So, it looks like Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director's Cut is coming to Wii U, with a ratings board classification and the common knowledge that Australia-based studio Straight Right has been working on a high profile Square Enix franchise for Nintendo's new system. Although still in rumour territory until announced at PAX East this weekend, the box-art leaked by Amazon and the overwhelming evidence suggest this is one that's pretty much in the bag. The Amazon listing also has some spiel about a new "neural hub" utilising the GamePad for "an immersive and empowering experience, right at the tips of your fingers". How are we supposed to feel about this? Delighted, frustrated or, most deadly of all, indifferent?
This isn't the first game already well established on the market being belatedly brought to Wii U, with the launch lineup including some high-profile examples. In some cases, such as Darksiders II, it could be justifiably argued that it was a relatively recent release waiting for the system to launch. The debate drifted towards grey areas, however, with Mass Effect 3 — a "Special Edition" with included DLC and GamePad features — and most notably with Batman: Arkham City Armoured Edition, which had some fairly minor changes and some neat GamePad tricks to join all of the additional DLC from other versions. The trouble with these two titles neatly highlights the issue of allowing too much time to pass before unveiling a port.
In the case of Mass Effect 3, while it was arriving in the same calendar year as the original, it was going up against Mass Effect Trilogy on PS3 and Xbox 360, which offered three times as much bang for your buck. In addition, DLC expansions have arrived on rival platforms, including a significant one that essentially closes the trilogy off for the development team, yet none have come to Wii U, making the on-disc DLC an appetizer without a main course.
With Batman: Arkham City Armoured Edition, missing DLC was no problem, as it's all right there on the disc. Hooray! The downside? The game was launched on PS3 and varied platformers in October 2011, over a year before the Wii U hit stores. The DLC was all there because, frankly, the game was such old news that it no longer merited any fresh content; its audience had long since moved on.
These ports, among others, filled out what was a packed Wii U launch line-up. In hindsight — which is always a wonderful thing — doubts expressed about the sheer number of ports or updated re-releases seem to have been proven right, with low software attach-rates combining to share the bulk of the sales between high-profile exclusives and big brand titles. Comments began to emerge from the D.I.C.E. (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit, with developers and publishers supposedly referring to Wii U projects being canned and bemoaning sales of specific titles. That maelstrom of negativity also led to fake anonymous sources being widely reported (not, in this case, by us here on Nintendo Life) as fact in relation to comments from Activision about Wii U — that was blatantly untrue, but it contributed to more negative stories spreading.
Even if only a fraction of the reported developer/publisher sentiment towards Wii U's debut is true, it's nevertheless an issue for Nintendo to tackle — a subject we've covered before. We've maintained here that there's an exciting range of exclusive software destined for the system, even if Nintendo is having to pick up publishing duties for third-party efforts such as The Wonderful 101. In some quarters we've also seen sustained support for Wii U as a viable option for multi-platform, big budget games. It may have made a spectacular mess of the Rayman Legends situation, but Ubisoft for one is bringing Watch_Dogs and Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag to Wii U, with the former also being a PS4 launch title. Only time will tell us how far support like this goes once PS4 and Xbox Next are truly in their stride, but it's a positive to enjoy right now nevertheless.
Of course, publishers will ultimately decide based on the Wii U's technical capabilities, userbase and a perception of its gamer's enthusiasm for a lot of titles; one factor or another scared many away from multi-platform titles on Wii. For one thing the arrival of Assassin's Creed III was fairly long-sighted of Ubisoft, as it surely knew that sales would be relatively low with just early adopters with a lot of cash picking it up — though we were told that Ubisoft's system-exclusive ZombiU was "among the best selling launch titles on Wii U". Multi-platform releases with a simultaneous release on Wii U didn't necessarily fare badly, either, with over a quarter of Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed sales being on Wii U, the figure of 260,000 (as of 31st December) being pretty good for a system launch multi-platform game.
So those are examples of publishers giving their Wii U releases a fair shake, yet whispers suggest that it's some of the supposedly "high profile" older ports that have failed to shift many copies. Frankly, for the reasons already outlined, we wonder how anyone can possibly be surprised. If a game is over a year old or has far better value offerings elsewhere, only a select group of keen consumers without access to other versions will buy these releases. That this group exists is beyond doubt, but it'll be a small and hardy collection of gamers. Titles like Mass Effect 3 or Arkham City have probably been played by Wii U owners with a love for those kind of games on PC, PS3 or Xbox 360 already. Even if they haven't, a lot of Wii U titles aren't exactly cheap, so what do you buy? A new game that utilises the tech for a fresh experience, or one that's been available everywhere else for a good while?
So, for our money, a prospective release of Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director's Cut has big problems in gaining respectable sales. Assuming the leaked date of May is correct, it'll come onto the market with, as a guess, around five million Wii U units in the wild — Nintendo has estimated four million up to the end of March, and let's anticipate a potential bump with some big releases in the coming period — and this is a game originally released in August 2011. Square Enix can throw in GamePad features and include DLC on disc as much as it likes, but we question whether many will pick this up ahead of new or exclusive releases such as Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate (greatly expanded re-release of an old game, yes, but of a Wii exclusive), LEGO City Undercover, or games that we can reasonably predict for Q2 such as The Wonderful 101 and Pikmin 3. It'll have some sales, we have no doubt, but rather like Need for Speed Wanted U going up against those aforementioned releases in North America this week, it's debatable whether the numbers will be be enough to satisfy budgets and expectations.
Our fear is that Square Enix will release a 17 - 18 month old game, observe sluggish sales and simply throw its hands up with the old "Nintendo gamers don't want these Triple-A games". That kind of false assumption would be patently unfair; if titles like Watch_Dogs or Assassin's Creed IV tank on Wii U then, yes, there's clearly an issue in whether these kind of multi-platform blockbusters will struggle on the system, but this Deus Ex release is potentially onto a loser from day one. Gamers don't have endless funds, so offer new, current-day experiences — Tomb Raider would have been nice — and then see how things go.
We truly hope that publishers give the Wii U a spin with some major current multi-platform titles. If these games arrive and fail then we face another generation where a Nintendo system may rely on the occasional big third-party game, some excellent efforts from smaller studios, indies and, or course, all of the first-party content Nintendo can muster.
At the very least though, release new games that have a real chance, not a big hit from 2011.
Comments 91
Very good article. I agree with many of the points you made. Developers need to start making some of these multiplatform games come to the Wii U. Apparently that takes a certain amount of effort so they just give us old ports instead.
I don't mind old ports as long as the game is good and its a good value.
For example, I would gladly pay for Capcom's XBLA/PSN games if they were re-released on Wii U eShop. Or Dark Souls, I would buy that on Wii U in a heartbeat. Or Dragon's Dogma.
Even better would be something like a "_______ Collection"- a port of multiple titles in a series hitting Wii U with enhanced features and performance.
@gojiguy Yeah, I could go with that Collection idea too. The problem is that we're not getting that, and these offerings that are coming through are, in my opinion anyway, more often than not doomed to failure. Yet that's shown as a lack of consumer support, with some shifting the blame unfairly on us.
I'm fine with old ports as long as they're good. That's what the VC is right?
Couldn't agree more. This needs to be sorted, or the knock-on effect will be fewer and fewer games that actually appear at the same time as on other consoles, and as a result a collapse in general third-party support.
I think the Wii U's excellent, but like any other console, it needs a selection of good games.
As gojiguy said, I think the old XBLA/PSN games are are much more appealing than these old retail ports. Plants vs Zombies, anyone?
Anyway, great article. As you said, all we be revealed with Assassin's Creed IV. But, knowing the all-too-familiar behaviour of the Nintendo fan, I feel disappointment coming on.
I can see why they're reluctant to put too much time and resource into Wii U releases. For a start, the install base is small, and I know every console starts off with a small install base, but 3rd party games do have a pretty abysmal sales record on Nintendo consoles.
February figures for the UK just came out, and last month Xbox 360 software outsold Wii U software by over 20 to 1. PS3 software is outselling it by 15 to 1. Even a PC market that is widely considered to be failing is outselling it by almost 7 to 1.
Tomb Raider or Bioshock Infinite could very well end up selling decent numbers on the Wii U, but the facts make it quite a big risk for publishers. Taking risks isn't something a lot of companies want to do in this financial climate. It's why the Rayman Legends move made perfect sense once you stand back, set aside your disappointment and look at it logically. Something would have to massively buck the trend for 3rd party sales on Nintendo hardware for it to make a profit of Wii U, but a relatively minor success on the other consoles will make your money back.
Just you wait people, Nintendo doesn't even need you to top X-Box and PS3, they make their own dang games! But a big thank has to go out to Ubisoft and Capcom, with exclusives and Multi-platforms out and planned
I like what was said above, that ports should be a collection of games, not just the same game but ob WiiU "with added gamepad support!"
That said, WiiU is now going to need the same day release with all upcoming 3rd party games like watchdogs. And if the publisher doesnt want to makea wiiu version, Nintendo needs to go to them and convince them why their system is worth their time and even give some ideas for the gamepad that would work for their games, get them interested in the system
i think many of these publishers are thinking that wii owners that upgraded to Wii U didnt own a 360 or ps3, the thing is wii went coupled with most gamers that had one or the other. Simply, these ports are far too old and to pick them up at "new" prices when they can be gotten for a third or less of the price for the other consoles in this kind of economy is a no-brainer that itll lead to poor sales.
I for one will be getting this and have bought all of the old ports mentioned in the article for Wii u having never owned a PS3 or 360
Can't wait for Tomb Raider in late 2014.
maybe it's because porting an old game is cheap and so it's not a huge risk.
To be honest though, the only game that I'm gutted isn't getting a release is bioshock infinite.
sony and microsoft can keep the rest.
oh and a port of dishonered would be nice to.
Good article. I had a ps3 and an 360 before trading my 360 for the wiiu. Ive already played most of the AAA titles and so these ports of year old games really does not do anything for me. As a subscriber to the playstation+ i even get some big titles for free as long as i keep my subscribtion, such as mass effect 3. Then again, I didnt get the wiiu for the multi platform titles. But if the wiiu would get them at the same time as the other platforms and utilizing the gamepad in a nifty way, i might reconsider.
I just don't buy them if they don't interest me. Developers can't really blame us for not supporting them if we really just don't care about their games. Make some games I like and I'll buy them. I have a PS3 to buy these games for, and I still choose not to buy them because HD consoles started becoming boring in the middle of 2008 IMO. I don't care about Assissin's Creed, Gears of War, Halo, Uncharted, Bioshock, etc. games anymore, or only like one of each, because I feel they didn't add anything completely new to those series after the first one released on last gen consoles. All those games were a one hit wonders in my eyes.
@SCAR392
My thoughts exactly
I'm still cautiously optimistic about the Deus Ex port, and not just because it's "any old port in a storm" (or a dead calm, in WiiU's case). It's because it does seem such an odd choice, so I can't help but wonder why they chose this particular game, and not a more recent or high-profile one. And there is at least the theoretical chance that the reason for this choice is because someone took a look at the gamepad and had an idea how it might improve this particular game, significantly enough to warrant a late port. IF that is so, then it might be worthwhile, because it might make good use of the pad (unlike a quick port of a recent game) and thus inspire users and other developers.
Of course, right now, all of this is purely academic, and it's a big IF. But hope dies last
I am certainly buying Watch_Dogs, as that looks really cool and is most likely best on Wii U, and I'll try my best to buy Assassin's Creed IV. I haven't played any other games in the series, but I want more multiplats to come to the Wii U, and obviously it's a decent game.
I really wish we could get an inside opinion from Nintendo on this situation.
If they don't price Deus Ex as if it's a brand new release £50< then I may be interested. I'm actually holding out on buying Mass Effect 2 in the hopes that EA do give us the trilogy despite falling so hard for the first one.
Not to mention a lot of player already have played old ports already on their other console or pc. Nintendo is just desperate to get anything on their console right now.
All the ports should've been £29.99
I've just got Darksiders 2 (off Zavvi for £15)
No way I would've paid more than £24.99 at launch.
It's just stupid.
And I've seen the rumours PS4 games will be $70? And they want to compete with Apple & mobile gaming? Some of these publishers need a reality check.
While i agree with everything you said, i really want to play this game with the gamepad. i had it for the ps3 and when i heard this news i sold it to save. i think the game was great and hope for it to be even better on the wiiu
And how do people feel about Wii U Zelda: Wind Waker?
I don't really remember Nintendo ports being bad as much I don't remember Nintendo consoles getting ports.
I do not agree with any practice that involved forcing developers to use the Wii U's "features" if they choose not to though.
This is the perfect article for how I fill about this game and old ports in general. The resources they spent to port this could have been used to get tomb raider on wii u. Now sure nintendo is going to bring a old port of wind waker at the end of the year but that is a game I want to play again and is known. I can get deus ex on the other two hd systems I have if I wanted it (I don't). Looks like Nintendo is going to be the only one support their system again. Which means I will sadly have to get the other systems sooner than I have before. I just hope nothing super great comes out next year.
I don't see the problem with Nintendo wanting to catch up with the games the Wii wasn't able to support, i think it's a wonderful thing that Nintendo fans who only own nintendo consoles are now able to play such amazing games.
This week I was torn between Lego Undercover and NFS: Most Wanted for WiiU and ended up ordering just NFS through Amazon using points because A: Amazon said there would be a shipping delay for Lego Undercover, and B: I'm glad EA was smart and made the WiiU port from the PC version of the game so it will be superior to other console editions currently available.
as soon as the big N release some of their first party games eg: Zelda and the system starts to sell really well more multiplatform games will come it's just that at the moment publishers and developers are unsure about the WiiU as it stands especially with the PS4 round the corner
anyway we can but see what the future will bring
I will buy a game if I have an interest in it & have the money for it, doesn't matter when it was originally made or if its a port or not or whatever. Sadly most of the ports like AC III, Batman & upcoming Deus Ex aren't my type of game. That's just the way it goes I guess.
It sucks Far Cry 3, Tomb Raider, could have easily come to WiiU IDG what is going on, but are not only third party settign themselves up to fail by releaseing these old ports, or not supporting them with DLC, they are addign to the lack of sales of wiiu its liek take this because you have nothing else
Fallout 3: Wii U edition, please. With a sleeve addition so I can use the controller like a Pip Boy. OMGers.
"or games that we can reasonably predict for Q2 such as The Wonderful 101 and Pikmin 3."
OK, I can live with "reasonably predict"
I don't have a problem with ports - I don't think I would have ever played Okami and RE:4 without ports as each added something - pointing, widescreen and better graphics. What I do have a problem with is selling an old game that is now $30 for $60. Nintendo did it right with NPC Pikmin 2. We had to wait for-ever for it to release in the US but when it did it was $19.99, and it's just so much better w/ the Wiimote as a pointer. Heck, I'ld go buy a Pikmin HD 2-pack for $40 w/ Gamepad support as we wait forever for 3.
So, ports of old games are good, but they need 2 things - advantages - like what Batman did w/ the Gamepad - and a cheaper price. If Dues Ex comes out at $30 it will sell, if it comes out at $60 it won't. This isn't rocket science.
I'm looking forward to Windwaker HD. I never played the original, but I'm still not buying it for over $30. It will probably be $60 and sell a ton but not to me.
I've never owned a PS3 or Xbox, so Darksiders, Arkham and ACIII were new to me and a lot of fun (Well, Darksiders and Arkham were, still sifting through the slightly dull prologue of ACIII), but the truth is all the ports were filler to mask the fact it was going to take 6 months to a year until big games originally designed for the Wii U would be ready. The Wii U is quite different beast to the PS3/Xbox (twins separated at birth?), and it will take publishers a while to come up with ideas of how to use it's strong points. I would imagine even Nintendo themselves are still coming up with ideas of how to exploit the controller.
@SkywardLink98 The Virtual Console gives you access to otherwise non-playable games (on other modern consoles), that's the point of the Virtual Console.
We all know this game is not selling well. When it doesn't, SE will be all like "Our games, like, don't sell on the Wii U, dude". They'll blame Nintendo for THEIR MISTAKES.
Geez, I'm tired of all this third party support bullpoop.
Nintendo!! Buy Konami, Capcom and SEGA, then let's see who has "third party support"...
Interestingly, it looks as though Need for Speed most wanted for the wii u is $30 on origin with free shipping. That's a good sign, right?
Sure, these games are very old and it's one of the main reasons why people aren't buying them, but I'm surprised this article didn't mention that they're sequels. I think that's a huge reason that they're not selling as well. Why would I buy a game at the middle or the end of the storyline when I'm completely oblivious to the other games?
If they priced these ports better I think they'd sell much better. You can't take an old 2011 game and port it over, then charge a full $60 for a game that can be found for 1/3rd the price just without the enhancements and expect it to sell.
Sell it for $30 and people might be more willing to buy it just to have something to play.
As a Nintendo only gamer, I'm very happy whenever a third party game is released on Wii U that was released previously on PS3 and XBox. I really enjoyed Batman: Arkham City and my brother really liked Darksiders II. It might, however, be smarter to release these games on the eShop for a fair price instead of making them full retail games. That being said, if the game interests me, even if it was previously released on PS3 or Xbox, I'm going to buy it since I haven't had the opportunity to buy it before.
The problem with old ports is 1) they're old and 2) they're $60.
EA's selling Need for Speed for $30 on its Origin site right now, though.
NFS Wii U is £45 on Origins for pre-order...
I just went into Game shop on the high street and they are selling BLOPS 2 for £60! on Wii U. No wonder no one is buying wii u games here in the UK.
It's funny how the uk/us pay full price for wii u games in australia the most we pay is around $70 but if we look around it can be as low as $64. Over here at eb (GameStop in us) we pay up to $100 for 360/ps3 ports!
The thing is, Tomb Raider, even if ported later, would still sell better than Deus Ex since it's more of a household name.
I don't mind ports as long as I feel they make it "worth it". For example, I really think that Darksiders II should've taken the opportunity on Wii U to be the complete version, with ALL the DLC and extra content included, not just some. Heck, maybe throw in the first game too. Same with Mass Effect 3, it just wasn't worth buying on the Wii U. With the Trilogy being pretty much simultaneously released on the other platforms, buying and only having access to game #3 of a series for Wii U didn't seem like a good value (especially when adding in that it was never supported with any of the future DLC). Batman AC at least included everything, as it sounds like Deus Ex will do along with adding some additional stuff. Those are ports I feel like I can get behind, they at least seem purposeful.
Having said that, Nintendo needs to get on nabbing these studios to have them release their games simultaneously with all the other consoles. Having them come way down the line after most everyone has already played them is always going to be a hard sell.
I would love to see Tomb Raider on Wii U! Lara has a bow, good enough for me...
I completely agree Tom. I, along with most other people I have to believe, would take Tomb Raider over Deus Ex. I just can't understand why they would want to waste time working on an almost two year old game when they could have been working on something much greater and more relevant. It kind of makes me sad honestly, haha.
No worries we'll all be charged 60 bucks again for year or 2 old games ala Darksiders 2, Batman Arkham City and ME 3.
WiiU gets ports: Oh man, we don't want these! these games are old! And too much!
WiiU Doesn't get a game: Aww come on, why won't you support our system?!
I would bet money that Square is making this to get familiar with the new console and do a low-cost but quality port. Why pay millions and millions of dollars to make a new game on a new system with no experience? I would rather get some awesome games that are old but fun while devs get familiar with a new system than an embarrassment failure of a game. If you people don't buy the test games, why would they want to make new ones for us?
Ports are going to come to WiiU, the install base is small and its a relatively cheap way to test the ground in terms of prospective sales on games that will need more financial backing.
The catch of course is if you have already played the game before your less likely to buy it on WiiU unless there has been significant additions made.
I don't really resent publishers porting older games, but they need to make the WiiU version take advantage of the extra graphic capabilities, the Touchpad Controller and include all dlc along with any never before released content if any wasn't completed but was in the works back it the games original release.
If publishers do use the sales figures of older game ports as a measure against potential sales on a new/original games they need to account for those who didn't buy simply because they owned/played it in the past.
Just maybe some of the reason WiiU is getting older ports is because many titles havn't been officialy announced for ps4/nextbox yet and porting older titles is quicker and cheaper to make untill next year when we may be seeing new (next-gen) cross-platform titles on WiiU
"If these games arrive and fail then we face another generation where a Nintendo system may rely on the occasional big third-party game, some excellent efforts from smaller studios, indies and, or course, all of the first-party content Nintendo can muster."
That's what I'm on board for, anything else is just a bonus!
I'm happy with any big third party games that come to the Nintendo platform. The way the publisher sees it it takes a lot of resources to do simultaneous release because they need a separate team to handle the Wiiu content while they're trying to release on the other big platforms they care about, PC/PS3/Xbox360. But after the game is already been out for a year the marginal extra cash it would take to port it over with a small team working on it is less of a deal, and they're looking to get a few more sales at a premium on a console that doesn't have used versions of the game out in the wild for people to pick up for cheap. It's away to have an opening weekend all over again and how well it actually does is no bother to them as they didn't actually spend all that money PRODUCING this game, remember IT'S a PORT, the money has already been spent "It didn't sell well thing" is an excuse, it's just something they say to get more gamers to buy their lazy efforts at a premium in my view. It does sting when big third parties make a game for Wiiu from the ground up and it's awesome and it tanks however. I'm glad to hear Zombi U did well!
Considering the direction the industry is headed in, I don't think it's going to matter much if Nintendo get's improved support or not. Everyone seems to assume that Sony and Microsoft's new console will sell bucket loads, increase the standards of technical design, and render Nintendo completely irrelavent, all while pulling the market out of its current slump. It could happen, I suppose, but I don't think it's at all likely. My point is, these "AAA" games everyone talks about will become more expensive to produce, require more development time, and monopolize resources that could be better used on other non "AAA" projects that could be potentially more profitable. What 3rd parties are doing with Wii U now is only what they have been doing to Nintendo for years, but they are so blind to the changes in the market that they'll end up facing some pretty dismal bottom lines when the "AAA" bubble bursts, which it will I assure you, leaving a self sustaining Nintendo to lure in the stragling gamers left behind amongst the chaos.
Yeah, every time a Sony console comes out it's assumed it's just going to sell in these insane quantities and kill the rest of the industry but the last three times they released hardware it did NOT go that way so I'm a little skeptical of all that hype, Especially since PS4 has no run out and buy feature that PS2 had (the built in dvd player no one had). PS4 has games you've played on PS3, that's not going to move units!'
We haven't seen Microsoft's console yet, so who knows. I do imagine that because they're a software company we're going to see something that feels a bit more brand new on that end and maybe that will move units? We'll see. The fact that they're waiting so long this time around to tell us seems a bit weird too! But maybe that's just so the competition doesn't have time to copy and they still want 360 consoles and games to be selling.
I'm sticking with steam unless 720 is too awesome to pass up or something.
I already own this game so why would I buy it again? Release the new games across all systems, not this old port crap.
@drdark Sony has confirmed PS4 games will not cost more than $60.
Love me some Deus Ex, but already played through it twice on PC so I probably won't be buying at again.
I don't mind ports that take advanatge of the systems strengths (ex. Bully: Scholarship Edition), but like most of the other posts I've read here, not at newly developed game prices
I'm fine with ports as long as they're priced reasonably, which they haven't been. I own all the current platforms, so when I see a game ported to Wii U at full price, I would be more inclined to buying the Xbox version at half the price or less. If they were priced reasonably, and had appealing features exclusive to Wii U, I wouldn't see a single problem with old ports.
As far as third-party publishers not releasing their current multiplatform games alongside the Wii U? Well I think they're just snubbing Nintendo at this point. There's no good reason for there not to be the same games as Xbox and PS3, in terms of anything released this year. At least Ubisoft is releasing Watch_Dogs alongside every other version, that's how it should be done.
Perhaps publishers want to go down to just developing for 2 systems to save costs. It appears that we know which 2 systems they've chose.
The thing is it'll have a sub par opening week and then go down in price and even gamers that want it on wiiu know that and will wait for the gae to hit the 40 to 30 dollar range. This desire to out smart the consumer with year old ports is what bights these devs in the butt!
I can see people's problem with this, but right now I'm playing Tales of the Abyss on my 3DS, and that was about 3 years old when it was ported to 3DS, so why is it ok on 3DS and not on Wii U?
If they end up pricing it at full price, even with stuff added on, I really doubt it'll have many sales at all.
I've already played Deus Ex 3, but I can think of a few other old games I'd like to see on the Wii U. Maybe devs would be better off bringing these games over in digital form and selling them for a fraction of their original price the way STEAM does with two year old games. If they're going to insist on full priced physical copies of these games, I'd suggest doing so in a compilation like they did with the Metal Gear Solid Collection or the Final Fantasy Anthology.
It is a horrible situation for Wii U owners and potential owners. I think the ports were acceptable at launch so the system had some kind of library. But it should be all new stuff from then on. How any publisher can justify their stance of saying Wii U ports of games don't sell when they are usually very old games, some with graphical issues, and most with DLC not coming for them, it makes me so angry.
I am not against old ports persee, as long as we are talking about great games (for example I wouldn't mind the Ratchet and Clank games or Shadow of the collosus on Wii u, to give 2 examples). But all those old games and a avalanche of downloadable games won't convince anyone to buy a Wii u! NEW retail games and exclusives, those shift units!!
It's ridiculous to expect old ports to sell when they can be bought for a fraction of the price on another platform.
I might consider Deus Ex 3 though as I skipped it before (because Deus Ex 2 was ruined by being on consoles).
So, we're asked what we think about this, huh? Well, my stance is, keep 'em coming in droves! Why yes, late ports are indeed a good thing, especially for Nintendo purists who don't own other consoles in the first place. They've been available everywhere else, but who cares? There's a Nintendo version of them now, that's all that counts.
Sadly though, these "late ports" can literally be counted on your fingers (give it a try), which is exactly the problem - the ports can give the Wii U the biggest library a console has ever witnessed in its launch window, but having so little is quite the middle finger. I'd rather have either many late ports, or none at all. It's as if third parties were hesitant to give Nintendo support, despite the Wii U having all the graphical power they all seem to crave. I'm starting to fear they feel like helping Nintendo at all is inherently a bad thing - as if keeping a franchise on PS3 and Xbox 360 is some kind of status symbol or something (inb4 "you don't know anything about how the game industry works!" comments).
Also, as I said in a comment for the Deus Ex newspost itself... well, so much for a Nintendo home console Kingdom Hearts game. There go my hopes of seeing "KH 1,5 HD Remix" on Wii U.
i would like to see lost planet 1,2, and 3 for the wii u please let them come out
@AlexSora89 Yeah, for Nintendo purists this could be very good news. Human Revolution is one of my favorite games on STEAM, Deus Ex is the best Square-Enix franchise out there that isn't Dragon Quest, and since the Wii U is struggling to find favor with youngsters the M rating shouldn't be any concern. Perhaps this game will sell better on Wii U than most of us expect it will.
i woulda got them all if they were cheaper.
I don't want to be ungrateful but I'd rather see Sleeping Dogs (another game they published) come on there instead. Although if Sqare is willing to go out their way to port this game that probably didn't even sell that much then there's no excuse why these really big games like Fry Cry 3 or Crisi 3 isn't on there.
Even if it's 6 months late I don't care how late the game is atleast have something in the freaking pipeline for Wii U!! ALSO OFFICALLY ANNOUCE IT LET US KNOW ITS ON THE WAY!! HYPE IT UP UNLESS U DON'T WANT IT TO SELL!! IS THAT TO MUCH TO ASK FOR!!
For all those that think third party games can't sell well on a Nintendo system, look back to the SNES days. There was a great deal of amazing third party games. The economy now is much different and ppl have not tons of extra money to buy and support every game that comes out. Most ppl now budget for one to a few games a month.
We all like good games, the problem is we want the Wii U to keep getting good games, and when companies release old AAA games and they have bad sales, we stop getting future good games. I already have Deus Ex for 360, and I don't want to spend $50-$60 to play it in a different way.
I think the problem is that the Wii U have too many ports and its at full price! Would you buy a $60 game or a $20 game? I think most would agree on option "B". I liked that they tweaked things here and there but the Wii U ports don't recive certain DLC (Mass Effect). Sure some games get a second chance like Ninja Gaiden (in my opinion I liked it and I liked the additional content for the Wii U) which got pretty good reviews but then they go to the other systems (Ninja Gaiden 3 "again" suppose to be going the other systems with the Wii U content) which in my opnion feels like a slap in the face. Not as bad the Rayman game being pushed back but you guys get my point. I liked the article because I can relate to majority of it. Keep up the good work!
I don't mind ports, as long as all the dlc for them comes to Wii U. CoD has no dlc and Mass Effect 3 missed out as well. Why is this?
I think it will be the perfect time to bring out these ports later this year, when all the GOTY editions start hitting the shelves. If they come out on the Wii U with all the DLC on disc, it won't hurt the Wii U, that's for sure.
I'm still a bit p!$$3d that Tomb Raider is not seeing the inside of a WiiU because it'll be an instant purchase for me. But I like to invest my efforts in one home console and one handheld and my pick of the pack is Nintendo, because quite frankly, they offer more consistent quality than other consoles. I purchased Batman and will do any game I'm interested in. Bring decent ports and I'll buy them. Don't and you can kiss my sweet dollar goodbye!
Wii U 32gb + Darksiders 2 + Batman = € 470
Xbox 360 250gb + Darksiders 2 + Batman = € 250
What will parents choose for their children? A new gamepad is still not enough...
Excellent article. I just hope they give the Wii U a fair shake but it sounds like studios may have already had their development dollars in PS4 and Xbox Next efforts. Hopefully, major releases coming soon for Wii U will help to bolster system sales and companies will again pickup projects they might have shelved. I'd hate to see third party support relegated to the dismal state we saw on Wii. However, I will always support Nintendo's quality and innovation. Maybe the excellent JRPG titles finally making their way to the US on the Wii will have enough success so that we may see more ports of Japanese Wii U releases here. I'm just afraid it won't come until the end of the consoles life cycle.
@andreoni79 What parent would buy their child Darksiders?
You know what I was talking about... Btw, in Europe we don't care about age restrictions and stuff like that. 8 years boys play both Pokemon and God of war... and if you're over 14 parents don't care about what you play, as long as it's cheap for them!
a very good article. hope Square Enix and other publishers give it a proper read
It boggles the mind that some publishers can see an opportunity in re-releasing an old title with tacked-on features, and sell it as new on Wii U. It's an especially odd move when the same title is available on another system for a fraction of the price. If there were just a few months apart, I could understand it, but anyone that really wanted to pick this game up would have done so by now. We're in a time, after all, where loads of gamers own multiple systems and even if someone hasn't bought the original, I think most consumers probably think "That's an old game from over a year ago, it's not worth how much they're asking for".
It's utterly baffling. Now is the perfect time for a third-party to capitalise on the dearth of Wii U titles and release something really great.
Great article, Tom - you hit every nail on the head!
Great article. I agree wholeheartedly.
From a more personal perspective i would have loved to see a lot of 1:1 ports in the eShop. I never owned more than one system per generation yet so the games wouldn't need to support anything Wii U specific to float my boat. For 20€ each i would have downloaded a freaking lot of these.
I mean from what i've read before the system's launch i anticipated porting to the Wii U wouldn't require a lot of work. So this could have been a great way to bring these games to a new audience while not having to take a huge risk. They might even have made some cents that way, who knows.
I don't think this will ever happen though so i might buy a PS3 or Xbox360 in some months. While i'll probably get Darksiders 2, Assassin's Creed 3 and Ninja Gaiden 3 on the Wii U i don't want to play them out of context. So getting another system seems to be the only way to play the previous story- and character-relevant entries of these franchises.
@Gamesake: The problem is, as I said, it seems like third party devs just can't help snubbing Nintendo consoles for the sake of snubbing Nintendo consoles, as if it's some kind of twisted status symbol. You know, it's like an abyss between Xbox 360 and PS3, which nobody seems to have any problems with, and Nintendo, the one nobody seems to want to work with/for. As if people are afraid of being associated-- wait, no, it's kind of irrealistic, but it's what's happening. I mean, think about it: the first Square title for the Wii U is, no matter how good, an Eidos property. Not a FF title. They could have ported Final Fantasy XIII, but instead we get Deus Ex. And, to nobody's surprise, FFXIII is the FF title for PS3 that didn't have any problem coming to 360.
Okay, what I just wrote is kind of rushed, so I'll try to word it as well as I can. The point is, "late ports" are multiplatform titles, and we know that, while Wii U exclusives just can't help going multiplatform, the same can't be said about the opposite - titles said to be "multiplatform" in that they're for both PS3 and Xbox 360 actually can't seem to reach Nintendo consoles at all. And while there was indeed a gap between the graphical power of the PS360 and that of the Wii, the latter's successor now does have the graphical power that (sadly) is all that matters to the devs, but despite that, multiplatform titles - may they be either "new" or "late ports" - still manage to "skip" the Wii U, as the titles of the related newsposts say on this site.
So, to recap, as I said the only problem with "old Wii U ports" is that there are actually too little - more shouldn't hurt, really. There are tons of titles that Nintendo fans have been missing, so why not bring them to the Wii U? The answer? "We don't want to bow down to that", or some other bee-ess excuse.
[erupts into furious gibberish]
Actually, I've always thought a launch would have been an excellent time to crank out new IP since the limited library would force the media to pay some attention to it. Especially with Nintendo's habit of prolonged deadzones, giving system owners plenty of time to try it out and see if it was worth it.
A good article. If only the publishers read it and took it on board.
@Gamesake,
Lol! Uncharted and Ico any better for you? There are a lot of great games we Nintendo-gamers missed out on! Speaking of old games: Why can't we get some old downloadable titles? I would love to play Limbo or Shank!
@Sensei_PikPik,
Speaking of wich: That guy from that old article wasn't that far off! Nintendo seems to have gotten a bit overboard with the maturity: There are almost no family/kids-games on the Wii u so far! Why can't there be a good balance? I hope there will be a good balance in the future!
@Bass_X0 Given that Nintendo aren't likely to drop all support for their own console if Zelda Wind Waker HD isn't a significant seller, then it isn't really relevant to this discussion.
It'd be better if DE:HR wasn't on sale for like 5$ on Steam all the time.
I don't mind it's a old port or new port. Just play game I'm interested in. For example, Catherine. I want this game for Wii U so BAD !
They charge more money for a Wii U port because they have to pay people to port it. They can't just re-burn the 360 version to a wii u disk and ship it off. Stuff is different. I am not a game designer so I don't know all the full details of what has to happen for a port, but there is clearly some work involved. That means people have to do it, and those people have to be paid. They already got paid for their 360/ps3 work when the original game came out at full price. They have to pay these people again for the porting work, and releasing a game at 20 bucks isn't gonna pay the salaries. Sure you can get it on 360 for cheaper, and if thats what you want, but a 360 and play it on there. Not everyone has a 360 though. This could be a brand new game for a lot of people.
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