How Link Wound Up on the Wrong System

Super Nintendo Specs:
*CPU: 16-bit 65816 (3.58MHz)
*RAM: 128KB (1Mb), 64KB (0.5Mb) Video RAM
*Graphics: Dedicated graphics processor
*Colors: 32768 (256 on screen)
*Sprites: 128
*Sprite Size: 64x64 pixels
*Resolution: 512x448 pixels
*Sound: 8-channel 8-bit Sony SPC700 digitized sound

WiiU Specs:
*Tri Core, 3 GHz PowerPC-based 45nm CPU, very similar to the Xbox 360 chip. The CPU features 2 MB cache, 1 MB for Core 0, and 512 KB for cores 1 and 2
*2 GB RAM: 1 GB is allocated for games and is shared between the CPU and the GPU, while 1 GB is allocated to the operating system.
*Custom 40nm AMD GPU with 32 MB embedded eDRAM and unified shader architecture
*25 GB Blu-ray based disc
*8 / 32 GB internal flash memory
*Dedicated 120 MHz audio processor, 6 channel audio for console, 2 channel for controller
*512 MB separate on-board flash storage for the OS only

Now, there is a reason why this article started out with specs of both systems. One of these two systems is regarded as one of the greatest systems ever made and contained one of the greatest video games ever made known as Link to the Past. Now, for those that have yet to know this, Link to the Past was not only arguably the greatest game ever made up to that point, but was also the biggest game to ever be released. It was leagues ahead of anything we had seen before way back in 1992. As a matter of fact by the time I got my first Super Nintendo back in 1995, the game was still the biggest and baddest in the market.

So now we are flash forwarding to today, with Link to the Past 2 finally being announced. But it won’t come out for the WiiU, a powerful system that can really use some good news and a way to make use of its weaker graphical capabilities when compared to the upcoming systems. Instead, its coming out for the Nintendo 3DS. Now about a year ago I would have agreed with this decision since the 3DS was needing some good news. But now, the 3DS is on the right path with a good variety of games that had come out and are on the way.

The Nintendo WiiU is in trouble. Not 3DS trouble, but deeper trouble. It is threatening to become the next Dreamcast if something doesn’t change soon. What better way to bring the WiiU back into the spotlight than getting a sequel to one of the most beloved adventure games in history? What better way to make the WiiU relevant than releasing a sequel to a beloved game that has a mere 1 MB in memory?

Nintendo, think of the possibilities! Think of just how much content you could pack into a 2D-action adventure game on an HD/Blu-Ray Disk system! You have the chance to take the already-long adventure of Link to the Past and quantify its length and depth by an exponential amount. You can make a Zelda game that can contain 15 Link to the Pasts and then some. I am pretty sure the entire world would prefer a 2D Link game on a blu-ray-like disk as opposed to a smaller cartridge. You can include all the necessary enhancements like day/night, month/year features, etc. P.S. the controller would have been perfect for item movements and the monitoring of maps.

You guys used to be about pushing the envelope and seeing what you can pull off with what cards you are dealt with. I had discussed this before, but Nintendo used to have the biggest games around, from the original Mario Bros. to the original Zelda to Link to the Past to Mario 64 to Ocarina of Time, and lastly Wind Waker. Notice most of our "larger" titles had been Zelda games. But in recent years, this envelope hasn’t been pushed. Even if the hardware isn’t that much stronger than the PS3, New Super Mario Bros. U could have been much bigger (My idea can be found here), and the same goes with Nintendo Land. Link to the Past 2 with the minimal graphical requirements could have been a 100-hour adventurous marathon. Instead, it’s a 3DS title as the WiiU winds up with a Wind Waker remake being one of their biggest releases of the upcoming holiday season.

Nintendo, you dropped the ball here. Link to the Past 2 should have been a massive, massive 2D adventure that is worthy of carrying the legendary Link to the Past title.

Instead, it will just become another handheld Zelda game that will make us ponder how much bigger it would have been if it had gotten the upgrade.

How Disney Continues to Drop the Gaming Ball

So Disney has finally pulled the plug on the silently dying LucasArts. The company had a decent run that was marred by too many delays, too many unfulfilled ideas, and an extremely underproductive generation of gaming. It was kind of frustrating that the sibling company related to movie franchise monoliths like Star Wars and Indiana Jones couldn’t come up with a consistent amount of good games to satisfy the souls of gamers everywhere.

That being said…why can’t Disney conquer the gaming industry?

Where on earth is Disney while the gaming industry expands to levels never-before imagined?





As a matter of fact if it weren’t for the Kingdom Hearts franchise---which is also dying slowly, Disney would pretty much become a mere mole in the face of gaming. And it makes minimal sense simply because of the overarching reach of the Disney brand. There is so much more to Disney than just…Disney. We are far past the company that got by in terms of gamers with its nice relationship with Capcom and Sega back in the 90s. Disney doesn’t have to license all their franchises. Disney can formulate a team and honestly take on the competitors themselves. They have the money, talent, and resources. So what are they waiting for?

Disney has hundreds of movies in its arsenal to start with. Movies like Aladdin, Hercules, Alice in Wonderland (the cartoon version), Treasure Planet, The Incredibles, The Black Hole, Tron, Tarzan, Pirates of the Caribbean, and so much more can be made into great modern-day games. I am aware some of these movies have been made into games, but they were mostly half-arsed efforts by companies that were only in it to make a quick slick buck. Can you imagine the mere story of Aladdin becoming a massive game? Exploring the Cave of Wonder, running around the streets avoiding the guards, and ultimately taking on one of the best animated villains ever? What about Hercules and his quest for becoming a God by taking on oodles of monsters all over the map? And don’t get me started on what Tron can look and play like….

Disney also has lots of parks full of stories that can also become great video games and/or remakes of past failed Disney games. Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, Mission: Space, Jungle Cruise, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and perhaps even Test Track (the new version) comes to mind.

Then there’s the fact that Disney now owns Pixar, Marvel, AND LucasArts---all purchases done within the last decade. Where are the spiritual prequels and/or sequels to The Incredibles? Wall-E would also make for a fantastic exploration game if done correctly. Same goes with Finding Nemo. Then there’s the potential for nice adventures for the characters from Brave. Its all here. And not just a mere adaptation for the tykes, we can do legit, full-length adventure/action games for the serious gamers.




Marvel. Freakin’ Marvel. 5,000+ characters in the Marvel universe and the Imagineers can’t try to make a good game themselves? The potential for great massive games is strongest here as the Marvel brand offers excellent heroes, characters, and villains. Imagine a Spider-Man game that allows you to also play the role of Venom, perhaps even Carnage. Imagine the Disney budget being given to Iron Man. Imagine being able to build your own suit for Iron Man as he battles crime. Disney, are we taking notes here?



Of course, now Disney also has Star Wars to depend on. You know, the 6 epic movies and the infinite amounts of spin-off storylines to choose from. Simply remaking the 6 movies into grand scale video games would be a very nice way to re-branding yourself to the gaming industry. 

Disney has far too many valuable products, franchises, and ideas to still remain in neutral in this aspect of entertainment. The gaming world should be excited for whatever Disney is doing, not ponder which franchise will temporarily receive access to translating the latest Mickey film to video game. If Disney were to take the gaming world seriously-----and not as a small quick investment----they can reach out towards the male/female teenage audience and college audience; an audience that Disney always struggles to entertain. Mickey Mouse has far too many great friends to just sit back and watch smaller companies like Sony and Nintendo make extremely good money.

Seriously Disney, you can be just as big a presence in the gaming industry as in the film industry. 

Nintendo's Backwards Compatibility is Still....Backwards

So the Nintendo WiiU’s sales have been quite dismal in these opening months. A promised excellent opening lineup has been reduced to pure nonsense as most of the games got delayed, pushed around, or maybe even cancelled. Pikmin 3 got cancelled, Rayman got cancelled, Lego City Stories just came out when it was promised at launch, Virtual Console and Nintendo TV got pushed back and we will not be seeing any traces of heavy-hitters until the summer with E3---an E3 that Nintendo desperately needs to win for momentum.



Rock Band unveiled its final song for downloadable content, which is the humbly overrated American Pie. This song will follow the 2,000+ songs that were available to download for the Guitar Hero-killing video game that has aged gracefully because of its arsenal of DLC and because of tis budding list of music to choose from.


Now, while these two previous paragraphs may hold no correlation, there is one indeed embedded within the sentences. There is a reason why Rock Band continued to hold an audience despite being 5 years old, and there is a reason why the Nintendo WiiU is having such an atrocious start even though it has such a great chance to succeed: downloadable content. Rock Band managed to outgross Guitar Hero in the long run even though it was nowhere near as popular with the pop culture. And this was because they managed to utilize its potential and continued to pour on the new songs bringing classics and mixing them up with newer rock songs to play.


The WiiU on the other hand, there is no excuse. The first HD Nintendo system still doesn’t have Virtual Console games and it has been out for several months. The first high-definition system, the first to emphasize downloadable content and external/internal hard drives has yet to truly branch off and offer an exclusive massive lineup that would combine the classics along with the modern-day games. We have progressed far, far too much in technology to see only one or two classic games a week being released on the console. This is inexcusable.


Newsflash: The Nintendo 3DS and PS3 were two major systems with very slow launches and first years that are now flourishing because the games were being released in a consistent pace. If you release the games, they will come, it is a very simple strategy. The original Playstation took down the (superior, don’t deny this) Nintendo 64 simply because it released an abundance of games that overwhelmed gamers and the competition. Now let’s talk about the WiiU.


Nintendo WiiU, you should have had hundreds of games ready and available at launch through the Virtual Console. All they had to do when the plans were set for this system ions ago was to figure out a way to bring all the arcade, NES, SNES, N64, and Gamecube gems into the Virtual Console and make them available as soon as humanely possible. Who can possibly deny the chance to re-play SNES games in an HD system by Christmas? Who could deny the opportunity to download games like Mario Sunshine, Wind Waker, and Smash Brothers Melee at launch? The backwards compatibility potential is strongest for Nintendo not just because it has the richest history of the current systems, but up until this past year they have the best first-party games out there. Third-party runs Xbox 360, but the first-party is what saved and allowed the Nintendo Wii to win. Not to mention, the first-party is what prevented the Gamecube from becoming another Dreamcast.


I had discussed this way before the release of the Nintendo WiiU, SNES and N64 classics getting the HD touch was a major requirement to win back the hardcore fanbase while trying to maintain the mainstream audience that had gobbled over the Wii. Just thought of Majora’s Mask HD and Yoshi’s Island HD makes me salivate. And they don’t even have to be HD, if you offered over a hundred Nintendo classics over its long history at less than $10 its hours upon hours of potential gameplay appealing to the old-schoolers and the new-schoolers that weren’t around when the games originally came out.


However, with a piss-poor online shop and now with the game lineup stretching quite thin until this winter, the WiiU is slow on sales and eating away at Nintendo’s profits. If it weren’t for the torrid resurgence of the Nintendo 3DS, who knows where Nintendo would be right now.



All of this could have been avoided if Nintendo had planned ahead, reached into the past, and found a way to have a massive and extensive lineup from the getgo. Nintendo had the chance to own Christmas. Now, they have to fight the PS4 next holiday season for any chance of winning the war.



Never underestimate the power of downloadable content. Just ask Angry Birds, Rock Band, and the IPad.