Syberia 3 may support Switch features like HD Rumble
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 5 Comments
Wccftech caught up with Elliot Grassiano, VP game production at Microids, for a chat about Syberia 3. While the game is gearing up for its initial launch, a Switch version will follow later in the year.
When Syberia does come to Switch, it may incorporate Switch-specific features such as HD Rumble. Grassiano teased:
“We are working on a faithful port of Syberia 3, it was important for us to offer mobility to players, to allow them to embody Kate Walker wherever they want. We are thinking about a specific development on Nintendo Switch with new features, including HD Rumble support. We will use the best of this console to offer an unforgettable experience for players.”
Grassiano also spoke about Switch in general, stating:
More: Elliot Grassiano, interview, Microids, Syberia 3
Overwatch director on challenges bringing the game to Switch
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 162 Comments
Overwatch director Jeff Kaplan noted last month that Blizzard is open to bringing the shooter to Switch, though doing so would be “very challenging”. Express followed up with Kaplan and pushed further about the possibility of it happening.
Kaplan pointed to a couple of challenges in porting Overwatch to Switch. First, the team “would have to revisit performance”. A Switch version would also require Blizzard to support another platform with patches alongside the other systems. Kaplan did reiterate that Blizzard is “very open-minded about what platforms we could be on.”
He said:
More: Blizzard, interview, Jeff Kaplan, Overwatch
Nintendo talks Switch – origins / creation, going with one screen, name, online play, January event, much more
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 34 Comments
A little while back, Famitsu published an interview with Nintendo’s Shinya Takahashi and Yoshiaki Koizumi all about Switch in one of its issues. It was extremely extensive, covering the system’s origins and early development (including some involvement from Satoru Iwata). The two developers also touched on numerous other topics such as going with a single screen, choosing the name out of thousands, tying in smartphone usage to online play and making it paid, system updates, VR, and why the January event was held in Japan. Again, there is a lot here.
We’ve now readied a pretty complete translation of the interview. Continue on below for the extensive discussion featuring Takahashi and Koizumi.
More: Famitsu, interview, Shinya Takahashi, top, Yoshiaki Koizumi
SEGA trying to reinvigorate Sonic with Sonic Forces
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 41 Comments
SEGA is looking to reinvigorate the Sonic franchise with Sonic Forces, according to product manager Jim Dyer.
Twinfinite asked Dyer in a recent interview if SEGA views Sonic Mania is a ways of rebuilding interest in the series prior to Sonic Forces’ launch. To that, Dyer said “Sonic Mania is for the fans” while Sonic Forces “is a Sonic game for everyone.”
Additionally, Sonic Forces “is a broader game, a different sort of Sonic than what we’ve done before.” SEGA isn’t necessarily trying to make the Blue Blur relevant, as it’s more about having “flagship IP, this brand powerhouse that SEGA wants to get back to what it should be.”
Read Dyer’s full comments on Sonic Forces below.
More: interview, Jim Dyer, SEGA, Sonic Forces
Sumo Digital details the process of getting Snake Pass up and running on Switch
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch eShop | 7 Comments
Snake Pass is an important release on Switch in the sense that it’s one of the first Unreal Engine 4 games on the platform. The development period is really fascinating, as Sumo Digital had the game ready in just a few months. As part of a feature on GamesIndustry, the team went in-depth about how it was brought over so quickly.
Sumo was invited by Nintendo to get a look at Switch last December. Teams were sent to both Nintendo of Europe in Frankfurt and Nintendo of America in Redmond. Sumo was happy with what they saw, and received dev kits five days after they were ordered.
More: Ian Richardson, interview, Snake Pass, Sumo Digital
Dylan Cuthbert on Switch, Star Fox old-school re-make pitch, Star Fox Command, “X” staying in Japan, more
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in DS, General Nintendo, News, Switch, Wii U | 35 Comments
Q-Games founder Dylan Cuthbert conducted a new Reddit AMA today. As a Star Fox developer who has played an influential role in the Star Fox series, he had plenty to say about the franchise. He spoke about an old-school re-make pitched to Nintendo, working on Star Fox Command (and its endings), and his own personal ideas for a new game. Cuthbert also weighed in on Switch, Nintendo’s Game Boy title for “X” and why it never left Japan, and more.
We’ve collected a number of important responses from the Reddit AMA below. You can read the full thing right here.
More: Dylan Cuthbert, interview, Star Fox, top
Choice Provisions had Runner3 running on Switch in a day
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch eShop | 2 Comments
Many studios have come forward noting just how easy it is to develop for Switch. You can add Choice Provisions to that pile as well.
Speaking with Autopress, Choice Provisions said that the team had Runner3 running on Switch in just a single day. Since then, “it’s been smooth sailing”.
“We were nervous at first about developing for the Switch, simply because there are always unknowns with new platforms. We ended up getting the game running on the console in only a day, however, and it’s been smooth sailing ever since!”
Runner3 will be out on Switch later this year as an exclusive.
More: Choice Provisions, interview, Runner3
Image & Form on how Switch makes it much easier to submit games, talks ease of development
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 5 Comments
Image & Form recently revealed that Switch developers only need to submit one version of their game for the entire world. Speaking with MCV, community manager Julius Guldbog further explained why this is so significant, and said Nintendo is “basically taking the Steam or App Store approach”.
Guldbog said:
“With the Wii U and 3DS, [Nintendo] started to realise that they had to get with the times. Publishing for Nintendo consoles has been, in the past, not a nightmare, but pretty close. They make sure every QA gate is good enough. It takes months, and you have to do that for every region, and if you fail, it takes even longer. You have to get a new slot, and release dates are pushed back.
But with the Switch, we only have to make one version and only have one launch – and that’s one version for the entire world, so we’ll have the same version in the US, Europe and a little bit later, Japan and China as well. That saves so much work. It means we can do the translations ourselves, we don’t have to have a new publisher for one specific region – it’s going to be so much easier. They’re basically taking the Steam or App Store approach: one version of the game for the entire world.”
More: Image & Form, interview, Julius Guldbog
Square Enix considering which titles to port over to Switch
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 72 Comments
We’ve already heard that Switch is receiving huge attention from Square Enix this year. Additionally, CEO Yosuke Matsuda informed Nikkei that the company is considering previously-released titles for the platform. “We’re even thinking about what feasible existing game titles we want to successively port [onto the Switch],” he said.
Any and all titles may be up for consideration here. Seiken Densetsu Collection is coming to Switch in Japan soon, which features games that came out many years ago. On the other hand, Square Enix brought Dragon Quest Heroes I-II out for Switch’s Japanese launch last month, which had titles that were made within the past couple of years.
More: interview, Square Enix, top
Former Nintendo dev on working at the company, Miyamoto wanting Pikmin to be the next Mario, Mario 64 DS, scrapped Wii Play games
Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in DS, General Nintendo, News, Wii | 6 Comments
Today, Gamasutra published a big interview with Motoi Okamoto. Okamoto spent a decade at Nintendo beginning in 1998, and contributed to games like Pikmin, Super Mario 64 DS, Wii Play, and Wii Fit.
Gamasutra spoke with Okamoto about his experiences at the company in its interview. He touched on Shigeru Miyamoto’s high aspirations for Pikmin, rejected Wii Play games, and more.
Head past the break for notable excerpts from the interview. You can read the full thing here.
