bit scant there, I can at least ask what makes a good 'game of the future'. In Dylan's book, “The point is to give people an escape from daily life. Games should be purely fun.”

I definitely have to admit to a chuckle when he illustrates this with a game he developed for Sony called Piposaru 2001, in which, basically, you have to suck the underpants off monkeys with a vacuum cleaner.

But why not, ay. It sounds like a pretty entertaining mix of fantasy, strategy and bare-assed argy-bargy. For the record, Dylan believes that for 99.99 percent of the (semi-sane) population even gorefest type games like GTA: San Andreas provide an outlet for aggression, rather than a trigger. I make a note to forward all this to Hilary Clinton later.

Duncan also adds that one profile does not fit all markets. For example, while increasingly realistic rape, kill, pillage games like GTA may be overwhelmingly popular in Western countries, contrary to many people's image, it is actually the endless editions of robot, horse racing, pachinko and slot machine games, etc that sell here in Japan.

This prompts me to ask about Japan's (in) famous bishojo (girlie) games. Messers Matsuya and Nishikawa field this one — after disavow- ing any first-hand knowledge. Fortunately, or not, it seems the genre has moved on from its more porno/graphic origins to a renai (love story) role playing format. This is the mainstream, at least. If you are intere-sted in a bit of the other, you might want to check out www.jastusa.com, which can supply you in, yes, English.

The Q-Games domain

Q-Games is an independent development studio based in Kyoto, a location chosen by Dylan because it represents the “real Japan” for him. Dylan originally lived here when Nin-tendo seduced him away from high school in England for his first Japan gig. Before setting up the company in 2001, he held positions with Nintendo, Argonaut and Sony in Japan, the UK and the US. He has worked with legends such as Shigeru Miyamoto (Mario and Zelda) and Ken Kutaragi (PlayStation).

Q-Games also has a long list of credits to its name, including the now famous demo created for Sony's PSP launch in 2004. If you like the sound of all this, Q-Games may have a proposition for you. The company is looking to add to its present line up of talent, and applications are welcomed from appropriately qualified 3D modelers/artists, programmers and game designers. More details are available at www.q-games.com or from Duncan Flett at duncan@q-games.com.

Game and console picks

Despite what the TV weather people might be reading off the cue cards, it is nothing like Spring yet. Which means you probably have endless time to practice your game skills. But what do the pros play when they are not making the games? Well, since you asked:

Consoles

Dylan, Bossman
I'm going to recom-mend the Nintendo DS. This little hand- held gem is the only commercially available game console with a touch panel. There is an incredibly diverse range of games available for this machine and some — Mario Kart DS for instance — even allow you to play opponents via the Internet. The DS is proving so popular that even 14 months after its launch, many shops are still sold out. If you see one for sale, snap it up.

Jerome, Senior Programmer
I'm excited about the Nintendo Revo-lution console, due out this year. Will it live up to its name? Well, the controller is indeed revolutionary. It's like a remote control that reflects your movements on the screen. You can grasp it like a sword, shine it like a torch or flick it like a fishing rod. Nintendo believes people are often put off by the complexity of the controller, and they're betting the Revolution will increase the 'gaming population'.

Games

Nishikawa-kun, Senior Programmer
For the Wintery evenings, I heartily recommend Kaha-shima Ryuuta Kawashima Ryuta Kyoujyu no Nou wo Kitaeru Otona no DS Training (Brain Training for Adults) for the Nintendo DS. For people who don't traditionally play 'games', this fascinating software is designed to stimulate your brain into thinking in different ways. The game is based on tests developed by a Tohoku University professor. You'll be cleverer by the end of your gaming session, and at ¥2,800, it is half the price of regular kill-all-the-aliens-type games.

Pu-chan, Q-Games dog
Nintendogs is my recommendation for the portable Nintendo DS. If you've ever wanted to own a dog but didn't want to clean up excrement from the kitchen floor, this is the game for you. Nintendogs lets you train, discipline and play with your virtual pooch. Your pet will even sniff the virtual bottoms of other dogs. Of course, nothing beats the real thing — but I would say that, wouldn't I? Right then, I'm off to desecrate the lino.

Erik, Programmer
I'm going to go with Minna no Daisuki no Katamari Dama- shi (We Love Kata-mari Damashi) for the PlayStation 2. Daisuki is actually the second release, and it's a lot more polished than Katamari Dama-shi. The idea is to start with a small ball, which you roll to pick up objects. As you pro-gress, the ball gets larger, and soon you find all manner of strange and incredible objects sticking to it. It's a very simple premise and yet strangely addictive and satisfying.

Text: Kym Hutcheon • Images: KS