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Yves Guillemot: ZombiU Wasn't Profitable, not even close, no sequel planned

Ridley327

Member
I think people are salty about Ubi delaying a ready-to-release game several months.

And within a couple of weeks of its original release date, no less. If it was done with more warning or lead-up, I don't think the uproar would have been what it was. The way they handled the delay was pure dickery, good business reasons or not.
 
Nintendo clearly wasn't prepared to jump into HD. Should have waited to launch the console in the spring. Then the software drought wouldn't have been so bad.
 

GetemMa

Member
I know but really. The PS4 version looks stunning.

No it doesn't. It is a shinier version of the one on current gen consoles, which is the version of the game that most people will be playing anyway.

Nothing about Watch Dogs on even the next gen consoles goes beyond what I can already do on my PC.
 
If they did that, there would be a lot of angry burned wii u owners. People expect 5+ years of support for a console.

Yup. They're pretty much stuck with the thing for a while. They can't just pull a Virtual Boy with this one, and say it was an experiment or whatever. It's a mainline Nintendo console. Expect it to last for a few years, even if it means 5 first party games a year, with some indie stuff on the side.
 

Tripolygon

Banned
I think a lot of people who would argue that probably haven't played through ZombiU in it's entirety. Tension and overall gameplay are 2 different things, of course Last of Us plays better but ZombiU is balls to the walls scary/tense throughout the entire game. Besides, comparing ZombiU to Last of Us is dumb and one of the main reasons mid-tier games have died off. People can't get over themselves and enjoy a solid game for what it is. It's pathetic and downright shameful IMO.

Also, It's funny how a thread about a game selling so poorly that there's no desire for a sequel has so many people giving their opinion of the game...
Umm wtf are you going on about?

Someone insinuated that ZombiU pioneered not being able to pause in a game when in inventory by stating that ND copied it from ZombiU. It was pointed out to him that other games did before and he doubled down stating that ZombiU is more tense than TLoU because you manage inventory on a second screen and I said a lot of people would argue otherwise. Tension and overall gameplay are not mutually exclusive, overall presentation and gameplay can add to the tension in a game and nobody is comparing ZombiU to TLoU except for me pointing out that a lot of people would argue the contrary when it comes to tension in both games. people seem to love ZombiU in this thread and it would have been my first game for WiiU if i had bought it when i wanted to.
 

MrMephistoX

Member
It deserves a second chance on PS4 and Xbone just do smart glass for the bone and Vita cross play for the PS4. Hell make it download only.

Or rework it so you have the option of scanning in a Metroid Prime esque way instead of second screening it.
 

KingSnake

The Birthday Skeleton
I wonder if the people who were blaming the third parties in the other thread blame Ubisoft for this as well.

Ubisoft has the best support of Wii U, they should not be blamed. Nintendo is partially to blame, but I blame mostly the Wii U buyers. Because even if Nintendo would have released more 1st party games the situation of "I have bought Wii U and just NSMBU with it" that you can see so often here would have been even more aggravated. I wonder what Nintendo can do about it, as people buying more 1st party games and more consoles for these games will not guarantee that the 3rd party games will sell properly.
 

RurouniZel

Asks questions so Ezalc doesn't have to
guys... just a little observation; no tinfoil conspiracy or anything; just an observation:

in the article cited on the OP... there isn't a DIRECT QUOTE of Yves Guillemot saying that the game wasn't profitable; or that the Rayman situation was derived of that.

I studied journalism in college, and there's a rule that says that everytime you paraphrase something, you put the corresponding quote afterwards to back it up. you can see that they use that rule with the Activision and EA guys, but in the case of Ubisoft, there isn't a real quote, just the paraphrasis of the journalist. The only Ubisoft quote there is the one that it says that they are gonna wait for the holidays to evaluate the situation. There's nothing there about ZombiU or Rayman, except the journalist assumptions.

I'm not saying he's lying or something, but I find it pretty weird that he has direct quotes from the other two guys, and not the Ubisoft guy.

Quoted because needs to be read.
 

Cosmozone

Member
Damn, what a pity. More core gamers should have ventured into the Wii U realm, its exclusives offer a vast variety in genres, from Mario to Zombi U, from Lego City to Monster Hunter and soon Pikmin and W101.

Edit:
Ubisoft has the best support of Wii U, they should not be blamed. Nintendo is partially to blame, but I blame mostly the Wii U buyers.
There weren't many Wii U buyers, the console doesn't sell, remember? No, It didn't sell because the Wii U was not attractive enough for the people who would be otherwise interested in Zombi U and other 'mature' games.
 

DrWong

Member
guys... just a little observation; no tinfoil conspiracy or anything; just an observation:

in the article cited on the OP... there isn't a DIRECT QUOTE of Yves Guillemot saying that the game wasn't profitable; or that the Rayman situation was derived of that.

I studied journalism in college, and there's a rule that says that everytime you paraphrase something, you put the corresponding quote afterwards to back it up. you can see that they use that rule with the Activision and EA guys, but in the case of Ubisoft, there isn't a real quote, just the paraphrasis of the journalist. The only Ubisoft quote there is the one that it says that they are gonna wait for the holidays to evaluate the situation. There's nothing there about ZombiU or Rayman, except the journalist assumptions.

I'm not saying he's lying or something, but I find it pretty weird that he has direct quotes from the other two guys, and not the Ubisoft guy.

Wanted to highlight the same thing.
 
So the best (and maybe the best seller) 3rd party game on WiiU is not profitable. That says a lot. WiiU is becaming a Nintendo-only game machine (again for a Nintendo console). Not a bad thing if you have a second console, but really bad for Nintendo.
 

cyberheater

PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 Xbone PS4 PS4
No it doesn't. It is a shinier version of the one on current gen consoles, which is the version of the game that most people will be playing anyway.

Nothing about Watch Dogs on even the next gen consoles goes beyond what I can already do on my PC.

Then get the PC version. It will be a lot cheaper.
 

KageMaru

Member
Wasn't there a rumor that Ubisoft was looking into porting ZombieU to the PS360? If so, I wonder what ever happened to that. If there wasn't any such plans, then why not? IIRC one of the devs here said the game was originally planned as a PS360 title, I can't imagine it would be too hard to port it over. If anything, the port should have at least justified the ROI.

Shame about this news though, it was the only launch title I was interested in, and is still one of the games I plan to pick up when I eventually get a Wii-U.

Nintendo, you screwed up royally here and now we're all paying the price...
 

kuroshiki

Member
Yes but surely Ubisoft didn't expect to sell more than a similar game at launch for 360. Not Nintendo's fault they didn't budget accordingly.

First, I have no idea what was the budget for ZU. If you know something, spill the beans.

Second, Zombie games are popular and they tend to make money, it is a generally accepted as a safe bet. Didn't work on WiiU, and largely, it is the install base that affected the sale.

Third. Launching games, usually that have crappy quality, tend to sell well because there are not many games on launch. If launch game that feature zombie doesn't sell well -or not even close to break even-, then well, that's not the third party's fault. Platform holder has this responsibility to lead the platform.
 

chico

Member
its the nintendo 3rd party curse. next to fail will be bayonetta 2.
only nintendo games will sell on the wii u.
 

Madness

Member
But people said that EA was biased and foolish and it was because of Origin that they weren't putting games out.

ZombiU was a launch title and did poorly, does not bode well for many third party games. I'm going to concur and basically call the Wii U walking dead at this point. Not as bad as Virtual boy, but definitely pathetic. Will be even worse next year when millions buy xbone and ps4 and are playing games like TitanFall, Destiny etc.

Imagine what Watch Dogs will sell like on Wii U.
 

Vidiot

Member
That really sucks. :( I thought ZombiU was amazing! It's easily my favorite zombie game and still the best game on WiiU IMO. i was really looking forward to a sequel that really took things to the next level. Oh well. It stings a little more because I just finished another playthrough before seeing this thread.
 
I wonder how many launch titles of the XboxOne and Ps4 will be profitable...

Pretty much all of them:

Watch Dogs
Assassin's Creed 4
Battlefield 4
Call of Duty: Ghosts
Need for Speed: Rivals
Madden NFL 25
NBA 2K14
FIFA 14
NBA Live 14

The only questionable ones would be the family-focused titles like Just Dance 2014, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes, and Skylanders: Swap Force since it's usually not families who buy these systems day one. However, since it appears to be so easy to port these games up to the new systems, I'm sure they'll still turn a healthy profit.
 

dab0ne

Member
That's too bad. Never played ZombieU but I definitely want to try it. Nintendo should just rename this console the "Wii 2" so the average consumer knows it exists.
 

cyberheater

PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 Xbone PS4 PS4
Also, if Mark Cerny is to be taken at face value, the PS4 will have developers having engines up and running in as little as 1-3 months,

Yep. PC devs know they can develop a PC games and basically port it over to Xbox One and PS4 for free because the architecture is so similar. It's win win for them.

The good news is that it should work in reverse. The PC is going to get a serge of great looking Xbox One and PS4 games. Fantastic.
 

kuroshiki

Member
Pretty much all of them:

Watch Dogs
Assassin's Creed 4
Battlefield 4
Call of Duty: Ghosts
Need for Speed: Rivals
Madden NFL 25
NBA 2K14
FIFA 14
NBA Live 14


The only questionable ones would be the family-focused titles like Just Dance 2014, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes, and Skylanders: Swap Force since it's usually not families who buy these systems day one. However, since it appears to be so easy to port these games up to the new systems, I'm sure they'll still turn a healthy profit.

Damn. those are all multi million titles. I can't wait to see the sales comparison between PS4/WiiU of AC4 and WD
 

Days like these...

Have a Blessed Day
This really does seem like the final nail in the coffin. I own a Wii U and ZombieU and u love the game. I'm not mad @ ubi they tried. Nintendo fucked up massively no ifs ands or buts about it.
 
Unfortunate but logical. The game was a zombie game with a form of perma death. It was already a niche genre that really didn't wouldn't do very well on any platform but the small install base of Wii U was horrible for it. Even with being the only third-party exclusive and being bundled it probably only got a couple of 100,000's in sales.

The game is one of the few that take advantage of the gamepad in a way that was fundamentally a part of gameplay and enhanced it. I bought it near launch and had a great time. I was especially interested in how they could evolve the asymmetrical multiplayer with more RTS ekements and more players online. Oh well.

Nintendo simply can't try to make their games succeed so people will buy the console and then third-party games. That's part of it but they have to work with third-parties to make customers want those titles.
 

guek

Banned
I studied journalism in college

image.php


sorry, couldn't help myself
 
That's one of the dumbest things I've read on Gaf for a while. Why on earth would you buy the WiiU version if you're getting a launch PS4? It makes no sense.

What are you talking about? Why not buy it on the Wii-U? Not only does the Wii-u not have many games, this game is one of the only ones in which the gamepad will greatly enhance the overall experience of the game. Not to mention the fact that on launch day, there will be several other viable options for PS4. I'd rather buy the cross-generation game for Wii-U rather than juggling the controller and a tablet (assuming they have one) just to have a similar experience.
 
I chuckled at the thread title but did a "holy crap" at those quotes. Wasn't Zombi U one of the games Nintendo fans always pointed to as sold fairly well and broke even? Just like a few days ago there was a guy saying it would be over 1 mil soon. What a disaster. Guillemot just buried the Wii U right there. Ubi was their best third-party partner.
 

VanWinkle

Member
I think people are salty about Ubi delaying a ready-to-release game several months.

I was for a little while until I heard they just about DOUBLED the content in these months that it was delayed. So I'm ecstatic that they delayed it.
 
Lol at people saying WiiU is tanking because of hardware. WiiU has no games, and it's pretty much no hyperbole. It'd be tanking just as bad if it had beefier hardware -and- Nintendo would be losing more money.


It has no games because of the hardware. It's far too weak to get downports from the upcoming gen consoles. And since it has no future with next gen ports why would companies waste their time learning the system to port over current gen games? And on the rare occasions that they do port over from current gen systems the games sell like shit.

So, no future for a system that isnt powerful enough for downports and no profit to be made by porting over current gen games. But hey, it's got that awesome tablet controller!

Personally I love the tablet controller. But as a gamer I'd rather the cost of that tablet be spent on making more powerful hardware to run games instead. It's pretty much the exact same situation as MS and their dumbass Kinect. I dont want it and I'm not willing to buy a system that is less powerful because of it.
 

QaaQer

Member
I'm expecting W101 and Bayonetta 2 to do better than Zombi U. Zombi U has a terrible, generic name, relatively generic look at a glance, and was greeted with extremely polarized reviews. Not to mention it underwent what I'm sure was a painfully long, costly and experimental development cycle (changing from those rabbids to zombies, how to use controls, etc).

I don't think W101 or Bayo2 will sell millions, but W101 colors and style certainly fit the Nintendo landscape better. Bayonetta has the advantage of having fans on PS3 and 360 that have not yet purchased a Wii U. I could see it moving some consoles and possibly converting some Nintendo fans that never bothered with 1.

Keep the faith brother.

Personally, I just hope whatever agreement Platinum signed with Nintendo doesn't mean they go out of business if the games are sales disasters.
 
Unfortunate but logical. The game was a zombie game with a form of perma death. It was already a niche genre that really didn't wouldn't do very well on any platform but the small install base of Wii U was horrible for it. Even with being the only third-party exclusive and being bundled it probably only got a couple of 100,000's in sales.

The game is one of the few that take advantage of the gamepad in a way that was fundamentally a part of gameplay and enhanced it. I bought it near launch and had a great time. I was especially interested in how they could evolve the asymmetrical multiplayer with more RTS ekements and more players online. Oh well.

Nintendo simply can't try to make their games succeed so people will buy the console and then third-party games. That's part of it but they have to work with third-parties to make customers want those titles.


The Souls games were able to turn themselves into successes based almost soley on word of mouth and internet buzz. No multimillion dollar marketing campaign needed. ZombiU is compared to that in terms of gameplay, but has a much more market friendly theme (zombies vs dark fantasy). The difference is that there is a market to sell those games to on their respective platforms, even going back to Demon Souls on PS3. There is no such market on Wii U because it is selling like garbage and because Nintendo has not spend any time or effort cultivating an audience that will buy something other than Mario.
 

OryoN

Member
This is a lot different to what I recall them saying in the past. something to the effect of;

'While we wish game sales were higher, our performance was not bad, especially given the the number of hardware units currently out there.'

Anyone else remembered that piece? Will try to search later.

I'm pretty sure there is some truth to these new statements, but it could also be Ubisoft's way of spurring Nintendo into action, basically saying; "Even your best partners are hurting! You've got games launching this year, so do something to turn this dismal situation around or risk losing us too!"
 

onipex

Member
I tried out the demo and it wasn't the game for me so I don't care if there won't be a sequel.

People asking for a port thinking that they will make up the cost must forget that games bomb on all consoles and I doubt this game will sell enough to make up the cost. It got a lot of bad reviews from the start and the word of mouth has been pretty mixed. Its one of those games that you're either going to love or hate.
 

quetz67

Banned
I was under the impresion the WiiU is rather marketed as a family console and the game not really made for that audience.
 
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