Nintendophiles 02.07.08
Posted by Theo Fraser on 02.07.2008
Playable Mii characters in Mario Kart Wii? It’s a reality! The latest edition of Nintendophiles covers this story, along with more Mario Kart news, an update on the Smash Bros disc read errors in Japan, why the Animal Crossing MMO is now looking doubtful, and official confirmation of Rock Band coming to the Wii!
Well we have just one more week until Valentine's Day, so I should probably be out cornering the market on chocolate and nabbing as many red roses as I can possibly carry before they all rocket in price. Instead, I'm splitting my time between the second series of The Sopranos (yeah, I'm a little late to the dance, OK), my on-going quest to complete Final Fantasy VI before reaching pensioner status, and reading a book on Postmodernism for my degree, which as you can imagine is HIGHLY thrilling. *Raises eyebrow* Still, Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings is finally released in the UK next Friday, so that's something to look forward to in the event of me finding myself alone on the 14th. Sad times here at Casa De Fraser.
Last week, the launch of Super Smash Bros. Brawl in Japan was slightly marred by reports of disc read errors and warning messages upon loading up the game. It ended up not being a huge deal, blown wildly out of proportion by Western fans, who worried that the game was "broken." Originally, the problem was thought to occur due to Wii owners not having the latest Firmware patched installed. However, Nintendo have since responded about the problem, and the official line is that the problem is due to...dust and tobacco.
Yes, you read that right. A build up of dust and tobacco on the Wii's inner laser unit is the cause of all this bother. Why has this problem only just come to light, you ask? Brawl is the very first Wii title to use a dual-layered disc, hence it is highly more susceptible to the build up of dirt. Obviously, this is a problem that needs solving as more and more dual-layered games begin to emerge. Thankfully, Nintendo have a solution. Japanese gamers affected by these disc issues can send their Wii, warranty card and copy of Brawl to the Kyoto Nintendo service center, free of charge (postage is paid for by the Big N), where Ninty technicians will get to work straight away, cleaning the lens (which apparently can't be done by the average consumer), before getting the console back to them within a week. Sure, that means a whole 7 days without your precious Wii, but it's completely free and at least the problem will be sorted out for the foreseeable future. It remains to be seen whether this will be something that haunts Wii owners; our very own version of the Red Ring of Doom (TM), perhaps? Nintendo were coy about what exactly they'll be doing as part of this lens unit cleansing; is it really just a quick clean or something more in-depth that will fully cure the problem so that it never happens again? Will Western gamers be affected by the same blight? Who knows, perhaps this is all just an elaborate environmentalist campaign to make you quit smoking and clean your house more efficiently. Greenpeace must have REALLY scared Iwata and co last year...
Mario Kart Wii info overload
Credit: Famitsu, NeoGAF
Just before going to press, we got word here at Nintendophiles of a batch of brand new information regarding the latest installment in the Mario Kart series; Mario Kart Wii. A Japanese release date was confirmed for April 10th, meaning that the game is as good as complete. Great news, I'm sure you'll agree, and it means that the development team have got a couple of weeks to fully perfect the online system and make sure everything runs smoothly.
Amongst all the juicy bits of info, we have an updated track listing. Famitsu have said that the game includes 32 tracks, and as had been rumored, 16 are new whilst the other 16 are classic tracks, remade from past games in the series. Let's take a look at the first 16 that have been revealed.
Mushroom Cup [NEW TRACKS]
Luigi Circuit
Moo Moo Country
Mushroom Canyon
Toad Factory
Flower Cup [NEW TRACKS]
Mario Circuit
Coconuts Mall
DK Snowboard Cross
Wario Mines
Shell Cup [CLASSIC TRACKS]
Peach Beach- GC
Yoshi Falls- DS
Ghost Swamp 2- SNES
Mario Circuit- N64
Banana Cup [CLASSIC TRACKS]
Sherbert Land- N64
Hey Ho Beach- GBA
Monty Town- DS
Waluigi Stadium- GC
I'd at least expect the Special Cup to feature somewhere, which is always usually unlocked after ploughing your way through all the other available cups first, so expect more tracks to be unveiled in that. Not a bad list of classic tracks so far, but there's still a few vital ones missing. No sign of Rainbow Road either, which makes me wonder whether we're actually in store for an entire Rainbow Cup, consisting solely of the classic Rainbow Roads over the past decade or so.
Revealed for the first time in Famitsu's report was the inclusion of Mii integration, meaning that you'll be able to choose your own creations over the array of Nintendo mascots, making those online races a more personal affair. Having the reasonably low-res Miis going up against the detailed character models in the same race might make for some ‘interesting' visuals, but it's definitely still a welcome addition to the online mode, and with the news of a global online ranking system, having your Mii represent you on screen means a whole lot more than one of the generic characters that anyone can be.
Finally, we received affirmation as to the function of the tricks we've been hearing about for some months now. Both Bikes and Karts will be able to pull off various mid-air tricks, and if you time it correctly and get the landing spot on, you'll be rewarded with a momentary speed boost. The need for the mid-air tricks to pull this off should counter the "snaking" problems that plagued some of the more recent Kart titles.
It's all sounding like it's coming together really well, and that's a good thing of course, but it makes the wait a lot harder! April 10th is the Japanese date, as I've already stated, and there are unofficial reports floating around of a US launch being on the 30th of the same month. Personally, I see the wait being a little longer, like the gap between the Smash Bros release date in different territories, so I'd say we're looking at a late May-early June arrival. There's still plenty to uncover from the game, so until that time, keep checking back here for your fix of all the latest Mario Kart Wii developments.
Iwata puts dampener on hopes for Animal Crossing MMO
Credit: Gamespot, CVG
I was in such a good mood after all that Mario Kart goodness, and then this comes along to burst my bubble. Typical!
In an interview with Gamespot, Satoru Iwata was questioned about the success of massively multiplayer games and virtual worlds, and if Nintendo had any plans to enter this territory any time soon. Iwata's response was a big letdown to those still hoping the rumors of an Animal Crossing MMO were true.
Iwata: [T]he virtual-world services out there now still aren't at a place where we'd like to join in--and certainly not to the point that we'd want to jump into competition with everybody else. We'd rather focus on doing things that nobody else would do... That's how we're able to keep offering people surprises and entertainment, so even if we were to make a virtual-world-like product, we'd be sure to make it something that nobody would call it a product similar to another company's offering.
One might argue that Mr Iwata doesn't outright deny the existence of an Animal Crossing MMO, but it certainly doesn't sound like a promising prospect, does it? To be honest, I can understand where Nintendo is coming from in regards to not being at the point where they can jump into competition in the MMO universe. The Wii's online capabilities have barely been tapped; let's wait and see how the likes of Smash Bros. Brawl and Mario Kart Wii do over the next year before deciding to venture into that unexplored territory. Animal Crossing is still apparently on schedule for a release in Japan by the end of 2008, so it appears that it hasn't gone the MMO route. The question remains as to what form the game will take, but right now it's anyone's guess.
Wii Will Rock [Band] You
Credit: Next-gen.biz
The rumors cropped up a couple of weeks ago, but I wanted to hold off on it in the hope of hearing something official, and now we finally have the confirmation we've been looking for; Rock Band is indeed making its way onto Nintendo Wii consoles!
It's somewhat of an odd place to announce such a title, but EA provided the confirmation as part of their quarterly earnings conference call, when CEO John Riccitiello uttered the following:
What are probably the most interesting pieces [of the Rock Band business] right now is the coming launch on the Wii, the continued sales of the core platforms in North America and then [Rock Band's] fiscal '09 launch across Europe against all the SKUs.
It's a shame EA/Harmonix haven't followed up with a full press release, as the announcement itself is all the information we have right now, but I'd expect something to be drawn up in the coming weeks. Will it be akin to the other versions, with all three peripherals (guitar, microphone and drums) being on offer? Guitar Hero had no problems creating a special guitar peripheral to house the Wii remote, so I'd imagine it wouldn't be too difficult for Harmonix to follow suit, should they wish. We'll find out soon enough, but for now it's good to put the rumors to rest and get proper confirmation of the game's development. Expect more on this reasonably soon.
The 411 Games Crew
Mark Salmela is back in the saddle, bringing you this week's SIXAXIS News Report. Head on inside for all the week's Sony news, from a 120GB PS3 being in the works to a look at the PSN title Pixel Junk Monsters.
The Select and Start News Report is brought to you by Vincent Chiucchi, and covers the staggering matter of Jack Thompson actually DEFENDING a video game! Check that out as well as more news on the 120GB PS3 and all the latest from the EA HQ.
Tommy Coloma brings you a fighting game-themed edition of The Negative Edge News Report, with a great hands-on impression of Smash Bros. Brawl, news of EA losing the Marvel license, and Arcana Hearts gets a US release date! Head on inside for all that and more.
The PC Centric Extravaganza is by Chris Evans, who breaks down all of the PC gaming news into easily digestible bite-sized chunks! It's a packed edition, so don't miss out on that one.
Jordan Williams faces Armando Rodriguez in this week's 411 Games Fact or Fiction, discussing the list of playable characters in Super Smash Bros Brawl, so naturally you'll want to check that out if you're a dedicated Smash Bros fan. As always, Tommy Coloma is your host, and he invites some good debate this week.
James McGee continues his look into gaming's Greatest Heroes in his latest installment of The Game Plan!
That wraps things up at this end for the next 7 days, so I think I'll get back to Mr Soprano and family. Just how have I managed to miss out on this awesome series all this time?
