General Nintendo

Posted on 12 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

Samurai Warriors 4 won’t be out for awhile. On Twitter, head of development Hisashi Koinuma wrote that Tecmo Koei is targeting a 2014 launch for the game.

That year has been purposely chosen. 2014 marks the tenth anniversary of the Samurai Warriors series, which made its debut on February 11, 2004 for the PlayStation 2.

The last mainline entry, Samurai Warriors 3, came out for Wii a few years ago. The series has since been appearing on the 3DS with two titles: Samurai Warriors: Chronicle and Samurai Warriors: Chronicle 2nd.

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Posted on 12 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News, Wii, Wii U | 0 comments

Dishonored co-creative director Harvey Smith was recently asked about Wii U. Unfortunately, Smith didn’t have much to say about the console.

He did speak a little about the importance of interface though. Smith feels that the Wii’s interface “reminds me that I’m struggling”, but hopes Nintendo will “have a better fix this time around”.

Smith showed some openness to working with new devices since they provide “a very fertile ground for exploring new ideas.” He additionally stated:

“Nintendo deserves accolades for that. I just don’t know how far the new console goes. I didn’t perceive what people’s excitement of the device was. I don’t know why, but it didn’t show up on my filter somehow.”

All of Smith’s comments are posted below.

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Posted on 12 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

A full-fledged summary of Famitsu’s “Future of Games” feature is available. A few bits and pieces were written up yesterday, but we now have in-depth quotes and commentary from other Japanese developers not mentioned yesterday.

Read on below to find out about some of the game ideas Japan’s biggest creators have in mind, how they feel about the industry, and more.

Hideaki Itsuno, Capcom

– Itsuno would like to make a fighting game
– In this game, skills and experience wouldn’t necessarily provide an advantage
– He has an idea for this game type
– Itsuno enjoys the A Train simulation series

Motohide Eshiro, Capcom

– Wants to become a producer who can manage projects that encompass not just consumer games
– This would include social, video, and other areas
– Would like to make an arcade beat ’em up
– It could be something like Final Fight but using today’s technology
– Believes Capcom must form a big framework by working with a variety of other companies
– This is in part to fight off the “Black Ship” that is coming from overseas
– Eshiro thinks overseas developers are amazing, but Japanese developers can’t beat them by doing the exact same thing
– Japanese developers must emphasize new play elements and concepts, he feels

Suda 51, Grasshopper Manufacture

– Still working to make players know that Grasshopper does not necessarily equal Suda
– Suda feels that online is a required element in the future
– Wants to try out social elements
– Hopes to start up a new project featuring his very own planning

Kenichi Ogasawara, Tecmo Koei

– Open world may be appropriate for demonstrating the reality of battle
– Ex: if a battle were set in an open world, the player could play as a single soldier, which would give the feeling of reality
– Human drama could also be more densely told in an open world
– Idea to make an action game different from Musou is just at the framework level currently
– Ogasawara originally joined Tecmo Koei with the hope of making a Nobunaga’s Ambition game
– Of late, the number of required or set elements in a Nobunaga’s Ambition game has increased
– Ogasawara would make a Nobunaga’s Ambition game that shows battle through drama and reality if given the opportunity

Toshihiro Nagoshi, Sega

– Nagoshi believes that the Japanese console game market continues to grow bad
– Also feels that the international market has started to show slight signs of a drop
– Current game market is facing a tough predicament
– Nagoshi says it’s up to game designers to improve their analysis skills so that they can analyze problem areas and come up with a solution
– Using a free-to-play structure is attractive
– Nagoshi would like for his Yakuza studio to at some point make an online game
– Nagoshi was once told that, different from those who play sports professionally, game creators can make games forever
– He now believes that this was a big lie
– Companies will have to consider what responsibility they should take for their creators’ well being.

Naoki Yoshida, Square Enix

– If he could, he’d make something that converts Akihiko Yoshida’s artwork into a game

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Posted on 12 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

Last year, Firemint “acquired” Infinite Interactive, the developer behind Puzzle Quest. A few months ago, however, the company became independent once more.

Infinite Interactive’s founder and creative lead Steve Fawkner explained to Joystiq that the original move “was more of a merger” rather than an acquisition:

“There was never an actual acquisition of Infinite, it was more of a merger. It was all amicable stuff – as much as it would be fun to have a bit of a scandal. Unfortunately there isn’t one. I think everybody agreed that Infinite does its best work when it’s independent, and so we headed back out into the wilderness to work on our own stuff again.”

What matters is that Infinite Interactive still holds the rights to Puzzle Quest and another one of its IPs, Warlords. Fawkner hinted that the studio’s next game will be a new entry in the Puzzle Quest franchise:

“While I don’t have a specific announcement that I can make at the moment, if you shook a Magic 8-Ball and asked it ‘Will Infinite’s next game be a Puzzle Quest title?’, then it would quite probably say ‘All signs point to yes!’ In the short term, we will continue to build and innovate in the genres and settings that we know and love. That means games that combine fantasy, puzzles, strategy and tactics. It’s doubtful we’ll ever move too far from those genres, because they are our favorites, and you always do your best work when you’re building games that you’re passionate about.”

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Posted on 12 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

I’ll just leave this here quickly…

Attendees of Nationwide Big Time Summer Tour Go Hands-On with Mario Kart 7 for Nintendo 3DS, Enjoy Exclusive Big Time Rush-Themed Content

REDMOND, Wash.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Throughout the summer, Big Time Rush—the teen music phenomenon that stars in Nickelodeon’s hit television series Big Time Rush—is working with Nintendo to offer free hands-on demos of Mario Kart 7 for the Nintendo 3DS system at select stops during the band’s “Big Time Summer Tour.” After weeks of rehearsal and hours of game-play time, the band kicked off the tour on July 5 in Columbus, Ohio, and is currently traveling throughout the United States. From now until Aug. 5, attendees of select Big Time Rush concerts can visit Nintendo 3DS demo stations and experience the game’s wild Mario-themed action, multiplayer features and kart customization options firsthand.

A Mario Kart 7 sampling station and mobile sampling teams will be available at participating concert venues, giving fans a unique chance to play the game, enjoy special photo opportunities and compete for prizes. Fans will also be able to download Mii characters based on the members of Big Time Rush—Kendall, Logan, James and Carlos. Additionally, fans who bring their own Nintendo 3DS systems to the concerts will be able to wirelessly access content for Nintendo 3DS via Nintendo Zone hotspots. Additionally, viewers can currently see Big Time Rush in the television ad campaign for Mario Kart 7.

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Posted on 12 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

Nintendo’s first quarter earnings report is now live for viewing. Overall, losses have lowered compared to the prior year.

Details from the report can be found below. The full write-up has been posted on Nintendo’s site here.

– Net sales dropped from 93,298 million yen to 84,813 million yen
– Operating losses dropped from 37,712 million to 10,331 million
– Net losses dropped from 25,516 million yen to 17,231 million yen
– 3DS sold 1.86 million units worldwide during the period
– Japanese sales were “robus”
– Total 3DS software sales: 7.39 million units
– 0.54 million DS units sold
– Pokemon Black/White 2 sold 2.45 million units
– Total DS software sales: 8.48 million units
– 0.71 Wii units sold
– Total software sales: 8.47 million units
– 3DS still a negative margin hardware
– Nintendo loses money on each 3DS sold
– Profitability of the system is improving
– Hardware/software forecasts for the current fiscal year are the same from the figures announced in April

Thanks to 4Him for the tip.

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Posted on 12 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

Two new rewards have arrived on Club Nintendo Japan, one of which should look familiar to US members. That’s right: the North American Platinum reward from 2010 has hit the Japanese site. Users can place an order for 900 points.

The second reward is a Kirby’s 20th anniversary goodie. A 40×40 Kirby medal is available for 200 points.

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Posted on 12 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

Capcom has a new community specialist. Yuri Araujo appears to have taken over for Seth Killian, who left his post for Sony Santa Monica a month ago.

Araujo’s presence at Capcom could be an important move for western Monster Hunter fans. Araujo says that he’s “a serious Monster Hunter fan from Brazil”.

Better yet, Araujo left a tease on Capcom-Unity that news relating to the series is coming “veeeeery soon”.

He wrote:

“I actually joined as a user specifically to inquire (read: complain) about the situation regarding Monster Hunter 2 (dos) Western release back in 2005/06 – so I know exactly how it feels to be lacking a new MH game for a while… patience is a virtue, right? Eventually it pays off somehow… we’ll have something veeeeery soon.”

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Posted on 12 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

Famitsu interviewed a number of Japanese creators about the games they have interest in making down the road. Some of the participants include Tecmo Koei’s Kenichi Ogasawara and Team Ninja’s Yosuke Hayashi.

There’s a lot of talk about making sequels and expanding on already-existing franchises. For a roundup of Ogasawara and Hayashi’s commentary, read on below. The full summary with news not specifically related to Nintendo can be found here.

Tecmo Koei’s Kenichi Ogasawara

– Ogasawara wants to make another Musou pillar to go along with Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors
– Interest in making an open world Musou

Team Ninja’s Yosuke Hayashi

– Variety of movements being made with the Ninja Gaiden series

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Posted on 12 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, Random, Videos | 0 comments

Nope, Mike Tyson never beat “Punch-Out!!”.

Tyson starred in the original NES game as the final boss. In future versions, he was replaced with Mr. Dream.

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