Nintendo E3 2008 Post Mortem
A while back I said that this E3 was going to be the deadline for determining if 3rd parties were going to get their head out of their asses and put forth some real effort in supporting the Wii. Back when I said it things weren't looking good at all. Few 3rd parties had any serious games announced and most of the software they did make available was garbage. Today I take a deep breath and sigh with relief as I say that things are looking up for the Wii.
While not where they should be for a market leader, more and better games are being announced for the Nintendo Wii. To cut to the chase let me give you a list of some 3rd party games that are already out or are on the way that tell me the Wii situation is changing for the better.
Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World
Madworld
The Conduit
Megaman 9
Dead Rising
Call of Duty:World at War
Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's dungeon
Final Fantasy: My Life as a King
Final Fantasy Chronicles: Crystal Bearers
OneechanBara Revolution
Samba De Amigo
Arc Rise Fantasia
Rune Factory Frontier
Harvest Moon
Tenchu 4
Skycrawlers
The Kore Gang
Sim City Wii
Mushroom Men
Fragile
Guitar Hero
Little King Story
Shiren 3
I'm sure there are some I've missed, but that's a pretty good list of games. Except for 2 games that list doesn't include the games coming to Wiiware and there are some very good ones.
Unfortunately there are companies who still don't get it, or are reluctant to put forth a real effort, but the ball is already rolling and once the games above see success others will quickly want to jump in and grab a piece of the Wii pie with similar games. So things are indeed looking up, the Wii is not doomed to only having shovelware and good 3rd party games are making their way onto the Wii.
Now as far as the first party is concerned I have to admit that Nintendo had me scratching my head these past few days during E3. I fully understand that they are now focusing their conference towards new experiences and casual games, but they really ended up looking bad. Besides the fact that their conference was boring two of their announced games were really, really lacking.
Animal Crossing Wii
I've never played Animal Crossing before, but everyone is saying that this is practically an identical game to the previous versions minus some better visuals, online play and voice chat. Nintendo has been working on this game for years and this is all they have to show for it? A carbon copy of previous games? I know Nintendo is notorious for doing the cut & paste job with franchises like Pokemon, but it's a lot easier to get away with that on a handheld.
I'm one of the lucky ones because I've never played this franchise before and this game will seem totally new to me, but that's no excuse for waiting so long to release a game and then have it change so very little.
Wii Music
This has turned out to be a very controversial game. The fact that Miyamoto is touting the lack of challenge or difficulty really has people questioning if it's even a game. Miyamoto is quoted as saying that it isn't a game, but rather a toy. Now I don't see a problem releasing toys like this for children or whomever, but Wii music has been in development for years also and it is practically unchanged since the last time we saw it. It looks the same, it plays the same. What the hell happened? Why wasn't this released a year ago? What the hell has Nintendo been doing? If you delay a game for a year and it's still exactly the same a year later then there is a serious problem.
MotionPlus
I really like the idea of having more precise Wiimote controls, but I can't get over the fear that this won't be adopted enough to warrant worthwhile use. Can the same game be used with the MP and without it? Do games have to jump in all the way if they are going to use MP? Is it going to be expensive? There are a lot of questions that need to be addressed, and no doubt Nintendo is giving 3rd parties a chance to get familiar with their new device, but I can't help but be worried.
Wii Speak
This is probably the only thing that Nintendo announced that I have no reservations about. Everyone wanted a voice chat solution and they delivered in an unconventional way. Unfortunately, it won't come bundled with a game, and cost $30, but the voice chat "problem" has been addressed.
Wii Sports Resort
I never would have thought that Nintendo would make another Wii Sports, but I was wrong. Hopefully this one will be less of a tech demo and more of a full fledged game.
I don't know if Nintendo was indifferent about E3 or if they were just unprepared, but they had a really lackluster showing. Their two main games failed to impress, and probably incited more anger than excitement. Still Nintendo will plow ahead and continue making great games even though they, like everyone, stumble now and then.
