Will Casual Games kill the Hardcore Market?

People on various websites and on message boards have been screaming all most since the Nintendo Wii came out about how it will be the end of gaming as we know it. They have also been worried about the industry as a whole moving toward only casual games and ignoring the smaller hardcore market.

What is hardcore? What is casual? What is everyone talking about?
Easy... Some comparisons have been made like,
"There are no hardcore readers or movie goers? How can there be for gaming?" Well this isn't true. "Hardcore readers," are people who like classics rather than those who read Danielle Steel novels. "Hardcore moviegoers," are people who only go to foreign films and prefer four star flicks rather than Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure.
Does the Hardcore movie market or literature markets hurt the causal ones? They don't even make a dent. The casual markets rule; they make all the money and they drive all the sales. The industry revolves around them.

In gaming, hardcore gaming is basically people who love to play games that are complex and require a certain degree of dedication. This would be something like Final Fantasy XII or perhaps Team Fortress 2. But it could also extend to games like World of Warcraft or Halo. Casual games are basically pick up and play. They don't need instructions and tend to be based on simple principals. Casual games are usually seen as games like Tetris, Pac-Man, Zuma, Wii Sports, Rayman Raving Rabids, or even Pokemon.

There are certainly games like Guitar Hero that span both areas/ Bit this is really a case of involvement in a hardcore game rather than making a hardcore game appear casual. I mean a lot of people have played 3 or 4 hours of Halo or Guitar Hero in a month. But if that same 3 or 4 hours were in a day rather than a month then that would qualify more on the hardcore scale. But this really only involves games that allow the player to play in smaller pieces rather than requiring them to play for longer stretches to get proficient at some part of the game to progress.


So there you go... No need to have a debate over that little matter. If your unsure of the veracity of my claims take a look at the majority of the Nintendo catalog and the majority of the XBOX 360 and compare. You'll see the differences pretty readily.

Now, to the point. Will casual gaming hurt the hardcore gaming market? Only if developers and publishers allow it to. If developers and publishers feel it is necessary to simplify their games to match some mythical casual average. Everyone above and below that average will suffer.

As things stand now, the hardcore market is actually driving the video game market; helped by the casual market. This includes things like the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS sales. Also, games like Guitar Hero 3 and Rock Band contribute to the huge return on video game sales. In October, video game sales rocked a 1.1 Billion dollar total and this is an astonishing number. Certainly nothing bad can come from numbers like this.

Possibly in the short run things will remain just about the same and even Nintendo admits that the Wii is far from future proof. In a year or two there will probably be a new version of the Wii that is more powerful and more compatible with what developers and publishers are looking for in hardcore gaming.

Doing this will ultimately make the Nintendo Wii and possibly the DS perfect gaming systems. However, there are some questions as to whether Nintendo itself understands what hardcore means. But we will leave that for the future to decide. In short, it will not be Nintendo who brings down hardcore gaming. Rather it was the flag bearer for trying to make causal gaming more interesting to the average person. In the long run, it will be the gamers who decide what is and what is not acceptable.

Video games are one of the most volatile markets out there. There are SO MANY factors that dictate what makes money and what doesn't. Gamers old or young are a fickle bunch. This year has been a historic year for excellent video games and so far an excellent year for video game sales. What happens next year may be very different. But that, will be decided in time.

Bring me the Head of Mario!

Before you read this you might want to head over and read Mario is unmarketable by Aaron Linde. It's an awesome article and gave me the inspiration to write this one. The idea of mascots these days is getting more and more pathetic. The emergence of recent titles like Sonic the Hedgehog on the XBOX 360 and PS3 just proved how over the era of franchise mascots selling games really is. The problem is when you look at a game like Super Mario Galaxy and realize that Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of Mario. Has some serious game designing chops and yet again he has turned the platforming industry on it's ear and made developers look again at the little plumber for ways to improve their own games.

Sadly though, Super Mario Galaxy has no real requirement of said plumber at all. The game could easily have worked using Luigi or even a new made up character. One reviewer said that it being Mario made the game better. I disagree. I think it just makes the game more pat. Making it Mario, made people instantly compare it to all the other Mario games. Which is exactly what happens with all of Nintendo's franchise mascot games.

How many years have there been Sonic, Mario, and Zelda games. Zelda of course, being the worst example of a worn out mascot. Because not only does Link do the same story types over and over we aren't even introduced to brand new franchise characters in these reruns. Once I would like to see a true sequel for Link where he starts with all his weapons or even better where Link has completely different weapons. Like an uzi... Just kidding...

Critics have said that this industry is moving away from sequels and going more towards remakes of old games so that these classics can be brought into a new era. Why not? After all, Nintendo has been doing it for years with their franchises. Few Nintendo franchises get new games that are wholly and completely different. How many times have we played the original Legend of Zelda or the Super Mario Bros?
There certainly seems to be an audience for these games. But it has all ways been about the characters. "Oh I love Zelda and Mario." A Nintendo Fan might exclaim upon hearing of a new title coming out featuring one or the other. Yes, the impact of these characters has been historically very important to selling games. The problem is that recycling old titles into new ones, isn't the same thing as making sequels. Sequels try to be better than the originals. Remakes are the originals, just with better graphics...

These days however, with the ever decreasing list of franchise characters and the people who loved them growing up. It's hard to imagine a new Mario or Zelda game making an impact on a whatever console follows the Wii. Certainly on the Wii, any quality titles will be latched on to whether they feature a franchise character or not. As all the games on the Wii are aimed widely at a younger audience or a much broader audience than those games that have come out recently. Everything seems to work with varying degrees of success. But the future can be a hard master or please. Just look at Lara Croft...

In a time not too long ago. A pixelated busty version of Indiana Jones could do no wrong. She explored every kind of tomb imaginable over four different games and even a movie or two. Yes, this was the most powerful franchise in video game history. She epitomized everything the modern game industry wanted to be seen as. Cutting edge, sexy, and action oriented. But it didn't last very long... By the time the PS2 reached customers in 2001 most people were more than a little over Tomb Raider.

Even with new editions like Tomb Raider Legend, last year. And Tomb Raider Anniversary Edition this year; the big draw of Lara Croft seems to have worn off. Which is too bad considering Legend was arguably the best Tomb Raider game ever. Angeline Jolie probably doesn't want to hear this as shooting begins on the next Tomb Raider movie in around 3-6 months. But it's true...

The world of iconic characters is beginning to dry up like a shallow river bed. I have to apologize to Marcus Fenix and Master Chief. Sorry, guys by 2010 nobody will even remember your names. As hard as developers are trying to bring their characters to the fore and sell them like it was 1999. It's just not working in most cases.

With titles like Mario and Sonic at the Olympics most gamers just shake their heads and ask, "Why?" But Nintendo takes the popularity of games like Super Mario Galaxy and Super Smash Brothers Brawl as signs that they can still use their characters to financial advantage. But is Mario selling Galaxy? Or is it super hype that has been going on for all most a year with the following statements in it: best graphics on the Wii, gameplay like that from Super Mario 64 but with a new twist, and plenty of journalists giving this game scores so high that it makes the rest of the Nintendo Wii's titles look like bargain bin crap.

No, I think that if this was Super Luigi Galaxy it would be selling just as well. I think that with the kind of buzz that this game has generated it really doesn't matter who the main character is. I have to say here that this is probably the best Mario game I've ever played and certainly the best platformer.

Having said that however, Insomniac's Ratchet and Clank Future Tools of Destruction also came out this year. The game is like a Pixar movie on crack and is probably the most fun I've ever had with the series. Was it Ratchet and Clank with their world and cast of characters that made this game great? Not really, it was the incredible commitment on the part of the best Sony developer out there to make a quality title. If Mr. Miyamoto could be allowed to make something else, perhaps everyone would see that the same holds true for Nintendo. But Japanese development being what it is, it's hard to imagine that ever happening.

So is this some sort of prophetic report on the new trend in the video game industry? Certainly not, it is more to show that these mascots are silly and that the video game industry is holding to them not to keep quality up or have iconic characters. It's rather to try and insure some kind of revenue stream. If the games are really as good as they hope they are; then they don't need their mascot crutch. And if they aren't, well then a hollow, "It'ssss a me... Mario!" Won't sell you too many more copies anyway. With the ever increasing price of creating games these kinds of tactics seem to be the fall back for publishers and developers in need of revenue. But just like reality programming on television, crap only plays so long until the publics starts to react. Unfortunately with video games, it takes a LONG TIME to change direction, so you folks might want to start doing that now. Before it's too late...

Oh by the way. Just so that none of you hardcore XBOX fans out there won't feel like your sacred cow is safe. Judging by the way the story ended and the fact that Bungie separated itself from Microsoft. Master Chief is next on the chopping block. The fight's finished, the mascots lost. Someone please tell the developers...

Just to prove how poor everyone will be by January! NPD numbers!

"Top 10 best-selling games of October 2007, according to NPD Group

Halo 3 (regular, collector's, and legendary versions)--Xbox 360--434,000
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (with guitar)--Xbox 360--383,000
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (with guitar)--Wii--286,000
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (with guitar)--PS2--271,000
Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass--DS--263,000
Wii Play with Wii Remote--Wii--240,000
The Orange Box--Xbox 360--238,000
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock--PS2--232,000
FIFA Soccer 08--PS2--130,000
Brain Age 2: More Training in Minutes a Day--DS--117,000

October 2007 hardware sales, according to NPD Group

Wii--519,000
Nintendo DS--458,000
Xbox 360--366,000
PSP--286,000
PS2--184,000
PS3--121,000"Gamespot...

This was a crazy month with 1.1 Billion in sales! So is there any money left out there for the rest of the year. I'm sure, but by the time this is all over I don't think there will be many pennies in our coffers.

The Wii versus the Gamecube Discuss!

Next Generation has this interesting article.
The article discusses how Gamecube games would work well on the Wii and how the Gamecube didn't go far enough. This is certainly a fascinating read. But what it brings up is less the triumph for the Wii and more the redundancy of the philosophy of Nintendo itself. The company obviously needs to move on with their thinking. The idea that Nintendo's philosophy of changing the controls for consoles and how this concept alone seems to be the motivating force in Nintendo's games foreshadows the Wii and describes a real problem for the Gamecube's core design.
This seems to be why Nintendo seems happy to go against the ideas of Microsoft and Sony by trying not to make anything resembling a traditional system. Problem is that developers still have the need to make traditional games. Which means that the Wii will still be the shovelware system until Nintendo decides to limit development to games designed specifically for the Wii. The hope on this horizon is that games like Guitar Hero 3 are just as good on the Wii as on XBOX 360 or PS3.
Currently however, this is the exception not the rule. The real question seems to be that with the market evolving so quickly how will the Wii faire in a year or two when the games on other systems look worlds away and make the system look like Atari 2600.
This is wonderful news for Wii owners. But unless there is more quality than shovelware come this time next year; I don't think even millions of casual gamers will be able to save the Wii from the Gamecubes fate. Problem with history is that it repeats...

Hellgate London and Nintendo's Game about Death

Nintendo's Game about Death seems to be missing a certain point. That is if you played the original Diablo or the new Hellgate London in hardcore mode. Your character will die if you let it. Therefore, it's not like Fire Emblem when just one of your characters dies; this is when your character that you have worked on for weeks dies. Then that's it. So Fire Emblem is rare but not unique.

NPD Sales for September 2007, Sony's PS3 not doing too well!

"Top 10 best-selling games of September 2007, according to NPD Group

Halo 3 (all versions)--Xbox 360--3.3 million
Wii Play with Wii Remote--Wii--282,000
The Legend of Zelda: The Phantom Hourglass--DS--224,000
Madden NFL 08--PS2--205,000
Skate--Xbox 360--175,000
Madden NFL 08--Xbox 360--173,000
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption--Wii--167,000
BioShock--Xbox 360--150,000
Brain Age 2: More Training in Minutes a Day--DS--141,000
Heavenly Sword--PS3--139,000

September 2007 hardware sales, according to NPD Group

Xbox 360--528,000
Wii--501,000
DS--496,000
PSP--285,000
PS2--215,000
PS3--119,000"Gamespot...

Looks like Halo 3 was good for hardware sales after all. It seems that all the analysts predictions about the PS3 sales skyrocketing aren't panning out. Also, considering the price cut for the PS3 won't show until November's NPD. Analysts say that the larger the install base of the XBOX 360 and PS3 will positively impact the whole industry as opposed to the Wii install base only favoring Nintendo. Sony's response to the lagging sales is basically that their share of the market is 619,000 compared with Xbox's 528,000 and Nintendo's 997,000 so they are still in second place. This is kind of sidestepping the question of Sony's problems with the PS3. But admitting that they have a problem is just not something that Sony is ever willing to do.

Capcom's BIG Announcement! Lost Planet?

Capcom's announcement from 1UP"Capcom Reveals New Games, IP in London
Lost Planet PS3, sci-fi Dark Void, SF2 HD delay, more.
By Patrick Klepek, 10/17/2007
What happened in London was supposed to stay in London until embargoes expired, but Games Radar defied the marketing folks at Capcom this morning and published a story detailing many of the announcements coming out of their media briefing overseas today. Games Radar has since taken down the article, but the announcements are no less intriguing.

As Street Fighter IV is announced, another is delayed. Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD will not find itself on Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network this year, as Capcom works on reducing the effects of lag for online multiplayer. The remake will also introduce true widescreen support and remixed music.

Capcom also revealed a brand-new sci-fi IP, Dark Void. Does Dead Space have some competition? Not much is known about Dark Void, but Games Radar said the trailer showed "third-person and air-vehicle gameplay with a character wearing a steam punk jetpack, skydiving and landing in the cockpit of a gyroscopic aircraft, and then jumping and climbing through airbase fortesses [sic]."

And confirming something we all suspected would happen eventually, Lost Planet is arriving on PlayStation 3 in early 2008. The PS3 version will include all content released over Xbox Live, bonus characters from the PC version and apparently support up to 16 players over PSN.

Additionally, Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney made an appearance on Nintendo DS, but we already knew about that one, along with Wii Love Golf from the studio behind Mario Golf.

1UP is at Capcom's event now, but our lips are sealed until later this week -- stay tuned."

Some cool announcements but Lost Planet for the PS3? Is this a big deal? I dunno, I guess I'll give it a shot, but it seems a little anticlimactic.

No NintendoWii price cut in the Foreseeable Future! Yeah so?

"To those of you waiting for a price cut on the Wii, keep waiting. And stop being so damned cheap. In an interview with Reuters, Nintendo's George Harrison states that there's no plans to cut the price of the Wii in the US.

"We'll stay at USD 249 for the foreseeable future," says Harrison, as he rolls over in a pit of gold to scratch his back. "We are still selling everything we can make."

And he's right -- demand for the console is still high. Even with the promise of increased unit shipments this Holiday, there's still the threat of a shortage. Wii Sports is a very, very good game, guys."Destructoid...

OK, so who asked this and why? If you supposedly can't make enough to meet the demand of something, what would lowering the price do for you? Decrease your profits and you would have an even bigger demand that you couldn't fill... Sounds really smart... All I have to say is that there is no Wii price cut and the Pope is still Catholic. Go back to your lives...

Viva Pinata for PC, opens the party on November 4!

When Viva Pinata for the PC was announced during the Microsoft Press Conference at E3, I was pretty happy. What I didn't know at the time was why was this happening? I still don't. No details on the game have been announced. Is there going to be a garden editor allowing the player to make bigger gardens or gardens with strange structures? Can the player use some mod tools to make new Pinatas? Will there be new pinatas from the developers? Hello, Rare and Microsoft; this game comes out in November!
Will the game be different in any way from the game on XBOX 360? There was also a Nintendo DS version announced recently. Which they are saying will be exactly the same as the XBOX 360 version and will even support trading pinatas over WiFi.
Considering this game is less than a month away, I think it would be good if Rare and Microsoft show the game off. New Features? Better graphics? Construction tools? If there isn't anything different on the PC version, why does it exist?

Wiiiiiiiii! A Release List courtesy of Kotaku

"Because of Wii and Nintendo DS momentum, third-party publishers are supporting our systems like never before," says George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications. "Their lineup of diverse games is testament to how we make the population of gamers a little bigger every day."

Wii
Oct. 15: Sea Monsters from DSI Games
Oct. 16: Thrillville(R): Off the Rails(TM) from LucasArts
Oct. 22: EA PLAYGROUND from Electronic Arts
Oct. 23: Backyard Football from Atari, Inc.
Oct. 23: The Sims 2(TM) Castaway from Electronic Arts
Oct. 23: Rockstar Games Presents(TM) Table Tennis from Rockstar Games
Oct. 23: The Legend of Spyro(TM): The Eternal Night from Sierra
Entertainment, Inc.
Oct. 23: NARUTO(TM): Clash of Ninja(TM) Revolution from TOMY Corporation
Oct. 25: M&M'S(R) Kart Racing from DSI Games
Oct. 28: Guitar Hero III(TM): Legends of Rock from Activision
Oct. 29: Battalion Wars(TM) 2 from Nintendo
Oct. 30: Ben 10(TM): Protector of Earth from D3Publisher of America(R)
Oct. 30: Showtime(R) Championship Boxing(TM) from DSI Games
Oct. 30: NEED FOR SPEED PROSTREET from Electronic Arts
Oct. 30: THE SIMPSONS from Electronic Arts
Oct. 31: Manhunt 2(TM) from Rockstar Games
October: Spider-Man(TM): Friend or Foe from Activision
October: Bee Movie(TM) Game from Activision
October: Tony Hawk's Proving Ground from Activision
October: Ultimate Duck Hunting(TM) from Detn8 Games Ltd.
October: Mercury Meltdown Revolution from Ignition Entertainment
October: Namco Museum(TM) Remix from NAMCO BANDAI Games America
October: Code Lyoko: Quest for Infinity from The Game Factory
October: Avatar: The Last Airbender(TM) - The Burning Earth from THQ
October: Bratz: The Movie(TM) from THQ
October: Cars: Mater-National from THQ
October: Nicktoons(TM): Attack of the Toybots from THQ
October: SpongeBob's Atlantis SquarePantis(TM) from THQ
Nov. 5: Fire Emblem(R): Radiant Dawn from Nintendo
Nov. 6: DanceDanceRevolution Hottest Party from Konami Digital
Entertainment, Inc.
Nov. 6: LEGO(R) Star Wars(TM): The Complete Saga from LucasArts
Nov. 6: Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games(TM) from SEGA
Nov. 12: Super Mario Galaxy(TM) from Nintendo
Nov. 13: Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 3 from Atari, Inc.
Nov. 13: Godzilla Unleashed from Atari, Inc.
Nov. 13: Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Anniversary from Eidos, Inc.
Nov. 13: BLOCKS from Electronic Arts
Nov. 13: MEDAL OF HONOR HEROES(TM) 2 from Electronic Arts
Nov. 13: LUXOR: Pharaoh's Challenge from MumboJumbo
Nov. 13: Geometry Wars(TM): Galaxies from Sierra Entertainment, Inc.
Nov. 19: Link's Crossbow Training(TM) (packaged with Wii Zapper(TM)) from
Nintendo
Nov. 19: SMARTY PANTS(TM) from Electronic Arts
Nov. 20: Jenga World Tour from Atari, Inc.
Nov. 20: Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords(TM) from D3Publisher of
America(R)
November: Trauma Center(TM): New Blood from Atlus USA
November: Star Trek: Conquest from Bethesda Softworks
November: Disney Princess: Enchanted Journey from Disney Interactive
Studios
November: Hannah Montana: Spotlight World Tour from Disney Interactive
Studios
November: High School Musical: Sing It from Disney Interactive Studios
November: Garfield Gets Real from DSI Games
November: Furu Furu Park from Majesco Entertainment
November: AMF Bowling: Pinbusters! from Mud Duck Games
November: Ghost Squad(TM) from SEGA
November: WWE(R) SmackDown(R) vs. Raw(R) 2008 from THQ
November: Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 from Ubisoft
November: CSI: Hard Evidence from Ubisoft
November: My Word Coach from Ubisoft
November: Petz: Catz 2 (name not final) from Ubisoft
November: Petz: Dogz 2 (name not final) from Ubisoft
November: Petz: Horsez 2 (name not final) from Ubisoft
November: Rayman Raving Rabbids 2 from Ubisoft
Dec. 4: Alvin and the Chipmunks from Brash Entertainment
Dec. 4: The Golden Compass(TM) from SEGA
December: MX vs. ATV(TM) Untamed(TM) from THQ
December: Super Swing Golf(TM) Season 2 from Tecmo, Inc.
December: Rygar(R): The Battle of Argus from Tecmo, Inc.
December: Cranium: Kabookii from Ubisoft
December: Nitrobike from Ubisoft
Holiday 2007: NiGHTS(TM): Journey of Dreams from SEGA
Winter '07: SoulCalibur Legends(TM) from NAMCO BANDAI Games America
Jan. 21: Endless Ocean(TM) from Nintendo
Feb. 10: Super Smash Bros.(R) Brawl from Nintendo
Feb. 15: Yamaha Supercross from DSI Games
Feb. 19: Sonic(TM) Riders: Zero Gravity from SEGA
February: No More Heroes from Ubisoft
February: Wild Petz Tigerz from Ubisoft
March: Obscure: The Aftermath from Ignition Entertainment
Q1: LUXOR 3 from MumboJumbo
Q1: One Piece(TM): Unlimited Adventure(TM) from NAMCO BANDAI Games
America
Spring '08: Mario Kart(R) Wii (name not final) from Nintendo

DS
Oct. 15: Flash Focus(TM): Vision Training in Minutes a Day from Nintendo
Oct. 15: The Aly & AJ Adventure from DSI Games
Oct. 16: Cheetah Girls: Pop Star Sensations from Disney Interactive
Studios
Oct. 16: Thrillville(R): Off the Rails(TM) from LucasArts
Oct. 16: Fish Tycoon(R) from Majesco Entertainment
Oct. 16: Super Collapse! 3 from MumboJumbo
Oct. 17: Prism(TM) from Secret Stash Games(TM)
Oct. 19: Betty Boop's(TM) "Double Shift" from DSI Games
Oct. 22: EA PLAYGROUND from Electronic Arts
Oct. 23: THE SIMS 2 CASTAWAY from Electronic Arts
Oct. 23: Rhythm 'n Notes: Improve Your Music Skill from AGETEC
Oct. 23: Backyard Football 2008 from Atari, Inc.
Oct. 23: Napoleon Dynamite from Crave Entertainment
Oct. 23: Ed, Edd n Eddy(TM): Scam of the Century from D3Publisher of
America(R)
Oct. 23: Hannah Montana: Music Jam from Disney Interactive Studios
Oct. 23: Disney Princess: Magical Jewels from Disney Interactive Studios
Oct. 23: Power Rangers: Super Legends from Disney Interactive Studios
Oct. 23: Zoo Hospital(TM) from Majesco Entertainment
Oct. 23: FRONT MISSION(R) from Square Enix, Inc.
Oct. 23: NARUTO(TM): Path of the Ninja(TM) from TOMY Corporation
Oct. 25: Sea Monsters from DSI Games
Oct. 25: Arctic Tale from DSI Games
Oct. 30: Ben 10(TM): Protector of Earth from D3Publisher of America(R)
Oct. 30: Suite Life: Circle of Spies from Disney Interactive Studios
Oct. 30: Dr. Seuss: How the Grinch(TM) Stole Christmas from DSI Games
Oct. 30: NEED FOR SPEED PROSTREET from Electronic Arts
Oct. 30: THE SIMPSONS from Electronic Arts
Oct. 30: Puzzle de Harvest Moon from Natsume Inc.
Oct. 31: Dementium: The Ward from Gamecock Media Group
Oct. 31: Solitaire Overload(TM) from Telegames, Inc.
October: Spider-Man(TM): Friend or Foe from Activision
October: Bee Movie(TM) Game from Activision
October: Shrek(R): Ogres and Dronkeys(TM) from Activision
October: Tony Hawk's Proving Ground from Activision
October: Touch Detective 21/2(TM) from Atlus USA
October: Animal Genius(TM) from Scholastic
October: Build-A-Bear Workshop from The Game Factory
October: Avatar: The Last Airbender(TM) - The Burning Earth from THQ
October: Cars: Mater-National from THQ
October: El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera(TM) from THQ
October: Nicktoons(TM): Attack of the Toybots from THQ
October: Ratatouille(R) Food Frenzy from THQ
October: SpongeBob's Atlantis SquarePantis(TM) from THQ
October: Chessmaster: The Art of Learning from Ubisoft
October: Imagine: Babyz from Ubisoft
October: Imagine: Fashion Designer from Ubisost
October: Imagine: Master Chef from Ubisoft
October: Imagine: Animal Doctor from Ubisoft
October: Wild Petz Dolphinz from Ubisoft
Nov. 6: Dora the Explorer(TM): Dora Saves the Mermaids from 2K Play
Nov. 6: Go Diego Go(TM): Safari Adventure from 2K Play
Nov. 6: Baby Pals from Crave Entertainment
Nov. 6: Horse Life(TM) from D3Publisher of America(R)
Nov. 6: LEGO(R) Star Wars(TM): The Complete Saga from LucasArts
Nov. 6: Chicken Hunter from MumboJumbo
Nov. 6: DRAGON QUEST MONSTERS(TM): Joker from Square Enix, Inc.
Nov. 10: Showtime(R) Championship Boxing(TM) from DSI Games
Nov. 13: Enchanted from Disney Interactive Studios
Nov. 13: BOOGIE from Electronic Arts
Nov. 13: ORCS & ELVES from Electronic Arts
Nov. 13: Cooking Mama 2: Dinner with Friends from Majesco Entertainment
Nov. 13: Geometry Wars(TM): Galaxies from Sierra Entertainment, Inc.
Nov. 19: Mario Party(R) DS from Nintendo
Nov. 20: Godzilla Unleashed Double Smash from Atari, Inc.
Nov. 20: Jenga World Tour from Atari, Inc.
Nov. 20: LUXOR: Pharaoh's Challenge from MumboJumbo
Nov. 20: FINAL FANTASY(R) XII: REVENANT WINGS(TM) from Square Enix, Inc.
Nov. 26: Master of Illusion(TM) from Nintendo
November: Call of Duty(R): Modern Warfare(TM) from Activision
November: Ontamarama(TM) from Atlus USA
November: Draglade(TM) from Atlus USA
November: Elf Bowling(TM) Collector's Edition from Detn8 Games Ltd.
November: Garfield Gets Real from DSI Games
November: Clue(TM)/Mouse Trap(TM)/Perfection(TM)/Aggravation(TM) from DSI
Games
November: Contra 4 from Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.
November: Yu-Gi-Oh! World Championship 2008 from Konami Digital
Entertainment, Inc.
November: Strawberry Shortcake: The Four Seasons Cake from The Game
Factory
November: Bratz Super Babyz(TM) from THQ
November: Bratz: 4 Real(TM) from THQ
November: Warhammer(R) 40,000(TM): Squad Command(TM) from THQ
November: WWE(R) SmackDown(R) vs. Raw(R) 2008 from THQ
November: Ninja Gaiden(R) Dragon Sword from Tecmo, Inc.
November: My French Coach from Ubisoft
November: My Spanish Coach from Ubisoft
November: My Word Coach from Ubisoft
November: Petz: Catz 2 (working title) from Ubisoft
November: Petz: Dogz 2 (working title) from Ubisoft
November: Petz: Hamsterz Life 2 from Ubisoft
November: Petz: Horsez 2 from Ubisoft
November: Rayman Raving Rabbids 2 from Ubisoft
Dec. 4: Alvin and the Chipmunks from Brash Entertainment
Dec. 4: The Golden Compass(TM) from SEGA
Dec. 10: RIP: Death Volunteers(TM) from Telegames, Inc.
December: Diary Girl from Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.
Jan. 15: Barnyard Blast from DSI Games
Jan. 21: Advance Wars(R): Days of Ruin from Nintendo
Jan. 25: M&M'S(R) Kart Racing from DSI Games
Jan. 31: Command & Destroy from DSI Games
January: Miami Nights from Ubisoft
Feb. 4: Professor Layton and the Curious Village(TM) from Nintendo
Feb. 12: New Zealand Story Revolution from Ignition Entertainment
Feb. 15: Yamaha Supercross from DSI Games
Feb. 19: Mystery Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer from SEGA
Feb. 26: Bubble Bobble Double Shot from Ignition Entertainment
February: Imagine: Figure Skater from Ubisoft
February: Wild Petz Tigerz from Ubisoft
February: Assassin's Creed from Ubisoft
March 4: Disney Friends from Disney Interactive Studios
March 29: Ultimate Card Games from Telegames, Inc.
March: Insecticide from Gamecock Media Group
March: My Life Coach from Ubisoft
Q1: Eco Creatures: Save the Forest from Majesco Entertainment
Q1: Polar Bowling from MumboJumbo
Q1: Slingo Quest from MumboJumbo
Q1: Tropix from MumboJumbo
Q1: Polar Golf from MumboJumbo
Q1: River King: Mystic Valley from Natsume Inc.
Q1: Harvest Moon DS Cute from Natsume Inc.
Q1: Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games(TM) from SEGA

It's like a Rubick's Cube, sort of...

IGN says, "Developers 'Nervous' About Making Wii Games

Japanese newspaper claims developers are worried about Wii's future.

by Rob Burman, IGN UK

UK, October 11, 2007 - Despite Nintendo reporting it can't keep up with demand for its Wii console, a Japanese newspaper is claiming that developers are concerned its bubble is about to burst, with some actually nervous about making titles for the motion-sensing machine, in case they don't sell.

This comes from The Nikkei Business Daily, which has been speaking to software houses about their thoughts on the future of Wii. Several developers claim that Nintendo has been the only beneficiary of Wii's success as it was able to predict demand for the console, while other publishers were forced to catch up quickly producing titles - some of which ended up as flops.

Meanwhile, others think that the Wii is only a fad and its popularity will fade. One unnamed president of a developer told Nikkei: "The Wii is like the 'Billy's Boot Camp' weight-loss program on DVD. People bought it out of curiosity, and it's likely a lot of them haven't used it".

According to Nikkei, concern is also growing in the Japanese industry after sales of Wii slowed considerably to just 168,000 units - the worst month of sales since December 2006. Now companies are "on guard for signs of a major change"

As anyone can see who reads this blog, I'm in complete agreement with these findings. There are certainly glimmers of hope for the console like all of the first party Nintendo titles, No more Heroes from SUDA 51, and the announcement of Monster Hunter 3 for the Wii certainly is going to help the console even more in Japan. Although a DS version of Monster Hunter probably would have sold even better. I really thought the Wii showed hope in the beginning. There were a few interesting titles and certainly the hope for the future was great. But as the console evolved into an Alpha Mom device and began casting off it's hardcore fanbase. The quality of both the hardware and software progressively was called into question; this certainly seems to be the last nail in Nintendo's coffin. How will they proceed if developers don't take the Wii seriously?

Wiiyourstory, don't play games just talk about them!

As yet another example of Nintendo's arrogance about the success of their console they have launched Wiiyourstory a place where people can post their experiences with their Wii. Yes, this is their E3 press event all over again. This is either a way for them to get more material for next E3 or just a blatant publicity site for their PR group to post stories and get people on their preferred list who get free games and hardware to post as well. Nintendo doesn't want to work with the press through normal channels and prefer to do things like this. Which just smacks of complete arrogance on Nintendo's part; saying, "Hey, we are SO GREAT that everybody wants to tell you how GREAT we are!"
Sorry, guys you haven't cured cancer, prevented global warming, or brought us world peace. You've made a toy that is masquerading as a game system.

Nintendo's Doing it's Little Dance in Hell...

Gamesetwatch..."Opinion: Poor Wii, DS Game Clones Only Benefit... Nintendo?

[In this GameSetWatch editorial, Game Developer/Gamasutra publisher Simon Carless discusses Nintendo's 'laissez faire' attitude to third-party game publishing, and whether its lackadaisical posture could actually be benefiting the company's first-party titles.]

So there's something interesting going on in the house of Nintendo - and it involves the swelling market for DS and Wii games, and Nintendo's lack of concern over assuring quality on said games. This conversation spools off the most recent issue of Ziff Davis' EGM Magazine, which has an excellent article on Nintendo's quality control for approving third-party titles, and what it means.

GoNintendo has a brief summary of the ideas behind the article. Now, I won't rehash EGM's piece too much, but it very correctly points out that Nintendo is the only major hardware manufacturer right now which has no stringent concept approval for games - both for the DS and Wii. And this is leading to a whole heap of average or poor quality games for Nintendo's consoles. But I want to springboard off this concept and go... further!

So, it's true that 'classic' games like Billy The Wizard (formerly Barry Hatter: The Sorceror's Broomstick) - which Conspiracy is putting out in North America - could and would never have been published in North America on Sony or Microsoft consoles (though the ever-relaxed SCEE did let it through!) And, oh my, there are plenty of other 'shovelware' titles coming soon. But... does it matter?

Now, setting aside the whole Nintendo 'Seal' vs. 'Seal Of Quality' discussion - which is a bit of a red herring, in some ways, it all comes down to an interesting question. Is Nintendo actually doing itself a favor by allowing all these titles to flood the market? No, seriously - here's how it goes:

- Wii and DS owner picks up a deeply average third-party game by Company X.
- Said owner plays it for a while, and gets frustrated at the poor use of the Wiimote and the relative shallow gameplay.
- Owner crosses Company X off his list of publishers he will play games from.
- Returning to the game store, Wii/DS owner goes back to what he knows - family games featuring Mario, Donkey Kong, Pokemon, and other long-time Nintendo mascots. In other words, first-party games.

So - is this whole 'open' publishing tactic by Nintendo just a ploy to dilute the market and drive consumers back to their only guarantee of quality - a 'published by Nintendo' label? Oh, the conspiracy theorists would love you to believe that!

But... nope - I just don't think that's always the case. For one thing, many of the clones that don't include mascot characters - particularly of Nintendogs and Brain Age - are so relatively close to Nintendo's own products that I'm sure that some gamers must be picking them up instead. For example, to joust for shelf space with Nintendogs, here's Pets: Dogz 2 from Ubisoft (and yes, there's a franchise precedent for this, but..), Paws & Claws: Dogs & Cats Best Friends, and a host of others. They all have cute pets on the cover - why would you care whether it's made by Nintendo or not?

Conversely, after (or even before) you've played through Brain Age, why not try Brain Buster Puzzle Pak from Sega, or Brain Booster Beta Wave from Majesco - which even comes in two flavors, much like the Pokemon games do. (I don't remember seeing such calculated clones for the DS in Japan? Or am I just being over-hopeful?)

To conclude - this is an incredibly nuanced question. In some ways, more choice is great. It's something we're used to on the Internet, with DVDs, with music CDs, and with PC casual games - which also suffer from cloning issues, for better or worse. And Nintendo is opening up the market to publishers of every size and games of every type - there's no accusations that 2D Japanese titles are getting unfairly blocked when there is a market for them, as SCEA has been accused of in the past.

In addition, let's face it - concept approval for Microsoft and Sony's consoles hasn't always led to top quality titles, and in fact, may have dissuaded the kind of simpler, more 'mainstream' games that are thriving on the DS and Wii right now.

But there's a bottom line here - if the relatively poor uses of the Wiimote and the sometimes derivative set or over-simplistic (rather than 'casual') games on Nintendo's consoles continue - then first-party will again rule the waves, as consumers stick with what they know. And that's a-him, Maaario!"

Wow, I'm I've been saying this for a while now. I put this up to just bolster my point that Nintendo is really just trying to make money any way they can and don't have any "Blue Sky" Plans like they keep insisting.

Exclusives dead? I don't think so!

Is the exclusive video game franchise dead? According to the latest issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly it is. In the article by N. Evan Van Zelfden he says that the longer, more expensive nature of video games have made it necessary for developers to give up their exclusive minded endeavors and subscribe to the philosophy of having a game come out on all the consoles or many consoles.

The proof of the article seems apparent to anyone who looks at the larger state of the video game industry these days. But there are certainly minor problems with this. For instance, the majority of the BIG games for all the current consoles are not ports but original IPS that are exclusives to a single console or have been ported from the PC to a single console. Examples of this most prominently would be Resistance: Fall of Man(the best selling PS3 game for a good portion of it's short life span), Bioshock(XBOX 360 and PC versions make this game one of the best selling games on XBOX 360 so far), HALO 3(another exclusive game to the XBOX 360 that has thus far made more money than some blockbuster films), and finally the whole GOD of War franchise which originated and has stayed on the PS2. There is a PSP version coming out this fall, but this game will be exclusive to the PSP and not ported to other devices. All of the above are examples of single console titles that have done EXTREMELY well on a single platform.

Certainly the inverse of these examples are games like: Spider-Man 3(ported to every platform except PC), Rock Band(on all consoles, and Guitar Hero 3(on all consoles). Two of these are not out yet, but are recording extremely high pre-order sales putting them above some games currently available.

What is the real story here? Alas, it is a sad one. The story revolves around the fact that video games are very expensive to make and franchises are really dangerous things to start. If the franchise is successful then the developer and publisher are heralded as masters of technology and marketing. If the games fail, it is yet another example of the risky nature of the video game industry.

In the end, the developers in Zelfden's article have made deals with the perspective companies that insure that their games make money regardless of sales. But games like Legend of Zelda, Halo, and Resistance are going to be the top sellers at retail. Unless you count the Hannah Montanas and Nancy Drews of the world. Because then everyone should be making Nintendo DS and PC games; ignoring consoles completely. Discounting these, making a game for multiple consoles doesn't automatically guarantee the developer an excellent title. Just as the Midway about how their porting of Stranglehold went. This moves us into another topic: Does porting your game to multiple platforms, hurt the game more than help it. But that is a topic for another post. Personally, I think there is plenty of evidence that, not only is the exclusive not dead; it is necessary for the health and well being of a console.

The Sarcastic Gamer on Wii Shortages!

"Nintendo's Reggie Fils-Aime (pronounced 'full of crap') told us all recently that Nintendo would not be able to meet the demand for Wii consoles in North America for the holiday season this year.

Exsqueeze me? Baking Powder? Did you just tell us that you still haven't figured out how to tune your production process to meet demand after more than a year? Good one Reg! Wow, you had me for a second. So what you're really saying, is that with no really compelling reason to buy your little solar-powered calculator, you guys came up with this "artificial panic" idea.

What happened? Spend too much time trying to crack down on employee-bloggers, and forgot to turn on the factory? Is there a shortage of weak graphics cards? Was there a worldwide run on sucky processors?

At first dismissive of this as a terrible marketing ploy, I thought it through, despite the obvious waste of my precious (and few) brain synapses.

I decided, as most of you have already done, that Nintendo are trying to sustain the "Wii fad" by making it some sort of shopping trophy. As we all know, the idea is not without merit. But Reggie's approach is, how shall we say, just a TAD too obvious. Chances are, the folks who started THESE fads, were just a little more subtle in the "setup" phase. Remember these fads?

• Cabbage Patch Dolls - Christmas 1982 - Only slightly less technologically advanced than a Wii, the Cabbage Patch Dolls had soccer moms duking it out like Thursday Night RAW had come to Kmart.
  


• Tickle Me Elmo - Christmas 1996 - Same replay value as most Wii titles, but a whole lot cuter, Elmo's annoying little laugh is quite comparable to the tiny little dudes in the the Wii commercials.
  


• Pet Rock - Christmas 1975 - Only slightly less complicated to assemble than a Wii, the Pet Rock drew long lines of enthusiasts, who couldn't wait to teach their new pets how to "stay" and "sit".


• Macarena - I'll take half credit for this one since it isn't an actual product, but it does involve a fair amount of ridiculous gyration of one's body, not unlike the silly stuff you have to do to play Red Steel on the Wii.

So maybe this "shortage" of Nintendo Wii's this holiday season isn't without merit. Look on the bright side, at least if there are fewer people buying Wii's, maybe a few more people will pick up real gaming consoles like 360's or... even PS3's (I hear they have PLENTY of those in stock)."SarcasticGamer...

I have to agree with this. I'm kind of tired of Nintendo trumpeting how wonderful they are and they can't even produce enough of their wonderful systems to fill demand. Perhaps, folks will get tired of their crap and buy an XBOX 360.

US Bestsellers! All Platforms...

1. Halo 3 (regular edition)(XBOX360)
2. Legend of Zelda Phantom Hourglass(DS)
3. Halo 3 (limited edition)(XBOX360)
4. Carnival Games (Wii)
5. Guitar Hero 3 Bundle (Wii)
6. Dance Dance Revolution Hottest Party Bundle (Wii)
7. Nancy Drew: Legend of the Crystal Skull (PC)
8. Brain Age 2 (DS)
9. Rock Band Special Edition Bundle (XBOX 360)
10. Halo 3 (Legendary edition) (XBOX 360)

These are some crazy stats. Nancy Drew for the PC?
*Amazon.com stats updated hourly

Tokyo Game Show 2007, Not feeling it...

In a recent podcast the 1UP folks talked about how the Wii has made a major difference in the way that games are shown at Press shows and how they have changed the way games are seen in the eyes of all consumers. Strangely this was very evident at a show where Nintendo as a company didn't show, Tokyo Game Show.
The carnival atmosphere around Wii games is just insane. The PR people should probably just start hawking, "Step right up, step right up, try your hand at the Wiimote and win a prize!"
The problem, of course, is not the Wii. It might be Japan at the heart of all this. The Japanese seem to be a little unhappy with the next generation. Their sales are pretty bad across both Sony and Microsoft's consoles.
The love seems wholly directed at Nintendo's franchises and hardware. These same franchises are holding to the last generation graphics and in many cases last generation gameplay. Nothing to see here folks, move along...
There are, of course, exceptions to every rule. But these folks are not representative of the masses. Folks like Tecmo, Koei, Capcom, and Sony Worldwide Studios are trying to play both sides and doing a pretty good job. But they are the people bucking the trend it seems, not creating it.
The Mistwalkers and Square Enix's of the world are happy to just keep making what they have been making for years. All most all games shown at the show except for a few stand out games like: Ninja Gaiden 2, Devil May Cry 4, Metal Gear Solid 4, Gran Turismo, and Eye of Judgement. The majority of the games at the show are all too happy to just continue what they have been doing all along.
As much as I enjoyed both last year's and the year before that's Tokyo Game Show this year's show just doesn't seem to be that big of a deal. I'm truly and uttering tired of turn based RPGs. White Knight Story, Lost Odyssey, and from the looks of it Last Remnant can all dry up and disappear. These games all most all ways have nothing going for them at the core. If their stories were compelling all the mindless battles could be forgiven but this is usually not the case. I will wait for Persona 4, because it seems like they are the only folks capable of telling a descent RPG story nowadays.
I'm not terribly excited about the 100 FPS games coming out in the next year either though. But I don't think that the way to fix that blight on the video game industry is create as many lame RPGs as possible or heaven forbid as many mini game compilations as possible.
Maybe this is just a cultural or generational difference; but all I can say is that once upon a time I thought that Japanese developers were the saviors of this industry and maybe they would have been if it wasn't for Nintendo who stole all their souls in the name of the mass market and money. Now we only have Sony to look to for our salvation and I think everyone can agree that, that isn't a good thing.

Bring me the Head of Mickey Mouse! Kingdom Hearts gets new games!

"GS '07: Three new Kingdom Hearts games coming

Square Enix and Disney team up again to bring their crossover role-playing franchise to portable platforms.

By Emma Boyes, GameSpot UK

Posted Sep 20, 2007 12:34 am PT

TOKYO--With the Tokyo Game Show kicking off, Square Enix has revealed it is working on three more installments of the popular role-playing game series Kingdom Hearts, bringing the franchise to the DS, PlayStation Portable, and mobile phones. Although the three titles are so far only confirmed for release in Japan, the company assures its western fans of the series that "release in other territories will be determined at a later date."

The first game, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days brings the Disney and Square Enix worlds to the Nintendo DS, and will feature characters Roxas and Axel in both single-player and multiplayer missions. The role-playing game will be directed by Tetsuya Nomura and Tomohiro Hasegawa. A date has not yet been set for the game's release in any region.

The second game is called Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep, and will be coming to the PlayStation Portable. Birth by Sleep will tell the story of three new characters, all of whom are keyblade apprentices in search of a missing keyblade master. Tetsuya Nomura and Tai Yasue are co-directing the title.

The third title is a mobile game called Kingdom Hearts Coded, and is set after the events of the first Kingdom Hearts game. Jiminy Cricket returns to Disney Castle to write in his journal, where he finds a mysterious message that he cannot trace. This marks the beginning of a new quest for a virtual Sora. The mobile phone models and carriers which will support the game have not yet been announced.

The first Kingdom Hearts game was released in 2002 in a collaboration between Square Enix and Disney Interactive Studios, and installments of the series have since shifted 11 million copies on the PlayStation 2 and Game Boy Advance."Gamespot...

What bothers me about all this is that it seems that the people making Kingdom Hearts should be focusing all their efforts on making Kingdom Hearts 3 instead of these portable titles. The fact that KH 3, doesn't sound like it's coming out until the end of the world; and this news doesn't exactly change that encouraging idea. Square seems so concerned about their Final Fantasy franchise that they seem to be allowing both their Dragon Quest and Kingdom Hearts franchises to lounge in the world of the portable. Which is fine except that as long as they are stuck on the Wii, DS, and PSP their revenue streams are guaranteed but it is also guaranteed that we won't be seeing next generation versions of these games.