TGS Game Announcements: Death Becomes Them

When taking the announcements from TGS as a whole it’s interesting to see the running theme that seems to be dominating the interests of Japanese developers and publishers. Last year Keiji Inafune claimed the Japanese game scene was ‘dead’ and that seems to have been taken to heart as death, hell and demonic forces emerge as the obsession of eastern game makers.

DmC: Devil May Cry – While Capcom has farmed this one out to Ninja Theory (perhaps accepting Inafune’s opinion that Japanese development is dead), just the fact it has returned to this series shows a fascination with all things fatal, demonic and afterlife-centric. Dante certainly looks half dead through much of the new trailer.

Yakuza: Of the End – Now with added zombies as we discussed yesterday. What was once a contemporary look at undergournd crime culture in Tokyo will become a zombie shooter. Key evidence of the death obsession if you ask us.

Asura’s Wrath – A god stripped of his powers now seeking revenge against his former deity brethren. Does it get much more obsessed with the afterlife than that? Of course this also reveals a sizable interest in God Of War too. Plenty of death in that.

Ninja Gaiden III – According to the rather cryptic announcement for Team Ninja’s latest Ryu Hayabusa game he will descending into a hellish world (and unleashing hell on his foes). Once again we have a hero travelling across the veil into the realms of the dead.

Shadows Of The Damned – Suda51 and Shinji Mikami finally announced their project together and would you believe it, they’re heading into hell. You’ll be playing as a professional demon killer (the great enemies of the dead) as you try and save his ‘one true love’. We’re going to assume that’s his missus and not a chainsaw or something.

Ni-Oh – It was a dead game. Ni-Oh went missing for a number of years having been revealed at E3 in 2005 and now Team Ninja is working to bring it back to life. It’s an undead game. Run for your lives!

So, is there some kind of connecting thread to all these death and demon focused titles? Is this some kind of reflection of the current mood in Japan? We’re not entirely sure, but it can’t be entirely random. Let us know what you think.