The Future

Smashing hopes

We've only just asked if Kid Icarus could be Nintendo's next big franchise, but along comes Kid Icarus: Uprising director Masahiro Sakurai to say he won't create a sequel. IGN asked if Project Sora had created a "lasting universe" the team could return to in future projects, to which Sakurai replied: If by ‘lasting u

CoD always sells

For those of you that follow gaming news beyond Nintendo, one title has been dominating all headlines: Call of Duty: Black Ops II. The Activision behemoth has been everywhere, grabbing attention ahead of a 'global reveal' and then accounting for the bulk of news stories on many multi-platform websites in the aftermath. While it's...

Surprised?

Nintendo will reveal the release date and price for Wii U after its E3 show, president Satoru Iwata has revealed. Speaking at a financial results briefing, Iwata didn't reveal much about Wii U, other than emphasising that Nintendo would reveal the system's final format and software lineup during E3. Iwata then said: Please also be...

Sound familiar?

Ubisoft will stick to its tactic of big launch support for new consoles when Wii U launches later this year. Last year Ubi launched six games alongside 3DS and, back in 2006, released half a dozen games on the same day as Wii. That plan helped it become the biggest third-party publisher on both formats — though Ubi's Wii success...

"Nintendo to show more soon"

Gearbox Software is prototyping Aliens: Colonial Marines for Wii U, and studio president Randy Pitchford has spoken to Vox Games about its work so far on the next Nintendo platform. Comparing the upcoming shooter to its current-gen counterparts, Pitchford was glowing about Wii U's potential: The Wii U version has so...

Rocket start

German developer Shin'en Multimedia is licensed to develop for Wii U. The team behind WiiWare hits Art of Balance, FAST Racing League, Jett Rocket recently updated its home page with the following message: Welcome to Shin'en's web-site. If you're interested in our services and productions, you've come to the right place. Shin'en was...

Might take a while, though

After Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D and Resident Evil Revelations both hit 3DS within the machine's first year on sale, Capcom's keen to keep the survival horror series juggernaut going on 3DS. Series producer Masachika Kawata spoke to IGN about the possibility of more 3D entries in the franchise, and signs are looking...

More power

Gearbox Software's Aliens: Colonial Marines is in the works for Wii U, and president Randy Pitchford has urged Nintendo to make the machine as powerful as it can afford. Speaking to Nintendo-Gamer, Pitchford said: Our hope at Gearbox is that the final specification for the hardware is much more powerful than the current competitive...

3DS downloads the way forward

WayForward has a rare knack for delivering enjoyable download games for Nintendo formats, with its DSiWare Mighty games and, of course, Shantae: Risky's Revenge helping the company make a profit on DSi downloads. The studio's now moved onto 3DS eShop titles, with its latest title Mighty Switch Force! getting it off to a...

Going places

Many long-standing Nintendo fans have a special place in their hearts for Rare, the British developer responsible for Banjo Kazooie, GoldenEye 007, Jet Force Gemini and more. In 1994 Nintendo bought a 49% stake in the developer, guiding it to create hit after hit, but in 2002 the studio was bought outright by Microsoft, spelling the end...

That's bad, by the way

Not long ago we revealed the positive news that THQ has two secret Wii U titles in the works, with Darksiders II and Metro: Last Light already unveiled for the new console way back at E3 2011. While that's the good news, unfortunately the developer is enduring some serious financial issues. As reported by Gamasutra, THQ is in danger of being delisted from the Nasdaq stock..

A rose by any other name

When we saw Wii U at E3, we were pretty certain it was a console. We even saw people playing it in a home-style setting. So it's a home console, right? Wrong. Talking to investors after the latest financial results, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata suggested the company won't refer to it as a traditional home console: As for...

Maybe more

THQ's Danny Bilson was one of the first talking heads pictured when the Wii U's third-party games were confirmed, announcing that Darksiders II and Metro: Last Light are both coming to Wii U. They may not be the publisher's only games for the console in the works, though. The LinkedIn profile of THQ senior producer Evan Icenbice lists two...

What's in store for the year ahead?

2011 is gone. After announcing our Game of the Year 2011 awards we're ready to move on and sink our teeth into all that awaits in 2012. There are of course dozens more games on the way to 3DS in the coming year, but we've picked ten of the most exciting due to crest the 3D horizon before 2013 rolls around. If...

It's only sleeping

It's been over three months since the Wii received a new Virtual Console game in North America, and close to a staggering six months since Europe got a new old game to play with, but Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime wants to assure you the service isn't dead. Speaking to Time about upcoming games, Fils-Aime...

Dark days ahead

One of the many third-party games revealed for Wii U at E3 2011 was Darksiders II, and now developers Vigil Games have given Game Informer an insight into the game's development and how the team will use that new controller. General manager David Adams and technical director Colin Bonstead revealed in a video interview that the team actually had Darksiders II running on Wii U..

Quick on the draw

THQ's art tablet uDraw was a big hit on Wii, but once Nintendo unveiled the Wii U controller it started to lose a little of its sheen. The publisher isn't about to let Nintendo run away with the art market though, revealing to Eurogamer its plans to keep the brand going. THQ's global VP for uDraw Andy Hodgson said: We have some amazing brands and software built for uDraw. Some of..

Flip-reverse it

Forget The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword: this year's Wii coverage has been dominated by three other big Japanese games. Xenoblade Chronicles, Pandora's Tower and The Last Story have had gamers' eyes all year, and Nintendo of Europe wants to get you even more involved by asking you to help choose alternate cover art for the latter two titles. As with the successful campaign it ran

But which will prevail?

Ubisoft is always a big supporter of new hardware — it had six titles out for the 3DS launch, for example — and the publishing giant will be there on Wii U day one. Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot has spoken to Gamasutra about the upcoming console's potential to appeal to the casual and core customers that could help it eclipse the Wii's mammoth sales: We are big believers..

What could it be?

Silicon Knights has had a torrid time in recent years: after years of development, its first Xbox 360 game Too Human met a tepid critical and commercial reaction, and its most recent release X-Men Destiny didn't fare much better. Things weren't always like this, though: the studio did a great job with Konami revamp Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes, but there's only one title..

No laurel-resting here

Nintendo DS and Wii were hugely lucrative for many reasons, but part of their success is down to the innovative new games only possible on Nintendo's hardware: from Nintendogs and Brain Training to Wii Fit, these new genres really made the hardware into global phenomena. Of course, other hardware manufacturers and publishers soon caught up and Nintendo's advantage diminished,..

Changes planned?

The Wii U reveal at E3 2011 probably didn't go quite as Nintendo had hoped, with some confusion over exactly what the console is and how it works. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata is keen not to make that mistake again though, and has revealed the console will be shown off in its "final format" at next year's E3. That could mean the machine itself will be altered, or we'll..

DLC, web, demos and more

At the recent financial briefing, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata discussed plenty of interesting new ideas to evolve the company's online strategy, revealing some big initiatives. Extra downloadable content for games will be available to game developers after the late November system update, letting studios and publishers update their releases with additional packs of..

What's the impact?

The Nintendo 3DS dropped in price recently — you might have noticed — and with the Flame Red 3DS hitting North America on 9th September and both Super Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7 due for Christmas, many are predicting a resurgence in fortunes for the console. But is the price drop and the promise of these two much-needed...