Topic: Zelda's Wii U-Turn to NX

So, we all were extremely peeved when, after announcing multiple times that Zelda was ready to go, good ol' Eiji suddenly changed his mind and said "LOL JK Gimme like another year guys!!".

So, as I sit here and sulk, thinking about how this would've been around the time the game would have released had they stuck to the original schedule (Home console Zelda games are a huge deal to me!), I am just thinking of how odd it is that they have showed us absolutely NOTHING to this point.

So, I just happened to re-read the NL article about how the NX dev kits have arrived and they're so powerful graphically that the computers can't even handle everything bouncing around on screen, etc. and something just hit me: I think "Zelda U" is experiencing a total graphics overhaul.

Just think about it. Pretend you're at Nintendo and you're sitting there with one of your biggest titles, and when you compare it to stuff coming out on PS4, it already looks outdated. And next to you is the NX, with all these crazy graphic capabilities bouncing around that could make it the best looking thing on the market that sells tons of consoles.

If you're a perfectionist like Miyamoto you almost HAVE to delay it and overhaul everything graphically.

" But what about the Wii U version, LetsGoRetro ? " you ask.

Well, I don't know. Maybe it gets a dumbed down version, or maybe it skips Wii U. Sorry, guys. I know every Nintendo console gets a Zelda, but that isn't this law that Nintendo is forced to stick to. They're dealing with what is essentially a crisis right now with this failing console. And I know you love you Wii U, but we have to think realistically guys. NL just released an article CELEBRATING that WiiU passed DREAMCAST numbers... THREE years after it's release. That's scary!

Maybe that's what Twilight Princess HD is for. They might feel bad that ZeldaU has been lifted up into the magic Nintendo clouds as ZeldaNX, but honestly, you guys got WindwakerHD, Hyrule Warriors & possibly Toilet Paper HD (we'll find out on tonight's direct!). That's enough. And, I don't want to hear about how you "invested" in the Wii U. OH, PLEASE, if I hear that again. You bought a video game console. It's not an INVESTMENT. Stop with that logic lol. It's not like it was around for a year and had 3 games. Nintendo has released PLENTY to make someone's little 200-300 dollar initial investment worth it. It's going to have a MINIMUM 4 year lifespan. That's plenty. Plus, Nintendo itself has been working hard as heck to pump out quality software while still learning HD, and they did a pretty good job if you ask me.

So, anyways, why do I feel it has got a graphics overhaul? Well, it's the only reason that they can't show us ANYTHING. If it was a gameplay mechanic change or something, they could show the game still. If it was pretty much anything other than visual change, they'd be able to show it. But, they don't want to show the old, outdated graphics if they're working on something that looks phenomenal, because, well, why would they, right?

I could be wrong, of course, but I honestly hope I'm not wrong. ZeldaU didn't look bad, but it looked a LOT like Skyward Sword to me. The whole watercolor painting type look. It was pretty but it was like... Boring! New, exciting art styles are one of the most awesome things I look forward to in new Zelda games. Imagine something like the tech demo style graphics, but uprgraded to NX standards. Whoa! Now that's exciting.

Don't "settle" Zelda! Never play it safe, with ANY aspect of your games! That's what that artstyle was- Safe. Familiar. Boring!

I hope I'm right. Do you agree or disagree?

I'm afraid you elaborated all for nothing, pal. Aonuma confirmed time and time again that the new Zelda title will be entirely WiiU-exclusive, and that an NX release will not happen. Also, Miyamoto may be a perfectionist, but he is barely involved in the production of Zelda titles nowadays.

I've never heard of the theory Zelda U is gonna be on the NX, they should really change the name to Zelda NX to make sure people don't get confused.

@Kaze_Memaryu: To be fair, they never said that it is going to be Wii U ''exclusive''. Is it going to be a Wii U title? Most definitely.

The reason they don't show us gameplay every month is because they don't want to spoil too much of the game. There's no reason to get people hyped every time if the release date is still around a year from now (I presume). Perhaps we'll see some during the Direct, most likely during E3 and a trailer before its release. There's no reason to show us a lot more than that. I definitely don't want to get burned out on gameplay footage and trailer. That's definitely the case for me with Xenoblade X, I've seen so much of that game, it's getting difficult to be excited for its release next month.

@Kaze_Memaryu:

Absolutely and completey untrue. He's never, ever said that. Show me where.

The only thing that has happened in relation to this is the last time it was mentioned in an interview (can't remember by whom, but I believe Aonuma) it was referred to as "the next Zelda" instead of Zelda U, prompting people to start worrying in the comment here at NL.

I challenge you to show me where he said even one time that it's a Wii U exclusive. It must be easy to find since he has said it time and time again as you say, right?

I am sorry, my friend, but Wii U is a sinking ship and Nintendo is too smart a company to go down with it. Do you honestly think they're thinking it's a better idea to release it as a Wii U exclusive than either an NX exclusive or a dual release? HOW in any reality would that be a better move for them?

Multiple Mario games, Smash Bros, Mario Kart, etc. etc. Nintendo has seen that none of their flagship titles are making the Wii U succeed. Why would Zelda be any different?

Nintendo is a business, kid.

Well if the NX is a handheld I think it might be a bit difficult to port it from the Wii U.

@Octane:

While I agree that Xenoblade X went way, way overboard, you need to realize that Reggie & Aonuma have been saying since 2013 that Zelda is ready to show. Reggie even said earlier this year that they have a lot of footage, they just want to wait for the right time.

We have seen essentially NOTHING of Zelda U, although it's apparently been ready since 2013 to show. It's almost 2016! Aonuma guaranteed it would be released in 2015 and was on schedule multiple times, and then suddenly, around the time NX kits were being finalized no less, it suddenly is not only delayed, but announced we won't see a ting of it this whole year. That was in June, so that meant 6 more months of nothing.

So, let me ask you. A game that was planned to be released at the end of this year, and have it's first footage shown at E3, is suddenly delayed a whole year- AND it's announced you'll see the first footage NEXT year- presumably E3. I can see the game being pushed back. That happens. But why would the "revealing" of the game- The artstyle, the story, the name!, be pushed back so much?

There's a reason. Major changes happening. Can they not show footage cuz of a new gameplay mechanic? Doesn't make sense.

Only 2 things make sense- They don't want to burn you out- Or they're overauling the graphics. I think it's a little of both, as it's going to release as an NX launch title with possibly a Wii U version, but not guaranteed!

Ah, thank you, I almost forget. NX is going to magically solve all the problems the Wii U has.

@shaneoh:

Very unlikely the NX is a handheld. You maybe thinking of the hybrid system that is rumored, which is likely.

@Octane: What is magic about Nintendo moving on to a new console when one isn't doing well? That's what happens every 5-6 years with Nintendo. This gen might be a year less. Big whoop. Where's the magic?

Nintendo has a console that is not getting 3rd party support, or selling well, so they're releasing a console that will be more likely to get 3rd party support as it'll be on par with the other consoles power wise.

What is so hard about this concept? It's literally what happens every single generation.

Read between the lines, guys. Why do you think this past e3 was so lame? Federation Force, Happy Home Designer,.. All these little quick, easy to make spin off games. Literally no new, exciting games for Wii U. Only a Starfox that needed a TON of work. Did the Nintendo developers just stop working this year? Or are they maybe working on ... hm, I don't know.. Something else?

@LetsGoRetro: We already got a teaser trailer and 5 minutes of early gameplay footage. That's quite a lot for a Zelda game. And we've already seen the art style. Watch the aforementioned videos, there's clearly an art style present.

Well, sure there is a reason. Aonuma needed more time to implement whatever features he thought were good additions, if that's going to take a year, then expect a year of nothing, simply because if they are planning for a holiday 2016 release, they're at the moment just as far in development with the new implemented features as they were last year during TGA. It didn't make sense to show Zelda U this year, because there probably isn't much improvement to show and they obviously don't want to spoil any story elements at this point.

Nintendo is in no position to piss off their current Wii U userbase, it's probably the most loyal userbase they've ever had. Releasing another home console isn't magically going to bring back third party support, carry over the userbase from the Wii U and it's most definitely not going to bring back the audience that they had with their previous systems. If anything, people will be even more cautious if they show that they'll drop the support for a console that hasn't been received well. It's the same thing that drove Sega out of the console bussiness.

They said they wanted to focus on upcoming games instead of games that a years away. Remember this list (it's from NOA)?

http://venturebeat.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/wii-u-games...

How many of those games actually made it on time? 6 out of 9 were delayed, assuming Project Guard will be released this year. That's what you get when you announce games too early. If you cannot guarantee release dates, there's no reason to show games more than a year before their release. I can understand their reasoning, sure the result was that their E3 presentation was absolutely terrible this year, because we already knew about most games they talked about, but at least the newly announced games will make it in time.

''Literally no new, exciting games for Wii U.''

If you're talking about 2016? That currently has Star Fox, Zelda U, SMTxFE, Pokkén Tournament and probably another game or two I forgot about. It's not as empty as people make it out to be. We will know in 12 hours from now if there's more coming early 2016, so let's at least await the upcoming Direct and see what that will tell us.

@Octane:

So, you're saying they're waiting an entire year to show you anything so they can add some :features" to the game?

A year old quick tech demo that revealed not one thing about the game other than the jumping mechanic is "quite a lot"?

There "probably isn't much improvement" by the time of E3 which was a full year from the gameplay footage? Or a year and a half from than til now? You think that's not enough time for improvement to show anything? You do realize Reggie and Aonuma have said multiple times it's ready to show and the have plenty to show?

You don't find it off that Aonuma was 100 percent convinced in early 2015 that it was coming in late 2015 and then did a sudden about-face and changed his mind?

Is it a coincidence tons of developers said Nintendo was showing dev kits for NX to them behind the scenes at e3? You must realize if Nintendo is showing dev kits at e3, they've had it ready for themselves for atleast a few months, likely. Which would bring it back to about when they decided to delay the game.

We know nothing, nothing about this game that has like 3 years of development. Not one story element. Not a title.

If none of the above matters to you, then what do you think of the Wii U? Is it on good title from breaking out! It took 3 years to hit Dreamcast numbers. It's a total failure. So, what does Nintendo do, release Zelda at the very end of the Wii U's lifecycle so that they have nothing big for NX's release and can start a whole new gen with nothing good so they can fail on NX just like they did with wii U?

You don't see how important it is to launch NX with big, exciting titles? You don't think it'll end up like Wii U if it has no good games? Do you realize how long a game as big and epic as Zelda takes to make? If this one comes out as a Wii U exclusive, then Zelda can do nothing to help NX as it'll take until the very end of the NX's lifecycle to be able to make another one.

It just would be so stupid NOT to release Zelda for the NX.

I won't bring skywake into this, but he can tell you why the hybrid system is unlikely, however I get the feeling that he would be banging his head against a brick wall, much like every other time he has said it won't work. A handheld is just as likely as a console. 3DS hardware sales for the past 2 quarters weren't significantly better than Wii U hardware sales, they will want a replacement handheld soon and there is nothing to say that the NX isn't it.

3DS games...

Also I thought N's E3 was quite good, and am looking forward to FF, it's something I've wanted.

Clearly the OP is wrong as it's called Zelda U, if it was an exclusive NX title then it'll be called Zelda NX. #caseclosed

@Octane:

1- The Wii U userbase is largely made up of the die hard Nintendo fans like us that buy what they make automatically. They know this. They've stated that Wii U owners are their loyal core. (What's left of us) Do you think they're more worried about "losing" us, or chasing the millions they've already lost to get them back? They're after that "blue ocean", the 90 million or so that bought Wii but not Wii U.

2- Even if you were right and point number 1 of mine is completely wrong, WHY do you people keep saying this?? "They're going to piss off Wii U owners by dropping support blah blah" Next year will be 4 years since the console launched!!! So, they keep supporting it for a year after NX is released with whatever is already in the works (The WiiU only gets a game a month if it's lucky, for it's entire freaking lifespan) and then they reach the 5 years. Nintendo consoles always average 5 years! Why do you people keep acting like "they're dropping support". You bring up Sega. Sega did things like release 3 new pieces of hardware to attach to your current hardware, and release a new console a year or 2 after one came out. By the time Holiday 2016 hits (NX's presumed release date) it will have been plenty of time the Wii U was out. The Sega analogy so bad. I'm sorry, it just is.

3) Look at that list. It's all stuff that's just about done, minus, of course, Zelda. Octane- Seriously. What is coming in 2016 that you know about that you're excited for? See that list you just posted for me? We knew about that in 2014, a whole year ahead of time. I remember because I made a post on here excited that Wii U's game release schedule was picking up. Why don't we know about what's coming in 2016? What do we know? SMT x Fire Emblem? Cool, but not Nintendo developed, right? Plus, we've known about it, for what, 3 years?

WHAT THE HECK IS NINTENDO WORKING ON? TOP SECRET WII U PROJECTS?

No, of course not, man! The secrets are cuz it' NX, not Wii U! It's common sense, really!

@arronishere:

Geez, man, really? Fans call it ZeldaU cuz it doesn't have a name yet. You have to be trolling to say something like that, so I don't know why I'm responding to you.

Edit: Oh, by the way, the last time Aonuma was interviewed, he called it only "The new Zelda". ZeldaU is not it's name, lol...

You keep saying its a utter failure but tbf to it the system costs 3 times more than a wii, we dont know how much profit is in each console but Im banking on it being quite a bit, if it is in the order of 3x profit off a single wii console 10 million units would be the revenue of 30 million wii's. I know wii sold 100 million, but the wii u numbers arent really anything to scoff at.

Not exactly, but if they're delaying the game by a year, you can expect about a year of silence. Unless they're going to fill another year with gameplay footage and trailers, which is quite unlikely. I expect we'll see more of the game soon, between today and a couple of months.

The gameplay footage revealed a lot more, the size of the map, improved AI, realistic day/night cycle, and much more. I think you want to watch GameXplain's analysis video if the vaulting mechanic is all you got from those 5 minutes.

By this point, yes. Reggie said so after E3, there's some improvement, that's for sure. However, combine that with the fact that they probably don't want to saturate the internet with Zelda U trailers, it's only logical to wait just a little longer. The game is probably still a good year away, there's plenty of time left to show more gameplay.

TGA in December 2014 =/= early 2015. There has to be some point at which he changed his mind. So no, it's not strange that it happened at some point in time, that's just how reality works.

Rumours... According to rumours Nintendo started distributing dev kits for several times already.

I understand that launching their next console with big titles is important, but what if that console isn't going to release until holiday 2017? What if it's a handheld? What has Zelda U to do with a new handheld? We know nothing about the NX, so we cannot assume that it will replace the Wii U. You're assumptions are based on assumptions, that's not a solid foundation for an argument.

Also, it's not as if they can't develop two Zelda games at the same time. They've always been doing that with handheld and home console Zelda games. They're all made by the same team. What if their next home console Zelda title is already in the planning stage as well?