GamesIndustry has collected a bunch of quotes from various mobile developers, who have responded to this week’s news regarding Nintendo and DeNA’s partnership. The two companies will be working together to bring games to smart devices. You can find all of the comments rounded up below.
Kristian Segerstrale, COO, Super Evil Megacorp: “It’s great to see that more core game developers are taking mass market touch screens seriously as a primary gaming device. We’re all huge Nintendo fans and would love to see them do well on mobile! Having more AAA game developers enter the market is beneficial for both players and the industry as it raises the standards for quality. Nintendo has a huge opportunity to broaden their fan base, and also an enormous challenge in ensuring that their brand and in-game experience translates to mobile and tablets.”
Teemu Maki Patola, COO of Frogmind: “Nintendo has a lot of strong IPs that are likely to fit mobile gaming well. It also knows how to make good game design. And apparently has realised that strategically it needs to be involved in mobile gaming. DeNA has a lot of experience in making successful products on mobile and knows how to make well performing F2P games. It has a lot of data of analytics, F2P business intelligence etc. I think the partnership can save a few years of Nintendo’s time. This way Nintendo is not required to go through the F2P learning curve (in which it has been completely uninvolved) but can skip ahead relying on DeNA’s knowledge on the areas it lacks. To really work, the co-operation needs deep strategic partnership which they set with the ritual of buying each other’s stock making the success of the other a mutual interest for both.”
Nintendo has released the update for Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker in Europe, which weighs about 20MB. Once the patch is applied, players can try out the new amiibo functionality. We’ll let you know when the update goes live in North America.
Xenoblade Chronicles X producer Koh Kojima tweeted out a few more messages on the game’s Japanese Twitter account today. Kojima briefly discussed the Arms Companies – a feature brand new to this title.
Here’s what was shared:
A word about the Arms Companies, a new feature related to battles that wasn’t in Xenoblade Chronicles. [With this feature] You can enjoy characteristic equipment designs from each company. The companies’ logos and marks were made with the hard work of Monolith Soft’s team of designers. These markings can also be used to slightly customize the B.L.A.D.E. Home area, so please try that out.
Famitsu has another bi-weekly update on Splatoon. In this week’s magazine, more details are shared on the game’s various weapons.
Famitsu notes that sub weapons use a lot of ink. The magazine goes on to say that special weapons can only be used after filling a gauge that increases the more ink you shoot, and weapons come in pre-set groups of three. Below are two examples:
Main Weapon: Splat Charger – charging weapon, good for long range attacks, can make ‘Ink Roads’ for you and your team mates to use.
Sub Weapon: Splash Bomb – standard bomb, explodes on impact
Special Weapon: Bomb Rush – Allows you to shoot as many bombs as you want for a set period.Main Weapon: .52 Gal – Stronger than the Splat Charger, but uses more ink so can’tbe fired as much.
Sub Weapon: Splashield – Creates a curtain of ink. Good for narrow pathways to attack your opposition.
Special Weapon: Megaphone Laser – Shoots out a powerful ‘laser’ of ink. Good for turning around battles.
The next update on Splatoon will be in Famitsu’s April 2 issue.
This week’s North American Nintendo Downloads are as follows:
Wii U Retail
Mario Party 10 (available Friday)
Wii U Download
Elliot Quest
Pentapuzzle
Super Destronaut
Wii U Virtual Console
Klonoa 2: Dream Champ Tournament
3DS Retail
Fossil Fighters: Frontier
3DS Download
Iron Combat: War in the Air
Navy Commander
3DS Themes
Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. Lincoln vs. the Aliens
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars
Skylanders Trap Team Air Theme
Skylanders Trap Team Life Theme
Skylanders Trap Team Magic Theme
Skylanders Trap Team Tech Theme
eShop Sales
Wii U/3DS
Moon Chronicles, Xeodrifter and other Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games from Renegade Kid are on sale until 8:59 a.m. PT on April 2.
Turtle Tale on Wii U and Nintendo 3DS is 33 percent off (reduced from $2.99 to $1.99) until 8:59 a.m. PT on April 2.
Wii U
Paper Monsters Recut is 25 percent off (reduced from $7.99 to $5.99) until 8:59 a.m. PT on April 2.
3DS
Glory of Generals, Quell Reflect and Swords & Soldiers 3D from Circle Entertainment are on sale until 8:59 a.m. PT on April 9.
Spot the Differences!, Viking Invasion 2 – Tower Defense and other games from Bigben Interactive are on sale until 8:59 a.m. PT on April 2.
Big Hero 6: Battle in the Bay and Disney Frozen: Olaf’s Quest from GameMill Entertainment are on sale from 9 a.m. PT on March 20 until 8:59 a.m. PT on April 27.
Zombie Panic in Wonderland DX is 37 percent off (reduced from $8.00 to $4.99) until 8:59 a.m. PT on April 18.
Permanent Price Drop
GetClose: A game for RIVALS is $2.99 (reduced from $4.99).
Events/Activities
Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. – Medal March Tournament – See how your Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. squad stacks up online in Nintendo’s Public Tournaments. Top players earn unique titles that are visible online and earn major bragging rights with their friends and around the world! The Medal March Tournament will run through March 22. To keep updated on Nintendo’s Public Tournaments, opt in to notifications via the SpotPass feature in the game. Click here for more information. Good luck, agents!
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars – Create your own levels in the Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars game and challenge players all over the world to complete them. You can also give tips to other creators and spread the word about your favorite levels. Click here to learn more about building levels so you can start earning stars!
The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D – The results of The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D drawing challenge in Miiverse have been revealed by Eiji Aonuma, producer of The Legend of Zelda games. Aonuma also gave his comments on the recognized drawings. Click here to see the gallery!
Source: Nintendo PR
Today, Nintendo fans in South Korea were given a lot to look forward to in the latest Nintendo Direct.
Although there wasn’t anything too noteworthy shared, here are few of the details:
– New Nintendo 3DS XL releases May 1 for 225.000 Won in Metallic Red and Blue
– New Nintendo 3DS shown in white but no release date given
– Monster Hunter 4G New Nintendo 3DS XL also launches May 1 for 235.000 Won
– Monster Hunter 4G will release alongside singly at 49.000 Won or a double pack for 88.000 Won
You can get a look at the South Korean software lineup above.
Puzzle & Dragons Z + Puzzle & Dragons Super Mario Bros. Edition will be slightly cheaper than expected. While most retailers have been listing the package for $40, it turns out that the final price will be just $29.99.
Nintendo also confirmed that a demo is in the works for Puzzle & Dragons Super Mario Bros. Edition. This will be available “in early May.”
Puzzle & Dragons Z + Puzzle & Dragons Super Mario Bros. Edition launches in North America on May 22.
Source: Nintendo PR
In an update added to the Xenoblade Chronicles X website last night, new details were shared regarding the game’s various creatures. Here’s a look at some of the ones you’ll find:
Brass Femina Zeus: A boar-like creature with a firm lump on its head. The male (Brass Zeus) and female versions have different hair and body colors.
Stone Hippo: Has a sharp tusk beneath its jaw. They’re gentle creaters, and can often be seen around bodies of water.
Wood Fontera: Herbivores with a height of over 6 meters. They’re similar to giraffes, as they use their long necks to eat leaves on trees.
Everlast Milesauro: Giant creatures that resemble dinosaurs. They don’t attack humans, and tend to spend their time leisurely.
Lake Rutorl: Live by bodies of water, and have a mammal-like appearance. They also share characteristics of dogs and cats, as they face upwards and roll around.
Quick Strutt: Bird-like bipedal creatures. Similar to ostriches, they have wings but cannot fly. The Quick Strutts live in groups and feed off insects they peck off the ground.
Junior Simius: share the appearance of an ape, but they have four arms to go with their two legs. They often travel in groups, and can occasionally be seen with their giant parents.
Young Lups: fierce carnivores that will even go after other prey while hunting. They’ll also attack humans immediately upon seeing any nearby.
Docile Ois: Small herbivore creatures with a puffy ball on the end of their tails. They like to eat sprouts, and can often be seen living in areas with plenty of greens.
Youth Vasalt: These insect-like creatures have six legs, and use their front legs as sickles. You might occasionally see them using their sickles to dig holes in the ground.
Welkin Lukiora: these giant flying creatures usually travel calmly in the skies. They tend to constantly float around their own territories.
Monolith Soft also touches on the “Overed”, which are like regular monsters but are quite a bit stronger and have unique names. Overed will be featured in some quests, though due to their strong power, you’ll need to be well-prepared before taking them on.
