Following today's financial results from Nintendo, we've been picking up some additional details found within the accompanying press conference or documents. As usual we've taken a look at the updated release lists, too, and there are a couple of quirks to consider.
First up is Project Guard, which is still listed for release this year even though we've not seen it since E3 2014; its release window still simply says '2015' for all regions. If there is indeed to be a Nintendo Direct this year it could be a surprise for that broadcast.
Another point that's stood out to us is for Fire Emblem Fates; it only has a '2016' window at present, but is notably separated into two entries in North America - Conquest and Birthright, as per its release in Japan - while the European list has a single entry. It could arguably be a rather dull case of poor formatting on the table in question, but it's worth remembering that Amazon UK's listing - when viewed on a mobile browser, bizarrely - states the following under a product page for just one version of the game.
Please not that this game is the only version being released in the market segment. You will be able to choose which path you would like to follow within the game.
If there is only one version of the game with all content it could undoubtedly offer hugely impressive value for money, though North American gamers surely wouldn't be happy if they had to pay more for multiple versions. Ultimately time will tell.
Aside from that the list is fairly unremarkable, with the slightly disappointing continuation of The Legend of Zelda for Wii U with a TBC listing, as was the case after the Q1 financial results.
It'll be interesting to see if Project Guard does indeed arrive this year - presumably on the Wii U eShop - and whether Fire Emblem Fates will be released in just a single version in the West.
[source nintendo.co.jp]
Comments 48
I hope project giant robot will still be released, in some way. And project guard seems interesting. I don't care if Zelda comes to NX or not; I will prefer the Wii U version anyways. (And please note that no official source stated that it would come out on NX or that it comes out in 2016, it's only what some people and rumours say, so I would not get any of my hopes up)
I'm ridiculously looking forward to Fire Emblem Fates. Awakening was an astonishing game. I can only hope that Intelligent get to make more home console games again.
I miss Project Giant Robot xD
@Parkour_LMan They've confirmed multiple and I mean MULTIPLE times the Zelda U is still coming to Wii U, but people are still assuming that it's coming to NX
''If there is only one version of the game with all content it could undoubtedly offer hugely impressive value for money,[...]''
It'll be cheaper than buying two separate physical games, but as the Amazon text implies, you'll ''choose'' a side while playing, meaning the other side will probably be locked and will need buying.
Still disappointed, personally, that I probably won't get to have both versions on retail.
We need a new 1080 and wave race!
Also where is snowboard kids 3😒
So Fates is one version in Europe? Is it confirmed?
If so, then NoA better do it the same way!
@FierceRagnar I'm confused. Apart from how they handled Kobayashi's script (they dumbed it down heavily and made it so that Hoshido would he viewed as the good side), I don't see a lot handled wrong - at least, as poorly as Awakening did.
How the supports are handled now actually adds quite a bit of strategy to the pair up mechanic, which makes it less overpowered and less reliant on that screwy RNG.
Unless you're someone who isn't into the M-rated stuff, which NoA is going to shaft anyway for the hell of it...
@TheAceofMystery Most people are assuming it will come to both Wii U and NX, that's different from releasing only on the NX.
Project Guard certainly has had a strange history. @Nintyman: We know that Platinum Games is aiding in development, I think that was confirmed at E3, but that's about it. I suspect it'll be an eShop game if it comes out this year... As long as it'll be good I'll be fine.
@FierceRagnar I'm more worried about stuff getting changed in localization after seeing how far some of the stuff goes in the Japanese versions.
@FierceRagnar Hmm, I'd prefer more subtle dialogue, too...I believe Kobayashi's original script was also much more subtle when it comes to this regard.
But under that is -based on the opinions of those who have played it - is a good story with a set of twists that regrettably are held back by the handling of the route structure.
So, if story is your guide - this is an SRPG, after all, a good story technically isn't a must for a good SRPG - it'll depend on what happens to the localization.
They're all but guaranteed to tone the smut down - welcome in your case - but they might also drag down the quality of the dialogue, just look at what happened to Awakening.
@BRAINFOX
This guy gets it.
I'm sick of NISA-tier localizers screwing with games. Yes, that goes for you too, Nick Doerr and 8-4.
Don't think NoA isn't guilty of bad localizations, or localization decisions, too. Just look at Fantasy Life.
I'd prefer to be able to choose my path in FE: Fates in the same package. I'm not completely against having two versions here in NA, but I still haven't made up my mind on which version to get.
Ah, Dr. Kawashima is still listed as TBD for Europe. It's a farce by now.
NoA has been treating the Americans pretty bad lately:
@TheWPCTraveler It's sad for Americans that the Treehouse translation of Fates will probably be a meme fest.
Nintendo really needs to remove Project Guard and Robot from the listings. I doubt those concepts will ever be released. DLC for Star Fox Zero maybe.
@manu0 Good thing there's a translation that's going along well. I might just buy Fates and make a big stink about the awful memeing on Miiverse while I play the fan English patch on my other 3DS.
I just hope NX will be region free so I can actively avoid reading the tripe they pass off as localization in the future.
@manu0 what is it with the misconception about paying twice?
Unless you're a 'sealed mint condition' collector, you buy ONE game, then pay for the on-disc DLC unlock, the only difference is that in Japan and NA the first campaign is chosen for you, while in ALL the eShop releases and apparently physical EU release you pick at the TURNING POINT OF DOOM and then have to pay for the unlock to play the other. Once the unlock is bought, the versions are identical.
Nintendo has stated this approximately seven thousand three hundred and eight times. It's not a Pokemon game, yes?
@Noelemahc It's the other way around. The versions are identical up to some chapter in the beginning of the game and at that point you can choose if you have the full version or it is chosen for you if you have one of the two separate versions. What follows are two completely different campaigns.
If you have one of the two separate versions you CAN'T unlock the other one! You have to buy the other version if you want to play it! There's NO DLC option for that! The DLC option you mentioned is for a third campaign!
@manu0 http://gematsu.com/2015/04/fire-emblem-if-slated-for-2016-release
Citation provided.
For the Gematsu-averse:
"In Japan, the game will be released as two titles, Fire Emblem If: White Kingdom and Fire Emblem If: Black Kingdom, for 4,700 yen each. If you buy one verison, you’ll be able to purchase the other for 1,852 yen as downloadable content game. A large part three is also planned for release at the same price somewhere down the line. A limited edition version of the game including all three scenarios will be available for 9,250 yen."
@Noelemahc Okay, guess I remembered it wrong, sorry. Thanks for clarifying.
please please please don't let project guard be their mobile game...
if that's even possible 😬
Fire Emblem is my game for '16! And if they bring two versions to america I want the collector's edition with both!
@TheAceofMystery They also said that Star Fox Zero would release before Zelda in 2015 :^)
@Yorumi Total unique Fates chapters EXCLUDING the third route and EXCLUDING side chapters: 51.
Total unique for FE6 EXCLUDING side chapters: 31
Total for FE7: Around 36
Total for FE8: 27.
This isn't mentioning Fates has more side chapters than all of the GBA games...
Or the separate storylines, or the different characters on each route, or the different music and classes...
So...basically it's just the same old end-gen treatment differences we got last gen. Europe fans get treated very well by Nintendo while NA fans are forced to deal with whatever crappy treatment we get.
Anyway, if Fates' TOTAL price ever goes below $40 get it New in hopes that more money will allow IS to be more adventurous and finally make a GREAT Fire Emblem game again. There hasn't good/great Fire Emblem game since Radiant Dawn. After the series was (looking at it in retrospect) rebooted with the FE1 remake Shadow Dragon, the games have ranged from merely okay to adequate. On the outside they're still very good games, they're just not good Fire Emblem games.
@Yorumi The first 6 chapters are the same. From there on, the chapters are unique and go up to Chapter 28 on both routes. So Prologue Chapter+first 6 chapters+22 Hoshido chapters+22 Nohr chapters. That is 51.
Also I made it a point to only include main game stuff so why are you citing Advance Wars' war rooms, map creators, and etc. stuff? I could just as easily cite the side chapters of Fire Emblem Fates and Fire Emblem Fates' online multiplayer.
@AVahne I think Nohr route Fire Emblem is a good Fire Emblem game. People on Serenes Forest seem to think so too. Of course, I don't know what your "standards" are on a "good" Fire Emblem game.
I was at a Target in California yesterday and noticed they had two separate pre-orders for the game.
@Yorumi I guess you are referring to Fire Emblem 7. And no I don't think it's 41, it's 36 actual "unique" chapters.
I think they do enough to justify having two separate games. Also in Japan getting another route is about half a normal route (one route is 5076 yen and other routes as DLC is 2000 yen) so that totals about...$75.80. Awakening is $40. That's actually less than double what Awakening was. I assume the same conventional model as Japan is going to be brought here.
@Yorumi And Wii games weren't $60. Why are you comparing a 3ds game with gba games when you should be comparing it to other 3ds games. Fire Emblem Fates is doing more to justify 2 games and giving you discounts for the other far more than Pokémon ever did. Not to mention there was never a push to buy both routes. It's only if you really want to like with some Pokémon fans.
Fates gonna be my most anticipated game for next year unless a new Pokemon game gets announced sometime soon.
@Yorumi Can you name another game that has the same amount of content as Xenoblade Chronicles X? Not every $60 game on the Wii U can claim to last "over 300 hours." Besides Fates has plenty of content. Side chapters, technically 9 different difficulty settings, online multiplayer, My Castle battles on top of a 28 main story for one route.
@Yorumi Fates is pretty much 2 games with how much content it is, so I believe its a fair price. I'd rather pay the $50-$60 for both then the $80 which is price of 2 3DS games normally. Heck if we add in the 3rd story that can prob jump to about $70-$80 with the deal or for normal prices about $100-$120. It's a pretty good deal tbh. (inb4 my math is off Lol)
@manu0
It was all due to the exchange rates at the time.
The € was significantly higher than the USD and CND at the time those games released.
The USD and € are nearing parity, as the USD strengthens and the € weakens as the ECB dose more QE to stimulate the Eurozone.
The Canadian dollar (CND) is in a tail spin downward as the Canadian economy continues to slide into a deep recession.
But to be fair all the EU people I know claim the U.S. gets treated better from Nintendo than the EU does to this day.
They constantly complain how they get screwed by Nintendo, even with Club Nintendo to the very end.
@Churchy I'm with you on that man. Awakening got me hooked on Fire Emblem so much I've played Rekka No Ken, Sacred Stones, PoR, Radiant Dawn, Shadow Dragon, New Mystery of The Emblem (English patched), and I plan on going back to Gaiden, Genealogy of The Holy War, Thracia 776, and Binding Blade to cap it all off. My most hyped game ever is Fates, alongside my hope for Dragon Quest 8 coming to NA.
@TheAceofMystery That is not mutually exclusive. They never confirmed that it is not coming to the NX. I mean by now, the logical assumption is that it is going to be another TP situation.
Either that, or the NX will go years without a Zelda game ... which seems more likely?, esp. after the mess that was the WiiU launch.
@AVahne New Mystery of the Emblem is pretty darn good, and Awakening is fantastic.
@xPH03N1Xx86 Thanks man, that's awesome. My first Fire Emblem was Path of Radiance on GameCube and like you I went and discovered as much of the series as I could. I think the story of Awakening was one of the best in any FE game and all of the characters had a great sense of definition. The deeper relationship system was fantastic and the game was heavily supported with reams of DLC. Not to mention it was more accessible whilst still being a deep experience. It's a beautiful thing indeed!
The Legend of Zelda is still officially a Wii U release, so hopefully they just need more time to polish it. I'll get Fire Emblem whether it's a single or dual release, because Awakening is the best 3DS game, excluding ports and remakes.
Edit: Will The Legend of Zelda be a multiplatform game? Probably...
Ah yes, just like how Project Giant Robot came out in the first half of this year. Except it didn't.
As I said before, Nintendo listed Xenoblade Chronicles X for 2014, only for them to delay it to 2015 a few weeks later. Those Project Guard and Project Giant Robot release dates we saw before E3 were placeholders, seeing as Project Giant Robot still isn't out.
We'll be lucky if Nintendo even shows footage of Project Guard this year, I'm almost positive it won't come out this year.
@Churchy Amen brother! Awakening was my first Fire Emblem game and it was AMAZING!!!
@Churchy Awakening was great! Through it's improvements/changes it was still Fire Emblem. But I don't know if you heard about the changes Fire Emblem Fates is going to have, such as to the weapon triangle and weapons now having complete durability (don't break). I'm still interested in it, but it's definitely not a Fire Emblem people will recognize.
Better be one game. Fates won't pull through as a solid game if they split it as a waifu sim that was about choosing fate but really... you don't. If they "two in one." then they'll sell amazingly better and whatever route IS makes with future FE games are stapled.
It seems that one way or another Nintendo fans outside Japan get screwed over. I hope the new president focuses more on the market outside Japan.
Yeah... When Nintendo does a Nintendo Direct this year, Project Guard will be that "downloadable right after this presentation" surprise announcement with a trailer, of course.
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