Where we talk about Comiket and Digige, the indie scene in Tokyo, and game development strategies
An Interview with Japanese Indie Game Developer Riceinbowl, Part 2
Interview by: Douglas Schules; Translation by: Douglas Schules
Daedalus Machine
Up until now, I’ve been using the term “indie game” to describe what appears at events like Comiket. But technically, Comiket refers to the games as “doujin games”. What, in your opinion, is the difference between these two terms? How are “indie games” different from “doujin games”? RiB Ultimately this is how I personally understand it, but I consider the difference between the two to be that doujin games are games where the organization’s activities are limited to events like Comiket where only doujin materials are distributed, while indie games are games where the focus is on selling in the market. DM To what extent do you think this distinction will hold in the future, considering the increasing popularity and ease of digital distribution? RiB As I said before, I don’t think it will particularly change anything. DM Memories of the Ruins was designed using Unity. Why did you use this game development toolkit? RiB The biggest reason is the abundance of assets that are available on the asset store. Since a large amount of assets are necessary for a game, and considering the cost in time making them myself, the asset store is something I’ve come to rely on as much as possible. Other than this reason, the stability of the tools and community know-how are valuable things as well. DM Can you tell us a bit more about this “community know-how” in general, and how you benefited from it specifically? RiB When using Unity, there are times where I struggle with how the program works, having trouble with how to implement something in the game, or not clear how to use assets. In times like that, if I check the forums or web, I can usually find a solution so that I don’t waste time. DM Based on this, can we assume that you do the programming? If so, can you tell us how you learned? RiB Sure. I had a previous interest in programming, so I mostly self-studied. Around the time I was in middle school, I used my New Year’s gift money to get reference books and development environments, and began programming. I had friends and acquaintances who had similar interests, so we vigorously exchanged information. DM When I speak to developers, I am often told that Comiket and Digital Games Expo are the events they most commonly participate in. Riceinbowl has participated in both, so can you describe your experiences at each event, especially in terms of what types of developers participate and the types of people who go there? RiB Distribution to and interaction with the attendees is the core of Comiket. The interest these people have in games varies between high and low, but regardless there’s a lot of attendees overall, so it’s an opportunity to attract the public’s attention to games. Also, there’s a lot of circles that only participate at Comiket, so it’s a place where you can really catch up on what games these other groups are putting out. At Digital Games Expo electricity is available, so playable demos can be set up. And many of the people who come are interested in games. So, the focus of Digital Games Expo is on these playable demos rather than game distribution, and the event is a valuable opportunity to get gameplay feedback that developers can’t normally obtain. DM Given the strengths of each event, which do you recommend that aspiring developers participate in and why? RiB As a developer, I recommend Digital Games Expo. That’s because electricity is guaranteed and it’s possible to set up playable demos, so developers can get feedback on their games. DM Can you describe the Indy game scene in Tokyo? RiB I primarily participate in Digital Games Expo and Comic Market, but I feel that the indie game scene has been becoming more active year after year. I’m also hearing news where game publishers are beginning to put high priority on indie games, and the space allocated to indie games at events like Tokyo Game Show has become larger. In addition, events, study groups, and exchange meetings that are aimed at developers have routinely been held. DM What challenges do you think new game developers face in trying to get involved in the Tokyo indie game scene? RiB This is pure supposition, but if they’re completely new to the scene, I think developers must begin by publicizing their games to people who are strongly interested in indie games while they’re being developed. In order to do so, I think it’s quicker for them to participate in some kind of game exhibition event, but given the present situation it’s a bit difficult to determine the types of events in Tokyo to appear in and which events they should participate in and how. DM Based on your experiences at Digital Games Expo and Comiket, what do you think the future holds for Japanese indie games and indie game developers? This answer is also pure supposition, but I think that it will continue to generate excitement for the time being. I said this earlier but, the space allocated to indie games has grown larger at events like Tokyo Game Show. I have the impression that among the regular attendees, the number of publishers has increased even at events like Comiket and Digital Games Expo. I think that the business interest in this has also grown. Related Content
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