Former Nintendo dev on working at the company, Miyamoto wanting Pikmin to be the next Mario, Mario 64 DS, scrapped Wii Play games
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in DS, General Nintendo, News, Wii | 6 Comments
Today, Gamasutra published a big interview with Motoi Okamoto. Okamoto spent a decade at Nintendo beginning in 1998, and contributed to games like Pikmin, Super Mario 64 DS, Wii Play, and Wii Fit.
Gamasutra spoke with Okamoto about his experiences at the company in its interview. He touched on Shigeru Miyamoto’s high aspirations for Pikmin, rejected Wii Play games, and more.
Head past the break for notable excerpts from the interview. You can read the full thing here.
More: interview, Motoi Okamoto, top
Aonuma shares his top three Zelda games, most underrated entry
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, DS, GameCube, General Nintendo, News, Wii, Wii U | 92 Comments
In conjunction with its month-long coverage on Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Game Informer asked series producer Eiji Aonuma about his three favorite games in the series.
He ranked Twilight Princess third “because I wanted to create something better than Ocarina.” Ocarina of Time was next, which he says “is a game that gave me the opportunity to create a 3D world.” Finally, he picked Phantom Hourglass as his top choice.
More: Eiji Aonuma, interview, The Legend of Zelda, top
Dragon Quest X launches for Switch in Japan between summer and fall, Wii service ending
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch, Wii | 6 Comments
Square Enix has announced that Dragon Quest X will launch in Japan between roughly summer and fall.
Square Enix also intends to end service for the Wii version of Dragon Quest X. With the Version 3 period of the game, service is coming to a close in order to update the game to levels that cannot be done on the old system.
More: Dragon Quest X, Dragon Quest XI, Japan, Square Enix, top
Nintendo considered making Link 25-30 years old in Zelda: Twilight Princess, Wolf Link design talk
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in GameCube, News, Wii, Wii U | 11 Comments
A few years ago, Nintendo and Dark Horse brought out The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia. The book showed a bunch of concept art from the series, including Twilight Princess. There were many interesting designs depicted for characters such as Link. In some of the drawings, Link looked quite a bit older than his final version in the game. Now we have an idea about the potential age Nintendo was thinking about.
Nintendo artists Yusuke Nakano and Satoru Takizawa spoke about designing Link for Twilight Princess in the new Zelda: Art & Artifacts book. Nakano touched on how Nintendo considered making the character “twenty-five… maybe even thirty.” The intent was “making him quite sturdy”
Also worth mentioning, when designing Wolf Link, Takizawa noted how Nintendo thought about giving him a wolf cut hairstyle, “which would have given him a more wolfish look.”
Here’s the full transcript about Link’s design in Twilight Princess:
THQ was once working on FUUB for Wii
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii | 0 comments
Unseen64 has dug up some information about FUUB, an abandoned peripheral device from THQ Digital Warrington. It was in the works at some point between 2006 and 2010 for Wii and other platforms. The entire project was scrapped after THQ shifted its priorities.
Here’s how Unseen64 describes FUUB:
“Acting like a set of four individual dice, which were to be bundled together as one purchase, the FUUB was predominantly aimed towards local group play. Each player would interact with one or more of the dice when playing one of the FUUB specific games designed for the device. The devices themselves were fitted with some physical sensors, though it’s not exactly clear what each device was actually able to monitor. We also believe that the FUUBs required a separate, external camera to track the their movement in 3d space, though this cannot be 100% confirmed.”
The aptly-named “FUUB” was one game planned for the device. Not much is known, though it seemed to be somewhat similar to Mario Party.
Another title early in development was “Quest for the Magic Stones”, which a developer describes as targeted at “fans of the Harry Potter series”. It would have featured a mystical narrative theme, set inside a magical dungeon.
Suda51 on Super Fire Pro Wrestling Special, Killer7 for a global audience, developing for Wii
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News, Wii | 10 Comments
This month’s issue of Retro Gamer is starting to make the rounds. In it, an interview is published with Suda51, the developer of games such as No More Heroes and Killer7.
Some of the Nintendo-related excerpts have now been transcribed online, courtesy of Japanese Nintendo. Suda51 spoke about Super Fire Pro Wrestling Special, making Killer7 as intended for a global audience, and developing for Wii.
Continue on below for those comments.
GameStop offering up to $75 extra credit with trade-in toward Switch pre-order
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, News, Switch, Wii, Wii U | 10 Comments
Update: To clarify how this works, it’s extra credit. Since the 32GB Wii U is trading in for $120, you could earn another $75 if you’re a Pro member, meaning $195 in total.
Original: GameStop, along with many other retailers, will begin taking Switch pre-orders tomorrow. If you have an old system lying around, you may want to trade it in for credit that can be used to reserve the new console.
Those with a Power Up Rewards Pro membership can save $75 on Switch pre-orders when trading in a Wii U, PlayStation VR, PS4, or Xbox One. If you’re a regular customer, you can earn $50.
Alternatively, GameStop will accept a Wii / 3DS and will provide $30 if you have a Power Up Rewards Pro membership. These two systems provide $20 without a subscription.
More: GameStop
Creator on what inspired Muramasa: The Demon Blade
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii | 6 Comments
Muramasa: The Demon Blade was one of the most visually striking games on Wii. The action game possessed a unique style, and was heavily based in Japanese mythology.
Glixel recently caught up with Muramasa’s creator, George Kamitani, as part of an interview opportunity. When asked about what inspired the title, he explained:
“I had consecutively done fantasy titles so I wanted to do something different. The concept for Muramasa: The Demon Blade came from the idea of presenting a ‘ninja Princess Crown’ concept to the person who created the arcade game Ninja Princess at Sega. The story for Odin Sphere was inspired by Shakespearean theatre so if I was going to make a Japanese version, I felt that the setting should be inspired by kabuki, so I collected a lot of kabuki scripts. I also referenced a lot of Japanese classical literature, but the old language was very difficult. And I was somewhat nervous to use Japanese mythology, so there’s more Buddhist theology in the game.
Visually, I was influenced by block prints from the Edo period, and I imitated the ink-wash painting style using bright, vibrant colors. I was also influenced by the classic Manga Nippon Mukashi Banashi anime where there’s a certain comical element to the background. I tried to create an authentic environment that’s different from a realistic style.”
After releasing on Wii many years ago, Muramasa: The Demon Blade came to the Japanese Wii U eShop in 2015. Unfortunately, it’s still not out in the west.
A look at the anime Crunchyroll users watch on Nintendo systems compared to other consoles
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii, Wii U | 73 Comments
The Crunchyroll anime app can be found on practically all major consoles. Of course, Wii U and Wii are included in that.
Crunchyroll has since shared a look at what its users like to watch more on Nintendo systems compared to other consoles. Cute High Earth Defense Club Love! seems to be a hit on Wii U, while Dream Festival! is watched on Wii quite a bit.
Have a look at the full results above.
More: Crunchyroll
Retro8 Wireless and Wired Pro Controllers on the way for NES Classic Edition
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News, Wii, Wii U | 1 Comment
Plenty of companies have come out with their own controllers and accessories for the NES Classic Edition since November. Now as part of the Retro-Bit line, the Retro8 Wireless Pro Controller and Retro8 Wired Pro Controller are on the way.
The wireless version connects through a special dongle, and supports up to ten hours of gameplay. It also comes with a 3.5 foot micro USB charge cable. It’s launching in March for $19.99.
The wired controller will ship a bit sooner, as it’s planned for February with a $9.99 price point. You can connect it to the NES Classic Edition with a ten foot cord.
Worth mentioning, both of these controllers also work with the Wii U and Wii.
