Perspectives on Japanese Game Development

"The structure and design methods of Japanese developers are radically different than in North America and Europe. Moreover, in most Japanese game studios, there are only a handful of non-Japanese workers.

In addition to the already legendary hours and demands of the game industry, these workers must deal with cultural and language differences, and the demands of their Japanese bosses and peers.

While foreign workers make up only a small percentage of the workforce, their experience with Japanese business culture, work habits, and game development give them a different perspective than their Western counterparts.

In addition to basic cultural and language difficulties, differences in team formation, office hierarchy, and design philosophy make the experiences of these developers unique."

Gamasutra offers some insight with their nice feature about Japanese game development from a western point of view.

Western Perspectives On Japanese Game Development