Topic: All-Encompassing E3 2018 Thread

@link3710 Steep / 1080.

Yeah, the build-up to Smash 4 was exciting but kind of exhausting. I'm glad they haven't announced Smash Switch so far in advance this time. Hopefully they'll save some surprises for the game's release.

Hey now, Duck Hunt, Bowser Jr, and the clones were left as surprises... or at least they would have been if it wasn't for the big ESRB leak

@IceClimbers Dark Pit and Lucina weren't surprises, Dark Pit appeared in the Palutena trailer and Lucina appeared in the Robin trailer.

My gut feeling tells me that Retro's mystery game will be revealed at E3. This is the same gut feeling that told me the Switch would be a success and that it would more or less match 3DS console sales (around 75 million), so it's worth listening to.

I can see it being a spring 2019 game to be the big game of the first half, as if it's a new IP Nintendo may feel that it may not be able to survive in the onslaught of more popular franchises during the fall and winter.

@Grumblevolcano Dark Pit wasn't known to be a separate playable character at the time though.

@shadow-wolf Would Nintendo risk releasing such a big 5 year development title from one of their most important studios as a early 2019 title? I understand your point about new IP not being great for holiday release, but this game will have cost so much in development (plus the marketing push) it will need to sell millions to make it's money back.

@FragRed I see what you mean, but this can be argued in another way as well. Because it cost so much money, they’d prefer to launch it at a time that is relatively quiet and free from competition so it can shine. What comes to mind is Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze (a Retro Studios game) which was supposed to release Holiday 2013 but was instead delayed to the beginning of 2014 to spread out releases. They could do the same again for Retro’s new game.

@shadow-wolf Didn't Tropical Freeze bomb in Japan initially? I wouldn't be too surprised if whatever Retro is working on was more Western focused in terms of audience. It would be good for Nintendo to have a studio that can focus on such games to help drive sales in Europe and the US. I know Retro took on Alexander Brandon who is known for doing the music for games such as the original 2 Deus Ex games and looking at his Wikipedia page certainly has done a large amount of other games. Not that taking on such a musician necessarily means anything in terms of the type of game Retro is working on.

@FragRed Yeah my gut feeling is that Retro’s game will be focused on the West. I also feel that it’s going to either be a new IP or a revival of a dormant IP, but regardless it’ll be focused on the West. It makes sense, Nintendo needs a studio to focus on the West and make a un-Nintendo game, and Retro is the one to do that. I’d guess they’re making a story driven adventure - think something like Uncharted perhaps. That’s one genre that Nintendo is lacking in.

@FragRed It turns out that's what they're likely working on. See https://gamingbolt.com/job-listing-indicates-retro-studios-ne...

Non Linear storytelling, world building, and the article even mentions that it sounds very western-oriented. It makes sense that Retro is addressing one of Nintendo's weak points (lack of story-driven games).

@shadow-wolf Yeah that all seems to point to a more Western focused game which makes sense. Retro Studios was initially set up to focus on the more mature games for the Gamecube, which of course Nintendo themselves don't produce. It was only with Donkey Kong Country that they moved away from those games. However I think Nintendo wants to have their own Naughty Dog - as you said games like Uncharted etc, and what better studio to use than one based in the US.

Nintendo are starting to make a push for publishing more mature/Western titles such as Bayonetta 2 and now 3, the new Metroid Prime 4 game, and likely Retro Studios games going forward.

I'll lay down 10 snickers that the game Retro had mostly been working on up to this point is a new Donkey Kong.

Retro Studios honestly feels like Nintendo's "Naughty Dog". A western studio that has infrequent games but when those games hit they hit hard.

That and everything they touch is revered as almost holy.

If they start oscar baiting I'll start being suspicious of their bloodline at that point.

I've got a hunch that we'll see Retro's project this year. I feel that the reason we haven't seen it yet is that it was originally developed as Wii U title and utilized the gamepad in several very specific ways, before being cancelled due to low Wii U sales and moved over to the Switch. And if it was designed with specifically the gamepad in mind, then Retro has surely had trouble in squeezing the game back onto a single screen for the Switch. But this year, it'll be ready. And it will be the Metroid Prime 4 of this year's presentation: it'll be announced, a few details/gameplay shared, and then it'll fade into the shadows for quite some time. But we'll know it's coming, and that will be more than enough for us.

@ilikeike I don't know if it would have been "cancelled", just shifted over. That's how it usually happens. To say something was cancelled would be to say it stopped development and was shelved whereas what likely happened is that the game was just moved over onto the development kit for Switch when it was initially Project NX.

I also disagree that it will be this year's Metroid Prime 4 scenario. The game has been in active development for nearing 5 years so if it gets announced I think it will be a proper reveal with gameplay and details and then a vague 2019 release date.

@YummyHappyPills Yeah Retro is certainly being positioned to be Nintendo's version of Naughty Dog, but one that will be focusing back on the more "mature" titles for the Western audience, like it was initially set up to do.

The only difference is that Retro's output is about half that of ND. I believe an insider once told it was the most expensive studio for Nintendo to keep up and running. I can understand why, it's been more than four years since their last game. Nearly five years if the game comes out this year, and even more if it's a 2019 title.

@Octane And by being so expensive to run and to have a game in development for so long, just makes me worry about how many millions will it need to sell?

Retro's game could end up being the new FFXV.