Joining Gaming Boulevard today is Matt Conti from KEMCO to discuss his background, KEMCO, and the role the company plays in bringing JRPGs to the global market.
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I’m Matt and I have been in charge of media relations, overseas marketing and localization at KEMCO for almost 8 years. We are based in Higashihiroshima, a rural calm town nearby Hiroshima, in Japan and famous for its Sake.
Growing up, what was the first console and game you remember playing?
I still remember the time the SNES console finally entered my house when I was ten. I started playing with Donkey Kong Country and Dragon Quest VI.
What is your fondest video game memory from your childhood?
When I didn’t have any gaming device yet, I used to go to my friends’ house to play the games they had, from single player to multiplayer games. But the multiplayer games of the 90s were the best in my memory.
Did you always want to work in the video game industry?
Not actually. I entered this industry more from my interest at that time in the digital/mobile industry.
Could you provide a quick history on KEMCO to those that are unfamiliar to the company?
KEMCO is now very well known as a global game publisher specializing in JRPGs, but I will give you a brief introduction to its history.
The gaming brand name KEMCO was established in 1984. We have been in the console business until our main market shifted to the mobile game market in Japan for traditional feature phones. We have been making RPGs for these feature phones. While the Japanese mobile phone market was isolated from other mobile markets of the world for several years, it eventually opened to the world through the appearance of smartphones. This is when we started making games for Android and iOS and releasing them globally again. Thanks to our former experience in the console industry, we decided to come back to console gaming again, bringing our RPGs to consoler gamers as well. Now we pride ourselves to be a publisher for all major gaming platforms globally which realizes new releases in a short span.
Over the course of the company’s history, what have been some of your favorite titles to publish?
Personally, the recent Nintendo Switch release, Dragon Sinker, is a classic, favorite title which brings me the nostalgia of the golden age of traditional RPGs of a retro style. The story is based on a fantasy world with a classic theme as well, so if you are a lover of the genre, you should definitely try it out.
Can you describe the process that goes into partnering with developers to help bring their games to market?
The process is very simple. If we just find the games promising and suitable to our audience, we can help the developers to bring it anywhere!
Dealing with various markets, are there any challenges you face when localizing a game?
There are always challenges during the localization. Even just localizing the game to English means bringing the game to many regions and cultures with different backgrounds. When releasing many games one after another like us, especially when they are RPGs with a huge amount of texts and storyline, we must pay attention to any detail in the script, so that it can be acceptable under any circumstances. That’s our constant challenge in a world constantly changing as well!
Are you able to tease any JRPGs that fans can look forward to playing in the near future?
I can just say that we are working on many more games than last year for both mobile and consoles!
What upcoming games, besides your own, what upcoming games are you looking forward to playing?
As the industry is becoming friendlier for indie developers, I’m looking forward to seeing more exciting indie games!
Here’s a fun one! Given the choice, what character would love to see added to Super Smash Bros.?
Oh, if I had the choice, definitely our feline mascot, Felix, from the Asdivine Hearts saga!
Finally, is there anything else you’d like to share today?
Keep calm and play JRPGs!
Follow KEMCO
http://www.kemco-games.com/global/index.html
https://www.facebook.com/kemco.global
