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EroGame Industry declined by 6.4% to 19.1 billion yen, reported by YanoResearch


poplarbrook

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4 minutes ago, Nightmare799 said:

Japanese entertainment business? Learning? Improving?

Those sentences...they...uh, you know...they do not go very well together. I mean, take a look at what happened to Dynasty warriors series and most of their PC releases. When they are finally willing to take risks, they usually fail to deliver the effort necessary, which leads to making excuses why their releases, be it games anime or VN's  are not getting good sales such as piracy, when in fact mostly their laziness and lack of presentation, along with their mentality that I can only comprehend as hatred towards west, are at play for their failures.

 

I mean, I am enthusiastic about Japanese technological advancements and their achievements and integrity as nation, but the heads of their entertainment enterprises are among some of the most despicable people I can think of, not that it is any different in west mind you, but heck, at least we try sometimes.

What you say it's true, it really is despicable and they think that just because the product itself contains something that appeals to the target audience it makes it acceptable or any good to flood the market with low quality stories, shitty characters so on and so forth but then again sometimes comes a company or companies that actually do have some sense and respect as well as creativity hence why we have some of the greatest Vn's though it's getting more and more scarce these days to find great ones even if there are some...

I just would like to see the market improve so there's more investment and there fore an overall improvement in quality and quantity...the solution for businessman is an easy one. Don't work? then get rid of it instead of trying to fix it...which is a senseless and despicable way to work around things that not only doesn't produce earnings but also pisses off the audience you target as a company, and in the end of the day we're the ones buying their products but we're not stupid and won't settle for low quality products when we know that there's actually good stuff out there.

 

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2 minutes ago, Dergonu said:

Hmm, maybe I'll just have to win the lottery and start forcing all the companies with my newfound wealth to make more yuri games! That would surely cause world peace make the market stabilize, because lets face it; everyone loves yuri, so everyone will buy the games!

It's a flawless plan! :pyaa:

Well, I say it is more important to actually HAVE dreams than acting upon them.

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Just now, CeruleanGamer said:

Gimme a sec, I'll report @Dergonu to the nearest psychiatrist or maybe mental institution?

Lol, just now are we doing this? :conspiracy:

5 minutes ago, Dergonu said:

Hmm, maybe I'll just have to win the lottery and start forcing all the companies with my newfound wealth to make more yuri games! That would surely cause world peace make the market stabilize, because lets face it; everyone loves yuri, so everyone will buy the games!

It's a flawless plan! :pyaa:

Yes that's a flawless one alright -Gets a straight jacket ready- :sachi:

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1 minute ago, DarkZedge said:

What you say it's true, it really is despicable and they think that just because the product itself contains something that appeals to the target audience it makes it acceptable or any good to flood the market with low quality stories, shitty characters so on and so forth but then again sometimes comes a company or companies that actually do have some sense and respect as well as creativity hence why we have some of the greatest Vn's though it's getting more and more scarce these days to find great ones even if there are some...

I just would like to see the market improve so there's more investment and there fore an overall improvement in quality and quantity...the solution for businessman is an easy one. Don't work? then get rid of it instead of trying to fix it...which is a senseless and despicable way to work around things that not only doesn't produce earnings but also pisses off the audience you target as a company, and in the end of the day we're the ones buying their products but we're not stupid and won't settle for low quality products when we know that there's actually good stuff out there.

 

Yes, it is the very definition of lazy. Bare minimum is not the answer in this enterprise, it is ether go big, or go home, and Japanese developers of entertainment media, regardless of genre now find themselves getting banged in the butt for their lack of devotion.

 

I really wish this didn't have to happen, but in the same manner as our earth culls those both weak and unwilling and unable to evolve, so does entertainment enterprise market. In the end, this is really just natural evolution at play, but the difference being, users like us will get the most soiled end of the shit stick regardless of who and what causes the downfall.

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2 minutes ago, CeruleanGamer said:

The industry needs to improve to the point I can pull out my favorite heroines, handsome protagonists, and waifus out of the computer screen and make love to them myself.

2D to 3D conversion. Make it happen devs!

We have a winner!, i'd vote for you to lead us :sachi:

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1 hour ago, Toranth said:

Piracy is a problem, yes, but a far bigger problem is that the industry overexpanded and dropped significantly in quality the past few years.  Like the anime industry, I expect we'll see a period of contraction as lesser companies and fringe studios go out of business.  When the market stabilizes, more new studios will appear, there'll be more new and interesting games, and the industry will grow again (until the next bust cycle).

Remember, 2015 averaged 75-100 mid to major releases a month, with that many or more little doujin releases added on.  That's still a LOT of games.

Don't know if doujin games are calculated, but the size can be impressive. For example, an online distributor, EISYS,inc (the company that runs dlsite) has reached a revenue of 6.3 billion yen in 2014 (http://www.eisys.co.jp/company.html).

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8 minutes ago, poplarbrook said:

Don't know if doujin games are calculated, but the size can be impressive. For example, an online distributor, EISYS,inc (the company that runs dlsite) has reached a revenue of 6.3 billion yen in 2014 (http://www.eisys.co.jp/company.html).

Then again, DLsite caters to practically every niche and fetish possible and impossible.

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18 minutes ago, Nightmare799 said:

Then again, DLsite caters to practically every niche and fetish possible and impossible.

And they don't spend money on physical copies, it's like a perfect business model for profit, and it also helps doujin creators a ton. I use DLSite because it's the only site that offers decent 18+ audio.

I feel like Japan could really invest some more on the digital market, although I'm not sure if this interests their audience a lot.
Physical copies of VNs are absurdly expensive, especially by Western standards. Take, for example, Key games; there isn't a single Key game that's available as a digital version, (except for the localized versions, but those aren't handled by Key), doesn't it seem like a smart idea for a big company like Key to expand to a digital market? Apparently not.

Japan seems so obsessed with anything physical whether it be anime, manga or PC games, it's always physical physical physical. I have absolutely no problems with physical copies of stuff, they're great for collectors, but what about the people who just want to enjoy things without the added monetary cost of having to physically own them? Considering selling digital things is much more inexpensive, I really am not sure why some companies don't seem to bother with it, and it would also be great for Westerners who can read Japanese but can't play games without resorting to piracy because importing physical games from Japan is 1) expensive and 2) customs are a bitch.

The traditionalism of otaku media feels like a pointless bottleneck sometimes.

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8 minutes ago, CeruleanGamer said:

Was it you @Nosebleed who had one of their figurines taken hostage by customs?

Damn those perverted bastards! If they wanted one, they should buy their own!

Yeah, that happened lol.

But regarding eroge, I'm mostly referring to the fact that it's illegal to ship 18+ content in the mail and if customs finds it, you can get in trouble.
If there was a digital option, though, I could just safely download my porn without worries.

Edit: And don't give me the "it's to combat piracy" argument, because every single physical game gets cracked in a day or two and uploaded onto the internet.

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25 minutes ago, Nosebleed said:

Yeah, that happened lol.

But regarding eroge, I'm mostly referring to the fact that it's illegal to ship 18+ content in the mail and if customs finds it, you can get in trouble.
If there was a digital option, though, I could just safely download my porn without worries.

Edit: And don't give me the "it's to combat piracy" argument, because every single physical game gets cracked in a day or two and uploaded onto the internet.

Difference of laws and regulations is the reason for region restrictions statement. If you buy a eroge in North America but get arrest of child porn, the developer assume zero responsibility because they stated "Japan Sales Only". In japan porn without mosaics is illegal too, though some doujin CGs are uncensored.

Dates back to golden age of video game, "Japan Sales Only" and "North America Sales Only", "Europe Sales Only" existed too. Some female enemies have been converted to male ones outside Japan. Women in action gain popularity only after Iron Eagle 3:)

By the way, I have updated the main thread with data of more fields of otaku market:)

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I'm talking about having a proper digital market inside Japan for starters, because there really doesn't seem to be one.

Of course I'm aware of region restrictions, but that's not the point I was making, otaku culture is very stubborn when it comes to its media and everything always seems to go down the physical route first and foremost, and imo that is hurting the industry to some degree considering we live in an age where digital is becoming more and more prominent and physical goods are becoming more expensive to be affordable by the average consumer.

Also
> Idol Market: Increased by 37.4%
Top kek

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6 hours ago, Codesterz said:

This doesn't surprise me at all. The VN industry has become dominated by generic moege VNs. If you look at the top selling manga of 2015 in Japan http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2015-05-31/top-selling-manga-in-japan-by-series-2015/.88770 you'll notice something. There are VERY FEW moe type mangas in it. I'm sure even in Japan many are getting sick of the typical school setting harems. They need to try create more original and interesting settings and stories. You'll also notice many of the series in the top selling mangas are shounens which feature lots of action and characters that get stronger throughout the series. There aren't too many VNs that do this. If the VN industry doesn't stop making copy paste moege VNs they will slowly die out. They need a more balanced cast of characters. Not 1 or 2 male characters and a million female characters.

Yup I am also a fan of sales figures. I even have a weekly sales figure in bookmarks (http://nozomi.2ch.sc/test/read.cgi/ymag/1404977052/) but the trend is changing. Digital manga sales rise and published manga decline. It will be good if there is an update on digital manga sales, one day.

 

3 hours ago, Nosebleed said:

I'm talking about having a proper digital market inside Japan for starters, because there really doesn't seem to be one.

Of course I'm aware of region restrictions, but that's not the point I was making, otaku culture is very stubborn when it comes to its media and everything always seems to go down the physical route first and foremost, and imo that is hurting the industry to some degree considering we live in an age where digital is becoming more and more prominent and physical goods are becoming more expensive to be affordable by the average consumer.

Also
> Idol Market: Increased by 37.4%
Top kek

Well I favor digital eroge too, for if physical ones are found by girlfriend, she will be angry:( My mom would as well.

However the industry somehow rely on distributors and thus physical copies. Explanation: since most eroge brands (except AB2) cannot lend money from banks because of their products, they are financed by distributors or other business (Hooksoft was under the name of a clothing company in 2007). There are more than 500 eroge retailers in Japan in 2007 and distributors are the only ones that can ship games to these retailers. With each game copy shipped and sold, a percentage of revenue is received by the distributor. As financier of the industry distributors certainly do not want physical copies to disappear. So physical copys still play a big role. This explains why many digital games only release after months physical ones are sold.

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5 hours ago, Nosebleed said:

I'm talking about having a proper digital market inside Japan for starters, because there really doesn't seem to be one.

Otaku do have some blame for it, but it is mostly the publishing company's fault.  Japanese companies are very conservative and very paranoid.  They don't like digital distribution, because it is new and because there is the risk of piracy.  They'd rather guaranteed lose 100 sales than risk losing 200.  They'd rather release a game in 600x800 than 1080p if it would allow them to save a yen on development costs.

 

For all that we have this idea of Japan as a high-tech nation, Japan is the only nation where I've ever encountered someone that would brag about their inability to use a computer.

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8 hours ago, Kiriririri said:

Moe is what keeps the market alive pls. Moe is also awesome, not Japan's fault you don't like it :Teeku: 

This is where I say "sad but oh so true", Im even falling down the moe hole myself sometimes D:.

Anyway, make it easier to buy online, more solid releases and continue the exposure and releases in the west.

I think the resurge in VNs has just started, if the whole rebranding thing with VNs this year continues into 2016 im pretty sure we can see a + on that on next years report 

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There's one way for this situation to improve in the Western market also: Steam needs to stop greenlighting all these fucking trash OELVNs and shitty ass third party titles.

By getting all this low quality crap sold in the market, it's giving visual novels in general a bad name and making people think: Oh it's just a bunch of anime girls and boobs and all this nonsense assumptions.

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6 minutes ago, CeruleanGamer said:

There's one way for this situation to improve in the Western market also: Steam needs to stop greenlighting all these fucking trash OELVNs and shitty ass third party titles.

By getting all this low quality crap sold in the market, it's giving visual novels in general a bad name and making people think: Oh it's just a bunch of anime girls and boobs and all this nonsense assumptions.

Well, the vast majority of the VN industry is nukige or moege. In other words, just a bunch of anime girls and possibly boobs.

VNs had a bad name well before OELVNs got onto Steam.

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