Game Preservation Progress: Square Enix, Capcom, Sega, and Taito Discuss Archival Efforts at SIGGRAPH Asia

Efforts in game preservation and archiving have seen increasing attention across the video game industry, especially in Japan, where legacy game content is at risk due to aging hardware and shifting corporate priorities.

During a notable session at SIGGRAPH Asia, key representatives from Square Enix, Capcom, Sega, and Taito outlined recent measures to safeguard their extensive gaming histories—a topic that has since garnered widespread discussion following coverage by Western media outlets.

Yet, according to Joseph Redon of the Japanese Games Preservation Society (GPS), the actual company commitment may have been overstated.

Redon emphasized that while GPS was present at the event to observe and report on any preservation activities, the reality presented differed from media summaries.

“The companies showcased archival documents and participated in a panel, but none committed to an ongoing preservation initiative.

Only Capcom is currently maintaining some archival work internally for marketing.

Sega's interest is there, but practical company policy prevents any significant effort unless it's financially viable,” Redon remarked.

He further clarified that reports framing the event as a coordinated industry breakthrough were inaccurate, and in reality, no new pledges or partnerships were officially declared. The original SIGGRAPH Asia talk, titled “The Cutting Edge of Preservation,” featured valuable insights from leading figures in major gaming companies: Youichiro Miyake, lead AI researcher at Square Enix; Yasuyuki Makino, digital content archive team producer at Capcom; Yosuke Okunari, producer at Sega; and Yuichi Toyama, producer at Taito.

Each shared their company’s current approaches to preserving development materials and game assets. Square Enix’s SAVE Project was highlighted by Miyake, presenting ongoing work—launched in Spring 2020—to archive design documents and assets.

Miyake described how these resources have been exhibited at events like SIGGRAPH Asia 2021 to promote wider appreciation for game preservation within the industry, and to inspire similar projects elsewhere. Capcom’s Yasuyuki Makino discussed its Illustrations Archive System, an internal platform for cataloging key promotional art, logos, and character illustrations.

This system supports commercialization and licensing through controlled public access.

Makino shared that while the archive currently focuses on art and sprites, Capcom anticipates future expansion to include commercials, ROMs, background music, and original design documents.

Capcom's preservation work has already contributed to projects such as Capcom Arcade Stadium, the Capcom Town 40th-anniversary website, and public exhibitions. Taito detailed its decentralized approach, digitizing diverse materials ranging from game design specifications and arcade boards to manuals and microfilms.

Some of these assets have powered anniversary exhibitions and re-releases, like the Darius Cozmic Collection, Egret II Mini, and the Arcade Archives series in collaboration with Hamster Corp. Sega, according to the event, has only recently begun to formulate its archival strategy in 2023, targeting the preservation of arcade hardware, software, game data, development documents, and artwork.

Certain assets have already been repurposed, for example, in the Like a Dragon video game series, which features classic Sega arcade titles as minigames.

While these developments indicate incremental progress, Joseph Redon of the Japanese Games Preservation Society cautions that full-scale, company-backed preservation remains limited.

Redon’s assessment suggests that, for now, large-scale preservation initiatives largely remain aspirational, with only isolated internal efforts actively underway. As the gaming industry grows increasingly aware of its legacy, the topic of video game preservation—particularly for classics represented on platforms like the Nintendo Switch and through services like the eShop—remains critical.

The collaborative participation of industry giants at events like SIGGRAPH Asia signals gradual positive movement, even if comprehensive solutions are still in development.

Capcom Square Enix Sega Taito Asia Enix Square