Odds of Princess Maker from Peach Princess?

[Nargrakhan]

I happened to read this article again, which tells of the failure of Princess Maker 2 in the West. At the end of the essay it quips:

[color=red]…it seems that all rights to the games outside Japan have been granted to some other company in asia, which seems odd, considering that our agreement hasn’t run out yet, but I have no reason to push the issue, best of luck to them.[/color]

So being the curious fellow that I am, I wondered who this company was - because I have seen the entire Princess Maker series in Korean and Chinese. If these guys owned a “blanket license”, then they were the ones who I should bother about releasing it in English. Well after some digging, I’ve come to the conclusion that the SoftEgg author must have misinterpreted, because there never was “blanket license” for the series.

Korean releases of Princess Maker are handled by Fujitsu.

Taiwanese and Singapore releases of Princess Maker are handled by Kingformation.

So ya know… just outta curiosity I wondered: has Peach Princess ever considered asking Gainax if they’d be interested in giving Princess Maker (not #2 mind you… one of the newer versions) another shot at Western release? Although according to Korean and Chinese sites, it seems like GeneX is the real license holder for #4 and #5 of the series. Or is it just not happening because the license is “sloppy seconds” or another reason Peach Princess can’t elaborate on?

I doubt I’d get a real answer, but it never hurts to ask.

EDIT
Heh… I just realized that ADV has one of the spin offs lines in the US. Maybe that’s it?

[mirage]

Tottaly 0%

First, the PM serie is not a Galge/eroge at all, and PP focus on it.
Second, The Dev and editor of the PM serie changed quite a lot in 15 years (The first PM was created by Gainax)
Third, this serie is not popular anymore even in Asia.(Only old fan are still here… Well, the 4 was a little disapointing because too easy)
And the last point is : Those game are too hard for general audience… Especially the first two opus.

Well, i would like to see, at last, the PM serie officially in English (and not just a Beta DOS leaked version) since i’m a total fan of it (and since it’s THE Raising Game serie)… But dreams and reality are quite different and i don’t hope at all to see it released one day.

[Nargrakhan]

@mirage

First, the PM serie is not a Galge/eroge at all, and PP focus on it.

Well that’s kinda the point really. Generally speaking, the PM series can be market to people under 18 or those who dislike erotic material in games. It could also be carried in mainstream stores like Walmart or EB Games. Not saying that they would, but they could: as it stands, neither of them will EVER carry an eroge.

@mirage

Second, The Dev and editor of the PM serie changed quite a lot in 15 years (The first PM was created by Gainax)

Only the most recent two (although I think those are the better two of the series so far). Plus it wasn’t unusual for this. Even Nintendo doesn’t make all their Zelda, Mario, or Metroid titles.

@mirage

Third, this serie is not popular anymore even in Asia.(Only old fan are still here… Well, the 4 was a little disapointing because too easy)

Actually PM4 was REALLY popular, due to the artwork (Tenhiro) and the massive dedication to story (its the most plot intense of the PM series). In Japan, it was originally planned to only release PM4 on PS2. There was a HUGE outcry, as many gamers wanted it on PC. The demand for a PC version was so big, Gainax relented and not only created a PC edition: they added more to it (plus Cube’s Day Off). The game was also converted to PSP, as sales on the PS2 was greater than expected.

I can’t say anything about China, but Princess Maker is popular in Korea. In fact, PM4 and PM5 were released in Korea before Japan. When Japan got the improved PM4 (with more story and art), Korean gamers demanded to have it too. So there was a special edition released for them. Max Lisa has a butt ton of information on how well the title fares in the country, if you can read Korean:

http://www.maxlisa.com/

I don’t read Chinese, so I can’t say anything about Taiwan or Singapore. I can figure out the jist thanks to kanji and all that… but…

[Skua]

So being the curious fellow that I am, I wondered who this company was - because I have seen the entire Princess Maker series in Korean and Chinese. If these guys owned a “blanket license”, then they were the ones who I should bother about releasing it in English. Well after some digging, I’ve come to the conclusion that the SoftEgg author must have misinterpreted, because there never was “blanket license” for the series.

I wondered about that myself, and I think he’s referring to GeneX. My suspicion is that Gainax has little interest in Princess Maker, seeing that they left another company in charge of IP management - foreign licensing, sequels, ports, and renewal editions.

Nowadays, it seems that control has shifted to Cyberfront, who took over development of PM5 and sublicensed Taiwanese rights to its usual partner (T-Time Technology instead of Kingformation).

Actually PM4 was REALLY popular, due to the artwork (Tenhiro) and the massive dedication to story (its the most plot intense of the PM series). In Japan, it was originally planned to only release PM4 on PS2.

I don’t know about Japan, but Chinese-speaking players seem to regard PM4 as the turd of the series. On the whole, PM5 generated much less attention (PM4 topped Yesasia’s sales ranking for months and drew much criticism, but PM5 slipped by unnoticed), so interest may be declining.

[Nargrakhan]

@Skua

I wondered about that myself, and I think he’s referring to GeneX.

I thought about this too, but the timeframe is wrong. PM4 was released in 2005. I’m guessing development first started on PM4 (see below) in mid/late 2003. SoftEgg “returned” the series back in 2002 or 2003-ish? That’s before Gainax started outsourcing the PM series, which appears to be in 2004.

@Skua

My suspicion is that Gainax has little interest in Princess Maker, seeing that they left another company in charge of IP management - foreign licensing, sequels, ports, and renewal editions.

I don’t think that’s the case. Let me explain:

According to the nuts on 2chan, what we call PM5 was supposed to be PM4. During the development of the original PM4, there were all sorts of troubles and the title was going into dev hell (worst nightmare of all game makers). As the tale goes, Gainax hires someone else to produce a PM4, because the demand for it is so high, and they’re getting nowhere with their own in-house version. They select GeneX. However Gainax wants this to be a bestseller and not garbage, so Takami Akai himself (originator of the PM series) is supervisor. Thus they didn’t abandon the title.

Because the original PM4 was locked in deadlock, and dev time was crunched, this is supposed to explain why the current PM4 is mostly an improved PM2 without the RPG mode: Takami Akai had nothing else to give. Tenhiro Naoto, who had finished Sister Princess and World’s End, supposedly had a hand in making storyline a major factor.

So long story short, we get finally PM4. It sells, and people praise the artwork and characters, but there’s complaining that it’s a “step backwards” (being too much like PM2 instead of an evolution on PM3)… plus some miss the RPG mode. Eventually the original PM4 ¬ñ now PM5 ¬ñ is handed over to GeneX because they did so well. However Takami Akai does not fill in a supervisor role. This results in Cyberfront getting more control over its development and content (at this point, you can say Gainax abandoned the title). The loss of Tenhiro makes fans decry PM5 before it even hits the stores, and the shifting of the setting to modern Japan only makes it worse. PM5 is also said to be too micromanaging.

So that’s why there’s no PM6 right now.

I don’t know about Japan, but Chinese-speaking players seem to regard PM4 as the turd of the series. On the whole, PM5 generated much less attention (PM4 topped Yesasia’s sales ranking for months and drew much criticism, but PM5 slipped by unnoticed), so interest may be declining.

Interesting. I remember seeing a Chinese version of the Japanese PM4 in Singapore. I wonder how sales were for it… Do you know what the criticism was about specifically?

Probably a cool down rather than a decline. There was a break between PM3 and PM4. Plus Gainax has found other venues that make more money (the Evangelion cash cow rehashes).

In any case, a disinterest in PM might make the licensing cheaper.

[mirage]

@Nargrakhan

I don’t think that’s the case. Let me explain:

According to the nuts on 2chan, what we call PM5 was supposed to be PM4.

Well that’s true and false.
The setting of PM4 was certainly the one in PM5 (nowaday).
But the system, the art etc… was totally different.(They was an Onglet UI for exemple)

For the PM6… Well the 5 was the 6 ^^
More exactly the 3 was the 4 because theyr is an opus released after the 2 only on SNES : Princes Maker : LAW (Legend of Another Wold)

They’re, also, some spin off, like a Puzzle Game and RPg like for PS1 Only and a Quiz Game for PC.

[Nargrakhan]

@mirage

Well that’s true and false.
The setting of PM4 was certainly the one in PM5 (nowaday).
But the system, the art etc… was totally different.(They was an Onglet UI for exemple)

Ah… coolness. Thanks for the clear up. Was there ever any screenshots of the original PM4? I remember hearing it was going to be a Dreamcast title… but that’s about it. I’ve seen the “Wolf Cube” artwork from the old version though.

@mirage

For the PM6… Well the 5 was the 6 ^^
More exactly the 3 was the 4 because theyr is an opus released after the 2 only on SNES : Princes Maker : LAW (Legend of Another Wold)

Only Westerners try to number PM:LAW as part of the line. On 2chan, the SNES title is really despised and blacklisted. Most only see it as a failure rehash of PM2. A conversion so to speak: not a complete title. It also puts off the gal gamers, because they got rid of Cube. Seriously. Don’t fuck with Cube’s fan base. :lol:

@mirage

They’re, also, some spin off, like a Puzzle Game and RPg like for PS1 Only and a Quiz Game for PC.

Those don’t count though. For example Sakura Taisen has a lot of spin offs, but none of them count as part of the core line in terms of sequencing.

If I had it my way, ST5 would only be a spin off.

[Skua]

Do you know what the criticism was about specifically?

Mainly what you’ve already stated: dumbed down system, poor balance, disappointing music (all making the experience a step down from even PM2). The art was well received, of course.

Ah… coolness. Thanks for the clear up. Was there ever any screenshots of the original PM4? I remember hearing it was going to be a Dreamcast title… but that’s about it. I’ve seen the “Wolf Cube” artwork from the old version though.

Yeah. This site contains some original images, although it’s too bad that none of the high resolution files can be found.

http://members.tripod.com/T_sa/pm4.htm

Takami Akai stopped updating the official site in 2001. It’s worth noting that he took on a larger role at Gainax the next year (a seat on their board of directors, as well as the producer position on Yucie and Gurren-Lagann), so that might explain why PM4 development (and in general, activity at Ninelives) suspended.