The History of Vanillaware

Amazing art, lies, Controversy, video games and giant boobies. What have they all got in common? Well for the developer Vanillaware they make up the foundation of their history. But who is this Kansai based game maker and why should you care. Well kick back with me and enjoy as I tell you the secret history of your new favorite developer.
Artwork: www.fiverr.com/nekochin
My Twitter: / kevstreehouse
research
www.eurogamer.net/a-game-deve...
www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain...
web.archive.org/web/201210192...
www.4gamer.net/games/134/G013...
www.gamedeveloper.com/busines...
www.4gamer.net/games/310/G031...
www.frontlinejp.net/2019/12/0...
www.siliconera.com/dragons-cr...
www.gamedeveloper.com/busines...
hardcoregamer.com/features/ar...
kotaku.com/dragons-crown-the-...
www.siliconera.com/a-conversa...
www.polygon.com/2013/7/31/455...
www.pushsquare.com/news/2014/...
www.siliconera.com/dragons-cr...
www.siliconera.com/dragons-cr...
kotaku.com/dragons-crown-the-...
blog.playstation.com/2012/04/...
Chapters
0:00 who is Vanillaware?
1:29 Kamitani and Princess crown
6:24 the blacklist years
9:36 Odin Sphere the last chance
14:48 Dragon's Crown and Controversy
21:20 Addressing the issues
13sentinels #vanillaware #dragonscrown #odinsphere

[@dollarbill6102]

I had no idea these games and the company had so much trouble. I just happened to see odinsphere in Walmart when it came out and loved it so much that I started buying every game the company put out that I could find. Each one is a really great game in it's own rite. I'd highly recommend all of them.

[@Kevstreehouse]

You sir have excellent taste

[@omarmorel4420]

Oooh yeah Odin Sphere is very good , i really enjoy that one also the story was nice

[@vortolex]

I’m a fantastic of vanillaware’s works, I don’t care what people or the world said about them, to me they are my inspiration to draw art. my first ever game about them was when I bought Muramasa Rebirth game on PS Vita this game became my beloved treasure same as Odin sphere because the story/art/music/characters….etc then Dragon Crown. After those events, I started like a mad man collecting all related of Vanillaware even their old games which is hard to get them sad 😢 I don’t live in japan which is paradise on heaven all related to anime/games/otaku stuff….. Art!

[@TwilightsView]

I'll always defend Dragons Crown art style. I love the over the top proportions of the women AND MEN! The both get exaggerated equally. But great video. Really enjoyed it

[@Kevstreehouse]

I love the art in dragons crown its super old school fantasy. It's badass.

[@vortolex]

True. The same way. Vanillaware deserve to be left alone by opiniologist (a person or a group who put their own opinion or talks to much about them without even knowing or does not have the correct information about the true or the harsh conditions they had been through “despicable” people who don’t know anything)

[@nidohime6233]

If they could change something maybe add more sexy men to balance the game design.

[@Dr_Doomfans01]

Agree!

[@lukeamparo6586]

@@nidohime6233are you telling me Roland, Fighter, and Dwarf are not hot? I’m sorry but I’m afraid you are uncultured. In all seriousness were you hoping for more KDrama male hotness? Like Wizard’s model but more prevalent and skin showing. Cause the muscles are Awesome.

[@TheRetroPerspective]

The Dragon's Crown controversy is one of my favs, it was peak gamer gate. As was usually the case, the people who got offended were the people who aren't really interested in these types of games in the first place and got their start in gaming playing Xbox 360 then fell into games journalism through privilege and nepotism rather than passion. Side note - Vanillaware has some of the best box art in gaming and Dragon's Crown is no exception, love the art style!

[@Kevstreehouse]

Yeah totally like I love all of them. Odin sphere remakes box art doesn't go as hard as the original but it is still sweet. They remind me of like movie poster mixed with comic book covers super detailed.

[@buddyluv324]

The whole Dragon's Crown bitch fit was good times and was full peak for the culture folks on the net XD

[@Kevstreehouse]

@@buddyluv324 It's hilarious looking back on it and how quickly it die out

[@Sumo_fan]

Well said brother.

[@vortolex]

The good thing there are some people or small Indira who got inspire and follow Vanillaware’s example regardless of what that is. I don’t the names of the developer(s) individual or team but the name of the games are Blade Fury and Eastern Exorcist. Which are my beloved treasure and favorite games there is more not in the same way of the game but I’m a indi-game Hunter searching for the unknown it feels akin to an adventure of Jrpg your DND beat them up games. Feel so good 😊 🥰. I hope my comment is well understood. My English typing could be wrong but I least I let out what I thinks. ;)

[@ryanminks3897]

I would love for Vanillaware to make a Dragons Crown sequel and double down on the art style. Game journos have way too much influence and don't represent the majority of the player base at all, no developer should feel the need to sanitize their artistic choices based on the fear of journo backlash.

[@Kevstreehouse]

Be cool to see some more dragons crown love for sure.

[@TonyTama]

@@Kevstreehouse and more Amazon

[@Kevstreehouse]

@@TonyTama how much more woman do you need? 😂

[@TonyTama]

@@Kevstreehouse yes.

[@Kevstreehouse]

@@TonyTama my god.

[@azarakhsh57]

Vanillaware is best developer. Kamitani is best creative director. Odinsphere belongs in a museum.

[@vortolex]

Exactly it need to be protected at All cost.

[@snazzydrew]

Princess Crown is so beautiful even to this day. May 2D live on forever!

[@Kevstreehouse]

That's those saturn sprites baby. So crisp. So clear.

[@mountainmgtow5421]

Here's hoping Unicorn Overlord will bring the Vanillaware awesomeness to an Ogre Battle spiritual successor.

[@rishnix]

Good news! It has!

[@mountainmgtow5421]

@@rishnix Funny, my Special Edition arrived today. Only one problem, I don't have a PS5 😭

[@88Somi]

It's sad that this game was touched by woke localisatiors.

[@mountainmgtow5421]

@@88Somi Kinda makes you want to play the Japanese audio with original subs.

[@88Somi]

@@mountainmgtow5421 no , I just want normal subtitles and not some forced agenda like it was in Miss Kobayashi case

[@telepathicdragon]

Few things: What you consider flaws are just their heavy specialization in their craft. I don't think there is quite a developer like them at this time. They definitely have, for a long time, been very underrated. Even more so than developers like FROM software was prior to the souls games, where they were mainly known for doing Armored Core and King's Field but also did a lot of neat side games like Lost Kingdoms and The Adventures of Cookie & Cream. It is surprising that it took this long for them to gain notoriety considering the top tier presentation of all their releases. One of the most interesting things you might've noticed is that they are always willing to do different things to build and maintain their audience. Stuff like grimgrimoire for example seems like a far departure from the beat-em-up style games they'd done previously to do something like a single-player anime starcraft. 13 sentinels also being an odd one being a more slow paced story driven adventure but it was extremely well received. The art and music is consistently good, reminiscent of AAA titles you would expect if 2D was the continued trajectory instead of moving most development towards 3D games. The gorgeous art ages and appreciates well due to the high quality sprite work with a lot of detail and fluid motion, and finally able to breathe on higher resolution platforms. The gameplay of their games are generally pretty solid and interesting and every game generally tries to do something different from the previous. You can see how their design has evolved over the years, best example being Odin Sphere Leifthrasir where they even let you play the old style, which isn't recommended due to the clunky stamina system. I would say the biggest grievance is really the lack of modern platforms their games are available on and that it's unlikely to see a new princess crown port and localization due to them losing the source iirc. (even the psp release was supposedly a saturn code port or emulated release). Most likely due to the small team, I would hope that another publisher would be willing to fund some ports and potentially provide manpower in order to get some, or all of their games on to other platforms, especially pc where I think it would do extremely well due to the demographic of indie gamers eating up these types of games. The controversy was a joke, as the media has been for a long time now due to the cultural differences between west and east as well as my opinion that games journalism has been heavily seeded with bad-faith, incompetent writers who use game writing as a stepping stone rather than treat it as a legitimate space for good writing. It's also why youtube has become the premiere space for consuming gaming-related content over traditional outlets as they offer nothing but narrative. Overall, high quality video. Glad to see a fellow Vanillaware lover thanks to the youtube algorithm for feeding it to me. Hope to see more content of interest in the future!

[@Kevstreehouse]

Thanks man glad you enjoyed it. I totally agree with your points. (had to included complaints about them at the end for the sake of fairness. I actually love that they're only using 3d backgrounds to make the art pop.)

[@MarioHernandez-dp3lz]

Should have known he had a background with dark stalkers. Love that game. The ladies in the background of Demitris stage reminded me of the game dragons crown vampire girls. I bought Dragons crown pro on my PS4 and again when Sony offered me a really good deal for my ps5. I love how vanillaware games remind me of something fond I can't quite remember; but am glad I never forgot. (Arcades in the 90s were fire :) Atlus is another company I really love. I'll still break out the old SNES and play Ogrebattle. Can't wait for Unicorn Overlord. 🥹😍🥳😅

[@paulie-g]

Indeed, I would love to be able to play on PC without jumping through hoops to emulate. You're absolutely spot on about game journalism as well - it seems all they care about is culture wars, politics, etc, iow everything except games. The games are incidental, just excuses to proselytize about their pet issue du jour, to the point I don't get a sense that they like or play games. 'Bad faith' is exactly right.

[@Circ00mspice]

The Dragons Crown controversy segment is making me question the ethics and competence of gaming journalists.

[@logandunlap9156]

i'm really not sure they've ever been great in either of those respects, for different reasons now than in the past

[@DRACOCONNER]

I definatly wish there were more eyes and appreciation with vanillaware. Their presentation is absolutly astounding and is inspiring for someone like me who really loves painting and art in general. My favs is Dragon's Crown and Oden sphere, and while Dragon's Crown artstyle is not for everyone, I love the exaggeration and proportions with all the characters and it reminded me of Frank Frazetta's artwork where you have hulking beast of men that is 1000% muscle and very big amazonian woman with huge chest. I hope we get something like that again with fun mechanics as well. -now vanillaware where is our pc ports for these games.

[@Kevstreehouse]

Totally agree. I was reminded alot of 90s comic book art for dragons crown. Something like a Jim lee where it's just a hyper exaggerated style.

[@DRACOCONNER]

@@Kevstreehouse exactly, just splash some anime style to it and boom! Presto

[@Kevstreehouse]

@@DRACOCONNER I'm a big fan.

[@gamerbear84]

@@Kevstreehouse I think I'd personally liken it to Joe Madureira, neither he nor Kaminari hold back with the stylization.

[@sunnyg7038]

Where are the goddamn pc Ports pleaseee😢😢😢😢

[@justinmeader]

This is really great, Kevin! Found your post on r/Vanillaware. Shoutout to Jason Schrier for helping sell Dragon's Crown.

[@Kevstreehouse]

Thanks dude. Glad you got a kick out of it.

[@JulitoEA]

Vanillaware games are Top notch in art design and gameplay wise. They are very charming and have an unique personality. Personally, I didn't know the whole story and background of Vanillaware as a company, so I did appreciate your video, it summarizes everything so well, I think it was very well made and it deserves more views! Good job man! 👌🏼

[@Kevstreehouse]

Thanks man. Glad you got a kick out of it as a fan.

[@toiletbread6180]

Odins Sphere and Dragon Crown are 2 of my favorite games of all time. It infuriates me that the perma-offended class of people that get to over represent gaming journalists had a part in ruining the reach of DC. Most people who play the game will, of course, notice the "goods" but will more than likely love the game for what it is.

[@rishnix]

Unicorn Overlord came out recently from them and it's fantastic!

[@OtakuBenny2210]

That's by vanilla ware?

[@rishnix]

@@OtakuBenny2210 Yep! I'm almost done with my first playthrough of the game and have 72 hours clocked in on it. If you want to do everything in the game, watch all the story, and watch some of the battles, it gets... long. It's been quite good however and I've been doing all the side mission stuff because it feels like it's a natural part of the main storyline.

[@LowellLucasJr.]

The over the top art style was what always made the vanilla ware games so beautiful and wonderful! They embrace the exaggerated designs and sexiness of both men and women! It's incredibly beautiful and amazing! It's like a living tapestry of Illustrated splendor you get to interact with! I don't want them to ever change their art Direction! If anything keep it up!

[@snazzydrew]

Odin Sphere is one of my favorite PS2 games of all time. Definitely in my top 3. It's a beautiful story. Like it was AMAZING! Then the artstyle? Woooooo just perfect! Then the combat. Jeez. How did it go so right for that game!?

[@Kevstreehouse]

Well great word of mouth and the ps3s intial price tag made it less favourable for consumers so it was a perfect storm. Also it was one of the best looking games out at the time. Plus all the reasons you mentioned 😂

[@Kevxtreme21]

Good and interesting video! I personally LOVE Dragon's Crown (Art is both hot and nostalgic, like you said, reminiscent of older beat em ups) and 13 Sentinels. Both amazing. Odin Sphere is one I plan on playing next!

[@Kevstreehouse]

Odin sphere is super solid. Its fairly close to princess crown and muramasa in terms of design and the story is very good. Glad you enjoyed the video my fellow Kevin.

[@Mintcar923]

There was a game I had back in the day on Amiga called Sword of Sodan.. For some reason that’s what Dragons Crown reminds me a little of.. VanillaWare is kinda like Level 5 in that not everyone is familiar with the dev but the ones that are are really head over heels into their repertoire

[@Kevxtreme21]

@@Mintcar923 Yep, the main guy that does the artwork for vanilla ware is basically carrying the company on his back lol. Very old school but elegant

[@PenguinOverdrive]

KZbin recently started recommending to me at least one video under a 1000 views on the home page every time I go there and if that's a recent change to the algorithm, then that's fantastic because it definitely helps people to find smaller creators, usually though the videos are very niche or weird little things about fandoms I never heard about. Not this though, this is just brilliant, I went mining for copper and found gold. Keep up the good work!

[@Kevstreehouse]

I would argue this is niche and weird. Like I am. Though I'm flattered you think it's gold.

[@bottomlefto]

dragon's crown cements itself as one of my favorite games. exaggerated art style that's a mix of anime sexy and ye olde painting that grants it a unique look like the game's one big moving parchment, classic beatemup/rpg hybrid gameplay that's impossible to get tired of, yuri lowenthal being everywhere at once, and a classic high fantasy/dnd setting with great attention to detail that sells the idea that there's a bigger world outside of the town and the stages. it's only flaw is vanillaware's allergic reaction to pc releases. grand knights history's multiplayer wouldve fared so much better with a bigger audience. shame, it looked so good too. it shares dragon's crown's style. sorceress my beloved.

[@JerBuster77]

Cant wait for their upcoming game Unicorn Overlord!

[@samakechijowo]

I own Dragon's Crown. And I love it. One of the reason I still have my PS3

[@Kevstreehouse]

Such a great game. I actually added the ps4 version to my collection for this video and it is so clean man. 👌

[@shoukaiser]

SAAAAAAME idontcareifthisisoneyearlater

[@lobesteral]

Awesome video! Playing 13 Sentinels a few months back really got me interested in learning more about Vanillaware and their work! Now I gotta check out your other videos!

[@Kevstreehouse]

Glad you enjoyed it man. I've been a fan of vanillaware for ages now so it's nice to spread the love. Glad you enjoyed the video too 😀

[@Tahldon-kun]

This was a great video, man. Fantastic work. My first entry to Vanillaware was stumbling across the Odin's Sphere remake and from there I fell in love with their games and have purchased every game since (not to be confused with having beaten them all because backlogs be crazy bruh). But wow, I never would've guessed that they went through so much trouble throughout their journey. 3 Bankruptcies? Yeesh!

[@RaptorFeather]

Saw this posted on Reddit and finally got around to watching it! I respect Jason a lot but shitting on Dragons Crowns GORGEOUS style is hard to watch. Thanks for the video, I really enjoyed it :)

[@Kevstreehouse]

Glad you enjoyed it man. Yeah it felt like a major over reaction. Shame cause it is amazing art.

[@ScreamingVelveteen]

Vanillaware games will always be some of the most underrated and phenomenally breathtaking games I can ever recommend anybody. It even boggles the mind that the play of said games are actually so fucking solid???? Vanillaware deserves every dollar on this world, especially since their games are hand painted.

[@ScreamingVelveteen]

It's always nice to see other Vanillaware fans out in the world, too

[@Kevstreehouse]

I've actually been surprised how well the video has done. Nice to see so many other vanillaware fans,

[@TheGB-qc9ts]

I feel like I just got pranked somehow. I clicked on the video and started watching rather unpretentiously, meaning that I didn't pay mind to the channel info or anything, but midway through I thought to myself "Yo. This video is pretty good, might as well subscribe, I guess", but then the shock came to me - "What the heck?" - was my reaction. How on mother Earth this channel hasn't even reached 1K subscribers yet, this must be the definition of insanity... Vaas was wrong all along! Anyway, what I'm trying to say is.. I loved your video and I'll share it to my utmost capacity (I don't have a great reach tho, so don't expect much), and keep doing what you're doing 'cause it really comes through to me that you really care.

[@Kevstreehouse]

Glad you enjoyed it dude. Happy to hear I was able to capture your attention. Hopefully we keep you coming back.

[@TheGB-qc9ts]

Absolutely! Gonna keep a close eye on your next upload bud. I'm quite an avid consumer of video game chroniclers/essayist, I may even say that I'm a huge fan of channels like Noclip, GVMERS, Raycevick, Skill Up, Mandalore Gaming, Matt McMuscles (From "What happened?" fame), my favorite boi RennsReviews and my others (shouldn't even have said that many examples to begin with lol) and, imho, you produced a video that I enjoyed watching as much as any content of the aforementioned channels, that's why I kind went out of my way to write a huge bulk of text 😂 I really don't do that everyday. Alas, godspeed with whatever you working on, I'm excited to see it.

[@Kevstreehouse]

@@TheGB-qc9ts thanks man. I will say this is a little different to regular style and maybe hit up my previous vids to see if I still jelly with your jam.

[@TheGB-qc9ts]

@@Kevstreehouse oh I've seen some. Saw your top 5 of 2021 that had one game from 2021 proper and I'm pretty glad that it was Tales of Arise, truly a majestic game, by all means. Also will check out your Bioshock video soon enough, as it is one of my favorites (8th favorite game ever to be precise).

[@Kevstreehouse]

@@TheGB-qc9ts oh god not the bioshock video that's my first one and I dunno if it hold up too well 😅

[@renegaderaven3777]

I’m enjoying the recent Unicorn Overlord and I’ve been wanting to check out Vanillaware’s older games. I’ll have to check out the titles you mentioned.

[@timfaulkner5010]

Great video!! It popped in in my recommendations and clicked as something to watch during lunch, and ended up being glued throughout. Really excellent editing and engaging script. Subbed and will go through the rest of your vids for sure :)

[@Kevstreehouse]

Thanks man. My regular stuff is a little different so I'd recommend my loot box video. My regular stuff is more like my previous video. Hope you still like it 😅

[@timfaulkner5010]

@@Kevstreehouse cool, I’ll be sure to check it all out! And nothing wrong with content being a bit different here and there imo, variety is the spice of life and all that eh

[@Kevstreehouse]

@@timfaulkner5010 good to hear. Have a good time man.

[@NightshineThieves]

This video is truly amazing. I hadn’t really heard of this company beforehand - but now I’m wanting to actually try most of the games you showcased! Amazing work, I hope you get big soon!

[@Kevstreehouse]

Thanks dude. So nice of you to say. I definitely recommend checking out their latest game and odin sphere. Hopefully I can keep you coming back to the channel with my other videos.

[@jasonponciano6823]

Here during sub-1K subscriber fam. Keep up the good work!

[@Kevstreehouse]

HAHA thanks man appreciate the hope that I'll be over 1k someday.

[@kazaxat]

Just came across this channel, and took a quick look at the backlog of videos - after now watching a few I had a couple of thoughts: a) I'm happy to have found another good creator in the gaming space, with good editing, writing, a pleasant voice/way of speaking, and similar taste in games. Also somewhat unique takes in the couple of videos I've seen so far - I've definitely watched other videos that touched on Vanillaware or R&C Rift Apart, but the focus from this channel gave both a unique perspective. b) I can't believe the view numbers on these videos is so low. How on earth are videos of this quality not getting more than a couple of hundred views? Considering KZbin did recommend the channel to me at least, I suspect it might not be too long before things pick up steam.

[@Kevstreehouse]

Glad you enjoyed it dude. If I had to take a guess as to why I'm not doing better numbers there's a few things that come to mind. I know yt doesn't love to promote smaller channels so I've that uphill battle. I've recently changed my thumbnails and video titles so I think they're a bit more click able and I've started including hashtags in the description which I hear is more important then tags these days. Other than that there's a ton of other creators in the space so I might just get lost in the crowd. Nbd to me. I just like making stuff 😅. But hey if you wanna boost my exposure commenting, subbing, like or dislike the vids and sharing them really does help. But if you enjoyed the video that's enough for me

[@bartekkubicaku-bitsa9802]

I came here because I love Vanillaware I finished 13sar a week ago. Grand Knight History is one of my favorite games ever and I had no idea that releasing it to the west was cancelled by releasing my second favorite game ever Dragon's Crown. An extraordinary and insightful video! I would love to see such a video about master Hitoshi Sakimoto. I played Vanillaware games just because he composes music for them and I'm a psycho fan of Ivalice, so it was a natural reflex.

[@Kevstreehouse]

glad you enjoyed the video man. I'm always open to suggestions. hope you enjoy my other stuff

[@Thiorus]

Fantastic vid. I've loved Vanillaware since Odin Sphere and I really enjoyed learning about their history. Well done.

[@Kevstreehouse]

Thanks man. Glad you enjoyed it.

[@Insane-Howl-Cowl]

Awesome video. I will look into these games. I've heard of Dragon's Crown and Odin Sphere but never checked them out myself. All of these look like a fun time.

[@pgasnow]

Absolute banger of a video. This channel has a bright future ahead for sure, hope the algorithm doesn't screw you over and you get the recognition you deserve. Subbed immediately!

[@Kevstreehouse]

Man I'm hoping the algorithm screw me. I dunno if you could tell but I was lying about having a girlfriend

[@pgasnow]

@@Kevstreehouse LIES ON THE INTERNET *gasp*

[@Kevstreehouse]

@@pgasnow yeah so it turns out being a sigma Chad who talks about games on KZbin isn't all you need to get chick's. Turns out you need to be a decent person and not refer to them as chicks. Who knew 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@klocks2543]

There’s a whole art style called Mannerism that intentionally diverges from the classical perfectionism of the Renaissance and is defined by elongated and exaggerated proportions of the body, strained poses, flattened space in the composition and a few other characteristics. It’s even referred to as “stylish style.” It’s almost like Kamitani’s distinctive 2D visual style is a combination of Mannerism, classic Sword and Sorcery, and anime. But not to the white knighting shills, errr.. journalists, whose brains stop working at the mention of jiggle physics. But that’s what you get when most mainstream video game critics are more qualified in SEO than critical review.

[@Leehzart]

Im so glad I found this video! It was amazing!! There were a couple of things I didn't know, thank you! I've been a fan of Vanillaware since 2009 with Muramasa, and it really is a shame that they are not that popular. However after the huge success of Sentinels I have high hopes that they gonna reach a wider audience in the near future. Can't wait for the next game! Thanks again for the video, great work!!

[@Kevstreehouse]

thanks man. I'm the same muramasa had me hooked. Hoping grimgrimoire can sell some units when it's re released

[@fenrirsreign]

And now we got the amazing Unicorn Overlord

[@AndrewDavidJ]

Great video! Now time to watch your entire backlog lol

[@Kevstreehouse]

Thanks dude. If you like this style of vid you should check out my loot box video it's documentary style like this one. If you're after personal recommendation I like my video on miles morales

[@Flash3001]

Same here.

[@Kevstreehouse]

@@Flash3001 thanks man 😁

[@UrBigFan]

Now i understand how all this has culminated into Unicorn Overlord, which is one of my favorite games I've ever played.

[@TigerFestival7595]

I love this video essay of yours. Keep it up, you earned my sub sir.

[@Kevstreehouse]

Thanks dude. Glad you got a kick out of it.

[@TigerFestival7595]

@@Kevstreehouse will give your other content a viewing too! I love the on point funny moments hahaha you are welcome sir

[@detaineepyramid]

Your enthusiasm here was wonderful. Abundant goodwill to you and yours, sir.

[@vincehill4224]

I just discovered their dragons crown game and man I want to play muramasa so bad I pray to the gaming gods they release it again for the ps4 ps5

[@Kevstreehouse]

It tis a good one. It's sad that it's stuck on 2 very weird and outdated consoles

[@Sumo_fan]

Same

[@heardofrvb]

Got recommended this video after seeing the announcement of Unicorn Overlord.

[@Kevstreehouse]

Hope you enjoyed the video dude.

[@heardofrvb]

@@Kevstreehouse Thanks. I did. I didn't think George and Vanillaware had troubles beyond Dragon's Crown.

[@moomitomoe6783]

all you did was make me angry that these games aren't available on PC.

[@ARStudios2000]

Aw damn it, you're right!

[@davidburnett5049]

This is the only casual mention of the youtubers signifigant other that I like. Well done.

[@Doniellhall]

i really enjoyed this video, and i have been a big fan of Vanillaware after i was blown away by the story, music and graphics of Odin Sphere.

[@Kevstreehouse]

My first experience with them was muramasa and I've been a ride or die bitch for them since. Hope I did them justice

[@MichelleSudarsono]

I always wondered why Vanillaware don't have a lot of games produced despite making such beautiful games... Now I know why. As someone who grew up reading manga, the big boobs weren't anything new. What I do like about it, is the company's consistent art style. It evoked the same wonder when I first saw Okami in PS2. The amazon woman looked cool! The witch was beautiful! Such an ara-ara onee-san. It's also hilarious and definitely not meant to be taken seriously. Besides, when you play the game, you can't even see the unrealistic proportion of those women. PS: I'm jealous of Alan's collection...

[@Kevstreehouse]

Ps I'm jealous of Alan's collection too 😂

[@casperchow5024]

I just want to say, great video. Also I listen to Jason Schreier's podcast Triple Click. Just wanted to point out that he loves 13 Sentinels.

[@Kevstreehouse]

Despite what a lot of other comments made here may lead you to believe I don't actually hate or dislike Schreier. I actually based a lot of my cyberpunk 2077 video on his article on it's production. I only went as hard on him as I felt he went on Dragons crown and I had hoped it would be seen as a bit of banter rather than calling him a libtard or whatever else. Like I don't think anyone was faultless with the "drama" around Dragons crown. At the end of the day I just wanted to tell what I thought was a cool story about an underrated dev and sadly the schreier and dragons crown moral panic is a part of their history.

[@casperchow5024]

@@Kevstreehouse I get it... Youre just pointing out something that he commented. I like him actually but I dont agree with some of his opinions. Anyway Im really excited to try 13 Sentinels. I recently bought the Vanillaware artbook & going through the amazing art!

[@Kevstreehouse]

@@casperchow5024 Dude you haven't played it yet?! I love it so much. Originally this video was going to be a review of that game but the script changed quiete a bit. I hope you get the chance to play it and I'm very jealous of the art book you have 😅 Might have to get one myself.

[@KrzyUnit]

This was a fun video to watch especially after coming in from their latest game Unicorn Overlord. Def worth a sub

[@MorteTheSkull]

I think it's silly to entertain the notion that Dragon's Crown ever was facing a loss of sales due to the "controversy." The type of person who buys a fantasy beatemup video game is not the type of person who cares much about those things, for better or worse, and I think the discussion about how the characters were depicted getting framed around "this could hurt Vanillaware" was always a bad faith argument by people who just didn't want to engage with criticism.

[@noneofyourbusiness4616]

As someone who enjoys Vanillaware games and also enjoys hearing women's opinions, I completely agree.

[@TonyTama]

Dragon's_crown has been my introduction to Vanillaware and Kamitani and MAN i have Dragon's_crown, Odin Sphere and Muramasa on the vita ALL cus Amazon... and Kamitani's unabashed art direction

[@Kevstreehouse]

It's undeniably a major appeal of the games. They're a pretty singular thing.

[@teejay9189]

I don't have money to spend but the list of games I need to buy now grow.

[@Kevstreehouse]

I feel your pain brother

[@ichibanbento]

What a wonderful story of perservernace, the bros kept trying and they won. Also please Dragons Crown or Princess Crown port to steeeeeeam

[@atlaszart3856]

This video was really cool, i was always interested in these games, and will check them out

[@RoseLostinValley]

Fun Fact: Sohei Nikawa of NiS Software must have loved Princess Crown so much that, in one of their games, La Pucelle Tactics for the PS2, a character named Eclair is the spitting image of the mc from Princess Crown.

[@Shepherd_Tallon]

Yes, but... Now I know everything too 😏😏 *queue manic laughter*

[@Kevstreehouse]

Drops to knees. Nooooooo!

[@theinstantnoodle9628]

Odin's US voice actor from Odin Sphere impacted me so much that his voice runs rent free in my mind and It will always be how I think Odins voice should sound like.

[@chill_edd1159]

Never tried any of their games uet but Dragon's Crown has peaked my interest quite a bit. I do like the sound of a beat em up with some RPG elements in there. Also great video!

[@Kevstreehouse]

Glad to hear you liked it dude. I adore their games and they are dfeinetely a dev to keep an eye on. Hope we can keep you coming back to the channel for more

[@galaxysega3883]

Appart from the exploding head at the beginning, amazing review!

[@davinogarcia5665]

Hidden gem of a channel, you are great lad!

[@marcusbayley5126]

Kickass video great job dude!

[@Kevstreehouse]

thanks dude gald you got a kick out of it

[@only1smally]

The editing of this article was sublime, laughed all the way through it.

[@etanshaun1222]

Big fan of the studio Vanillaware got 5 of their game but saddly cannot test the last one, cause I haven't got a switch :( I hope they will release it on Steam

[@Kevstreehouse]

That's weird I could have swore 13 sentinels was on pc ages ago

[@JustSomebody5]

My first game of Vanillaware's was Muramasa: The Demon Blade, while I wasn't good at it, I loved what I could do of the gameplay and the art style was fantastic, It was with Dragon's Crown that I really fell in love, easily the smoothest beat'em up I can remember playing with wealth of content personality, the distracting oversexualized character designs aside. Later on, I got around to playing the remaster of the Odin Sphere, the story of which puts it above all the other games the studio has put out. With all these Playstation and Sega games that have made the jump to PC, I'm holding out hope VW will eventually follow suit. Thank you for the video, it was most informative.

[@spyroclone152]

This video was a fun watch. Thanks for shedding light on the dev for my friend and I's current obsession which is Unicorn Overlord. Far and away an undisputed banger that needs more recognition imo. On the subject of the Kotaku debacle, I find it absolutely hilarious that a game like Dragon's Crown rubbed so many folks the wrong way on just art style alone. It acts as a reminder to myself that the business of modern gaming journalism is mostly clout chasing and adds nothing of substance to the Final product they cover (if nothing else, this applies mostly to Jason in particular even to this day). While I do agree that the response letter was in poor taste from Kamitami, going out of your way to demean the efforts of a passionate dev without even playing the game to understand the context of its style is the epitome of hypocrisy and petty unprofessionalism. Besides, Kamitami gave a formal apology. Where is Jason's for calling an active president and dev of a struggling company a 14-year-old hire? (Full disclosure, Jason gave a half-hearted apology in one of his posts, but he never truly rescinded his juvenile jab to Kamitami overall). It was a low hanging fruit in a dumb time of double standards that forever tarnished the reputation of an otherwise objectively good game here in the west. Either way, Vanillaware is on my radar and I cannot wait for what amazing 2D adventure they'll cook up next. Thanks for the video and have a nice day!

[@absolutesadlad2297]

Great video K-Dog Very informative

[@pozhirateldush9892]

A really well made Video, really enjoyed it

[@johnronaldcustodio380]

I loved 13 sentinels and kumatanchi was my comfort game growing up, glad to learn this companies history and survival

[@FPoP1911]

Oh hi, enjoying the video, can you tell me what was the music betweel 00:30 and 01:30? the moody mysterious underwater theme like one? tried backsearch it was too much in the background, also if you're gonna use good music I hope you list them in description as well. thanks.

[@Kevstreehouse]

yeah sorry at the time I was using my description for links to my research and ran out of characters for more stuff. That track you're talking about is called Mutual Telepathy and its from the 13 sentienels Aegis rim ost.

[@FPoP1911]

@@Kevstreehouse Thanks.

[@DrRESHES]

These were games that I loved looking at, now these are games that i try to buy them everywhere with extra stuff, like Dragon Crown art book and recently i got Unicorn Overlord Collector's Edition. and if there's gonna be an fully blown art book, you bet i'll buy it!

[@wiimaster06]

I never heard of Vanillaware until Dragon's Crown became a thing. The second I saw that it was a classic beat em up was the moment I knew I needed it. And it came out around the time when I starved for any new beat em up to be made. The game is still one of the best-looking games I've seen. I would love to see a sequel with new characters added. Specifically, a rogue/assassin and martial artist/brawler. I want to punch monsters in the face as well as Izuna Drop them through the ground. A few years later, I discovered the Odinsphere remake/remaster on PS4, saw that there were air combos, and then proceeded to rush to get a copy. And just like with Dragon's Crown, I was blown away. Now I just need to play Muramasa because from the little bit of gameplay I've seen, it looks very fun. If I could wish for one more thing from Vanillaware, it's for them to make a fighting game.

[@DieKao]

Just started Unicorn Overlord and I thought I would not enjoy it, since it's not like Odin Sphere/Muramasa/Dragon's Crown but man, the way they make games. It's just crack cokain tbh. i'm so addicted to the tactical gameplay and building my little squads already. It even has the gambit system kinda from FFXII. And that artwork is just chef's kiss.

[@Hmiasato]

Thank you so much to share your knowledge of one of my beloved softhouses. It's really a story of passion and determination. George Kamitami and the other 10 devs that made Odin Sphere are incredible. Something I don't understand is the reason why Vanillare doesn't launch their games on PCs? I know that Princess Crown, Odin Sphere and Muramasa aren't IP of Vanillare. However who is the owner of the IP 13 Sentinels? Who is the owner of the new title Unicorn Overlord? I hope Vanillare nowadays have money to own their creations. George Kamitami deserves to receive royalties of the creation of his team.

[@RikkuX5]

Thank you so much for this thorough documentary. I fell in love with 13 Sentinels Aegis Rim and wanted to learn more about the company ever since. I was aware of their struggles but didn’t know any details. Gotta say it’s precious how Sega, Atlus and Nippon Ichi Software supported them despite all of the issues. Still need to check out their past library. Princess Crown immediately caught my attention the moment I saw it with its big Valkyrie Profile Lenneth vibes. Vanilla Ware deserves the best

[@Kevstreehouse]

Oh if you like valkyrie profile you're going to love odinsphere.

[@GlitchWitchNyx]

I really wish Odin Sphere would release on PC. I miss it.

[@guerrillavanilla]

The biggest Vanillaware fan is actually me. 🤫 But great coverage of their history. Only thing its missing is more coverage of their struggles around developing 13 Sentinels and some of the dev hell issues of the last few years.

[@Kevstreehouse]

that on me I got a bit lazy at the end and if it went any longer on this the video may have driven me mad XD. My friend Alan will fight you if he reads this.

[@MrJamesshipman]

Ohh my god!! I heard the music and thought it was princess crown!!! I love princess crown!!

[@vitorhenriquebatista]

I love Vanillaware! Odin Sphere is amazing and 13 Sentinels simply takes a spot in the Top 10 games of my life. One of my favorite developers.

[@Kevstreehouse]

Couldn't agree more!

[@NicolasAlexanderOtto]

I am really waiting for these games to finally hit steam. Would love to replay some of them.

[@Bloodycupcake54]

Great video K-dawg!

[@Jacox98]

It's always a good day to get a notifcation for a new kevin greene video

[@Kevstreehouse]

Thanks man appreciate seeing regulars in the comments 😁

[@josevitorcalfa2]

I dream with a Dragon's Crown port for PC for years...

[@Kevstreehouse]

Japan and atlus are slowly coming around on the idea of pc gaming. Be cool to see mods add stuff like custom levels or something

[@branboom3342]

Dragon's Crown was my first VanillaWare game. It only came on my radar because of the controversy and was immediately interested as I love brawlers and I like games with sexy women, sue me! I have been a huge fan of VanillaWare's games and George Kamitani's art ever since

[@MrDarksol]

Vanillaware real talk, became one of my favorite developers in recent years. I love the artstyle that is still striking even now, the games are different enough that someone can find their favourite and aside from the accessibility problem of some of their games, namely Muramasa on more platforms, at least their other games are easy to get and are for the most part fun to play.....Ok ok, Dragon's Crown got me to love Amazon lol. Usually, big musclebound women are not my cup of tea, but I DO love when Vanillaware does it and their new game Unicorn Overlord, took that and made it more insane lol. Great job with this look into them!

[@HunterG5]

Dragons Crow is my favorite Vanillaware game I hope they make Dragons Crown 2

[@Xizax41325]

That response to Jason Schreier made me laugh out loud in the middle of a meeting. 10/10. Also love Vanillaware. I've been a fan of them ever since I picked up muramasa on the wii. After that I went back and bought grim grim and odin sphere on the ps2. Since then I've bought every port and every game vanillaware has released. Except the newest game but that's more because I no longer support Nintendo and I don't have a ps5.

[@ReadyPlayerRog]

Great video dude!

[@Kevstreehouse]

Thanks rog. Been digging the new direction for your channel too 😁

[@machogrubba14]

I love vanillaware and throughout the years I’ve always found myself bringing a few more people into the fan base of vanillaware. I wish we had more access to Muramasa and other games.

[@aaronkirschman3218]

I just never got into Dragon's Crown, and I played the demo when it came out. It just wasn't my thing, but I can totally get why people liked it. Odin Sphere is still by far one of the best VW titles ever made, and I still pray every night for a Switch port of Muramasa Rebirth (I mean, come on, it's on the Vita ffs)

[@ShinigamiSparda]

Holy fuck, how is this company still alive. Thank god it's still here.

[@amedaius8492]

Ah yes, people standing in the way of a great game with great art being released. Who could it be? Well, Kotaku of course! What a big surprise.

[@gameroutoftime117]

Thank you for covering Vanillaware. I am really curious about Vanillaware's history. I love Kamitani's art. I love Odin Sphere. I love Dragon's Crown. Vanillaware games are so fun. Hope they have more success.

[@Kevstreehouse]

No worries. Though their history was too good to not make for a fun video.

[@jello_are3372]

How dare you make a great video that made me stay up when I got school in the morning 😠🙂

[@kylestyle5693]

Vanillaware has been my favorite game company for years, so I really appreciate you making this great video! Though admittedly, from my understanding, 13 Sentinels had huge development problems for Mr.Kamitani (though not financially), including Altus stepping in and essentially stealing the right to publish it from another publisher, and I was a little disappointed you didn’t go in-depth into 13 Sentinels rocky development.

[@Kevstreehouse]

I had found some struggles in them getting the various modes to flow seamlessly and them struggling to explain it but the doc was already pretty long and I didn't know how to make that section work or standout while including those details. I guess I should have said it had far less issues than their previous games or something. I mainly cut it to save me sanity as I have been working on this non stop for the better part of 2 months. Sorry for the let down in the third act hope you can enjoy my other offerings

[@kylestyle5693]

@@Kevstreehouse wow! Fast and considerate response? You got yourself a fan and a subscription! Looking forward to the next one!

[@Kevstreehouse]

@@kylestyle5693 thanks man 😁

[@noahjester8471]

Aegis Rim somehow managed to have a bonkers story based visual novel following 13 different protagonists (each with their own personalities, flaws, and character arcs) and an incredibly cool strategy game where you pilot mech suits, on top of being audiovisually gorgeous. If Vanillaware can pull something as chaotic as 13 Sentinels, they could make literally anything work moving forward.

[@creatorsfreedom6734]

Im jelly of Alan's Co-llecction

[@agroah7236]

dude you deserve more thann a follow for that work !

[@ramdomguy560]

Grand knights is fantastic there is a fan translation and I hope one day it comes over seas oneday because it's great.

[@McLort]

I own every game they have made on PS4/5, and if they ever release them on PC one day, I would buy them all over again XD. Unicorn Overlord hype!

[@Kevstreehouse]

I was dumbfounded no one on twitter was talking about it! just goes to show vanillaware is still a little underground but I think that's kinda cool