Wii U

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

You know the drill by now. There are some unnamed “key developers” out there who have spoken with CVG, and these folks are saying some concerning things about the Wii U.

One developer source told the site:

“Assumptions that Wii U games will look like ‘up rezzed’ current-gen titles with better textures aren’t quite right. They’ll look just as good, but not better. You shouldn’t expect anything special from a graphics point of view.”

And a second source:

“We’re still working on dev machines but there have definitely been some issues [in porting PS3/360 games]. It’s not actually a problem getting things up and running because the architecture is pretty conventional, but there are constraints with stuff like physics and AI processing because the hardware isn’t quite as capable.”

“I suppose you don’t need sophisticated physics to make a Mario game.”

I’m not sure about you guys, but all of these rumors, unnamed sources, and random quotes are starting to become quite agitating. In the search for new Wii U information and details about the system’s power, there sure have been a lot of contradictory reports flying around…

Source

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

A fresh set of Wii U-related quotes from Gearbox president Randy Pitchford and Aliens: Colonial Marines producer Brian Burleson have swooped in.

Pitchford was more vocal – and very complimentary – about the hardware. He said Wii U is “a really cool system — it’s pretty powerful.” Pitchford also stated that “it’s a really nice bridge to the next generation.” This is similar to what Gearbox chief creative officer Brian Martel said last year.

Pitchford’s comments in full:

“Nintendo still has a lot to announce with their platform, and it’s not up to us to go ahead of them. I think it’s a great platform and I’m really excited about it, particularly with this game, there’s a lot of exciting opportunities like, ‘Wow, my motion tracker is there, and I can move it like this!’ There’s just so much cool stuff.

“There’s a lot that we can do with that screen. It’s a really cool system — it’s pretty powerful. I want to be careful, because I don’t want to risk any sensitive information that Nintendo’s not ready to share yet, but in our experience it’s a great system. I think it’s a really nice bridge to the next generation. I think people will be surprised. I don’t know off the top of my head how many of the specs they’ve released, so I want to be very careful not to jump the gun, but we’re very pleased with the hardware. And even since they gave us our first alpha kit, our very first ‘pre-prototype’ development hardware that they kind of let us play around with, they’ve done so many things to make the platform better. So it’s getting better for us as developers.”

Burleson remarks:

“You’ll have to wait. But I play it all the time, and it’s really good.”

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

Gearbox chief creative officer Brian Martell has said that the Wii U version of Aliens: Colonial Marines “will be one of the best looking versions of the game”. This comes following rumored developer comments that the Wii U’s power isn’t at the same level as the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Martell didn’t go into detail about hardware specs, but he did suggest that the console has more RAM and a “really great processor”.

Martell said:

“I think things like the Wii U are becoming very sexy with what you can do with the controller and especially with what we’re able to do with using things like motion tracker or whatever sub gameplay will be that you get to see on there.

“I think that’s a compelling experience. I think the machine itself will be one of the best looking versions of the game, because they’ve got more RAM than some of the other things and they’re late in the cycle, so they’ve got this really great processor and all that kind of stuff.”

A new batch of Aliens: Colonial Marines screenshots/art can be found here.

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

There’s been a rumor going around that the Wii U will launch in North America on November 18. I’ve been careful not to post such speculation here as the original source is extremely dubious.

However, IGN believes they’ve obtained a piece of evidence that supports the rumor.

The photo above comes from an email sent by a GameStop Regional Manager. IGN says it “seems to support the notion that the Wii U very well might release on November 18 as speculated.”

Not so fast. If you look at the title of the email, it says, “Wii U North American and Japanese Release Date Leaked?” It appears that this person was merely basing the content of his message off of the original speculation.

I don’t get the impression that he/she has any insider knowledge. What do you guys think?

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

Nintendo systems have never been known for MMORPGs. But Funcom developer Joel Bylos believes the “Wii U could be the first real console on which running an MMORPG without compromise is plausible”.

Bylos complimented the console’s controller, saying that it’s “perfect for lining up those rows of hotbars that are essential in most MMOs.”

He told ONM:

“Wii U could be the first real console on which running an MMORPG without compromise is plausible. The controller is perfect for lining up those rows of hotbars that are essential in most MMOs. A customisable touchscreen interface combined with the 3D spatial movement of a console controller could be a winner.”

Source

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

Ubisoft has “big plans for Wii U” according to Tony Key, Ubisoft’s SVP of sales and marketing. Key outlined the company’s interest in the console in an interview with Gamasutra.

Key said:

“We have big plans for Wii U. Our intention is to be the number one third-party on Wii U, just like we were on Kinect and just like we were on 3DS.

“We’ve always had a really close relationship with Nintendo, so I’d venture to say that we did have an advantage in getting dev kits earlier than other people. I’m not saying we got them earlier than everyone, but I do think we got them early.

“They came to us and asked us to make Red Steel. The thing is, once these dev kits show up in the building, you’ve got these other teams peeking around the curtain going, ‘Hey, what’s that?’ Before you know it, there’s three projects being developed for the Wii in that one room, and then another guy from another studio just happens to be visiting and brings back some ideas…”

Key also mentioned how Ubisoft was able to prepare a significant amount of titles for the Wii’s launch. This stemmed from developer interest when Red Steel was being made for the system. Eventually Ubisoft ended up with seven launch games for the Wii.

According to Key:

“We do encourage that kind of experimentation, especially if we think the platform is commercially viable. [Ubisoft CEO] Yves Guillemot will say, ‘Let’s put a few guys on it, and let’s try it.’ So if they come up with a great idea, then we’ll roll with it.”

“That’s what happened on the Wii; we were so engaged with it after getting the kits for Red Steel that suddenly Rayman came out of that, and before you knew it we had seven titles in the launch window because the dev studios got so excited about the hardware.”

Source

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

The next generation of consoles is on the way, but Warren Spector is more concerned with creativity in the gaming industry.

In an interview with EDGE, Spector said, “I think most of the problems we have to solve are creative ones, not technical ones.”

He told the publication:

“If it comes it comes; when it comes, it comes. I’m not a tech guy, particularly. I’m a design, story, character guy. I think most of the problems we have to solve are creative ones, not technical ones.

“Obviously we make software, so there’s always a technical element to what we do, but I will make games that do whatever I want them to do at the end of the day, and I will use whatever technology [is] available.”

Source

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

The latest report in the Wii U power saga comes from GamesIndustry, who was collected a number of quotes from unnamed developers. Two of these folks are in agreement when they say that the Wii U isn’t as powerful as the PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360.

One developer said:

“No, it’s not up to the same level as the PS3 or the 360. The graphics are just not as powerful.”

A second developer echoed the same thoughts. The person below believes that the console “just can’t quite keep up” even though “some things are better, mostly as a result of it being a more modern design.”

“Yeah, that’s true. It doesn’t produce graphics as well as the PS3 or the 360. There aren’t as many shaders, it’s not as capable. Sure, some things are better, mostly as a result of it being a more modern design. But overall the Wii U just can’t quite keep up.”

A third source has weighed in on the Wii U’s controller, expressing some concern:

“The whole thing about the tablet controller is that you only get one of them, and you can only use one and it’s not completely independent. The base console has to be on, and you have to be in range. Other controllers are just Wiimotes, or other Wii controllers. They may change the form factor or looks a bit, but it’s the same controller.”

I think it’d be best to take this with a grain of salt. We simply don’t know who these developers/sources are, are there have been a number of contradictory statements that conflict with this report.

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

01/03. [PSV] Persona 4: The Golden (Atlus) – 832 votes
02/01. [PS3] Dragon’s Dogma (Capcom) – 797 votes
03/02. [PS3] Resident Evil 6 (Capcom) – 735 votes
04/04. [Wii] Dragon Quest X: Rise of the Five Tribes Online (Square Enix) – 647 votes
05/05. [3DS] Monster Hunter 4 (Capcom) – 606 votes
06/06. [3DS] Fire Emblem: Awakening (Nintendo) – 559 votes
07/07. [3DS] Animal Crossing (Nintendo) – 403 votes
08/10. [PSP] 2nd Super Robot Wars Z Saisei Volume (Namco Bandai) – 332 votes
09/09. [3DS] Dragon Quest Monsters: Terry’s Wonderland 3D (Square Enix) – 325 votes
10/16. [3DS] Rune Factory 4 (Marvelous AQL) – 270 votes
11/11. [PS3] Lollipop Chiansaw (Kadokawa Games) – 269 votes
12/26. [NDS] Pokemon Black & White 2 (Nintendo) – 265 votes
13/13. [PS3] Final Fantasy Versus XIII (Square Enix) – 251 votes
14/23. [PSP] Conception: Please Give Birth to My Child!! (Spike) – 225 votes
15/20. [PS3] The Witch and the Hundred Soldiers (NIS) – 217 votes
16/21. [3DS] Etrian Odyssey IV (Atlus) – 214 votes
17/18. [PS3] The Last Remnant (Square Enix) – 194 votes
18/15. [PS3] Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City (Capcom) – 189 votes
19/19. [Wii] Mario Party 9 (Nintendo) – 186 votes
20/12. [3DS] Fantasy Life (Level-5) – 182 votes
21/22. [PSP] God Eater 2 (Namco Bandai) – 162 votes
22/17. [PS3] Persona 4 Arena (Atlus) – 154 votes
23/—. [PS3] 2nd Super Robot Wars OG (Namco Bandai) – 150 votes
24/14. [PS3] Toki to Towa (Namco Bandai) – 141 votes
25/25. [PS3] The Last Guardian (SCEJ) – 127 votes
26/29. [PS3] Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (Konami) – 124 votes
27/27. [PSV] Surge Concerto: Ciel no Surge (Gust) – 97 votes
28/—. [PS3] Mobile Suit Gundam: Battle Operation (Namco Bandai) – 94 votes
29/—. [3DS] Mario Tennis Open (Nintendo) – 90 votes
30/24. [PS3] Tokyo Jungle (SCEJ) – 89 votes

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

Given what we know about Ghost Recon Online and how we’ve heard the PC/Wii U versions will be similar (especially in terms of Ubisoft’s pricing model), I suppose it’s safe to share this with you folks!