Metroid: Other M is starting to sound really amazing. When I heard that Team Ninja was taking over the franchise I almost pissed in my pants. Of course I was worried that they would try to give Samus too much jiggle and draw away the attention from the story. From what I've read Team Ninja is doing something really great with the game. The story seems like it it's going improve on Samus's character development and gameplay mechanics just sound amazing.
I think like most Metroid fans out there I was really happy to hear about the return to side scrolling. Though I am a little worried that the lack of buttons on the wii-mote my lead to some funky controls. The lack of shoulder buttons has me a little worried. Standing still and being able to shoot down and right or up and right made Super Metroid a dream game. On the other hand the switching between side scrolling and first person view sounds awesome. If the transition is as smooth as most sites claim this could be a really fun new way to incorprate puzzles into boss fights again.
This game has a realse date for this year so this sounds like another promising year for Nintendo. Can't wait.
Another promising title coming out for the Wii this May is Super Mario Galaxy 2. I love Mario Galaxy. It was such an awesome little game. Visually it competed with most HD games and there is no other platformer that can stand before this game. Some seem a little disappointed in another Mario Galaxy but I couldn't be more excited. I collected all 120 stars in the first one and I was begging for more. Well Nintendo seems to have heard my telepathic cries. It seems like this time Nintendo is doing Yoshi more justice in his second 3-D outing. I hope there are more power ups on top of all the past ones.All these games are schedule to come out before the holiday season so what game is Nintendo waiting to announce at E3? The fan boy in me wants Zelda but I highly doubt we'll get a new Mario game and Zelda game in the same year and on the same platform.
Nintendo has so many IP's they haven't released for the Wii, it kind of bothers me. A lot. Like where's the "Star Tropics"? That game was amazing, why don't we have something like it for this generation?
ReplyDeleteHow about a new take on "Maniac Mansion"? If you never played it, think of it like "KOTOR", but limited to the location of a mansion to solve the mystery. There was a lot wrong with that game in today's standards, but it was a foundation for many decision trees used in games today.
Or hey, "Starfox" anyone? I mean, I'm getting sick of Nintendo slapping Mario or Sega slapping Sonic on EVERYTHING. Yes, I know Mario sells very well. People trust Mario. There are tons of parents buying Wii games for their kids (or themself) that are nostalgic for Mario. But I know we all have games we would love to see made for the Wii.
Or damn, how about a new IP already? Nintendo has really let me down, which is why the Wii is used sparsely in my house. It's the system that gets used when company comes over, but that's about it. It just doesn't draw me to play vs. PC or PS3. I'm sure my son will get a lot of use out of it though. When they have all but killed Zelda for me, my relationship with Nintendo grows further and further apart.
I feel the same way, it's great to see Metroid returning and looking more mature than it's previous instalments. I've never played Super Mario Galaxy, but having completeld Super Mario Wii, I must admit I'm tempted to buy a Nintendo Wii just to play more Mario... i.e. Super Mario Galaxy 1. That said I too feel some what distant from Nintendo, but I guarantee you now, if they ever release a new Star Fox or Lylat Wars and it was horribly named back in the UK or release a new F-Zero for the Wii, then Nintendo may have my money.... I'm such a sucker I know.
ReplyDeleteMy Wii is a lot like Landoram's it's been collecting dust since SMB Wii. It is my party game machine.
ReplyDeleteAs for new IPs I want new IPs, too. Unfortunately, when Nintendo was in the mood to take risk on their hardcore fans, they were let down. When was this you ask? The Gamecube Nintendo days. Many argue that Nintendo hasn't tried anything new with their franchises but they often forget about the GCN. Nintendo decided to take a risk on all of their franchises. Ex: Mario Sunshine, IMO it was an awesome but rather short game. It still had all the Mario 64 mechanics but no one liked the inclusion of FLUDD, the water gun jet pack. The game had a better story element than Mario 64 and there was voice acting in it. Ex2: Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. Not only was the art style changed but the whole world was changed. You weren't running from dungeon to dungeon rather you were sailing from island to island. First, Zelda game in a long time to have a large amount of new items. No one liked this game mainly because the art design had changed. It was an awesome game and the most cinematic outside of Twlight Princess.
I have other examples such as Mario Kart Double Dash, but I won't bother with the details.
As for new IPs, the GCN had pikmin, Luigi's Mansion, Animal Crossing,Baten Kaitos, Battlion Wars, Chibi Robo, Custom Robo, Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, Eternal Darkness, Geist, Pac-man Vs, and etc.
None of these games outside of Pikimin and Animal Crossing sold enough to be considered a critical success.
Basically, I can see how Nintendo finds it very hard to finds it hard to find the area that allows them to be creative but at the same time making sure a sucessful franchise doesn't change too much.
People want change but not too much change.
Mario is the game that made me start playing games, and Zelda is the game that made me a gamer. As long as both of those titles are built in house they can never do wrong in my head.
Gaicha, your Gamecube points are dead on. In fact so dead on, I'll add this...when I had a choice, as a hardcore gamer, between Gamecube, Dreamcast, and PS2, I owned a Dreamcast, quickly followed by PS2 when Dreamcast failed (don't get me started on that one...Sega doesn't know what the hell they're doing to this day). I never even bothered to get a Gamecube. A few of my fraternity brothers had them, and I played Pikmin a bit, but oh, the Goldeneye tournaments. Epic. They proved (through what is now rather crappy mechanics) that shooters can exist on a console. Not a Nintendo IP, but about the only thing guys my age were willing to play on the Gamecube. We all felt like Nintendo didn't grow with us, as loyal as we were. Hence why xbox and ps took over. We wanted more complexity and maturity in our games, and those systems delivered. Nintendo stuck to its model and continued to build games for kids.
ReplyDeleteI'm not arguing that Nintendo choose wrongly. In fact, given their continued success in the hardware world, they continue to capture the minds and hearts of gamers around the world. They almost failed after Gamecube, and lucky for them, they trusted Miyamoto's vision for the Wii, and it totally paid off for them.
What I think sucks about Nintendo is software. They don't support third-party developers, never have, and we see the results. Those games almost all suck, or known as "shelfware". Their IP's sell great, if they slap Mario or Link on the cover. But where are all those titles we have listed? They aren't there, because I'm telling you, they have given up on winning hardcore gamers back. I don't buy the argument that they don't compete Sony or M$ because their console is different, because let's face it, its still a video game console. BUt I kinda get why Sony and M$ choose to downgrade Nintendo's impact because Nintendo isn't taking dollars from their market. They now compete for very different consumers.
And that, my friends, is why I'm down on Nintendo. Instead of fighting...just somewhat...in anyway...they've thrown in the towel. Oh well, I guess there will always continue to be children, and as a new parent, I like that I can find games for kids and not worry about boobs or swear words in all of the big hit titles.