Shuhei Yoshida to Korean Indies: Add English to Your Demo, Now

At BIC in August, Shuhei Yoshida found a Korean action game he really liked. He just could not play it properly. The demo was only in Korean, and he struggled to understand the controls and the rules. Three months later, he turned that moment into the first piece of advice for an entire country's indie scene.

Yoshida, the former head of PlayStation's indie initiative who now runs his own company, Yosp, spoke at the Console Game Developers Conference (CGDC) 2026 in Seoul on 9 November, held at the SKY31 Convention in Lotte World Tower. He moderated the final panel of the global track and sat down for an interview afterwards. His message to Korean developers was practical and blunt.

1. Speak the world's languages from day one

His first rule: add English from the demo stage, and offer toggles for English, Chinese and Japanese. Write multilingual Steam store descriptions, and promote games directly on social media. At BIC in August he had made the same point, saying it is important to support English and Chinese by default.

The reasoning is simple. A demo is often the first time a publisher, journalist or streamer sees a game. If they cannot read it, they move on.

Second, for Steam Next Fest and showcase demos, Yoshida called controller support essential. Many global players and publishers prefer gamepads, and a demo that only works well with a keyboard can feel broken to them, even if the game is excellent.

2. Use AI as a helper, not an author

Yoshida sees real value in AI for small teams with limited resources: it can help improve quality and make multilingual localisation affordable. But he drew a firm line. Generating new ideas and gameplay, he said, remains the creator's responsibility. At BIC he had put it another way, calling AI "incredibly efficient for programming" but saying he does not think it can replace human creativity.

3. Don't copy, find your own idea

His fourth point was about originality. He advised against imitating popular titles in crowded genres, urging developers to look for ideas that only they could make. For showcasing, he suggested offline events, partnering with publishers and entering awards.

What he sees in Korea

Yoshida is clearly a fan. He pointed to Neowiz's Lies of P as a game that had a major impact on the Korean industry, and to indie titles including SANABI. He also noted the role of Korean government backing, winners of the national GIGDC competition, and investment from KRAFTON and Nexon in indie developers. At BIC he summed up the scene as "growing noticeably every year", with Korean teams showing a particular love for 2D action and rhythm games.

Why it matters

None of this advice is new to big studios. It is new to many students and two-person teams, and those are exactly the developers filling Korea's festivals right now. WGC's take: language is the cheapest win available. A Korean indie with an English demo at Steam Next Fest in February 2027 will reach a far bigger audience than the same game in Korean only. For the full picture of Korea's indie year, read our editorial, and for the grants that can pay for localisation, our support explainer.