Retrospective: PlatinumGames (2007)

A look into one of the gaming industry's best.

 It's been ages since the last time I've made a retrospective and I thought I'd come back with a bang by talking about one of the most prolific game developers in the gaming industry, PlatinumGames! Yep, I decided that I'd change things a bit from talking about games to instead, focus on the people that make them, as I feel there's a lot more interesting stuff to talk about and unveil by going over the history of the teams that made some of the gaming scene's biggest hits and PlatinumGames first came to mind. Creators of action classics such as Bayonetta and Nier: Automata, Platinum has a rich history behind it and today we'll be going over it all, so let's get to it!

Part 1 - Origins

 To know the history of Platinum, we must first trace its roots back to Capcom's Clover Studio. Created in 2004 with the goal of bringing new and unique games to the dull gaming market, it featured the talents of Resident Evil creator, Shinji Mikami, Devil May Cry director Hideki Kamiya, and producer Atsushi Inaba. Clover Studio was responsible for niche hits such as the zany platformer Viewtiful Joe, the gorgeous action-platformer Okami, and the tough-as-nails beat 'em up, Godhand.

 All of Clover's games were well received by fans and critics, but sadly all of them financially underperformed. As a result, Clover Studio's light was short-lived as Capcom closed the studio in 2006, which was both a huge loss for the industry and fans of the studio's work. Fortunately for the all-star team, they left Clover to start their own studios. Mikami, Inaba, and Kamiya left to form Seeds Inc. which would go on to merge with another company called Odd Inc. headed by ex-Capcom developer Tetsuya Minami-- thus forming PlatinumGames in 2007!

You'll be missed Clover!

Part 2 - Rocky beginnings

With the studio formed, Platinum would go on its early years producing its first five projects under contract for Sega, which was a big publisher in Japan at the time. Their first hit was MadWorld, a hack-and-slash game for the Nintendo Wii in 2009. It was praised for its unique black and white look along with its heavy use of blood, which made it a standout in the Wii's library of family-friendly games, though sadly it was a financial disappointment. Their next game, a quirky shooter for the DS called Infinite Space sold better than their previous title in Japan though was considered a failure in the West. I haven't heard much about the game, but it looked like a lot of fun being a fan of 2D shooters.

Paint the town red in this bloody adventure on the...
Wii?!

 It's thanks to the third game, Bayonetta, another hack-and-slash game released for the Xbox 360 and PS3 in 2009 that launched Platinum to new heights. The game was praised for its stylish action gameplay and was favorably compared to Devil May Cry, no surprise since director Hideki Kamiya previously worked on the latter. Interestingly, the project proved to be so intense that it nearly broke the studio. Inaba recalls that the game was so much hard work that the team often argued and were unhappy throughout development. Still, all that hard work paid off as Bayonetta became the studio's first breakthrough hit, selling over a million copies though oddly company president Tetsuya Minami considered it a disappointment hoping it would've further penetrated the worldwide market.

Bayonetta is often considered to be
one of the studio's greatest works.

The fourth game in the deal came from non-other than Shinji Mikami, who is behind the fast-paced shooter, Vanquish. After the game's release, Mikami left the studio to form his own-- Tango Softworks. Minami stated that Shinji Mikami "always wanted to his own man, and developer". Despite that, the game was a success praised for its constant action, futuristic setting, and slick boost mechanic. It's also my favourite game of the studio.

The fifth and final game for Sega was Anarchy Reigns, a brawler game that's a sequel to MadWorld. It's one of Platinum's "meh" offerings and received average reviews. There's not much to say about it since not a lot of people talk about these days.

Vanquish's faced-paced shooting and fun sliding
mechanic never gets old.

 It's clear that in their early years, Platinum were stuck making mainly niche titles while good, weren't exactly high-sales magnets as Minami once stated in an interview with Polygon. And since they were targeting a global market, they obviously needed more sales.

Part 3 - Hitting mainstream success

 In my opinion, Platinum Games first gained mainstream success after they worked on Metal Gear Rising: Revengence back in 2013. A spin-off game of the renowned Metal Gear series, where you control MGS2 hero Raiden as he slashes and cuts his way through enemies as a cyborg ninja. It started when series creator Hideo Kojima contacted Tetsuya Minami after his dev studio Kojima Productions couldn't make a hack-and-slash game on their own. 

 Kojima even stated that only Platinum can make an action game with swords. Platinum agreed and soon started work on the game, adding their own signature flair in the process. The gameplay, music, bosses, and campy voice acting were all met with praise, sold well, and the game got pretty great reviews despite it being a spin-off. It's such as shame that we won't be seeing a sequel anytime soon, given the current state of the series.

"Ruuuuules of NATURE!!!"

 In that same year, Nintendo's then-new Wii U console didn't have that strong fanfare that the company was expecting when it debuted in late 2012. That and the system was in desperate need for killer games, and that's where Platinum came in. The Kamiya- directed The Wonderful 101, a bite-sized action game that on the surface looks like a bizarre mix between Pikmin and Viewtiful Joe, was positively reviewed by fans and critics, even being cited as one of the best games on the Wii U at the time. It was also the first in the long-running friendly partnership with Nintendo as Minami remarked that unlike the deal with Sega, Nintendo approached Platinum on a "game-by-game" basis, offering plenty of breathing room for the developer. Sadly the game sold poorly, mainly due to the Wii U's low install base.

A colourful and action-packed ride that
felt right at home on the Wii U.

 Platinum continued its hit streak with 2014's Bayonetta 2, the much awaited sequel to Bayonetta. I remember the hate of it being a Nintendo exclusive when it was first announced and the game's producer Atsushi Inaba had to clarify that "Would Bayonetta 2 not exist without Nintendo? The answer is yes." He went to add that the studio approached Sega (the original publisher of Bayonetta) to fund the sequel, but weren't given the approval. As such, Nintendo worked with Platinum and funded the game as a Wii U exclusive. 

 The result? Bayonetta 2 ended up being one of the best action games of all time and on the Wii U, finally giving it a new killer game. Fans and critics praised the new gameplay additions, fleshed out story, and stylish look of the game. Again, the game didn't sales as well as Bayonetta, being on the Wii U and all. That being said, I feel that the positive word of mouth from those who played the game did help move a couple of units.

With fantastic presentation and gameplay,
 Bayonetta 2 is a modern action classic.

Part 4 - Low years 

 Shortly after Bayonetta 2, Platinum started work on licensed games under contract for Activision, and in my opinion, this is where their "low years" began. The Legend of Korra released in late 2014 was an action game based on the TV of the same name and follows the adventure of the titular Korra. The game was panned by critics, saying that it lacked the show's charm, combat being dull, and the visuals were subpar. One review that stuck out to me was Eurogamer's where they scored the game a 4/10, stating that "This is the first major blemish on the studio's reputation; a misfire that means Platinum's name no longer guarantees quality." Damn, talk about having it rough...

 Next was Transformers: Devastation in 2015 and unlike Korra, it was their best offering from the deal with Activision. The game took heavy inspiration from the original Transformers TV show, nailing the aesthetics, characters, and even bringing back the original voice cast. It's a hack and slash game, with influences from Bayonetta with its counter mechanic, and you can play as classic characters like Optimus, Bumblebee, and Grimlock. As a huge fan of Transformers and Platinum, I enjoyed Transformers: Devastation and in my opinion, it's one of their best games. Thankfully, the game scored well with fans and critics who both agreed that it was a fun action game.

One of the better Transformers games in recent memory.

 In early 2016, Platinum celebrated its 10-year anniversary, which is confusing since the company formed in 2007 with the merger between Seeds and Odd Inc. But if I had to guess, Platinum's true birth came right after Godhand in 2006, with many of the talents seeing the writing on the wall and were planning on leaving Clover to form their own studios. Regardless, president Tetsuya Minami released a special message thanking the fans and hoping for a bright future ahead for the studio.

 Their final game was 2016's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan, based on the iconic TMNT franchise. It's a brawler game where you control the four pizza-eating turtle brothers as they deal with the Foot Clan who are terrorizing New York. The studio took inspiration from the classic TMNT comics and the game's cel-shaded art-style nails that look. However, it wasn't enough. Critics weren't impressed with the game, citing the repetitive missions, bland game world, and choppy frame-rate being among the game's flaws. Some fans actually enjoyed the game while others not so much, so it was pretty mixed. Personally I'm a huge fan of TMNT and I remember brushing the game off when it came out just because it didn't look all that interesting. That being said, I may give it a shot if I find it cheap somewhere down the line.

Cowablunder, dude...

 Platinum also co-developed Star Fox Zero alongside Nintendo for the Wii U. Kamiya was a known Star Fox fan and often expressed his desire to make a game in the series. Fortunately, Nintendo saw the flying sections of Bayonetta 2 and were impressed by it, and asked Platinum to co-develop Zero. It released in early 2016 and the reception it garnered from fans and critics was average. Both agreed that the level design was great while criticising the game's clunky controls and lack of originality. Its sales didn't help either as it was regarded as the worst selling game of the series in Japan.

Not so smooth flying for Star Fox and crew.

 Shortly before Star Fox Zero's release, Minami stepped down as president of PlatinumGames. Minami didn't state a reason for the departure, but was replaced by Kenichi Sato. In the same year, Platinum's then-upcoming game Scalebound which was published by Microsoft was delayed from late 2016 to 2017. It was an action game where you control a white-haired protagonist with a dragon partner. The game was a huge undertaking for PlatinumGames as they game's concept was conceived as early as the studio's formation. It was also pretty ambitious from a gameplay and visual standpoint, pushing the Xbox One to its limits in gameplay trailers.

 In early 2017, news hit that Microsoft pulled the plug on Scalebound, disappointing both fans and the staff that worked hard on the game ever since it began development in 2013. A shame really since it looked a it would have been a killer app for the Xbox One.

Cancelbound...

Part 5 - Recovery

 With the sad news of Scalebound behind them, PlatinumGames' next project was Nier: Automata for the PS4 and was published by Square Enix in 2017. A sequel to the cult classic Nier, it follows the adventure of a trio of androids as they battle alien robots on a ravaged Earth. Immediately after its release, it was an unexpected success. Fans and critics loved the game and praised the unique setting, satisfying gameplay, and stunning production values. It was a huge hit for Platinum in a while and this time, manged to sell over 1.5 million units. Nier: Automata was so successful for Platinum that Kamiya stated in an interview that the game saved the studio from bankruptcy and thanked its eccentric creator Yoko Taro. That and it was regarded as one of the highest-rated games for the PS4 of the year.

A success story that came out of nowhere,
that's Yoko Taro for you.

 Later that year, Platinum announced Bayonetta 3 was in development for the Nintendo Switch, with Nintendo handling publishing duties. Things were shaping up to be well for the studio as the following year in 2018, as they were busy working on their upcoming projects. The only game they released was a mobile one called World of Demons co-developed with DeNa, which didn't garner much attention.

 Astral Chain was the studio's biggest release in 2019. A stylish action-platformer for the Switch where you battle invading aliens using monster known as "Leigons" in a futuristic city called "The Ark", the game met with widespread praise from fans and critics. The tight gameplay, solid story, flashy visuals, and awesome soundtrack were all highlights and it was among my personal favourites of the year. Best of all, the game sold over a million copies, which made it a modest success.

Astral Chain is by far one of the most fun
action games I've played recently.

 After their brief period of downs, it seems like Platinum has finally regained its footing and are back in action to making great games again.

Part 6 - Platinum Today

 As of 2020, Platinum has made big announcements recently. First, the studio received a major external investment from Chinese conglomerate Tencent Holdings in a deal where the studio can self-publish its games, without having to resort to a publisher. "This partnership will have no effect on the independence of our company, we will continue operations under our current corporate structure." said CEO Kenichi Sato. Still, the news didn't resonate well with some fans, given Tencent's previous record with gaming studios such as Activision Blizzard and Epic Games.

 In February, Platinum released the Bayonetta and Vanquish 10th Anniversary Bundle, celebrating both games turning over 10 years old. Also, Platinum unveiled its "Platinum 4" initiative, which consisted of four major announcements from the studio. It included a Kickstarter project to port The Wonderful 101 to modern consoles and PC, a new studio based in Tokyo, a new game in the works titled "Project G.G", and (seriously...) an April fools joke. Not the most exciting thing in the world, but at least they're keeping busy.

 An interesting piece of news I found is that Platinum is currently working on their own in-house game engine called "PlatinmEngine" in an effort to create "bigger, more expressive games than before" according to chief technology officer Wataru Ohmori. He also stated this will make development far more efficient as new technologies and graphical expectations grow. I'm genuinely interested in how their games will look on their new engine and on next gen consoles.

 In conclusion, PlatinumGames, like many other developers, have had and its ups and downs over the years. However, they have made a mark in the industry with their all-star team of devs and flashy, unique games. Even in their less than stellar games, PlatinumGames' mission is a simple one: to create fun and satisfying actions games. And based on their pervious hits, I'd say they succeed in that with flying colors. As a huge fan of the studio, I'm excited to see what the future has in store for them.

Here's hoping there's more great games to come
from the team at Platinum!

 Thank you for making it all the way here. I know this has been a very long read and it really took me a while to make, but I had a lot fun learning about the history of PlatinumGames. I don't do retrospectives as often as I did and that's due to the fact that it's pretty time consuming, but once again thanks for reading and until next time!

Sources:

Capcom's Clover Studio Dissolved - Wired

Clover Reborn - IGN

The History of Platinum Games - GamesRadar

Making Bayonetta Almost Destroyed Platinum Games - Destructoid

Platinum Games President rates its sales as a "C or even a D." - Eurogamer

A brief history of one of gaming's greatest studios - Eurogamer

The president and future of Platinum Games - Polygon

Bayonetta 2 would not exist without Nintendo, Says Platinum Games - Polygon

The Legend of Korra review - Eurogamer

Bayonetta 2 Director Given Dolls of The Game's Characters For His Birthday - Siliconera

PlatinumGames celebrates 10 years with wallpaper - Gematsu

Star Fox Zero sales off to a series-worst in Japan - Destructoid

President of Star Fox Zero dev PlatinumGames steps down - Polygon

The Future of PlatinumGames - IGN

Nier director Yoko Taro saved PlatinumGames, according to Hideki Kamiya - Eurogamer

Platinum Games accelerates self-publishing plans with Tencent investment - gameindustry.biz

Platinum 4 - four.platinumgames.com

Platinum reveals new game engine designed to deliver "bigger, more expressive games." - VGC