When it comes to creating things, if you want your product to have the biggest reach then it is a safe bet to try and keep your projects family friendly. While this is the safest option, it can also hinder creativity. In the case of Level-5, the developers behind beloved titles such as Ni No Kuni and Professor Layton, the CEO of the company hopes that one day it could develop a game with violence and sexual themes.
This interesting revelation came from a recent interview with Denfaminico Gamer, that was translated Automaton, in which Level-5 CEO, Akihiro Hino, revealed that while both him and the studio want to continue to make more family-friendly orientated titles; he also revealed that deep down that he has a “dark abnormal world” and would like to see that studio make a game with more mature themes. In the interview, he said “If I were to put it in extreme terms, I would go as far as to say that I want to make things like erotic games and 18+ games with violence,” Hino laughed. “There’s an abnormal world inside of me, but I’m trying not to go there, only making things from the righteous part of my mind instead. However, deep down, I really want to visit that abnormal world.”
「電ファミニコゲーマー」（株式会社マレ）にて、グラスホッパー・マニファクチュア須田剛一さんとレベルファイブ日野の設立25周年記念対談記事が掲載されています！ぜひ、ご覧ください！https://t.co/LIgfIYuU7o https://t.co/rfklMdTvic
— レベルファイブ (@LEVEL5_times) April 30, 2024
Players who are familiar with Level-5’s previous titles know that in terms of darker themes, their games are far from lacking in that regard, especially with titles such as Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch. Despite its overall light-hearted tone, it also has several dark story beats. However, Akihiro Hino wants to bring the darker elements of their games closer to the surface, and hopefully in the future we may see a studio create a game that does just that – “I want to go to that dark, abnormal world, and I think I will definitely end up doing so,” Hino said. “Once I feel that Level-5 is stable, and I have the room to make what I want, I will do it.”
Unfortunately, while a darker game from Level-5 isn’t out of the question, we will likely have to wait some time before we get a game with more mature themes from the studio. That doesn’t mean we aren’t getting anything new or exciting from the studio, as 2024 seems to be a big year for the studio as not only will we be getting Professor Layton and The New World of Steam, but also two new IPs from the studio – DecaPolice and Ushiro.
