Tag Archive for Nintendo

EA engineer says ‘the Wii U is crap’

18/05/2013

One Electronic Arts developer has taken to Twitter to sound off on the struggling Wii U. As spotted by IGN, EA senior software engineer and architect Bob Summerwill did not hold back when expressing his feelings for the platform.


“The Wii U is crap,” Summerwill said, before deleting that tweet and all others. “Less powerful than an Xbox 360. Poor online/store. Weird tablet. Nintendo are walking dead at this point.”

“Sony, MS, Apple, Google all following the same playbook,” he added. “Standard, powerful, hardware, with focus on software and services.”

Summerwill suggested that Nintendo should have exited the hardware business and instead shopped around its major titles to Microsoft and Sony.

“Nintendo are still operating like it’s 1990,” he said. “They should have ‘done a Sega’ and offered Mario/Zelda as PS4/Durango exclusives. Instead they make this awful console. Just stop it! Just make great games!”

Summerwill has worked at EA in a number of technical roles since 1999.

His comments came a day after EA confirmed that after releasing four games for Wii U, the publisher has no new titles in development for the system. By comparison EA supported the original Wii throughout its lifespan with 78 total games.

Article source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/ea-engineer-says-the-wii-u-is-crap-6408550

Sonic Lost World announced for Wii U and 3DS

17/05/2013

Nintendo has announced Sonic Lost World as the first title of a new, exclusive partnership between the Mario creator and Sega for its upcoming Sonic titles.


Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata unveiled the game during today’s Nintendo Direct conference, calling the game an action adventure platformer exclusive to Wii U and 3DS.

More information about the game will be made available prior to E3 2013, Iwata said.

Iwata also announced the latest title in the Mario Sonic series, set at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia. The game, shown running on Wii U, features new events such as figure skating pairs and snowboard slopestyle.

The Wii U GamePad was also shown to be used for the curling event, with players having to brush the GamePad screen as the event plays out on the television.

The game will also feature dream events, allowing for the creation of fictional courses set across the Mario and Sonic universes and mixed event courses that are not part of the Winter Olympic Games.

Nintendo also announced the addition of more classic Sonic and Sega titles to the Wii U eShop in the future.

Nintendo will not be hosting its own press conference at E3 2013, but says it will hold another Nintendo Direct conference before the Los Angeles trade show begins.

Sonic Lost World is not the first recent Sonic title to be exclusive to a Nintendo platform. 2010′s Sonic Colours was Wii and DS exclusive, though its follow-up Sonic Generations was multi-platform.

Article source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/sonic-lost-world-announced-for-wii-u-and-3ds-6408507

The Wonderful 101 launches September 15

17/05/2013

The Wonderful 101 will launch September 15 exclusively on Wii U, Nintendo announced today during a Nintendo Direct presentation.


The game, formerly known as P-100, is in development at Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance studio Platinum Games.

The Japanese studio is also working on another Wii U-exclusive, Bayonetta 2.

In The Wonderful 101, players explore various stages and recruit citizens to join their army of heroes. The more heroes a player gathers, the greater their Special Morph Powers will be. Gamers will use the Wii U GamePad to activate these powers, which include Bonzai Man, Vending Machine Man, and Toilet Bowl Man, among others.

Article source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/the-wonderful-101-launches-september-15-6408508

New Super Luigi U coming to retail in August

17/05/2013

A packaged standalone version of the Super Luigi U downloadable content for New Super Mario Bros. U will launch in North America at retail on August 25, Nintendo announced today.


Gamers will not need New Super Mario Bros. U to play New Super Luigi U, which will cost $30.

Those who own a copy of New Super Mario Bros. U already can pick up the Super Luigi U DLC when it launches through the Wii U eShop on June 20 for $20.

The news came during the latest Nintendo Direct today, where Nintendo president Satoru Iwata showed a new gameplay trailer for the content. He also revealed that Nabbit, a creature from New Super Mario Bros. U, will be a playable character in the content.

Nintendo announced the Luigi-themed DLC in February, calling it “large-scale” and “similar to the development of full software.” It features updated versions of the first game’s 82 courses with Luigi leading the way, instead of Mario.

The news comes a day after Nintendo revealed that New Super Mario Bros. U, a Wii U launch title, has now sold 770,000 units in the United States alone. It is a sequel to the original Wii’s New Super Mario Bros. Wii, which has sold close to 28 million units life-to-date.

Article source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/new-super-luigi-u-coming-to-retail-in-august-6408509

Yakuza 1 & 2 HD bundle hitting Wii U in Japan

17/05/2013

Today during a Nintendo Direct presentation, Nintendo announced (via Polygon) that the Yakuza 1 2 HD bundle is coming to Wii U in Japan on August 8. As its name suggests, the collection packs in the first two installments in the PlayStation 2-era action-crime series.


No mention was made of a release for the Yakuza 1 2 HD bundle in North America or Europe.

Polygon reports that a trailer for the bundle was shown, displaying upscaled graphics and Wii U-exclusive features. Players can use the GamePad to navigate the game’s streets and monitor their characters.

For more on the games within the bundle, check out GameSpot’s reviews of the original Yakuza and Yakuza 2.

Article source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/yakuza-1-and-2-hd-bundle-hitting-wii-u-in-japan-6408512

Nintendo reports 52 percent rise in first-party 3DS software sales

17/05/2013

Nintendo has reported a 52 percent year-on-year rise in sales of first-party 3DS software during the first four months of 2013.


Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata.

Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata.

2.1 million Nintendo-published 3DS games have been sold between January through April 2013 in North America, Nintendo says, citing data from the NPD group.

Nintendo reports it took 30 weeks to sell two million first-party games in 2012, and reports that it accomplished the same sales milestone this year in 18 weeks, suggesting increasing take-up of the platform in North America.

While the first four months of 2012 saw the release of high-profile 3DS titles such as Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D and Resident Evil: Revelations, there were two first-party releases; Kid Icarus: Uprising, and the Tecmo-developed Spirit Camera: The Cursed Memoir.

In the same time period in 2013, however, Nintendo has published Fire Emblem: Awakening, Brain Age: Concentration Training, Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon, and LEGO City Undercover: The Chase Begins.

Nintendo says sales of Lego City Undercover: The Chase begins have reached almost 94,000 copies since its late-April launch, whereas Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon has been purchased over 530,000 times.

The Mario publisher has scheduled a Nintendo Direct conference for later today.

Article source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/nintendo-reports-52-percent-rise-in-first-party-3ds-software-sales-6408498

EA not developing anything for Wii U

17/05/2013

Electronic Arts is distancing itself from the struggling Wii U, the Battlefield and FIFA publisher has confirmed with Kotaku.


“We have no games in development for the Wii U currently,” company spokesperson Jeff Brown said, noting that this could change in the future.

As Kotaku points out, during Nintendo’s 2011 Electronic Entertainment Expo media briefing, Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata welcomed then-EA CEO John Riccitiello to speak, where he talked up the console.

“What Nintendo’s new console delivers speaks directly to the players of EA Sports and EA Games,” Riccitiello said at the time. “Nintendo’s new console will produce brilliant high-definition graphics and new gameplay opportunities. We look forward to seeing great EA content on this new platform.”

EA launched several titles for the Wii U early during the platform’s life cycle, including Mass Effect 3, Need for Speed Most Wanted, and new installments in the Madden and FIFA franchises. Brown told Kotaku that these offerings were indicative of EA making good on its E3 2011 partnership.

The original Wii saw steady support from EA, as the publisher launched 78 total titles for the platform, according to the company’s website. EA has released just four games for the Wii U.

The Wii U has officially sold 3.45 million units worldwide as of March 31. Nintendo has attributed the platform’s slow adoption rate to a lack of major titles and marketing failing to communicate the novelty of the system.

Nintendo plans to spark system sales by launching key first-party titles on a more regular basis moving forward, beginning with Pikmin 3 in August. The company also aims to reduce manufacturing costs to make the Wii U profitable.

Article source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/ea-not-developing-anything-for-wii-u-6408481

NPD: Injustice: Gods Among Us April’s top seller in US

17/05/2013

Injustice: Gods Among Us was April’s top-selling title in the United States, according to data released by the NPD Group today. It marks the first time since April 2011 (Mortal Kombat) that a fighting game ranked in the top spot. No specific sales figures were provided, though it is estimated to have sold 424,000 units in the month.


Rounding out the top five performers for the month were Dead Island: Riptide, BioShock: Infinite, Call of Duty: Black Ops II, and Defiance.

Overall, industry sales slid by 25 percent to $495.2 million. However, NPD analyst Liam Callahan points out that the sales figures make up only about half of the total consumer spend for the month.

“When taking into account our preliminary estimate for other physical format sales in April such as used and rentals at $76 million, and our estimate for digital format sales including full game and add-on content downloads including microtransactions, subscriptions, mobile apps and the consumer spend on social network games at $267 million, the total consumer spend in April is $802 million,” he said.

In addition, Callahan pointed out that the Easter holiday typically accounts for a 10 percent boost in sales for the month. Since Easter fell in March this year and in April last year, a direct comparison is “difficult,” he said.

Regarding hardware, total sales plummeted by 42 percent to $109.5 million. Microsoft was again the market leader, selling 130,000 Xbox 360 units in the month, down from 236,000 systems this time last year. Total retail spend on the Xbox 360 platform (hardware, software, and accessories) was $208 million.

Sony has not divulged PlayStation 3 or PlayStation Vita sales information for the month, while Nintendo reportedly sold just 55,000 Wii U units during the month, some 20,000 fewer than the 75,000 Wii systems in the period.

As for software, this category decreased 17 percent in April to $267.8 million in April. Though the overall sector declined year-over-year, sales of April 2013 titles posted positive figures over April 2012, which was led by Activision’s Prototype 2.

“Despite overall declines, April title launches in 2013 fared better than games that launched in April 2012, up 118 percent in unit sales and 130 percent in dollar sales,” Callahan said. “This increase was driven by games like Injustice: Gods Among Us, Dead Island: Riptide, and Lego City Undercover: The Chase Begins.”

Separately, Nintendo announced that it has sold 2.1 million first-party 3DS games through the first four months of the year, up 52 percent over last year.

“In 2012, it took 30 weeks for Nintendo 3DS to sell 2 million units of first-party software. In 2013, the platform accomplished that same feat in 18 weeks,” Nintendo said.

Nintendo said Lego City Undercover: The Chase Begins shifted nearly 94,000 combined physical and digital copies. Notably, it was released on April 24, near the end of the NPD Group’s reporting period. Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon sold 140,000 units in the month (physical and digital), boosting its life-to-date total to 530,000 units.

The only Wii U title Nintendo revealed sales statistics for was New Super Mario Bros. U, which has now sold nearly 770,000 combined physical and digital units to date.

Shifting to accessories, this sector fell 19 percent to $131.4 million for April 2013.

“Though every accessory type experienced year-over-year declines in April 2013, year-to-date trending increased by over 20 percent for the combined sales of point cards, headsets/headphones, and All Other Accessories (which includes Skylanders),” Callahan said.

APRIL US GAME SALES (April 7-May 4, 2013)
OVERALL DOLLAR SALES

Total retail sales: $495.2 million (-25%)
Non-PC hardware: $109.5 million (-42%)
Non-PC software: $254.3 (-17%)
Accessories: $131.4 (19%)
Total software: $267.8 million (-17%)

TOP 10 GAMES FOR APRIL 2013
Title (Platforms) – Publisher

1. Injustice: Gods Among Us (X360, PS3, Wii U) – Warner Bros.
2. Dead Island: Riptide (X360, PS3, PC) – Deep Silver
3. BioShock: Infinite (X360, PS3, PC) – Take-Two
4. Call of Duty: Black Ops II (X360, PS3, PC, Wii U) – Activision Blizzard
5. Defiance – (X360, PS3, PC) – Trion Worlds
6. Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon (3DS) – Nintendo
7. NBA 2K13 (X360, PS3, Wii, Wii U, PSP, PC) – Take-Two Interactive
8. Skylanders Giants (Wii, X360, PS3, 3DS, Wii U) – Activision Blizzard
9. Lego City Undercover: The Chase Begins (3DS) – Nintendo
10. MLB 13: The Show (PS3, PS Vita) – Sony

Article source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/npd-injustice-gods-among-us-aprils-top-seller-in-us-6408484

Wii U and 3DS-focused Nintendo Direct tomorrow

16/05/2013

Nintendo will discuss future 3DS and Wii U games tomorrow during the latest Nintendo Direct online video briefing, the Mario maker announced today.


The Nintendo Direct briefing will provide updates on this summer’s Wii U and 3DS titles and also shed light on Wii U titles to be released this fall and “onward.”

The briefing will take place through a special Nintendo website on May 17 at 7 a.m. PDT/10 a.m. EDT. GameSpot will have full coverage of the announcements.

The Wii U has struggled since launch, selling 3.45 million units worldwide and reportedly only 55,000 systems in the United States during April. Nintendo has apologized for a lack of software, saying this will be corrected beginning in August with the release of Pikmin 3.

The all-new 3D Mario game for the Wii U announced in January is rumored to launch by October. Nintendo also has a new Mario Kart game in development for the system, as well as a Smash Bros. title and two Legend of Zelda games, among others.

Article source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/wii-u-and-3ds-focused-nintendo-direct-tomorrow-6408446

Nintendo claiming ad revenue for user-created YouTube videos

16/05/2013

Nintendo is now claiming advertising revenue from user-created YouTube videos that feature the company’s games, according to new reports.


The Japanese game giant is not following the path of music publishers and film studios in demanding this content be blocked, but rather wants to place ads surrounding videos featuring Nintendo games, like Let’s Plays. The revenue from these ads would go to Nintendo, not the video’s creators.

This last point has drawn the ire of YouTube channel owner and self-professed Nintendo fan Zack Scott, who blasted the policy in an update to his Facebook page.

“I think filing claims against LPers is backwards. Video games aren’t like movies or TV. Each play-through is a unique audiovisual experience,” Scott said. “When I see a film that someone else is also watching, I don’t need to see it again. When I see a game that someone else is playing, I want to play that game for myself! Sure, there may be some people who watch games rather than play them, but are those people even gamers?”

In response to the new policy, Nintendo provided a statement to GameFront explaining the matter.

“As part of our ongoing push to ensure Nintendo content is shared across social media channels in an appropriate and safe way, we became a YouTube partner and as such in February 2013 we registered our copyright content in the YouTube database,” Nintendo said.

“For most fan videos this will not result in any changes, however, for those videos featuring Nintendo-owned content, such as images or audio of a certain length, adverts will now appear at the beginning, next to or at the end of the clips,” the statement goes on. “We continually want our fans to enjoy sharing Nintendo content on YouTube, and that is why, unlike other entertainment companies, we have chosen not to block people using our intellectual property.”

Nintendo’s actions are in adherence with YouTube’s policy guidelines, which plainly states that “just because you purchased content doesn’t mean that you own the rights to upload it to YouTube.” However, YouTube users who make a living from Let’s Play videos or other such content are now facing an uphill battle.

Article source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/nintendo-claiming-ad-revenue-for-user-created-youtube-videos-6408458

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