WiiU's Road to Sucess must travel through Camelot

There is a company within the gaming confides that has had a perfect track record for the past decade, and has quietly mustered hit after hit after hit. Yet, they aren’t mentioned as often as Bungie, Valve, Square, among others. This development company puts plenty of effort to their games and can really step up and deliver something magnificent if given the opportunity. This company has been a great help to Nintendo in recent years but if the WiiU is to conquer the gaming industry, Nintendo needs to let Camelot fly a little more.



Camelot is responsible for the Mario Tennis series, the Mario Golf series, and the Golden Sun trilogy. All great games and some of them are among Nintendo’s best in the past 15 years. Mario Tennis for the N64 was arguably Mario’s greatest spin-off not called Mario Kart as it combined the Super Mario flair with some intense, varied, and surprisingly deep tennis gameplay. Golden Sun is one of the greatest handheld games of all-time as it transfers you back to the SNES days when the system had incredible RPGs with engrossing storylines and interesting battle systems. To add to that, Camelot made the greatest Game Boy Color game not named Pokemon Silver or Wario Land, as it made a Mario Tennis with heavy RPG elements. Camelot has succeeded in the console front and (especially) in the handheld aspect.

Here is where Nintendo needs to turn to Camelot some more: the console market. Surely Camelot has worked on console games, but they were limited to just the Mario sports games and they don’t have anywhere near the depth of the handheld games. With Mario Tennis and Mario Golf for the GBC/GBA, you actually played as a different person and worked your way up the ranks to becoming the best golfer/tennis player in town. You earned experience, could mess around with your stats, and even practice around the environment to sharpen your skills. This incredible way of playing the Mario sports games needs to find its way into the WiiU, as there’s more space to develop, more room to grow, and more opportunity to pull something special.

Imagine Mario Tennis WiiU which allows you to play offline and online with your created character to see who is the best tennis player in the gaming world. Imagine playing a full-length RPG but instead of fighting monsters, you are just bouncing from court to court taking on other tennis players. If Nintendo has proven something over the years, is that outside the Pokemon franchise they offer very-very little in the RPG genre. While Dragon Quest may quench the thirst a little, more can definitely benefit the WiiU. That example of “more” is the RPG versions of Mario Tennis and Mario Golf.

And Golden Sun, my oh my Golden Sun. This series is just begging for a transition into the big screen complete with its fantastic art direction, clever puzzles, decent storyline, and addicting battle system. Part of Golden Sun’s appeal is the fantastically creative spells and monsters that are summoned throughout the game. An HD enhancement will bring Golden Sun to a new plateau of quality. Golden Sun can be the game the puts the nail on Final Fantasy’s coffin as that franchise has been slipping and sliding for years and has survived because of lack of competition.

If Nintendo really wants to push the envelope, why not hand the Paper Mario series to Camelot as well? Camelot is arguably the best RPG developer since Square in the 90s. So why not give them a shot at the Mario RPG games? They might be able to muster the magic to make something as memorable as the best Mario RPG work of all: Legend of the Seven Stars. While Intelligent Systems did a fantastic job with Paper Mario (With Thousand-Year Door being clearly their best effort), I wouldn’t mind seeing the franchise shifting elsewhere.


Bottom Line: Nintendo has a gem of a company making games for them, but their scope has been small. Whether it’s because of the Big N or because the company is so small, they haven’t cranked out too many games for the consoles. If Nintendo wants to truly conquer the eighth generation, then they must allow Camelot to grow, and to expand to make more console games. The last time Nintendo has such a great second-party working for them was Rareware from 1994-2000---when that company shelled out masterpiece after masterpiece. Bringing some of the excellent Game Boy games to the upcoming HD system would be a great game to nab the hardcore audiences’ attention. Imagine an RPG Mario Tennis, a Golden Sun, or another new Camelot franchise for the WiiU.

Or better yet, imagine Pokemon or Paper Mario bring run by Camelot.

It could happen, and it should happen.

7 Pokemon Games That Should Happen

The Pokemon franchise is the second biggest in the history of gaming, trailing of course only Super Mario. Selling over 200 million unites overall, this is a cash cow that will definitely not go away anytime soon. That being said it still has plenty of potential for growth and even more sales (and awesome games). Being a dreamer forever and always, I have assembled a list of Pokemon games that I would love to see occur in the near/far future. These are games that would benefit us gamers, Pokemon fans, and the 3DS and eventual WiiU. Now, none of these games have been rumored or announced yet, so this is all just wishful thinking.

#7: Pokemon Stadium 3DS
Pokemon Stadium for the N64 was one of my favorite games because you were finally able to truly put your Pokemon to the ultimate test by competing in several tournaments, pitting them in a Gym Leader Castle, and eventually engage in two showdowns against Mewtwo. It was a great game that was also surprisingly lengthy. A sequel can definitely happen on the 3DS as you can transfer data using an SD card and put your Pokemon team from Black, White, Diamond, Pearl, HeartGold, SoulSilver to the test. I can see a 3DS version of this boasting dozens of different tournaments, and then crafting some online in which anyone from around the world can join.

#6: Pokemon: Team Rocket Version (For the 3DS)
We always play as the hero in these Pokemon games, without the option of turning evil. Not enough video games out there give you the chance to become a hero. How different would the adventure be if you joined Team Rocket? This game would give you the option as you rise the ranks of the evil organization and wreak havoc throughout the Pokemon world. Personally, I think this would give an awesome twist to the usual formula of collecting and battling Pokemon. Lastly, this could be the Pokemn game with the deepest storyline.


#5: Super Smash Pokemon (For the WiiU)
Picture the craziness, epicness, and fun of Super Smash Brothers, but instead of characters in the Nintendo universe, just feature a bunch of Pokemon. Dozens of them to be exact. In this game, you can pick one Pokemon and take one countless others in different environments in the Pokemon universe. Basically take the best elements of Smash Brothers and apply it to Pokemon. That would be fun. I’d love to fight as Hitmonlee.


#4: Pokemon Pinball 3DS
Of all the Pokemon spin-offs, the Game Boy Color Pokemon Pinball was hands-down one of the best and one of the most underrated. Collecting 150 Pokemon through two different machines in several potential locations within said machine made for great varied gameplay and addicting moments. They should expand the idea here with more machines, more locations, and of course more mini-games and more Pokemon. Addicting as heck, and it wont cost you several quarters every time you play.


#3: Pokemon Puzzle League 2 for WiiU
The original was essentially Tetris Attack with a Pokemon twist. Nothing wrong with that though as it featured hours of addicting gameplay and actually had the authentic pokemon sounds we still don’t hear in the handheld games. But wouldn’t it be awesome to craft a sequel for the WiiU and make it online-friendly? Now you can compete in this puzzler against people around the world and even hold tournaments. Then you can compete for high scores throughout the year for bragging rights. As for the gameplay itself nothing has to change except depending on the Pokemon you choose and its type determines how much damage you can cause to the other side. That would vary the gameplay some more and give you a strategy on which Pokemon to use when puzzling.


#2: Pokemon Snap 2 (For the WiiU)
My favorite Pokemon spin-off, the N64 game was short, extremely easy, and doesn’t offer much outside the 6 levels. That being said, this idea is begging for an expansion. More levels, more environments, more secrets, more Pokemon, more items to use, and then make it online-friendly as you compete for the best pictures. To add to that the tablet controller would be perfect as a substitute of an actual camera. The IPad can be used as a camera, so why can’t the WiiU controller? Of all the great ideas that can rise from that unique upcoming controller, Pokemon Snap 2 rises as among the best.




#1: Pokemon MMORPG for the WiiU and 3DS
I have discussed this time and time again so let me just sum it up in one sentence: the Pokemon world with the scope of Skyrim, the online connectivity of World of Warcraft, and the blending of every Pokemon game that has come out before, remake and spin-offs included. In this massive game you can be good, be evil, you can be a trainer, collector, breeder, Team Rocket member, photographer, Tournament Junkie, Elite Four trainer, Gym Leader, trader, or even surgeon. With an MMORPG, the sky is the limit and if Nintendo really pulled out all the stops, they can make the best RPG of all-time with this idea. Just the potential of competing in tournaments around the world alone would make this worthy of a purchase.

The Legend of Sony's Patience

So there is a recent news story discussing how Sony is going to pick the wait-and-see method for annoucing their involvement in the next generation. They aren’t going to mention the PS4 until after Microsoft announces their successor. There has been a lot of speculation as to why Sony is deciding to reveal their stuff last. Some claim its to plagiarize easier, some claim that it will be easier for Sony to copy the competition by seeing what they are going to deliver. Sony has always been notorious for this, with the abysmal Playstation Move controller as a great example. The truth is however Sony works best when they are checking the pulse on gaming as opposed to trying to set the trend.

Even back in the 90s before the Playstation, Sony's wait-and-see game resulted in their first system obliterating the competiton. They saw the Nintendo's core audience was from 6-14 so they created a marketing campaign that would explore a new generation and cluster of gamers. The 18-34 crowd was thirsty for a system that would appeal to them, and that Playstation became that dream come true. For the record, the Playstation had been in construction since the late 80s---back when Nintendo and Sony were going to work together-----before all hell broke loose.

Sony didn't rush their Playstation 2 release either, as they waited for the Dreamcast to arrive and shoot themselves in the foot with an awkward release, lack of software, and a poor launch. The PS2 winds up becoming the most successful console in the history of gaming. But recently they tried to set the the trend of gaming and the end result was disappointment.

Surely the Playstation 3 arrived and predicted that Blu-Ray would be the future, but did not bank on everyone abandoning Sony and joining Nintendo. Nintendo copied Sony's strategy of the 90s and expanded the gaming audience even farther---from younglings under 7 to people in their 80s. The Nintendo Wii became the best-selling system for retirement homes in history. If Sony had waited a little longer and dropped the price and prepared a better helping of games they would have had a much better start and to this day not try to climb out of third place. And do recall the Playstation has free online service and also has a better helping of first/second-party titles than the 2nd place Xbox 360.

So now we have come to today. The Playstation 3 lifespan consisted of making big mistakes and learning from them. Sony would follow others by crafting several price cuts, cranking up the first-party library of games now that the third-party playing field is about even (Nintendo is closer than ever with the WiiU approaching), and most importantly making the games a bit more interactive by introducing a controller that resembles a goofier-looking Wiimote. Love or hate it, the Playstation Move has pushed good sales for the PS3. And with Nintendo poised to push gaming into another direction, Sony's decision to wait and see what happens next is very vital.

Why? Rumors are swirling that the XBox 720 might have a tablet controller similar to that of the WiiU. So if it is revealed to be true, Sony could then choose where the PS4 would go: continuing the low-key simpler approach of the PS3 or attempt to innovate similar to what the WiiU is destined to do. If Sony waits, then the ball will be in their court and they can decide how to return the serve. Some call it cheap, some call it copying; I call it a system that has helped Sony in the past, and should help them out in the near future.

Sony is going to wait? Let them wait, it will make the upcoming battle that much more interesting.