Nicalis talks Wii U, Cave Story+
Remember when Nicalis was quoted as saying that Wii U would be Nintendo’s most powerful console and would last five to ten years? As it turns out, that information was taken out of context.
Nicalis CEO Tyrone Rodridugez clarified his comments in a discussion with Destructoid, revealing the true intentions behind his statements.
He told the site:
“Sadly, the original quote was taken a bit out of context. Here’s exactly what I meant: for what we need, and maybe for other developers, the Wii U’s [capabilities] are more than sufficient for five to ten years. We’re not making AAA games or using a crazy insane 3D engine, but the Wii U can definitely do both. With that said, for what we are doing, we could work on the Wii U easily for another five years without making it break a sweat. We don’t do massive productions.”
Moving on to Cave Story for the eShop (titled Cave Story+), it will not be free to those who have already purchased the DSiWare release. Nicalis looked into the possibility of making it an update and Nintendo showed some interest in doing this as well, “but the logistics behind it are pretty huge.”
“So, it won’t be a free update, unfortunately. I fought really hard to try to get it to be just a ‘simple’ update; I feel that Nintendo wanted the same thing too, but the logistics behind it are pretty huge. The good thing is that if you already bought the DSiWare version on your 3DS and ever delete it, you’ll still be able to download it. The update won’t stop you from playing the prior version of the game.”
Cave Story+ “can’t do the Steam version’s art or music, the former because of resolution, the latter because the file size would get massive.”
On the bright side, though, the new eShop version will feature “4:3 and widescreen modes (not stretched, but actually see more in widescreen mode), an option to flip the jump buttons (in case you’re used to the DSiWare version or the 3DS cart version), just about all the modes from Cave Story+ on Steam (so it’ll have even more levels than the WiiWare version), and touchscreen support for the Sub menu. We’re also playing a lot with 3D and depth.”
This is the third time a different version of Cave Story will be releasing on a Nintendo platform in a relatively short timespan. Why does Nicalis want to bring the game to the eShop?
According to Rodridugez:
“To be totally honest, the update is entirely for selfish reasons. I don’t like playing DSiWare games on the 3DS, and I especially don’t like playing Cave Story DSiWare on my 3DS. Instead of being 16×16 pixels, the main character becomes 20×20 and the entire game is a bit blurry. Daisuke made some beautiful pixel art and I want to play it the right way. In a month or so, you’ll see what I mean.”
