Square Enix Talking About Making "Heavy JRPG" Once More

[Andromeda]

An interview this week from Nikkei Trendy with President of Square Enix Yosuke Matsuda had him talking about Bravely Default's success abroad, other games developed for a broader audience and future games. He mentioned some of the games they developed did not meant expectations and said their focus was to appeal to a world-wide audience. However, the success of Bravely Default in NA and EU showed to them that a more traditional JRPG, like what they used to make, was still viable and in demand. The success has made them think about returning to their focus of making JRPGs meant for Japan, rather than trying to make something that suits everyone.

Pulling a direct quote from the interview.

“With that in mind, and all of the collective fans, there’s a sense of mass, which loses the image of a niche market,” continues Matsuda. “For the new games we’ll be developing from this point on, while this may sound a bit extreme, we’ve been talking about making them as heavy JRPGs. I believe that way, we can better focus on our target, which will also bring better results.”

Source: Bravely Default's Success In The West Is Making Square Enix Rethink Their JRPGs - Siliconer

[Angantyr]

Though reading it sounds like great news it remains to be seen how they go about this, I've heard conflicting reviews regarding Bravely Default.

[Andromeda]

Everything I've heard about Bravely Default has been quite positive. But my hope is that it'll mean that Square Enix will be more willing to localize other games they make, but have been too afraid to bring over or seen as too risky because they aren't Western focused. It still feels a little strange hearing a company known for making RPGs and specifically JRPGs, especially in the past, to think it's an extreme idea to make a heavy JRPG. The Final Fantasy series has been just as strong in Japan as it has been outside. If they've learned something from it then all the better. I'd prefer heavy JRPG experiences from them.