Inafune says 360 was crucial to breaking into the Western market

With popular franchises such as Resident Evil and Street Fighter dominating the worldwide arena, you’d think Capcom had broken into the Western market a long time ago. Mega Man and Dead Rising creator Keiji Inafune, however, has declared that Capcom never really made it before the Xbox 360 came along.

“I think I can only get away with saying this now, but I really thought that the using the Xbox was only way to break into overseas markets, and I took that hypothesis all the way,” explains the designer. “In the end, I am very happy that I did so.”

Capcom is one of the few Japanese publishers that seem to develop with Westerners in mind, and one can reasonably assume that this is what Inafune means when he talks about the Xbox 360. Games like Dead Rising aren’t typical Japanese game fodder, but it did pretty well on the 360 and Capcom has successfully established its presence outside of the home turf.

Still, I don’t think Capcom would have had much trouble in the West without the 360’s help. They are motherf*cking Capcom, after all.