He says a digital library is preferable to a physical one
The past few years have seen a rise in PC gaming and digital distribution in Japan, partially due to the success of Dark Souls, as PC Gamer reported a few months ago. Seeing how well the Souls franchise performed on PC, along with visual novels and smaller Japanese games, has inspired bigger studios like Square Enix to embrace Steam and other digital distribution platforms.
Shinji Mikami is embracing it too. Citing not only PC sales in the west but also increasing interest in PC gaming in Japan, Mikami says he welcomes “the new world of Steam and digital sales.” Part of his reasoning? Japanese houses are small.
“I used to put all of my games in their physical boxes on my bookshelf to look at them. Now I have a digital collection, and that’s better for Japanese people anyway because our houses are so small.”
Mikami also mentioned God Hand as a game he specifically wants to bring to Steam and would “love to do again.” Unfortunately, that would depend entirely on Capcom, who own the rights to it. God Hand flew under the radar after its PS2 release a decade ago, but its satisfying combos and campy mashup of action and comedy tropes made it a cult favorite.
The frustration of being unable to play newly released Japanese games on PC and hoping for future ports stills feels fresh. It’s easy to take for granted the fact that games like Metal Gear Solid V and Resident Evil 7 are now being released for PC alongside consoles. Personally, I’d still love to see a Bloodborne port.
Speaking of all this, Mikami’s latest The Evil Within is currently on sale on Steam for $4.99, so grab it while you can before The Evil Within 2 releases on October 13.
Shinji Mikami: ‘I welcome the new world of Steam and digital sales’ [PC Gamer]
