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[andthebeatgoeson]

Nintendo's history with third party support isn't as littered with poor excuses as some will have you believe. For the N64, Nintendo chose a shitty, unorthodox storage format that was at odds with what developers wanted at the time, and Nintendo came in a distant second place to Sony's machine. The GCN, see above. The Wii was too larger gap between 360/PS3 hardware to warrant porting, and publishers made a dumb gamble on a market they legitimately believed would tank at any second. Most are probably kicking themselves for screwing up what was a thriving market.

The Wii U will be a whole new ball game, and until we get a bigger picture of what developers will be making and Microsoft/Sony's business plans it's impossible to say what kind of support the Wii U will get.

EDIT: For budgets and such, yes ever increasing budgets will be a problem next generation. A big one. But developers going under due to ballooning budgets isn't a tomorrow problem. It is a now problem. And it will be a problem on the Wii U too. Those expensive games on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 are going to be just as expensive on the Wii U too. Simply diverting development to the 'lesser' hardware of three platforms isn't going to fix anything. It's a market/release issue, and frankly most developers caught in the middle will probably end up on PC digital, LIVE/PSN, or iOS.

I agree. They have closed the HD gap and put themselves to make a large market before the launch of their competitors. My guess on their success ties into a large install base and Sony/MS shooting too high on price and tech. The 360 was not considered the leader starting from 2005 til the launch of PS3 and Wii. They had the lead AND plenty of doubts as they limped to 10 million sold and a bad presence in JPN. With as many games as they had, I blame that on their pricepoint. If Wii had any modern hardware, it would have been a PS2-level win.

The situation with the several ports makes me kind of weary though. It reminds me of the Wii's launch period (but in Wii U's case, the titles are bigger in scope) when in early 2007 the Godfather Blackhand Edition was released on Wii. The game had a €/$ 54,99-49,99 pricetag when the PS2/Xbox versions were marked down to a lower price, around 30-20 bucks. The un-informed consumers wouldn't consider the Wii version at that price. I just hope that publishers have reasonable expectations regarding Batman AC, Darksiders II and Mass Effect 3. Consumers will browse the other shelves and see the cheaper 360/PS3 versions of those games.

On the other hand, later multiplatform releases like Tekken TT 2, Assassin's Creed III and Black Ops II won't experience the same problems... I think.

Ninty has a better position. Better hardware that will really force consumers to look hard for differences (they won't, if this gen is any indicator), no competition for a year (360 is in it's 7th year and not looking like a PS2 success, just a revitalized success and no one sensible thinks 360 'won' this generation) and the benefits of launching early.

 

[StevieP]

Godfather Blackhand Edition was released on Wii. The game had a €/$ 54,99-49,99 pricetag when the PS2/Xbox versions were marked down to a lower price, around 30-20 bucks. The un-informed consumers wouldn't consider the Wii version at that price.

Godfather Wii was worth every dollar. It was far superior to the other versions (including PC).

The Wii was too larger gap between 360/PS3 hardware to warrant porting, and publishers made a dumb gamble on a market they legitimately believed would tank at any second. Most are probably kicking themselves for screwing up what was a thriving market.

I don't think too many are kicking themselves because they are putting the *exact* same software strategy into place for next generation. I don't think it's some kind of anti-Nintendo persecution complex like many here, as much as it involves ROI with the "Nintendo Audience" (i.e. pigeonholing the types of people who buy Nintendo hardware). The new version of "teh kiddy".

Install base wont be enough. Software sales are most important. Sales of software shows you just what that install base is buying, and what kind of software is likely to succeed. This was the Wii's problem later in life. The install base was not responding well to certain later generation third party efforts. The market had not been cultivated to sell that kind of software consistently.

It was selling those games at launch (CoD3 sold better than PS3, Red Steel sold well despite being pretty crap, even RE4's good sales were never followed up).

Or, to put it bluntly, the Wii U can sell millions upon millions out of the gate. But if those millions are mostly middle aged housewives and grandparents the software market will be shaped accordingly, and will send a message to publishers that only success on the Wii U depends on software appealing to a specific market.

That's unfortunately the downside of the 'blue ocean' strategy. It's nice to appeal to an untapped market. Not so nice when that untapped market has different taste to your own.

Microsoft's new console will be marketed as a "lifestyle device" - a living room fixture for "everyone". Not just a console, in other words. It will include a higher resolution Kinect sensor in every box designed to be a seamless system interface, with the marketing push similar to the one they did for Kinect. Do you think third parties will forego putting out your typical "AAA" software for the device because its focus isn't the same as the previous Xboxen?

 

[brainpann]

The situation with the several ports makes me kind of weary though. It reminds me of the Wii's launch period (but in Wii U's case, the titles are bigger in scope) when in early 2007 the Godfather Blackhand Edition was released on Wii. The game had a €/$ 54,99-49,99 pricetag when the PS2/Xbox versions were marked down to a lower price, around 30-20 bucks. The un-informed consumers wouldn't consider the Wii version at that price. I just hope that publishers have reasonable expectations regarding Batman AC, Darksiders II and Mass Effect 3. Consumers will browse the other shelves and see the cheaper 360/PS3 versions of those games.

On the other hand, later multiplatform releases like Tekken TT 2, Assassin's Creed III and Black Ops II won't experience the same problems... I think.

Isn't Darksiders releasing on Wii U at same time as PS360?

I haven't played Batman AC or Mass Effect 3 yet and tbh I can already get them cheaply for my PC. The only thing that is making me sort of consider buying either for Wii U is if I can play through them entirely on the Wii U pad.

 

[schuelma]

I don't think too many are kicking themselves because they are putting the *exact* same software strategy into place for next generation. I don't think it's some kind of anti-Nintendo persecution complex like many here, as much as it involves ROI with the "Nintendo Audience" (i.e. pigeonholing the types of people who buy Nintendo hardware). The new version of "teh kiddy".

Right. Though I do think the launch window lineup is absolutely better than the Wii's, I see zero evidence of 3rd parties doing anything different than they did last generation. Even Ubisoft is probably more a creature of circumstance with something like Assassin's Creed able to be ported to Wii U for launch.

Maybe things will be different in Japan, but in the West, I see little evidence 3rd parties will do anything differently or treat Wii U any differently.

 

[EatChildren]

I don't think too many are kicking themselves because they are putting the *exact* same software strategy into place for next generation. I don't think it's some kind of anti-Nintendo persecution complex like many here, as much as it involves ROI with the "Nintendo Audience" (i.e. pigeonholing the types of people who buy Nintendo hardware). The new version of "teh kiddy".

Wii U market =/= Wii market. Next generation =/= current generation. Publishers still found immense success this generation. The ones who are in business will continue to follow the business model that has worked very well for them.

There is literally no incentive for them to stop doing what is working for them.

It was selling those games at launch (CoD3 sold better than PS3, Red Steel sold well despite being pretty crap, even RE4's good sales were never followed up).

Which I already explained as typically strong launch software sales. The PS3 is a shitty example because it did exactly what publishers hoped it wouldn't: it tanked. It was the platform everybody expected to succeed that didn't. Sony followed up the two best selling home consoles of all time with a relative dud. This entire generation was one of surprise.

The tail end of the Wii's software market declined. Third party efforts could have been a lot better, but what was there sold poorly. Even Nintendo's own software began to drop. Other M sold worse than Prime 3. SMG2 sold worse than SMG. Resident Evil sold well because it's Resident Evil and would sell on a calculator. Just look at ORC.

Third parties and Nintendo had failed to cultivate a market early on for these kinds of games. They could have done so with consistent releases of attractive software. They didn't. The market dissipated into one far less viable than it should have been. Meanwhile it was booming on the 360/PS3.

Microsoft's new console will be marketed as a "lifestyle device" - a living room fixture for "everyone". Not just a console, in other words. It will include a higher resolution Kinect sensor in every box designed to be a seamless system interface, with the marketing push similar to the one they did for Kinect. Do you think third parties will forego putting out your typical "AAA" software for the device because its focus isn't the same as the previous Xboxen?

I know what Microsoft's next system will be, and they could pull a Sony for all I know. Publishers will put games where they know they can make money. If the next Xbox launches out the gate with Halo 5 and Call of Duty whatever or Bungie's new Xbox 720 exclusive and a market for these kinds of games is clearly there, and sustained, then yes it will receive publisher support.

 

[DeviousAngel]

I hope publishers aren't expecting millions in sells (with the exception of Assassins Creed) to evaluate support for the system in relation to their games being already released on PS3/360. I expect most of these games to do well enough to warrant future support though.

I seriously hope that's not their way to test the waters. It doesn't seem like a reliable indicator of how future games will do on the WiiU. Part of me understands their reluctance, but at the same time, this is a console launch! It is an opportunity to take a risk with something new and establish yourself on the platform before others do (like Ubisoft).

 

[Bamstrokher]

As for why third parties poorly supported the GCN, it was really fuelled by the system's poor performance in the west.

Yeah I am not so sure that is a real accurate statement. Xbox and GCN were roughly neck and neck in the west the whole gen. Multiplats that were going to XBOX and GCN from PS2just stopped coming to GCN. It made no sense really.

That was right around around the same time when Nintendo was deciding not to release much of anything and save everything for Wii. That was when the Xbox pulled slightly ahead by a few million units.

Looking back at it. It was Japan where GCN really took a nosedive off of a cliff. They sold like 4 million gamecubes in 5 years there. By any objective measure that sucks.

 

[schuelma]

Wii U market =/= Wii market. Next generation =/= current generation. Publishers still found immense success this generation. The ones who are in business will continue to follow the business model that has worked very well for them.

There is literally no incentive for them to stop doing what is working for them.

Which I already explained as typically strong launch software sales. The PS3 is a shitty example because it did exactly what publishers hoped it wouldn't: it tanked. It was the platform everybody expected to succeed that didn't. Sony followed up the two best selling home consoles of all time with a relative dud. This entire generation was one of surprise.



.

This seems to be contradicting what you posted earlier about publishers probably wishing they had invested more on the Wii and looking to Wii U sales before deciding to really support the platform.

You seem to agree with me that they are not doing anything differently with Wii U, so I'm not sure why Wii U sales will even be relevant, frankly.

 

[Bamstrokher]

Just backing up a little on the topic of the GameCube disk size and the market at the time.

The big issue with data storage and disk size isn't simply stretching your content across multiple disks, it's how much free space you have on each disk after essential data has been included. Think about it: every single asset (texture, model, audio file) that has a chance to display at any point in the game must be included on both disks. You cant just split the game in half. This can be problematic in, for example, a sandbox game. Unless your sandbox game is segmented into clearly separate areas (eg: Far Cry 2), you must include the entire city/world on each disks regardless of how you split the extra content.

When you have large disks, or better yet the ability to install disk content to a HDD, the problem no longer exists.

As for why third parties poorly supported the GCN, it was really fuelled by the system's poor performance in the west. Being the most unorthodox platform to develop for didn't help matters. I recall somebody showing charts of big multi platform releases at the time (might have been some EA Sports games), and sales for the GCN versions was significantly lower than the PS2 and Xbox.

During that generation publishers had a fair excuse to strip back GameCube support. It simply wasn't making them much money, and Nintendo wasn't doing a lot to change that.

Nintendo's history with third party support isn't as littered with poor excuses as some will have you believe. For the N64, Nintendo chose a shitty, unorthodox storage format that was at odds with what developers wanted at the time, and Nintendo came in a distant second place to Sony's machine. The GCN, see above. The Wii was too larger gap between 360/PS3 hardware to warrant porting, and publishers made a dumb gamble on a market they legitimately believed would tank at any second. Most are probably kicking themselves for screwing up what was a thriving market.

The Wii U will be a whole new ball game, and until we get a bigger picture of what developers will be making and Microsoft/Sony's business plans it's impossible to say what kind of support the Wii U will get.

EDIT: For budgets and such, yes ever increasing budgets will be a problem next generation. A big one. But developers going under due to ballooning budgets isn't a tomorrow problem. It is a now problem. And it will be a problem on the Wii U too. Those expensive games on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 are going to be just as expensive on the Wii U too. Simply diverting development to the 'lesser' hardware of three platforms isn't going to fix anything. It's a market/release issue, and frankly most developers caught in the middle will probably end up on PC digital, LIVE/PSN, or iOS.

I seriously hope that's not their way to test the waters. It doesn't seem like a reliable indicator of how future games will do on the WiiU. Part of me understands their reluctance, but at the same time, this is a console launch! It is an opportunity to take a risk with something new and establish yourself on the platform before others do (like Ubisoft).

I don't think they are doing it to make money like Ubisoft. They are doing it so they can cover their asses either way with shareholders and the gaming media. They can go back and say if the ported test games tank: "hey look we gave it a try, The market just was not suitable."
If they meet sales forecast like RE4 on Wii did, we know exactly what will happen after that.

 

[Pineconn]

Even more fresh, tender meat for the Nintendo crowd here. I was approved just minutes ago, and I stopped what I was doing at work to make this post. Don't really care, I'm just a lowly intern, lol.

To add random substance, I've enjoyed reading these hardware debates over the past few months. However, I don't really give a damn about flops, flippers, or floppers... As a (level-headed!) Nintendo-only gamer, I'm excited about the unprecedented leap in processing power from the Wii. Oh, and dat controller is sexy.

 

[EatChildren]

Yeah I am not so sure that is a real accurate statement. Xbox and GCN were roughly neck and neck in the west the whole gen. Multiplats that were going to XBOX and GCN from PS2just stopped coming to GCN. It made no sense really.

That was right around around the same time when Nintendo was deciding not to release much of anything and save everything for Wii. That was when the Xbox pulled slightly ahead by a few million units.

Looking back at it. It was Japan where GCN really took a nosedive off of a cliff. They sold like 4 million gamecubes in 5 years there. By any objective measure that sucks.

I'm fairly certain it was the software front that put the GCN in a negative light. Ports weren't selling well, for most part.

This seems to be contradicting what you posted earlier about publishers probably wishing they had invested more on the Wii and looking to Wii U sales before deciding to really support the platform.

You seem to agree with me that they are not doing anything differently with Wii U, so I'm not sure why Wii U sales will even be relevant, frankly.

I don't see where I'm contradicting myself. Publishers are likely disappointed with the decisioned they made in the Wii era because they failed to predict the outcome of the hardware and software market. They still found success, but they missed properly capitalising on the Wii's market.

The Wii U is not the Wii, and next generation is not the current generation. The market climate has again changed, and success for Nintendo's platform is not guaranteed. Publishers are no doubt wary of heavily supporting a new platform, for both valid and stupid reasons.

With costs the way they are, they'll be taking less risks than before. They cant gamble on trying to cultivate a software market on the Wii U. Some of them (Ubisoft) are making smart choices for now. Others (EA) are not. As it is launching first, I feel the Wii U will have ~12 months to prove what kind of position it will have in the market in the eyes of third parties.

 

[schuelma]

I don't see where I'm contradicting myself. Publishers are likely disappointed with the decisioned they made in the Wii era because they failed to predict the outcome of the hardware and software market. They still found success, but they missed properly capitalising on the Wii's market.

The Wii U is not the Wii, and next generation is not the current generation. The market climate has again changed, and success for Nintendo's platform is not guaranteed. Publishers are no doubt wary of heavily supporting a new platform, for both valid and stupid reasons.

With costs the way they are, they'll be taking less risks than before. They cant gamble on trying to cultivate a software market on the Wii U. Some of them (Ubisoft) are making smart choices for now. Others (EA) are not. As it is launching first, I feel the Wii U will have ~12 months to prove what kind of position it will have in the market in the eyes of third parties.

So you are saying publishers probably regret the decisions they made on the Wii, but they are not going to do anything differently with the Wii U?

I guess I'm just a bit confused. You seemed to be saying there is an opportunity for Wii U to prove itself and for 3rd parties to get on board, but then list a ton of reasons and rationales for why they won't do so.

Edit- and I don't really disagree with you on most of your reasoning. I guess I don't see any real opportunity for 3rd parties to get on board- they've already largely made their decision.

 

[jwj442]

The Gamecube got decent Western support at first. Most multiplatform games got a Gamecube version for the first couple years. The bottom fell out around 2004 though.

 

[nordique]

Yeah I am not so sure that is a real accurate statement. Xbox and GCN were roughly neck and neck in the west the whole gen. Multiplats that were going to XBOX and GCN from PS2just stopped coming to GCN. It made no sense really.

That was right around around the same time when Nintendo was deciding not to release much of anything and save everything for Wii. That was when the Xbox pulled slightly ahead by a few million units.

Looking back at it. It was Japan where GCN really took a nosedive off of a cliff. They sold like 4 million gamecubes in 5 years there. By any objective measure that sucks.

While true, the numbers are skewed a little (in terms of the west) because Gamecube sold much more in Japan than Xbox, which was essentially non-existent there

Don't forget that in the end even if it had a few million install base difference, sometimes that few million was the difference in software sales. A third party Xbox game would sell 500k versus 80-90k on Gamecube, or 900k on Xbox vs 100k on Gamecube. That few million were the ones that were pushing the Xbox game sales higher than the Gamecube one.

For some companies that was enough to keep supporting the Gamecube because they could do a quick port and essentially make free money (see: EA, Activision, Ubisoft) but for others it made no sense when majority of the Gamecube software market favoured "kiddy" games (most software sales were from those family types of titles and the Gamecube market was not as diverse as the Wii market for instance, it was primarily Nintendo fans and a younger age group)

Plus the advent of Xbox Live, the huge push from Microsoft, money hats and financial incentives all around from them, really made third party publishers lean more towards supporting Xbox than Gamecube...Xbox Live caught on well with the college student crowd and multi-console owners would usually pick the game up for Xbox over Gamecube solely for that reason.

All in all, EC is accurate in his analysis imo.

 

[Earendil]

You'd honestly pay 60 bucks for that ? If I only wanted better performance I'd get the PC version.

You make a good point, but not everyone has a gaming PC. If he's already getting a Wii U and doesn't have a gaming PC, then it makes sense for him.

 

[RedSwirl]

I have no intentions of purchasing any of these multi-platform titles for Wii U. You can claim that Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition is an entirely new game (it's not) and tout any extra endings etc. to Mass Effect 3 you want, but it won't by any means justify an MSRP of something like $59.99. And I don't really see publishers dropping prices for products just because the games may be arbitrary, it's after all a new console.

Assassin's Creed III is of course a different story and that may be interesting if Wii U launches prior to the 30th of October when the game is slated for release. Ubisoft even marked the Wii U version for release on that day in their latest financial report. But I would not take that as anything greater in relation to when Wii U will actually launch.

I will certainly buy the console on day one regardless of what software is available. My biggest focus is on New Super Mario Bros. U.

If I didn't own a gaming-quality PC I would consider buying those multiplatform games on Wii U like Creed and the hypothetical Call of Duty.

 

[Bamstrokher]

"I'm fairly certain it was the software front that put the GCN in a negative light. Ports weren't selling well, for most part."

Yeah there were some turkeys...

...but I would be interested to know how many copies sold back then did it take to turn a profit given the lower cost of development in that time period? Perusing the numbers, there were about 185-200 third party Gamecube games that sold over 200,00 copies, and roughly 70 that sold 500,000. at what point did it become not worth it?

If you could put a small team on a game and port something for a profit, why not keep doing it? Part of me thinks that they just were not optimized for multiplatform development back then.

 

[Hoodbury]

Even more fresh, tender meat for the Nintendo crowd here. I was approved just minutes ago, and I stopped what I was doing at work to make this post. Don't really care, I'm just a lowly intern, lol.

Same Pineconn from the Wii CoD vs GE fun at GFAQs?

 

[JordanN]

The insider was right and was spot on, again.

-Nintendo network will have an account system for the Wii U.Friend codes are out the door for good.Will it happen for the 3DS?Can't say anything about that except wait till around November then that info will be divulged. XD

Which was followed by:

"A unified account system will be implemented later this year with the launch of the Wii U. Eventually this same account system will be made compatible with Nintendo 3DS systems. "
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=481353

 

[Effect]

Well said. I just can't bring myself to buy old games at full price, unless they have a ton of improvements and plenty of new content. I feel that I would reward companies for ripping off consumers and I'd just feel bad doing that. What's even worse is that I feel companies are going to take bad sales of old ports as an indication that there's no market for them.

That said I still don't get how it makes any sense at all to bring ME3 to Wii U, I mean... do they really have absolutely nothing else that they could bring over ?

At this point ports aren't even a consideration for purchase as far as I'm concerned. While I've been playing Batman Arkham Asylum (finally opened the copy that came with my PS3) off and on and if I do end up really enjoying it there is no reason at all to buy the Wii U version of Arkham City when the PS3/360/PC versions will be so much cheaper and available used. Same for Mass Effect 3 if I ever got around to playing 2 (Had 1 when it came out and got 2 as a impulse buy when I found it for $10). It would be more worthwhile to me to get a used copy on the 360 as I don't have Gold the online part is worthless.

I have no problem with Assassin's Creed 3. I have no problem with Madden coming late. Better to have games that are new show up late by a few weeks or a few months then year old games show up and system support being judged on them. That is what I fear will happen.

 

[Sadist]

Ninty has a better position. Better hardware that will really force consumers to look hard for differences (they won't, if this gen is any indicator), no competition for a year (360 is in it's 7th year and not looking like a PS2 success, just a revitalized success and no one sensible thinks 360 'won' this generation) and the benefits of launching early.

I don't trust third parties on Nintendo hardware. I just don't.

Godfather Wii was worth every dollar. It was far superior to the other versions (including PC).

Well, for us people posting on messageboard maybe. For the average consumer they'll just see the same game with a different cover, a subtitle and a higher pricetag. They won't care all too much about "superior" versions.

Isn't Darksiders releasing on Wii U at same time as PS360?

I haven't played Batman AC or Mass Effect 3 yet and tbh I can already get them cheaply for my PC. The only thing that is making me sort of consider buying either for Wii U is if I can play through them entirely on the Wii U pad.

Nope. Darksiders II releases in August so...

 

[jwj442]

Arkham Asylum might sell okay. It's Batman after all; he has pretty wide appeal beyond hardcore gamers who already played it and it'll only be a few months after the new movie.

 

[schuelma]

Arkham Asylum might sell okay. It's Batman after all; he has pretty wide appeal beyond hardcore gamers who already played it and it'll only be a few months after the new movie.

Yeah I could see it doing ok.

 

[Pineconn]

Same Pineconn from the Wii CoD vs GE fun at GFAQs?

Indeed. I use this username for literally everything. Hopefully I didn't mar my image in that thread. I don't recall.

 

[Hoodbury]

Hopefully I didn't mar my image in that thread. I don't recall.

Heh, no not at all from what I remember. I stayed out of the drama for the most part too and just played the game. We played CoD together a few times but not many. I play with those RaF guys, so we ended up playing a couple times from having the same friends sending out invites.

I played a bit more with Slowmo(or is it slowbro?) and Void from the GE side and enjoyed their company. Looking forward to seeing you in BO II.

I wish they would just officially announce Black Ops II for the Wii-U and get it over with.

 

[JordanN]

Folk often forget Nintendo's market position, in the console world at least, prior to the Wii. They were third place, in the West anywho. Microsoft and Sony seemed to be doing one right thing after the other. The Wii was Nintendo's response to the shifting market, both in terms of new ways to make games, and their own realisation they had lost the battle Microsoft and Sony were fighting (that Nintendo once upon a time fought too).

I wouldn't say they lost. I would say it just didn't fit their model.

You see, Nintendo is a stubborn company. They do things the way they see fit regardless of common sense. For example, despite how popular internet gaming was in 2000, Nintendo still shunned it just because the higher ups saw it as "worthless". We also got other examples like Miyamoto stripping away the second analog from 3DS. He didn't like it even though they would make an add-on for it later.

The Wii fits this model. It was something Nintendo wanted to do and having no competition (as per blue ocean) made it so they continue doing so unopposed.

If they were to go after MS and Sony again, it would just mean reevaluating themselves.

 

[Mithos]

You'd honestly pay 60 bucks for that ? If I only wanted better performance I'd get the PC version.

If the game was made good enough yeah I could possibly buy it again for Wii U, BUT then it has to have the ME1 choices and the ME2 choices included.

I mean, I own Beyond Good & Evil on Gamecube and Playstation 3, Resident Evil 4 on Gamecube, Wii and Playstation 3, Tomb Raider Underworld on Wii and Playstation 3 + Tomb Raider Trilogy, Ohh and Resident Evil 5 and Resident Evil 5 Gold Edition.

 

[Kai Dracon]

The one multi-platform game out this year that I'm waiting to buy until Wii U hits, is Darksiders II.

I want to see if all of Vigil's bluster about it being the definitive version is true, plus given it is a Zelda-like title, there's great potential for it to use the screen pad for maps, inventory management, quick slots for gear and weapons, etc.

 

[Sadist]

Btw, I'm one of those guys buying Batman AC Armored Edtion. About four months ago I almost picked up the PC version, but I decided to wait. Next to AC stood the GotY Edition of Arkham Asylum and I gambled on a GotY Edition of AC on Wii U. And hey guess what they showed at E3...

 

[DAREALGUMMY]

Didn't they say the Wii U version wouldn't be different at all?

 

[Hoodbury]

Didn't they say the Wii U version wouldn't be different at all?

Of Batman? No, quite the opposite actually; the WB guys and Nintendo were trying to sell it as having a lot of new and different things.

 

[jacksrb]

The one multi-platform game out this year that I'm waiting to buy until Wii U hits, is Darksiders II.

I want to see if all of Vigil's bluster about it being the definitive version is true, plus given it is a Zelda-like title, there's great potential for it to use the screen pad for maps, inventory management, quick slots for gear and weapons, etc.

1. Welcome to all the fresh juniors. Maybe I will get enough posts one day to be a full member...

2. Do WE think that Nintendo would have benefited from highlighting Darksiders II and Aliens: Colonial Marines more than they did at the press conference, or are those games not quite big enough to focus on?

I think that if you position Darksiders II as your Zelda-esque Action-Adventure it helps fill out the mental launch software list. That is a weird thing where neither Vigil or Nintendo wants to verbalize that Darksiders is Zelda-like, but they both want you to know that.

 

[brainpann]

1. Welcome to all the fresh juniors. Maybe I will get enough posts one day to be a full member...

2. Do WE think that Nintendo would have benefited from highlighting Darksiders II and Aliens: Colonial Marines more than they did at the press conference, or are those games not quite big enough to focus on?

I think that if you position Darksiders II as your Zelda-esque Action-Adventure it helps fill out the mental launch software list. That is a weird thing where neither Vigil or Nintendo wants to verbalize that Darksiders is Zelda-like, but they both want you to know that.

I really can't fathom why Nintendo highlighted Batman instead of Darksiders or Aliens:CM. Either title would have shown 3rd party support and interesting DRC use better than Batman. I suppose you can use the "launch window excuse" but Darksiders will be there.

 

[schuelma]

I really can't fathom why Nintendo highlighted Batman instead of Darksiders or Aliens:CM. Either title would have shown 3rd party support and interesting DRC use better than Batman. I suppose you can use the "launch window excuse" but Darksiders will be there.

WB is actually showing some decent support- Nintendo probably had a deal with them to showcase their titles.

 

[test_account]

I've been out on the loop, is there any updated list of announced WiiU games?

 

[jacksrb]

Of Batman? No, quite the opposite actually; the WB guys and Nintendo were trying to sell it as having a lot of new and different things.

I am trying to decide between Batman and AC:III for launch (with a few other titles).

With Batman, I really want to play it, but am worried that they have made the game worse. I will be curious what the reviews say (outside of it being a year later).

ACIII is my lean right now, as it looks pretty amazing too.

Since you asked, my shopping list looks like:

Launch:
- Nintendo Land (if not packed in)
- NSMBU
- Batman AC:AA OR ACIII

Christmas:
- BLOPS2
- Project P-100 (if available) OR Pikmin 3 / Darksiders 2 / ZombiU

 

[jmizzal]

Well wouldn't ZombiU technically be an FPS as well?

Blops 2
Alien Colonial Marines
ZombiU

Hmmm the WiiU's launch window actually doesn't look to bad overall when you also take into account

Mass Effect 3
Ghost Recon Online
Pikmin 3
NSMBU
Scribblenauts Unlimited
Batman Arkham City
Madden 13
Nintendoland - If its bundled
NBA 2K13

.

Not bad at all, I left the ones I plan on getting

WiiU launch games line up is very good

 

[D-e-f-]

The one multi-platform game out this year that I'm waiting to buy until Wii U hits, is Darksiders II.

I want to see if all of Vigil's bluster about it being the definitive version is true, plus given it is a Zelda-like title, there's great potential for it to use the screen pad for maps, inventory management, quick slots for gear and weapons, etc.

aren't you mixing up Vigil with Gearbox (Randy Pitchford specifically) who said the Wii U version of Aliens: CM will be the best console version?

 

[Grampa Simpson]

Launch:
- NSMBU

Christmas:
- Project P-100 AND Pikmin 3 / Darksiders 2 / ZombiU

This is my current buy list.

 

[Sadist]

I've been out on the loop, is there any updated list of announced WiiU games?

Nintendo:
Pikmin 3
New Super Mario Bros. U
Nintendo Land
Game & Wario
Project P-100 (Platinum Games)
Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge (Tecmo-Koei)
SiNG (FreeStyle Games)
Wii Fit U
Wii U Panorama View (working title)
Lego City Undercover (TT Fusion)

Ubisoft:
Assassin's Creed III
Rayman Legends
Zombi U
Rabbids Land
Marvel Avengers: Battle for Earth
Just Dance 4
Sports Connection
Your Shape Fitness Evolved 2013

Warner Bros. Interactive
Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition
Scribblenauts Unlimited

Namco-Bandai Games
Tank! Tank! Tank!
Tekken Tag Tournament 2

D3 Publisher
Family Party: 30 Great Games
Ben 10: Omniverse

EA
Mass Effect 3

THQ
Darksiders II

Sega
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed

2K Sports
NBA 2K13

Square-Enix
Dragon Quest X

Maximum Games
Jett Tailfin

2013 Confirmed
Aliens: Colonial Marines (Sega)
Injustice: Gods Among Us (Warner Bros. Interactive)

Nothing official yet/mia
Call of Duty: Black Ops II (Activision)
Skylanders Giants (Activision)
Transformers: Prime – The Game (Activision)
Project Nova (Activision)
Untitled Dirt (Codemasters)
Untitled F1/Formula One (Codemasters)
FIFA 13 (EA)
Madden NFL 13 (EA)
Need for Speed Most Wanted (EA)
Project CARS (Slightly Mad Studios)
Sacrilegium
Splinter Cell Blacklist (Ubisoft)
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Online (Ubisoft)

Beyond
Untitled Super Smash Bros. sequel (Nintendo, Sora, Bandai-Namco)

 

[ASIS]

Congrats guys, you are out of the graphics loop and into actual discussion!

I believe we should celebrate this with a title change eh EC?

 

[Pineconn]

Heh, no not at all from what I remember. I stayed out of the drama for the most part too and just played the game. We played CoD together a few times but not many. I play with those RaF guys, so we ended up playing a couple times from having the same friends sending out invites.

I played a bit more with Slowmo(or is it slowbro?) and Void from the GE side and enjoyed their company. Looking forward to seeing you in BO II.

I wish they would just officially announce Black Ops II for the Wii-U and get it over with.

I'm not sure if I'm getting BO2, but I just might knowing that there will be considerably less (or no) hacking online. Plus, the lag will be less of a hassle. That's what caused Void to snap his MW3 disc. I'll link this thread to our clan's website. Never thought that someone would recognize me here!

On the subject of Internet, I just recently noticed that Wii U will support up to 802.11n wi-fi. If I'm not mistaken, didn't the Wii support b only? This would explain the generally low speeds experienced on SpeedTest.

 

[test_account]

*list*

Thanks!

EDIT: Havnt heard of Rabbids Land before now. What are the odds, same style (?) as Nintendoland, and also sharing "Land" in the name.

And i also wonder when we will hear more about japanese support. The console is out in maybe 4-5 months and we know of like three 3rd party titles, where one is a port (Dragon Quest X).

 

[japtor]

So you are saying publishers probably regret the decisions they made on the Wii, but they are not going to do anything differently with the Wii U?

I guess I'm just a bit confused. You seemed to be saying there is an opportunity for Wii U to prove itself and for 3rd parties to get on board, but then list a ton of reasons and rationales for why they won't do so.

Edit- and I don't really disagree with you on most of your reasoning. I guess I don't see any real opportunity for 3rd parties to get on board- they've already largely made their decision.

It sounds like the main issue is that they're risk averse (cause the huge budgets), and until the Wii U is out and stuff is selling there's no way to really assess the risk. Like for all they know it could end up like the Wii and blow up out of the gate, or be like PS3 and flounder. Unfortunately the safest bet is to just wait and see. If they're targeting next gen (timing wise) for new games then it just gives them time to see how the landscape plays out, if the Wii U does well I guess they could integrate it into their plans during that time.

Do WE think that Nintendo would have benefited from highlighting Darksiders II and Aliens: Colonial Marines more than they did at the press conference, or are those games not quite big enough to focus on?

Probably, at least to an extent cause they're new games rather than old ports that many have already played.

aren't you mixing up Vigil with Gearbox (Randy Pitchford specifically) who said the Wii U version of Aliens: CM will be the best console version?

I thought Darksiders was one of the equal ports with no improvements, and yeah it's been Pitchford talking up the Wii U a lot...but apparently he talks up everything so who knows. If nothing else I figure as an Aliens fan he's just geeking out over being able to have the motion sensor in your hands like the movie instead of an on screen control. I'm hoping it works with the gamepad zapper shown in some videos before, although I kind of wonder how clunky that thing is to play with the weight distribution.

 

[Effect]

WB is actually showing some decent support- Nintendo probably had a deal with them to showcase their titles.

Two games it seems. How they managed to get spot is something I just don't understand. Should have just give half the conference to Ubisoft to show off all their games. That would have been better time spent.

 

[Sadist]

Two games it seems. How they managed to get spot is something I just don't understand. Should have just give half the conference to Ubisoft to show off all their games. That would have been better time spent.

Three actually. Injustice is the third title next to Batman and Scribblenauts. Showing off their WBI support was actually smart. Everyone knows about Ubisoft's and Nintendo's bromance and WB is an up and coming western publisher, so its understandable.

 

[schuelma]

Three actually. Injustice is the third title next to Batman and Scribblenauts. Showing off their WBI support was actually smart. Everyone knows about Ubisoft's and Nintendo's bromance and WB is an up and coming western publisher, so its understandable.

Plus Nintendo publishing LEGO City. Injustice is one of the few somewhat major 2013 releases confirmed for Wii U.

 

[Disco Sam]

Hi guys yet another new member here!
Have been lurking since about WUST 2 or 3 and have been loving the discussions/hype. I had meant to post something earlier but had nothing to contribute to all the tech conversations that were going on. Now that its back to games it's much more interesting.

Two things I wanted to say:

aren't you mixing up Vigil with Gearbox (Randy Pitchford specifically) who said the Wii U version of Aliens: CM will be the best console version?

From what I can remember the guys developing Aliens said that their game would look better on the Wii U, and the devs doing Darksiders said the Wii U version would be the definitive interms of game play but probably wouldn't look all that different.

New thoughts of the day:

1.
Miiverse is the startup screen for the Wii-U. Miiverse is an online social gathering place is it not? They never said Wii-U is an online only system, so what would your Miiverse be like if you never go online or your internet connection goes out for awhile?

Would you just see your lonely mii wandering around by itself? Would Miiverse even boot up or would there be an offline startup home screen instead?

And interms of the Miiverse home screen I'm pretty sure in that pre E3 Nintendo Direct video Iwata very quickly mentioned that there were 2 home screens that you could switch between the pad and the TV they only showed the Miiverse one but in the bottom corner there was a button that looked like an array of Wii channels so my guess is that the offline home screen will look like and updated version on the Wii channels letting you select you games and other apps.

 

[Effect]

No expectations. I'm wondering if that would be the best way to deal with Nintendo. Don't pay attention to anything they say or what anyone reports. Then check back every 5 months and see what has been done? Or just check their website every few months and no other outlets? To much or a okay way for one to not be annoyed by their actions or lack of them?

 

[brainpann]

Three actually. Injustice is the third title next to Batman and Scribblenauts. Showing off their WBI support was actually smart. Everyone knows about Ubisoft's and Nintendo's bromance and WB is an up and coming western publisher, so its understandable.

I forget that e3 is an industry event so Nintendo doing this makes much more sense.