Cold Hearted

It might be time to start viewing video game message boards less frequently.

Yes, experienced developers (5 to 10 year of experience) make ~$50K there, and it doesn't go up much from there...

$50K is a decent salary for an entry level (0 to 3 years exp) in the US.

It's horrible and they're mistreated. But then again, you see the pictures of "game school grads" in Japanese magazines and they look like the worst of the worst nerdiest high maintenance drooling fanboy Digipen grad you'll ever see.

In my experience Japanese people couldn't care less of a crap about Katamari or ICO or stuff like some of these Japanophiles have wet dreams about. In my experience Japanese people are more like American movie-goers, they care about instant gratification on several levels and almost psychological-level cathartic relief. It just happens that games like Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest hit the sweet spot in their stressful day, being content to be able to go home and kill some slimes. If anything games like Katamari and ICO and Rez and Panzer Dragoon are appreciated hundreds of times more in other parts of the world.

Microsoft would find it laughably easy to take over the hearts and minds of Japanese developers by freeing them from the corporate sludge that is so oppressive over there, and those who really know the history know this is sort of what happened with Mega Drive and PC Engine. All you have to do is check out some Mega Drive Japanese fan pages and it's a striking correlation between what's about to go down with Xenon.

The downfall of arcade games and shooter games over there is slowly being overcome by a new generation of gamers and their now seeding desire to do something other than hit the "A" button over and over to fill the void in their empty pathetic lives by leveling their latest RPG character in their latest game-based escape from a concrete, cold hearted, unforgiving life. That is Japan as those who really know it, and not through fanboy goggles, see it.

People with brain cells am crying. tsc tsc.