These days too many companies have stopped taking risks. Besides Sega, who takes just about every risk known to man, many companies are hesistant to develop titles outside of the proven popular genres for fear of games bombing when they hit shelves. Not all hope is lost, though; in response to this, Eidos Interactive has formed a new label entitled “Fresh Games,” where otherwise ignored quality Japanese titles will receive a localization treatment.

Fresh Games has less of an emphasis on the amount of sales of a game than it does on releasing titles that gamers would otherwise have no chance of experiencing. You can definitely see that ideality coming to life with Fresh Games’ first releases (Mister Mosquito, Mad Maestro, Legaia 2: Duel Saga), and it should continue on as the label establishes itself this year.

Gaming Age had the opportunity to shoot a few questions over to Kevil Gill, the man behind the Fresh Games label, who gave us some insight into what it plans to accomplish.

Gaming Age: Where did the idea for the "Fresh Games" label come from?
Kevin Gill: The Fresh Games label was created because there is a wealth of incredible games that come out in Japan and, for whatever reason, are not sold in the US and Europe. A lot of people are importing these games, but we wanted hardcore gamers everywhere to be able to buy these games at their local store without having to deal with mod-chips and exorbitant costs. On the surface these games are very "Quirky" or "Odd" but when you get beneath the surface, you realize that the game-play is outstanding, the depth these games have to offer is incredible, and the polish and attention to detail that is put in to them is obvious.

Video Games are an art form in Japan and we wanted that represented here in it's purest form. Not another character based sequel, not another movie license, not another "extreme sports" game. That's what we call the corporate formula. We wanted to break some rules, and break some of the barriers that exist in this industry in regards to "What type of games do people really want to play?". Many of the major magazines wrote that games like Mad Maestro and Mister Mosquito were brilliant games, and it was a shame that these games would never see the light of the day outside of Japan, where they are both top 10 selling titles. We agreed that they are brilliant and decided to take a chance by releasing them here.

GA: Why start a new label instead of releasing them under the regular Eidos Interactive name?
Kevin: We wanted to create a new Label for Fresh Games because we believe it is necessary to shine a spotlight on these titles. From our point of view, games like these have never been released in the US and Europe, and it wouldn't be doing them justice by releasing them under the Eidos banner. They have their own unique heritage and they needed a label to represent that, a label that represents a standard of excellence in gaming, a label that represents something new and groundbreaking.

If you see the Fresh label on the front of a game, you know this game is something out of the ordinary. It will be a new and different experience, something that plays like a dream. Intuitive controls, imaginative level designs, and everything you could want from a game. The beauty of these games is that the care that went in to making them is equally apparent to the hardcore gamer, as well as the casual gamer. That's the thing about truly great video games. There is a pick up and play aspect that is enough to get you hooked, and there is a depth of gameplay that keeps you coming back for more.

GA: Can gamers expect titles from "Fresh Games" all throughout the year, or will they come in spurts (i.e. the initial three all arriving in March)?
Kevin: Actually, only Mister Mosquito and Mad Maestro! will be released in March. Legaia 2 will be released later this summer. At the moment we have several other Fresh games under wraps and are also talking with other Japanese developers about releasing their titles in the US and Europe under the Fresh banner. It's a safe bet that you'll see several more titles on the Fresh label by years end. We'll be announcing details as soon as they are confirmed.

GA: The current titles under the "Fresh Games" label are all from SCEI. Will the company pursue other Japanese companies looking to have their less mainstream titles released here?
Kevin: We love working with SCEJ, and the initial 3 Fresh Games titles are all SCEJ titles. However, there are many excellent developers in Japan who are making groundbreaking and entertaining games that for whatever reason, are not being considered for release in America. These games are all candidates for release on the Fresh label.

GA: Will the "Fresh Games" label extend beyond the PlayStation 2 and into other platforms, as well?
Kevin: We plan to let the Fresh Games label extend as far as the Hardcore Gamer wants us to. Hardcore Gamers play games across multiple platforms, so it is a reasonable assumption to assume you will see Fresh games released across a variety of platforms.

GA: Are there any specific genres that the label will look into when deciding what to bring over?
Kevin: We're wide open in regards to genre. As we mentioned earlier you will probably not see a character based sequel, a license, or a extreme sports game on the Fresh label, but if the game is fresh, we will look at it. To kick off the label, we are releasing games in the Music genre, RPG genre, and the newly established "mosquito" genre. Basically our guidelines are to bring compelling and innovative games to American and European hardcore gamer.

GA: Any hints of what else we can expect to see later this year?
Kevin: No specifics to announce yet, but we plan to continue to release fresh games.