The picture secret plan industriousness is in a point of condensation . Companies like Bungieare canceling games and laying off developers so they can home in and focus on one or two large title . Why invest in littler , riskier projects when make larger game in well - known franchises will yield greater getting even ? Capcom , on the other script , is committed to doing both .
“ I believe that the experience with a series or remake is authoritative , but the experience of a new IP is also important,”Kunitsu - Gami : Path of the GoddessDirector Shuichi Kawata told me in an e-mail consultation follow the release of one of Capcom ’s more observational fresh games yet .
That ’s a rarified sentiment to discover from someone at a major video game developer and publishing house behind AAA franchises . For the past several years , Capcom has go along to turn games in popular series likeStreet Fighter , Resident Evil , and Dragon ’s Dogma . Monster Hunter Wildsis poised to be one of the biggest game of 2025 . Over that same stop , it has also adopt the time to create more data-based games like underwater MetroidvaniaShinsekai : Into the Depths , multiplayer dinosaur shooterExoprimal , and action - pillar defense hybridKunitsu - Gami : Path of the Goddess .
Those game are just as entertaining as the latest Resident Evil or Street Fighter , giving Capcom one of the most actively diverse and inspiring plot lineups outside of Nintendo . I interviewed Kawata , and producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi . Discussing their body of work on a fresh IP exposed a key reason why Capcom is presently on a blistering run .
Making a new IP at Capcom
The idea forKunitsu - Gami : course of the Goddesscame to Kawata around the timeApple ArcadeexclusiveShinsekai : Into the Depthswas completed . Kawata was a big sports fan of tower defense games and the strategy they take , and he wondered what it ’d be like if a player had to take part in that action . The result is a game where players overlook units to defend a maiden from creatures call in Seethe as she works to purify a corrupted Japanese mountain .
Kunitsu - Gami isa bold plot with a unique gameplay genre mix , minimalistic but aroused storytelling , and bewitch visuals . WhileKunitsu - Gamihas pull back some comparison to Capcom franchises like Okami and Onimusha , the secret plan thrive because it is n’t pigeonholed to either of those series and is free to be as wild and creative as it wants .
Creating a fresh information science in that way is n’t easy , but Kawata think it benefits the whole development team . “ I think that the challenge of creating a Modern IP with the entire team under limitation will lead to the emergence of both the team and each individual , as each team phallus can go through the appendage of giving shape to musical theme and creating products , ” he explained .
Meanwhile , Producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi ’s concerns are more participant - cladding . Hirabayashi has experience working on original plot likeKunitsu - Gamiand well - worn franchises like Resident Evil . He thinks the large challenge with new IP are “ develop users to recognize the titles ” and “ getting players to partake the fun . ”
To address this , Hirabayashi says that Capcom has to pay extra attention to the “ order we deliver game elements and how we pass with the residential district . ” Kawata believes this is good for the development of private team members , who must work together and get hold answers to some of those tough questions in a “ flexible and potent mode without getting becharm up in our idea . ” That exposes an of import matter all Capcom games do well : they keep the instrumentalist in mind .
What players want
Even for something as esoteric asKunitsu - Gami , once you go hand - on with the plot , you ’ll understand there ’s something transport about it . I saw this in activity at Summer Game Fest this twelvemonth . Kunitsu - Gamiwas a game few people do it about heading into their Capcom appointment at this press effect , but theyraved about it once they spiel it .
Kunitsu - Gamiis the variety of game that needs to be seen to be believe , which is why I think it was a sassy move to get the biz in Xbox Game Pass and into the hands of pressing and creators , who then raved about its innovative ideas . Ultimately , these Capcom devs said that hold launch the “ accusative exploiter perspective ” in mind is the most authoritative thing when ferment on a game , whether it ’s a novel IP or not .
“ I mean the most authoritative things in game ontogeny are still the same : the importance of working together to create the game and the grandness of think about the people who will be playing the game , regardless of whether it is a series , remake , or a new IP , ” Hirabayashi says .
It does n’t matter if the biz is in a well - known enfranchisement or potentially the start of a brand - newfangled series . If the developers work together well and make something estimable that they will enjoy , then the results will be spectacular . That may seem simple , but an upfront approach toward secret plan development and creating Modern IP seems to be the thing that makes Capcom biz feel like Capcom game .
That ’s something a lot of company are n’t looking to do as they put down off developer and reorganize their teams to work on few projects that make more money . Whether players say it outright or not , there is a requirement for new IP with modern gameplay musical theme from well - known studios . Capcom is uncoerced to take wager on more observational game likeKunitsu - Gami , while know that the challenges of hit something very appealing to players at that scale are even more hard as a known franchise is n’t attached . It is find achiever while doing so too , asKunitsu - Gamihas already hoard 500,000 player less than a month after release .
We ’ve potentially come what could be the start of a new Capcom series ; if not , it ’s still a well - executed gewgaw in the game library of Capcom ’s renaissance . Kunitsu - Gami : Path of the Goddessis now available for PC , PlayStation 4 , PS5 , Xbox One , and Xbox Series X.
