Level-5, Nintendo think Yo-Kai Watch's 2nd game will make the franchise a US hit

Coming from a Verge interview with Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino...

"We have to understand that it takes time, but then at the same time we have to work as hard as we can to shorten the time as much as possible. I think we're following the same kind of sales trend as Japan. Meaning that our first game in Japan had OK sales, but it only became a huge phenomenon when we released the second game. I think our launch here in the US is kind of the ideal sales that we had expected.

For the markets where it takes more time, we have to change the messaging, trying to push the aspects that are more familiar to those markets. Not just push the game as-is, but pick the unique aspect that will be familiar. We do believe that Yo-kai Watch can be as big of a social phenomenon [in the West] as it is in Japan,"

Coming from a Nintendo rep

"The franchise has gotten off to a solid start in the US. Now that it has some momentum, we're aiming to help it grow with two new games on the way. We expect, as is the case with new franchises of this type, that sales will grow steadily over time. And in particular, Yo-kai Watch should benefit from Nintendo's established history of ‘long-tail' software sales over an extended period of time.​"