
We are definitely sad about
Sadness. That was really something we had high hopes for, as the gameplay sounded truly revolutionary, and thus perfect for the
Revolution Wii. But it's probably easy to talk up something that may or may not even
exist. Still, the
Frontline/Nibris split, and the delays on Nintendo's most-anticipated first party titles, plus what we've seen so far ... well, frankly, sometimes it makes us a little concerned. While a lot of the added-waggle ports have been surprisingly good so far, we're not seeing a lot of right-here, right-now, pop-'em-in-the-Wii original games for our shiny original system. At some point, we just
have to ask ... is developing fresh, new games with sensible motion sensitive controls (like
Wii Sports, but
bigger) really so difficult? Some of these games have been years in the making, after all. And we're all for the wait, mind you, if it results in a more perfect gaming experience, but we're still a little anxious at times when we see fallout like this.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-09-2007 @ 9:23AM
Kenny said...
3rd Parties are just late in the game. They didn't expect the Wii to do so well. However, the Bloomberg article I just read says that's changing. EA has switched gears. They have 6 more titles due on the Wii this year. Take Two has 3 titles scheduled and Activision has about 6 titles.
I think they just weren't ready for the Wii to be successful. The stuff we see now was either rushed (after E3) or done by less experienced groups. We won't see the really good 3rd party stuff until the end of the year. It takes 1-2 years to develop a game, and with them being late in the game... it will be awhile.
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4-09-2007 @ 11:16AM
Geo said...
This title was in the "vaporware" category to begin with. Nibris could be all BS. That must be kept in mind.
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4-09-2007 @ 11:32AM
Mr Khan said...
I honestly think that Nintendo has delayed Metroid Prime 3 and Super Mario Galaxy (both titles that COULD have been pushed into the launch window) not only because the titles could have used some retooling, but because Nintendo wants to milk the console sales for as long as it can with as little effort as possible
While the console still sells like mad based off Wii Sports, why release any of the heavy-hitters?
I still laugh at people who thought Brawl would make launch, though, while we've seen videos using the in-game engine, we have yet to see any using actual gameplay...
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4-09-2007 @ 12:30PM
James said...
I think #4 is more accurate than I like to admit -- if they still can't keep consoles on the shelves, just on the strength of consumer buzz and Wii Sports, why bother releasing any more AAA material, especially if it could still benefit from further tuning? I hate that -- I want Metroid NOW NOW NOW -- but he's right, business-wise.
As for why we've got so many "waggle-added" ports and so few original-for-Wii games, I think part of it may be due to the scarcity of coders who have worked with motion sensitivity. I seem to recall a few months back hearing that Nintendo was developing an API of sorts to simplify incorporating motion controls into games for 3rd-party developers. I can't find the post, but I'm pretty sure Engadget (I hadn't started reading NWF yet) had an article about it. I keep hoping that they'll release the API, which last I heard was due out later this year, and 3rd-party game development will pick up pace a bit as a result.
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4-09-2007 @ 1:42PM
Zoob said...
I never felt too confident in Sadness, just like I don't feel very confident in Orb (from crossbeam studios). Little indy games like this have to go through a lot of struggles to finally get published, and often it doesn't work out.
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4-19-2007 @ 12:10PM
KingJaymz said...
We waited for over a year after it's release before the DS became a truly viable system. I hate to compare it to such an effort because the long wait after its release was truly reprehensible, but good stuff came for the DS, which now dominates the hand-held market. However, compared to that, the Wii is doing outstanding in the number and quality of titles available.
Disappointments are still disappointments, though, and I hate to see the Wii lose titles like this.
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4-22-2007 @ 9:20AM
Tim said...
Sorry if I'm off-topic, but what really is the point of the "Wii Warm Up" tag? In this Web 2.0 world where comment systems are abundant, doesn't every post generally become a n open discussion?
In the area of comments, why does only Engadget seem to reap the benefits of the Blogsmith integration? Reply threads and email notification are really handy, as is the comment rating/reporting system.
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4-22-2007 @ 9:29AM
Tim said...
Holy heck, how did I manage accidentally post on a 3 day old post? What a klutz I am...
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