@obijuankanoobie the first game was reasonably well liked in its day. It was a fairly average mascot platformer, but it was charming in its presentation, especially on SNES where it was also the closest we had to a Sonic game. Accolade wouldn't have kept trying to recapture the success of that first title if it hadn't had any.
But if was also a very frustrating game, and hindsight hasn't been kind to it.
@JSC016 the first episode has some awkwardness where the action is very obviously advertising the Switch game. But the show finds its voice pretty much immediately after that. The second season doubles down on being intentional meme fodder and self-parody, but it's consistently good at it.
@bahooney
That still takes time, unless you really like the type of garbage ports that hurt the reputations of both the console and the developer. That time costs money. And unless the developer is one of the lucky ones that Nintendo likes enough to give them free hardware, the development hardware costs around $5k. They also have to spend time, money, and effort getting approved developer status from Nintendo and navigating contracts and NDAs (lawyers cost money). That's pocket change to a big publisher, but when the budget for these projects is only $5k-10k in the first place? They'd need to almost double their budget. That means either making cuts elsewhere, setting a stretch goal, or setting the initial funding goal high enough to possibly fail altogether. Doubt me if you want, but it's a lot more plausible than the alternative "they don't respect Nintendo" theory. These devs want their games on all the platforms they can get to. They won't skip Nintendo "just because."
I don't want to sound like I'm dismissing Nintendo's efforts to be more indie-friendly. They've clearly done a lot to get their console to where tiny developers can actually consider making games for it now. The difference between a stretch goal and a pipe dream is a huge improvement, but that's exactly the change they've made.
@StarDust Everything. You said it yourself, the characters in Princess Rescue were RENAMED, not new. They are obviously Nintendo's characters. It also copies Nintendo's copyrighted level designs as closely as 2600 hardware allows. It's an obvious violation.
But general gameplay concepts can't be copyrighted, only specifics like characters, music, artwork, and levels. SWK copies none of that. If you need more evidence, go look at any of the perfectly legal Mario Kart "clones" that have been published on Nintendo's systems starting with the GameCube. Anyone up for a game of Pac-Man World Rally? Unless One-Legged Seagul decides to put an Italian plumber in their game, they're fine.
In interviews, Hyperkin staff have said that Retron 5 will NOT be using software-based emulation. The improved accuracy (and increased price) compared to previous clone systems is because they are having components custom made for it rather than using recycled or off-the-shelf approximations of the original components. They say they won't release details due to not wanting their methods copied. I guess we'll see how accurate it is once it's finally released.
@bahooney It has nothing to do with disrespect and everything to do with cost. When the developer doesn't know how much funding they're going to bring in, it's either start with the cheapest platforms or risk the game not getting made at all. It's often their dream to be on a Nintendo platform, but they can't afford it without the extra funding. If it cost less to develop for Wii U, then it wouldn't end up being a stretch goal so much of the time.
Where I'd argue there's a lack of respect is when a major publisher or developer makes a Nintendo-inspired game and makes it a Sony/MS exclusive. Naughty Dog would be nowhere without ideas they borrowed from Nintendo and Sega, but what do they do? Sell themselves to Sony. Their very first game after the sale, what do they do? "Hey, let's mix Banjo Kazooie with The Legend of Zelda."
@1958Fury Nintendo has been pretty relaxed about games that homage their material for some time now. I mean, if Giana Sisters got published on the DS and Ittle Dew is coming to the Wii U, what could possibly be off limits at this point?
It's clearly meant to be a niche game and not a competitor to Mario Kart 8. It aims to be more technical and skill-based than the modern Mario Kart games. At the same time, it will support better controls, more players, and wide screen support compared to an emulated version of Super Mario Kart from the SNES. I think there's a pretty big gap between the new and the old that Super World Karts could fill. It isn't an either/or proposition.
Comments 9
Re: Bubsy's Physical Switch Collection Pre-Orders Open Later This Week
@obijuankanoobie the first game was reasonably well liked in its day. It was a fairly average mascot platformer, but it was charming in its presentation, especially on SNES where it was also the closest we had to a Sonic game. Accolade wouldn't have kept trying to recapture the success of that first title if it hadn't had any.
But if was also a very frustrating game, and hindsight hasn't been kind to it.
Re: Bubsy's Physical Switch Collection Pre-Orders Open Later This Week
@Zeebor15 Isn't it also technically missing Super Bubsy, the Windows 95 remake of Claws Encounters?
Re: Feature: Sonic Boom At 10 - The Good, Bad & Ugly Of Sonic The Hedgehog’s Brief, Nintendo-Exclusive Sub-Franchise
@JSC016 the first episode has some awkwardness where the action is very obviously advertising the Switch game. But the show finds its voice pretty much immediately after that. The second season doubles down on being intentional meme fodder and self-parody, but it's consistently good at it.
Re: SNES Inspired 'Super World Karts GP' Adds Wii U to Funding Goal
@bahooney
That still takes time, unless you really like the type of garbage ports that hurt the reputations of both the console and the developer. That time costs money. And unless the developer is one of the lucky ones that Nintendo likes enough to give them free hardware, the development hardware costs around $5k. They also have to spend time, money, and effort getting approved developer status from Nintendo and navigating contracts and NDAs (lawyers cost money). That's pocket change to a big publisher, but when the budget for these projects is only $5k-10k in the first place? They'd need to almost double their budget. That means either making cuts elsewhere, setting a stretch goal, or setting the initial funding goal high enough to possibly fail altogether. Doubt me if you want, but it's a lot more plausible than the alternative "they don't respect Nintendo" theory. These devs want their games on all the platforms they can get to. They won't skip Nintendo "just because."
I don't want to sound like I'm dismissing Nintendo's efforts to be more indie-friendly. They've clearly done a lot to get their console to where tiny developers can actually consider making games for it now. The difference between a stretch goal and a pipe dream is a huge improvement, but that's exactly the change they've made.
Re: SNES Inspired 'Super World Karts GP' Adds Wii U to Funding Goal
@StarDust Everything. You said it yourself, the characters in Princess Rescue were RENAMED, not new. They are obviously Nintendo's characters. It also copies Nintendo's copyrighted level designs as closely as 2600 hardware allows. It's an obvious violation.
But general gameplay concepts can't be copyrighted, only specifics like characters, music, artwork, and levels. SWK copies none of that. If you need more evidence, go look at any of the perfectly legal Mario Kart "clones" that have been published on Nintendo's systems starting with the GameCube. Anyone up for a game of Pac-Man World Rally? Unless One-Legged Seagul decides to put an Italian plumber in their game, they're fine.
Re: Production Fault Pushes Hyperkin RetroN 5 Launch Into Next Year
In interviews, Hyperkin staff have said that Retron 5 will NOT be using software-based emulation. The improved accuracy (and increased price) compared to previous clone systems is because they are having components custom made for it rather than using recycled or off-the-shelf approximations of the original components. They say they won't release details due to not wanting their methods copied. I guess we'll see how accurate it is once it's finally released.
Re: SNES Inspired 'Super World Karts GP' Adds Wii U to Funding Goal
@bahooney
It has nothing to do with disrespect and everything to do with cost. When the developer doesn't know how much funding they're going to bring in, it's either start with the cheapest platforms or risk the game not getting made at all. It's often their dream to be on a Nintendo platform, but they can't afford it without the extra funding. If it cost less to develop for Wii U, then it wouldn't end up being a stretch goal so much of the time.
Where I'd argue there's a lack of respect is when a major publisher or developer makes a Nintendo-inspired game and makes it a Sony/MS exclusive. Naughty Dog would be nowhere without ideas they borrowed from Nintendo and Sega, but what do they do? Sell themselves to Sony. Their very first game after the sale, what do they do? "Hey, let's mix Banjo Kazooie with The Legend of Zelda."
Re: SNES Inspired 'Super World Karts GP' Adds Wii U to Funding Goal
@1958Fury
Nintendo has been pretty relaxed about games that homage their material for some time now. I mean, if Giana Sisters got published on the DS and Ittle Dew is coming to the Wii U, what could possibly be off limits at this point?
Re: SNES Inspired 'Super World Karts GP' Adds Wii U to Funding Goal
It's clearly meant to be a niche game and not a competitor to Mario Kart 8. It aims to be more technical and skill-based than the modern Mario Kart games. At the same time, it will support better controls, more players, and wide screen support compared to an emulated version of Super Mario Kart from the SNES. I think there's a pretty big gap between the new and the old that Super World Karts could fill. It isn't an either/or proposition.