Eidos Boss Expects Wii Success

This came in an interview with EuroGamer.net, the Eidos "product acquisition director" was quizzed about the company's support for the three major players in the imminent console war.

"The beauty about being an independent publisher is that you can support any platform, of course, and we are going to support all three. It's quite apparent that it's going to be a much closer race this time around. Sony has had a recent history of being the clear winner, and I don't think anybody believes that's going to be the case this time.

It's going to be a much closer race and significantly, I think Nintendo, with the Wii console, is going to be right back up in the thick of it. It's quite interesting that they've decided not to go head-to-head with Microsoft and Sony, with the high quality interactive cinematic action adventure games; they've gone for gameplay over graphics instead. I think that's quite an interesting move and it could be very successful for them."

Livingstone goes on to explain his thoughts on the focus being shifted from graphics and back to gameplay.

"Absolutely, yes. As a games designer myself for many years, it's great to see that gameplay innovation. It's like a real breath of fresh air. At the end of the last cycle the genres had become too crowded, the games had become too hard and people just don't have the time any more to spend on 60 hours of gameplay. So to suddenly have this massive weight lifted off your shoulders, to be able to create games that are based on gameplay rather than these intensive graphical productions, is a great opportunity for everybody."

Although Wii might have been laughed at by certain members of the press, the console has been very well received by developers, the people who actually get their hands dirty and create the games we know and love.

This developer support can only be a good sign for Nintendo - but remember, its now up to the developers to come up with the games that translate their enthusiasm onto the skeptical everyday gamer.