Swimming Against the Current: How a Small Japanese Developer Bucked the Trend in Video Games

Abstract

Video games have been around for over half a century and game design trends have evolved greatly over time. At the time of the game arcades, technical limitations and economical models forced a design focused on challenge and trial and error on the part of the player. Over the span of the two decades since home consoles became more important than game arcades, the design has evolved to a more simplified form in order to keep owners of home consoles content. In 2009, a new and fresh design trend was introduced by a small Japanese game developer, From Software. This company brought the original excitement of the arcades back into the world of mainstream video games, and had definite characteristics of Japanese culture.