Sakurai on the formation of Smash Bros. roster, selection is stressful “almost to the brink of death”
Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, General Nintendo, News, Podcast Stories, Wii U | 0 comments
Choosing the roster for the Super Smash Bros. games isn’t easy. Director Masahiro Sakurai describes the stress put on him as coming close “to the brink of death.”
“The amount of stress I feel, it’s almost to the brink of death. Because it’s not just a matter of me personally thinking this character or that character is going to be in the game; it’s that we also have the game balance, animation, graphics and sound to think about in order to make that character fully fleshed out in that universe. I have to think about all of that when I go through this decision-making process.”
In Sakurai’s opinion, Smash Bros. is all about the character roster. Not having characters such as Mario, Kirby, Samus, or Link playable would make some feel that “it might not be Smash Bros.”
Nintendo’s Tanabe, Tabata imagine Metroid Wii U ideas, Tingle brainstorming
Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Podcast Stories, Wii U | 0 comments
Metroid isn’t happening on Wii U… for now anyway. But Nintendo developers have no problem discussing hypothetical in which the GamePad could be taken advantage of.
First up is Kensuke Tanabe, the producer of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Island:
“Samus obviously has a lot of features [in her space suit]. There’s a lot you can do with that thing — once she pulls her arm up and pulls out that [metal flap] and does some of this stuff [Tabata pretends to punch buttons on her forearm]. I can see mapping some of that to the GamePad. I think that would be really cool.”
Nintendo project leader Risa Tabata also has a few ideas:
“I [told Tanabe], ‘What, you want to hook a GamePad on a Zapper [gun peripheral]?’ He said: ‘No, that’d be too heavy. Maybe something more streamlined. But like a Zapper-style thing with a GamePad feature on it or some device like that. I’d love to do some shooting stuff with something like that! Maybe some day.’”
And here’s the strangest thing of all: an idea from Tanabe to bring back Tingle.
“There’s no definitive plan or anything. It’s just me off the top of my head.”
“I know how hated the character of Tingle is in the U.S. I know that people cannot stand Tingle. But to me that challenge is: Could I take this character that is so reviled in the West and just [do] a complete turnaround and make him a beloved, fun character? The idea of that really just gets me going. I know we have made a Tingle game in the past, but maybe at some point down the road. …”
“It’s like love. It’s like romance: You meet someone and you’re like, ‘Oh god, I can’t stand that person.’ And then three weeks later, you’re madly in love — it’s that turn, that quick whip, that motivates [me] a little bit.”
“If we we ever get a really successful Tingle game, maybe we will have like a big Tingle statue out there [points to Nintendo’s E3 booth outside the room’s walls].”
Latest Game & Wario trailer
Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Videos, Wii U | 0 comments
May 2013 NPD: Top 10 best-selling games in the U.S.
Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, DS, News, Podcast Stories, Wii, Wii U | 0 comments
NPD Group has released a listing of the top ten best-selling games in the U.S. for the month of May. The results can be found below.
1. Injustice: Gods Among Us (360, PS3, NWU)**
2. Call of Duty: Black Ops II (360, PS3, PC, NWU)**
3. Donkey Kong Country Returns (3DS, WII)
4. Dead Island: Riptide (360, PS3, PC)**
5. Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon (3DS)
6. Metro: Last Light (360, PS3, PC)
7. NBA 2K13 (360, PS3, WII, NWU, PSP, PC)**
8. Bioshock Infinite (360, PS3, PC)**
9. Battlefield 3 (360, PS3, PC)**
10. Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes (360, WII, NDS, PS3, 3DS, NWU, PSV, PC)
**(includes CE, GOTY editions, bundles, etc. but not those bundled with hardware)
May 2013 NPD: Nintendo’s response, 3DS the best-selling platform
Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, News, Wii U | 0 comments
Nintendo’s response to the May 2013 NPD report is in.
The 3DS was the best-selling platform in the US for the month of May, according to the company. Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D and continued sales of Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon boosted the handheld’s sales. Both games maintained two of the top three spots on the NPD charts in terms of best-selling SKUs – Donkey Kong came in second, with Luigi’s Mansion following third.
3DS software sales at retail increased by more than 60 percent year-over-year, according to Nintendo.
Nintendo’s full response is posted below.
Warner Bros. believes in Wii U, Nintendo content will give system new life
Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii U | 0 comments
In addition to Ubisoft, Warner Bros. has thrown a bunch of support towards the Wii U. Despite the console’s slow start, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment president Martin Tremblay says that the publisher is “a believer on the Wii U.”
“We’re a believer on the Wii U. Honestly, we hope everybody’s going to work out. It’s just good for the industry.”
Tremblay pointed to the Wii U’s “content” as one of the reasons for the system’s slow start. However, Nintendo showcased a number of new games that he thinks “will re-energize the platform.”
“I think the console has been off to a slow start, but I think they’re going to fix the problem. 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.”
Miyamoto believes Pikmin 3 is one of his best games yet
Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Podcast Stories, Wii U | 0 comments
Shigeru Miyamoto has worked on a ton of games. In terms of titles he’s been involved with on a deep level, he estimates having developed 50 games.
“In terms of games I’ve personally worked directly on and really been involved in development on, probably about 50. If you then include the games I’m involved in the oversight standpoint, it’s well over 100 now.”
Yet out of everything Miyamoto has worked on, he feels Pikmin 3 is one of his best efforts. Why?
Off-screen Wii Party U “Name that Face” footage
Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Videos, Wii U | 0 comments
40 minutes of Game & Wario multiplayer footage
Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Videos, Wii U | 0 comments
Kamiya reminds fans that Nintendo is behind Bayonetta 2, other versions will only happen if Nintendo publishes
Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News, Podcast Stories, Wii U | 0 comments
Hideki Kamiya likes to have a bit of fun with the fans who ping him on Twitter… especially when it comes to trolling. Ask him when we’ll see news on one of Platinum’s titles, and you’ll get a response that is something along the lines of “Next week… in gaming magazines”.
Sometimes though, fans can be rather persistent – particularly when it comes to Bayonetta 2 coming to additional platforms alongside Wii U. And so Kamiya took to Twitter and reminded gamers once again that Nintendo is funding and publishing the new Bayonetta as well as The Wonderful 101. Those two projects would not be possible without the Big N. A release of Bayonetta 2 on other consoles would only be possible if Nintendo were to publish the game.
REPEAT: We are a developer. Nintendo are the ones kind enough to fund and publish our W101 and Bayo 2 projects. (1/2)
— ???? Hideki Kamiya (@PG_kamiya) June 17, 2013
So if Nintendo says “We are publishing Bayo 2 on PS3/360.” Then it will happen. So please go ask them, not us. (2/2)
— ???? Hideki Kamiya (@PG_kamiya) June 17, 2013
Platinum Games’ JP Kellams seemed to take over Kamiya’s Twitter account for a brief moment to add on with this humorous comment:
It's supposed to mean what it says. If you want a PS3 version ask Nintendo. You might also want to ask for PS3 Zelda. <- by JP
— ???? Hideki Kamiya (@PG_kamiya) June 17, 2013