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Scribblenauts dev sights up XBLA

5TH Cell cofounder Jeremiah Slaczka says upcoming downloadable console title will be "pretty big," but still "far away."

5TH Cell has thus far made its bones creating original handheld properties for Nintendo's best-selling DS. To date, the Bellevue, Washington-based indie developer has scored critical successes with Scribblenauts, Lock's Quest, and Drawn to Life. However, with Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter nearing its release date, 5TH Cell cofounder and creative director Jeremiah Slaczka told GameSpot in August that the studio is ready to advance into the console market.

Yes, that is a griffin wearing a sombrero.

Yes, that is a griffin wearing a sombrero.

As part of an interview with industry news site Gamasutra, Slaczka gave a clearer indication of 5TH Cell's console direction, saying that the studio is currently at work on a downloadable title for Xbox Live. "It's going to be pretty big," he said. "It's totally not ready to be announced. It's far away. The only thing that we've really announced is we're working on console stuff, and we'll see where it goes."

Slaczka went on to note that the shift toward console development is part of a larger effort to continue expanding the reach and scope of the company.

"We're competing against companies like Square Enix and Nintendo, triple-A products," he said. "People hold us to the same standard, which I'm totally fine with--I want them to hold us to that standard. But they get three years, and I get one year. That's the big difference. I feel like a boxer with one hand [tied behind] my back. I can make incredible stuff in three years, you know?"

For more on 5TH Cell, check out GameSpot's review of the studio's most recent effort, Scribblenauts.

39 Comments

  • SonicDBZRacer

    Posted Oct 13, 2009 7:27 pm GMT

    If 5th Cell is competeing against Nintendo, why do they make games for them? LOL.

  • Exactlamento

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 6:39 pm GMT

    did you guys here about the Scribblenaut Sambo controversy!! I really hope they don't get rid of it in this build.

  • kamikaze_pigmy

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 8:21 am GMT

    @ Me2nice, they didnt say it was a scribblenauts for XBL, they said they were developing a title, it'll likely be complete different from thier DS titles

  • Me2nice

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 7:31 am GMT

    How exactly are they going to replicate the scribbling on XBLA? I pretty sure the stylus/pen, not a controller or your finger (in the case Natal) is the best way to do it, for thats what it was made for.

  • SalarianChemist

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 7:02 am GMT

    This is great news, but lets just hope two things happen:

    1. Let's make sure the game is good

    2. Let's make sure the game is inexpensive

    Paying $10 for a worthless game such as Leisure Suit Larry just isn't right when we can spend that same amount of money on the legendary Castlevania: Symphony of the Night with remixed graphics and 5.1 sound on Xbox Live Arcade.

    Enough $15 games, and let's get back to $5 for the games, unless they are Castlevania quality, which deserves the price of $10. Only games like Super Street Fighter 2 that are in true 1080p should be $15.

  • brian_13un

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 6:03 am GMT

    That's Great ^_^

  • Petercairns

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 10:22 pm GMT

    Kool hope they make somthing good!

  • fatpumba3

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 8:09 pm GMT

    Lol a Griffin wearing a sombrero awesome stuff.

  • frazzle00

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 7:16 pm GMT

    I think that Scribblenauts is overrated. It could do with better puzzles and controls. Having a story of some sort (like the Professor Layton titles) would really help as well.

  • VXLbeast

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 5:41 pm GMT

    These guys are still a little new at all this, but they have great potential.

  • jmartinez1983

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 2:31 pm GMT

    So, he makes Scribblenauts then starts comparing himself to Nintendo and Square?

  • lukas1051

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 1:44 pm GMT

    Damn, I knew I should've waited. Don't get me wrong, Scribblenauts is a great game, but the controls are just horrible.

  • eyebrowless

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 9:32 am GMT

    i can see them making a game that uses voice recognition. that'd be sweet

  • ArielAguayo

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 9:15 am GMT

    that's cool. :]

  • LoserMike

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 11:35 pm GMT

    I'm surprised they're not doing iPhone games. Scribblenauts would be perfect on the iPhone.

  • dontstopmenow01

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 11:26 pm GMT

    I liked Scribblenauts, and I'm sure whatever 5th Cell brings to XBLA (or PSN, DSi Store) will be good stuff.

  • shawn7324 posted Oct 10, 2009 6:52 pm GMT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    shawn7324

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 6:52 pm GMT (hide)

    Not interested.

  • Jelley0

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 5:58 pm GMT

    @Killer rabbit20

    How did it sound like it should be only on Wiiware and Dsiware? I said it should be on Wiiware and Dsiware and I said nothing more. Just because I don't meantion anything else, it doesn't mean I don't think it should be on anything else. Think of it as a suggestion.. It's honestly not that hard to misinterpret.

    I'm done argueing on what I said...

  • killer_rabbit20

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 3:48 pm GMT

    @ Jelley0

    The way you said it sounded like it should only be on Wiiware and DS store, not on the 360 too.

  • Jelley0

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 3:17 pm GMT

    @Futil1ty: Yes, that is exactly what I meant. I never said it shouldn't be on another system.

  • Futil1ty

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 3:12 pm GMT

    @Jelley0:

    I think everyone REALLY MISSED what you were trying to say.

    You meant that if it's going to be something like "Scribblenauts", it should be on DS and Wii too...right?

  • Jelley0

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 3:06 pm GMT

    @killer_rabbit20

    Dude, I never said it shouldn't be on another system. I said it should be on Dsiware and Wiiware, not meaning it should be only on those two. I really don't understand why I got -8

  • gohan2710

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 12:00 pm GMT

    yay, lets see if something good comes out of it, and hopefully its multiplatform, so everyone can enjoy.

  • -HCMF-

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 8:43 am GMT

    good stuff

  • ZookGuy

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 8:09 am GMT

    Glad to hear.

  • athenian29

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 7:37 am GMT

    Yeah, Scribblenauts!

    My mom has the gall to think it's a kid's game. What a chovanist - Pokemon is for kids. Scribblenauts? Not in a thousand years.

  • killer_rabbit20

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 7:29 am GMT

    @Jelley0

    Why can't it just be on both the Wiiware and XBLA? What difference does it make? It's not like it will make the game worse if it's put on both consoles. Saying it should only be on one console is just fanboy crap, because you don't want a good game to be on another console.

  • Jelley0 posted Oct 10, 2009 3:07 am GMT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Jelley0

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 3:07 am GMT (hide)

    It should be on Wiiware or Dsiware if it's going to be anything like the game they just made.

  • AncientDozer

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 2:59 am GMT

    Haha, I like scribblenauts. It's a neat game where you can sick cthulhu on people. But it reminds me of the Zero punctuation review where you pretty much Cthulhu everything to win. I have no issue with that. xD

  • magicalclick

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 8:47 pm GMT

    Well, the scriblenauts will work well on Natal, but I am sure their game on x360 is not scriblenauts thought. Hope it is as original as Scriblenauts.

  • jmizzal

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 7:48 pm GMT

    I hope they are also working on Wii or Wiiware, they are pretty big in the Nintendo community that would make more sense.

  • nickmax1234

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 6:51 pm GMT

    @squidracerx

    you can use the keyboard with some 360 games, idk about scibblenauts though

  • squidracerX posted Oct 9, 2009 6:12 pm GMT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    squidracerX

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 6:12 pm GMT (hide)

    i want a working scribblenauts for ps3 so i can use my keyboard!

  • itsTolkien_time

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 5:49 pm GMT

    *sigh*
    I hope they produce some more for the DS too.

    I don't know how they will fare in the console market, but I hope they keep up the original titles and don't fall into monotony.

  • Intrakitt

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 5:38 pm GMT

    8smokes: He's not making Scribblenauts on the 360. Read the friggin article. It's going to be a brand new game.

  • 8smokes posted Oct 9, 2009 5:08 pm GMT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    8smokes

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 5:08 pm GMT (hide)

    I wonder how this is going to be on XBLA. Obviously the game's pretty dependent on the stylus-touch interface. I guess we'll just have to wait and see how this plays out.

  • wilard34

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 4:59 pm GMT

    As a gamer, Scribblenauts shook me to my core, simply because of this: Keyboard Cat. I don't what was worse, the fact that some guy/girl on the dev team thought it would be good idea to ACTUALLY include the internet meme Keyboard Cat, OR that fact that I actually (without knowing it was able to used) typed it in and used it to solve a puzzle.

  • frowfraw7

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 4:46 pm GMT

    WAIW I agree

  • WAIW

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 3:49 pm GMT

    Hope it's Lock's Quest 2. I've overdosed on Scribblenauts.

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