Hideki Kamiya is a game designer most prominently known for his many years at Capcom and then for founding PlatinumGames. Outside of his work, he is known for a bombastic Twitter persona.
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However, those who know him closely say the real Hideki Kamiya is different than what the Internet would lead you to believe. Regardless of who he is in real life, one fact remains undebatable; he has worked on some of the most celebrated games of the past twenty five years. The scores of the games below show that almost everything he touches is gaming gold. Here’s hoping the years to come bring more goodness from the veteran game designer.
12The Wonderful 101 (78)
The Wonderful 101was initially a Wii U exclusivebefore being remastered for the Nintendo Switch and other platforms.While the lowest scoring game on the list, it earns points for originality. Players control numerous characters at the same time, and recruit more as levels go on. The Wii U version utilizes the system’s unique features for gameplay, but it works just find on PS4 and Switch.
11Viewtiful Joe: Double Trouble (83)
Hideki Kamiya is credited as a writer on this portableViewtiful Joespin-off. Gameplay largely resembles the mainline entries, and the 2D brawler styletranslates well onto the Nintendo DS. Touch screen support is of course included. Even though the Nintendo DS is graphically inferior to its contemporary consoles like the PS2 and GameCube, the cel shaded art still manages to look stunning.
10Resident Evil 0 (83)
While it does not appear he directly worked on the title, Hideki Kamiya is credited as crafting the original game design. The game had a somewhat turbulent development history, being planned for the Nintendo 64before transferring to the GameCube. Switching between two protagonists is a novel idea, but its implementation is often frustrating, causing it to age worse than theResident Evilremake, which came out at a similar time.
9Viewtiful Joe 2 (86)
Coming off ofDevil May Cry, theViewtiful Joeseries has a significantly brighter and joyous aesthetic than the 2001 action game.Viewtiful Joe 2is the last mainline entry in the series, which is a shame because the series is a critically beloved cult classic. Hideki Kamiya wrote the story, and has stated a desire to continue the story, but this does not seem like it will happen.PS2 owners still have a beef with this game for the demo disc with a glitch that corrupted every file on a memory card.
8Astral Chain (87)
This Nintendo Switch exclusive screams PlatinumGames. It is a stylish action game with a slight twist. Players explore the real world and solve crimes while traversing to a different dimension where combat takes place.
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The protagonists are also accompanied by what is known as a Legion, hence the nameAstral Chain. Kamiya was only a supervisor, but one feels his touch on the game when playing.
7Resident Evil 2 (89)
Resident Evil 2is Hideki Kamiya’s directorial debut, and what a debut it is. The sequel is often considered one of the greatest games of all time, improving and expanding upon every aspect of the original 1996 classic. Development infamously restarted halfway through production, leading to the early build dubbedResident Evil 1.5,videos of which can be found on the Internet. The reset was worth it, sinceResident Evil 2still holds up today.
6Bayonetta (90)
Many may dismissBayonettafor its overly-sexualized main character, but they would be fools to do so. For one, the gameplay is based aroundmasterfully crafted combatforcing players to both focus on pulling off combos while reading enemy attacks and dodging at the same time. Additionally, the story is irresistibly charming, filled with laugh out loud comedy. At its best it feels like a late ’60s or early ’70s exploitation film in a fantasy setting.
5Resident Evil (91)
The game designer joined Capcom in 1994, and the first project he ever worked on while at the company was the originalResident Evil. Coming out of the gate with such a popular title is impressive enough, butResident Evildefined a genre and influenced numerous other horror games for years to come. Even after the remake on GameCube, the original still plays well and offers something unique.
4Bayonetta 2 (92)
After the firstBayonettadid not sell up to expectations, the series' future was in doubt. Fortunately, Nintendo stepped in and the sequel came out as a Wii U exclusive.
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Sadly, despite stellar reviews, the console’s tiny install base also doomed the sequel to low sales.Bayonetta 2is an improvement on the original in every way.Bayonetta 3was announced in 2017, but new information has been scarce since then.
3Viewtiful Joe (93)
Viewtiful Joe lets gamers who love movies live out their dream. An avid movie fan is sucked into the world of film and transformed into a superhero. It is a little bit likeLast Action Hero. A novel idea is nothing without great gameplay, however, and the side-scrolling action made for one of the finest titles of the generation. The fun aesthetic is what one would come to expect from the creator’s future works, likeBayonettaandThe Wonderful 101.
