Okami Wii an 'exact port' of PS2 game

by Chris Greenhough { Oct 23rd 2007 at 3:00PM }

Okami on the Wii was confirmed by Capcom just a few days ago, along with the news that Daxter developer Ready at Dawn would get the game up-and-running on Nintendo's system. Men roared their approval and punched the air, women wept and howled with joy, and all was well with the world. As anybody who's played it will know, Okami is all kinds of awesome. But Okami with Wiimote-engineered brushstrokes? Finally, we could die happy.

But hold the hearse, because here's Ready At Dawn president Didier Malenfant on what else will be new in the Wii version: "The game on Wii is going to be an exact port of the PS2 version and I think that's what fans of the franchise want to see. This game has such a huge following throughout the world that people would probably send us death-threats if we messed it up by trying to add things that don't have their place in the Okami universe."

An "exact port," he says, and you know how we feel about those, so immediately there are important questions raised by this. Questions such as: if you've completed the PS2 game, will the promise of added Wiimote functionality alone lure you back? Is it ungrateful to expect a little more than "just" Wiimote brushstrokes (as excellent as that addition might be)? And did Didier really just put "Okami" and "huge following" in the same sentence?

[Via Siliconera]

Tags: action, adventure, Capcom, Didier-Malenfant, Okami, port, Ready-at-Dawn

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Drew @ Oct 23rd 2007 3:18PM

Personally, I haven't played it... So, yeah... I'll be picking it up for Wii.

comtar @ Oct 24th 2007 1:25PM

That's fine by me, I never fully finished the original version anyway... Got distracted by Final Fantasy XII at the time and Hitman: Blood Money.

troy @ Oct 23rd 2007 3:23PM

Yeah, I haven't played it either. I could have appreciated slightly higher quality graphics. I mean I assume it will have widescreen support etc but you know what I'm sayin'.

lu506 @ Oct 23rd 2007 3:26PM

Resident evil 4 being a port to the wii didn't stop anyone from buying it and I dont think it will stop them from buying this. If its a good game its going to be bought.

vidGuy @ Oct 23rd 2007 3:39PM

If it's $29.99 like RE4 was, sure, though that had extra content past what Nintendo gamers got the first round. I'll take what I can get, I haven't played any PS2 games since my SECOND PS2 died last year. And I've heard good things about this game. If they try to release at $40 or $50, though, screw them.

But seriously, RaD, we aren't asking for you to change the storyline or the characters or anything, just add content and features. It wouldn't be a drastic change to the game.

troy @ Oct 23rd 2007 3:45PM

Yeah, if this game is $30 like resi 4 then I will not mind them not having updated it.

smart1979 @ Oct 23rd 2007 5:00PM

I think $40 is reasonable to be honest.

I hope the play control is like Zelda TP.

Chaunches @ Oct 23rd 2007 4:18PM

RE4 WII edition WII edition for its added features of control Okami will be a ps2 game running on wii nothing else and well yep making good use of those revolutionary controls welp im off to go play my grandma at some wii sports then its back home to play some real games on my xbox 360

vidGuy @ Oct 23rd 2007 4:21PM

Maybe you should look for an English textbook.

Mr Khan @ Oct 23rd 2007 4:25PM

lol chaunches

meh, it wasn't unexpected. My guess is that aside from actual laziness, they didn't want to possibly dick with what Clover did to make it so awesome, since they may or may not have Clover's exact expertise

Nik @ Oct 23rd 2007 4:53PM

I'm with you guys. Fantastic game or no, straight up ports are inexcusable. RE4 added IR, waggle, new levels and new weapons for a $30 price tag. Can you really see this port costing less than $29.99?

Rocketman @ Oct 23rd 2007 4:58PM

By "Huge Following", I guess he's referring to Okami being some sort of cult classic, which (if the hype is to be confirmed) it is.

I've never played it and expect to purchase it for at most $30 on the Wii.

James @ Oct 23rd 2007 5:15PM

I think Nik has the wrong end of the stick; IIRC RE4 Wii version had the exact same content as the PS2 version (which had some extras not included with the GC version), plus pointer aiming. I think that's exactly what they're talking about here -- porting the PS2 version and using the pointer. If they felt the need to add one or two little collectables, of course, I wouldn't complain...

vidGuy @ Oct 23rd 2007 5:24PM

James, RE4:WE has more than the original Gamecube release. Levels, weapons, etc. Yes, it was in the PS2 version. But if you didn't have the PS2 version, as many Nintendo gamers did not, this was all new material. They then took that and added IR and motion (reloading, knife).

If they don't add anything to Okami, it will be exactly the same content as the original release, which is not the situation with RE4.

samfish (MSDF- Nurse Outfit!) @ Oct 23rd 2007 5:37PM

"If they don't add anything to Okami, it will be exactly the same content as the original release, which is not the situation with RE4."

Yeah, but there's no other version of Okami to turn to in order to add more content. Just add the proper 16:9 and 480i support and nothing else and you've got a good deal, I say.

Yikester @ Oct 23rd 2007 6:43PM

I've played it and it is right up there with Twilight Princess in terms of quality and playability. One of the best adventure games ever. However, I agree with Samfish that widescreen and 480p support are a must!

Mr Khan @ Oct 23rd 2007 6:32PM

You mean 480p support

if it didn't support 480i, it would be LD...

Blue_Falcon @ Oct 23rd 2007 7:24PM

I wouldn't want it any other way. Considering Clover is no longer around, I wouldn't anyone non-Clover related touching the game.

Touching up the game for optimal Wii usage is all that SHOULD be done.

DonWii @ Oct 23rd 2007 7:48PM

Considering it isn't the same developer, I'm less concerned about what they could add while working with an unfamiliar code than the concern for the fact that it ends up exactly like the PS2 version. There are soo many reasons this version could be inferior, due in part to lack of knowledge with coding used.

No Complaints Here.

Renzatic @ Oct 24th 2007 12:34AM

A resolution bump, widescreen support, and a nice dash of 'mote waggling is all Okami needs to be a perfect game. PS2 origins or not, to me, the art style alone helps make the game look better than most PS3/360 games out now.

We might be oggling over the best and brightest photorealistic games out now. But by the time the PS4/720/Wii2 are out, they'll already start looking dated. Okami, on the other hand, will always look good, (though probably unbearably low res by that point).

SamusARAN333 @ Oct 29th 2007 1:25PM

Haven't played it either. However, I did watch a buddy of mine play it on the P2. I'm definitely going to be picking it up, and I know that they already said, "exact port," but I really hope they give you an option to get rid of the annoying voices they give all the characters.

Gonzo @ Oct 24th 2007 12:53PM

Considering that the wiimakes are probably the best games coming out for the Wii so far(like RE4 and Godfather), I'm not complaining. I love this game on the ps2 but it's going to be even more fun (and accessible to people who thought it was pretty but can't handle a ps2 controller)with the wiimote.
I'm all for more original games on the Wii but realistically, that's going to take another year or two before we get games that are fun/long enough to warrant a $50 price tag. Until then, I'm definitely going to be getting Okami, Bully, and whatever GTA R* decides to port if Table tennis, Manhunt and Bully sell well.