David Nicholson: 'Bayonetta' director explains why he does not work on sequels

Sunday, December 8, 2013

'Bayonetta' director explains why he does not work on sequels

Hideki Kamiya, the director of Bayonetta reveals why he shies away from working directly on sequels of the franchises he helps create.

You may not have heard of Hideki Kamiya, but chances are, you’ve played one of his games. The long time video game designer is the mastermind behind titles such as Devil May Cry, Resident Evil 2,*Viewtiful Joe,*Okami, and most recently, Wonderful 101. The interesting thing about Kamiya though, is that once he lays the foundation of the series, he walks away from the helm.

Kamiya was the man most responsible for 2009′s Bayonetta, the insanely over the top action game which made the world fall in love with witches in leather. With Bayonetta 2, his involvement is mostly peripheral, as another key member of the Platinum Games team, Atsushi Inaba, has taken over the steering wheel. It is a common theme with Hideki Kamiya. The man just does not seem to want to commit to a franchise. After the first Devil May Cry, he moved on to other projects. He similarly gave up the director’s chair after creating the first game in the Viewtiful Joe series. However, Kamiya recently explained why he later takes a backseat in the series he helps to create, revealing that his passion for designing video games pushes him to explore new territories all the time.

Since his high school years, Hideki Kamiya wanted to make video games. After graduating, he got offers from both Namco and Capcom, but he had a tough decision to make.

“Namco offered a position as a graphic designer and Capcom offered one as a game planner, so while Namco was a company I had admired since childhood, what I wanted to be was a planner. It’s not that I don’t want to make sequels – I really do! But considering the nature of my position, I don’t really get a chance to.”*Kamiya told Famitsu in an interview. “Somebody needs to offer new entertainment to gamers and do the work of sowing seeds that can later grow to be strong pillars”

“It sounds a little overblown, but I’ve come to believe that is my purpose. If I had been involved with Devil May Cry 2, then*Viewtiful Joe*and*Okami*might never have been made,” he continued.* ”

“If I was directing*Bayonetta 2, then I wouldn’t have been able to make*The Wonderful 101.”

Many gamers would maybe have preferred for Kamiya to have been involved with Devil May Cry 2 at least, seeing as how terrible that particular installment was. However, his constant drive to work on something new is sure to please jaded gamers who moan about the lack of new IPs in the games industry.

Bayonetta 2 is currently in development under Kamiya’s watchful eye and is scheduled for release sometime in 2014 exclusively for the Wii U. Meanwhile, the veteran video game designer is also working on an unannounced project on the side. Considering his track record,*who wants to bet that it isn’t going to be the follow up to Wonderful 101.

Source: Polygon