[IdeaMan]

I nominate GameplayWhore for the new thread maker, as long as he does his awesome summaries in the OP. Also, I've always accepted IdeaMans posts before but: Do anyone else feel like these 'hints' and supposedly fun little games are becomming desperately close to attention seeking?

yeah, i crave for attention, to push people to visit my personal blog with 100 links of donations to gather more dollars than every IT companies boss combined, to feverishly talk about me in the streets by praising my name, to see a fame built around my nickname that i use on 10 other boards, and capitalize/profit from all this to be rich/known/loved.

(of course, everything is false as i only post here, only use this name here, my gaf contribution is totally separated to everything else. I really don't see what i gain from that. You only have to take the hints & teases as attempts to spice up the thread, to have fun while waiting for E3, and consider all that in a light-hearted way :) )

[SaintMadeOfPlaster]

When is the NPD out this month?

May 10.

[I Stalk Alone]

Well, that sounds like an awful idea. What are you gonna do, have the tablet in your lap the whole time? Arrange to have a night stand in between your self and the tv set? No, I'm pretty sure Nintendo will make the tablet a central part Amy new gameplay elements in the next Zelda. It will probably end up as a symbol of a new magical device in the game. For example, it could act as a "mirror of truth" that you hold hold to get a first person view of the world but that reveals secrets or maybes even past and future events.

That gameplay element can be used in a game where the protagonist can see the past or future in some way. clues can be shown by the subscreen when a different scenario for items or characters play out on the subscreen when looking with the subscreen.

For example in games similar to indigo prophecy or alan wake and even a game like silent hill, instead of flashbacks the character can have interactive real time flashbacks that don't break the flow of the game or other characters in the scene. In a game such as eternal darkness 2 a character is able to view events occuring in different timeframes at the same time in order to understand clues about a future event.

[Krev]

http://gamasutra.com/view/news/16970...t__analyst.php If this is accurate, then Xenoblade is the 3rd best selling game in the NPD this month! That deserves a Tex Avery style O_O!

If this is even close to being true, it shows Nintendo of America up as a bunch of incompetent fucking morons. They'd be kicking themselves for making it Gamespot and Nintendo.com exclusive. Not to mention passing on The Last Story.

[Penguin]

If this is even close to being true, it shows Nintendo of America up as a bunch of incompetent fucking morons. They'd be kicking themselves for making it Gamespot and Nintendo.com exclusive. Not to mention passing on The Last Story.

GameStop

And I feel like the whole Operation Rainfall thing was perhaps the best thing to happen to the game.. in a bizarre manner since it gave it a ton of exposure.

[donny2112]

Based on the prediction thread, I'm guessing next week.

Yep. The May one will be delayed until the week after E3. April's NPD should be on time, though.

[Instro]

At least this result means that Monolith's next game will probably get a true localization effort, if it wasn't already. I hope they have a trailer ready for E3 and it gets a spot on the big stage.

[Krev]

Yeah, hopefully this would mean a change to NoA's policies on localization.
It could even have been the strong numbers for Xenoblade that convinced them to consider Fire Emblem (and buy the domain).

[BGBW]

And I feel like the whole Operation Rainfall thing was perhaps the best thing to happen to the game.. in a bizarre manner since it gave it a ton of exposure.

[AceBandage]

At least this result means that Monolith's next game will probably get a true localization effort, if it wasn't already. I hope they have a trailer ready for E3 and it gets a spot on the big stage.

It'll also help that it won't be on the Wii.
There are a lot of reasons why NoA was so hesitant to bring over Xenoblade, not just because they didn't want too.
The Wii's entire ecosystem is rather toxic for games, unless it's a really good one with a lot of buzz behind it.

[Fantastical]

If this is even close to being true, it shows Nintendo of America up as a bunch of incompetent fucking morons. They'd be kicking themselves for making it Gamespot and Nintendo.com exclusive. Not to mention passing on The Last Story.

Or maybe it only sold well because we thought weren't getting it and then Opeartion Rainfall was started. :P

[Cmd. Pishad'aç]

I think the best way to implement both the uPad and wiimote in the next Zelda is through assymetrical co op gameplay.

We've seen it before on wind waker through the fairly gimmick gba connection, but it played OK nonetheless... Its my best hope. One single player handling both wiimote, nunchuk and uPad doesn't sound like a feasible gameplay design to me.

[Rösti]

Yeah, hopefully this would mean a change to NoA's policies on localization. It could even have been the strong numbers for Xenoblade that convinced them to consider Fire Emblem (and buy the domain).

Even if some titles aren't localized, I wonder if it will still be possible to download them from a region where they are not localized. Seeing Nintendo's agenda regarding such a thing for Virtual Console I'd say something like this is unlikely. Though it would be very convenient and could also help Nintendo determine if a certain title should be localized, by evaluating amount of copies purchased from outside the game's initial launch region. They could provide surveys or a feedback function for certain games. The more people that can enjoy a game that is not scheduled for release in certain areas the better I think. Of course it has to do with copyright and trade marks as well so it might be difficult, but maybe demos could be provided at least.

[Krev]

Or maybe it only sold well because we thought weren't getting it and then Opeartion Rainfall was started. :P

Heh, perhaps, but nonetheless the good sales are a direct indicator to NoA management that sticking to their current strategy would be leaving money on the table in the coming generation.

Even if some titles aren't localized, I wonder if it will still be possible to download them from a region where they are not localized. Seeing Nintendo's agenda regarding such a thing for Virtual Console I'd say something like this is unlikely. Though it would be very convenient and could also help Nintendo determine if a certain title should be localized, by evaluating amount of copies purchased from outside the game's initial launch region. They could provide surveys or a feedback function for certain games. The more people that can enjoy a game that is not scheduled for release in certain areas the better I think. Of course it has to do with copyright and trade marks as well so it might be difficult, but maybe demos could be provided at least.

They won't do that.
Nintendo are all about the region locking. : /

[Anth0ny]

http://gamasutra.com/view/news/16970...t__analyst.php If this is accurate, then Xenoblade is the 3rd best selling game in the NPD this month! That deserves a Tex Avery style O_O!

This can't be true. It's too good to be true.

[IdeaMan]

The Wii U Software Development Kit (SDK) seems to be at the 2.04 version since a few days.

It replaces the 2.03 used since the very end of march-beginning of april.

[ashbash159]

Man, these Wii U threads.

I been reading these threads every now and then for what seems like the whole time I've been on GAF (not the actual case), and since E3 is coming up, yeah... YEAH I'M FUCKING EXCITED FOR WII U GAME ANNOUNCEMENTS!

I have somehow acquired a ticket. (I found it last night.)

[Father_Brain]

This can't be true. It's too good to be true.

It can't and it is. Don't see how a Gamestop-exclusive release could possibly have had enough units shipped to place that high, even though April was probably a pretty slow month.

[ShockingAlberto]

The article is weirdly worded, but it seems like it's making estimations?

[ViewtifulJC]

http://gamasutra.com/view/news/16970...t__analyst.php If this is accurate, then Xenoblade is the 3rd best selling game in the NPD this month! That deserves a Tex Avery style O_O!

April was a good month to release Xenoblade. There was practically nothing else released last month 'cept for Prototype 2, and nobody knew that game even existed.

[Fantastical]

The article is weirdly worded, but it seems like it's making estimations?

Yeah I'm confused how they would know this information. What is PiperJaffray?

[Fourth Storm]

Support for more than one Wii U tablet. I'm calling it. IdeaMan already hinted a while ago that devs have been experimenting with it, which should mean that the system could handle the added streaming bandwidth. He probably recently found out that a dev is going to go ahead with it for a game.

I wrote a long rant a few days back that Nintendo basically must support 2 tablets if they want the idea of Wii U to catch on with the mass market.

Dreamwriter wrote a good rebut that I've been sitting on due to laziness, though. Maybe I'll get around to it later. haha.

[wsippel]

If this is even close to being true, it shows Nintendo of America up as a bunch of incompetent fucking morons.

Either that or the most brillant marketers the world has ever seen. By now, despite (or because) everything that happened, Monolith is regarded one of Nintendos top studios. No matter how well the game sells, their next titles will most likely get a lot of attention - probably much more than they'd have gotten without all that Rainfall stuff. Now it's up to Nintendo to make the most of it. Whereas Xenoblade was announced under the radar and initially met with lukewarm response, their 3DS and Wii U titles could be announced at the main press conference with tons of applause, as the press and the general public are now much more aware who those guys are.

[Kjellson]

Man, I'm really sick of waiting for E3.

[Instro]

It'll also help that it won't be on the Wii. There are a lot of reasons why NoA was so hesitant to bring over Xenoblade, not just because they didn't want too. The Wii's entire ecosystem is rather toxic for games, unless it's a really good one with a lot of buzz behind it.

Absolutely. I think Monolith's next game would have been a big deal for Nintendo either way, but success of Xenoblade in an extremely limited release is very encouraging for how it might be handled. Anyway, even though this month was clearly a slow one, this will surely be the biggest debut for a Monolith game since the Xenosaga days. Impressive, good for them.

Assuming that it is in anyway legit of course.

[Krev]

Either that or the most brillant marketers the world has ever seen. By now, despite (or because) everything that happened, Monolith is regarded one of Nintendos top studios. No matter how well the game sells, their next titles will most likely get a lot of attention - probably much more than they'd have gotten without all that Rainfall stuff. Now it's up to Nintendo to make the most of it. Whereas Xenoblade was announced under the radar and initially met with lukewarm response, their 3DS and Wii U titles could be announced at the main press conference with tons of applause, as the press and the general public are now much more aware who those guys are.

Sure, but since they're losing out on The Last Story money I'd say they aren't 'the most brilliant marketers the world has ever seen'.

[ozfunghi]

So there appears to be a second Alien(s) game in development? For "next-gen" consoles...

http://www.actiontrip.com/news/creat...soles/050312_3

(thanks Tottentanz... unless old, lol)

[AceBandage]

Sure, but since they're losing out on The Last Story money I'd say they aren't 'the most brilliant marketers the world has ever seen'.

Nintendo will still get money from sales of TLS, though.

[IceDoesntHelp]

Friend is asking for (;

Post this on the Wii U Thread and ask to add Reggie's face in there. Nintendo knocking at the HD door or something.

[UncleSporky]

Yeah, the report totally sounds like estimation and not early confirmation. I don't expect Xenoblade at #3.

[Krev]

So there appears to be a second Aliens game in development? For "next-gen" consoles... http://www.actiontrip.com/news/creat...soles/050312_3 (thanks Tottentanz... unless old, lol)

Expect a whole ton of Aliens games to come, since it will be one of Sega's few retail franchises moving forward. This one is Aliens + Creative Assembly (who make one of their other 'priority' franchises, Total War), so Sega execs likely see it as a guaranteed hit.

Nintendo will still get money from sales of TLS, though.

Not nearly as much, and they wouldn't have gotten any if XSeed hadn't taken the initiative of approaching them.

[Instro]

Would an analyst firm even mention XenoBlade if they didn't have some early numbers?

[Father_Brain]

Sure, but since they're losing out on The Last Story money I'd say they aren't 'the most brilliant marketers the world has ever seen'.

They also probably lost a decent chunk of Xenoblade sales to importers.

But more broadly, if Nintendo hadn't had its policy against external publishers handling first-party titles, it'd be fairly safe to say that Mother 3, Disaster, Soma Bringer, Last Window, Regeinlev, Captain Rainbow, Another Code R, and the second DS Fire Emblem would all have been released in the US. As long as Rainfall has caused Nintendo to actually reconsider that policy (and not just make a one-time exception, which remains to be seen), I don't particularly care how much NOA makes from titles that otherwise wouldn't be released here at all.

[BGBW]

So there appears to be a second Alien(s) game in development? For "next-gen" consoles...

Is such a thing even possible?

[SaintMadeOfPlaster]

The article suggests that they already know that Xenoblade achieved 3rd place.

EA and BioWare's Mass Effect 3 was the highest-selling game title in the U.S. during April, says the report, followed by Activision's Prototype 2 and Nintendo-published Xenoblade Chronicles.

Wouldn't it have said "The report estimates that Xenoblade was the third best selling piece of software."? I dunno. All I know is that I hope it's true.

[-Pyromaniac-]

So does anyone else think Iwata was sending warning shots at Reggie when he was talking about american success not living up to its potential for 3DS. I wonder if NoA will step it up for the wiiU, because if not, it's over yo, it's just over.

[Krev]

Would an analyst firm even mention XenoBlade if they didn't have some early numbers?

I doubt it would even be on their radar.

They also probably lost a decent chunk of Xenoblade sales to importers. But more broadly, if Nintendo hadn't had its policy against external publishers handling first-party titles, it'd be fairly safe to say that Mother 3, Disaster, Soma Bringer, Last Window, Regeinlev, Captain Rainbow, and the second DS Fire Emblem would all have been released in the US. As long as Rainfall has caused Nintendo to actually reconsider that policy (and not just make a one-time exception, which remains to be seen), I don't particularly care how much NOA makes from titles that otherwise wouldn't be released here at all.

Yep.

Is such a thing even possible?

Trust me...yes it is.

[HylianTom]

In addition to the very special decision-makers at NoA, I hope that third parties notice that yes, Virginia, there is an audience hungry for this type of game on Nintndo machines.

.. but who am I kidding? On-rails test party games for everyone well into 2017!!! :)

[Luigison]

So there appears to be a second Alien(s) game in development? For "next-gen" consoles... http://www.actiontrip.com/news/creat...soles/050312_3 (thanks Tottentanz... unless old, lol)

I'm fine with this since there were only two Alien movies.

[JJConrad]

First point is a good one, and I'll try to remember to make note of that when I do the big E3 update. As for the latter, agree to disagree. "Better support from Publisher X than Wii" isn't that much of an achievement considering that the system got even worse support from most publishers than GC did, and I don't see ports aimed at a pretty tiny audience - people interested in HD multiplatform titles, but who never bothered to buy a PS3 or 360 - as being examples of serious support.

The point of looking at it from a company standpoint wasn't so much to compare it to the Wii, although I think that's important. Most of the major third party publishers were very supportive of the Wii when it came to certain types games. So its those other types of games we need to be looking at.

Looking at per company also helps identify if any missing titles are just circumstantial, problems specific to certain companies, or problems for the console at large. I don't expect every multiplatform game to be released on WiiU simply for the reasons of resources, expectations, and priorities. For example, if Crysis 3 is being developed to offset expensive from Crysis 2, then retooling it anew for Wii U sort of defeats the purpose. But if EA (or whoever), is otherwise very supportive of the system, some absences may not be too significant.

As for those three games... THQ already seems very committed to the system, so its more a matter if they survive... but Tecmo and WB are both relatively small publishers with only a few releases a year. Those old ports represent a large percentage of what they would make for or potential withhold.

[Discomurf]

I'll add a little speculation nugget to help us close out Episode IV...

Something I've been curious about since the Wii U controller was first shown is the sensor bar on the front. My first thought is that some type of head tracking (through an offset) could be possible, but since the sensor bar is front facing on the controller I'm not exactly sure how that would work. I also suppose some functionality would be possible when using with the Wii Remote, especially if the controller is sitting upright on its dock.

Could the sensor bar on the controller face hold a key to an unannounced feature?


-

[Kard8p3]

Friend is asking for (;

I was hoping that would pop up on the gaming side at some point.

Anyway does anyone miss the time when E3 was in May? I want WiiU info now.

[wsippel]

Sure, but since they're losing out on The Last Story money I'd say they aren't 'the most brilliant marketers the world has ever seen'.

Last Story isn't nearly as amazing though, and Nintendo still makes money from the game even if Xseed is publishing. But it makes much more sense to push Xenoblade as the definite Nintendo RPG and Monolith as Nintendos premier RPG developer, as Xenoblade is not only the better game, Monolith is also their own, wholly owned and 100% exclusive studio, while Mistwalkers next game might end up on a competing platform.

[Rösti]

I'm fine with this since there were only two Alien movies.

Alien (1979)
Aliens (1986)
Alien 3 (1992)
Alien Resurrection (1997)
Prometheus (2012)

Excluding the Alien vs. Predator films, this lists five Alien films (three if you exclude Aliens and Prometheus), not two.

[JordanLMiller]

http://gamasutra.com/view/news/16970...t__analyst.php If this is accurate, then Xenoblade is the 3rd best selling game in the NPD this month! That deserves a Tex Avery style O_O!

lol I'd love for this to be real.

[HylianTom]

I was hoping that would pop up on the gaming side at some point. Anyway does anyone miss the time when E3 was in May? I want WiiU info now.

On a positive side, when it's over, we'll be one month closer to the release date than the usual.

Small consolation, I know..

[Discomurf]

Alien (1979) Aliens (1986) Alien 3 (1992) Alien Resurrection (1997) Prometheus (2012) Excluding the Alien vs. Predator films, this lists five Alien films (three if you exclude Aliens and Prometheus), not two.

He's right there is only 2 Alien movies ;)

[Krev]

So does anyone else think Iwata was sending warning shots at Reggie when he was talking about american success not living up to its potential for 3DS. I wonder if NoA will step it up for the wiiU, because if not, it's over yo, it's just over.

I think he was. The peak period for Wii in the USA show that NoA are very capable of hitting the same kind of sales highs as Japan, but they've been consistently under-performing for the past few years. Iwata has made clear that he doesn't want to settle for 'good enough', and if the American branch can't start to compete on NCL's level I see a restructuring on the horizon.

The problem is so obvious from this armchair analyst's vantage point. NCL have recognised the need to aggressively pursue enthusiast gamers now that iDevices provide sufficient mobile gaming for the more casual. NoA are still leaning on the casual-skewed 'evergreen blockbusters only' approach that carried through Wii and DS. That isn't going to sustain the platform in 2012.

[StevieP]

Well, people are asking if i'm talking about specs whereas i specifically stated that those are known by third-parties through dev kit boot sequence and SDK documentation people are asking if i'm talking about DRC features whereas i specifically stated that it wasn't that It's like 50% of the content of the message is overlooked and read in 1 second without analysis, it's frustrating. It's pretty obvious what part of the Wii U, third-parties aren't aware of its implementation, its design, if i specifically and clearly state that it's not hardware spec, it's not hardware/controller "physical", usable features. I didn't wanted to spoon-fed you and let you guess what is it, it's more fun.

1. OS features
2. Online implementation

I think losing IR controls would be a deal breaker for a lot of the Wii userbase. I'd say that nintenod might mandate it as a control method. I know I won't be getting it unless every FPS uses IR pointing. No way I'm going back to the bad old days.

this.

Add me to this pile. It's either IR or mouse. If I can't have either, I won't be buying your FPS/TPS/rail shooter. Gyroscopic pointers aren't as good either. Dual analog is just... regression in every aspect. I don't like the idea that the pad is the default controller, tbh.

There doesn't need to be forced mandates or anything. Nintendo and other developers should just use common sense. -A huge chunk of the probable/possible Wii U audience is going to be Wii owners. There is no getting around that. -Most Wii owners have more than 1 Wii mote, by virtue of Wii Sports Tennis. -There is no need to pack in a Wiimote with the Wii U -Assuming that a Wii U owner has a Wiimote will not hurt the game, and at the very "worst" will make the owner to finally get one. Just remember to market that aspect.

If it's not in the box, it's not going to get a second thought from third parties. See: Move

Alright, guys. I get it. I suck. Enough about bans. >.>;

Why y'all pickin on BurntPork? *bumpkin accent*

[wsippel]

Alien (1979) Aliens (1986) Alien 3 (1992) Alien Resurrection (1997) Prometheus (2012) Excluding the Alien vs. Predator films, this lists five Alien films (three if you exclude Aliens and Prometheus), not two.

But why would anyone exclude the best movie in the series?