[Developer Musings] Hands-off Helpfulness: three independent developers talk about working with Nintendo
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Developer Musings, Wii U eShop | 1 Comment
Being a developer that works with Nintendo has, in the past, been considered something of a novelty for independent companies. Before WiiWare existed on Wii there wasn’t much of a way to get your game published on a Nintendo platform without a “proper” publisher, and even with Nintendo’s digital offerings on Wii and DSi things remained relatively closed off.
Now, with Wii U and 3DS, game development is open and independent developers have brought out masses of titles to the two platforms. But what’s it like to work with Nintendo? Is there any hint of their shielded past nowadays, or have things loosened up so much that such a past is indistinguishable?
“Willing to help” seems to be the common theme across all three of our entries in this week’s ‘Developer Musings’ series. Of course, there does seem to be some of that traditional red tape still involved– head past the break for comments from Dakko Dakko (Scram Kitty), Ludosity (Ittle Dew), and Nyamyam (Tengami).
(Unsure as to what Developer Musings is about? Check out our first entry here for an explanation.)
More: highlight, indie, Joel Nyström, Phil Tossel, Rhodri Broadbent, top
[Review] Sayonara Umihara Kawase
Posted on 10 years ago by Patrick(@Patricklous) in 3DS, 3DS eShop, Features, Reviews | 3 Comments
System: Nintendo 3DS eShop
Release Date: April 24, 2014 (EU)
Developer: Agatsuma Entertainment
Publisher: Agatsuma Entertainment/Natsume
Author: Patrick
Sayonara Umihara Kawase’s title might suggest a farewell to this series, but for most players it’s more like a welcome to this bizarre world full of freakish fish and perilous platforming. While the first two Umihara Kawase games never left Japan, they managed to become cult classics thanks to their mix of unforgiving but addictive gameplay and some good old-fashioned weirdness. As a return to the series’ distinctive tone and action, Sayonara Umihara Kawase initially seems geared to hardcore fans, but it also manages to serve as a more gentle introduction to its unique style of platforming —before throwing players into the deep end of a pool full of acid.
As far as I’m aware there aren’t any major differences between the European version, which I played, and the Natsume-published North American version. Well aside from the fact that it was re-titled to “Umi’s Odd Odyssey”, because Natsume just have to alter the name of everything they localize. Just be glad they didn’t call it Legend of the River King Gaiden or Spanky’s Quest.
[Review] Shovel Knight (Wii U eShop)
Posted on 10 years ago by Austin(@NE_Austin) in News, Videos, Wii U eShop | 15 Comments
Update: Full transcript below!
Also available on 3DS! Austin takes on the newly released first-ever game from Yacht Club Games. Is it any good? Oh no, you’ll just have to watch the review to see. (Want to skip the analysis? Go to 10:51 for the recommendation on who should buy it and who shouldn’t)
More: highlight, Shovel Knight, top, Yacht Club Games
Here’s a Podcast: Episode 98! (Shovel Knight, Tomodachi Life, Mass Effect 3)
Posted on 10 years ago by Austin(@NE_Austin) in Features, Podcast | 5 Comments
NOT ON THIS EPISODE: Jack and Laura! Jack has to take a break from the podcast for several weeks and Laura will likely be intermittent for a few weeks as well. The show… will be different…
ON THIS EPISODE: Special guest Aysha fills in to help save the podcast! Her and Austin talk about the Mass Effect 3‘s lost charm (but it’s still got romance) and Tomodachi Life‘s charm overload, and Austin bring his impressions of upcoming indie game Shovel Knight.
PLUS: Listener mail rounds out the end of the show! We’ve got topics from Nintendo’s E3 performance to whether we think walkthroughs ruin a game experience.
This Week’s Podcast Crew: Austin and Aysha
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More: highlight, podcast, Shovel Knight, Tomodachi Life
An update on video plans and a thank you
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Site updates | 7 Comments
Update: Giving this a final bump for the weekend!
Just wanted to give you all an update on things, and a thank you as well!
[Just a Chat] Reacting to Nintendo at E3 2014 (part 2)
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, Just a Chat, Videos, Wii U | 2 Comments
Nintendo had a pretty great E3 this year. Austin and I react to more of the news, including Splatoon, Star Fox Wii U, Zelda Wii U, Hyrule Warriors, and more!
Part 1 here:
http://nintendoeverything.com/just-a-chat-reacting-to-nintendo-at-e3-2014-part-1/
Thanks for listening, and we’ll hopefully be back with another Just a Chat soon!
Here’s a Podcast – Episode 97!
Posted on 10 years ago by Austin(@NE_Austin) in Features, Podcast | 7 Comments
ON THIS EPISODE: It’s all E3 all the time, today! As you’d expect, we talk in depth about all of the worthwhile announcements from E3, with highlighted pointed on Splatoon, Zelda Wii U, and the amiibo figurine platform.
PLUS: We somehow managed to talk more about the Tomodachi Life marriage controversy, despite that being more or less “over”.
AND: A tiny shred of listener mail rounds out the week, as usual!
This Week’s Podcast Crew: Austin, Jack, and Laura
Download this episode (click this link)
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[Just a Chat] Reacting to Nintendo at E3 2014 (part 1)
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, Just a Chat, Videos, Wii U | 3 Comments
Nintendo had a pretty great E3 this year. Austin and I react to all of the news, starting with Smash Bros., Yoshi’s Woolly World, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, Xenoblade Chronicles X, and Mario Maker – mixed in with some general thoughts about the Digital Event overall.
Part 2 should be up tomorrow!
[Feature] Nintendo@E3 2014: A Roundup of the Digital Event and My Thoughts
Posted on 10 years ago by Spencer(@spencerstevens) in Features, Previews | 8 Comments
Author: Spencer
Another E3 has come and gone, and now it’s time to round up the news of what was announced at video gaming’s biggest show. The Big N was there once again to show off some great new games. Let’s take a look at what they showcased this year, and I’ll give my thoughts along the way.
In 2013, Nintendo shocked everyone by choosing not to have a press conference at E3. Instead, they opted for a special E3 version of their Nintendo Direct series. However, they still brought us news about lots of new games, just as we’d expect if they had done a live press conference. With lots of news about the new Super Smash Bros., as well as announcements of several 3DS and Wii U games coming out that fall, they did not disappoint. This year, they again opted out of having a live press conference, and had a roughly 45-minute-long“Digital Event.” Here’s what they had to show.
Here’s a Podcast – Episode 96!
Posted on 10 years ago by Austin(@NE_Austin) in Features, Podcast | 1 Comment
ON THIS EPISODE: A great round of what we played this week! Much more talk about Mario Kart 8 to kick things off, Laura and Austin discuss the strange world of Tomodachi Life, and Jack and Austin praise 1001 Spikes! It’s a good thing.
PLUS: We talk about some brief E3 predictions, and halfway through we decide to start marking down our YES/NO predictions in order to check them next week and see how we did.
AND: Listener mail rounds out the day, as usual. We talk about how to review games (as usual), some E3 stuff, and whether or not you can use your 3DS in a sauna.
This Week’s Podcast Crew: Austin, Jack, and Laura
Download this episode (click this link)
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