Topic: The Problem with Wii reviewers (rant)

Odne, he said the game used up all the Wii's processing power, which is baloney, unless he's said something else since that I missed or forgot?

But you see Xorcist, you have to understand that if a game doesn't have online play anymore, it's completely worthless. Games suck unless the have 16-player online, and years worth of DLC. Games being fun by their own merits is just crazy talk!

@Ricardo91: we realize sarcasm, but I don't think anyone believes much like that

I really don't have much to add thanks to agreeing with Adam and Vendetta, but If i feel like an argumentative mood, I might come back and give some of you a thorough beating.

Phew, glad you agree with me then!

Ricardo, 16? Pssh. After MAG (PS3) comes out people will complain about any game with less than 256 players online.

I just came out of a four hour roundtable meeting (software development / planning) where I was the one leading the agonizingly thorough discussion throughout with not a moment of down time... and that's pretty regular here with the projects we're working on, so I've lost any meagre skill for concision I might have once had. I'm a bit obsessive about details, and sometimes I have to state something ten different ways before everyone is on the same page, so I unfortunately may let that spill over here when I'm debating Nintendo for a "break" from work.

Anyhow, the bottom line for me is just this:

(A) I don't believe online multiplayer is such a big goal for Nintendo; instead they seem more focused on downloadable content, in particular with their new direction for handhelds signaled by the DSi. I realize that they give online multiplayer lip service, but I simply don't see it being fundamental to their strategy. In my mind, that's how it should be, as I'd much rather have Nintendo compete in other areas and just let those obsessed with online multiplayer go to another console.

(B) I hate when a product tries to be everything to everyone then doesn't excel on any one particular point. Find the core experience you're aiming for, and do it better than anyone else, but don't waste time trying to incorporate all the obligatory options that a vocal web minority may want. The original Wii Sports was a wonderfully well timed, planned, produced, and executed product that any developer should envy. I expect the same focus from this one, not some attempt to check all the boxes asked for by different subsets of fans.

That's as short as it gets, unfortunately.

Haha, that's okay. I just like to poke fun. So many threads can have multiple pages with less text than one warioswoods post, so I just want to make sure you know if I say something you already covered, it's because I probably didn't read it, not that I'm just dumb (though that sometimes plays a part, too!).

I might be in the minority here, but games like Wii Sports - it would be nice to have an online component.

At the age of 30, most of my friends are married, have kids, and don't live any where close. Thus It would be great being able to get online with them and play some of these games. Turn based games would work well. Why? Player 1, while taking their turn just has to report the outcome to Player 2 or at least show the result delayed a couple seconds.

I'd love to be able to play Bowling, Archery, Frisbee, and Sword Fighting online against my buddy in Chicago since we'll probably won't get a real chance to do that in person anytime soon.

If EA can have Grand Slam Tennis running as well as it does using the motion plus online, then I think other companies could do the same thing.

I don't think every game needs online, but it would have been nice for Wii Sports Resort.

I don't think something like WiiSpeak should be mandated. Since it's not a headset it can be a little annoying to use at times (I'm looking at you Conduit). It's best suited for games like animal crossing or a 4 on 4 sports/party game. So Nintendo only using it for social/exploration titles is the right idea.

As for the rant, I strongly agree with #1 but not so much 3. Everyone wants to know about the visuals even if they say they don't care. A lot of times if the game lacks visual polish the rest of the game hasn't seen much effort either. It's rarely a tradeoff so it's always good to know some of the finer details.

What does annoy me with "jornalists" is the whole "Nintendo needs to lead by example". Why? The hardware and dev kits are already in place. God forbid a 3rd party develops a backbone and decides to do something special NOT influenced by Nintendo.

@DXZeke
Rarely do any minigame collections have online. Not too many devs care to go through that sort of strenuous effort (not even on 360 sometimes). Although I do think Deca Sports 2 has one-on-one online play.

If you're talking about the NSMBWii game, it's actually not baloney. The game features that new advanced "help system" which apparently takes up a lot of space.

I got one word for you: headphones.

Kid A, you would not be using the help system online, presumably. It'd be kind of pointless to go online just to have the game play for you. Taking up space is not the same as taking up processing power. He said the game engine, what makes the game run, uses up too much processing power, as if the Wii is straining to compute everything at once. That's not the same as saying the disc is too full to fit online in, which would still probably be baloney. Smash Brothers was an enormous game and it still managed to cram online in.