triforcepower73

THANK YOU for bringing attention to this under-appreciated gem. As much as I agreed with every word, I think you actually undersell XCX and the Xeno series' influence on the industry at large.

With the original XC, the unique concept of inhabiting two titans allowed really cool moments of seeing your progress unfold in front of your eyes by getting different angles of the Bionis and Mechonis. It's not like this sort of game design hadn't existed before, but I can't recall a game that did it to the same extent. Seeing Colony 9 from Colony 6 is an awesome realization. And each story beat bringing you closer to the looming Mechonis really drives the momentum of exploration.

With XCX, the world became HUGE and seamless. No loading screens still baffles me when I think about it. I think the development schedule of XCX and the Monolith Soft staff that worked on the world design of BotW deeply influenced the production of BotW. Being able to see Hyrule Castle and the Divine Beasts (representing your progress) from almost any location on the map can't escape comparison to Xeno1. Also without XCX paving the way on Wii U for large scale seamless worlds, I don't know if BotW would have gone all the way in that regard.

The next truly incredible, seamless (besides the lifts to Altus Plateau and Consecrated Snowfield) open world is of course Elden Ring. And what is at the center of the map? A giant tree landmark visually representing your progress as you journey through the Lands Between. No matter where you go in the map, you can almost always see the Erdtree in the distance.

If anything, I wish XCX could come to Switch just so I could force my friends to get it so we can play multiplayer. Nobody I knew had the game back in 2015.

@Razer I still don't see the coorelation between more sales and better game. It's just not that simple. In that case, Stardew Valley developed by a single person would be a better game than Hollow Knight because it sold better. I absolutely adore both games and have sunk tons of hours into them but I'm not going to pretend like you can definitively say which game is better because that completely negates all nuance and difference in personal preferences. If you like certain games then you like certain games.

I'm also not going to pretend Xenoblade appeals to everyone. It certainly doesn't appeal to as many people as Octopath, which I would argue contributes to the differences in sales. Not everybody likes over the top, anime-style stories with corny characters and an MMO battle system. I and a lot of other people happen to love that and I don't think it detracts from the game and I still hold my position that Xenoblade 1 is one of the greatest JRPGs ever. Sales numbers don't change that opinion.

@Razer It depends on what you consider selling well. For square enix, a major studio, 2 million isn't that big a deal. It's a success for sure but not really surprising considering octopath traveler is broadly appealing, being a sides scroller JRPG that returns to the style of games like Chrono Trigger. Of course people are gonna eat that up.

And what are you talking about, acting like Xenoblade 2 has low sales. 1.7 million for a much lesser known studio like monolith soft is comparatively a bigger success than Octopath. Especially when you consider how far they've come, Xenoblade originally not even being available in the west until fans petitioned Nintendo to make it a reality. The reason that happened? Because it's a good game.

@Razer Ah yes, sales numbers: the best way to judge video games. If we're going by that logic, the Marvel cinematic universe is the greatest film series ever made.

Woah are people really calling this release "low effort?" We're getting the best version of one of the greatest JRPGs ever made, complete with improved character models, improved UI, remastered and re-recorded (in some cases) soundtrack, AND 20 hrs additional story content and you guys are complaining about specs? Also last I recall, everyone was remarking how good this game looks, until they saw the numbers. Jesus, if you want to play games for how they look why are you even gaming on Nintendo?

@Mountain_Man You CAN time travel in animal crossing. Some people choose to play the game that way and others don't.

Everyone saying that these improvements would break the pacing of the game, you realize you could still craft everything one at a time, buy one pair of pants at a time, click through all the repetitive dialogue, and waste your time like the game already does for you. Others like myself that get tired of having to press A literally 20 times just to craft a single shovel can enjoy the streamlined process that these much needed updates would bring.

Additionally, the point of animal crossing and especially this installment is to be a breezy, enjoyable getaway from real life. Real life is mundane and tedious with lots of time wasted. A tropical paradise escapist life should not be. You might enjoy the slow pace of crafting a single fish bait one at a time, but ultimately that's just wasted time and not fun. Yes animal crossing is meant to be played over the course of years, not weeks. But the reality is many folks are abandoning this game because of these small, easily improvable things that would still be entirely optional. These updates would just make more people more happy and give more ways to play this amazing game.

And Zelda: BOTW could have released alongside the 30th anniversary of the franchise. But instead they decided to be jerks and make it a dual release.

If NX is presumably releasing in 2017, probably around the latter half of the year around the Christmas shopping season, and Zelda Wii U is releasing probably at the end of this year in November, why are there so many votes for Zelda. I love Zelda just like the next guy (look at my username) but too many games can kill or make a series stale.
Also the lack of votes for Kid Icarus makes my heart sad. Ever since I played Uprising on the 3DS, I've longed to see a home console KI in glorious HD and with a just-as-amazing soundtrack in surround sound.

Dang I always wanted a TP rerelease in HD but mainly because, even though I know it would've probably been impossible due to licensing and other crap, I wanted them to use the ZREO Twilight Symphony album or at least overhaul the soundtrack with better MIDI.

When video games as a medium started becoming more and more popular, especially in the 80s, did you ever think that you would start doing voice work in them?

and/or

What's it like to be the voice of arguably the most recognizable fictional character of all time.

That custom USB is pretty slick and definitely ensures that I will purchase this. Better start putting aside a few pennies, specially for this.

Why?

If the special edition doesn't come to NA....I'll be sad. But I don't really care about the eShop XC release since I already have the original physical copy and have beaten it three times. But I guess since it would make the game even more accessible for newcomers, then that would be good for others.

I remember the last generation when SS was being developed for the Wii and everyone was convinced that it was releasing for the Wii U. All this craze over the fact that Nintendo has never explicitly said "Zelda is releasing in 2016" is just ridiculous. Literally nothing has changed between this financial report and the one released in March.

But seriously, everyone acts like just because the Twilight Princess ordeal happened once in the history of Zelda, that it's happened multiple times. I predict that Zelda will remain a Wii U exclusive and release November 2016, with the NX being announced at E3 2016 and releasing sometime in 2017(probably Fall or Winter).

@NihonNoHoshi What exactly do you mean? Could you explain a little clearer?

Dang... This is really sad.

@TwilightAngel Everybody who's interested in the 3DS already has one or is planning on getting one. Many people don't yet know about the Wii U or why they need one.

The focus needs to be on Wii U, not 3DS. The 3DS has already made a huge profit and doesn't need any more advertising. The Wii U on the other hand...

YES!!! I knew moving to a city 2 hours from Orlando would come in handy!!!!!

Xenoblade?

I just don't understand why it takes soooo long to put games on the virtual console. And I also don't get why they're so expensive, when Nintendo already made a profit on most of them 15, 20, 25 years ago.

Mmmm... yesss that music.... One of the best parts of the show.

Is it bad I've never even heard of squash before? At least the sport I mean. I love the vegetable.

Ah... beautiful.

@Antiginger Well if you've been keeping up with the Japanese presentations you would know that this was one of the only new pieces of info. The rest we've known for quite a while now.

@MajinSoul It(the soundtrack) releases on May 20 in Japan. I already preordered it on CDJapan.com. I don't think that they'll have an official release for it in the west.

"Don't get your hopes up, don't get your hopes up." That's what I tell myself every time...

It never works.

@TheRealThanos Also the music of both AoT and XCX are done by the same guy, Hiroyuki Sawano. So that would also be a good way for @MajinSoul to get prepared for the awesome soundtrack that'll be in this game.

Anyway, on topic: this area looks kind of like it took a bit of inspiration from Mordor and threw a hint of Metroid into the mix.

It's still the best looking game on Wii U.

Yeah maybe. But literally everything else in the game looks loads better. Did you see the Japanese introduction video released today? It's better looking than that E3 trailer by far.

Also how come there's an article about this but not one about the awesome introduction video released?

I voted for Ghirahim on the ballot because he's too fabulous to not be in Smash. Voted for Rayman on this poll.

So when are we North Americans getting this?

Please announce that XCX is coming out in late June!

I actually like this arrangement of Gaur Plains better than the one in the game. It sounds more jazzy with the acoustic guitar and I love it!

I would replace Luigi's Mansion with Kid Icarus. But besides that, this was my list, although in a different order.

Won't even be at E3? They won't have much to show there then, unless they have plenty up their sleeves.

Also I really hope this doesn't make them move XCX further back so that they'll have a big holiday Wii U title.

As much as I love Zelda games and I highly respect Aonuma, I have to disagree with the "we've had as large a world as can be realised with the hardware" statement, because that's simply not true. XC on Wii was many many times bigger than SS. Now, of course I know that Zelda games tend to go with filling the world with stuff to do over making a huge world, but still, that statement isn't true because quite a few games on the Wii were bigger than SS.

I honestly don't understand why people think this has a different art style than XC. I think if you were to make the Bionis' Leg HD, it would look exactly like the Primordial Wilderness. And there's just as much color in a lot of these environments as XC.

Jeez what's with the abundance of mobile "games" coming to Nintendo consoles?

Hmmm.... I'll stay very, very cautiously optimistic.

@PvtOttobot Just look at my profile pic. I'm WAY OVERHYPED haha!

This presentation increased my hype by approximately 30%.

@DiscoGentleman You misunderstand. Japan IS perfect.

I wish I had been born in the generation that played the FF games when they first came out. Now I can't really get into them because...I don't know. I just can't. And don't think it's cuz I'm a "young 'un" and I'm spoiled and I don't appreciate the olden golden days. Of course I respect those days. The time when JRPGs were king and revolutionary storytelling was so prominent. I try playing older games as much as possible, but something about the old FFs keeps me from playing them. (In general I like older stuff a lot. I like Casablanca, It's a Wonderful Life, and To Kill a Mockingbird. So I do appreciate the old classics of games/movies/tv shows/books, etc.)

But, at least I got to enjoy the Last Story quite a lot. That was a great game.

I predict a new Metroid game(hopefully in 3D) at E3 this year.

Oh maaaan I'm downloading Metroid Prime Trilogy right away!!

@King47 Um I don't know what to say to someone who denies that Sawano has better production values than ACE+. A simple way to put a damper in that argument is that ACE+ doesn't always use live strings/orchestra/band to record their compositions while Sawano always uses live instruments or at least really top-of-the-line MIDI to make it sound identical to a live orchestra. Also Aldnoah Zero's music doesn't try to be epic. It is epic.

Anyway, I don't think I'll change your opinion anytime soon because you seem to be pretty firmly set against Sawano's music. Maybe XCX will change your perception of him. And you won't be changing my opinion of him anytime soon because I'm pretty firmly set for Sawano. But here's one last bit of food for thought. Takahashi knows who to get for good music. Every single one of his past games has had at least a good soundtrack, if not, really great. Why do you think he would have hired Sawano if he didn't see something in him that he liked, and known that he could get a good soundtrack out of him. Takahashi takes the OSTs of his games very seriously-well he takes everything seriously, but you get my point. So obviously he chose Sawano for a reason, and while some people like you are skeptical of that reason, even cynical, people like me already know why he hired the man for the job. Just wait and see. Maybe you'll be surprised.

@King47 The whole OST most likely isn't being composed by just him. It said he's worked on all the tracks, not that he composed them, meaning he probably wrote a good chunk of the songs, and that all of it is produced by him. Even if his music arguably sounds all the same(if you dig deep into his lesser known stuff, you'll find he actually has quite a lot of variety), you can't deny that it sounds good. He writes good melodies, he has much better production values than ACE+ or any of the other XC composers, and his stuff generally gets the job done(50% of AoT's epicness was due to the soundtrack, and one of the biggest reasons Aldnoah Zero is worth watching is the soundtrack).

When you accuse his music of sounding exactly the same, you're showing you haven't listened to most of his works. And by the way, that accusation is kind of flawed at its base. Accusing a composer of having his own style that he sticks to is stupid. A style is what makes a composer distinguishable. Nobody accuses John Williams of having too many epic fanfares in all his soundtracks, or Hans Zimmer for having similar sounding string parts with underlying profound chords. That's because a composer's style is what makes their work separate from the rest.

Anyway, the only thing a composer can write, is what the producer or director of the show/movie/video game asks him to write. Most likely, because Sawano's recent soundtracks have blown up in popularity ever since Gundam Unicorn, the directors and producers have just told him "write something like what you did on Gundam Unicorn or Guilty Crown." So hopefully Takahashi will bring the most variety out of Sawano. I personally think he is a very talented composer and that there is a lot of potential for variety in him that just needs to be tapped into by Takahashi. Judging from the astounding amount of variety that Takahashi demanded from the composers of XC's OST, I predict that he won't take a step back from his demand for a great, varied soundtrack in XCX.

@King47 You are kidding, right? I reeeeally hope you're joking.