Mizuguchi: 'Nintendo games are too strong'
by Chris Greenhough 
{ Jan 24th 2008 at 12:45PM }
Know who we'd like to see developing on the Wii? Tetsuya Mizuguchi, that's who. Some of his games would work beautifully on Nintendo's console. We can totally picture ourselves playing through a motion-based Space Channel 5, or using the Wii Remote to point and shoot in Rez.Wii owners who also happen to be Mizuguchi fans shouldn't get their hopes up, though. Mizuguchi seems keen enough on the Wii itself, but confessed in an interview with Wired that he was a "little bit worried" about the strength of Nintendo games. We presume this is a reference to an increasingly common complaint from publishers and other industry folk that Nintendo's first-party titles are hogging sales.
Looks like an Ulala appearance in Sega Superstars Tennis could be the closest we get to grooving with Space Michael. Cry.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
TriptychR @ Jan 24th 2008 12:54PM
Everybody now! An' a-one, An' a-two...
"MAKE A SPECTACULAR GAME AND IT WILL SELL"
ZenGaijin @ Jan 24th 2008 1:47PM
We'll see how Okami does....
Mr Khan @ Jan 24th 2008 2:09PM
Make a spectacular game and then advertise it for god's sake
(I'm lookin' at you, No More Heroes)
Jason @ Jan 24th 2008 7:02PM
@1
That really hasn't proven true. It seems like the percentage of the install base that wants long-form games is quite small. I'd predict (this is total guess work) that the install base interested in long-form/traditional video games is about the same size as the entire PS3 install base.
The only exception would be in 1st party titles, most of which have been based on IPs that are household names. These will attract everyone because everyone's heard of them. I couldn't find any numbers but I'm wiling to bet that Excite Truck hasn't sold nearly as well as any of the Mario based games for the Wii just because of name recognition.
TriptychR @ Jan 24th 2008 10:36PM
@4
Is Excite Truck really the best example of a "great game" that hasn't sold well? It wasn't very mindblowing in most respects, to most critics. Solid, yes. A masterpiece? No.
Now a non-Nintendo game that is a masterpiece, RE4, has sold very well. Now, of course it's a remake and another quite recognizable brand, but not a casual game in the least. And, until a developer puts some incredible effort into a game, it's the best example we have of a "great" non-Nintendo game.
samfish @ Jan 24th 2008 1:04PM
EEEEE! SPACE CHANNEL 5 WII!
http://www.videogameszone.de/?mag=23&article_id=629486
YAY!
samfish @ Jan 24th 2008 1:27PM
Bablefish Translation:
The fact that plateau shoes and the wild 60's-years are still for a long time not from the mode shows space Channel 5: Publisher Sega work ELT at present at a Remake to this music and dance play for Wii, as the Japanese Publisher admits gave. It concerns a new edition of the Dreamcast version, which came 1999 into the shops. Technically the Wii version probably orients itself at the PS2-Pendant, which found 2002 the way into the shelves. So far the Publisher confirmed only that the Wii version has licensed music pieces of the Pop icon Michael Jackson. As soon as us closer information is present to space Channel 5 for Wii, read their it naturally here.
The play can be described as follows: Ulala, the Reporterin of Channel 5 is sent on the space station space haven 9, in order to make with the bad Aliens proverbially the light out. Sounds oneself normally, is however not like that, because Ulala must follow the dances of the Aliens, in order to come to their goal. That is your chance also at the same time to become somewhat more well-known in the medium world and in such a way obtains it at the same time high ratingses, which rise depending upon Synchronitaet of your dance steps.
OK, so it's a remake, but still...woo hoo! SC5 was the only rhythm game I've ever really liked. Samba was pretty good, but only with the maracas.
Parker @ Jan 24th 2008 1:10PM
Let me get this straight: People like Mizuguchi are afraid to develop 3rd-party titles because they can't make games as well as Nintendo? What a cowardly, pathetic excuse. It's that mentality that keeps the video game industry from innovating and progressing. What Nintendo needs is more competition from worthy dev houses, not people shying away from it in fear.
BananaBoat @ Jan 24th 2008 2:34PM
No. What they can't do, is pull gaming icons such as Zelda, Mario, Donkey Kong, Metroid, Star Fox, etc, out of their hats at will. When mom's (The largest purchaser of games for the Wii, you better habeeb it) go into a store and look at the games, which games do you think they'd buy? If they saw Mario Galaxy next to Okami (for instance), the chances of them buying the non-mario title are very, very low.
His argument is valid, that all of the shovelware (Like Ninja Bread Man, Cooking Mama, etc) serve to alienate consumers from third party titles (including the GOOD third party titles) and push them right into the waiting arms of Nintendo's first party knockouts.
samfish @ Jan 24th 2008 3:53PM
"If they saw Mario Galaxy next to Okami (for instance), the chances of them buying the non-mario title are very, very low."
Yeah, but that same argument could easily be turned around to any system, really.
If they saw Halo 3 next to Bioshock (for instance), the chances of them buying the non-Halo title are very, very low.
...except Bioshock sold very, very well!
So something else is at play here. Sure, Nintendo having some of, if not most of, the strongest brands in gaming is a factor but it's not like they have ALL the strong brand names under their belt.
Demographics surely play a role...Sonic and Mega Man games saw very good sales on the Gamecube; but the most important thing they can do to ensure sales is advertise! TV commercials and in-store promotions are probably the safest bets.
Anticrawl @ Jan 24th 2008 1:12PM
Hrm, I wonder why 3rd parties can't compete with the best gaming software developer and publisher of all time, not to mention one of the most profitable companies in the history of capitalism.
In any case if you want your game to sell then you gotta atleast try when developing it. People aren't /that/ stupid, but the problem is that the average consumer doesn't know one developer/publisher from the other. All they understand is Nintendo and everything else. If they have a bad experience from a 3rd party game then they are likely to be hesitant towards any other 3rd party purchase.
You developers/publishers shouldn't be angry with Nintendo, be angry with each other. Either that or we can bring back the Nintendo Seal of Quality system from days of old. Sure 60-90 percent of all finish titles get rejected and never see the light of day, but the few that made it through sold well enough to cover development costs and create a generious profit. Problem was they'd may 30 crap games and 1 good game and recieve no revenue from the 30 crap games because they wouldn't even be allowed to hit store shelves on Nintendo's platform.
spugmeistress @ Jan 24th 2008 1:36PM
duh, maybe if someone like him made some wii games, then maybe it wouldn't be left up to nintendo to make all the good ones.
ZenGaijin @ Jan 24th 2008 1:51PM
Tell that to No More Heros, the great games are made I just think that most people don't give the third party games on nintendo consoles a chance. As good as Okami is I bet it won't sell because will be unable to look past calling it a Zelda clone.
No More hero's won't be picked up because its too close to the release of Brawl. Even though No More Heros is an excellent game.
samfish @ Jan 24th 2008 1:54PM
NMH (likely) won't sell because there's no promotion behind it. Thank Ubisoft for that one.
Brawl is over a month away. It won't affect it's sales.
And I'm willing to bet that Okami Wii outsells the PS2 version.
...although Capcom really should move it to April or May, since Brawl is coming out in MArch.
Mr Khan @ Jan 24th 2008 2:14PM
Okami will definitely do better, it's had 1.5 years to build word-of-mouth anticipation, combined with the fact that the control scheme would've been better on Wii, and all the awards that IGN heaped on the PS2 version will help promote the Wii one
ZenGaijin @ Jan 24th 2008 3:23PM
You have more faith than I do.
I still believe that Okami was a better game than Twilight Princess but nobody could argue against me because nobody I know that played TP played Okami.
samfish @ Jan 24th 2008 3:56PM
I played Okami and TP.
TP was the better game with substantially superior gameplay, but Okami blew it away as far as sheer creativity and story are concerned.
It's hard to find ANYONE to talk/ramble/praise about Clover's game with :(
samfish @ Jan 24th 2008 3:58PM
Oh yes, and I think Okami will outsell the PS2 version BECAUSE it's so similar to Zelda. Because of that, it's right up most Nintendo fanboy's alley.
Josh @ Jan 24th 2008 2:04PM
Ah, to be a naive consumer. Its not just a question of quality. Nintendo makes the machine, controls the dissemination of technical support to developers (remember the N64 and its microcode?), and controls the distribution and release schedules.
They have also openly stated that they would love it if they could get away with being the only ones making money off of their own consoles. If there is a prime market time to release a game, do you think Nintendo would let that spot go to a 3rd party title instead of a 1st or 2nd party title?
For now, Nintendo is in a strong position, and they have little incentive to share with 3rd parties, and little need for them. This is bad news for those of us who would like to see the wii used to its full creative potential.
And for what its worth, I own (and still play) every Nintendo system sans the NES and Virtual Boy. I am not a nintendo "hater".
andyl @ Jan 24th 2008 2:05PM
Yeah, I second (and third) the above comments... If the developers make a good game, it will sell. If they keep putting crapware on the Wii, then they'll make little-to-no money. Simple as that.
That said, Nintendo _could_ try and make a "good faith" effort to get more people to buy third-party games. For example, Nintendo could sell their games for $50 (and still get the sales they're used to), but help third-party developers sell their games for $40. I personally am more likely to spend $50 on a game I'm sure is awesome, and $40 on a game that may not be as good, but still have fun with. (did that make any sense?)
SolidSnake2K7 @ Jan 24th 2008 2:07PM
Well the only decent third-party games on Wii are targeted to core gamers (NMH, RE4). Its hard for third-party to sell core gamer targeted games to a consoles that casual and non-gamer infested (yes I don't like casuals because of experience in retail because they know absolutely nothing about games).
Mr Khan @ Jan 24th 2008 2:16PM
Those who wish that Nintendo would go 3rd party better look at statements like this. It's hard with compete with Nintendo games on a Nintendo console because its hard to compete with Nintendo games period
If Nintendo went 3rd party, there would be no escape...
samfish @ Jan 24th 2008 2:37PM
I'd kind of like to see that happen, solely to see all these other game makers let out a collective, "Oh shit! We're fucked now!"
WhatIsThatThing @ Jan 24th 2008 8:59PM
But don't you see? That's exactly why it CAN'T happen!
fco. @ Jan 24th 2008 2:22PM
It's not that Nintendo does the best games (well, yeah... actually they do), but the thing is that at this piont they can do Super Mario Farts 7 and it will sell amazingly, even if critics think it's shit.
Meanwhile, 3rd parties must must do an extra effort on marketing their titles to overcome this handicap.
BrandonIT @ Jan 24th 2008 2:31PM
So why don't we see more advertising money spent on 3rd party games? I'm not sure if that's just a Wii-thing or if it's across all consoles. Advertising sells games. The gaming market is larger now and that means you have to try harder to reach those millions of consumers than just throwing some piece of plastic on the shelf and hoping I'll pick it up.
Gameplay videos are nice, and it caught my eye enough for No More Heroes that I'll think about renting it.
I hope I get to see a Space Channel 5 re-make. I missed it on the PS2 and I'd love a chance to play something like it.
But 3rd party publishers have got to make good games, and then advertise them so people know about them. Maybe the Seal of Quality needs to return with a promise from Nintendo to offer $1 million or so of advertising if a game passes the Seal of Quality to help promote it.
Sonic_13 @ Jan 24th 2008 4:09PM
But how many times do we have to say this to third parties: stop making crap games and perhaps we'd buy more of them.
Sure there are some games like Zach and Wiki and No More Heroes that are quality third party titles. However, these titles unfortunately sometimes get lost in the sea of bad titles (especially to those who don't regularly follow gaming news). While we know that these are good games, would the average person be able to distinguish them?
Nigeria @ Jan 24th 2008 4:40PM
3rd party games are selling. I read somewhere that Carnival Games broke past 100,000 mark and as of now it's the 24th bestseller on Amazon USA.
The problem is less advertising and more a case of the price.
A consumer who purchased their Wii as a Wii-Sports machine is more likely to plunk down $30-$35 on a game they've never heard of before rather than a $50-$60 unknown game. Brand recognition is a point, hence Nintendo's dominant sales, but if we were to talk about strictly 3rd party games the price is key.
$30 -$35 allows people to experiment and try new concepts. While many people, myself included, believe games are too expensive and a $60 hole hurts.
wiiboy101ukgezza @ Jan 24th 2008 5:07PM
he has no argument or point at all 3rd partys pull finger out its that simple just becouse chav moronic teens buy anything on ps3 or x360 with a gun or car in it is accually the true casual market the IDIOT MARKET....
wii can fully support any game type be it deemed casual or hardcore 3d or 2d etc theres noooooooooooo excuses 3rd partys need to address there lame assed ways and cheep ased aimed at 12 year old boys marketing
12 yr old boys played gta becouse it was marketed as cool to do so believe mii theres more adults playing mario than gta and more chav kids playing gta than adults thats a games industry fact sorry not opinion......
will fps rts and 3rd person action games sell well on wii off bloody course they will for crying out loud
but wii nintendo hardcore gamers dont buy shit so stop the shitware
n64 was the fps action game king in its generation goldeneye perfect dark jet forse jemini the FACT is shovelware dosnt sell 3rd party games of quolity and merit will indeed sell
3rd partys want it easy comtinue nmaking crap and fool the ps3 x360 idiots to buying it
backing outdated controls aint hardcore backing systems with long loadtimes aint fooking hardcore
there fanboys of a badge with xbox or sony on it and thats fact
wiimote nunchuck can take hardcore gaming to a all new dizzy level
bashing buttons simply cannot
wii is hardcore/casual and everything inbetween anyone states otherwise is ether a blatent fooking lyer or a anti nintendo marketing believing idiot ........
long loading times destroy and detract from a game and outdated controls hold evolution of gaming back if you dont agree please hand in your hardcore gaming badge at the desk and fook of out of the culture i love your destroying it
that goes out to every idiot that purchused a psfooking 3
Discosis @ Jan 25th 2008 7:20AM
I can't help but think that a Wii version of Rez is best suited to being a WiiWare release rather than a fullpriced retail game.
This thought is given some weight by the release of Rez HD on Xbox Live...
Surely Mizuguchi's heard of it, why has noone asked about it?