We return February 2nd, 2014

We will analyze everything from the holiday season and everything from this upcoming year of gaming.



Hope you are doing well.

Break.

First off, I love to write.






I have been writing (for free) on the internet for almost 10 years. It all started with reviews for IMDB in 2004—with Ace Ventura: Pet Detective being my first review. I have written over 200 reviews for IMDB, and over 500 articles amongst my 3 blogs in Blogspot.



So as you can see, I love to write.



However…I can’t continue, not for now.




Life happens sometimes. Every once in a while it drains all your dreams, aspirations, momentum, drive, and desires. It happens to the best of us, it happens to the worst of us. It happens on different periods of your life, it is guaranteed. You can try to hide from it, you can try to avoid it, you can try to take on confrontation head-on. Or you can cower from it. But the inevitable is, you will run into rocky time periods. And now I have hit it.

On a creative standpoint, I am hitting rock bottom.


My motivation to continue these three blogs has disappeared. To figure out why, it would require hours of ranting, hours of screaming, and hours of psychoanalysis and I just don’t have the energy to explain. But the inevitable has arrived, and I find myself opening up these pages with the biggest case of writer’s block this side of the hemisphere.


In writing, you need time, you need space, and you truly need a drive. You don’t get help when you write, this isn’t one of those types of hobbies that allows for you to seek help and pass the baton temporarily. Anyone can give you tips, but it is all up to you to tackle the work you are writing. Writing is you versus the prose. Writing is you alone against the empty canvas. If you don’t have it, you don’t have it. It is a tough, brutal, sadistic battle.


So I am taking a true blue break. I have taken breaks in the past, but they were always short-lived, they were always brief, and they never truly became breaks. This one is legit. This is the real deal. I have nothing. I have absolutely nothing left to give.


How long is this break amongst the three blogs going to be? No idea. I want to say that I will start again next January with the new year, with a fresh new start. But I truly don’t know. It pains me to do this, and I want this stretch to end as quickly and as swiftly as humanely possible. But I can’t guarantee anything. Maybe I am walking away from all this. I don’t know. It may seem silly now, but I see a blank space in the coming months. I don’t see much ahead.



In simple terms, I don't have the drive, the edge, the "eye of the tiger" to continue this....for now.



I have nothing left. For now.


We shall see in 2014 if the drive comes back.


Until then, take care. Thanks for reading, thanks for participating, thanks for putting up with me, and hopefully down the road I can continue this hobby.







I hope.













Goodbye.

The Unfortunate Timing of an Excellent Nintendo Game Trailer

Nintendo’s marketing campaign needs some help.



Their latest trailer that came out on a random October morning propelled Super Mario 3D World from potential mere cash cow into a potentially incredible game. All it took was two minutes of pure mayhem gameplay and ridiculous depth of level design to display this Mario game as not just another adventure---which was the financial and critical reaction that followed the launch game New Super Mario Bros. U.


But it begs the question, why on earth did Nintendo not unveil any of this in the E3 trailer? Why did they disallow us to get excited for this holiday release? I mean, look at the trailers:









Notice the newer one makes the older trailer (which was surrounded by far, far more press) look like pure garbage. I will even go as far as to say that Nintendo could have gotten some major momentum if they had featured all the insanity that surrounds the upcoming Mario game. All those power-ups, all those unique features, and those interesting twists to the usual platforming that is associated with the Super Mario brand. Peach isn’t even the one kidnapped this time. All these little changes would have allowed for Mario to stand out and take some of the limelight.




Remember the ridiculous amount of attention that the trailers of Cloverfield and Inception (with the latter having the best teaser in the history of film) received? All it takes for a game or a movie is one trailer to get you excited. Get you hyped. Get you pumped. And to move sales. I can honestly say if they had combined the price cut with that second Super Mario 3D World trailer during E3 then the WiiU would be doing far far better leading up to the holiday season.


Instead, we have an excellent trailer muddled in the GTAV hype train receiving little attention and not contributing much to Nintendo’s plea that the WiiU is the system to buy during the upcoming insane month of Nintendo.




Ill timing Nintendo.

The Financial Downward Spiral of Capcom (And How It Can Still Be Saved) [Part 1 of 2]

So Capcom has a mere 152 million in the bank. Is 152 million a lot of money? Of course it is, until you realize that there are movies that cost more, there are modern-games with $50 million invested, and until you realize that those millions applies to the entire company. And with a new generation of gaming literally around the corner and rising costs guaranteed, Capcom is in deep, deep trouble.


But before you feel bad for the Japanese company and its struggling ability to stay relevant (Similar to Square Enix) in these dark times, let’s bring this one major point up:


Capcom brought this upon themselves.



And here are the backwards steps Capcom took (not in any order) leading to their dire situation:


1) Breath of Fire VI Disaster

Instead of working on a legit Breath of Fire game, a deeply appreciated franchise in the RPG community, Capcom takes the stupid route and makes the sixth installment an android-only game. So instead of taking a multi-million selling franchise and giving it a next-generation uplift or even make a handheld installment they make it a phone game. Way to crap on a classic 90s franchise.




2) Mega Man Disaster

They cancelled the last FOUR Mega Man games, even though this was the franchise that essentially put the company on the gaming map in the first place. This was similar to what would happen if the next 3-D Mario game was abruptly cancelled altogether without explanation. Mega Man 9 and 10 were good hits on the online marketplaces within the three systems. So instead of a Mega Man Legends 3 for the 3DS, instead of Mega Man 11 for the next-gen systems, instead of a Mega Man X9, we have----nothing. Its pretty much the death of Mega Man as we know it. No wonder the original staff from the previous Mega Man games took off running....


3) Resident Evil Disaster

Resident Evil used to be the peak of survival horror. But recently the franchise went in a totally different direction and tried becoming another Uncharted or God of War leading to disappointing results. Capcom has yet to learn that we want a horror game, not an action game with lots of monsters. And even with that, the games pale in comparison to games of similar structure. Stop trying to become Halo and be more like your old-school Resident Evil games.Resident Evil's recent-depleting numbers should tell you that message.


4) Nintendo/Capcom

Remember when Capcom promised Nintendo 5 exclusive games on the Gamecube and it turns out that each of these games (that succeeded) went to the PS2? Remember when the Mega Man brand was dying and Capcom asked Nintendo to put the blue bomber in Smash Brothers Brawl and Nintendo (of course) turned them down? Hey want to know what happened to Brawl? Became the best-selling fighting game of all-time, toppling every Street Fighter game in the process. Who has the last laugh there? Capcom’s backstabbing of Nintendo was a major blow and a total contrast to what happened to Sega when they partnered with Nintendo and got some life after losing their ability to make hardware. I am sure Capcom could have used Nintendo's 100 million Wiis userbase between the years 2006-2011 when the Wii was at its peak.


5) Marvel vs. Capcom 3

Hey remember that Marvel fighting game missing Rogue, Loki, Gambit, Mega Man, Venom, Silver Samurai among dozens of others? How on earth did Marvel vs. Capcom 2, a game older by a decade, have twice as many characters? And then re-releasing the game with an Ultimate edition the very same year was a low disgusting blow. Just to rub this in, here’s a nice tally: Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (2.27 million) Smash Brothers Brawl (11.79 million).


6) Street Fighter IV Super Mega Ultimate Turbo Hyper Alpha Marathon Pickles

The tiring amount of variations of the Street Fighter games used to be fun to witness on the SNES/Genesis days, but nowadays with the economy and rising costs of being a gamer, its very stupid to witness. What has held off the sales of fighting games and most Capcom games nowadays is knowing that there is a superior version around the corner waiting to come out. We gamers are far more informed than we used to be, and that sort of nonsense just won’t be tolerated. You think GTA V would have made one billion in sales in three days if Rockstar adopted Capcom’s technique in releasing games?


7) Tatsunoko vs. Capcom

The one fighting game that surprised many was the Wii’s Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, by making 25 million with minimal hype or fanfare. And this goes back with the strained and bizarre Nintendo/Capcom relationship, which didn’t allow this franchise to flourish for some odd reason. This was the one surprise-hit franchise in Capcom’s watch in the past half-decade and yet nothing was done to enhance the momentum—no sequel, no multi-platform release, no porting to the 3DS, nothing……why?


8) The DRM/DLC Disaster

This one takes the cake. Capcom’s treatment of these two subjects is the main reason for its downfall. There was the Resident Evil 3DS controversy, which disallowed for gamers to erase any save data, destroying its chances for re-sale. It was a low move that resulted in terrible sales for a game released in a handheld that is outselling all other systems by a substantial amount. This was the first attempt at a DRM-style change in gaming as game companies across the planet have started combating Gamestop and all the small resale markets that sell old games.


Then the DLC mayhem. If you sell DLC content that’s fine. But when the DLC content is within the video game itself, it causes problems because it leads the gamer to believing that they are paying full price for a game they don’t have full access to. This resulted in games like Street Fighter X Tekken, Resident Evil 6, and Marvel vs. Capcom 3 getting hacked and revealed to be games with the DLC attached and forcing you to pay extra to unlock. Utter nonsense. If you think gamers don’t rebel against this I have a story for you Capcom: you are down to less than $150 million right now. Time will tell how much farther you are going to fall.


So with all this, can they be saved? Of course, stay tuned for the YouTube video that will be my Part 2 to this massive article about the issue of Capcom’s slow death. It will be released next Monday. 




But until then Capcom read these words: Stop Your Nonsense.

The Eighth Generation 9/21/13: How Nintendo's Franchises Can Earn Ninten...

How Wind Waker Might Become Zelda's Batman Begins

So the similarities between what has been happening with the Zelda franchise upon hitting 3-D and what happened with the Burton Batman saga are far bigger than you may assume.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ocarina of Time was a huge hit, the biggest hit of the four and was the highest-acclaimed. It set the bar for blockbuster video games everywhere because of its size, scope, and sheer domination of the gaming world for a good period of time.

Batman 1989 set the bar for blockbusters because of the heavy merchandise tie-ins, massive opening weekend that set the record at the time, and pretty much establishing the Batman franchise and in what direction it was heading.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Majora’s Mask is the darkest of the Zelda games since Ocarina of Time (and I can take it a bit farther by saying it’s arguably the darkest Nintendo game ever made) and by far the most unique. The doom-and-gloom tone and pacing of the game turned off some gamers, while establishing a cult audience that have since demanded a re-release of this gem.

Batman Returns also established a cult audience while receiving backlash for being far too dark. It felt in place with the franchise but felt out of place for trying too hard to be gloomy. The result is good money, but demand for a change.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Wind Waker is the animated Zelda game in the group that was still dark, still serious, still adventurous, but despite looking very different still felt like it had the Zelda touch. Despite the final tedious sequence, it was a heck of a good game and one of the best in the Gamecube era.

Pretty sure none of you saw this gem, but Batman: Mask of the Phantasm is a spectacular animated film that follows the Batman mythos to a T even though it was never met the success, acclaim, and praise it deserved.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Twilight Princess was a return to form in the Zelda franchise by looking like Ocarina of Time with a subplot twist of becoming a wolf. Gamers and critics accept the changes and the niches and view it as arguably the best Zelda since Ocarina of Time (Even though in my opinion Majora’s Mask remains the best video game of the new millennium). However, something didn’t stick, something was lacking as the competition was beginning to catch up to the Zelda quality.

Batman Forever was a massive success that was met with minimal critical praise but the moviegoers loved every moment as it became the second biggest American movie of 1995---trailing only Toy Story. Despite the great performances, the better tone, and plenty of action, something wasn’t really clicking, and a downward spiral was inevitable.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Skyward Sword is a Zelda game that was quickly forgotten, quickly moved aside, and did not have the outstanding or lasting appeal of your typical Zelda games. While critics seemingly loved it, the game did not feel Zelda, did not feel complete, and the overall experience was sorely lacking. It barely outsold Majora’s Mask while not even coming close to the sales of Wind Waker, Twilight Princess, and especially Ocarina of Time. Couldn’t even outsell Link’s Awakening or Zelda II.



We all know what happened to Batman and Robin. Let’s move on.




Now I bring this parallel to this article because it appears that Nintendo is attempting to restart the Zelda franchise, similar to how Batman Begins started the mythos from scratch. Wind Waker is most definitely not the signature Zelda title, but the most accessible. So could it be that Nintendo is priming Wind Waker to become the rebirth of Zelda? The relaunch? The reboot?

Hear me out. This isn’t just going to be a release, it’s actually going to be packaged with most/almost all WiiU purchases starting in late September. Wind Waker is being treated like Mario Bros. and Mario World, Nintendo’s pick to become your first gaming experience with the new system. Wind Waker is being primed to cater to a new audience as well as appeal to the hardcore that (according to Nintendo) saw the Gamecube gem as the last truly great hardcore Zelda title.

I theorize that the future Zelda installments are going to run with the Wind Waker look and feel as opposed to the Ocarina of Time/Majora’s Mask tone. After all, the lighter Zelda saw good success on the Gamecube and also on the DS with Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks. And if you read some of the interviews, there are hints that the producers want to continue reverting back to what made Wind Waker good when planning their next epic Zelda game.

I firmly believe that Wind Waker isn’t just a way for the WiiU to get back in the game, this is Nintendo acknowledging the disappointment of Skyward Sword and a desire to go back to basics, and a desire to reboot the franchise to a new audience while obtaining whatever scrambling fans are left.


Just like Batman Begins.



And if Zelda down the road can go the route of the Nolan Batman Trilogy, the gaming industry will definitely not complain.

The Eighth Generation 9/6/13: The Inexcuasble Shunning of American Gamer...

Microsoft's Strange Neglection of American Gamers

This one really baffles me, it really does.




Microsoft is reaching out to the United Kingdom market by offering them a choice between FIFA or Forza 5 when they preorder the Xbox One for the first day. Originally there was some confusion (that Microsoft didn’t clarify) that this was applying to gamers worldwide, not just the British. And the other confusion (Which Microsoft was also late in clarifying) is that it applied to ALL pre-orders when in actuality it applies only to day one pre-orders. Good going Microsoft PR team. Nonetheless, after several weeks and potential pre-orders with the thought of getting a game included at launch, Microsoft cleared the air by stating this was only for the U.K. region.




And now they have offered Forza 5 to U.K. gamers.


As for the Americans…well…nothing yet…if anything happens at all.............



And this my friends is why Microsoft can never quite ever have a chance to seize first place. Why on earth are you punishing the one region that has best supported you all these years?


Between the Xbox and the Xbox 360, 103 million consoles have been sold. Amongst the 103 million, 60.24 million have been sold in North America. In case you don’t want to do the math, it is 58% of all Microsoft consoles sold have been sold in the Americas. Only 30% belong to Europe. Now I know that Sony quite frankly owns the entire European and Japanese market in recent years and Microsoft wants to gain the upper edge somehow.

But why are they punishing American gamers? Why are they being shafted by not getting a free game? It is not like Europe, Japan, or Australia is the biggest gaming market now---this title still belongs to America and its neighbors. In the United States nowadays, video games make far more money than television, music, and movies. Every single winning console in each generation had control of the American market. The Sega Genesis outsold the Super Nintendo in European, South American, and Oceanic market. Guess which one between Sega and Nintendo isn’t making consoles anymore.

And guess what, the PS4 isn’t launching with a video game in the United States either, but gains the upper hand by being $100 cheaper, including its version of a camera, and promising potential backwards-compatibility---just like the Xbox One. So wouldn’t it make sense to make this offer to American gamers as well as European gamers? Wouldn’t it have made sense to announce in E3 or shortly after that you are bundling the Xbox One with Forza 5 (potentially the best-looking launch game between the two major systems) or Madden (Which would come with that stupid NFL feature that Microsoft is so proud of)? Wouldn’t it make sense to continue the momentum of outselling Sony by 15 million copies on the biggest gaming section in the world?

It is insulting and absolutely stupid to make the offer for free games to only one or two smaller regions, and exclude the one major region that requires conquering to win the war. Fun Fact: Every console and handheld that wins Japan and the United States wins the whole darn thing, and usually by a good amount. The Wii overall outsold the PS3 and the Xbox 360 in all of North America and this is after giving up the battling three years early partially thanks to an awesome but forgotten 2010 campaign (Bit.Trip.Runner, Cave Story, Mega Man 10, No More Heroes 2, NBA Jam, Red Steel 2, Sin & Punishment: Star Successor, Spiderman: Shattered Dimensions, Super Mario All-Stars, Donkey Kong Country Returns, Fragile Dreams, Goldeneye 007, Super Mario Galaxy 2, Tatsunoko vs Capcom, Kirby's Epic Yarn, Monster Hunter Tri).


Microsoft, reward the one country that saved your original system, and strongly supported your sequel through all the good times and bad times. Give the Americans a chance to get a free game. And allow us to choose just like the Europeans.



Don’t leave US (see what I did there?) in the dust.



Otherwise, Sony and Nintendo wouldn’t mind claiming some of the American gamer fanbase from you.



Source:
VGChartz

How "Mega Man" Can Help Microsoft in Japan

Kenji Inafune is a video game legend that wound up leaving the company that helped jump-start his career. In simpler terms, Capcom is a horrible crappy company that is a mere fraction of what it used to be. Anyways, he needs money to fund his next game---which is a spiritual sequel to his classic Mega Man franchise.


The Xbox 360 did not sell over 600 copies of its system in Japan in its latest week. Again. Japan has not bought 2,000,000 Xbox 360s yet during the system’s entire run.


Inafune needs money. Microsoft needs Japanese support and love. I smell a potential relationship.

If Microsoft ever plans on becoming the world leader in the gaming industry, they must tackle the Japan issue. Their sales in the Far East are above and beyond pathetic. They can’t get anything going outside the United States, whom has been there for them since the very moment that Halo burst onto the scene. 57% of the Xbox 360 sales were in North America, far bigger than the PS3 and the Wii (34% and 44% respectively). Guess which one is currently in last place this generation.

Another fun piece of trivia: whichever system sell the most in Japan wins the generation—it has remained true since the NES sold nearly 20 million copies back in the 80s/90s. The SNES, PSX, PS2, and Nintendo Wii each outsold the competitors in the Asia market and ultimately became the big seller. Japan can also save systems, as the country breathed life into comatose hardware like the 3DS and especially the PSP.

Financing Inafune’s game could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship, and a friendship involving a legendary Japanese gaming figure. The Mega Man games were absolute hits in Japan, and seeing that the Green Machine’s 3rd model is the exclusive system holding the creator’s next invention could stir the pot and raise some curiosity.

Inafune is requesting a mere $900,000 for his game is a cakewalk for Microsoft. Halo 4 cost more than $60 million to produce and market, would a cool million honestly hurt Microsoft in exchange for a potentially good Mega Man-like game built directly from the legend himself?

If Microsoft was smart, they would put down the money, give him creative freedom that Capcom refused to offer towards the end of Inafune’s time there, and potentially get a good hit that would resonate in Japan. This will not solve all their problems in appealing to the Japanese and Oceanic audience, but it would be a giant step forward.



Mighty No. 9 needs to be made. And the Xbox One would benefit from its release more than anybody else.

The Eighth Generation 8/30/13: The Plea for a WiiU Ambassador Program

The Eighth Generation is Now in YouTube

Watch it. WATCH IT!!!!

How Nintendo Can Give Gamestop the Middle Finger

Nintendo, this is definitely your chance.




You can totally shove it in the face of Gamestop for what they did to your video game.




You can give them the business-infused middle finger.


Gamestop took thousands of copies of a rare game you released in the Western Hemisphere a couple years ago and are now selling it at its current ridiculous $90 price tag. This is extremely a slap in the face to the hardcore gamers everywhere that had fought to the death to bring the game into the United States and Europe. Not to mention, they are attempting to screw you over by collecting all the profits since its “used.”

But Nintendo, you can win back the hardcore crowd, get the attention of the industry, and gain some momentum for the Nintendo WiiU. The solution is quite simple:


Make it a downloadable game.


Personally, if I ran Nintendo and witnessed Gamestop taking two of my games and jacking up the prices unfairly to take advantage of their rarity, I would make them free downloadables on the struggling WiiU system. It would be a fantastic way to convince people to buy a WiiU---which is something that nothing outside Pikmin 3 and Earthbound has been able to accomplish. Xenoblade Chronicles being a free downloadable game on Nintendo’s internet service would be a great marketing move and an excellent prelude to the highly-anticipated release of X coming out in 2014.

But since few things in gaming life are free I would not expect Nintendo to pull off such a dramatic move, even if it would be a move that would provide nothing but benefits. Either way though, making it available digitally on the WiiU and Wii internet browser at regular price would not only send a message, but would also kick Gamestop right on the stomach as the anti-Gamestop campaign picks up steam.And trust me, I can see hordes of gamers willing to download this game, which has picked up lots of positive steam since its American localization.

This would also serve as a nice experience to see just how effective it would be to release a game just digitally and avoid the physical copies. Now that your only option to obtain a physical copy is to learn Japanese, have a European Wii, or fork over nasty amounts of cash on the EBays of the internet, making it downloadable would be a potential glimpse into the future of gaming.

However, Nintendo has a chance to truly become cynically evil while at the same time become a temporary champion to the hardcore crowd. Making the game accessible to the WiiU and Wii owners for free would be the perfect counterpunch to the rising ridiculousness of Gamestop. Xenoblades Chronicles can alter the course of the history of the WiiU history. The ball is in Nintendo’s court.


Time to take action.

Make Xenoblade Chronicles, currently one of the highest-rated Nintendo games in the past half-decade, fully available to the world again—in digital form.

The Necessary, Required, Expected Price Cut of the WiiU

Hey remember when I talked about predicting that the Nintendo WiiU will be eventually dropping its price before the PS4 and the XBox One rolling around?

Well....it hasn't happened yet despite the recent ugly news.

And now the question should not be as to whether or not its going to happen, the question Nintendo should ask is how much exactly should they drop the price.

While the WiiU might be selling at a loss with its current price, the WiiU is going to be destroyed if Nintendo sticks to its price being a mere $50 less than the next-generation Playstation 4 (whom is riding some good momentum) come the holiday season. The deluxe package of the WiiU needs to be less than $300 as soon as possible--at the very latest September.

If I personally ran Nintendo, I would drop it back to a $250 price, with the $275 price if you purchase it with the understated but presentation-dreary New Super Mario Bros. U (Which is on pace to become the least-successful major Mario game since Super Mario Sunshine). You need to separate yourself from the competition now that they are around the corner and looking far more advanced than your product.

Momentum is required to thrive into the holiday season and make good money then, and the WiiU clearly has very little. The long-delayed Pikmin 3 is serving up humble numbers, but not the kind that can jump-start the hardware. The Virtual Console got a big boost from Earthbound, and it arguably would have never happened if it weren't for the PR nightmare involving the Super Smash Brothers franchise controversy. And let's not forget the fleeting third-party support. Perhaps cutting the price to a more economic stature would give Nintendo the necessary 3DS-like boost that could propel it away of obscurity.

Nintendo, let's look at the facts:
WiiU Deluxe--the only package you should get: $350
PS4: $400
XBox One: $500

Game Price Range
WiiU: $5-$60
PS4: $5-$60
XBox One: $5-$60

Wouldn't it look prettier to be $150 cheaper than the competitors while holding a heavier abundance of cheaper games with the Why-in-the-hell-have-I-still-not-reached-my-potential Virtual Console? You can manage the operating at a loss if you manage to slide in some quick bucks left and right with re-releases of games that already exist. There are over 1,500 Nintendo games still not released. You mean to tell me if you get at least 40% of those games available you won't get some money out of it?

Let's refer back to an old IGN article about the Virtual Console and WiiWare to show you the potential money that can cover the lack of software and heavier loss if you were to do the necessary price cut:

Back in 2009 alone, JUST 2009, Super Mario Bros. 3 by itself generated $5 million, which is the equivalent of 83,000 sales of a modern-day video game. If you combine the top 5, that's $18.7 million, with an equivalent of 311,000 sales of modern games. This is ONLY the top 5 combined on a slow year of the Nintendo Wii that actually saw its sales drop 25% that year. And this would be coming from a far far smaller budget than your typical $60 game nowadays. There are 400 video games on the Wii Virtual Console. Is it that hard to transfer it all to the WiiU to help generate sales?

Nintendo, the price cut is going to be a gamble, but it is far better to swallow the pride and look like the far economically better option as opposed to taking a chance at looking expensive AND inferior to the competitors. You have an abundance of new games coming out this fall but you need the arsenal of older games to help quantify the options for upcoming WiiU owners.



So...the question should NOT be IF the WiiU needs a price cut, the question should be: How much?

Square Enix's Untouched Pot of Gold

So Square Enix continues to lose money, even though the "losses aren't as bad as before." When one tries to spin their bad news with words like those, you know the company isn't exactly bringing in the dough. Their years of poor decisions, constant delays, and inability to truly touch upon what gamers want is beginning to catch on them in the same way that the evolving wave of gaming is quietly affecting most Japanese gaming companies.



Kingdom Hearts has run its course (We STILL don't have an official 3rd one with a release date). Final Fantasy needs a total refresher course on how to tell a good story and deliver a decent presentation that will age like the greats--after all, not a single Final Fantasy has been memorable in the slightest bit since part 10. And Final Fantasy X is a PS2 game. Dragon Quest, their usual biggest cash cow, has been quieted down for inexplicable reasons. A calm Wii and WiiU release with minimal fanfare and no United States release? This is a total contrast from all the excitement that had occurred after first announcement. Combine the sales of the Wii and WiiU versions of DQX and they still won't match the sales of the NES version of Dragon Quest II back in 1987.

But the difference between most of the Japanese companies struggling and Square Enix is the history. Nintendo's ability to tap into history to try to replenish sales and bring up reputation has saved them time and time again. On the other hand, Square Enix continues to totally dodge their history, resulting in millions in potential sales and money that remains in their reach but unattained.

I once wrote that perhaps the art of the JRPG is dying. But on the other hand, maybe its because Square Enix isn't looking back at the classics that put them on the map in the first place.

Square Enix owns:
The SaGa series (Which includes the Final Fantasy Legend games on the original Game Boy), Chrono series (Which includes Chrono Trigger, one of the greatest games ever), the Crystal Chronicles series, the Mana series, parts of the Super Mario RPG series (You owe us another Geno and Mallow game), the ActRaiser series, the Gaia series (Which consists of just one classic), the Star Ocean series, and even the widely-forgotten franchise of the Dragon Warrior Monsters.



Now, all of the franchises I have recently mentioned have whether not had new, original installments in years, or they have been quietly being released with minimal effort to the extent of the Final Fantasy games in recent years. These are all great franchises back in its heyday with lots of creativity. It is not like Square Enix JUST has one major game to depend on--they have an extremely rich lineup of games that spanned from the Game Boy through the latter PSX days to re-release, re-do, or follow up to. I can promise you the gaming industry will buzz with a Super Mario RPG 2, an ActRaiser 3, and/or a Chrono Trigger 3.

But much like Nintendo's dependance on the Big 3 (Mario, Pokemon, Zelda) in its lineup, Square has put all their eggs in just one or two baskets (Final Fantasy) with every once in a while branching off to strange territory (Tomb Raider....really?), when they can diversify so much more without worrying about restrictions. This company is sitting on multiple ideas, worlds, characters, franchises that have a chance to breathe some life to its industry. JRPGs can make a rise if they are willing to bend its rules a little and refresh their SNES/PSX glory days for a new generation of gamers.

Then lastly, try to remember that gamers exist on the Western Hemisphere. Despite JRPGs not being as big to Americans and the Europeans as they used to, there is still an audience. Game Freak and their Pokemon franchise is right now smiling profusely. Dragon Quest X has been out for over a year and STILL no word on a release outside of Japan. And not even attempting to make it a 3DS game? What are you all thinking? Dragon Quest used to be the biggest and baddest franchise in all of Japan. Why mistreat it so badly?

Newsflash Square Enix, your company is slowly dying because you are allowing it to die slowly. You have a wealth of franchises and video games that can make good sales, follow with good reception, and can bring you the money necessary to advance your craft. I don't quite know how and why your company has slipped into a coma of Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy Delays, but none of this has to occur.

Square Enix can be saved. You just have to look back, and be willing to expand your horizons a little.



....and find a way to do that gosh darn remake too....you know the one......

Sony Needs to Up the 1st Party Ante for PS4

So with Microsoft still desperately trying to repair its image and Nintendo seemingly trying anything to tarnish theirs, we have Sony front and center ready to make their strike.

Sony, coming off a good report about their overall profits despite the game division hitting about even, are finally on the upswing and ready to take on the eighth generation with their nicely priced Playstation 4.


However…


There is this troubling thing about the E3 conference that still lingers: their games. Kingdom Hearts 3 was their big announcement----but this is also an Xbox One game. Metal Hear Solid 5 also turned some heads during E3---but that’s also an Xbox One title. Their biggest titles were The Last of Us and Gran Turismo 6---which are actually PS3 games. Oh but there’s Final Fantasy---wait, never mind.

Now there’s no way that me and potentially other gamers closely following this war are going to spend money on a Microsoft machine for a nice period of time. Ugly incident with the DRM issue, high price tag, and my continuing trust issues with the company.


However….


What awesome, must-purchase exclusive Playstation 4 game was announced? Anyone? There was no next-gen Uncharted, no next-gen Ratchet and Clank, no next-gen Jak and Daxter, no next-gen Sly Cooper, and lastly we aren’t even sure if their biggest franchise (Gran Turismo) is getting a release within the first year on the new machine. All we got was the new Killzone, which is still a few layers below the other first-person shooter franchises like Call of Duty, Battlefield, and Halo. I know that Sony pretty much fired all their best work in the last leg of the PS3’s lifespan, leaving all the first and second-party companies scrambling for time with the new system coming out. If Sony wants to remove all momentum from Microsoft, they need to build up their first-party lineup for a full attack.

The PS3 surprisingly had the best blend of first and second-party games this previous generation, an award usually given to Nintendo (After all, Nintendo always survives solely because they can game-build their way out of any issue). Between Gran Turismo 5, Little Big Planet, and the spectacular Uncharted trilogy the Playstation 3 was saved by a second wave of video games that propelled the entire company past Microsoft for the silver medal in the seventh generation.

But if they want to accomplish this success once again starting this holiday season, depending on third-party games that you are going to see on the competition is not the right way to go. Sony dropped the ball by not withholding some of these great exclusives for the next generation, especially Gran Turismo 6. Call of Duty, Madden, Elder Scrolls, Battlefield, NBA 2K, and Rockstar’s games sold better on the 360 than on the PS3. And with the Xbox One not being a restricting prick of a console, Microsoft is starting to stand toe to toe with Sony.


Sony, you don’t need to have another PS3 on your hands. What you need to do is kill em’ with exclusives, early, and with rapid succession. Otherwise, it will be hard to separate yourself from the pack.




P.S. You need to kill the Vita to cut the bleeding. The embarrassing 14% market share just won't cut it.

How the Gaming Industry can "Stop" Gamestop

The Gamestop Battles have been heating up…..again. Before it was the major controversy involving Capcom and EA trying to find ways to prevent resale. Then we had the XBox One and their DRM disaster. And now in the latest news, a PS4 developer is criticizing the practices of Gamestop and its concept of making extra money off of pre-purchased games. He says that the used game sales from Gamestop affects the game development companies and hurts the gaming industry overall.

Now, while I will save this argument for another day (You know, the argument about how the gaming industry seems to be the ONLY one mildly upset at the resales of their product as opposed to movies, cars, houses, electronics, etc. etc. etc.) , there is a fun simple way to combat the supposed business-killing ways of the Gamestop:





Stop. Being. So. ****ing. Expensive.


Pricing is everything, especially in a tougher economy. Nintendo’s battle against Blockbuster was short-lived in the early 90s because a) Nintendo was making fantastic money nonetheless, especially between 1994-1996 leading up to the Virtual Boy disaster and the rise of the Playstation and b) it was the 90s and everybody had money back then. The Clinton Days were good days full of good money flowing left and right.

Nowadays however, we don’t have that type of luxury. The 2000s brought upon some tough times. We are still attempting to recover. And with that the better deal always won, regardless of quality. The last time we had a good system that was the best in the business and the most economically affordable was the Playstation 2 about a decade ago. The best bang for your buck has been the victor in the past couple generations: the Playstation 2, the Nintendo Wii, and now the Nintendo 3DS which is literally eating away at the handheld market.

You are releasing $60 games with $5-$10 DLC packs left and right. And we are not including the increasing prices of online play, controllers, accessories, and other amenities. Games back then ranged from $35-$50 and we were done. Nintendo used to do their Player’s Choice on the SNES-N64 days to great success. PS2 had their share of Greatest Hits. Nowadays they still do it, but with smaller fanfare (Nintendo used to give their games ribbons) and less of a willingness to cut prices to so many games. Madden 2012 is about a year old, and still has the same price. And football season finished back in February. Why?

I am repeating this: if you want to defeat Gamestop and win the Eighth Generation you need to become the most economically friendly of the Big 3. And for the future, you need to be friendlier towards the backwards-compatibility feature. You think Xbox 360 and PS3’s heavy restrictions on what previous-gen games were allowed to be played helped them at all? Hell no. Nintendo took the better route and allowed ALL Gamecube games to be backwards-compatible, and even the controllers themselves could be re-used.

Is it a coincidence that one of the most-played games from the Sixth Generation (XB, PS2, GC, Dreamcast R.I.P.) happens to be Super Smash Brothers Melee? And now it turns out that both the Xbox One and the PS4 will also not be backwards-compatible. I am just saying, we have sent spacecraft to Pluto----it is not impossible to give improving technology the ability to play older games. If there is ANY advantage the WiiU has, it’s being the only Big 3 system to allow the play of Seventh Generation games without having to pay extra.

You wondering why Gamestop is making all this extra money for used games, yet however make it impossible for newer systems to play older games that gamers had already purchased. You think we are going to use the disks to hold paper when they become unplayable in the newer systems? You think lower middle class families would rather fork over $400 on a new system with $60 games as opposed to hitting a Gamestop and purchasing a $75 used older system with $10-$30 video games available? Be serious.

Make your older games available through the DLC. Don’t be afraid to drop prices on older games. Can you believe that Smash Brothers Brawl is still $50? This game is the best-selling fighting game in HISTORY!! Drop the price a little you pricks, you are essentially begging for us to search elsewhere to find cheaper product.

I am not a Gamestop fan by any means, but they will forever be the sexier alternative for poorer gamers and families and people just looking for a quick good game without having to sacrifice too much of the wallet. Gamestop and the other smaller game stores with similar concepts will continue to bust profits as long as it becomes tougher to have access to these older games in modern times. Gamestop secretly loves that the bigger higher-profile games are $60 at least, it makes their job that much easier.

Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft, you need more cheaper games. You need to drop the prices on your systems and accessories and extra details if you want the places like Gamestop to supposedly crack into your profits. We need more $40, $30, $20 games. We need more games from the past through DLC and the infamous Virtual Console. We just need more options and opportunities to dish out smaller amounts of money. The video game industry needs to be more like the car industry: an extremely wide variety of options and prices to go with it. If every car was priced the same as a new Mercedes, I assure you more people would carpool or find other ways to get around.



Gamestop isn’t the problem. The ever-increasing expenses of the industry is.

The Unexpected Comeback of the Nintendo 3DS (And how Nintendo can apply this to the WiiU)

Not sure if you are noticing, but the Nintendo 3DS is kicking major amounts of arse.




Not sure if you are noticing, but the Nintendo 3DS currently has nearly an 86% market share in the handheld battle against the Playstation Vita. Even though Apple has sold over 22 million IPads and 47 million IPhones in 2013 the 3DS continues to put up impressive hardware and software numbers.

Examples:

Animal Crossing New Leaf: 4.4 million
Luigi's Mansion 2 (Surprising, to say the least): 2.1 million
New Super Mario Bros. 2: 6.1 Million
Super Mario 3D Land: 8.5 Million
Mario Kart 7: 8 Million
Ocarina of Time 3D: 3 Million

And now, the handheld is currently outselling the consoles in the U.K. merely two years after we were sure that Apple, Samsung, and the phone companies would eliminate the need for a handheld at all (I was hinting towards that in the past too). My a lot has happened since E3 2010 when the pundits declared that Nintendo was going in the wrong direction with their hardware.




But the truth is, they were.

The 3D craze was a mere fad that was dying, and it was also a fad that does better with kids and families and much less with the more dedicated fanbase. And when it launched, it was quietly a disaster. You can't even name the games that launched with the handheld. Not even a remake of a beloved classic could help it, as Star Fox 3D couldn't even break a million.

So what did Nintendo do? Well, practically bombard the market with a killer blend of sequels, remakes, re-releases, and a couple cool new ideas. As a matter of fact some of these better games were simply buried underneath all the quantity, like Paper Mario and Donkey Kong Country. After selling just 4 million in the first several months, the sales nearly reached 20 million after 15 months. Hey, actually caring about the online service and the downloadable content always makes for a positive note.



Now we have the WiiU in desperate need of help...

....another Nintendo niche system with a different way of playing games..but its a way that gamers have not been emotionally invested in quite like when the Wii and the Kinect first came out.

Despite what they want you to believe, if you simply deliver the arsenal of games required to keep gamers happy, then you don't have to worry about whether or not the niche of the system will become enough to entice people to buy your product.

Newsflash Nintendo: We didn't buy the 3DS for the 3D, we bought it for the superior memory, the superior online features, and the exciting-looking games.

Newsflash #2 Nintendo: We aren't buying the WiiU because of the "inferior" hardware to the competition---we aren't buying it because there has been a lack of software, disk and downloadable. And....we know that a price cut is beyond the horizon.

The WiiU has all the potential to pull off the 3DS-sized comeback. Despite the limitations, this is still Nintendo's first HD system, which in itself leads to lots of potential. We need more games first and foremost, and unlike the 3DS it has the third-party support of a Neo-Geo Pocket. So this means not just the typical sequels like new Mario 3D, a new Zelda, or a new Metroid. We need more Links-to-the-Past to make sequels to neglected or forgotten gems like Kid Icarus, the Mario and Luigi RPG series, and Paper Mario on the 3DS. Nintendo is the only one of the Big 3 that can thrive on a few games selling a lot, because those are usually the system pushers. I promise you the XBox 360 has more million-sellers than the Wii, but n.o.n.e. of them even came close to the success of Mario Kart Wii.

Also, we need more support of Nintendo's past. Earthbound is a decent surprise, but we need more SNES, N64, and Gamecube games available for the WiiU, no excuses. Lastly, once all the games start turning out, we need for the WiiU to not have a price tag that is just $50 less than the next generation systems. This is silly, you need to but at least $50. When the 3DS dropped $75, it was because they knew they shouldn't match the price of superior hardware, and because that way it made the competitors seem that much more expensive. Nintendo has only a few months to repeat this same trick.

But the WiiU can be saved, and Nintendo has proven themselves to be a company that can save systems----and the 3DS' unexpected powerful comeback is their greatest example.

EVOGate and How Nintendo Pulled a Microsoft in One Afternoon

If there is the perfect video game that would cause the latest controversy involving Nintendo absolutely giving the cold shoulder to its depleting hardcore fanbase, it would be arguably one of the least appreciated spectacular game in the history of the company. Super Smash Brothers Melee was mixed in with a total travesty that resulted in a big company changing its mind the very same afternoon and once again inadvertently slapping the faces of the bigger Nintendo fans.


The story is simple: EVO, a fighting game tournament that raises money for good causes (LIKE CANCER NINTENDO!!!!) chose Smash Brothers Melee, a fighting game masterpiece that is over 10 years old and remains one of the most played fighters on the planet, as one of the main events. There would be a Smash Bros. tournament that would be streamed live online for everyone to see. After all, the respect of this game is so heavy that it won the player’s choice to be in the tournament and also remains the only game not from this past generation to be on the list.

Let me remind you that this tournament raises money for breast cancer---Smash Brothers Melee raised $94,000.

So Nintendo for no logical reason whatsoever decides to barge in and let EVO know that they don’t want Melee being streamed online.

Why Nintendo…why did this happen?

The outbreak, the controversy, the negative reaction, the pure anger was so baffling, came so fast, that Nintendo quite literally changed its mind in the course of an afternoon. But by then the damage had been done, and the anger had already been spilled.

For Example:



Why Nintendo?

Why on earth did this happen? Why on earth did you try to ban the streaming of a CHARITY-SPONSORED TOURNAMENT OF YOUR OWN GAME?!?!?!? And of ALL the games, Smash Brothers Melee, the one game that has not seen retail sales in the past 5 years at least. You know, that awesome fighting game that did not get any re-release love despite the overwhelming positive reviews, and despite being essentially the Gamecube’s version of Halo---that one game that pretty much saved the entire system. You know, the one game whose formula you tweaked so that it was LESS hardcore and more casual and mainstream with Brawl. Only God knows how disgusting the Gamecube launch and first-year sales would have been without Smash Brothers Melee at the helm.

Unlike most boneheaded decisions in recent months from all three companies, this one has no Devil’s Advocate argument. This one has no other side of the coin. There is no justification of deciding to not only cut the streaming, but potentially prevent the game from being in the tournament at all. Gamers donated oodles of money to see one of your old games from two generations ago re-enter the gaming spotlight along with the newer fighters like Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and Street Fighter IV. Gamers were showing an amazing amount of love to one of your games and you respond with your heinous decision.

Smash Brothers Melee, the third best-selling fighting game of all-time, has not gotten the respect of a re-release in any sort when most of the classics have gone through a re-introduction. No Virtual Console, no remake for the WiiU (Would have been absolutely perfect), and now an attempted snubbing of some much-needed online love amongst gamers. This game is 12 YEARS OLD!!!! Can you honestly name video games that came out around that same time?!?!?!?!? Nintendo this was a stupid move from start to finish, and this is only going to enhance the notion that you are now beginning to lose touch with gamers.






Yea Nintendo, Earthbound was a nice touch (and one hell of a secret apology), but it might take more before we forget this ugly moment.

Just listen to the chant towards the end of this.

Nintendo, stop screwing up. Stop making us mad. Your WiiU is already a big miss. Stop adding salt to the wound.

The Justifying Price Tag of GTA V

Look at this trailer. Seriously, look at it.

This is how $60 games should look and play like.

Is the game going to be good? I have no idea. Although Vice City remains one of the greatest games I have ever played and San Andreas was a true gem in itself, GTA IV left me desiring a bit more.

But the fact of the matter is they are definitely providing enough stuff to justify the $60, which is something most video games just don't do nowadays. You can hate Rockstar all you want, but they will shell out so much detail and so much material in their games you can't laud them on lack of effort. You simply can't.



This review was from ions ago and San Andreas looks like a game that is lengthier than most of the games we see today. Your shooters are becoming shorter and shorter. Your Mario games have yet to really deliver on the gameplay hours. And let's not get even started with Zelda and your real-time action games with bazillions of hours of cutscenes. Grand Theft Auto V needs to become a success so it can usher in more games with more meat.

And this is why older franchises like Zelda, Mario, Sonic, Star Fox, Mega Man, and then your one-trick-pony genre games like your racers, and your fighting games have dropped a bit in terms of sales and success. They don't have the variety to justify the rising costs required to continue gaming. The GTA V trailer gives you multiple storylines with clearly multiple potential paths to take, three massive overworlds, the ability to play sports, drive like you are playing a racer, shoot around like its a shooter, and venture around so it feels like an urban Fable game.

We need to see more variety from more games. I want to see more variety from games. How about adding a little action and more RPG elements to Zelda? How about adding some more chores, mini-games, side quests, and gambling to Pokemon? And (I will get slack for this) adding a little more space and scope and ability to improvise to Metal Gear and to a lesser extent the Assassin's Creed games? How about adding some storylines to the racing games? The one genre evolving in this direction are the sports games, especially (especially, especially) the NBA 2K games. But more needs to be done. Call of Duty, I am definitely looking in your direction.

The system that wins this generation will be the one with the most heavily-varied games. One-Trick Pony games may have worked last gen but with the rise of small games on Facebook and tablets I don't see this trend repeating itself. So get to work you three.

$60 is a lot of money. And not too many games deserve to be priced this high. But Grand Theft Auto V? Consider me excited and willing to fork over this money in a heartbeat.

How Nintendo Can Win the Indie Crowd

So the PS3 and the XBox 360 had their share of indie hits as well as their large-budget hits. There's Castle Crashers, Journey, Explosion Man, Shadow Complex, and then we have those that have become mainstream like your Candy Crush and Angry Birds. These small hits are a mix of cheaper prices, bite-sized entertainment, and every once in a while branch out and experiment with the limits of what you can do with video games.

Nintendo, like in most categories seemingly nowadays, is a little bit behind this trend. They haven't really gotten many (if any) indie games they can claim for themselves. This only adds to the notion that third-party and Nintendo may never get along ever again.

But there is still one thing Nintendo has that the competitors don't have that can give the Japanese giant its first true advantage and step up on the others: dozens of franchises sitting on the shelf.



For example, since the early 2000s we have not seen the likes of: Wario Land, Puzzle League, StarTropics, Ice Climber, Earthbound, Nintendo Wars (Advance Wars), 2-D Metroid, Mario Tennis and Mario Golf (The RPG versions), Mole Mania, Brain Age, Super Mario Land (trust me, these games play faaaar different from the other 2-D Mario games) and many more. I point these out specifically because these franchises don't really require the larger budgets and larger teams like Zelda, 3-D Metroid, and Mario (Although one can argue indie companies can have the resources to make Mario games).

So, what if Nintendo decides to lend some of these on-the-shelf franchises to indie companies and see what they can pull off? Even better, what if Nintendo took some of the heavier-hitting franchises like Mario, Kirby, perhaps even Pokemon and see what results may occur? The reason why the Disney/Pixar connection works is because Disney merely provides the money and resources, while letting Pixar do its own magic. The result is (up until recently) amazing animated movies that sometimes veers towards an indie flavor because of a lack of a corporate interruption. You really think Dreamworks would have given films like Wall-E, Up, and Ratatouille a chance?

Nintendo may not have the money of Sony or Microsoft, but they have dozens of usable ideas that can be given to new hands and they can be molded into something special. There are dozens of small companies waiting for its chance to shine. Nintendo can benefit from this by reviving one of their fallen and/or forgotten franchises while at the same time provide the confidence and care towards small-small game companies that others would love to see.

Perhaps the road to a better third-party relationship starts with the really little guys. I would love to see a world in which it contains an Indie Nintendo division full of small companies making smaller games for the WiiU and 3DS.

Nintendo, you have a chance to improve your online gaming community. With your abundance of franchises and a willingness to cater to the indie gaming crowd/industry, an improvement can start.

But Nintendo, it all starts with you.

Too Little Too Late For Microsoft?

So the screaming, ranting, and raving can indeed produce results, especially in the gaming industry. Similar to what happened when Mass Effect 3's ending was too much of a downer for the general public, Microsoft decided to backtrack all their controversial changes and just become a regular ol' system that allows you to share games and purchase used games with minimal issue. Microsoft's battle against gaming pirates and Gamestop will ceasefire for at least another day. Gamers spoke up and Microsoft responded.

On one hand, Microsoft did a good job in changing and altering practically the entire system to calm the flames of anger. You don't see Nintendo doing something like this when there was backlash towards their designs of the Wii....and the 3DS....and the WiiU. So with them listening it definitely gave them some respect points.


That being said...



Microsoft, what on earth was your problem? They didn't just present us with bad news that didn't sit well with consumers--they did it in a most disgusting manner. They had a douchebag My-Way-or-the-Highway persona that not only spread around the internet faster than you would believe, but actually increased the stock of the Playstation 4. They insulted the military, didn't even consider countries with weaker internet service, and pretty much insulted anyone not in agreement with the online policy----by offering us the XBox 360.

This past month pretty much secured Microsoft's reputation as the anti-consumer company that sticks around because of its decade head-start on the competition far far back in the day. There was nothing attractive about the XBox One except for the lineup of games, which could have won it E3 if it had not been boggled with the bad taste of bad news and bad press.

And now we have the XBox One that we prefer, at a whopping $100 more than the PS4--when both are similar in power (And rumors suggest the PS4 is actually stronger). So now your system is more expensive, and its backed by a company that you aren't sure you can truly trust anymore. This XBox should be called the 180 because of the total panoramic shift in features in a span of a couple weeks. And the sadder thing is that it will take forever before the gaming industry actually learns that the DRM and mandatory online isn't around anymore. Remember how long it took us to realize the WiiU was a new system and not a mere extension?

Answering the question of the topic at hand, this is definitely too little, too late for consumers. The PS4 is riding the great momentum of the PS3 inches from handily taking 2nd place in the Seventh Generation and remaining the best-selling system amongst the big three in the past three years. As for Microsoft, a good bundle of their fans are so disappointed a good number of them have shifted sides towards Sony. After all, outside the extra shooters both game lineups are very, very similar.

Here is the final breakdown: The Playstation 4 is the XBox One except arguably more powerful, a better and a more diverse first-party lineup, a cheaper price, and its being supported by a company that had not attempted to stab you in the back multiple times within the past few months.





Microsoft, you have some major marketing and PR work to do.

How Retro Studios Cost Nintendo the E3 2013 Victory

Nintendo could have won the E3


They really had a chance.

However, they took the easy route and limited Retro Studios down to just two options: a new Metroid or another Donkey Kong Country game. And one can only assume how much influence Nintendo may have had on that decision---after all Donkey Kong Country Returns did outsell the entire Metroid Prime Trilogy combined and the company really needs another hit on their hands. And Retro decided to go with another Donkey Kong Country.

What killed us gamers and Nintendo fans was that the project was a massive secret for quite some time and added to the mystery by actually hiring people from other game companies---including top dog Naughty Dog. The possibilities were endless. Say what you will about Nintendo and their decisions, they have an incredible first-party lineup of franchises that are beloved and can use a facelift:

Metroid (Other M really hurt it)

Earthbound (Nintendo needs an RPG and now)

Star Fox

F-Zero (Please....please..this one especially......)

Star Tropics (Here is a video to remind you)

Wave Race

Excitebike

Mario Party

Mario Tennis

Wario Land

Even The Legend of Zelda could use a nice facelift from Retro Studios. This Texas company has saved and/or improved three franchises within the next decade, from Metroid to the Donkey Kong brand. They have the talent, they have the patience, and the attention to detail to be able to transform lesser-known or downfallen franchises and make them relevant again. Critics know this, gamers know this, and Nintendo knows this. This is why it hurts that instead of one of the series I mentioned above, we get:












And I get that Nintendo wants to play it safe. I understand that. But Nintendo's recent success in the past decade has been because of their wild card factor. Their gambles, their surprises, their attempts to try something new. The Wii overall was a gamble, the 3DS was a gamble, Smash Brothers Brawl was a shocker when they added Snake and Sonic, Metroid Other M was a shocker, Goldeneye 007's spiritual sequel was a surprise, NBA Jam Wii was a surprise, Kid Icarus on 3DS was a shock, and there are many other smaller examples sprinkled throughout. This is what we expect, this is what we anticipate. The crazy uncle factor is what has separated them from Sony and Microsoft in this entire millennium----which have become neck and neck even with this upcoming holiday season.

So now with all the wild cards hiding and the safe games being revealed what do we see? Sequels. Mario Kart 8. Link to the Past 2 (May I remind you, on the wrong system too). Mario 3D World. Smash Brothers 4 and 4.5. Yoshi's Island 2. Pikmin 3. Shall I continue? I mean, some of those games sound exciting....but these are obvious sequels to games that we knew were going to happen. But what about:

Star Fox 6 (Last game: 2006)?

F-Zero 7 (Last game: 2004)?

Star Tropics 3 (Last game: 1994)?

Super Metroid 2 (Last 2-D Incarnation: 2004)?

All we needed was one of these games to show up with the crop of usual and expected sequels and its wild card status could have won it E3. With Microsoft being absolutely stupid and Sony saying all the right things but missing games (Did it even show any non-Kingdom Hearts exclusive games???) Nintendo had the chance to shine with a purebred lineup of games. Instead, lots of apologizing, lots of 2014 sequels, and no major surprises to look forward to from Retro Studios.

Every major system has/needs its major go-to company for the peak of quality gaming. Microsoft had Rare before being forced to depend on Bungie (and losing them..), Sony has the mighty Naughty Dog (Which practically saved the PS3 in recent years with Uncharted and The Last of Us), and Nintendo is used to depending on themselves--with some success and some failure. This must stop, its time to give this mantle to a company with a superior track record in recent years. That company is Retro Studios. Give them the keys to all the franchises and prevent them from taking the easy route. Donkey Kong Country Returns 2 is the easy route.

And this is why Nintendo lost.



No Wild Card in their hand.

The Insanity of the 2013 E3

E3 2013.

Holy mackerel, you are frustrating.

This is quite possibly the most intense, most dramatic, and most cutthroat E3 we have seen in quite some time. While usually companies shy away from each other and focus more on why their machine is the best, this time Microsoft and Sony’s conferences were directly linked and jabs were most definitely exchanged---with far more coming from the Sony. Now the gaming world has become more cluttered and more confusing because we have one machine with a good-looking lineup but an ishload of issues, and on the other hand you have a machine that has none of the restrictions but----still a little more lacking on the games. Then there is Nintendo, being avoided once again, but somehow still being exactly where they want to be----except wishing for more sales.




The Microsoft conference perfectly resembled its status as a gaming giant---broken, inconsistent, not much noise, and with a sour taste in the background. It had a good lineup of sequel—er, games, and had a few new interesting IPs as well as some nice surprises (Killer Instinct). But…but…..we still can’t forget all the nonsense this company is throwing at gamers, all the insane restrictions that will be on the system. Lastly, how on earth can one get over the price tag? $500 for a system with DRM, required online, and no backwards-compatibility? Please. And one can only wonder if the Xbox Live, which is $60 to start, will be required to do the online connection. You might wind up spending up to $700 from the start for a two-controller Xbox One with one launch title.



But Sony had remained hum about the entire used-game and DRM material as well, leading to speculation and fears. But Sony, who most likely won the show by the way, delivered such a heavy sigh of relief people don’t realize (or don’t care) that you now have to pay for online gaming, something that was going to be expected inevitably. Oh, and it is not backwards-compatible. But that bad news easily doesn’t hold a handle to the potential issues of Xbox One. PS4 will play used games, will not require an internet connection, and is going with the very reasonably priced $400 price tag to even combat the WiiU’s heavier $350 price tag.

While the line-up wasn’t as pretty as Xbox One’s lineup, do remember they did announce a few games during their exclusive conference weeks earlier. Besides, Kingdom Hearts 3 (which should be the biggest game of all-time) definitely made up for the smaller list of software. And the other besides, most of Sony’s exclusive developers are still churning out games for the PS3. That being said, more and more of Sony’s announcements are gearing towards games that are actually also coming out for the Xbox One.


In terms of Day One, it totally belonged to Sony. Sony knew the right price, knew when to deliver the bad news, and didn’t dwell into stupid territory unlike what has happened to Microsoft. They knew how to connect with their audience with their consumers, and were able to satisfy their simple needs: games, nice price, and no stupidity. Microsoft even had the audacity to transform Killer Instinct into a game with cell phone game-like qualities—forcing you to pay for the characters. So even if the lineup of games are seemingly shared with the competition---for $100 less you can get a system with the same games sans the first-person shooters the Xbox systems are known for.  It was now all up to Nintendo to attempt to steal some of the fire.




Except Nintendo, much like Microsoft’s sequels entourage and Sony’s PS4 future policies played it safe----extremely, extremely safe. Nintendo’s lack of risks can probably be attributed to the recent slow starts of the unique systems of the 3DS and the WiiU. Nonetheless, their presentation suffered immensely because of the franchises playing it far too safe and close to the punch. Retro Studios’ ultra-secret project was nothing more than a sequel to Donkey Kong Country Returns. The cryptic messages of Retro turned out to be a game so safe it was unexpected. We were dreaming of potentially a Retro Studios Metroid, Star Fox, F-Zero, maybe even Zelda. As of now, as of this typing, the DKC game is all we got. Something has to be brewing; otherwise, it would have been the most anti-climactic gaming thing since Halo 2. But do remember that the last Smash Brothers was revealed the day AFTER the original Nintendo conference all those E3s ago.

The new Mario 3D game was too safe, the 3DS sequels to SNES classics are too safe, the Pokemon games were way too safe, the entire damn conference was too safe. Even the background to the presentation was safe—as the lifeless presentation slowly revealed title after title. The only reason why the safeness isn’t that big an issue is because Nintendo still churns out the best first-party titles, even if Sony has barged in a little in that debate. Pokemon is still the best RPG series out there, Mario and Donkey Kong own the platform genre, Mario Kart owns the racing genre (good-looking eighth installment by the way), and lastly---there’s Smash Brothers.---which has sold 24 million copies within just 3 games. Nintendo knows this, and they need to save the WiiU. So it makes sense. However, no surprises. No price cut, no Ambassador Program like in the 3DS, no returning IPs, nothing.




Except Mega Man on Smash Brothers 4. That was a pleasant, pleasant surprise. A few more of these and they could have won the conference.


All in all, the conference was a budding realm of controversy, jabs, and surprises. In the poker game of the gaming industry, Nintendo is the one that folds on a hand of two pairs, Sony is the one that doesn’t take advantage of its royal flush, and Microsoft is the one that raises the pot while holding a pair of clubs. There might be a few new surprises and revelations within the next couple days after the publishing of this article, but for now there is no clear winner, we just have a clear loser:


Us gamers, whom are still probably just as confused as to where to spend the money this holiday season.