Is “more of the same” Nintendo’s new game plan?
Wednesday, June 3rd, 2009 at 6:03am by Sean Buckley
There is no doubt about it: Super Mario Galaxy was one of the best Wii offerings of 2007. It had great visuals, a great soundtrack, fun level design, and it featured the video game communities favorite little plumber in a fuzzy bee suit. What more could you ask for. Realizing this, Nintendo was bold enough to make the safest move of 2009 and announce Super Mario Galaxy 2, or “you know, that game you really enjoyed two years ago.”
As said, Super Mario Galaxy was a great game, and a sequel by the same team would probably be just as good, if not better – so why look a gift horse in the mouth? I know I shouldn’t, but I’m worried that Nintendo is setting a precedent. Take a look at this year’s E3 lineup – nearly every first party title announced was a remake, spiritual sequel, or expansion on a previously hot selling ticket. Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks? Looks an awful lot like another Phantom Hourglass. New Super Mario Bros? Didn’t they have a game with the exact same name on a handheld not too long ago? Wii fit is barely a year old, and already a slight update is being pushed out to replace it – new exercises, balance games, and weight tracking applications are nice, but even Nintendo admitted that it was not a true sequel – it seems more like a patch.
Nintendo fans should be excited about these games – they look great and hands-on impressions are positive. They are fun, worthy additions to your Wii library – but somebody needs to ask – why is the company that set out to revolutionize the games industry plodding along with so much familiar territory when its two major competitors are paving new ground in motion controlled interfacing?
[Source]
June 3rd, 2009 at 6:28 am
Galaxy was probably one of the top ten shittiest games ever developed by Nintendo. Come on, guys, let’s be realistic: it was a rushed demo for Wii.
June 3rd, 2009 at 6:33 am
@inno7 :
Ah, fuck you trolls, I loved SMG, and I’m definately going to love this.
But seriously, folks. If you want different, look no further than Metroid: Other M. 3D action-adventure-metroidvania DO WANT!
June 3rd, 2009 at 6:35 am
Not trolling, guy. I like games; I like Nintendo. SMG was just bullshit. It was a minigame that tried to recapture “Nintendo magic” for blind fanboys like you. Nothing new, nothing interesting, nothing innovative.
Just another rushed, legless, demo release game like Luigi’s Mansion.
June 3rd, 2009 at 7:10 am
Rushed? Not innovative Dude, it was a spiritual successor to Super Mario 64 and was AT LEAST as long as it. The gravity mechanic and the planetoids were a relatively new concept, and were done very well. If you really think it sucked, go back to the asylum and let the people there take care of you.
June 3rd, 2009 at 7:50 am
I wounldnt say “paving new ground in motion controlled interfacing.” Does anyone know if either of these motion control interfaces were playable on demo floor?
Plus videos for both new interfaces state that features may change or not even be part of the final product.
Thats not innovative, that’s just some wild prediction.
I think your being a bit quick.
In 2007 Nintendo changed the way we play Mario, with Mario Galaxy and Zelda with Zelda DS. It freshened up the franchise’s. Now Nintendo are expanding on what they can do with these new ways of playing games.
Plus Metroid is getting a new look and Zelda Wii is being looked in to for gameplay.
Sony and MS, for all their innovation, still brought out as many games that where high in numbered sequels, forza4, Halo5/6, MGS5/6, Finaly Fantasy XIII/XIV and nothing has changed about these games. You still run around shooting the same guns, drive the same cars and sneak up on the same enemies. They’re just better graphics, different locations and different stories.
At least Nintendo are trying to do something about changing their franchises…..but I doubt it is anywhere close to being as easy as said.
June 3rd, 2009 at 7:50 am
Agreed. I’m sorry, inno7, but if you truly think that Galaxy was nothing more than a “rushed, legless, demo release game like Luigi’s Mansion” then your opinion really has no weight on the site. Or any respectable site, really. That’s just total BS. Galaxy was one of the best games on the system and while it may not have had the same emotional effect as Mario 64 did, it was still technically just as great.
Yeah, everyone’s entitled to their opinion but that’s ALL it is. You’re opinion. Stop stating as fact – you don’t have anyone on your side for this.
-Age
June 3rd, 2009 at 8:17 am
@inno7 just no.. Ageman20XX said it all…
Kotaku is making a big deal out of this, that their original plan was to reuse the old galaxies but give them different objectives, which ended up turning into 90% all new content, 10% reusing old levels, giving them new objectives (compatible with yoshi for example).
I however, am fine with it, when zelda reuses bits from the last games it makes me feel good, all nostalgic, whether it’s music or levels. I’d kill for them to remake the first dungeon of LoZ in 3d on a new zelda, once you got in there, heard the music, saw the layout of the first few rooms, then the gleeok boss at the end, most zelda fans would be screaming with joy or wetting themselves!
The nostalgia helps tie it in with other games, helping to let you know it’s all in the happening in the same world
@Robbie I’m pretty sure at least Microsofts natal was playable, and I heard it worked pretty darn well
Sonys answer is still in early prototype stages, but from what I can tell, it seems to be the reverse of the wiimote, the IR camera is by the TV and you hold a stick with IR light sources in it (similar to a demo shown a while ago that was possible with wii+sensor bar: Head Tracking)
So I can’t see how sony’s can fail, it’s been proven it will work in practice just using the wiimote and sensor bar in reverse, and the playstation eye is every bit, if not better, at tracking IR sources than the camera in the wiimote, especially seeign as they can track the light sources, and then at the same time, do 2d tracking of the rest of the body using the same software the eyetoy uses.
Nintendo’s Wiimote, technically speaking, is the most inferior motion device on the market (or will be next year), purely because they can’t track the body moving, only the wii remote in one hand and the nunchuck in the other. Combined with the fact that the PS3 and 360 can track more at once due to their higher processing capabilities Nintenso SHOULD be scared.
That’s not to say nintendo WILL be scared though, they have fanboys, and secretly, they’ve been getting more and more of them, people like brand power, If somebody chooses to get fit with nintendo and their Wii Fit, they want to carry that on and see it through, they don’t want to buy several other consoles as well just cos an ad comes on tv saying “we track each individual finger on your hand”, a lot of non gamers certainly, wouldn’t want to find the money to buy yet another console that does what their wii does and only slightly better.
Nintendo has already made its impression on the non-gamer, I don’t think there are many people left for Sony and Microsoft to take by using this same method as Nintendo. Sony and Microsoft were in their own game a while back, they should stay there instead of trying to enter another market that is 100% dominated by another company.
June 3rd, 2009 at 8:41 am
i think nintendo played it a little safe this year, but tbh i think thats what they needed to do, in hindsight anyway. Nintendo does indeed have the casual market feeding out of its hand-and the games announced at e3 were mainly hardcore titles, albeit unpredictably predictable games. i really didnt think they were going to focus on mario or metroid, although in hindsight i can see why they did- nintendo need to satisfy their hardcore fans now more then ever, especially with these announcements from ps3 and microsoft re: motion control. i watched some of the sony conference and the technology is very impressive. a question- is sony targetting this stuff at all ps3 owners or casual market? is it going to be the preferred controlller for ps3 or thats not intended? i dont know the whole story to be honest.
oh and this new super mario bros. wii game–> please tell me its new content and not a bigged up version of the ds one?
June 3rd, 2009 at 8:44 am
Yeah, I honestly wish Galaxy had been more difficult, but I still really enjoyed it, both from a gameplay point of view, to an artistic point of view. It’s definitely a very engaging, beautiful game. Everything from the gameplay to the graphics and the music was executed wonderfully, and if you can’t distinguish these high efforts, I have no idea what games for Wii you ARE enjoying.
At any rate, I’m hoping that the sequel will be more difficult, although it’s not honestly what I expect. I really liked the look of the level with the saw blades going across the platforms.
As far as the actual topic of this post goes, I wouldn’t be too concerned with this “precedent”. Nintendo usually does a pretty good job of mixing things up with their franchises, I really just consider this sort of a bonus for a few great games (not to say that I’m personally enthralled with Wii Fit or Wii Sports, but sales numbers do not lie). For example, I don’t think anyone was concerned with this idea when Majora’s Mask came out, even though it had the same graphics as Ocarina of Time and basically the same dungeon exploration / overworld exploration (Yes, I realize the “three-day” concept and mask system really mixed things up. But as far as overall gameplay goes, it’s close enough)
Bottom Line: I don’t really expect a Mario Galaxy 3, I’m sure they’ll do something crazy for the next Mario game instead.
June 3rd, 2009 at 8:44 am
i didnt really explain my point about why they selected those titles: in my opinion to satisfy the hardcore, why not give them what they’ve loved before (obviously new content but familiar franchises), show something AWESOME like sin and punishment 2, and right now there is a lot of 3rd party games im looking forward to so they can kind of appease the hardcore whilst HOPEFULLY working on lots of other cool games lol maybe im being too hopeful but we’ll see.
June 3rd, 2009 at 8:47 am
You know why I don’t mind? Because not everybody buys every single thing out there. It’s great that New Super Mario is coming for Wii, because I don’t own a DS and I’d love to play that game. It’s awesome that a new Monkey Island is coming, because that’s one of the best franchises EVER, and it’d be amazing if the remake came to the Wii as well. So remekaes, rehashes, sequels or whatever are only a bad thing for those that have all consoles available and enough cash and time to buy every single game ever released on launch and complete them in a week.
June 3rd, 2009 at 8:54 am
I’m going to have to agree with Sean. Super Mario Galaxy is a great game. New Super Mario Bros. on the DS is a blast. Phantom Hourglass was something fun and different for a Zelda game. I haven’t tried Wii Fit, but I hear good things and it’s been selling like gangbusters.
Regardless, nearly everything Nintendo hashed out in their press conference is nothing we haven’t already seen. SMG2 looks EXACTLY like SMG, except they added Yoshi. New Super Mario Bros. worked great on the DS, so why bother putting the exact same thing on the Wii? Phantom Hourglass made sense because we had already established Link sailing with Wind Waker. The train in Spirit Tracks just doesn’t make sense to me. Wii Fit Plus just seems like some extras that should have been included in the first game to begin with.
I’m not saying that any of these games are going to be bad. I can’t pass judgment until seeing the games in action and reading impressions. We all know that Nintendo has a high level of quality assurance when it comes to their first-party titles. All I’m saying is that it’s all been done before.
What happened to the Revolution? Nintendo gave the world something fresh and exciting back in November 2006 – a new way to play games. Here we are, 2 1/2 years later with the same waggle controls of Wii Sports. Nintendo has yet to scratch the surface of the potential of motion controls. Maybe Wii Plus will do that with it’s 1:1 control (again, that probably should have been included from the beginning).
Even still, Nintendo seems to be resting on its laurels. From a business standpoint, that’s fine. We all know the Wii and DS/DSi print money. But their showing at this year’s E3 was very disappointing, especially considering last year’s embarrassment. I am excited about the new Metroid. I am interested to see how SMG2 and NSMB turn out, but I probably won’t purchase them if they’re just more of the same. Am I jumping up and down for a Wii Vitality Sensor? No. Most of what Nintendo presented was just plain boring because we’ve seen it all before.
June 3rd, 2009 at 9:32 am
I got the feeling that Nintendo was trying to send a message to all the people who complained about last year’s E3. The fanboys want Mario? OK, here’s Mario Galaxy 2 AND New Super Mario Bros. Both of these games do look good and I’m sure they will be welcome additions to the Mario franchise, but we’ve already gotten our share of Mario on Wii. I was personally hoping to see the Wii debut of other classic Nintendo franchises. Where’s Star Fox, F-Zero, Pilotwings, the long rumored Kid Icarus? Any one of those games would have made me more excited. I do have to admit that I can’t wait for Metroid: Other M. That was definitely the highlight of their press conference.
June 3rd, 2009 at 9:34 am
inno7
do you know what a mini game even is? You sound like you’re from /v/…
Anyways, I am kind of disappointed that Nintendo “played it safe” save for Metroid Other M (Team Ninja? Really? Sweet!). I was hoping for new StarFox and F-Zero games but Mario sells to everyone and the other franchises are pretty core centric.
I expect maybe a surprise announcement or two during the year for another core title (another October conf?). But with Nintendo publishing titles like S&P2, I can’t complain TOO much. ; )
also, NSMB Wii and SMG 2 were my highlights of the show. as long as they differentiate themselves from their predecessors enough I’ll be happy.
June 3rd, 2009 at 10:00 am
Me, I’m starting to lose hope. When will we get a hardware upgrade from Nintendo? Will it be the year 2025 before I can get high-def graphics and digital surround sound from someone other than Microsoft (who I refuse to support with my dollars) or Sony (who I prefer not to support with my dollars)? Can we get a decent online play service? Sheesh, I can’t even play a DVD on my Wii. I love the Wii and I love the fact that the little-console-that-could is owning this generation, but frankly I don’t use the thing much any more.
Not that I expected a “Wii 2″ announcement this week, but seeing more of the same-old same-old while MS and Sony were demonstrating their (admittedly unrealistic (Project Natal???)) proofs-of-concept was a bit…depressing.
June 3rd, 2009 at 10:01 am
Oh, and inno7 is clueless. SMG was a completely amazing game.
June 3rd, 2009 at 10:09 am
I’m kind of mixed. On the one hand, I am kind of underwelmed by the SMG 2 announcement and New Super Mario Bros. Wii because like many have said….they both look like the exact same games. For now (until I play them), they seem more expansion than sequel. If they hadn’t made the Metroid announcement, I’d probably say Nintendo’s conference was disappointing.
On the other hand….I’d much rather have SMG 2 announced than another Wii Music. Plus pretty much every game I want from E3 with a few exceptions for the PS3/PSP and 360 is a sequel or another game in an established series: Assassin’s Creed 2, both new Halo games, Dead Rising 2, Lost Planet 2, Left 4 Dead 2, Modern Warfare 2, Metal Gear Solid Rising, the PSP Metal Gear Solid, so at the same time I can’t be too hard on Nintendo when I was satisfied with other consoles and they are doing about the same thing.
June 3rd, 2009 at 10:31 am
Why is it that the internet fosters hate even for things that are undeniably fantastic, like the original Super Mario Galaxy?
Anyway, I appreciate the move on Nintendo’s part. It’s very safe, but very un-Nintendo-like, so I wasn’t expecting it to actually happen. In the case of Galaxy, though, more of the same is really better than it is worse.
June 3rd, 2009 at 10:32 am
I love SMG, I really love it. But I didn’t want another SMG, I wanted something new
.
I still have hopes for the new zelda, I’m waiting for something new, something we’ve never seen before.
June 3rd, 2009 at 10:56 am
I must say Nintendo did show off better than the previous year. I personally thought that all three conferences were good in their own right. I think there is many expectations from E3 but really the main ones stick out. What is going on now, What will we expect this year, and what will be new for the future of gaming.
We all know that alot of us grew up when Nintendo started and started the next gaming movement before Sony and Microsoft got in on the game. Also, since the Wii has come out then the other companies are trying to meet or exceed this wonderful Wii motion gaming that Nintendo started. This also stands true with all this Excerise games like Wiifit. This also started a snowball effect. This is also a good comparsion to Apple’s iPhone and how every other company is still trying to make a phone like or better than the iPhone. Nintendo still has a huge market share and they are correct that it is “EVERYONES GAME”.
Out of all the three systems I own, I still go back to Nintendo. With the current titles they have and the ones coming soon (OMG Metriod Other M is AMAZING!), this brings me back to my gaming roots and really fulfills my gaming needs.
June 3rd, 2009 at 11:02 am
I think these games are a direct result of the cries issued last year. People wanted more classic franchises and Nintendo is delivering. The trailer has already shown that it has some new elements i.e. Yoshi so I don’t mind it. News flash sequels to games that sell well happen.
As for New SMB Wii. That is a little bit more of a big deal. The Wii is at its best when it is being used in groups. They are taking a cue from LBP and making side scrolling Mario a party game rather than pumping out a mini-game Mario Party. I can appreciate this approach and really look forward to playing four player NSMBW. Wii Fit plus and Wii Sports resort are refinements as well and look to improve on the previous titles. This is all ok. Not to mention there was stuff not in the presser that was on the show floor. Metroid looks like a completely new direction for that series, so if you want your different there it is. I find it funny that half this conversation would not exist if they unveiled a new Zelda for Wii which had no new game play innovations.
Bottom line: New SMB Wii, Galaxy 2, Wii Fit Plus, Sin and Punishment 2, Metroid other M, Masumura, Dead Space, The Conduit, Wii Sports Resort, Tiger Woods 10, FF Crystal Chronicles, Beatles Rock Band, Red Steel 2, No More Heroes 2, and probably some others I am forgetting about mean that I have plenty to use my Wii alone for in the coming months. Factor my DS in there and I am especially busy. I don’t own other systems, nothing against them, but I never felt a need for them and it does not look like I will any time soon either.
June 3rd, 2009 at 11:13 am
blah boo inno7!
That’s a lot of hate for a great game brother.
June 3rd, 2009 at 11:42 am
More of the same? Maybe.
But Nintendo is clearly still following it’s game plan of “Not like the others” – from the hardware to the games to the experience all the way to the staging of their press event, which was pathetic compared to Microsoft and Sony. At one point recently, Nintendo had a higher market cap than Sony but you’d never know it from these events. They still look like 3rd place despite their commanding lead.
I thought the XBOX NATAL was ground breaking because of the way families and friends can interact with each other, with the games, and with media. It transforms the living room into a slick entertainment node on a massive intelligent network. Nintendo seems stuck in it’s “safer than disney” restrictive social interaction mentality that hampers the experience for everyone. It’s too hard to connect with your friends, play together, and share. And the Wii Speak peripheral? Well.. you know….
I think their lack of HD is fine – looking at consumer habits and the fact that people are fine with lousy MP3′s, crappy YouTube clips, and mobile video. It’s about content and experiences – not sound/visual quality. They want it cheap/free and easy. Otherwise Blu-ray would be taking off and we’d be buying super audio CD’s by the truckload.
I was mostly surprised to see so few major software surprises on the Wii. It looks like the wii is in for a continuing flood of shovelware and ports while the XBOX and PS3 get all the big 3rd party titles.
I also didn’t think they did much of a job of explaining the plans for DSi and delivering enough value to justify the upgrade over the DS.
But at least there wasn’t a “Wii Music” bomb this year.
June 3rd, 2009 at 12:11 pm
inno7 is a mook. i don’t know what that means, but stereo typical italian mobsters say it on tv to people they dislike. so you guy are a mook (in a stereo typical mobster voice)!!
June 3rd, 2009 at 1:07 pm
“More of the same” is not Nintendo’s “new” game plan… it has been its game plan throughout its whole history! All of Nintendo’s most successful games have been updates, upgrades and innovations based on what gamers have loved in the past.
What’s wrong with that? We all like it!
June 3rd, 2009 at 1:14 pm
Mario Galaxy 2? Yes, please! I would have loved DLC new worlds for it. More of the “same” is fine with me.
Zelda Spirit Tracks: Withholding judgment. If it’s more PH, then I’ll pass. However, if it’s the game PH SHOULD have been, I’m all for it.
Wii Fit Plus: it’s PLUS, not “2.” It’s sort of like the deluxe version. I wish they had added enough to make me want to buy another disc, but I’m not feeling it yet.
And I call bullshit the whole argument in the first place. Nintendo has been remaking virtually the same games since the 80s. But they are remaking GOOD games, and tweaking enough to make it fresh most of the time.
June 3rd, 2009 at 1:30 pm
Um….Ya my post wont be as long as the others, but SMG2 will be awesome.
All who oppose this statement are wrong.
June 3rd, 2009 at 1:32 pm
Don’t forget Nintendo already made plans to hold their own mini press conference in a couple of weeks, everything you hoped for (WII ZELDA!!!) could still come true in just a matter of weeks!
June 3rd, 2009 at 2:43 pm
I understand that one could criticize SMG2 as being more of the same but NewSMB Wii is a different story: it’s a multiplayer game like Micromachines or LBP and I like the concept, it’s a fresh take on an old series.
I was actually hoping for more of the same concerning their other franchises like Pilotwings or F-Zero.
Highlight of Nintedo’s decent converence was without a doubt Golden Sun! Even if it is another oldie…
June 3rd, 2009 at 4:52 pm
@inno7
How was Galaxy a “demo” for Wii? A “demo” is a demonstration of what a system is capable of early in the life of the system (because that’s when it needs to be demonstrated). Wii Sports is a demo of the Wii’s capabilities. Galaxy doesn’t demonstrate crap. The gravity and planetoids are the feature. The Wiimote is an afterthought to the game, not important at all.
June 3rd, 2009 at 8:10 pm
WOW you guys are easily impressed. Tell me this how will either of those controller work with FPS? The Wii can do that now. Also how do you advance forward in the natal set up? How do you do the same with the PS3 motion wands? Is it a joy stick or control pad?
I failed to see any real commitment from either of them. Showing them at E3 with out any games is like saying we know it’s out there but we are not sure what to do with it.
On top of that the Wii sports archery can do exactly what the PS3 demo can do so I don’t see what makes it better?
The Natal system is so far beyond what can be done right now it may not come out on the xbox 360 and actually come out on the next xbox. Yet MS has failed to fix RROD so there goes that great idea.
June 3rd, 2009 at 8:11 pm
nintendo did just fine. after all, people tend to easily forget they are but one company. they spend half their time on hardware, and the other half software. although there were a few standouts in the 3rd party showings, nintendo has paid their due, and there should be more quality 3rd party titles on their system. maybe next year, there’ll be a better ratio between 1st and 3rd partie titles shown @ nintendo’s e3 show, especially as now we are seeing the quality improve by 3rd party games on wii compared to earlier in the cycle.
June 3rd, 2009 at 10:35 pm
man- first F bomb ive seen dropped on this site.
i think that speaks to the site’s ‘evolution.’
i liked it better when people just said what they liked without an agenda and all the fanboys or fanmans or whatever the manchildren are calling themselves all just kept in line and kept their BS apologist agendas for nintendo or sony or MS or whatever largely out of the conversation.
reagarding the article. nintendo’s always done more of the same, just with some switch ups. thats why i still can relax with any mario game. and why i outgrew zelda. and why boxing to me still means pattern memorization and hit select to use your stars.
June 4th, 2009 at 7:32 pm
so the video game industry does too many sequels and such. really. you don’t say? breaking news.
June 6th, 2009 at 2:36 pm
@ inno7:
YOU FAIL AT LIFE.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOh968qao74
I hope after you watch this, you will win at life:
@ deepthought:
Eff you! See! Second one!