Industry Chatter 11.14.11

Wii U’s online service, 3DS posts impressive sales and a whole lot more besides!

By Lewis Hampson. Posted 11/15/2011 16:00 2 Comments     ShareThis

Come in from the cold and get a warm, dose of Ninten–centric speculation, rumor, and gossip from key players in the industry. Tired of looking through pages of news sites, for that exlucsive piece of Nintendo news? Let us separate the wheat from the chaff. It’s another week of Industry Chatter!


EA’s Peter Moore talks about Wii U’s online service

It is no secret that Nintendo have struggled to keep up with the pace set by Microsoft and Sony in the online domain. However, this could be all about to change, as one of Wii U’s staunchest supporters (EA’s Peter Moore) reveals an insight into what to expect.

“Its online capabilities are really extensive, so we’ll be able to differentiate ourselves from the competition more easily with our sports lineup. We can’t announce anything yet, but what I can say is that Nintendo is a company that’s been producing new types of play culture for years. The 3DS and Wii U have taken on that DNA, so I really can’t wait to see what kind of new surprises are waiting for us.”

Here’s hoping Nintendo have learnt from the, shall we say, tepid reception that Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection has received thus far, and pours more energy into their overall online experience. Speaking of which:


Could EA’s origin service be headed to Wii U?

Hot on the heels of the Peter Moore/Nintendo love, in comes a rumor about Wii U’s online store itself, with EA again in the midst of things. Now bear with me here, for this has to be taken with quite a sizable pinch of salt. Apparently, an intern at EA has spread a rumor he heard from a technician (I know) about EA’s involvement with Nintendo’s online store. Rumor has it that Nintendo are looking to partner with an existing online store service, with EA’s Origin, getting more traction than Valve’s Steam (which is also up for consideration,apparently).

Taking an existing online service could be a smart move for Nintendo (even if these rumors are not true). They could gain a significant foothold with the “core” gamer, as well as maybe securing Wii U exclusives through any partnership. Certainly exciting times, but as for the validity of all this, we shall see.

Could Origin be winging its way to Wii U?

Zelda Producer Eiji Aonuma reveals insight into Zelda for Wii U

With Skyward Sword not even released world wide yet, you would be forgiven for thinking Nintendo would take a breather from the iconic world of Zelda; not so. Series producer Eiji Aonuma, has spoken about what we might expect from Zelda on Wii U.

“We’re definitely excited about the Wii U and its capabilities as a platform, of course I can’t really tell you any details about that at this point. However, I should say the demo you saw at E3 is more of a starting point at this time, especially from a graphical standpoint.”

Regarding what we glimpsed at E3 this year Anouma continued.

“You should expect many changes… our starting point is the gameplay and how we can make it work; it’s possible the game will look very different by the time it comes out.”

So, those creative minds are already hard at work theorizing how the next Zelda may look and play. Needless to say, the very thought of this is enough to send most into a frenzy. But for now, Skyward Sword will just have to do– it’s a hard life.


3DS on course to beat DS year one sales

You would be forgiven for thinking it was all doom and gloom for Nintendo’s latest handheld, what with the ever growing popularity of mobile gaming, and the well publicized troubles Nintendo have had since 3DS launched. However, the latest figures from Nintendo paint a rather more rosy picture for the fledgling handheld.

From November 2004 to October 2005, the DS sold an impressive 2.37 million units. However, 3DS looks set to topple this figure by posting brisk sales of over 1.65 million since launch eight months ago. So, if 3DS sales stay flat for the next four months, Nintendo will shift 2.475 million units before the handheld hits its first birthday. This month, Nintendo sold over 250,000 units, which is above the pace needed to surpass DS first year sales.


Ninja Gaiden 3 Razor’s Edge Confirmed as Wii U Launch Title

More news fresh out of Japan comes from developer Tecmo Koei. The Ninja Gaiden developer has confirmed (in a round about way) via a recent earnings presentation, which showed upcoming releases and worldwide plans, some interesting news for Wii U’s launch. In one of the slides Tecmo Koei showed a picture which confirmed Ninja Gaiden 3 Razor’s Edge will launch with Wii U.

Nintendo are really keeping to their word with the core credibility they are craving to receive. Ninja Gaiden is a series which is synonymous with the “hardcore.” Having the title release as a day one game certainly shows intent from the big N, and is a quite a welcome bit of news in my opinion.

Killing his way to a Wii U near you, next year!

So there you have it. Quite an eventful week of news to say the least. What do you think about these developments? Let us know in the comments section below, and be sure to check back next week for more of the same goodness.

2 Responses to “Industry Chatter 11.14.11”

  • 381 points
    Hyawatta says...

    I don’t just want both; I want them all!

    At least Valve is being reasonable. Nintendo should not give in to EA’s push for exclusivity. Either have them both or just have Steam and retain the ability to allow other services to be on Wii U too. If the Wii U exclusively uses Origin, then that’s it. No more flexibility. However, if it remains open, it can have Steam, OnLive, and any other service that wants to be on the Wii U. If we don’t get Steam it’ll be because Nintendo chose to give in to EA’s want for exclusivity. If we don’t get Origin, it’ll be because EA is trying to punish Nintendo for retaining their open structure and allowing Steam and other services to be on the Wii U.

    The battles of digital warfare are fierce. This reminds me of when Gamestop took the OnLive coupons out of the retail versions of Deux Ex. I want to have all of these services available and not be forced into having limited options. I believe that Nintendo would completely redeem themselves in terms of online capability if they offered a variety of digital services that we could acquire our games from. Just imagine having Steam, Origin, and OnLive all on the Nintendo Wii U.

  • 225 points
    wombatguy880 says...

    That’s a fine theory but not one that actually makes sound business sense. I, too, would like all the options but since market dominance is often associated with exclusivity it makes more sense for Nintendo to use whichever service gives them the better option here and since Origin might also need a push above Steam this could benefit them both. It’s also not likely that Nintendo is talking cloud gaming just yet. I do think by the middle or end of this coming generation that may become much more important and therefore integrated into all the consoles but I think we’ll see Nintendo and the others still pushing physical media games or comparatively small digital distributions for the foreseeable near future.

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