• 2Jun 09

  They Delivered (for the most part)!

  So, Nintendo didn't announce any new Wii Zelda game, but knowing Nintendo that likely means it's not in presentable form at the moment. Yet where I wasn't expecting anything (and one where I was for a LONG time) is where they delivered.

  Since some, most, or all of you will no doubt be absorbing all things E3 over the week, here's just a simple list of what I'm excited for, even if I'll curb my enthusiasm til a price drop (more for Wii games than DS games):

  New Super Mario Bros. Wii (finally, real multiplayer co-op Mario in 2D!).

  Mario Galaxy 2 (finally, Yoshi's back for real!).

  Golden Sun DS (FINALLY INDEED! Took you long enough, Camelot Software!).

  Metroid: Other M (finally... some story focused... Metroid game? Dang, this came out of left field. I'm wowed, but cautiously optimistic).

  Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story (nothing like some tongue-in-cheek humor to round out the package. The subtitle is hilarious).

  So, looks like there's going to be some good stuff.

  • Posted Jun 2, 2009 2:15 pm GMT
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• 1Jun 09

  And Out of Nowhere, It's Back!

  E3 is back! Took a hiatus for a while, but it's nice to see the show come back.

  So... this post won't necessarily be completely E3 related posts here, but suffice to say I have a lot of expectations. For starters, I'm still hoping for some real good stuff from Nintendo. Not necessarily JUST a Wii Zelda, but some other content that says, "Hey, core gamers, we haven't forgotten you!" Granted, there are several Wii games I'm proud to own. Metroid Prime 3, Mario Galaxy, Fire Emblem (though the story got a bit ludicrous near the end -_- ), and I recently bought Klonoa which, despite its shortness, was worth getting. But despite the system's super-ultra-crazy popularity, my library STILL has yet to top the number of games I own for the Gamecube, nearly all precious gems I would hate to part with (...preciousssss...).

  On the note of Nintendo, I'm quite happy with a lot of the stuff the DS has been getting. There's actually a few titles outside the Nintendo niche that I've gotten, like Contra 4. Granted, right now the system's foreseable future buys are loaded with Dragon Quest games. DQ4 was a great nostalgia trip, even if I didn't like all of the changes (ugh... don't like the accents). And once DQ5 goes to $30 or less it's as good as mine. So at this moment a few E3 surprises wouldn't hurt here too, though I'm in no rush to add new stuff to the "must buy" list for DS just yet. =P

  And I just saw the leaked trailer for Project Trico a few weeks ago. I think Team Ico just sold me a PS3 JUST for that game alone. Now, if only the PS3 were $200 cheaper, and the game roughly $30 or less, that dream may become a reality.

  Finally, probably the least E3 related topic ever, but still worth mentioning. I've been keeping an eye on Dragonica (or "Dragonica Online," as the U.S. publisher seems to be calling it :-/ ). I sorta like what I've played from the beta tests I've tried out, but lag and lack of motivation to get that far into the game have limited me (they don't keep your character stats until Open Beta starts... all the betas I were in were closed/preview betas). Still, this is the first MMO that's had such a unique combat system and this, AND without monthly fees no less! Can't wait for this game to go into open beta. Here's hoping it's everything I wish it to be.

  By the way, I was playing World of Warcraft for the past 5 or 6 months, in case anyone was curious. Fun, though nothing much to do at lvl 80, since raids are a severe test of my endurance and patience, and PvP is bland. Hence, I let the account go into remission. This is why I'm hoping for another not-monthly fee MMO to take it's place.

  Well, got to be going soon. If anyone wants an update on any of my gaming endeavors for the past... 2 years?! Wow... Anyway, feel free to leave a comment.

  Later.

  • Posted Jun 1, 2009 7:44 pm GMT
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• 4May 07

  Nintendo and Console Production Rate

  (Thought I'd post this here.  It was a comment I made in one of the news articles).

   

  I can't believe there are still people complaining about the production rate of Wii consoles.
  
  First off, that they are producing as many as they are is more than can be expected of Microsoft and Sony.  Microsoft only had shortages as long as they did because they jumped the gun, thus having very few systems to begin with (which in turn created quite a market for e-Bay resellers).  Demand for the 360 was respectable, but hardly fever-pitch.  The PS3 had a similar situation, except they didn't jump the gun.  As far as I can tell, Sony has produced PS3s faster than Microsoft's 360s (month by month from launch).  However, the PS3 closed its demand threshold pretty quickly, thus making it relatively easy to find after December.
  
  The Wii, on the other, has been cranked out at a higher rate (bearing in mind they did a same week global launch), and the only thing really keeping it from having constant on-shelf units is demand.  Obviously you can bring in rate of production into this equation due to the fact that it has bearing.  BUT if Nintendo was rolling out these systems at the rate Sony and Microsoft were rolling out theirs, they would crumble under the pressure and probably never meet demand.
  
  Second, demand itself comes into this equation, but in a different way.  You all remember the Gamecube, right?  Surely not a financial failure, but its sales were considered disappointing.  Clearly, the Gamecube generation was where Nintendo got into discussions and asked themselves, "How can we come back in the console business?"  The answer they came up with is clearly the Wii.  However, the entire idea behind the idea was murky to begin with.  The control scheme was new and the idea of not giving it the same increase in graphics power that the rest of the competition did goes against every paradigm known to the gaming industry.
  
  Did it pay off?  Oh snap did it ever!  While it's still not certain how much of this is truly due to their concept of "aiming for the casual gamer market," the point is something about the combination of features in the Wii struck a high note among many, yet they had no way of knowing if this gamble would pay off.
  
  Now, I'm not knowledgeable enough in the game industry to know what is required cost-wise and money-wise to ramp up production, but remember that Nintendo's only business is games.  Even with their massive success with the Wii and DS, they can't throw money every direction like Microsoft and Sony can, and there are very few big electronics businesses that have such a narrow focus.  Furthermore, they have to remain profitable.  Thus, I can only imagine the process of getting additional factories ready to produce more systems is a lot more problematic for Nintendo than the other companies.  Heck, Iwata's statement didn't promise much more than a small increase in production.
  
  So to all of you bashing the production rate of Wii's, all I can say is the fact that they're rolling out systems faster than their competition is amazing in and of itself.  Give them a break!  You'll find a Wii soon enough.

  • Posted May 4, 2007 12:51 pm GMT
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