Rumors

Posted on 11 years ago by Austin(@NE_Austin) in News, Podcast Stories, Rumors, Wii U | 0 comments

By NPD’s count, the Wii U had an absolutely abysmal January, selling somewhere between 49K and 59K units throughout the whole month. According to a source at Gamasutra, however, they may have been a little closer to 100K in actuality.

The source claims that about 100,000 units went off store shelves during the first month of the year, but nearly 40% of that was eventually returned by people who were planning on re-selling the system for a profit on eBat, Craigslist, and the like. Because demand is so low for the system, they were unable to re-sell. This is what caused the 50K-60K readout by NPD, despite the fact that 100K units had been sold in total without considering returns. Another source at Gamasutra helps confirm this, saying that for every 100 Wii U units sold in any given store this past January, roughly 40-50 of them were returned.

The only problem? If this is true, it arguably bodes worse for Wii U than if it’s not true. Having a 40% return rate on your console– regardless of why– is definitely not a good thing.

Via Nintendo Life

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

Vidyo, the company powering the Wii U’s chat application, appears to be working on new functionality for the console. An official PDF document from Vidyo suggests that “multi-party conferencing” and communication between a Wii U and a mobile device could be on the way. There’s also a mysterious mention of something labeled as “video-powered game experiences”.

Take a look at the relevant extract from the PDF below:

Focus on social networking around gaming
Now: video chat in Miiverse
Next: video-powered game experiences

Chat today, conferencing soon
Now: point-to-point
Next: multi-party conferencing

Extending to mobile devices soon
Now: between Wii U consoles
Next: between Wii U and mobile devices

Along with the hinted additions mentioned above, Nintendo has previously teased plans to improve Wii U Chat in other ways. For instance, in an Iwata Asks discussion, Satoru Iwata suggested that it may eventually be possible to chat with other system users without having to turn off a game.

Source

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, Rumors | 1 Comment

Prior to Pilotwings Resort, Monster Games never made a game for one of Nintendo’s portables. Now the studio may be sticking with the 3DS for its next project.

One staffer from Nintendo’s QA department lists “Nintendo 3DS Software Testing directly with developers (Monster Games)” on his LinkedIn profile. That seems to suggest that Monster’s next project is indeed for the 3DS.

We’re having a bit of a tough time tracking down the profile for this one, so take this update with a grain of salt for now. Nintendo has yet to unveil Monster Games’ new game in any case.

Source

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

Update: Turns out this is fake, guys. Seems that Hall does not exist given the photo found here.

Independent game developer Calvin Hall has published a new blog post about apparent Wii U-related rumblings from the D.I.C.E. Summit last month.

Hall echoes some of the previous talk we’ve heard – mainly that developers are saying Wii U projects “were being cancelled left and right”, including “a big multi-console project” from EA.

One Activision staffer allegedly said the following about sales disappointment for Call of Duty: Black Ops II and ports on Wii U:

“Activision didn’t expect much from Wii U sales of Black Ops 2, but they sure didn’t expect it to be that abysmal. Activision gave Wii U owners the best version of Blops 2 with Off TV features, and Nintendo fans didn’t support it. It’s easy for Nintendo fans to trash publishers for not giving them ports, but publishers have wisened up. They realize Nintendo fans are all talk. Nintendo fans are vocal with their mouths, but when it’s time to open their wallets, they’ll spend that $60 on New Super Mario Bros instead.”

The same employee said the following when asked about the thoughts of fellow employees he knows of from other publishers:

“There’s just no enthusiasm for it. The only reason publishers are still going to bring games to Wii U is because they don’t want to damage their relationship with Nintendo.”

Assuming these quotes are true, keep in mind that they don’t represent Activision’s feelings as a whole.

Source, Via

Posted on 11 years ago by Austin(@NE_Austin) in General Gaming, News, Podcast Stories, Rumors, Wii U, Wii U eShop | 0 comments

While most had guessed by this point that the upcoming reveal of Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag would be pirate-related, this new discovery (from the same tipster that brought Kotaku the original promotional poster image) cements it. As you can see, the image is a map of Cuba and the surrounding islands as well as a full-view version in the bottom left corner that says “The Coastlands of Florida”.

Whether this is the only location in the game is anyone’s guess, but it will most certainly end up being one of them.

Via Kotaku

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

Above you’ll find what is apparently a screenshot from Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag. We won’t be able to verify its validity until Ubisoft announces the project, but it certainly looks real for now.

An Examiner report indicates that Edward Kenway will take center stage in Black Flag. Players way recognize the “Kenway” name from Assassin’s Creed III – Edward is Haytham Kenway’s father. Edward is described as “a Privateer, Assassin and occasional pirate.”

Assassin’s Creed IV will take place in the Caribbean. Gamers will venture into different islands such as Jamaica, Cuba and the Bahamas throughout the adventure.

Darby McDevitt is on board as Assassin Creed IV’s lead script writer. Black Flag is rumored to ship on both current-gen and next-gen consoles.

Source

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

Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag may be the next entry in Ubisoft’s action-adventure series.

Kotaku got its hands on marketing material showcasing the name and some key art. Rumor has it that the poster will be showing up in stores starting next Monday.

Ubisoft may be showing the next Assassin’s Creed game tomorrow. Assassin’s Creed IV listings were recently spotted on a few online resumes.

Source

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

Splinter Cell: Blacklist appears to be heading to Wii U. A listing on the LinkedIn profile of a line designer indicates that Ubisoft will be bringing the game to Nintendo’s console.

Take a look below for a snapshot of the Blacklist entry:

Prior to Blacklist’s unveiling, the game was rumored to be coming to Wii U. Ubisoft’s official announcement seemed to debunk the speculation, but the company has already proven willing to confirm a Wii U version of its projects long after they’ve been revealed (like Watch Dogs).

Source, Via

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Rumors, Wii | 0 comments

The Wii Mini has been a Canadian-exclusive product up to this point. But might the hardware be released in Europe as well?

Websites under the NoE umbrella (like nintendo.co.uk) are listing “Wii mini” on the “Wii” menu bar. At present, the page only produces an error.

There are two possibilities here. Either Nintendo of Europe simply screwed up, or the Wii Mini was accidentally listed before an official announcement was made.

Source

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

Rumor has it that Rayman creator Michel Ancel could be leaving Ubisoft.

Long story short, Ancel would take a few employees with him – maybe five or six staffers – and start up a new project, perhaps with another company. This would provide Ancel with the opportunity to be more creative.

Ubisoft apparently has some idea that Ancel could be heading down a new path. Even if this does happen, the publisher could in some form.

Gamekult, the source of the speculation, also reports that one reason that Rayman Legends went multiplatform is because Nintendo and Ubisoft were unable to reach an agreement when it came to distributing and marketing of the game.

Ubisoft and Ancel are both denying all rumors for now.

Source, Via