Nintendo praises Ubisoft for “getting” Wii
Wednesday, February 20th, 2008 at 10:32pm by Derek
In a GDC interview with GameDaily this afternoon, Ubisoft Montreal CEO Yannis Mallat discussed Wii development and revealed some of the surprising praise Ubisoft received from Nintendo for its Nov. 2007 Wii release, My Word Coach.
“We were working in secret on a game called My Word Coach…and we had the chance to show the game to (Nintendo of America President) Reggie Fils-Aime, and he saw the game and said, ‘You got it. You guys got exactly the type of game we want for this machine,’” said Mallat.
While a forceful pat on the back from the Regginator may have been sufficient commendation, the high praise kept coming when Ubisoft showed the game to Nintendo President Satoru Iwata.
“He told us, ‘Alright, we are going to treat you as if you were an internal Nintendo team.’ And obviously it was an honor. I guess that (Nintendo) decided to do that because they felt that maybe we captured the spirit of what a ‘casual’ game could be or should be in a way,” said Mallat.
Mallat also outlined what he called “rules, dos and don’ts” and “philosophies” for development on Nintendo platforms.
“There is a simple rule, especially with those games,” said Mallat. “They have to have a consumer benefit. Strong, obvious and accessible. Because they are designed for people who were not used to playing games, they have to be accessible. They have to have a consumer benefit because those guys, if they don’t play games, they usually do something that matters in a way. They’re used to making the most of their time. Even when they are doing crosswords, they are doing something valuable for them. So those are two of the main rules that a casual game should fulfill.”
Ubisoft released My Word Coach in North America on Nov. 6, 2007, for the Wii and DS. Ubisoft plans to extend the My Coach brand this summer with My Weight Loss Coach for the DS, developed by Ubisoft Montreal under the guidance of a fitness coach and a nutritionist.
February 20th, 2008 at 10:41 pm
I think the praise was more for the DS, where the My Coach series is expanding, and not the Wii.
I agree, though. This is a great game for the DS. I commend Ubisoft for coming up with the series.
I guess Nintendo is happy they can help out a company who isn’t doing another brain training clone(though Ubisoft already did, and it sucked)
February 20th, 2008 at 10:43 pm
People are really taking this quote out of context, especially since this game is hardly suited for the Wii, and more the DS-where there are 3 games in the series, and 2 more coming.
February 20th, 2008 at 10:53 pm
I believe a great game has a home on any system, and if the game is in fact quality why not have it on Wii?
February 20th, 2008 at 11:40 pm
Article should read: “Nintendo re-confirms that Wii is for casual games, other games can suck it.”
February 21st, 2008 at 12:02 am
“Article should read: “Nintendo re-confirms that Wii is for casual games, other games can suck it.””
Sure. I mean, Metroid Prime, Mario Galaxy, RE4, Zelda TP, COD4, these are all pick up and play for a few minute casual games. Hardcore gamers don’t matter. Get used to it. General public appeal is where the money is.
Nintendo is doing well. They’re keeping some hardcore games coming and introducing huge numbers of non gamers to the media. Don’t like it? Tell them. I’m sure they’ll cry a river sitting high atop their mountain of money as the Wii continues to climb to a point where its total sales outnumber the 360 and PS3 combined.
February 21st, 2008 at 12:18 am
Whoops, forgot “primarily”. Not that it matters all that much. I’ve had this debate before, so I’ll pass. All I wanted to do was post a snarky comment. Why won’t you let me have that? Meanie.
P.S. CoD4 isn’t for the Wii.
February 21st, 2008 at 1:36 am
Im still waiting for, “My German Coach” and “My Japanese Coach”, and they’ll have two sales.
February 22nd, 2008 at 9:40 am
Sorry but I’m with neko on this one. The comment “‘You got it. You guys got exactly the type of game we want for this machine,’” doesn’t really sit well with me. I’m sure someone will like it, but My Word Coach is NOT the kind of game I want on the Wii. I can’t wait for the sequels My Math Coach, My Social Studies Coach, and My World History Coach.
And sure you named some “hardcore” games….pretty much all of them with the exception of 2 or 3. And almost all first party….and given the lineup for 2008 it doesn’t appear even Nintendo is getting too many “hardcore” games out. You say “hardcore” gamers don’t matter, well I’m glad you at least admit Nintendo is in it primarily for the money and we can stop this bullcrap that’s been spouted for the past year about how Nintendo “cares about the gamers” and “is all about FUN”. They’re all about money, just everyone else. And I highly disagree “hardcore gamers don’t matter”. Hardcore gamers have kept the market going all these years. There’s a reason why they are called “casuals”, because eventually they probably will get bored and move on. The “hardcore” gamers will be left.
Good thing for Nintendo they have their core audience of fanboys that pretty much praises everything they do. If they re-released the SNES in 5 years but made it black, the fanboys would praise the decision.