Nintendophiles 01.15.09

Posted by Theo Fraser on 01.15.2009

Nintendo’s new patent reveals plans for an in-game hint system, potentially for the next installment in the Zelda series. Nintendophiles gives you the lowdown on all you need to know, plus Mario Power Tennis Wii controls are finally detailed, Chinatown Wars multiplayer info, and Puzzle Quest developer brings ‘Deathbringer’ to the Wii.






Kill me. Just kill me now, but make it quick and painless. I've just found out that Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of a New World will not be released in European territories. Quite simply, this SUUUUCKS. I'm a massive fan of the series, so it comes as quite a blow to me. The original sold really well in Europe on Gamecube, so you'd think there would be a big demand for the title, plus when you consider the lack of RPGs on the Wii as it is, there's a definite gap in the market. A very surprising and disappointing decision for Tales Of fans. With no sign of Tales of Innocence either, it's looking like a bleak summer for Nintendo Tales Of aficionados. *Runs off crying*




New Nintendo patent sparks concern over Zelda's next direction
Credit: Cubed3, IGN, NeoGAF

Here we go again, Nintendo's latest example of pandering to the casual gamer. According to a new patent filed by the company (and attributed to Shigeru Miyamoto himself), an all-new in-game hint system will be integrated into a future action-adventure title, currently under the prototype name of "Legend of OO". Hmm. No prizes for guessing what that could be referring to. A few drawings and concept art appear as part of the patent, and if you needed any further proof, it clearly looks like a Zelda-esque offering.





So what is this hint system all about then? From the patent itself, "Even a player that does not have a lot of time for playing a large volume of game and the like can sufficiently enjoy the content of the game. It is possible to prevent a player that desires to clear the game by him/herself from reducing his/her interest in the game. As means for solving the problem, disclosed is a game control method for lowering the difficulty level of a game by presenting, while the game is being played, a hint for allowing the game to be continued."

The patent goes on to outline 3 different features that the hint system would employ; Main Game help, a Digest version of the game, and a DVD-style Scene Selection. Let's take a look at each of these in more detail.


Main Game: This would allow you to play through the main game as normal, with optional hints being at your disposal. For example, with a press of the ‘+' button, the game would let you know that you're supposed to kill that Triffid to get a Deku Stick to light a fire with. That sort of thing. Basically an in-game walkthrough, should you require it.

Digest: A bite-size version of the game. You'll be taken through important events, cut scenes and gameplay montages, and can stop it at any time to play any of the sections you are viewing. You won't be able to save your game whilst utilising this feature, but it means you'll be able to whizz through it and see all the important stuff. One for gamers who have very little spare time, I guess.

Scenes: This is the aforementioned DVD-style scene selection, where you'll be able to skip to any chapter/dungeon/puzzle in the game and go through it with all the relevant tools and equipment. Great if you want to replay favorite moments or show your friends a really cool boss battle.


I'm really torn on this issue. On the one hand, it's a good idea to help younger gamers and those with not so much time on their hands. People will be able to fully complete the games they've paid their hard earned money for, regardless of skill. That's definitely a plus. However, I think this is a very slippery slope, and Nintendo are in danger of alienating their core gamers if they continue to put casual gamers first. As long as they don't make the actual gameplay any easier, ensuring that it stays a challenge to those who want to complete it thoroughly by themselves, there shouldn't be a problem. It's a nice idea, and I think it'll help the next Zelda title to sell even better, as it will open the series to newcomers who were perhaps a little too overwhelmed by Twilight Princess. Nevertheless, I'll be keeping a close eye on this to make sure Nintendo give us core gamers what we want from our Zelda, seeing as we're the ones who put them on the map originally.




Deathbringer bringing Puzzle/RPG genre to Wii
Credit: IGN





I will admit to not being terribly familiar with the Puzzle Quest series, which is perhaps a massive oversight on my part as I always hear great things about it. And judging by the number of hours I've wasted on Bejeweled over the years, I think PQ would be right up my street. Anyway, developer Infinite Interactive (the same team behind Puzzle Quest, currently bringing Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords to the Nintendo DS) are working on a new Puzzle/RPG hybrid for the PC, Deathbringer with plans to bring it to the Wii, PS3 and 360 in the near future. Going a step further than Puzzle Quest, the RPG element of Deathbringer will be extended with more of an action-RPG quality, which should help the game appeal to a wider audience and bring in those who were previously put off by PQ's puzzle-heavy nature. Konami will be publishing the title, so let's check out their official press release...


~Real-time, fast-action puzzle gameplay.

~Persistent Heroes who can be saved and carried over from dungeon to dungeon (a la Fire Emblem).

~Multiplayer support for up to 2-player cooperative gameplay.

~ Multiple Hero Skill Trees to choose from – all with unique attacks & abilities.

~ Companion Mode, where an intelligent AI companion (with player defined action scripts) accompanies the player, to complement the player's skills. There are 4 companions to choose from. Companions are persistent just like heroes - each Companion will grow over time, gaining skills as they adventure with the hero. There will also be 5 hidden familiars that can only be found through completing hard side quests.

~ Extensibility via an open architecture that allows new dungeons & monsters to be added to the game after release.

~ Over 100 Magic Items for heroes to use.

~ Spell System which is simple, fun and spectacular.

~ Multiple Dungeons to adventure in – all with detailed and exciting level-design.

~ Simple interface which should be familiar to most console & PC gamers.

~ Replayability via hero skills & combinations, and also random dungeon elements and extensible items.

~ High quality graphics developed for Infinite's Sage Engine.

~ Excellent Music - High quality soundtrack featuring thematic music, and dynamic music support.

~ High quality sound effects, including plenty of speech and all manner of magical whooshes and crashes, all in 3D positional sound!


Well, I'm sold. This sounds like it could be pretty good indeed, and I'll definitely be taking a look at it in the near future once we see some footage and in-game screens.




Mario Power Tennis: The Controls
Credit: IGN

Of all the New Play Control Gamecube-Wii titles, Mario Power Tennis is perhaps the most eagerly anticipated of the lot, due to its fully Wii remote-enabled control system. Released this week in Japan, we finally know the specifics of how you'll wield your racket. Nintendo may not need to release a new Mario Tennis after all, as this sounds damn near perfect!


Serve - Swing the Wiimote from down to up to toss the ball up, then swing to serve.

Top Spin - Swing from lower right to upper left for forehand. Reverse the motion for a backhand.

Slice Spin - Swing from upper right to lower left for forehand. Reverse for a backhand.

Flat Shot - Swing from right to left for a forehand. Again, reverse for a backhand.

Lob - Swing the Wiimote from down to up.

Drop - Swing the Wiimote from up to down.

Smash - A star appears on the court when you are given the opportunity to deliver a smash hit. Move to the star, then swing up to down.


Various button combinations will also allow you to pull off your character's special moves. Aside from all this, Nintendo have taken into consideration those players who are familiar with the Wii Sports Tennis style of gameplay, allowing you to ignore the nunchuk-controlled character movement, letting your character's movement be controlled by the AI, leaving you free to just worry about hitting the ball. It's also looking increasingly likely that you'll only be able to control the game with a Wii remote; we already know that Gamecube controller support is out, and a Classic Controller control scheme has yet to be mentioned so is unlikely to be included. When the gesture-based system is so strong, I don't really know why you'd want to play it any other way!

Mario Power Tennis is scheduled for a US release as part of the New Play Control title selection on March 9th.








Chinatown Wars multiplayer detailed
Credit: N-Zone

I've been covering Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars pretty extensively in recent months, but a little update is always worthy of being reported, especially considering how this is likely to be one of, if not THE top game on the DS in 2009. This week, we've received a few snippets of info detailing the multiplayer side of things.

Both online and offline multiplayer sessions will be supported, and a Rockstar Games Social Club Support will offer an Achievements system, where you'll be able to keep track of all your in-game stats, as well as hooking up with other players to trade items.

Interestingly, a chat function of some sort is to be included. This leads me to believe there will be a ‘proper' multiplayer offering, as I fail to see that a chat function is particularly useful if you're only exchanging items.

Moving away from the multiplayer mode, we now also know that you'll be able to replay any previously completed mission, as well as all mini-games (such as taxi/cop missions) and sidequests, all accessed from your hideout. You'll be rated on your performance during each mission, with Bronze, Silver and Gold badges given out if you're good enough. Of course, this gives an extra level of replay value, with incentive to get Gold on each mission.

Those worried about the graphics can put their fears to rest. We've constantly been told that screenshots really don't do the game justice, and that appears to be the case judging by recent reports. Rockstar have apparently done a tremendous job at making Liberty City feel alive, with the sidewalk packed with pedestrians and the streets rammed with traffic of all kinds. Hopefully Rockstar release one of their special well-received trailers to hype the game in the coming weeks; I'm desperate to see this baby in motion!





The 411 Games Crew

B3yond the Report by Derek Robbins.

Vincent Chiucchi's Select and Start News Report.

What If?, presented by Greg Bruno.

Tommy Coloma runs down The Release List.

Trace Aber has another edition of Living LIVE for all the Xbox fans out there.

Derek Robbins' 10th Hour, looking at the Top 10 Things Derek Wants to See in 2009.


Many apologies for this being a day later than usual, I'm back in my Uni accommodation and the internet is playing havoc with my life at the moment, doing some really weird things. Apparently I may need to buy a new router, so I'll be living on baked beans on toast that week. Was planning to buy Guitar Hero: World Tour tomorrow as well...bah, I can economise in other areas!

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