Emily Rogers: Why you should be excited about NX’s software output

I mean, Nintendo doesn't just make AAA games. They do work on smaller projects.

NES Remix, Warioware, Tomadachi Life, Rhythm Heaven Fever, Mario Maker, Mario vs DK? Steel Diver was a retail game.

Captain Toad was a smaller project. Amiibo Festival was a smaller project.

I do see what you mean. But it's tough to discern what Nintendo makes that qualifies or doesn't qualify as a AAA games. I mean, other than SSB, MK8, 3DW and Zelda, I'm not sure what other Nintendo games had teams as big or resource cost as extensive. Several of the games you mentioned are retail games and games like SMM and Splatoon are smaller titles I believe (in terms of development) that got a big marketing push. So I have to wonder if we can't just say reasonably that Nintendo primarily makes non-AAA games. And even Nintendo's version of AAA, I get the sense have far fewer people working on them and cost far less than your average Western AAA game.

Yeah, that worked out real well for the gamecube.

I see what you mean, but on the flipside Nintendo would have been thrilled if Wii U sold as well as GCN.

Reads like Nintendo will just launch games without as much content. And it sucks. Big games ask for long development cycles, you won't have a good Metroid Prime in one year.

I wouldn't necessarily conclude this. Most Nintendo games aren't as expensive or lengthy to develop as Metroid Prime, but almost every Nintendo game in the last ten years has had an incredible amount of content for the price, so I doubt they'd drop that value proposition.

Two things :

1. It would be incredibly advantageous to Nintendo to openly come out and state they support cross-play with other systems and launch the NX with a game like rocket league. Why? Because a big reason a ton of people do not buy 3rd party games on Nintendo platforms is because they cannot play with the rest of the fan-base (COD on wii etc). Having everyone know you can now buy and play lets say Madden or GTA6 and play with everyone else would greatly increase the chance of 3rd party consumers and developers supporting Nintendo again.

2. About the increased software output. I dont think they will scale down games and make them smaller, rather they are streamlining their development process via:
- Combining handheld and console dev studios
- Developing a single, connected platform/os for the NX and future systems for easy porting
- Partnering with many other developers to co-dev games (like they have been starting to with the Wii U)
- Possibly releasing NX and future games digital only (This is just me guessing based on My Nintendo only having rewards for digital e-shop purchases)

I think you make some really good points, but I did want to address your last notation there. I think it's considerably unlikely that Nintendo will burn their retail partners by going all digital. I personally would be totally okay with it, provided there was a refund program available, but I don't think the market is ready for it yet. Additionally, I wouldn't take the lack of physical game MyN codes to mean anything yet. We're presumably at the tail end of the current platforms, so I think it's reasonable to expect that Nintendo will wait for physical NX games to be a thing before packing in MyN codes with physical copies of games.
 
I have no doubt the 1st party lineup will be solid, as a lot of Nintendo's studios have been quite for what seems like ages since the Wii U's launch.

As for 3rd party, I think of that situation as the old saying "you can bring a horse to a lake of water, but you can't force them to drink it." In other words, Nintendo could have the most impressive specs in the world and/or money hat a couple top tier 3rd party exclusives, but if the ecosystem is not friendly to AAA publishers, then all will be for naught. Their best bet is to hit the ground running with their own software and build a respectable consumer base so that publishers have no choice but to support them. Otherwise, they just have to work harder than ever to keep customers satisfied with 1st party games with next to no droughts over the years.
 
Two things :

1. It would be incredibly advantageous to Nintendo to openly come out and state they support cross-play with other systems and launch the NX with a game like rocket league

This reminds me, what happened to this: Nintendo allows cross-platform multiplayer through other consoles.

Was it ever only used in one game and that was it? It was not an oficial announcement like the Xbox crossplay, just a dev saying they are allowed to do cross play.
 
>Four months have passed since the maiden voyage
>The riders are now delirious with hype
>I want to get off MR. NX'S WILD RIDE
>I want to get off MR. NX'S WILD RIDE
>I want to get off MR. NX'S WILD RIDE

I can't handle this anymore...this is the last thread I can possibly post in with most of my sanity still intact. If Nintendo can maintain quality with quantity, all the power to them. I just don't want to see 10 Mario Tennis Ultra Smash when we could have 1 Mario Power Tennis, y'know what I'm sayin'?
 
Wonderful.

I don't know about anybody else but I only buy Nintendo consoles for their first-party software so if they have that I'm good. Now if they have great third-party software as well I'll be even happier. A win is a win for me, I just need that money to purchase these things given I'm going to be busy for later on this year.

Also, Emily said she wasn't improved with the Wii U's software which can be a good or bad thing I guess. I mean, did anyone really like the Wii U's games? I can see Smash, Mario Maker, Splatoon and 3D World, Bayonetta 2 and all but what else did it have?
Mariokart 8
Pikmin 3
NSMBWiiU
Donkey Kong

Just to name a few

All GREAT games. You missed out.
 
I'm not expecting it to be 100% shared, but a fair bit of overlap wouldn't surprise me (especially if Nintendo plans on doubling their output as far as games go).

Yeah, this approach makes a lot more sense. We'll see some remastered ports, spin-off titles, small-scale spin-off titles and a few games done in a similar manner as Smash Bros Wii U and 3DS alongside DLC developed for both platforms simultaneously. Obviously, the development process will be more practical.
 
So I should get excited because some of the games I bought their previous console for were moved to NX?

Well, those games may not be something you're interested in because you've already played them, but some people will double dip and others will be playing them for the first time. Besides, remastered ports are something that even Sony and Microsoft have released earlier this year because of the cheaper development cost and shorter time frame in which they can be made. With that said, I think it would be a mistake for Nintendo to release too many remastered ports in the same year, say more than two. Also, the reality is games released in every new generation often have a few of them delayed. We saw this happen with Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft.
 
Yeah yeah, Sony marketed easier development as well. Whether it's true or not, same studios still release games with the same sub 30fps and microstutter problems.

Less to do with ease of development and more to do with hardware limitations. I'm sure you know those are two completely different things. The PS4 is 100% easier to develop for than the PS3.

On Topic: Would be nice if this is true. Bought a Wii U at launch and was disappointing by the slow software drip. Ended up selling it pretty soon after. I'll be getting an NX at launch regardless of what it is because I haven't had my Nintendo itch scratched in a long time and faster development would be greatly appreciated.
 
As someone who buys Nintendo systems almost exclusively for Nintendo games, this is wonderful to hear even if it's not concrete. One of Nintendo's biggest issues is producing software efficiently. They did fairly well on their own with Wii U considering the jump to HD, but the typical software droughts were still a black mark on the system.

While I do want to see third parties represented better, I find it exciting that Nintendo took it upon themselves to overhaul their development process. Even better if Emily's statements lend credence to the rumors about cross-platform development between handheld and console.
 
Hopefully this works for Nintendo, but as others have mentioned, Iwata promised to fix this several times in the past and wasn't successful. Nintendo's been trying to fix their problem with game droughts since the Gamecube days. Hopefully they can maintain the quality of their titles as when they decided to rush stuff out then they had several games that were seen as sub-par.

Unifying their teams and development between portables and consoles should help in theory, as should smart outsourcing and a really good SDK and engines. If most games for the portable are playable on the console in a higher resolution that also would help. That all sounds more promising than anything they've tried before in terms of increasing first party output.

Obviously they need better 3rd party support as well, as I suspect a lot of Nintendo's output will be smaller-scale games.

I just hope this means more games that actually appeal to western audiences. Rather than stuff they think appeals (like Codename steam) but doesn't. Splatoon at least showed them that they indeed should push some more new IPs.

Hopefully this frees up enough development resources for them to regularly make games that are new IPs and not only be a Mario/Zelda factory.
 
Maybe the reason why we've been hearing about Mega Man cartoons, but nothing about the games is because we're going to get an E3 announcement about NX exclusivity...
I also find it weird that we still didn't hear anything about Sonic's anniversary game, not even a clue, just that it's "coming"
 
Good to hear, but I suspect this may have something to do w/ the rumor of the somewhat shared library between portable and console, where games that would have normally only been for 3DS (and not wii u) will now both work for NX portable and NX console, basically doubling the output of the NX console. If you take ALL nintendo releases (both 3DS AND Wii U), eshop and retail, first party output is really strong. Add on top of that 3rd party using nintendo IP and ports of wii u games and you're looking at 2~ games a month from them, if not more. Especially if a lot of these are older projects just waiting to be released on NX.

Hopefully nintendo is making some more partnerships as well (assuming w/ smaller western studios and bigger JP publishers) which would bring more 'third party' games to their system. If they can get a good install base on a system that is easy to dev for port/to, 3rd party will come. Maybe not all, but some will, even if it's just gamecube-style 3rd party support (where MOST major multiplatform games also come out on NX w a comparable, feature-complete version). Some people forget that half the reason nintendo people DON'T buy 3rd party games on nintendo systems (particularly wii u and wii) is because we'd get either REALLY old games at FULL MSRP (when they're available for less than half that on the competition) or we get crappy/feature-lacking ports. If 3rd party would actually put an EQUAL and timely port on a nintendo system, i'd pick it up day 1 on NX.
 
Sounds like they think 3rd parties are going to ignore them and they want to hedge their bets.

3rd parties are going to ignore Nintendo until they prove that they have a viable console on their hands. for that to happen Nintendo needs to drive the install base with their own content.
 
Sounds like they think 3rd parties are going to ignore them and they want to hedge their bets.

Only way to attract some third parties is with an install base (or a promise/guarantee of one). They need to build that install base on their own terms, as much as possible. Then it would be foolish to ignore NX after some point, as you might just be leaving money on the table by not porting to it. We'll see if NX ever gets to that point, though, but I'm always hopeful nintendo can turn it around.

3rd parties are going to ignore Nintendo until they prove that they have a viable console on their hands. for that to happen Nintendo needs to drive the install base with their own content.

Bingo
 
Well if they combine mobile and console output into one medium (ala ios), then yeah, i can see an insanely good lineup.
 
I'm ok with it...my primary box won't be this because I really like other publishers besides Nintnedo. But if they are going to have a bunch of amazing Nintnedo gsmes releases regularly, I'll get one.

But if it's just a Nintnedo box again, I'm not willing to put down hundreds of dollars for it. $250-$300 system is preferable.
 
>Four months have passed since the maiden voyage
>The riders are now delirious with hype
>I want to get off MR. NX'S WILD RIDE
>I want to get off MR. NX'S WILD RIDE
>I want to get off MR. NX'S WILD RIDE

I can't handle this anymore...this is the last thread I can possibly post in with most of my sanity still intact. If Nintendo can maintain quality with quantity, all the power to them. I just don't want to see 10 Mario Tennis Ultra Smash when we could have 1 Mario Power Tennis, y'know what I'm sayin'?

No one disagrees with you here and odds are there are still going to be stinkers that slide through. Ultra Tennis is a victim more of them needing to fill a hole and forcin Camelot to just knock out some soulless contract work.

I think what we are probably going to see, and I said this before, is a mix of Pushmo/Boxboy games, a tier of Captain Toad and DKTF games, and then a tier of Zelda and Mario type higher level content games.

Just looking at their combined output on 3ds and Wiiu that is in effect what we got over the years and if they are focused on a unified development platform it isn't unreasonable to expect a lot of games to be on both platforms potentially.

You have to look at their output on both 3ds and Wiiu to see that they are more than capable of delivering a lot of high quality games on a single if everything is pointed at a unified development platform.

I for one would have been more than happy having a lit of the 3ds titles upressed and running better on my WiiU and I think a lot of folks would have been too. It sure as hell would have filled the huge gaps abd it would have given Nintendo something to direct eyes on WiiU more regularly instead of the wasteland it looked at times.
 
"Faster rate" for game development sounds good if implemented correctly. I'd prefer it feeling faster with combining console and handheld titles rather than seeing more Mario Tennis US where it seemed like a rushed dev cycle
 
It dangerously sounds like they're gonna ignore third parties again.

If true.

Nintendo's strategy has always been to do whatever the fuck they want and basically ignore what hardware third parties want to develop for. Whether third parties play ball with them anyway generally depends on how successful Nintendo is at doing this relative to its competition. They've had a lock on the dedicated portable market so third parties play ball with them there, the NES/SNES/Wii did well so they played along with them there, but outside of that they were always the secondary platform that third parties only bothered with if it made sense to port their Playstation/Xbox games there.

So at this point Nintendo's options are:

A) Make the NX into a system that third parties can easily port their PS4/XBone games to and pray they actually do it
B) Double down on doing whatever the fuck they want and build their hardware/software strategy around the assumption that they're basically going it alone

I suppose they're not entirely mutually exclusive, but those are the two major directions they can go here.
 
Good to hear, but I suspect this may have something to do w/ the rumor of the somewhat shared library between portable and console, where games that would have normally only been for 3DS (and not wii u) will now both work for NX portable and NX console, basically doubling the output of the NX console. If you take ALL nintendo releases (both 3DS AND Wii U), eshop and retail, first party output is really strong. Add on top of that 3rd party using nintendo IP and ports of wii u games and you're looking at 2~ games a month from them, if not more. Especially if a lot of these are older projects just waiting to be released on NX.
What I really like about the "shared library" idea is that, if it happens, I'll get to experience more titles in general due to console or handheld preference.

There are some games that I just didn't buy on 3DS because I didn't see the point. Mario Golf for example. The demo was fun and I heard the game was overall a solid package with stellar DLC. Thing is, I don't really play Mario Golf games on handhelds but would be very keen on the multiplayer console experience. Having that sort of option would be great.
 
It dangerously sounds like they're gonna ignore third parties again.

If true.

It doesn't???

It sounds like Nintendo is preparing for 3rd party developers to ignore them. OR Nintendo is gonna try and jump start the NX to sell well so 3rd parties join in. Nintendo can't trust 3rd party developers to help them.
 
wii u software has been ace, tbh lots of killer games in different genres and they're all from Nintendo

its way better overall than the first party software available on the wii imo which had two great marios and two great zeldas, other than that I would not go back and replay that systems game.

If Nintendo decides to pad nx launch months with wii u ports, i'll be severely disappointed. Hope its more than ports. and they have a new first party game atleast every two months ._.
 
This is what I'm hoping for. A disgustingly strong first year or two of exclusives could turn a lot of opinions around about Nintendo I think.
 
Think of it as the handheld game being a low-end iPhone while the console is an iPad. The software is compatible on both devices but the features, graphics, performance, and such is considerably better on the latter.

That doesn't completely work unless they are gimping the console. If the console is really around PS4 level, there will be some games that just can't run on handheld no matter how much you simplify the graphics or performance, unless they are creating a specific handheld version.

Creating a truly shared library would force the handheld and console to be in the same ballpark.
 
It doesn't???

It sounds like Nintendo is preparing for 3rd party developers to ignore them. OR Nintendo is gonna try and jump start the NX to sell well so 3rd parties join in. Nintendo can't trust 3rd party developers to help them.

They almost always does that. Worked somehow with the Wii, where they ended having vaporware support. But you can find quotes from Iwata I believe where he explains that's Nintendo's first party titles job to drive sales at first.

With the lack of actual leaks, and them most likely indeed improving their output, I believe that's their plan.
 
A shared library practically all but eliminates the drought period. I'd love for this to happen.
 
I really hope we will finally be able to play the handheld games on the tv with this. My dream would be if there was a cartridge slot so I could play the 3DS/DS-games as well, but that is probably too much to hope for.
 
They almost always does that. Worked somehow with the Wii, where they ended having vaporware support. But you can find quotes from Iwata I believe where he explains that's Nintendo's first party titles job to drive sales at first.

With the lack of actual leaks, and them most likely indeed improving their output, I believe that's their plan.

Maybe people forget, but the reason a lot of people (myself included) never bought 3rd party games on the wii was because third party didn't put too many good games on the wii. Their focus was on 360/ps3 versions and then putting trash party games or C-tier garbage on the wii. When people DID make a good wii game, I would buy it, but it was incredibly rare. Monster hunter tri, for example, was phenomenal.

All things equal, given the choice, I would likely buy a 3rd party game on NX over PS4/XB1. Again, if all things are equal (port has comparable performance and isn't missing features or contents found on the other consoles). The more games I can put on one system, the better.

What's there to get excited about? This sounds like nintendos finally caught on to the fact that they can just release games incomplete or broken and patch them (or not) later like every other publishers been doing since last gen.

Come again? How are you getting that bit of info out of emily's post?
 
What's there to get excited about? This sounds like nintendos finally caught on to the fact that they can just release games incomplete or broken and patch them (or not) later like every other publishers been doing since last gen.
 
What's there to get excited about? This sounds like nintendos finally caught on to the fact that they can just release games incomplete or broken and patch them (or not) later like every other publishers been doing since last gen.

How does it sound like this at all?!
 
Sounds like they think 3rd parties are going to ignore them and they want to hedge their bets.
I'm also looking at it in the way that third parties may feel more confident on releasing on NX if those who prefer HH gaming could simply take their offerings on the go, it's a win/win. After all Nintendos HH penetration is second to none and being able to play the likes of CoD might boost sales, or at least I think...
 
To the people complaining that this means more rushed small games, think about Kid Icarus: Uprising on the 3DS, and imagine if that came out for the Wii U also.

When I was playing that on the cramped 3DS controls with the tiny screen, I kept thinking why the hell aren't they porting this to Wii U, it would look and control SO much better. I think Emily is suggesting that the shared library concept (whether fully shared or not) will allow more games like this to make it to all of the versions of NX, and that sounds pretty smart in my opinion.
 
To the people complaining that this means more rushed small games, think about Kid Icarus: Uprising on the 3DS, and imagine if that came out for the Wii U also.

When I was playing that on the cramped 3DS controls with the tiny screen, I kept thinking why the hell aren't they porting this to Wii U, it would look and control SO much better. I think Emily is suggesting that the shared library concept (whether fully shared or not) will allow more games like this to make it to all of the versions of NX, and that sounds pretty smart in my opinion.
See I think it could've been on the original Wii with IR aiming.
 
Top Bottom