By now, we're all familiar with the chain of events that unfolded after E3. Nintendo showed off a bunch of games in its E3 2008 press conference that apparently didn't meet the expectations of the "hardcore" set. Said group immediately accused Nintendo of abandoning them. Nintendo stepped in to say that, no, titles for more serious gamers were currently being made, so keep your hair on.
Now, Nintendo has felt compelled to say it again, and warn us that we will have to wait for our treats. "We have developers working on popular core gaming franchises but we need longer to complete [them], approximately two to three years," the company stated in the latest issue of Edge, before adding that none will be ready to launch in early 2009.
So it's going to be at least late next year before we see any new Zelda, Mario, and presumably Pikmin also. Express your rage in the comments field below.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
8-26-2008 @ 4:30PM
MBJ said...
Hopefully third party developers will fill in the gap, because that's one hell of a long gap.
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8-26-2008 @ 4:32PM
Spencer said...
exactly what I expected, and nothing to be upset about if you ask me. Third party games are starting to come around, and we've had the first round of major first party titles already roll out and be deeply satisfying.
So, Not only am I not "raging" I'm actually really excited rather than seeing them try to rush something "hardcore" to market they're continuing their slow, fruitful, careful development of their big names.
Though, I'd love to see a Mario Party designed exclusively for the wii / wii motion plus support and the fact that this perenial game isn't on the horizion is kinda...shocking.
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8-26-2008 @ 4:41PM
Mr Khan said...
I'm surprised, too. Mario Party was almost an annual thing in the GameCube's heyday, and with the current nature of the Wii audience, i'm extremely surprised that they aren't pushing more of it out the door
They could definitely do better than Mario Party 8, and a motionplus Mario Party 9 could really hit the spot
8-26-2008 @ 4:32PM
bukizzle715 said...
It's not that bad really. I don't think there are any less core games, it's just that there are more casual games now. Look at the N64, we got Mario64 , Star Fox64, 2 Zeldas, Smash Bros. and no Metroid. Look at the Cube, Mario Sunshine, 2 Star Foxes, 2 Metroids, 2 Zeldas, and Smash Bros. Now look at the Wii, we already have Metroid, Zelda, Mario, and Smash Bros, and only 2 years into the lifespan, with more one the way. Give them time, I'm sure the good stuff is on the way.
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8-26-2008 @ 4:47PM
moo083 said...
Well yes, there are a number of games that have come out already, but the fact is, theres a year gap. That should never happen.
Also, you seemed to have counted Twilight Princess twice. I know it was GCN and Wii, but to say there were 2 zelda games on GCN and 1 on wii makes it sound like 3 games, and it really isn't quite as good as that makes it look.
I don't even want a zelda game announced. I mean, I do, but I'd rather Nintendo announce some new IP that is core gamer oriented.
8-26-2008 @ 6:21PM
Kev888 said...
I think bukizzle is referring to Majora's Mask, not Twilight Princess
8-26-2008 @ 4:37PM
TX2 said...
A little Translated earthbound trilogy would probably tie over more than a few of us until that time.
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8-26-2008 @ 6:32PM
dagguis said...
Amen.
8-26-2008 @ 9:07PM
TheOverlord#2 (is playing MM1 and Okami) said...
Yea, Nintendo, just get MOTHER & MOTHER 3 on a single DS cartridge and release Earthbound on the VC when it releases!
8-26-2008 @ 4:40PM
Soiden said...
I think is the good chance for third parties. They should try to create great games and gain a space in all Nintendo gamers hearts.
Because they've always complained about first-party games taking all attention.
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8-26-2008 @ 4:47PM
MRB1G said...
i agree 3rd parties are doing their thing to tide us over until nintendo gets there but i am just happy to hear that ninty are still doing something.
just have to wait.... as always..... l8 2009-mid 2010....:''(
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8-26-2008 @ 4:48PM
Mr Khan said...
Fortunately, the early half of 2009 has a nice lineup of 3rd party titles. I at least will be satisfied chaining The Conduit, MadWorld, and Sonic and the Black Knight together
Real Nintendo fanboys remember the dark days, software wise, of the GameCube era, and are used to the meatier, core-franchise stuff taking a while to arrive
I can imagine, since they deliberately mentioned the new Pikmin, that it's further along than whatever EAD Tokyo and EAD Group 3 are up to. It's also unknown which group exactly is working on Pikmin 3
Either way, there's plenty worth playing between now and late 09
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8-26-2008 @ 4:53PM
acefondu said...
That they wasted their time on crappy titles shouldn't be an excuse. I don't feel like I should wait in line because they want to make games for grandma. Really, making games for the non-hardcore gamer shouldn't require the core staff developers attention. Supped up solitaire and brain games can be made by game developer grad students, let the pros handle the good games.
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8-26-2008 @ 5:11PM
Mr Khan said...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_EAD
Look down the group division. Only two of the groups have worked on Wii ____ style games, and one of those two was specifically formed to make Wii Fit
What they did wrong, i think, was release Mario Kart Wii too early. If they had held MK Wii back, they could've polished it up (which it needed. The online play was silky smooth, but everyone agrees it could've looked a helluva lot better), had a big title to sit next to Animal Crossing for holiday 2008, and then it wouldn't have looked like a year-long wait. But they are not "making" the good devs work on casual games and diverting core products till later
8-26-2008 @ 4:55PM
mike h said...
There are seriously no games coming out that I'm interested in, other than the conduit and maybe the tales games. If that's all I have to tide me over for 2-3 YEARS, I'll sell the wii for gas money.
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8-26-2008 @ 5:05PM
Shadow31 said...
...I seem to be alone in being annoyed with Nintendo about this. I understand how in reality there weren't a large amount of first party core games for other platforms... but they've never had a gap like this. Not this long. No, I don't mean the length of time between two core games, but rather the length of time between the hyping of core games. Nintendo always has had something cool on the horizon. Sure, they have Zelda, Mario, and Pikmin coming, but where's the hook? They haven't given us much to get excited about. "Yeah, the games are coming eventually." So what, we bide two years of our life waiting on them? This is why I'm annoyed. Not to mention, though there are more third party games than the last couple generations... there are fewer ones worth a buy. And no, I'm not saying that because we're bogged down in shovelware. There seriously are less good third party core games than the past Nintendo systems, unless maybe if you include the bunch of remakes Wii is getting.
Oh, and in a way, they're skipping this holiday season for us core gamers. The largest number of good games are released between August and December. They aren't giving us a single core game in this entire half year, there's usually at least one, many times 2 or 3 (Animal Crossing hardly counts as a core game, even though I admit as a core gamer I enjoy it). Fine, Wario is coming, but honestly, more than half the gamers I've talked to aren't Wario fans. He has a good amount of fans, but Wario generally is forgotten in the list of core games.
Last, they basically confirmed it'll be well over a year before the next core game, with their track record. Past early [insert year here], nothing really is released until fall of that year, unless they've already delayed it numerous times. Oh yeah, and by the way, THEY ALWAYS DELAY CORE GAMES NUMEROUS TIMES. Meaning if they aren't even having a release date until late 2009, they likely won't get any out in 2009. Plus, yeah, they don't have any release dates.
I'm just being realistic here. Oh, and I am definitely prepared for the flaming, because flaming has become oh so popular on this site as of late, unfortunately.
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8-26-2008 @ 5:10PM
Nathew said...
how can you say "I seem to be alone in being annoyed with Nintendo about this" when half the internet is bitching about this continuously?
8-26-2008 @ 5:14PM
Mr Khan said...
Yeah. If anything, the people who AREN'T bitching are in the extreme minority
But i see what you mean. What we're seeing is the unfortunate results of their new policy about not announcing games until they pretty much have them ready. Smash Bros and Twilight Princess both suffered from having too much lead-time, so now they've gone to the opposite extreme, and aren't talking about anything until they can show something off
8-26-2008 @ 5:15PM
Nigeria said...
Stop describing yourself in marketing terms.
8-26-2008 @ 9:07PM
Shadow31 said...
Okay, I phrased that first sentence badly. I was the first person to reply negatively about this, and I was sure people would immediately have issues with it then. Guess I set myself up there, should've been clearer.
And this is almost worse than announcing it too early, now I can't get excited for it. Delays are annoying, but it's worse to not even have games to delay.
8-26-2008 @ 10:55PM
D. said...
I was actually quite happy with this post until I got to "approximately two to three years". Is Nintendo joking? Not only will we be going the rest of this year with Animal Crossing alone, but there won't be anything for the majority of next year either, or possibly the entire year. This is laughable...It was pathetic at first, but now I can only laugh. I have seen very few third-party games worth the box that they're in. And as far as Wii ___(Fit, Play, Music, etc. [all of the above])? That ship has sailed. I'm quite disappointed in Nintendo to be honest.
9-01-2008 @ 10:23PM
bug frawg said...
ummm... the statement was 'core games take 3 years to develop'
and not 'you'll have to wait 3 years for core games'
'we're making pikmin', coupled with the hinting beforehand sounds a bit like it would already be in development.
8-26-2008 @ 5:08PM
Ninegauger said...
Fine... I'll give you your 3 years and in the mean time play another console.
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8-26-2008 @ 5:09PM
Nathew said...
i have no rage, and i think anybody who does seriously needs to chill and look forward to madworld.
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8-26-2008 @ 5:13PM
Nathew said...
by the way, am i the only one that replays old games? i just started a new wind waker game. i wish people would quit bawwwing about the lack of new games when they have tons of classics collecting dust.
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8-27-2008 @ 8:06AM
JayVe said...
I play old games all the time. I like going through the GameCube section of used games to find all these awesome GameCube games I missed out on last generation. You can have a LOT of fun for very little $$ that way.
8-26-2008 @ 5:20PM
Edge said...
Betrayed.
You screwed the pooch and you know it. I guess it's going to be more Wiieisure-inducing spaz out sessions... now with music!
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8-26-2008 @ 5:26PM
Paroxysm said...
When they said "We haven't forgot about you! We're working on new Zelda and Mario games for you" was the final straw that made me go out and buy a 360 the next day. Nintendo are so out of touch. Yes Mario and Zelda are fun but are Nintendo so creatively bankrupt that that's all they can think of to appease core gamers? They can just pull them out as some kinda golden carrot and we'll just lap it up like the good fanboys we are?
Region restrictions, long regional delays, price fixing, screwing around developers with release dates (wiiware), inabbility to create original games for anything but the "casual" crowd. Frankly if I wasn't a fanboy I'd just sell my collection and even now I'm thinking about ditching most of it.
Hopefully the lapse in titles will make MadWorld a hit though.
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8-26-2008 @ 5:32PM
Morning Toast said...
Why does "core gamers" always equate in to Mario and Zelda? Those are Nintendo's core games, but are those really the games we are begging to see on the Wii? I've personally had my fill of Mario and Zelda.
And I don't (entirely) blame Nintendo for leaving everyone out in the cold. What about third-parties? They're as much to blame as Nintendo. Hopefully the third-parties will jump on this time to put out some good, solid games - lord knows their window of opportunity is big enough.
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8-26-2008 @ 6:52PM
hellhammer said...
This is my only concern. Starting production on another new Mario or Zelda game just seems desperate.
I don't understand Nintendo's reluctance to re-create the other classic IP's they've got just fucking laying around.
With Nintendo sitting on amazing franchises like Punch-Out!!, Star Fox, Donkey Kong, Kirby, (2D) Metroid, Kid Icarus, and the new IP's that have conveniently vanished like Disaster or Project Hammer, the Wii would have an absolutely fantastic line up.
But instead we're working on another Mario and Zelda.
8-26-2008 @ 5:48PM
Gewurztraminer says: R.O.B. is the last Cylon! said...
Consider me unconcerned.
I have plenty to catch up on as it is. Besides, with GH:WT and RB2 coming soon, I definitely won't have time to play the games I already don't have time to play.
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8-26-2008 @ 5:52PM
Frost said...
Hearing this mindset from Nintendo makes me even more annoyed that the Wii is doing so well! Nintendo doesn't have any real pressure to come out with mind blowing games, because they can rehash some old D.S game - and get a zillion people buying.
How come I always seem to get into Nintendo at the wrong time, I missed out on the Super Nintendo and persisted with the Mega Drive (Genesis) - Got a N64, realised it was terrilble apart from a few great titles and then sold it for a playstation - missed out on the cool Gamecube era completely!! then got a Wii - and now they attempt to 'destroy the psychological barrier' - did anyone else think that sounded a bit aggresive at E3? Maybe it was lost in translation.
Nintendo talk about 'Evergreen' titles, does this mean they can release a game with the same graphics as the 'Dire Straits - Money for Nothing' video (we can only dream)- and then proclaim people to enjoy it for years to come??
Personally I think this latest stance from Nintendo is from a company that no longer has to compete or innovate. The controls can be really frustrating, after playing SSBB - I wish more games supported the gamecube controller, I forget how great gaming was - when you don't get sore wrists from pointing a remote at a screen the whole time.
Don't get me started on the Sniper rifle in M.O.H Heros 2 ! ... unplayable!! ... I'm tired of the Wii super successful gimmick! Bring back the Nintendo of old that didn't make as much money and cared about making cool games. Also bring in some quality control standards on third party games, general people have pretty much no idea if a game is from Nintendo or not ... so if a consumer has a bad experience buying Wii game that resembles a $5 PC supermarket game - it does reflect on Nintendo whether they think it does or not.
Anyhow - there are some things that I'm looking forward to on the Wii - Dead Rising (hope its as cool as my brothers version on 360) ... Madworld (as long as they don't ban\cut\mii it !! ) ... HOTD: Overkill ... and the game that would heal all wounds - Resident Evil 5 ... another quick rant!! Why did Nintendo have exclusive RE rights until I bought a Wii ?? *rant*
If Nintendos stance is that the 'core' games are in the pipeline (no mario pun intended) - couldn't they at least come out with some kind of official solution to the cord in between the wiimote and the nunchuk, or some kind of non line of sight based pointer? they are raking in so much money. or even dare I say it - a '32x' ish graphics booster - just so that Wii owners don't have to miss out on just about every cool game that comes about, and settle with the Atari 2600\Wii version.
The Wii has so much potential - and thats the problem, after playing RE4, I couldn't go back to playing it with a dual analog controller. Graphics wise, I've seen some amazing graphics on the Wii ... it is capable
with the developing effort put in.
But if it follows the current path, it is destined to end up much like the Matrix sequels - sure they raked in a lot of money, but was there any fun ?? ''
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8-26-2008 @ 8:30PM
Gewurztraminer says: R.O.B. is the last Cylon! said...
Well, at least you can catch up on SNES and GCN titles...? *shrug*
8-26-2008 @ 5:52PM
SolarEnergy said...
The trolls are hungry. :D
Really now, I think Nathew is right. With a ton of classic games sitting around, most of which aren't even bad to look at, Why bother complaining about new titles not coming out just yet? In addition, there's likely gonna be a great group of VC/WiiWare goodies coming out in the near future, not to mention a lot of Third party stuff. Not having another Zelda or Mario for a while isn't gonna be that big of a deal.
And for the record...last I checked, Sony is based in Japan. *chucks argument out the window*
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8-26-2008 @ 6:05PM
ChrisCanberg said...
Hahah jesus christ guys. Take a chill pill.
Does Nintendo EVER disappoint with first party titles? No.
Oh, and are there gunna be a shitload of awesome third party games showing their faces from now through mid 09? Absolutely.
Just to name ALL the games that should have sparked SOME sort of interest...
de Blob
The Conduit
MADWORLD
Deadly Creatures
Dead Rising Chop Till You Drop
Dark World Overlord
Sonic Unleashed
Sonic and the Black Knight (which actually sounds and looks very well made from what I've heard from it)
Castlevania Judgement
House of the Dead Overkill
Samba de Amigo
Sure some of these games may not appeal to some people as much as they do others. But come on, there's still other stuff to play.
Also, I agree with Nathew. Play back some old games. I do that all the time and its awesome to experience a great work of art all over again. Virtual console, too. I'm sure there's something on there that people are interested in.
Plus its not a sin to play other consoles. I'll be getting a 360 to play the new Banjo Kazooie game coming out. As well as Resident Evil 5 and Street Fighter IV when they both come out.
Give Ninty some time.
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8-26-2008 @ 6:14PM
Feba said...
all I have to say is: who the hell cares what Nintendo is doing, honestly? Yes, there are some classic franchises we need to see on Wii. Yes, they're going to be a while.
There are plenty of good third party titles on Wii, and more on the horizon. There's also WiiWare, which gets entirely too little notice.
It looks like we're going to have a good holiday season, and a great spring and summer following it. After that, we're probably going to see Nintendo's offerings up for holiday '09.
People are constantly bitching about the lack of third party penetration on Wii, and now that there's a nice big clearing for some third party games to really take off, they're complaining about that too? what?
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8-26-2008 @ 6:30PM
Jon said...
F*ck it, I have too many games to play as it is... only got my Wii a few months ago :). Plus, I still have my 360 laying around (which has never RROD'd!).
Animal Crossing will last me a while. I still haven't beaten most of the games I have now - so I'm not upset. I'm sorry for those who got their Wii when it came out, because I can see how you'd be upset. But, Nintendo makes great games, I'm sure they'll be worth the wait.
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8-26-2008 @ 6:34PM
CamranChaos said...
I honestly thought that everyone would be used to this by now. Consider this for a moment: how many TRUE first-party games does Sony and Microsoft truck out for their systems? Still not nearly as many as ol' Ninty! Give them some time!
I'll admit, I haven't even touched my Wii in around 2 months, save for some WiiWare games. I've even gone as far as to hook up my Sega Saturn to pass what free time I even have anymore. I guess what I'm saying (and I mean no disrespect by this) is that if you're going to whine about a lack of first-party software for a system designed to occupy only a fraction of your spare time, maybe somebody needs a new hobby. =/
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8-26-2008 @ 7:24PM
Alvin said...
nintendo wants my to calm down and wait!?
oh heeellllll nooooo!!!
im jumping on the PS3 wagon, i can't just relay on Nintendo
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8-27-2008 @ 1:07AM
Tim said...
Of course you can relay on Nintendo! Just pass the Wii-remote to your friends like a baton!
8-26-2008 @ 7:28PM
RossGough said...
i'm just annoyed because if you think about it, no matter who is right in this argument, i don't see a game that is as nice as Galaxy, and developers obviously have the equipment to do so since nintendo themselves proved it.
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8-26-2008 @ 7:47PM
Snuk the Great said...
There is one thing people seem to forget. It takes a lot more time to create a Mario or Zelda game then something like Wii Sports. Just look at the content you have to make for each. Wii Sports has a few 'courses' and the character models could be done by anyone. Zelda and Mario Galaxy have new textures and models flying in every minute in the game. It just takes more time.
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8-26-2008 @ 7:54PM
Makalu said...
Now I see the benefits of owning both a Wii and a 360. While I'm waiting for new Zelda/Mario games, I can enjoy Fable 2 and Mirror's Edge (I know they aren't out yet either, but they're closer).
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8-26-2008 @ 8:45PM
Anthony said...
I know Nintendo's first party games are always great but i think its too early to release a new Zelda and Mario. Zelda i can see because the Wii never really got its own game since TP was on GCN. But Mario just came out last year. I would rather Nintendo make a new Starfox or kirby. There hasnt been a real kirby game since N64.(I dont count Air ride since it was a racing game) Or they should make a new ip, Am i the only one who remembers Project H.A.M.M.E.R? The only wii game im currently looking forward to is The Condoit.(spelling?) Good thing there a bunch of good PS3 games to pass the time while I wait for Nintendo :P
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8-26-2008 @ 11:11PM
Capt. Awesome said...
They NEED to bring Project Hammer. It looked so freaking awesome.
They NEED new IPs I love the old stuff but they need a new IP or at least bring back an old franchise (Earthbound or Kid Icarus anyone?)
8-26-2008 @ 11:39PM
wiiomatic said...
Great, Nintendo- call me in three years and I might turn off my 360, but until then, you are now the loser of the console wars.
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8-26-2008 @ 11:42PM
Sam said...
all this waiting better be worth it, I don't want to end up with just two wiis ductaped together.
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8-26-2008 @ 11:42PM
RatMasterD21 said...
This hurts my soul...Nintendo is my favorite dev. It's the reason i got a wii..and a gamecube before that and a 64 befoe that and a SNES before that and even a NES before that....to know that No games are comming out for two years is heart breaking....but lets face it Wii's sell like hotcakes and Nintendo loves money. They could care less about us...we already have a wii, we already got the "hardcore games". we have already put the money into there already fat pockets....and we'd do it again. Myomoto is awesome but he needs to pull his head out of the clouds and thinking about everyday shit like doggies and how fat he's getting and just make some NEW awesome Hardcore games.
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8-27-2008 @ 12:21AM
HiddenEmerald said...
I'm pretty sure the teams working on mario and zelda do not work on wii sports resort and the like. I don't understand why people are upset. There are so many good games coming out. Why the hell doesn't anyone like Animal Crossing? And pikmin. When I heard about that I was pretty damn excited.
And Nintendo is coming out with great games. Wario Land Shake It, Mario Superstar sluggers (now out). Some of you need to start exploring new games. Sticking with one or two is a waste of your console. I have a heckofalot of games for my wii. And I doubt I can beat them all in a year, so I got nothin to worry about. For the people complaing about a year of waiting OPEN YOUR EYES.
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8-27-2008 @ 1:14AM
Tim said...
Games I still have to beat:
Super Mario Galaxy (get all the stars)
Okami
Zack & Wiki
Trauma Center: SO (just the last two stages)
And then I can still have a fun jaunt now and then with HotD2&3R, Umbrella Chronicles, both current Guitar Hero Games...
Oh! I can't forget I still need to beat Lost Winds, Breath of Fire II, Bomberman '93, Dragon's Curse...
Ah, and the portions of the Sonic and Megaman collections for GameCube I never beat...
Then there are DS games, games I haven't even touched yet from the used PS2 I purchased this spring (DragonQuest VIII rocks!)...
And then, if I really need to, I can purchase some games like Samba de Amigo, HotD Overkill, Tales of Symphonia...
Really thinking about it here, I don't feel bad at all! In fact, I'm almost glad there aren't more games around to suck up my money. I have plenty to do with what I've got!
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