Cancelled “dark Wii game” revealed – Winter

For a number of months, IGN teased a “secret dark Wii game.” In the last Nintendo Voice Chat podcast, Matt Casamassina unfortunately stated that the game had been canceled. Now the first details on the game – Winter – have been revealed, including pictures. Perhaps the most important bit of information is that the developers still want to release the game if publishers show interest.

– Premise: unnatural snowstorm that has settled over a small town in the Midwest, effectively closing it off from the outside world. The main character, Mia, begins the game inside a wrecked ambulance with no recollection of how she got there. As she treks off towards the small town, she starts to see signs of something monstrous that is traveling with the storm.
– Developed by n-space
– Initially player just keeps Mia alive (sheltering her from temperature/snow)
– Learn that Mia has a connection to the storm
– Creatures appear, town is being transformed by snow and icedoors are blocked
– Ways to keep Mia warm: Use Wii controller to spark fire, light oily rags, finding keys to abandoned vehicle to start engine and run the heater
– Wiimote/nunchuck extension of player’s hands
– Opening a door: Player points at handle, punches A+B buttons, pukllsit open
– Each tool takes advantage of Wii controllers – Flashlight flickers, player has to tap the Wiimote until it starts working again
– 12 people were working on the game at its peak
– Video was made to publishers in March 2007
– If the game got a publisher, would have liked to improve graphics (lighting, etc)
– Game was pitched for months, response was positive. Got hung up with sales and marketing groups – couldn’t get behind a survival horror
– Fact that the game was an original IP might have been part of the problem – also, publishers would have to go out of their confort home
– There were talks of movies/comic books (standard tie-ins) – Had to get game off first which stalled everything
* – Devs would still want to release Winter if publishers showed interest – would welcome to the opportunity to pick up where they left off