Wada sees "second stage of growth" for games industry

Square Enix president Yoichi Wada has spoken of his belief that the videogames industry is about to begin a "second stage of growth" as he discusses the company's recent acquisition of Eidos Interactive.

Speaking in a new joint interview with Eidos CEO Phil Rogers, Wada commented: "Some people say that demand for games has levelled off. In some respects this is true, but in others it is not. I think some people say it's levelled off because they believe... growth has almost reached its limit."

Insisting that the establishment of gaming as a mainstream form of entertainment would soon see a second stage of growth, Wada asked: "How will we be able to contribute to this second stage of growth in the game industry? This is expressed in our corporate philosophy statement: To spread happiness across the globe by providing unforgettable experiences."

"Starting with games, all the contents we provide are the ingredients for our customers' happiness," he added. "The key is a deep understanding of each and every one of our customers. And when it comes down to it, our competitiveness depends on the quality of our contents and service."

Discussing the acquisition of Eidos specifically, Wada made it clear that Eidos' focus on original intellectual properties had been a primary draw. "Our goal is to become one of the top ten players in the world's media and entertainment industry," said Wada. "Since the game market is global, both our contact with our customers and our game development must become global, too."

Describing the new structure of the company in detail, Wada stated that: "Our aim is to implement a hybrid management framework which avoids the extremes of being either too global or too local."

"The Group's management and administration divisions will be integrated, while our product and service delivery divisions will be established locally in each territory to maximise our business opportunities through better understanding of local customers' tastes and commercial practices," he said.

After previously criticising Japanese for not sharing technology to the same degree as Western companies, Wada added: "While promoting shared technology and expertise among our studios, we will also develop products which reflect the unique identity of each studio, regardless of locality."