If you look at his career and accomplishments overall, I would say he has done pretty well. Not sure how the Yakuza statement is relevant, mor elike interesting info on how much it costs in terms of production to localize, and thus better insight on which localized games make money etc...We already all knew that localized games do not have anywhere near the voice acting budget of, say, a BioWare game.

Anyhow, its very very very few people who never have a bad idea. In any case, its irrelevant, him having some bad ideas doesnt make him a liar.

He talked specifically about the voice talent they were hiring for Yakuza 3... which naturally took everyone by surprise considering the localization is confirmed subtitles only. lol.

Did you know that for localizing games, you often have to also work a new contract with the original voice talent if you want to keep the voices? Like anything, it depends on the individual project, but it is not at all uncommon for the original actors to be paid to keep their voices in a localized game.

@ jarrod

Well, as pointed out earlier, Sega uses Siras. So they are going to have way more accurate data for sales than NPD's guesses will get you. Especially since Wal-mart participates with Siras, even with their online sales, but doesn't release any info to the public or NPD. So the guy from Sega is most likely right if he's saying that NPD usually undertracks sales.

He didn't reference that, or any known data though.  If Siras really showed NPD undertracking by as much as 30%, I doubt Nintendo would be using NPD in their IR reports.

Listen to the podcast.  He talks about getting new voicework for the localization, not renegotiation. 

He was a bit of a mess all around, and was the source of the whole "Sega's mature games don't sell on Wii" blowup we had last month.

Well... if that's the case maybe the guy was just flustered all around.

It wouldn't be the first time a flumoxed company head made up a number.  Happened a lot to the Sony guys early this generation as I recall.

Nah its not the case really. I had almost forgotten about the Wii thing, but a bunch of Wii lovers got Exxxxxtreeeemely bent out of shape over the interview, which is pretty much the source of any hate you see going its way. Interview comes across totally differently to someone who doesnt care about the Wii.

He basically didn't know what he was talking about for multiple things (Wii mature sales, Yakuza 3 localization), and he's just a studio manager/producer (having just recently taken over Secret Level / Sega Studios SF).  Interview came across as generally uninformed for anything that wasn't directly under his purview (ie: the Condemned games and Secret Level).  

In regards to the NPD bit as well, he didn't elaborate at all, just talked about numbers from "retail partners".  Which means he could've been confusing shipments, overall North America or any other number of things.  And this siras talk is pure speculation, and pretty ungrounded at that.

Do you call this - 

http://www.gamespot.com/news/2445987.html

"In addition to Nintendo of America, SiRAS' first announced clients include Philips/Magnavox and Sega of America."

- pure speculation and ungrounded?