DmC Devil May Cry is being developed by a team of nearly one hundred staff across Ninja Theory and Capcom, producer, Motohide Eshiro, has shared.
In an internally-conducted interview at Capcom, Eshiro reveals: “There are around 80 people from NT, and about 10 from Capcom U.S.A and Japan.”
“The director from NT is basically responsible for game development, while Capcom’s director [Hideaki] Itsuno oversees the entire process. Both Alex [Jones] from Capcom U.S.A and I act as the producers.”
Eshiro expresses admiration both Ninja Theory’s technology and their development speed, both of which he says have caught his attention.
“They have some incredibly sophisticated stuff, such as modelling and motion capture techniques, which enable NT to create images that rival the quality of those you see in CG films,” he says. “One other thing is their development speed. NT is incredibly fast.”
Eshiro also gives examples of the kind of input Capcom have been giving Ninja Theory on the game.
“There are not that many games made in the United States and Europe built around the concept of fighting a boss character, and because of this game developers in these countries have a hard time creating a computer-controlled boss opponent,” Eshiro suggests.
“That’s why we provided NT with the know-how we have at Capcom to help infuse DmC with the DNA of the Devil May Cry series. We gave them theoretical explanations about creating exhilarating action sequences and how to incorporate game elements into the boss battles, such as forcing players to focus on running during boss attacks or providing ways to expose the weak points of bosses and give the players an opportunity to attack.”
When asked if Eshiro is worried about sharing Capcom’s know-how with other companies, he replies that it works both ways. While Capcom need to share their knowledge in order to make collaborations with western studios work, their teams, too, learn about technologies and systems used by their partners.
