The situation is very different.

Publishers like EA and Take 2 are working in a growing market. Their revenues keep climbing, it's just that their costs are out of control, so they post a loss. They'll be fine as soon as they figure out how to bring their costs in line with their revenues.

Publishers like Koei and Tecmo are working in a shrinking market. Their cost problems aren't so bad, but their revenues are drying up, forcing them to keep cutting costs and driving down the quality of their games, which in turn reduces interest in their titles. They need to break out of Japan or they are going to starve to death.

I don't know why Square is being put in the same boat as other Japanese publishers. They have a good reputation and recognizable IPs in the West, and they just bought up Eidos for even more Western studios, IPs and distribution. They're well-positioned to grow outside Japan.

I wish it was that simple.

what you call anime crap is one of the poitns that is a "safe bet" on the japanese market (part of the appeal). The ridiculous story is a relative matter, what you consider awesome can be considered stupid in Japanese market. To make a more worldwide appealing story is not easy. A similar thing goes to the "less annoying" factor. It's very relative.

Making games "less Japanese" involves a lot of risks and careful planning. The end product can be mediocre for all regions

I don't have a problem with a developer/publisher deciding to focus on local gaming tastes, but this will become more and more difficult to sustain as each generation of consoles becomes more costly to develop for. I see bad times ahead for Japanese consumers who prefer Japanese-targeted titles.

Anyone remember Purple Moon? They attempted to develop games that were very girl-oriented, such as focusing on relationships, but they folded after 2 years. The problem wasn't that gamers weren't interested in developing "gaming" relationships (just ask anyone who plays the Sims or WoW), but that they did it in such a way as to specifically appeal only to a limited market.

Some games have been developed for very specific interests, such as the original Cooking Mama on DS which sold 4m copies, but a developer has to carefully gauge how broad the interest is to pull it off.

Perhaps part of the problem is that Japanese gamers' interests are starting to broaden, meaning they're more likely to purchase Western-produced titles than they were in the past.

I can't really say much in terms of them finding a solution, but actually releasing more games stateside and developing several low-cost/low return games may help them long-term.

WiiWare/XBLA/PSN are avenues for niche games to find an audience. Look at Contra ReBirth for example.

Creating contacts with Western teams may also help with them finding a more global audience, like Square Enix did with Eidos. The Western teams don't have to be necessarily the best in the business, but they could prove useful in getting the part of the market that they are severely missing.

I also agree, the games could be a little better.

Bravo, nailed the problem on the head.

Just look at some of these cutscenes. Full of whiney, depressed characters that always keep saying the same thing over and over.

I dont blame anime, I blame the influence of cheap crap anime that did this.

Instead of being inspired by this...

Incredibly fluid animation, well written and even thought provocking animation instead most game developers are inspired by this....

OH MY GOD HE TOOK OFF A MASK?  ISN'T THAT EXCITING?!  Also notice those nice backgrounds dissapear replaced with lines!  Also i didnt know the human mouth only had to move like a dust bin opening to speak. People sure love to stand around too and not move.

Anime and its fans have taken a turn for the worst which has spread into the japanese games industry.  They forgot how good it use to be.

^ you cant really compare a big budget anime film and a cheap TV anime, thats like comparing Wall-E and an episode of scooby doo based on the art style and animation prowess.

I do however agree, the anime bust in recent years is partly due to an oversatuation of cheaply made stuff that many will not buy.

Bleach used to be good a few years back. But with the constant fillers and the slow pacing of the show i just lost interest with it. The last great anime i watched was Claymore. This is the anime they should have been inspired by its gruesome, bloody, violent which is something westerners are quite fond of. But yea Naruto shippuden is the only anime i watch now and even that has its ups and downs

Well I would of used Hajime No Ippo to defend TV anime, but surprise surprise it got canned because more people were watching exactly what I posted.

Just because you got a smaller budget doesnt exclude effort, I mean One Piece is in the same boat (quick to animate) Yet it still pulls through. 

dont see a problem....Japan Will give PS3 first place

If Final Fantasy XIII doesn't live up to its Over-The-Top Godly Hype, which goes beyond almost every game this gen then there pretty screwed because eveyone is calling that game the king of all japanese games for this current gen.

Otherwise...