English
“We seriously don’t know anything about games.”
Ah, I should introduce myself. I am Daichi Saito, the CEO of WSS playground. Recently, I initiated the indie game information program INDIE Live Expo and have been producing indie games such as NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD.
I’ve always loved games. I became the deputy editor of a game media outlet (Denfami Nicogamer, coincidentally), and I later went independent with WSS playground, where I created and sold games worldwide, somehow managing to sell a million copies. Despite this, I still don’t really know a lot about games. My participation in INDIE Live Expo and game exhibits overseas has really confirmed this sentiment.
I think we truly know nothing about games, especially those of us working independently as “indies.”
That’s why I decided to use Denfami Nicogamer, where I once gathered information, to conduct lots of interviews with game companies and creators.
Why? Because what I and indie games need now is the ability to collect information on the world of gaming and a network where we can share knowledge globally through media.
Without this, ‘indies’ will eventually die.
There’s a global debate about what indie games are, but most players now think of any low-priced game that’s not high-quality 3D as “indie.” Even I rarely look at the developer or publisher when buying games on Steam.
However, Big Capital has also entered the low-price game market. Such companies have their own networks to collect and share knowledge on game development and market analytics.
Truly independent indie games, however, lack this. Being “disconnected” from this network, they lose the information war.
So in order to create such a network, I came up with the Indie Intelligence Network.
We plan to set up an editorial team for six months to explore games and gather all kinds of “intelligence” about them, then spend the following three months announcing our findings.
I hope this process and subsequent discussions will create a “network” – hence the name.
For this, we’ve estimated the necessary research and production costs at about 20 million yen. Of course, this amount can’t be covered by advertisements within articles. Therefore, I want to fund this entire amount with the profits WSS playground made from selling indie games.
I want to be the most knowledgeable person about games in the universe and seek out others with the same ambition, making friends worldwide along the way. Only through such friendships can we create articles that can only be produced by clashing opinions, insights, and philosophies.
Our aim is, of course, to catch up with the current state of gaming that is rapidly internationalizing and diversifying—understanding where, how, and by whom games are made, sold, and played.
We will also conduct overseas interviews. We want to reconsider what games are in the first place, discussing games from various regions and even dealing with fiction about games.
Furthermore, these findings will be shared as articles on Denfami Nicogamer and as videos on the INDIE Live Expo channel. We aim to translate articles into multiple languages and publish them with collaborating foreign media outlets.
I was the deputy editor of Denfami Nicogamer until about six years ago, and during that time, I was allowed to conduct all sorts of interviews, including overseas ones, on whatever interested me. Those experiences became invaluable when I later became a game producer.
The special editorial team will consist of knowledgeable interviewers who can extract insights about games beyond national borders, writers who can analyze and critique in a globally resonating language, and influencers who can widely disseminate our findings through videos and social media.
I appointed myself as the editor-in-chief of this special editorial team, and Jini as the deputy editor. Jini, a promising young talent, has discussed games of all sizes, both domestic and international, and has gathered 1,000 subscribers on Jini’s Game Seminar, all while exploring the next game media.
If you would like to participate, please contact us.
We plan to build a cooperative media network to translate the content into at least English and Chinese. Please contact us if you are a media outlet or translator willing to cooperate.
For this initiative, I will meet with indie game producers in Korea, for example, where PC game culture has advanced earlier than in Japan, to discuss project planning and discover the possibilities of different production styles and art forms.
Writers might meet with other writers in China, where active discussions on games take place, and find new possibilities in games that they couldn’t see themselves, leading to heated chats. Streamers might collaborate with more dedicated Factorio players in Germany and discuss what exactly makes game streaming interesting while playing.
I believe that learning about games and creating a network through knowledge and discussion will be an incredibly fun endeavor for those of us who have devoted our lives to games.
That is why I ask for your help to create this network to ensure the survival of the industry.
Contact form below:
