Interviews// Goichi Suda A,K.A. Suda 51

SPOnG: Your games have a very distinctive cel-shaded visual style – what are your visual influences?

Suda 51: I’m always searching for something that hasn’t been done before, so maybe that’s why this looks so new and different from what other game creators make. The key thing is that I always want to provide something new. And the first impression you get of a game is of its graphics, so I focused on that.


SPOnG: Did you enjoy making No More Heroes for the Wii, and would you make any games for non-Nintendo consoles?

Suda 51: I was really satisfied with making No More Heroes for the Wii, because the Beam Katana is a great way of using the Wii Remote. And there are the controls which are like professional wrestling, which really work well on the Nunchuk. I understand that not all games for the Wii work well with the controller, but I wanted to make something which was better than that.


SPOnG: What about online gameplay – No More Heroes is single-player-only, but did you want to add an online element?

Suda 51: Hmm. I thought about it at the beginning, but I ended up focusing on the single-player, because that’s how a story-based game works best.


SPOnG: It would be nice, though, if you could fight other humans with your Beam Katana.

Suda 51: I wish Travis could appear in the game Super Smash Bros (laughs). It might not be impossible…


SPOnG: What’s next, now that you have finished No More Heroes?

Suda 51: I’m preparing to make a game for the Xbox 360. Flower, Sun and Rain will come out on March 6 in Japan for the DS. That’s a game that Grasshopper released in 2001 for the PlayStation, and Marvelous decided to remake for the DS this year.


SPOnG: Recently, you’ve said that the Japanese games industry has to be careful, and look out for its future. Can you explain what you mean?

Suda 51: Good question. The games which sell the best in Japan are DS games. So, those who make DS games focus on the market in Japan, and they don’t sell well elsewhere. But publishers are looking to release titles that sell well, and development costs aren’t too big.

So, that’s the situation the Japanese games industry has to face down. The European and US markets expect different types of games, not DS games. But Grasshopper will keep making games for Europe and the US. Maybe no other publishers or devlopers will, but I will.


SPOnG: Thanks for your time.