Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, General Nintendo, Images, Wii U | 0 comments

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Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

The “N” series isn’t done just yet! Five years following N+, developer Metanet Software has announced a third installment, which will conclude the franchise.

Co-founder Mare Sheppard said during the reveal of N++ at GDC earlier today:

“We’re making N++. The final iteration of N. We’ve never really felt like N was done. We felt some ideas could be taken further. Part of us didn’t feel like we could move on to other games until we finished N. Anytime we ever felt like returning to N, we felt like it’d be a step backward. So to move forward, we gave up on N.”

Things haven’t been so easy for Sheppard and co-founder Raigan Burns over the past few years. Although the company did produce new games, “they never felt as good as N. We felt crushed and lost confidence. We started to feel like N was the only thing we could ever do.”

After reflecting on Metanet’s recent past, Sheppard noted how N++ came about after fan interest and realizing that the series required a conclusion.

“Is this a step back? At this point in our lives, this feels like the right thing to do […] It doesn’t matter if the game is popular or critically acclaimed. We know we’ll have tried our best to make it great, and close that chapter, and have the feeling of being done and feeling free. Making games couldn’t be so rewarding if it wasn’t so difficult. It would help all of us better if we could talk about the psychological pitfalls of making games as much as the technical ones.”

Unfortunately, specific details about N++ were not provided including intended platforms. More information is coming soon.

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Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, Images, News, Podcast Stories | 0 comments

I typically wouldn’t be posting this since Grasshopper Manufacturer’s past few games haven’t been on Nintendo systems, but there’s speculation that the first piece of art in the gallery above is referencing Shinobu from No More Heroes. And if there is somehow a new No More Heroes game, we all know that Suda51 promised it for the Wii U years ago. Again, all speculation at this point.

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Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

Destructoid personally confirmed with Vigil co-founder Ryan Stefanelli that Crytek USA will bid on the Darksiders IP.

Stefanelli said:

“When the Darksiders IP goes up for auction, Crytek will be bidding for it. Not much more to say since the rest is left up to courts and legal shenanigans, but we’re all excited at the prospect.”

Yesterday, Crytek USA CEO David Adams posted a tweet containing the news. It was initially unclear, however, if Adams’ Twitter account was legitimate.

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Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News, Wii U | 0 comments

During a GDC panel yesterday, the developers behind Asssassin’s Creed III discussed how four different studios came together to make last year’s action-adventure game. Ubisoft Quebec game director Marc-Alexis Cote, Ubisoft creative director Alex Hutchinson, Ubisoft game director Damien Kieken, Ubisoft Montreal senior producer Francois Pelland, and Ubisoft Singapore senior producer Hugues Ricour participated in the discussion.

Ubisoft Montreal was mainly in charge of Assassin’s Creed III’s core design and main missions. Singapore handled naval battles while Annecy tackled multiplayer. Finally, Quebec “tried to create the sense of the American Dream”, according to Hutchinson.

Having numerous studios work on a project has numerous advantages. Adopting this process does, for instance, let developers polish certain aspects to their fullest potential. It also allows for issues to be solved, sometimes overnight.

“When you are a co-dev partner, you will focus on a limited amount of features. Those features, you will be able to polish them. It’s not easy. It’s not rainbow land. It’s something that you need to work hard at to make it work. But if you do that, I really think it holds the keys to next generation development.”

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Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News, Podcast Stories, Wii U | 0 comments

A few hours ago, Nintendo held a session at GDC to show off its new Nintendo Web Framework for the first time. Polygon was at the event and has a write-up of the proceedings. We’ve posted a summary of the report below.

– Nintendo first showed Wii Street U
– This is one of the first apps built from the Nintendo Web Framework
– Nintendo Web Framework uses WebKit as a core
– Compatible with existing apps
– Framework can help make apps that run on the GamePad, TV, or both
– Can also be used to port games made using web technology much faster than it would take to port over a game by actually coding it for the Wii U specifically
– Gunman Clive isn’t a Nintendo Web Framework game, but it’s an example of how a game available on other platforms can benefit from being on a Nintendo system and having access to more precise control methods
– Nintendo senior software engineer Ryan Lynd took over the presentation to show off some of the specific steps in the Nintendo Web Framework process
– Simple video-on-demand app was first demonstrated
– This shows the software’s ability to make changes, refresh, and see them reflected on the GamePad or TV screen instantly — the same way a web developer would work on a web app
– Sketch Ball: simple platformer made entirely in Javascript and ported to Wii U with the Nintendo Web Framework
– Lynd showed off the ability to quickly create new stages using HTML backgrounds as well as the option to use the GamePad’s camera and accelerometer
– Sketch Battle will be included in the Nintendo Web Framework SDK as a demo for developers to mess around with and learn from
– Nintendo Web Framework’s codename was Bamboo
– Name was chosen since the plant grows quickly over a short span of time
– In an effort to live up to that name, Nintendo is pursuing some aggressive developer-friendly policies with Nintendo Web Framework
– Devs can obtain the Framework SDK for free after signing an agreement
– Only necessary to purchase a dev kit
– Nintendo will not require concept approval so that developers can choose their own price and release date for apps
– Will also allow for use of freemium models in apps developed in the Nintendo Web Framework
– Nintendo also has plans for Unity game engine support on the Wii U
– More Unity Wii U details this week

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Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments

Ubisoft Toronto is moving on from Rainbow Six: Patriots and Splinter Cell: Blacklist to begin making the sequel to Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag in partnership with Ubisoft Montreal. Black Flag is due out this fall, and the next Assassin’s Creed will likely arrive the following year.

The Assassin’s Creed project is just of five projects in the pipeline for the Toronto studio. Speaking with Polygon, managing director Jade Raymond said that the team has “two big collaborations coming that we’re not talking about, on two of the biggest franchises at Ubisoft. We also have two new IP.” One of Ubisoft Toronto’s mystery titles will be Splinter Cell-related.

Raymond is remaining mum on the details of each of Ubisoft Toronto’s new games, but did note:

“The thing that’s great to me is that there is still some of my favorite people who, you know, we were in the trenches shipping that first one. We lived through all of that stuff together and some of those guys are still on the franchise and have been there. So it’s a just for me to work with some of those people again.”

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Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, Wii U eShop | 0 comments

Unity-based “Forgotten Memories: Sixth Sense” could be Wii U-bound. The game’s developer has been working on the survival-horror project for several years, but is now looking to release it on Nintendo’s console as well as iOS and the PlayStation Vita. Given Nintendo’s open policy towards indies these days, there’s a good chance that we’ll be seeing this one on the eShop one day.

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Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, General Nintendo, News, Podcast Stories, Wii U | 0 comments

During a session at the Game Developers Conference earlier today, Miiverse producer Kiyoshi Mizuki revealed that Nintendo will make the social network available on smartphones and web browsers in April or May – likely the latter. The previously-promised 3DS support will arrive sometime in the future.

Initially, it will only be possible to get involved with basic Miiverse functions on smartphones and web browsers such as comment posting and image drawing. Viewing as well as participating in communities will be implemented, too.

It’s unclear when exactly Miiverse will launch on the 3DS. When it does release, some existing games and apps will be incompatible with the service.

So what’s next? At the moment, Nintendo is seeking requests and input from different developers in terms of updates to the Miiverse API.

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Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News, Podcast Stories, Wii U | 0 comments

The newly revealed Nintendo Web Framework allows for some very interesting features. By using the technology, developers can easily create and port HTML as well as Javascript applications for Wii U. One piece of functionality included in the editing tools lets developers send a build directly to Nintendo by simply hitting a button. Even better, it’s possible to convert iOS to Javascript and CSS with an Intel tool, which can, in turn, land on Wii U.

Just to be clear: Nintendo Web Framework isn’t just about apps. Actually, Nintendo has a simple platformer demo at its GDC booth this year – see the photo above.

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