Igniting a firestorm among fans of role-playing games is veteran game director Hideki Kamiya, who recently proclaimed his belief that a game can’t really be called a ‘JRPG’ unless it was made in Japan.
Kamiya, who has directed such popular titles as the original Devil May Cry, Bayonetta, and The Wonderful 101, made his stance explicit on Twitter, saying “a game isn’t a JRPG with you just made it in the same style. Up until recently, JRPGs were games made in Japan, period. The term doesn’t just apply to genre, but also their place of origin.”
His remarks have sparked spirited debate within the gaming community, with some gamers agreeing with his assessment, while others are disapprovingly labeling it JP-essentialism. Many of those disagreeing with Kamiya also suggest that a similar argument could be made regarding western RPGs, though no prominent developers have made that distinction in the same way Kamiya has.
In response to the controversial tweet, one user countered with, “Just look at Nier Automata. It’s a bonafide JRPG, but was developed in France. It’s all in the gameplay and the style of storytelling. It’s nothing to really do with geography.”
Others have suggested their appreciation for Kamiya’s dedication to the JRPG genre, noting how successful his own titles like Okami have been.
Since he made the statement, Kamiya himself has taken to Twitter to clarify and emphasize that he isn’t denying the contribution of international developers. He has since said that the point he’s making is that he hopes development teams from outside Japan that create JRPGs “pay proper respect to the genre.”
Kamiya’s comments represent a larger debate in the gaming industry about the meaning of the term JRPG. It has become increasingly difficult to define this genre due to its boundaries being more blurry than they have ever been.
No matter the outcome of this debate, there’s no denying that Kamiya has sparked an important discussion about the definition of JRPGs.
