Yakuza director says he views Switch predominantly as ‘kids and teens’ console

Yakuza’s executive director Toshihiro Nagoshi has reportedly said he views Nintendo Switch predominantly as a console for the kids and teens audience.

Nagoshi, who is also Sega’s chief creative officer, is said to have made the comments in an official Sega video discussing his development history.

In a section covering his 2001 puzzle game Super Monkey Ball, the designer and producer commented, according to Sega’s own translation:

“I think even now the Nintendo platform is still a game console that is played by a wide range of age groups, but basically, I think it’s hardware for kids and teens. Amid all that, at that time, Nintendo was also putting a lot of effort into the kids market, and I thought it would suit.”

If taken literally, Nagoshi’s comments could play down the chance of the 18 and M-rated Yakuza series being released on Nintendo’s platform.

As noted by VGC’s network partners at Nintendo Life, Nagoshi previously claimed in a 2018 interview that Nintendo had turned down the chance to publish the original Yakuza game, while the Japan-only Yakuza collection for the Wii U was a commercial flop.

The most recent Yakuza instalment, Like a Dragon, released in the West last month. In VGC’s Yakuza: Like a Dragon review, our critic Matthew Castle called the game “hugely entertaining”.

Nagoshi’s other series, Super Monkey Ball, could be set for a new instalment according to one of the game’s voice actors.

Matt Brian, who is the voice of the Monkey Ball series’ announcer, has been actively teasing a new Monkey Ball game this summer, including showing off a script that fans speculate could be related to something called ‘Monkey Ball Retro’.

Earlier this year Sega released a HD update of Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz for consoles and PC, featuring updated graphics, optimised controls and online leaderboards.

According to comments made by the game’s director last year, positive sales could lead to further series remakes or even a new game.