Eurogamer recently caught up with Phil Gaskell, creative director and co-founder of Ripstone. Gaskell shared some insight into the company’s relationship with Nintendo and noted how the Big N has been “a lot swifter” in changing its technical policies.
Specifically, Ripstone was told very quickly that cross-play is supported – even with non-Nintendo systems. Therefore Wii U and 3DS owners will be able to play Pure Chess with iOS and Android users online. Ripstone is also looking into the possibility of supporting the PlayStation 3 and PS Vita with cross-play.
According to Gaskell:
Although Watch_Dogs is an open-world game, the team hasn’t forced the inclusion of similar elements as Grand Theft Auto V, a successful title in the genre. And so just because GTA V has helicopters, it doesn’t mean you’ll be seeing the same vehicle in Ubisoft’s upcoming release.
Creative director Jonathan Morin told VG247:
“When you do a game you always want to make sure that what you put in is to the service of the game. I think GTA has a great fantasy and everything they put in it reinforces that fantasy. What you don’t to do is start copying or start feeling the pressure of your neighbour like, ‘Oh my god we need a chopper.’”
It’s true that some elements will carry over. Cars, for instance, are obviously necessary. However, Morin says Watch_Dogs’ focus is placed on hacking at the end of the day.
Warner Bros. will launch Thor: The Dark World character DLC for the launch of LEGO Marvel Super Heroes later this month. The specifics haven’t been announced, but the new content will deliver eight playable characters from the movie. Warner Bros. hasn’t confirmed which characters will be included or how much the DLC will cost.
This week’s GameStop ad has gone live. Aside from Rayman Legends’ continued discount, there isn’t a whole lot here unfortunately. You can pick up a pre-owned Wii or DS Lite for $50, but that’s about it.
Here’s the ad in full:
This week’s Japanese software sales are as follows:
01./01. [3DS] Monster Hunter 4 #
02./03. [PS3] Warriors Orochi 3: Ultimate #
03./05. [PS3] Armored Core: Verdict Day
04./04. [PS3] The Legend Of Heroes: Sen no Kiseki #
05./02. [PSV] The Legend Of Heroes: Sen no Kiseki #
06./09. [3DS] Friend Collection: New Life #
07./11. [3DS] Youkai Watch
08./13. [3DS] Animal Crossing: New Leaf #
09./08. [PSV] Warriors Orochi 3: Ultimate #
10./07. [WIU] The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD
11./12. [3DS] Disney Magic Castle: My Happy Life #
12./14. [3DS] Mario & Luigi: Dream Team #
13./15. [PS3] Final Fantasy XIV Online: A Real Reborn #
14./20. [3DS] Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon
15./23. [3DS] Mario Kart 7
16./22. [3DS] New Super Mario Bros. 2 #
17./06. [PS3] My Little Sister Can’t Be This Cute. Happy End #
18./18. [3DS] Disney Epic Mickey: The Power of Illusion
19./00. [3DS] SPEC: Ten
20./29. [3DS] Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D
The latest Japanese hardware sales from Media Create are as follows:
3DS LL – 85,885
3DS – 37,102
PS3 – 10,232
PSP – 4,093
Wii U – 4,001
Vita – 3,538
Wii – 914
Xbox 360 – 354
For comparison’s sake, here are the hardware numbers from last week:
3DS LL – 93,757
3DS – 40,487
PS3 – 11,382
Vita – 6,031
Wii U – 5,909
PSP – 4,805
Wii – 866
Xbox 360 – 511
Based on the weekly Media Create charts, it’s pretty clear that Japanese gamers have been purchasing Monster Hunter 4 at an unbelievable rate. But let’s put the title’s sales in perspective.
According to Enterbrain data, Monster Hunter 4’s sold/shipped ratio clocks in at 99.6 percent. That figure speaks for itself. Keep in mind these results reflect a game already out on the market for a few weeks.
Enterbrain indicates that Monster Hunter 4 sold another 165,000 copies at retail in its latest week. Total packaged sales stand at 2.7 million after 20 days of availability.
Monster Hunter Tri managed to sell 3 million in 19 days. It went on to sell 4.6 million, but keep in mind that it launched in December, a heavy shopping period. Monster Hunter 4 has yet to see the same Christmas/New Year demand.
Understandably, Japanese retailers say Monster Hunter 4 is still sold out. The same is also true of Pokemon X/Y. Enterbrain believes Monster Hunter 4 will benefit from Pokemon’s launch since users will end up buying both.
Along with today’s screenshot, Sakurai passed along the following message on Miiverse:
“If it’s just a missile, a sword can slice it right up. Of course, you could also just use your bare hands.”
