Next Show (Ep23): Your Input

[Tim Spaeth]

On Saturday, September 26th we welcome to the podcast Aram Jabbari of Atlus. He'll be on to talk about Demon's Souls, of course, but all things Atlus are on the table for discussion. Have questions? We'll ask 'em for you. Post here. Thanks!

[shun]

Ok.

Why do you remain adamant in making your games as hardcore as can be when "dumbing down" or making games easier seems to be the norms these days?

EDIT: Will Persona 3 Portable be released in NA? And, I might as well ask, any chance for a Persona 4 expansion, something like "Teddie's Quest"?

Sorry couldn't ask anything Demon's Soul related. I still don't have a PS3.

[Boy]

Ok this is probably a terrible question to ask, but I really need and answer here, and I'm getting desperate.

Cozy Okada, the father of the Shin Megami Tensei series, left Atlus in 2003, forming the devlopement company, Gaia.

Atlus localized Gaia's first game, Monster Kingdom: Jewel Summoner, in the US. Gaia's second game, Coded Soul, was released in Japan about a year ago, and I had assumed it's localization was assured, given Okada's past relationship with Atlus, but no localization has even been hinted at.

So where's Coded Soul, guys?!

Aside from that fanboy question, I've got a couple more legitimate ones.

Regarding Localization: While Demon's Souls had a strong import community, some games, like Steal Princess for DS or Kenka Bancho: Badass Rumble just kind of...happen. What factors are involved when deciding which titles to localize?

Another kind of related question. Does Atlus typically seek out developers and ask to localize games they are interested in, or do developers approach Atlus first?

Has Atlus ever considered expanding their US presence to include an actual game development team?

Any word on a next-gen console SMT installment?

With the release of Persona 3, FES, 4, Devil Survivor, and re-working of Persona 1, the general feel of SMT has definitely moved in a more light-hearted direction. Is this indicative of a permanent change in approach to the SMT universe?

I'll stop now.

[Tim Spaeth]

The Atlus show is in the RSS, iTunes, and Zune feeds; should be on the front page soon. It's a 90-minute epic. Shun, Boy, we hit most of your questions.