While it seems somewhat unclear as to who is publishing Ninja Gaiden creator Tomonobu Itagaki’s latest game, Devil’s Third in the West, the game will definitely be out in Japan next month. Thank goodness.
After its initial announcement in 2010, Devil’s Third was dropped by its publisher, THQ. After seemingly getting locked in development limbo for the longest time, the game resurfaced during last year’s E3 as a Wii U exclusive. Asked how he was able to persevere for so long in an interview with Weekly Famitsu, Itagaki replied, “If I gave up, I wouldn’t be able to face the people who had supported me until then. I’d never be able to work in this industry again.”
Itagaki expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the fans whose support had kept him going on to complete his game. “It’s not only because of Nintendo and other game industry people involved, but because the fans had been waiting expectedly for so long.” Itagaki said. “I didn’t want to be the sort of person to turn his back on them.”
Devil’s Third consists of a full solo campaign and a multi-player mode where up to 16 players will fight for dominance over a North America that has been split into 13 regions. According to Itagaki, the game is the product of everything he has learned as a game developer until now. “It’s got so much in it, I’ve made it so both its solo mode and multi-player mode each have enough to stand on their own as individual games.” Itagaki said. “As a result, I’ve ended up keeping everyone waiting, but at last it’s shaped into something people can play, so once the game is out, let’s play it together.”
Devil’s Third is scheduled for release on the Wii U in Japan on August 4th, [Updated (Thanks, Shiryu!)] and Europe on August 28th. At present, the Western release is still TBD.
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