Super Smash Bros. creator: No time to recreate every past character

June 23rd, 2013, 21:49 Posted By: wraggster

Super Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai explains why every character that has appeared in the series in the past won't feature in the latest Super Smash Bros.
In an interview with NowGamer, Sakurai revealed that the new Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and 3DS will not include every character from the series' past, because there isn't enough time to recreate them all.
"Adding new characters is not a simple addition," he says. "It's really multiplication. The amount of work, adding a character is multiplied and becomes bigger and bigger as you go. We can't because of the amount of work it takes. However, I do believe I understand that each character has its own set of fans out there who really like that character."
Sakurai does say that the team will do what it can, but braces players for disappointment. "[We'll] put in as many characters as we can, we really want to do that, because it's good for the fans and good for all of us. But in the event that we do have to cut some characters, I'd like to apologise in advance to those fans."
During E3 two Super Smash Bros. trailers were revealed, with one introducing the Wii Fit Trainer as a playable character, the other showcasing Mega Man's addition to the roster. The trailers also confirmed a 2014 release date.
In a recent Developer Direct video, Masahiro Sakurai spoke about the distinct visual styles used in the Wii U and 3DS version of Super Smash Bros, as well as the improved graphical fidelity and new effects.

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Conker's Bad Fur Day designer confirms new Wii U/3DS platformer

June 23rd, 2013, 21:45 Posted By: wraggster

Former Rare developer and Conker's Bad Fur Day game designer Chris Seavor is working on a new 2D platformer for Wii U and 3DS.
Seavor and fellow ex-Rare man Shawn Pile have revealed The Unlikely Legend of Rusty Pup viaNintendoLife, set for a 2014 release.
Described as a 2D platformer "with depth" and "moments of dark humour", the game sees you help Rusty make his way through a range of obstacles.
"Rather than you're controlling him to get from A to B", explains Seavor, "you're controlling everything else to make sure that he doesn't die. Within that framework, you've got your traditional kind of gameplay - platforms that move, monsters that get out of the way, monsters which don't - but Rusty always has a relationship with you. You're the narrator. So in that way, it's like a God game - it's not strictly a God game, but it's got narration and this mysterious figure - which is you,' he described.
Seavor admitted he's being secretive with one of the game's "core" gameplay mechanics because "we don't know whether it works or not yet", and it may change. But he describes it as "something you do which will effect something else in the gameworld".
The game will also focus on narrative. "It's all very much about the story," says Seavor. "It's a very sad tale."
The game will be released as a digital title via the Wii U and 3DS eShops next year.

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Iwata: Wii U price cut is not an easy option to take

June 22nd, 2013, 14:46 Posted By: wraggster

Hopes that Wii U might increase its competitive position via a price cut in the run-up to Christmas have seemingly been dashed.
That’s because Nintendo has already priced the Wii U as competitively as is financially possible, CEO Satoru Iwata told CNBC, as spotted by GamesRadar.
“From the very beginning we came up with a very aggressive price point,” he stated. “We do not think [a price cut] is a very easy option to take.
"I do not think we should become too pessimistic about the current situation with the Wii U. I think we should pour that time and energy into our [development] efforts, so eventually we can encourage third-party [publishers] to want to support Nintendo."
Wii U currently retails at two prices - £300 for the Premium SKU and £250 for the struggling Basic SKU. Both SKUs have been heavily discounted at various times across UK retail, however.
Iwata still believes that the key to saving Wii U is getting the console into consumers’ hands.
"As long as people have hands-on [experience], they can appreciate the value of the Wii U,” he argued. “But because there's not software that's simple and obvious for people as Wii Sports for the Wii, potential consumers do not feel like trying the Wii U.
“Our challenge today is with the software line-up we are introducing now, we have to encourage [people] to experience the Wii U in the first place."

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Miyamoto rules out new F-Zero as he's all out of ideas

June 22nd, 2013, 14:45 Posted By: wraggster

We all thought the same thing when we saw the zero-gravity stuff in Mario Kart 8 – where’s the new F-Zero game from Nintendo?
The answer – there isn’t one. And there may not be one for a very long time.
"I certainly understand that people want a new F-Zero game," Nintendo design boss Shigeru Miyamoto told IGN. "I think where I struggle is that I don’t really have a good idea for what’s new that we could bring to F-Zero that would really turn it into a great game again.
“Certainly I can see how people looking at Mario Kart 8 could see, through the anti-gravity, a connection to F-Zero. But I don’t know, at this point, what direction we could go in with a new F-Zero.
"Obviously in the past we’ve tried to work with other companies, where we’ve let them develop games for us in franchises like Star Fox and F-Zero, but the more we think about it, the more we prefer to be able to create those games internally, on our own.
“We’ve obviously been working on what we can do to increase our internal staff in a way that will allow us to have more projects going at the same time, so we can create new games and work on additional old IP and still maintain the other primary franchises that people want to see."
Is there an irony in Nintendo saying that it’s not planning on a new F-Zero because it can’t think of anything new to add? After all, one criticism often levelled at Nintendo’s feet is that it has consistently failed to evolve any of its key brands arguably since the days of N64.
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Wii U price cut 'not an easy option' for Nintendo, says Iwata

June 20th, 2013, 00:57 Posted By: wraggster

Nintendo is unlikely to introduce a Wii U price cut because the console already sits at 'an aggressive price point', according to company CEO Satoru Iwata.
Nintendo used a price cut to turn around the early-life sales slump of the 3DS, slashing almost a third off its asking price (from $249 to $169.99 in the US).Retailers have voiced their desirefor a similar Wii U price cut, but such a tactic is 'not an easy option' for Nintendo, says Iwata.
"From the very beginning we came up with a very aggressive price point. We do not think [a price cut] is a very easy option to take," the exec toldCNBC.
Iwata admitted that a 'relaxed' marketing campaign was partially at fault for Wii U's poor sales, as the company struggles to communicate the uniqueness of Wii U to potential consumers.
"We are to blame," said Iwata. "We relaxed our [marketing] efforts, so the consumers today still cannot understand what's so good and unique about the Wii U. Because we're always trying to be unique, it takes some energies on our side to [make] people understand the real attractions about whatever we are doing."
A general lack of software is also a part of the problem, but Iwata points the finger more specifically at the lack of game that really shows off the system in the way Wii Sports did on the original Wii.
"We have been unsuccessful in coming up with one single software with which people can understand, 'OK, this is really different,'" he said.
"As long as people have hands-on [experience], they can appreciate the value of the Wii U, but because there's not software that's simple and obvious for people as 'Wii Sports' for the Wii, potential consumers do not feel like trying the Wii U. Our challenge today is with the software lineup we are introducing now, we have to encourage [people] to experience the Wii U in the first place."
Nintendo used E3 last week to show off several major new Wii U titlesincluding Mario Kart 8, Super Mario 3D World, Super Smash Bros, Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD and Pikmin 3

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Wii U marketing too relaxed - Nintendo

June 19th, 2013, 22:32 Posted By: wraggster

Iwata accepts blame for console's struggles, dismisses possibility of a price cut
[h=3]Nintendo[/h]nintendo-europe.com


Nintendo may have laid the groundwork for a Wii U recovery at E3, but until that recovery actually happens, company president Satoru Iwata will have to talk about exactly what went wrong with the system launch and how it can be fixed. In an interview with CNBC at the show last week, Iwata spoke to those concerns once more, and singled out the company's marketing push (or lack thereof) as a factor.
"We are to blame," Iwata said. "We relaxed our [marketing] efforts, so the consumers today still cannot understand what's so good and unique about the Wii U. Because we're always trying to be unique, it takes some energies on our side to [make] people understand the real attractions about whatever we are doing."
The console's lack of an ubiquitous system seller like Wii Sports has further stymied those efforts, another shortcoming Iwata acknowledged.
"We have been unsuccessful in coming up with one single software with which people can understand, 'OK, this is really different,'" Iwata said. "As long as people have hands-on [experience], they can appreciate the value of the Wii U, but because there's not software that's simple and obvious for people as Wii Sports for the Wii, potential consumers do not feel like trying the Wii U."
Another problem for the Wii U has been the lack of software support, the same problem Nintendo acknowledged with the 3DS and said it would not repeat for the Wii U. However, Iwata said the company reallocated resources for production crunches leading up to the Wii U launch. They managed to get the system out in time, but that pushed back development schedules on a number of games, and lower than expected sales of the hardware have since spurred some third-party developers to scale back support for the system, aggravating the problem.
Despite Nintendo's difficult situation with the Wii U, Iwata ruled out a price cut along the lines of the one used to spark interest in the 3DS after the handheld's slow start. Iwata is reluctant to resort to such a measure, he said, "because from the very beginning we came up with a very aggressive price point. We do not think [a price cut] is a very easy option to take."

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Nintendo patent suit victory upheld

June 19th, 2013, 22:29 Posted By: wraggster

Plaintiff IA Labs loses dispute over Wii tech, is ordered to pay more than $236,000 in legal fees
[h=3]Nintendo[/h]nintendo-europe.com


Game companies don't often comment on litigation, but Nintendo has made a habit of trumpeting its numerous patent suit victories since the 2006 debut of the Wii. Today the company touted another such victory, as the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld a District Court judge's 2012 ruling for Nintendo in a patent suit over Wii Fit and other bits of Wii technology.
The suit was filed by IA Labs (Powergrid Fitness) in 2010, and alleged patent infringements relating to the Wii, Wii Balance Board, Wii Wheel and Wii MotionPlus. Nintendo won the case in lower court last year, with a judge determining the Mario maker had not violated any patent rights of IA Labs. The fitness company was then ordered to pay Nintendo more than $236,000 to cover legal fees, a decision upheld by the Court of Appeals.
"We are very pleased with the court's decision," Nintendo of America deputy general counsel Richard Medway said in a statement. "Nintendo has a long history of developing innovative products while respecting the intellectual property rights of others. We also vigorously defend patent lawsuits, like the IA Labs lawsuit, when we firmly believe that we have not infringed another party's patent."

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Iwata accepts responsibility for Wii U struggles

June 19th, 2013, 22:23 Posted By: wraggster

We are to blame.” That’s the message from Nintendo boss Saturo Iwata regarding the disappointing sales of the Wii U.
“"We are to blame. We relaxed our [marketing] efforts, so the consumers today still cannot understand what's so good and unique about the Wii U," Iwata told CNBC, as reported by GameSpot.
"We have been unsuccessful in coming up with one single software with which people can understand, 'OK, this is really different'. As long as people have hands-on [experience], they can appreciate the value of the Wii U, but because there's not software that's simple and obvious for people as 'Wii Sports' for the Wii, potential consumers do not feel like trying the Wii U."
Nintendo currently forecasts global sales of 9m units for the Wii U throughout the current fiscal year – a target that means the console will significantly step up its sales rate.
In a separate interview Reggie Fils-Aime has claimed that the Wii U was let down by a weak software line-up at launched that lacked key titles – namely, no Zelda and no Wii Sports equivalent.

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Anti-slavery campaign targets Nintendo

June 19th, 2013, 22:16 Posted By: wraggster

Human rights organisation Walk Free has launched a campaign targeting Nintendo.
The body seeks assurances that Nintendo hardware doesn’t use slave-mined minerals, which can arrive on the global market from troubled regions such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, in any of its hardware.
A petition demanding confirmation on the issue and an audit of Nintendo’s supply chain has so far attracted over 400,000 signatures, the group claims.
It has created a video, which can be seen below, and a Flash game, which can be found on the official website, to try and draw attention to the issue.
“While this parody allows gamers to demand that Nintendo articulate credible steps to ensure slavery is not in its supply chain, slavery is not a game,” Walk Free’s movement director Debra Rosen stated.
“We’re not mocking the problem, we’re poking fun at the absurdity of Nintendo’s lack of response. Nintendo – as the world’s largest maker of video game machines – should be leading other consumer electronics companies in showing the public that they are working to have a supply chain free of slavery. Instead, they are lagging behind.”
Nintendo has in the past also been criticised for its green credentials. In 2007 Greenpeace scored Nintendo a flat zero in its global electronics manufacturers study and the following year claimed the company had no environmental policies.

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Nintendo: Delays happen but quality is paramount

June 19th, 2013, 00:43 Posted By: wraggster

Nintendo boss Satoru Iwata has put the lack of Wii U games this year down to the necessity for software to be more polished and offer more value than ever before.
Iwata contests that customers are much harder to please in an age of free-to-play and $1 smartphone games. "I think it is becoming increasingly more difficult to have consumers understand and appreciate the value that a particular game offers than ever before," he said in Nintendo's E3 Analyst Briefing.
"For example, it is now common to find on smart devices a large volume of products categorized as games selling for one dollar. With countless games offered for free, consumers are far more careful than ever to decide whether it is worthwhile to spend dozens of dollars to buy one game," he added.
This, says Iwata, makes adding extra value and polish to $60 games paramount to the success of Wii U, which has drastically underperformed at retail since its November 2012 release.
"Under these circumstances, we feel that it is important to offer games that are even more polished than before in terms of quality to have consumers buy our products, understand the value that they offer and recommend them to others by word-of-mouth," commented Iwata.
"The barriers are indeed higher than before," he added.
"Moreover, it is not an easy task to regain the trust of the fans of a franchise once you lose it. Therefore, it is critical for us to improve and re-polish any game that we feel is still lacking in quality. Failing to do so, we feel, would be detrimental to what makes our strong franchises the valuable assets that they are."
Iwata explains that it's this push for quality that's caused delays, not issues with developing for the console itself.
"We had to push back the releases of some games because it has become more difficult to satisfy the quality standards that we feel are necessary for games to satisfy before they are released. It was not because it took us more time to take advantage of what is unique about the hardware," he said.
"On the other hand, we have become more experienced as we continue to develop software on our platforms, and we have gradually been able to predict more accurately how long it will take a particular game to meet our quality standards. There has been a software shortage in the past two years (for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U) in the early stages of their product lifecycles because it took us time to meet our quality standards."
Nintendo is under increasing pressure to turn the Wii U's fortunes around. Electronic Arts said recently that it will resume full support for Wii U when it "becomes a viable platform" on which to sell games.
Nintendo used E3 last week to show off several major new Wii U titlesincluding Mario Kart 8, Super Mario 3D World, Super Smash Bros, Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD and Pikmin 3.

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$400 PS4 'puts no pressure on Wii U at all', says Nintendo exec

June 19th, 2013, 00:42 Posted By: wraggster

Sony and Microsoft are preparing to launch their high-end consoles at the end of the year, but Nintendo is entirely unfazed, according to Nintendo of America boss Reggie Fils-Aime.
The PS4 is expected to pose a particular threat to Wii U with its$400/£349 price point - just $50/£50 more than the 'Deluxe/Premium' version of Nintendo's significantly lower-spec machine. But Fils-Aime brushes off the challenge.
"It puts no pressure on us at all," Fils-Aime insisted during a chat withKotaku. "Sony and Microsoft are going to do what they're going to do. My bet is that there are going to be more announcements the closer we get to whatever their launch date is."
He went on, "From my perspective, I can't focus on that. I have to focus on: How do we satisfy the needs of all of the consumers out there with Nintendo products? How do we make sure they understand our proposition? How do we make sure they're excited about the software that we offer? And from that standpoint we're going to let our competition do what they're going to do."
Wii U has struggled at retail in its early life largely due to a lack of compelling software releases, which is something Nintendo aims to rectify in the run up to Christmas.
"You know, I think by the end of this holiday, after we've launched Wind Waker, after we've launched Donkey Kong Country, after we've launched Mario 3D World, I think we're going to be in a very good position," said Fils-Aime.
Nintendo used E3 last week to show off several major new Wii U titlesincluding Mario Kart 8, Super Mario 3D World, Super Smash Bros, Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD and Pikmin 3.

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Nintendo will use free-to-play to introduce new IP

June 19th, 2013, 00:41 Posted By: wraggster

Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata has said that Nintendo will use the free-to-play model to introduce new IP that need to earn the "trust" of consumers.
While Nintendo's two leading platforms, Wii U and 3DS, afford the firm flexibility with software monetization, Iwata says Nintendo will only pursue free-to-play with unestablished franchises.
"We are not planning to offer, for example, Mario or Pokémon games in a free-to-play format," confirmed Iwata in a recent E3 analysis briefing.
"With games like Mario and Pokémon, we already have a sufficient degree of trust with our consumers who are willing to pay a certain sum of money to purchase our products as packaged software. On the other hand, what are we to do when we want to offer a completely new product whose value consumers are yet to understand? Consumers are not sure if it is worth outlaying a certain sum of money for such a product.
"In such circumstances, our current platforms (Nintendo 3DS and Wii U), which give us various monetization options that would not have been possible on past Nintendo platforms, enable us to make propositions in a free-to-play format," he said.
Free-to-play games are often criticised for enforcing overly-restrictive measures in efforts to force players to make continuous micro transactions that, in some cases, can end up being more expensive than buying a full-priced game. Iwata went on to stress the importance of a free-to-play model that doesn't extort the player.
"On the other hand, free-to-play games, if unbalanced, could result in some consumers paying extremely large amounts of money, and we can certainly not expect to build a good relationship with our consumers in this fashion.," said Iwata. "In order to have a favorable long-term relationship, we would like to offer free-to-play games that are balanced and reasonable."
Elsewhere in the briefing, Iwata blamed the lack of Wii U games this year on the necessity for software to be more polished and offer more value than ever before.

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Steel Diver is Nintendo's incoming free-to-play title

June 19th, 2013, 00:40 Posted By: wraggster

Nintendo is working a new free-to-play rendition of Steel Diver.
Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto confirmed the news to IGN, following previous reports that the firm was already working an unnamed free-to-play title.
"There is something we're doing with the Steel Diver idea that I think is going to open things up with that game... It's going to be very fun," hinted Miyamoto.
Steal Diver is a relatively new IP that made its debut as a 3DS launch titlein 2011. It sees players taking control of a submarine in 2D levels, operating its controls on the touch screen to navigate the vessel through tight underwater caverns and shoot enemies.
While Miyamoto held off confirming a platform for the new title, or whether it'd be a remake or entirely new game, he did hint at ideas for an enhanced multiplayer mode.
"We're exploring from a perspective of where we can take that from a multiplayer standpoint - it's going to have this four-player battle mode that I think is going to be very interesting," he said.
In our review, we gave Steel Diver a 7/10 score. "Brief though it may be, it's an experience you won't get anywhere else, and while it isn't quite the Shigsy's Magical World Of Submarines we'd sort of hoped for, there's still plenty of fun to be had in its shallow waters," we said in summary.
Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata has said recently that Nintendo will not use the free-to-play model with "trusted" IPs such as Mario or Pokemon, but for new products that are yet to establish themselves with consumers.

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Nintendo 3DS update adds save backups, new StreetPass game store

June 19th, 2013, 00:35 Posted By: wraggster

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WBIE: We're a believer on Wii U

June 19th, 2013, 00:26 Posted By: wraggster

Batman publisher president Martin Tremblay on continuing support for Nintendo's latest, next-gen console prices, the used games uproar, and improving digital sales reporting
[h=3]Warner Bros. Entertainment[/h]
[h=3]Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment[/h]

After a slow start for Nintendo's Wii U, Electronic Artshas visibly backed off supporting the system, whileActivision and Ubisoft are publicly indecisive about continuing to create games for the platform. There's at least one third-party publisher still in Nintendo's corner, if comments made to GamesIndustry International by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment president Martin Tremblay are anything to go by.
"We're a believer on the Wii U," Tremblay said during an interview at last week's Electronic Entertainment Expo. "Honestly, we hope everybody's going to work out. It's just good for the industry."
While Tremblay stressed that he was proud of how titles like Scribblenauts Unlimited, Batman: Arkham City, and the Nintendo-published Lego City Undercover performed, he clearly wanted to see more contributions from the platform.
"This is spot-on what I think the price point needs to be, and it will energize and make the transition easier"
Tremblay on PS4 at $399

"I think the console has been off to a slow start, but I think they're going to fix the problem," Tremblay said. "I don't think it's a problem, but it's more about the content. And I think they showed tons of new content [at E3] that will re-energize the platform."
Tremblay also weighed in on the announced price points for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, lauding the latter's $399 tag while diplomatically refraining from specific comment on Microsoft's $499 offering.
"Honestly, I'm very pleased with Sony's price point," Tremblay said. "This is spot-on what I think the price point needs to be, and it will energize and make the transition easier. That being said, we'll see how consumers are going to go for it. We're building for both platforms. We like both. The specs are amazing on both sides. But I really do like Sony's price point; this is something that can give us a chance to succeed quicker."
As for the new system's differing stances on used games, Tremblay said he didn't think they would shift the sales mix of multiplatform titles one way or the other. And in instances where some of the control is at the publisher's discretion, Tremblay said he didn't expect to deviate from the way things work at the moment.
"You've got to listen to your consumers," Tremblay said when asked about the uproar over the Xbox One restricting used game sales. "You've got to listen to people playing the game. That's very important. I think I was a little bit surprised, to be honest…Now that we see that coming and we see what people want, just go with it. That's the way I look at it."
Tremblay seemed to welcome that sort of enthusiasm after years of people voicing concerns about the sustainability of the console industry, and the challenges it had faced as a result of the longer-than-usual hardware generation. While E3 might not have put those concerns to rest, Tremblay seemed quite pleased with how it began to address them.
"The show feels reenergized," Tremblay said. "The announcement of both platforms is fresh air to the industry. We needed that heartbeat. The Wii U was a good thing to get something new in the market, but now Sony and Microsoft are coming up pretty strong with devices that are going to be amazing from a development perspective and a commercial perspective."
Finally, Tremblay addressed the lack of digital sales transparency in the industry, which the Entertainment Software Association is looking to improve upon. It might find some willing partners, as Tremblay said WBIE "would do everything we can on our side to participate in this." The executive underscored the dearth of clarity in the digital space, noting that even WBIE didn't have a firm grasp on just how lucrative it was until it converted Lord of the Rings Online into a free-to-play game and got into the mobile market itself.

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3DS brings Xbox 360's 28-month long run of NPD wins to a halt

June 19th, 2013, 00:17 Posted By: wraggster

The Xbox 360’s iron grip on the North American market has finally been released.
Joystiq reports that the latest numbers from NPD show that, despite flat sales, Nintendo’s 3DS was the best selling hardware in North America in May. That it beat Microsoft’s machine means that Xbox 360 must have suffered a significant year-on-year sales dip.
Microsoft released a press release claiming that Xbox 360 “sold more than any other console in the US for the 29th consecutive month” but this is only true if handhelds are not factored into the numbers.
However, May was described by NPD as “a slow month overall” although all the successes were Nintendo’s – the 3DS claimed three different spots in the Top Ten, boasting a 60 per cent annual boost in software sales
Here’s the North American May Top Ten
1. Injustice: Gods Among Us (Sony)
2. Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 (Activision)
3. Donkey Kong Country Returns (Nintendo)
4. Dead Island: Riptide (Deeps Silver)
5. Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon (Nintendo)
6. Metro: Last Light (Deep Silver)
7. NBA 2K13 (2K Games)
8. Bioshock Infinite (2K Games)
9. Battlefield 3 (EA)
10. LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes (Warner)

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Nintendo’s new StreetPass games are polished, but come at a cost

June 19th, 2013, 00:01 Posted By: wraggster

3DS owners woke up to a pleasant surprise this morning in their StreetPass Mii Plaza. One system update later, and the app has been transformed, offering access to four new games that are a little deeper and more involving than StreetPass Quest and Puzzle Swap, but delivered with similar levels of polish, charm and beautifully judged writing.They come at a cost, however – £4.49 each, to be precise, or £13.49 for a bundle containing all four. With little but a brief description to go off – delivered, as is the Nintendo way, by a rabbit holding a tablet – it seems a little steep, particularly given that Japanese players get the same deal for around ten pounds. That said, all four demonstrate plenty of potential, and their value can only really be judged when their content has been exhausted. Perhaps more significantly, the games represent a step forward for Nintendo in terms of premium content: it has already dabbled in microtransactions for the likes of New Super Mario Bros. 2 and Fire Emblem: Awakening, while its first major slice of DLC arrives later this week in the form of New Super Luigi U. But this is an unprecedented expansion to in-built software, and anyone who isn’t prepared to pay will be left with four barren spaces in the app’s Play menu.

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Iwata: ‘Nintendo Land’ has not fulfilled the same role as ‘Wii Sports’

June 18th, 2013, 23:56 Posted By: wraggster

During an analyst briefing, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata discussed some of the challenges that the Wii U faces in regards to its competition with the upcoming Xbox One and PlayStation 4.In particular, he talked about how people don’t seem to quite understand the role of the GamePad. “I would say that ‘Nintendo Land’ has not fulfilled the same role as ‘Wii Sports’ did when we bundled it with Wii,” he said, attempting to explain why consumers haven’t accepted the GamePad in the same way they gravitated towards the motion controllers of the previous generation.“Of course, we won’t remain silent and do nothing,” he continued. We are going to release a variety of Wii U software, and with each title, we would like to show how convenient and delightful it is to have the Wii U GamePad controller, and how it changes the gaming experience.” He then pointed to Pikmin 3 as a game that could fulfill that role.As for third party support, Iwata said Nintendo plans on continuing to developer quality software to sell the console, which will, in turn, draw outside developers in to develop for the platform. In order to do so, however, Nintendo must compete with the ever-growing smartphone and tablet gaming scene. Iwata knows this.“Under these circumstances, we feel that it is important to offer games that are even more polished than before in terms of quality to have consumers buy our products, understand the value that they offer and recommend them to others by word-of-mouth,” he said. “It now requires incredibly high-quality products to satisfy consumers to the level where they feel compelled to recommend them to others; the barriers are indeed higher than before.“We had to push back the releases of some games because it has become more difficult to satisfy the quality standards that we feel are necessary for games to satisfy before they are released. It was not because it took us more time to take advantage of what is unique about the hardware.”It is important to note, however, that Iwata repeatedly stated that there are, in fact, third party developers actively making games for the Wii U.

http://www.edge-online.com/news/iwat...as-wii-sports/

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UK Town of Ipswich Remodelled As Zelda Level

June 18th, 2013, 23:50 Posted By: wraggster

Switch Fringe is a relatively new not-for-profit annual music and arts festival in the UK town of Ipswich, and this year's program features a full page map of the town with details about each venue. Unlike most other maps this one is in the form of a Zelda level. This is in part due to this year's theme 'Re-imagining Ipswich,' that PixelH8 is coming out of semi-retirement to play a gig during the proceedings and possibly due to the fact that the map's designer — The Decibel Kid— spent too much time playing Zelda on a Gameboy Color during the first Web bubble."

http://games.slashdot.org/story/13/0...as-zelda-level

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WBIE: We're a believer on Wii U

June 18th, 2013, 00:39 Posted By: wraggster

Batman publisher president Martin Tremblay on continuing support for Nintendo's latest, next-gen console prices, the used games uproar, and improving digital sales reporting
[h=3]Warner Bros. Entertainment[/h]
[h=3]Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment[/h]

After a slow start for Nintendo's Wii U, Electronic Artshas visibly backed off supporting the system, whileActivision and Ubisoft are publicly indecisive about continuing to create games for the platform. There's at least one third-party publisher still in Nintendo's corner, if comments made to GamesIndustry International by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment president Martin Tremblay are anything to go by.
"We're a believer on the Wii U," Tremblay said during an interview at last week's Electronic Entertainment Expo. "Honestly, we hope everybody's going to work out. It's just good for the industry."
While Tremblay stressed that he was proud of how titles like Scribblenauts Unlimited, Batman: Arkham City, and the Nintendo-published Lego City Undercover performed, he clearly wanted to see more contributions from the platform.
"I think the console has been off to a slow start, but I think they're going to fix the problem," Tremblay said. "I don't think it's a problem, but it's more about the content. And I think they showed tons of new content [at E3] that will re-energize the platform."
Tremblay also weighed in on the announced price points for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, lauding the latter's $399 tag while diplomatically refraining from specific comment on Microsoft's $499 offering.
"Honestly, I'm very pleased with Sony's price point," Tremblay said. "This is spot-on what I think the price point needs to be, and it will energize and make the transition easier. That being said, we'll see how consumers are going to go for it. We're building for both platforms. We like both. The specs are amazing on both sides. But I really do like Sony's price point; this is something that can give us a chance to succeed quicker."
As for the new system's differing stances on used games, Tremblay said he didn't think they would shift the sales mix of multiplatform titles one way or the other. And in instances where some of the control is at the publisher's discretion, Tremblay said he didn't expect to deviate from the way things work at the moment.
"You've got to listen to your consumers," Tremblay said when asked about the uproar over the Xbox One restricting used game sales. "You've got to listen to people playing the game. That's very important. I think I was a little bit surprised, to be honest…Now that we see that coming and we see what people want, just go with it. That's the way I look at it."
Tremblay seemed to welcome that sort of enthusiasm after years of people voicing concerns about the sustainability of the console industry, and the challenges it had faced as a result of the longer-than-usual hardware generation. While E3 might not have put those concerns to rest, Tremblay seemed quite pleased with how it began to address them.
"The show feels reenergized," Tremblay said. "The announcement of both platforms is fresh air to the industry. We needed that heartbeat. The Wii U was a good thing to get something new in the market, but now Sony and Microsoft are coming up pretty strong with devices that are going to be amazing from a development perspective and a commercial perspective."
Finally, Tremblay addressed the lack of digital sales transparency in the industry, which the Entertainment Software Association is looking to improve upon. It might find some willing partners, as Tremblay said WBIE "would do everything we can on our side to participate in this." The executive underscored the dearth of clarity in the digital space, noting that even WBIE didn't have a firm grasp on just how lucrative it was until it converted Lord of the Rings Online into a free-to-play game and got into the mobile market itself.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...iever-on-wii-u

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