“Technically speaking, the Goblin Menace expansion is not “exclusive” to Wii U as such. It’s exclusive as of right now because we haven’t had enough resources to look into getting it to XBLA and PSN. The levels in the expansion are quite a bit more demanding than the original campaign, so we’re not quite sure if we can squeeze them onto the older consoles properly. We probably could if we did some minor changes to the levels, but that can end up as quite a bit of work…”- Joel, Frozenbyte team
I know that technically speaking it’s better for more people to have access to a game, but man, it sure does feel good to hear stuff like this! He also went on to say that they don’t really like PSN or XBLA, and definitely prefer the Wii U’s eShop for releasing content:
“Truth be told we’re not very big fans of XBLA nor PSN at the moment, their processes are a bit too heavy to our liking and we also need to go through the XBLA/PSN publisher ATLUS, so it’s all a bit more complicated. And frankly there’s a big psychological factor as well – We had a very stressful time getting the game onto XBLA and PSN, and we feel like it wasn’t really up to us, so we dread having to do that again.”
There are a lot more comments from Joel, but I’ve yet to read through them all. As I do I’ll post em up!
Art Academy: Lessons for Everyone! users can download a free lesson starting today. The Goomba lesson is free through January 10.
King of Pirates was announced well over a year ago, but it isn’t until now that we’re starting to see content from the game. The scan above shows first screenshots (which are admittedly blurry and off-centered) and a bit of art, and direct-feed images will likely be published soon. King of Pirates will also be present at this year’s Jump Festa.
“When we developed the DS, we started from the question, ‘If we make a high spec Gameboy Advance, is it something people will want?’ If you make the same sort of thing, there’s no uniqueness to it. When there’s nothing unique, all you get as a result is a price war. [Former Nintendo President] Mr. Yamauchi had no direct input in the development of the Wii U, but indirectly, you could say his idea from the DS is connected.” – Shigeru Miyamoto
The idea Miyamoto is referring to is Yamauchi’s philosphy of adding something new and unique to every console or handheld, a concept he applied to the original Nintendo DS, and then carried over (more than just functionally!) to the Wii U. I’d say this has worked out for the better so far for Nintendo, and– sales notwithstanding– it looks like it’s going to work out well for Wii U as well!
What’s this? Wii U sales on the North American Wii U eShop?! It’s true!
Three titles have now been discounted on the store as part of today’s update. Trine 2: Director’s Cut can be purchased for $15.99 through January 7, Little Inferno is available for $9.99 until January 4, and Chasing Aurora can be downloaded for $7.49 up through January 3.
Nintendo has published the much-anticipated Reggie Asks: Nintendo TVii discussion. This is the first time Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime has participated in a talk focusing on the development of a product.
You can read the discussion here.
Earthbound creator Shigesato Itoi teased on Twitter today that there’s something related to the series (otherwise known as Mother) on the way. The catch? It isn’t Mother 4.
Itoi posted on Twitter:
“Since I’m allowed to drop it on you all now, I’ll just go ahead and say it. The ‘Mother re-release’ I’d mentioned a bit before, we’re making progress on that. …It’s not 4! We’re trying to get Mother working again right now. I still can’t mention any details, but I have to make clear that this isn’t ‘4’!”
One possible explanation for the tease: a 3DS Virtual Console release. That’s just a guess at this point, though.
Nintendo Download (12/20/12, North America)
This week’s Nintendo Download includes the following featured content:
Nintendo eShop on Nintendo 3DS™
Wario Land 2™ – In Wario Land 2, Wario must steal his treasure back from the devious Captain Syrup and the Black Sugar Gang. Scavenge for coins and treasures through multiple levels surrounding Wario’s castle. Multiple paths, bonus games and creative game play await Wario as he goes on a challenging quest to find his stolen treasure. Wario Land 2 was originally released for Game Boy™ Color in 1999 and is now available as a Virtual Console title for the Nintendo eShop on Nintendo 3DS.escapeVektor™ – Vektor has been trapped inside the CPU for what feels like an eternity and you are his only hope of escape. As he travels through the CPU, help him recover his memories and destroy the different enemy types sent to hunt him. There is a whole world to uncover within the CPU. Hiding away are 150 levels, 27 worlds and four unique abilities to unlock and upgrade. Online leaderboards allow you to compete against your friends. Use wildcards to double your score in each level and boost your ranking.
Thanks to Dod for the tip.
