At the Game Awards on Thursday night, Geoff Keighley, the event’s founder and host, pulled a surprise that left many of us astonished. He seemed on the brink of tears as he announced that Capcom is crafting a sequel to the iconic PlayStation 2 game, Okami, with its original director, Hideki Kamiya, at the helm.
It was one of the most genuine and relatable moments I’ve ever seen from Keighley, and honestly, I was right there with him. Watching the brief teaser—set to stirring music, featuring a wolf running, alongside the Capcom logo and Kamiya’s name—brought a tear to my eye too.
Let me break it down for you. Okami, released in 2006, is a phenomenal game. It’s a Zelda-inspired action-adventure that tells the tale of a celestial wolf god who takes on spirits and aids perplexed villagers with her flaming disc. The game’s art style is breathtaking, drawing inspiration from traditional Japanese illustrations. Characters are outlined in bold, inky brushstrokes, completed with gentle watercolor shades.
Back when Okami first came out, I reviewed it for Edge magazine and rated it a solid 9 out of 10, a score I still support today. Yet, despite its brilliance, I wouldn’t label it as one of my personal all-time favorites. For me, it drags on a bit too long and feels a tad clunky at moments. There’s at least a half-dozen Zelda games I’d choose over it without hesitation.
But here’s the kicker—Okami represents a golden era in gaming where major Japanese studios dared to push video games as a form of artistic expression. Unfortunately, it also symbolizes the partial collapse of that dream. Despite its critical acclaim, Okami didn’t sell well, leading to the closure of the innovative Capcom studio, Clover, responsible for its creation. This closure eventually led key figures like Kamiya and Shinji Mikami to part ways with Capcom and establish PlatinumGames.
Capcom’s decision to reconnect with Kamiya (who has since started a new studio aptly named Clovers) and green-light an Okami sequel suggests that the passion from those days isn’t entirely gone. Plus, commercially speaking, it indicates that the multiple re-releases of Okami have performed well enough to justify this bold step, demonstrating to Capcom the shortsightedness of its past decisions.
As the announcement for Okami’s sequel played, I was swept away by the captivating music performed by a live orchestra. The fresh visual style was stunning, replacing the ink outlines with rich painterly colors, and the animation of Amaterasu, the wolf god, racing across the scenery was exhilarating. Yet, like Geoff, my emotions were stirred more by the deeper significance of this announcement.
During the Game Awards stream, the shot transitioned from a beaming Keighley to Kamiya sitting in the audience, his expression unreadable behind his iconic red sunglasses. Known for his outspoken nature on Twitter, he was likely mentally gearing up to block Geoff for showing such sentiment. If that’s the case, I suppose I’d be next on his block list too.
