GTA: Chinatown Wars Sales Analysis Update - I Was Right

Not to tout my own horn or anything, but it looks like I was right about Chinatown Wars' sales.

Quick recap: the game sold slightly under 90,000 units in its first two weeks at retail and everyone from analysts to "game journalists" jumped right on the "third-party sales on DS/Wii" bandwagon. I cited two major reasons behind the game's "slow" start: people holding off on buying until the launch of the DSi, and DS games selling through word of mouth over a period of time. Turns out, I wasn't wrong.


Here as some nice quotes from Nintendo, Gamestop and Take Two concerning the two-week sales period:


First up is Nintendo's vice president of licensing, Steve Singer. Says the man in charge of third-party relations to MTV:

“‘Chinatown Wars’ is performing in line with AAA titles that have come to our platform like ‘Spore‘ or ‘Lego Star Wars,”

“Those games went on to have very different life-to-date sales numbers.”

Nintendo then points to the sales of Call of Duty 4 on DS...an amazing 500,000+ units sold life-to-date.



Next up is Denise Kaigler, Nintendo's VP of Corporate Affairs. Says Kaigler:

“Remember that many games for Nintendo DS have a nontraditional sales pattern. The trend is toward ‘evergreen’ games that sell well over an extended period of time instead of in a one-month spike. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare for Nintendo DS is a good example. In its first month (November 2007), it sold only 36,000. To date, it has sold through nearly 500,000. Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is a great game that has received tremendous reviews. We expect that with continued backing, it will follow the same long-tail/evergreen sales route that other top sellers have taken.”

And now, on to Alan Lewis, Take Two's VP of Corporate Communications, who had a whole lot to say about how T2 sees GTA's performance on DS:

"Chinatown Wars received critical acclaim and is the highest rated DS title of all time,

"In terms of performance, we think it is performing in line with other triple-A games on the platform.

"We are very confident in Chinatown Wars long-term potential for success," he said. "We think it will have a long life in the market.

“We have and we will continue to support the platform. We think the mature segment of the DS market is growing.

“We’re confident in the game, and we think it has long-term potential for success. We’re trying to pioneer mature games on the platform.”

Huh. Seems like Chinatown Wars didn't do so badly after all. I wonder what the retailers think.

Oh, here's what:

“‘GTA: Chinatown Wars’ is exceeding our expectations and illustrating the power of the franchise on a new platform. We’ve seen a solid lift in sales of ‘Chinatown Wars’ following the launch of the DSi and believe that the product will continue to enjoy a long life at our stores as the buzz around the new handheld gaming experience continues to grow.”

That's Chris Olivera, representative of Gamestop in this whole analytical mess, proving once again that most people outside of retail still don't know how the DS and Wii markets work, or have yet to come to terms with them.

For all their research and numbers and stats, analysts always seem to be the first ones to jump the gun when it comes to spreading wrong information. It's sad, really, because this kind of trolling does hurt the image of the companies involved.

I always think it's funny how we, as an industry, actually pay heed to the words of people who don't know the first thing about game development and the costs involved when it comes to talk of sales and performance. Do any of these analysts know how much it cost to develop and publish Chinatown Wars? Have any of them been observing sales patterns on the DS and Wii for the past two years? Do they know what T2's expectations for the games were?

Top-tier publishers like Take Two aren't stupid, and they don't need uninformed parties suggesting to them what to do. It's about time we learnt this. I'm just amazed we haven't already.

[ADVANCE]

GTA: Chinatown Wars' Retail Performance Analyzed

I haven't had much time lately, so I've been playing the hell out of two games. GTA: Chinatown Wars on DS during slow hours at work and in bed, and Rune Factory Frontier for the Wii on weekends.

While I don't know how well RFF is doing at retail (certainly hope it's well enough to warrant a sequel), Chinatown Wars is off to a bit of a slow start. I have a few theories on why this may be, but since I can't really back these up with any concrete evidence, I'm going to be ranting here instead of penning them in an organized manner on Siliconera.


Theory #1: Pokémon

Chinatown Wars launched around the same time as Pokémon Platinum (aka suicide). However, considering the target audience for both these games is pretty different, this may not be the biggest reason behind GTA's slow start.


Theory #2: Charting time

This one is a little more valid. EEDAR have been predicting around 200,000 units sold, while my personal favourite Michael Pachter predicted around 450,000. I'm willing to bet Pachter would have been right on the money had it not been for theory #3, but theory #2 is that GTA only sold 88,700 because it only charted for two weeks. Another two weeks and it would probably have met EEDAR's 200k projection.


Theory #3: DSi

People planning on buying a DSi are holding off on buying GTA until they have their new handheld. Buying the two side-by-side would make sense, and DSi launched on April 5. Going by this theory, Chinatown Wars should see some nice sales in April. NPD numbers for April and the following months will tell if I'm right or not.


Either way, people shouldn't be writing Chinatown Wars off as a flop. I'm willing to bet 90k in the U.S. + European sales means it will be a profitable title for T2 and DS games are known to have long legs. This is without factoring in Japanese sales where DS and PSP games dominate the charts each week and GTA happens to be one of the select few Western developed games that Japanese gamers are warming up to.

It's GTA, it's on DS where software tends to sell well through word of mouth over a long period of time. Let's give it some time before we start proclaiming gloom and doom for a third-party game on a Nintendo system.

[ADVANCE]

The Melancholy of Visual Novels

Here's a feature I wrote on Siliconera a few months ago. I've been trying to give this as much exposure as I can. Much to my surprise, it got a great response, and if you're into a visual novels (or are planning on developing or publishing one), you might want to check it out.

Here's a snippet:

How do you convince the existing game market that visual novels and visual novel adventures are worth looking into?


For the answer to that question, consider this: what if you don’t target the current generation of “gamers” with these products?

[Siliconera: The Melancholy of Visual Novels]

[ADVANCE]

Monster Lab

A new title I saw up on IGN called Monster Lab. This is an original fighter for the Wii from the studio who is remaking Street Fighter II Turbo. From the interview IGN holds with Kelly Tainton, the producer, we find the game boasts a meaty single player component filled with plenty of fighting and mini-games with relevancy. The game's main pitch is it's monster creation mode boasting "Millions of different combinations!" On top of that, multi-player and online.

I actually like the dark wacky style seen in the games artwork and game play. Combined with a solid fighting system, this could be a pretty promising game. And what's not to like about mad scientists, assistants, evil minions, and monsters created from zany experiments?

Yet, it looks more or less like a game that will go under every one's radar. Not the first time it's happened, definitely won't be the last.

Original interview with IGN here.

More screenshots here.

[ADVANCE]

More Brawl Hubbub

It's about to be released in Japan very soon! What, you may ask? Do I even have to tell you?

Two updates today that caught my attention. First, the Japanese intro was uploaded to Youtube, and embedded above. What's so cool about it? Towards the end, We see three figures with swords running. Around the 1:44 mark. Two of them have already been announced; Meta-Knight and Ike. The third looks unmistakably like Marth, who has been unannounced thus far, but I've always considered him a no-brainer, due to his popularity from Melee. This makes me really happy. You just don't know. I'll leave it at that as not to bore you and make myself looking like a fool.

Read more for some ramblings about the music in the game.


(The following isn't important. I'm a big geek when it comes to video game music. I always loved it, I even maybe want to work in that department once I get my degree. We'll see though. Brawl seems to be including some of my favorite music right off the bat.)

A table was posted up today on the offical site. It contains information regarding all the music that is available at the start of the game. The website also says that you can acquire more music as you play through the game. Take note at the Fire Emblem section! Yes, I really am raving on about Fire Emblem again! The Attack theme from what I assume to be Fire Emblem 7 will be included in this game! If it's the track I am thinking of, it's one of my favorite pieces of video game music ever. It's nothing spectacular as music itself, but I've always loved it dearly. I'm very happy Nintendo decided to include this in the Brawl. It has a music from some of the other games that no announced characters are from. I wonder if this could mean...nah, no more speculation, which will then lead to more disappointment. I'll just take what I can get.

Also, Go K.K. Rider, from Animal Crossing is included. Absolutely fantastic. That was seriously the only track I never changed on my radio when I played the game. It was what played on my Hi-Fi Stereo in my basement - which also served as my arcade for my NES games. You could have seriously put it half the music you got from K.K. Slider in the game. Maybe we'll see more as we play the game.

From Metroid, we get both music from the Ridley battles from Super Metroid and Prime. We also get the intro from Prime as well. While Metroid is one of my favorite series' of all time, I was never completely impressed with the music in the Prime trilogy. I hate to admit it, but it's the truth. Though, Meta-Ridley was one of the better tracks. I also spot Samus Aran's theme!

Mario: No suprises here. We get the Delfino Plaza music, one track I always found enjoyable when playing Sunshine. What's funny about that game is I loved it for the reasons everyone hated it. And the few aspects about it most purists enjoyed, I wasn't entirely fond of. Aside from the weak final boss, I really enjoyed Sunshine. Don't hate! We also get your traditional Mario music anyone on the streets can recognize. I actually was hoping for some tracks from Paper Mario. I'll not get my hopes down though.

Pikmin! Well, to be honest, I've completely forgotten how any of the Pikmin music goes, but I do remember I liked it. So I guess that's good, no?

I've never played Metal Gear Solid, but I have heard one of the theme's from it and have always admired that piece. I'm not sure of the name and too lazy to look it up. So here to maybe being happy about it possible inclusion in Brawl.

[ADVANCE]

Rumour: Matsuno’s ‘Final Fantasy Killer’ For Wii

You've heard of Rumor Reporter. The Advanced Media Network's game industry rumour blog has enjoyed a fair bit of attention this year, thanks to the intriguing posts of its editor Bruce Kelly.

Now, regardless of what anyone else thinks, I do think "Bruce" (if that is indeed his name) is fairly legit. A lot of his "predictions" have come true over time, and yes; they might take a while, but if you keep track of everything the man has said, he's a bit more reliable than EGM's rumours.

Lately, Bruce has decided to take one - just one question every two weeks and do some snooping around to answer it to the best of his abilities. The question that kickstarted his new column this week just so happened to be mine.

Hey Bruce,

Glad to see you’re back in action after a bit of a break. What’s gaming without a few rumours, eh? So, recently you pretty much asked for readers to send in hard questions, and I’m guessing that’s exactly what most of us are going to do. The gloves are really off now.

Here’s my question: What exactly is the deal with Monolithsoft and Nintendo? At this point, all we know is that Monolith is now a second-party developer and that they’re working on Disaster: Day of Crisis for the Wii, and a DS game as well. Now, anyone would think that Nintendo acquiring the studio means Day of Crisis is turning out to be one hell of a game. However, the chaps down at NeoGAF had other theories to present.

To make a long story short, this is what they believe:

* Yasumi Matsuno, the Director of Final Fantasy XII left Square Enix.
* Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has been pushing for a role-playing game that rivals Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy
* Matsuno landed up at Nintendo.
* He worked with Entertainment Analysis & Development for 8 months.
* Soon, Matsuno pitched a role-playing game tech demo to Nintendo.
* Iwata loved it, but Matsuno had no team of his own at the Big N.
* Nintendo acquired Monolith to provide Matsuno with his own team.

Sounds far-fetched doesn’t it? I’m not ready to believe Matsuno would walk out from Square and next thing you know, he just happens to land up with Miyamoto’s team. Obviously, it would be mindblowing if anyone could confirm if this is true, but hey; that’s where you come in, right? Right?

– Ishaan Sahdev

His extremely lengthy and thought-provoking reply after the jump.

Bruce’s Take:

Interesting you ask this, because it’s been something that I’ve been dodging to answer for a while now. Not because of the subject, but because so many things weren’t as clear when Monolith had just been picked up by Nintendo from Namco Bandai.

This is what I hear, with the source being a former producer at Namco Bandai who had caught wind of some of Matsuno’s developments. Unforunately, that producer no longer works for the company and now works for a certain San Francisco-based gaming mammoth. Still, his reports on this have been recent tinkerings of rumors brought to the table with numerous publications and forums aiming to judge their validity.

Here’s what I was told:

- Yatsumi Matsuno left Square-Enix because the guy’s an opportunist. After seeing potential with the Wii, the former FFXII director decided to aim towards a brand-new, non-linear RPG project.

- Many sources have claimed the project to be Vision Red, a rumored Square-Enix RPG “apparently” shown at E3 2007. That is not the case, and the original post is clearly fictional based on its written structure.

- Some sources have claimed it to be Baten Kaitos 3, but this isn’t the case, even though I know for a fact that the game is already in its beginning stages.

- Disaster: Day of Crisis was delayed for a reason. The game will use the familiar “quick-press” Resident Evil 4 quick-reaction system to further immerse the player with a sense of danger and urgency. The game will release sometime in 2008, but it will definitely be before Matsuno’s actual new IP is announced. This is to test the waters towards interest of Disaster’s type of gameplay, which the new IP hopes to mimic in a more advanced way.

- Matsuno interest in the Wii is simple: “He wants to stress gameplay controls living up to high-quality, immersive environments.”

- So where does this leave us with the rumored Matsuno “Final Fantasy Killer?”

The new IP, at least in its design stages stressed the following elements of a brand-new RPG franchise aimed at a late-2008 announcement:

- A fully-immersive non-linear action-RPG set in a brand, new fantasy world which stresses the continuity of gameplay progression through team work and motion-controlling movements, mimicking interactions with objects and environments in the world. The game will be played in real-time, unlike Matsuno’s previous turn-based projects (Ogre Tactics, Final Fantasy Tactics, Vagrant Story)

- The game is not currently planned for an expansion with an online aspect (MMO), but multiplayer gameplay is heavily stressed. “Imagine Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures (GameCube) with a 3D environment.”

- Definite Wii Connect 24 support with brand new worlds to explore and interacting with other players.

- Being developed by Monolith Soft and Matsuno with Iwata and Miyamoto’s supervision possibly.

- Clearly obvious: Will be Nintendo Wii’s direct competitor to the PS3’s Final Fantasy XIII releases.

- If all goes well, will be planned as a series for the Wii and differentiate the system’s low reputation for RPGs on the console. A DS version is also in the planning stages simultaneously.

- So when will gamers be able to hear more? It’s hard to tell given even Disaster’s shaky release date, but expect GDC 08 to have more rumblings of Matsuno’s involvement with his Wii project.

Intriguing. Clearly, he isn't bullshitting, considering just how specific some of his information is. Then again, with the games industry you never know. Thoughts?

[Source: Rumor Reporter]

[ADVANCE]

Will Wright Confirms Spore for Wii

Yes, you heard Wright. (Yeah, I went there) Will Wright, creator of the highly-awaited Spore has confirmed that a Wii version is indeed in development. Excellent news for Wii owners.

That's PC, DS and now Wii. If you ask me, it's probably going to hit the 360 and PS3, too. After all, this is EA we're talking about.

Anyhow ... Super Smash Bros., No More Heroes and now Spore. 2008 isn't looking so bad for the Wii after all.

[Via: Go Nintendo]

[ADVANCE]

Impressions: Bleach: Shattered Blade

All right, since I haven't been doing my job here, I'm going to be writing my first impressions for the new Wii game Bleach: Shattered Blade.

From the Wii games I've played this may be the best display of the Wiimote's awesomeness from a third-party developer. To attack, you swing the 'mote either up and down to the sides or thrust it at the TV for ... well, a thrust. You move around with either the d-pad on the mote or the nunchuck's joystick. Blocking is a pretty valid point, although every character has moves that break guard.

For insight on the characters and more on gameplay, hit the jump.

After playing the game for about 6 hours, you should have a decent hold on how to play and defend against a lot of the characters, but, some of the characters add an intresting aspect to the game. For example, Uryu Ishida ... hes 100% ranged (obviously) and Ichigo flash steps when he's in bankai mode. For me, this adds ALOT of fun to the game, both when playing them and when fighting them. There is also Hanataro Yamada of the 4th squad, who well, heals his opponents when he attacks them with his katana. I tried to play as him, but it's just too odd for my tastes.

The voice actors from the English dub are also voicing the characters in this game. However, there is no option for Japanese voices with English subs, but I guess we can't have everything. The art is what I've come to expect from third-party devs on the Wii. It's pretty, but its no Metroid Prime 3.

Other than the graphics, this game is a lot of fun, and I'll be picking it up for home. If you like Bleach, this game is totally worth checking out!

[ADVANCE]

Okami Wii Finally Confirmed

And in comes the last of Capcom's megaton announcements. Supposedly, they saved the best for the last. In short, Okami for the Wii has finally been confirmed. Much as I'd love to say a bit more about this match made in heaven, most of what I have in mind has already been said countless times on forums and other blogs.

Well done, Capcom. Well done, indeed.

[Via Eurogamer]

[ADVANCE]

Digital Manga Publishing Promotes Club Otakie With DS

Another example of Nintendo's newer systems really fitting in with very well the manga and anime industries. While the GBA was no slacker itself, I see a lot more potential for the DS and Wii to cater to the needs of what manga and anime fans would crave, especially considering some of the cooler niche titles on the systems.

A few months ago, Nintendo and TOKYOPOP announced that they would be teaming up to set up an anime theatre at Leipzig. Now, Digital Manga Publishing have announced that they will be creating a new mail order catalog, Club Otakie, for their fans. In order to promote this catalog, DMP will be hosting contests open to members from now till December 17th, where they will be giving out prizes every week.

This week's prize just so happened to be a DS Lite bundled with Brain Age 2 and a carrying case. Other prizes include goodies such as iPod Shuffles and $25 MasterCard Gift Cards. I'm fairly certain the DS won't be restricted to just this week, given the system's broad appeal. And what better game to ensure you're appealing to the widest age group possible than Brain Age 2?

Now, if only Nintendo and manga publishers would get even closer...

Press release after the jump.

Digital Manga Inc. Promotes Club Otakie Signups with Prizes like iPod Shuffles and Nintendo DS Lites!

Gardena, CA, October 16, 2007– Digital Manga, Inc. will be creating a new mail order catalog, Club Otakie, for fans. To promote the mail order catalog, Digital Manga is offering a contest for all signups where Digital Manga will be giving out prizes each week until December 17, 2007.

A total of 30 prizes will be awarded and contestants will be eligible to win a prize each week as long as they stay signed up!

Digital Manga, Inc. has selected its first winner, Diane R. from Lochbuie, Colorado, who will be winning a Nintendo DS Lite Pack, which includes Brain Age 2 and a carrying case. Other prizes that will be given away include iPod Shuffles and $25 MasterCard Gift Cards.

Winners will be announced on the Contest Detail page every week.

For more information on the contest and for list of prizes, go to http://www.emanga.com/signup.php

[ADVANCE]

Nintendo Strategy RPG Game Trailers

We have three new trailers for you today. All of them feature game-play and cut-scenes from Nintendo's premiere strategy role-playing game franchises: Advance Wars and Fire Emblem which are about to be released. What is ironic about this post is, these games absolutely must be played to be full appreciated. Screen-shots and trailers do not even come close to doing them justice. I thought Fire Emblem looked very lame when I saw screen shots of it years ago. I played it anyway and now it's one of my favorite games. The original Advance Wars is just like it but pseudo-modern warfare instead of fantasy.

Nevertheless, here they are. Enjoy!



I absolutely love the new gritty look of Advance Wars. And now, I found out it's post-apocalyptic. Awesome! Assuming this game has a higher difficulty than games of past, this will be one very intense gaming experience. The artwork and animations are much more mature and stylish this time around. The future looks good for Advance Wars.



I've been waiting for this game to come out for ages. It's been out a year in Japan and I wonder what's taking Nintendo so long to localize it. Well, I actually know the answer to my own question. Translation of course! Want to read a book, but don't feel like it? Play Fire Emblem! Plenty of text to read all around. I do agree that reading in Fire Emblem games can get tedious sometimes, but it's worth it since the story is always so good. The trailer doesn't show anything new, just a few more bits of some awesome cutscenes.



Okay, okay. I know this isn't really an RPG...or at least a strategy RPG. Battalion Wars is a slight shoot-off game from Advance Wars, originally for the Gamecube, but the sequel is being made for the Wii as you can very well see. I did not play the first one. I was saying how I loved the new look and feel of Advance Wars. The complete opposite is true for Battalion Wars. It looks like a fun game. It probably is a fun game. Battalion Wars II looks a lot better than the first game, and with the inclusion of online play, I'll definitely make more of effort to play this game when it comes out.

[ADVANCE]

Juicy Handheld Rumours: NeoGAF

For those of you who are into hand-held gaming, someone at NeoGAF has some scans from a magazine and translated parts of it to give us some spicy new rumours to speculate on.

1. New version of DS next spring, with a mobile digital TV/radio tuner.
2. Square Enix make a RPG for DS with Shonen JUMP characters.
3. [Dragon Quest 9] also available for PSP.

New DS? That's understandable. It's the best selling gaming device of all time. I remember how many people laughed at Nintendo for even the thinking of creating something like the DS, especially since it would cut into the sales of their, at the time, best selling Game Boy Advance even if the hand-held was a winner -- which of course, it turned out to be. It's clear that Nintendo isn't by any means, stupid. If they think this will help sales of their already hot DS then I have no objections to them going to town with whatever crazy additions they want to include in the next SKU.

I'm not so sure about these new features, I'm fairly confident Nintendo will release a new DS SKU soon.

Shonen Jump RPG? Well they did make Mario Basketball so we know they can develop something other than Final Fantasy oriented content. Licensing could pose a problem, but it's no lie that Shonen Jump is popular in America, especially amongst kids. I wonder if it would be an RPG similar to Super Mario RPG.

The probability for this game to be made is high. Square-Enix is big into the anime industry so I don't see why they wouldn't make this game. Whether or not it will come state-side is a bit to early to call, but it's not impossible.

Dragon Quest IX on the PSP? If you've already forgotten, this game is supposed to be a DS exclusive. Square-Enix loves all gaming platforms, so I wouldn't blame them if they did bring Dragon Quest IX on over to the PSP, especially since all the recent prequels to IX have been on a Sony system. When Square does make a game exclusive, it usually stays exclusive -- at least for a few years. So even if Dragon Quest IX does remain exclusive to Nintendo for now, I wouldn't be surprised if it's ported over to PSP a year or two later.

Remember folks, these are all rumours. They could be all be true, they could all be false. We'll just have to wait and see.



[Source: NeoGAF]

[ADVANCE]

Disaster: Day of Crisis Lives!

IIIIIIIIIIIIIT'S ALIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVE!!!!

I'm sorry, I couldn't resist. Disaster: Day of Crisis is one of those obscure Wii games that you hear about once every six months. A screenshot here, some concept art there ... not much to go on at all.

But recently, as many of you know, Nintendo acquired Monolith Soft, which got a bunch of us really excited, seeing as how the XenoSaga games from Monolith are some of the best RPGs in existence, and that Day of Crisis has great potential as a new Nintendo franchise.

Well, it turns out the game is still very much alive and kicking, and this has been confirmed thanks to some new screens I found over at Kotaku. Hopefully, the game will be at Nintendo's press conference in Seattle later this week. You can expect FWA to bring you all the important updates as they roll in. We're just as excited as you are.

[ADVANCE]

New Character Announcement for SSBB, Delayed Release Date

Another new character has been announced for Super Smash Brothers Brawl. People have been waiting for him to make an appearance since the original and now you can finally play as Sonic the Hedgehog!. Along with this news, comes the announcement of a delay. the US release date has been changed from Dec. 3rd to TBA. Oh well, pretty soon I won't have to play flash games to kill Mario with Sonic.

[ADVANCE]

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Young King and the Promised Land Trailer

I don't think I'm ever going to get over that title. OK, so, quick intro for the uninformed: Yesterday, during their annual press briefing, Nintendo revealed that in addition to several "indie" games being developed (according to Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, over 100 titles have been pitched so far) for Wii Ware, big-name developers were also going to be putting some of their key franchises on the game.

The first developer showing this degree of support is surprisingly Square Enix, with Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Young King and the Promised Land. Chronologically, the game is set after the original Crystal Chronicles, and is about a king who lost his kingdom due to the events of that game. He now has these magic crystals, and is using them to rebuild it.

The game's teaser site is up and can be accessed here. The Young King and the Promised Land is described as a "country building RPG". The title will cost 1500 Wii points and will be available in Japan in March '08, debuting along with Wii Ware itself. IGN has a list of a few of the Square staff working on the game, and the lineup looks extremely promising. You have Motome Toriyama of Final Fantasy XII and Final Fantasy X-2 fame, who is acting as game director, Kenichiro Yuji from Front Mission Online, and Toshiyuki Itahana and Kumi Tanioka from previous Crystal Chronicles games acting as art supervisor and composer respectively.

I think it's insanely cool that Wii Ware is capable of supporting more than just simple, casual games. Nintendo might really be onto something here, and I truly do see the service eventually besting Xbox Live Arcade if this is the kind of support we're going to be seeing. Hopefully, the strong Wii Ware games will keep on coming over the next couple of years, because really, I see no better platform to be creatively experimental on.

[ADVANCE]

Annual Nintendo Conference 2007 Reveals Much

Nintendo's annual press briefing recently took place, and IGN and Ge-maga magazine have all the juicy info. While there are a ton of awesome announcements that came out of the briefing, I'm going to mention the ones that really stood out in my mind, and deliver a few words expressing what I feel about them.

- DS finally getting a Fire Emblem game: About time. I'm not really all that excited about the one on Wii, and a portable Fire Emblem sounds excellent.

- Wii has a 51% female user base: Holy shit. That really is quite an achievement. Not just because of the whole "more female gamers" thing, but also because it shows that people other than your average 28-year old male gamer are indeed getting into gaming.

- Upcoming DS download station allows for demo downloads at home: Again, about time. I wonder how they're going to deal with storage issues on the DS though. Frankly, this is quite exciting. DS software, especially, would benefit a lot from user feedback.

- Monster Hunter 3 being developed for Wii: Hooooly shit. Considering this was initially a PS3 exclusive, and is now on the Wii, it's safe to assume that Capcom is the first in a line of developers starting to see extremely viable opportunities for bigger franchises on the system. Seeing as how PSP sales of all things spiked due to Monster Hunter, I'd love to see what it does for the Wii.

- Square Enix developing Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Young King and the Promised Land for Wii Ware: OK, 1) That is a huge name. Write a freaking novel, why don't you? 2. About time you announced that hard drive, Nintendo. It does exist, right? Right?

- Nintendo making big plans to increase online usage of the Wii: I'll see it when I believe it.

An excellent set of announcements overall. I am so relieved that the Wii Ware channel isn't just going to be digital warehouse of casual/indie software. Don't get me wrong ... the indie aspect of Wii Ware is what excites me most about it, but it's excellent news that big-name developers will also be taking advantage of it. Take into account this story from a couple weeks ago, and you get the impression that Wii Ware might actually be pretty popular with several developers, especially considering that the need for a publisher is offset. This, of course, means far more creative freedom.

Check out the full blog coverage of the event over at IGN and Ge-maga at the links at the start of this post. Some very interesting stats concerning the Wii and DS were reported, and Wii Fit was demoed at the event as well. Now, if only they would demo that hard drive...

[ADVANCE]

Impressions: Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon

Rune Factory for the Nintendo DS is developer Marvelous Interactive’s latest offering in their long line of Harvest Moon games. This one, subtitled “A Fantasy Harvest Moon”, is exactly what it sounds like: a farm simulation that incorporates fantasy elements to make for a highly enjoyable role-playing experience … provided you’re into that kind of thing.

Rune Factory is far from your standard DS “training” game. If you’re new to the variety of software available on the DS, be sure to note that this is a game which requires time, patience and lots of dedication. It isn’t a casual game, and neither is it one that spells out what you need to do every step of the way. If you plan on picking up Rune Factory, be prepared to thoroughly read the game manual to get your bearings.

That isn’t to say the game can’t be played in short bursts. It’s still a portable title, and the game allows you to save at any point you like, provided you can make it back to your farm in one piece.

For those of you who have played the Harvest Moon games before, there’s absolutely no need for introductions. You’ll be right at home with Rune Factory, and might even find this to be the best game in the series to date.

That’s because Rune Factory has a lot more to do than most Harvest Moon titles before it. The farming, combat elements, dating-sim aspect and excellent presentation make this a must-buy for anyone who has enjoyed its predecessors.

Gameplay:

Rune Factory begins like your run-of-the-mill JRPG, with your main character arriving hungry and exhausted at the town of Kardia. With no memory of your name or who you are, you collapse outside the house of a farmhand by the name of Mist. Soon enough, Mist takes you in (for whatever reason), provides you with a place to stay, and requests that you help her run her farm in return.

Following this, the game’s focus turns to running your farm and making money. Money can be made by planting crops, fishing, mining for materials, and shipping goods at the end of the day. Each of these activities looks simple enough at first, but you soon discover there’s an enormous layer of intricacies beneath each one. Like every Harvest Moon game before it, Rune Factory allows you to plant different vegetables in different seasons, and depending on how well you care for them, the quality of seeds you use, and the amount of money you invest in your farming, you will either end up with money coming out your ears or find yourself having a tough time making ends meet.

Just to give newcomers an example of the game’s farming mechanics, any piece of land must be ploughed before you can farm on it. Once it is ploughed, you have the option of planting seeds in it, following which; you’ll find yourself having to water them every single day (except on rainy days). Depending on the quality of seeds you used (something that the game allows you to improve over time), the amount of money you make from selling the resulting will vary. You can then, even proceed to cook a variety of dishes with the crops you have grown.

During this time, you also have the option of fishing, mining in caves, rummaging through fields that haven’t been ploughed for salvageable items, cutting wood and gathering material to expand your house and furthering your relations with the townsfolk.

Speaking of whom, the people of Kardia are extremely lively and varied. Natsume has done an excellent job of bringing the town to life, with buildings that range from libraries to bathhouses to pubs to blacksmith shops and inns. Really, the amount of detail and care put into making the Rune Factory world seem real shows. Every building in the game is accessible, and serves a purpose in one form or another. Whether you want to increase your knowledge at the library, buy groceries from the local shops, replenish your health at the bathhouse, or simply visit friends at their homes, you’ll find yourself with a ton to do any given point in time.

As stated before, the game also incorporates dating-sim elements, which enable you to further your relations with the townsfolk. While you can only increase your level of “friendship” with the male characters in the game, you have the option of increasing your “love” level with the women, which eventually governs which of the cute ladies in town you end up marrying. While it may sound like a tacked-on feature, marriage has always been a big part of the Harvest Moon games and this time around is no different. The feature adds yet another layer of activities to keep you busy with throughout the game.

Of course, the major addition this time around is that of combat. As stated before, you play the role of an amnesiac boy in Rune Factory, and while it isn’t quite clear who he is, you’ll find yourself starting to put two and two together soon enough. The fantasy elements in Rune Factory add significantly not only to the plot of the game, but also compliment its farming elements in an excellent manner.

The game allows you to adopt and breed monsters, which you can then train to help out with your daily chores at your farm. Different types of monsters can perform different activities, and soon enough, you’ll find yourself needing to take advantage of this feature to make your day-to-day farming activities more manageable, in order to free up time to explore the game’s lands.

Of course, exploration is by no means easy … or safe for that matter. The game consists of multiple caves, each one filled with monsters and items. In order to defeat them, you need to be at a level capable of taking them on. While you could just swing your sword around and mixing it up with your enemies up, close and personal, there are several more efficient (and fun) ways to do the same. This is where magic comes in.

The town library allows you to read various books on magic as they are made available and learn different skills that make your monster-hunting a more enjoyable and satisfying experience. Progressing through these caves is the only way to further the game’s plot and figure out what your role is amidst the monster invasion, so you’ll definitely find yourself making preparations to do so in your spare time.

Presentation:

Rune Factory’s presentation is the one aspect of the game that really helps it stand out. Gone are the “kiddy” designs of past Harvest Moon games. Rune Factory sports an awesome anime-inspired look that features well-drawn background art, and polygonal models that help bring the game’s world to life. This is probably one of the better examples of 3D done right on the DS, as the ingame models aren’t too big, and thus, extremely aliased like those of Final Fantasy III. The game does a good job of blending 3D art, hand-drawn sprites and textures to make for an extremely refreshing look.

Another aspect of the game’s presentation that really stands out is the inclusion of voice-acting. While not every line in the game is spoken, characters do greet you verbally, and certain other lines are spoken out loud as well. Once again, this goes a long way toward bringing the game’s characters to life. While not every game benefits from voice-acting, Rune Factory is one that has definitely managed to take advantage of it.

Overall, Rune Factory is an excellent purchase for fans of the Harvest Moon games. It’s portable, it’s engrossing, looks great and offers plenty more to do. On the other hand, if you’re new to the world of Harvest Moon, or even more “traditional” games on the DS, consider picking this one up just so you can see for yourself the amazing amount variety and fun it has to offer.

While the game is clearly not for everyone, just about anybody who has the patience and is willing to invest the time in it will not be disappointed.

[ADVANCE]

Front Mission 2089 (DS) Trailer

Front Mission 2089 for the DS. More evidence of Square's decision to stand firm behind the DS, or another overnight get-rich-quicker to fund their PS3/360 games?

Too bad there's no actual gameplay footage in that trailer. I like the character design a fair bit. It reminds me of the Black Lagoon manga for some reason.

[ADVANCE]

Itagaki on Creating Globally Appealing Games

Tomonobu Itagaki means business. He isn't one to fool around or pull any punches. The man calls it as he sees it. No mercy. Of course, what else would you expect from the famously outspoken head of Team Ninja? When it comes to game development, Itagaki-san knows exactly what he's doing ... even if what he's doing isn't very conventional.

Considering the first Dead or Alive was on the Sega Saturn, and both of Itagaki's first 3D Ninja Gaiden games were on the Xbox, you'd think his choices when it comes to supporting gaming hardware couldn't get any stranger. And that's where you'd be wrong.

As everyone with a DS is probably well aware by now, the next Ninja Gaiden game will be gracing the system, and will be fully stylus controlled. It may sound crazy, but it's really one in a long line of ideas that has kept Itagaki-san and Team Ninja highly competitive on a global basis. Says Itagaki in an interview with Gamasutra:

In Japan, there is a saying "kachoufuugetsu", which is "flowers, birds, wind, and the moon." That basically is a vague summary of things that human beings might find appealing. You look at a flower and say, "Oh, this is beautiful." You look at a bird that can fly, whereas humans can't, and we see it as a symbol of freedom, something to aspire to. The wind, you know, if you were to have a cool wind blowing, that would help to convey your mood at that moment. And looking at the moon, you may think that not only is it visually beautiful, but it may bring to mind things like wanting to see the moon, wanting to go to the moon, and wanting to know what's there. That sort of inquisitiveness.

So, I think that if you look at those key human emotions that cross national boundaries, and don't rely on the circumstances surrounding each country, then it's relatively easy to make a game that can be enjoyed anywhere.

Just prior to this, Itagaki-san commented on the tendency of American developers to create games that they think the public wants ... something that, in his opinion, keeps them from releasing software that truly enjoys a worldwide appeal.

You can check out the full interview with Itagaki at the link above. From the differences in PSP and DS design to creating high quality visuals for games, the talk covers it all. This is by far the most interesting interview yet with the man, and definitely a recommended read for Team Ninja enthusiasts.

Screencap courtesy of Gamasutra.

[ADVANCE]

TGS 2007: Rygar: The Battle of Argus

Ahh! Our first glimpse at the Rygar for Wii. I will go ahead and be honest and say I am somewhat impressed. Some of the cut-scenes, animations and the voice over work left more to be desired but the gameplay ... THE GAMEPLAY looks pretty awesome. I never played the old school Rygar so I don't really know if this can live up to its predecessors or not. But the combat and ... just how stylish it seemed to be really caught my eye.

Will I be picking up this game based solely on this trailer alone? Probably not! I will be keeping my eye on this game though.

[ADVANCE]