“I don’t have the rights to any of the IPs that I’ve made. They belong to the companies that publish them, and they’re a business so they have a right to exploit those IPs as they want…. However, to be completely honest, I’d love to do them myself. Up until very recently I really felt someday I wanted to make a sequel to Okami, and there were others who wanted me to as well. But then the other day I heard the announcement that someone else would be making a sequel and now I’m just not interested in it anymore. Once someone else touches a world that you yourself created it stops being yours. There is no point in making a sequel when the world doesn’t belong to you. Viewtiful Joe is probably all I’ve got left. That story is incomplete so I’d like to finish it someday. But that would probably be the most difficult one to do [laughs].” – Platinum Games’ Hideki Kamiya

I feel a little sad for Kamiya when it comes to Okami. In the North American version of the Wii port, he wasn’t mentioned at all despite being the game’s original director. And now, as we’ve learned, Okamiden is in development without any involvement on his part. In terms of Viewtiful Joe, I don’t think it’s likely he’ll have the opportunity to create another Viewtiful Joe title, but I would love to see it happen.

Source

Mario is Europe’s best-loved video game character

Posted on 14 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii | 3 Comments

7th December 2009 – After 28 years, over 100 games and sales of over 222 million, new research today reveals Mario as the best-loved video game character of all time. Independent research carried out by YouGov across Europe places the Italian dynamo ahead of such gaming luminaries as Lara Croft, Sonic the Hedgehog, Pac-Man and the Master Chief from Halo.
And when it comes to game soundtracks, the majority of Europeans surveyed instantly recognised Mario’s catchy soundtrack. The Mario soundtrack was created by composer and sound director Koji Kondo for the Super Mario Bros game launch in 1985.

WiiWare/VC/DSiWare downloads – block sizes

Posted on 14 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in DS, News, Wii | 0 comments

DSiWare

Rayman – 127 blocks
Pop Island – 97 blocks
Ball Fighter – 49 blocks
Army Defender – 38 blocks
myNotebook: Red – 32 blocks

WiiWare

Stop Stress: A Day of Fury – 316 blocks
My Dolphin – 289 blocks
Flowerworks – 127 blocks
Magnetis – 115 blocks

Street Fighter Alpha 2 – 72 blocks
Shinobi – 32 blocks

UK software sales (Week ending 12/5)

Posted on 14 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in DS, News, Wii | 0 comments

1 1 CALL OF DUTY: MODERN WARFARE 2 INFINITY WARD ACTIVISION ACTIVISION BLIZZARD
4 2 FIFA 10 EA CANADA EA SPORTS ELECTRONIC ARTS
2 3 ASSASSIN’S CREED II UBISOFT (MONTREAL) UBISOFT UBISOFT
3 4 NEW SUPER MARIO BROS. WII NINTENDO NINTENDO NINTENDO
6 5 WII SPORTS RESORT NINTENDO NINTENDO NINTENDO
5 6 WII FIT PLUS NINTENDO NINTENDO NINTENDO
7 7 MARIO & SONIC AT OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES SEGA SEGA SEGA
12 8 LEGO INDIANA JONES 2:ADVENTURE CONTINUES TRAVELLER’S TALES LUCASARTS LUCASARTS
9 9 FORZA MOTORSPORT 3 TURN 10 STUDIOS MICROSOFT MICROSOFT
11 10 MARIO KART WII NINTENDO NINTENDO NINTENDO

New Super Mario Bros. Wii sells over 900,000 copies in Japan

Posted on 14 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii | 6 Comments

Famitsu has released a full report today regarding the sales of New Super Mario Bros. Wii in Japan. According to information from Enterbrain (Famitsu’s publisher), the game has already reached a milestone. 936,734 units were sold from December 3rd to December 6th. This means that New Super Mario Bros. Wii is now the best-selling Wii title of all time in terms of first week sales. Not a bad achievement for a game that has only been out for a few days.

Thanks to Thomas N for the news tip!

Nintendo Download: Classic Rayman and Street Fighter Games Lead a Luminous December Lineup

Posted on 14 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in DS, News, Wii | 1 Comment

Maybe the holiday season has you grinning from ear to ear, or maybe you’re already stressing out about choosing the right gifts for everyone on your list. Either way, you’d be wise to take a look at this week’s new downloadable games from Nintendo. The latest Nintendo DSiWare™ releases include the original Rayman® – perfect for prolonging your jubilant mood or providing a respite from the season’s hustle and bustle. Speaking of stress relief, this week’s new WiiWare™ games include Stop Stress: A Day of Fury, which offers a truly unusual way for players to unwind. And Virtual Console™ fans now have two more classic titles to liven up their game libraries: the Super NES™ gem Street Fighter® Alpha 2 and the legendary SEGA arcade title Shinobi. All told, you’ll find 11 new games added to the already stellar selection on the Wii™ Shop Channel and Nintendo DSi™ Shop. Whether you’re browsing for yourself or a loved one, don’t forget that you can also use the Wii Shop Channel to download five free game demos and try before you buy.

The best-selling games of November in Japan

Posted on 14 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in DS, News, Wii | 5 Comments

This data comes from Famitsu…

01. [PS3] World Soccer Winning Eleven 2010 (Konami) – 321,722 / NEW
02. [NDS] Tomodachi Collection (Nintendo) – 308,944 / 1,709,209
03. [NDS] Layton Kyouju to Majin no Fue (Level 5) – 301,290 / NEW
04. [WII] Wii Fit Plus (Nintendo) – 282,224 / 942,128
05. [NDS] Pokemon Heart Gold / Soul Silver (Pokemon) – 250,472 / 3,021,701
06. [PS3] Bayonetta (Sega) – 187,379 / NEW
07. [NDS] Hikari no 4 Senshi: Final Fantasy Gaiden (Square Enix) – 178,510 / NEW
08. [PSP] Persona 3 Portable (Atlus) – 174,228 / NEW
09. [NDS] Inazuma Eleven 2: Kyoui no Shinryakusha – Fire (Level 5) – 163,769 / 659,104
10. [PS3] Tekken 6 (Bandai Namco Games) – 158,965 / NEW

Source 2

Rock Band Music Store update next week

Posted on 14 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii | 0 comments

**ROCK BAND MEDIA ALERT** SLIPKNOT AND SIMON & GARFUNKEL DEBUT ON ROCK BAND!
Guildford, UK. 4th Dec 2009 – Harmonix and MTV Games today announced that both Slipknot and Simon & Garfunkel will make their debut next week in the Rock Band Music Store of downloadable content for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Wii™.
These artists join the more than 390 bands currently available through the Rock Band platform. With more than 1,000 songs available, Rock Band is, without question, the industry leader in providing the best selection of interactive musical content, songs and artists.