Devil's Third Creator Advises Against Using Wii U GamePad to Play

Tomonobu Itagaki has advised Wii U owners not to use the console's GamePad to play his upcoming third-person action game, Devil's Third.

In a Facebook post, Itagaki listed out a number of "disadvantages" he believes players using a GamePad will face.

"I never wanna discount standard tab-controller," he said, "But Devil's Third is a super speedy game. So [GamePad] has the following disadvantages: Four face buttons are positioned [to be overcrowded], so you easily press the wrong button. In that case, you will die.

"Distance of two analog sticks are too far apart, so it's quite difficult for you to feel/grasp the battlefield. Devil's Third is a game you play a long time, the standard [GamePad] is too heavy for such use."

Itagaki also advised those in the media playing the game's multiplayer in advance of its release to use the Pro Controller in addition to a USB keyboard--presumably for chat functionality--instead of the GamePad, which is "not recommended."

He also provided some guidance on how to approach analysis of multiplayer before the general public have access to it.

"The multiplayer mode of Devil's Third is designed to be played by tens of thousands of players," he explained. "We understand it's going to be a very tough job to evaluate such a game. It will be much appreciated if you use your imagination to get the depth when you play the multiplayer."

The Devil's Third release date has been confirmed as August 28 in Europe. A release date for North America has not been announced, but the Devil's Third game page on Nintendo's website lists the title as "TBD."

Nintendo addressed recent reports claimed Nintendo will no longer publish Devil's Third in North America, but but didn't definitively state whether it plans to publish the game.

"We know you are eager to hear more about Devil's Third," Nintendo of America said. "We are excited to bring the game to Wii U and will have more to share soon."

Devil's Third brings together the hack-and-slash gameplay--which Itagaki earned acclaimed for with Ninja Gaiden--and third-person shooting. The game was originally going to be published by the now-defunct publisher THQ. At the time, it was an Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC game, but later shifted to become a Nintendo-exclusive.