I've seen a lot of holiday talk in this thread, and I've noticed that a lot of people are saying that Nintendo is going to be trampled this holiday season. Now, Nintendo doesn't have a GTA or a Halo 2, but there still is Mario Tennis, Paper Mario, Mario Party 6, Baten Kaitos, and if you want to go back a bit, Pikmin 2, Donkey Konga, and Tales of Symphonia, as well as the multiplatform titles of Prince of Persia 2 and Viewtiful Joe 2. The DS is launching NEXT MONTH.
There might not be a hit of GTA or Halo proportions, but there is a new portable in the DS, a price drop for the SP (along with FF 1+2 and 3-4 other big hits), and plenty of party titles for the GC, Nintendo's forte. The Metroid brand is showing signs of strengthening in terms of how much of a push it's getting, IMO, with the pack-in of the Hunters demo and the Prime 2 teasers already airing.
Hell, even the RPG fans have three great RPGs to choose from for their GCs in the holiday season: ToS, PM2, and BK. None will sell as good as FF, but the quality is there.
Yes, sales are underwhelming for the GC, in terms of hardware (relative to the Ps2 and Xbox) and software.
I don't think much can be done to entice new cube owners, I'll be honest, when I look at the effects of Nintendo's recent attempts. However, when I look at my list of games to buy for the second half of the year that I initially made in june just after buying Four Swords Adventures and have changed over the past few months as new games (Mario Tennis) have been revealed and others (RE) have been pushed back of games that I would want to buy for my GC (yeah, that sentence is kind of a run-on), I see ten great games.
A sequel to Viewtiful Joe, one of my favorite action games this generation.
Pikmin 2, which has thrown out practically all of the complaints I had about the original, while taking the good qualities and improving upon them immensly, becoming my favorite EAD game since Majora's Mask.
Prince of Persia 2, the sequel to my favorite game of 2003. Now, it could end up sucking. However, I have faith in Ubisoft, and I'm sticking to it. I'm pretty confident that I will be satisfied with this game, but I will wait for SOME reviews to trickle out before I make my final decision. Even if the reviews are negative, I will still give it a rent and try it out.
WWE: Day of Reckoning. Perhaps the least impressive of the games I buy. Day of Reckoning has its flaws, but it is still a pretty solid wrestling game. It's not near the level of the N64 grapplers, but it's definitely a step in the right direction.
Mario Power Tennis. I played the original to death, perhaps more than any other multiplayer game on my N64. Judging from the impressions, this game will be just as good as the original, but will have even more extras, more modes, more types of matches to have fun playing with my friends.
Tales of Symphonia: It doesn't have Sakuraba's best soundtrack. Aside from the towns and some battle animations, the graphics are pretty average. The story is good, but not great. Tales of Symphonia, however, was pure fun. The most fun I've ever had with an RPG battle system. Simply walking around and battling random enemies for the heck of it probably took away well over twenty hours of my time. Add to that some multiplayer fun, plenty of extras, and a lengthy quest that has some replay value, and you have a solid RPG experience.
Baten Kaitos. Beautiful graphics, a soundtrack to die for, and an original battle system should provide a very compelling fresh experience.
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes. It's a new Metroid. Need I say more?
Paper Mario 2: My GotY so far. The cel shaded renders of the world look stunning at some times. Fun and funny, it has a charm that I have seen in few other games.
Donkey Konga: Another fun party game that even my dad, who NEVER plays games, has started playing. I love it.
Now, I'm not going to lie to you: These sales for the GC are disappointing, to say the least. Nintendo isn't going to get millions of new consumers to buy the GC, not at this point in the game, save for a miracle by RE4 or Zelda. However, the lineup should satisfy gamers who DO buy the console. Yeah, there's no real "killer app." But I'm happy with the lineup that I have. It's hypocritical, since I'm a sales whore, but I think that people need to look at the lineups, not at how much they sell. With Tales of Symphonia, I was a bit disappointed in it's sales. Pikmin 2 is a disappointment. But, to be honest, the feeling is minimal when compared to how it's been in the past. I just don't care nearly as much, anymore. With all these games in a span of six months, I'm more than happy with my cube. With the GBA and the DS, I'm swamped. I can't imagine what it's like for those who also regularly buy games for PC, Xbox, and Ps2, as well. But, of one thing, I am certain: Whether you're buying Madden, Star Ocean, Fable, Halo, GTA, Metroid, Super Mario 64 DS, whatever, it doesn't matter. This year, the gamers win.
Enjoy your games, because that's why we play them.
Ok, I'm done.
