Square Enix Archives Past Development Materials for Historical Research
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- Multiple Japanese video game companies announced their commitment to archiving past development materials.
- This commitment was made by Square Enix, Capcom, Sega, and Taito.
- The goal is to make a searchable catalogue which serves as a study tool.
Square Enix, Capcom, Sega, and Taito made the commitment to archive past development materials. The decision was made with historical preservation in mind – documenting and archiving previous material for others to readily access and study.
“By organizing and making public the history of the company, we can increase the value of the company. Making development materials available for us by everyone. […] They can also be used as educational materials for new employees,” a powerpoint slide utilized by Youichiro Miyake, AI researcher at Square Enix, reads.
Square Enix detailed the work process required to archive older materials – which begins with removing everything from a cardboard box and checking the contents. Further details are explained by gamemakers, although the source is in Japanese.
Capcom launched Capcom Illustrations Archives Systems (CIAS), a system catered towards managing development materials and documents from prior titles. The archiving of development assets includes sprite animations of Chun-Li, a popular Street Fighter character; the asset is available as a Photoshop PSD file.
Other notable learning resources include an article highlighting Yuji Horii, Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen game creator. In it, writer and game developer Miyake explains how Square Enix’s early example of AI in console games shaped the history of AI development.
The historical archive, amassed by Square Enix, Capcom, Sega, and Taito was announced on 2024, and continues to expand the archive’s collection.
