Nintendo pleads patience for 'core' games

by Chris Greenhough { Aug 26th 2008 at 4:25PM }

By now, we're all familiar with the chain of events that unfolded after E3. Nintendo showed off a bunch of games in its E3 2008 press conference that apparently didn't meet the expectations of the "hardcore" set. Said group immediately accused Nintendo of abandoning them. Nintendo stepped in to say that, no, titles for more serious gamers were currently being made, so keep your hair on.

Now, Nintendo has felt compelled to say it again, and warn us that we will have to wait for our treats. "We have developers working on popular core gaming franchises but we need longer to complete [them], approximately two to three years," the company stated in the latest issue of Edge, before adding that none will be ready to launch in early 2009.

So it's going to be at least late next year before we see any new Zelda, Mario, and presumably Pikmin also. Express your rage in the comments field below.

Tags: casual, core, edge, hardcore, mario, pikmin, zelda

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

MBJ @ Aug 26th 2008 4:30PM

Hopefully third party developers will fill in the gap, because that's one hell of a long gap.

Spencer @ Aug 26th 2008 4:32PM

exactly what I expected, and nothing to be upset about if you ask me. Third party games are starting to come around, and we've had the first round of major first party titles already roll out and be deeply satisfying.

So, Not only am I not "raging" I'm actually really excited rather than seeing them try to rush something "hardcore" to market they're continuing their slow, fruitful, careful development of their big names.

Though, I'd love to see a Mario Party designed exclusively for the wii / wii motion plus support and the fact that this perenial game isn't on the horizion is kinda...shocking.

Mr Khan @ Aug 26th 2008 4:41PM

I'm surprised, too. Mario Party was almost an annual thing in the GameCube's heyday, and with the current nature of the Wii audience, i'm extremely surprised that they aren't pushing more of it out the door

They could definitely do better than Mario Party 8, and a motionplus Mario Party 9 could really hit the spot

bukizzle715 @ Aug 26th 2008 4:32PM

It's not that bad really. I don't think there are any less core games, it's just that there are more casual games now. Look at the N64, we got Mario64 , Star Fox64, 2 Zeldas, Smash Bros. and no Metroid. Look at the Cube, Mario Sunshine, 2 Star Foxes, 2 Metroids, 2 Zeldas, and Smash Bros. Now look at the Wii, we already have Metroid, Zelda, Mario, and Smash Bros, and only 2 years into the lifespan, with more one the way. Give them time, I'm sure the good stuff is on the way.

moo083 @ Aug 26th 2008 4:47PM

Well yes, there are a number of games that have come out already, but the fact is, theres a year gap. That should never happen.

Also, you seemed to have counted Twilight Princess twice. I know it was GCN and Wii, but to say there were 2 zelda games on GCN and 1 on wii makes it sound like 3 games, and it really isn't quite as good as that makes it look.

I don't even want a zelda game announced. I mean, I do, but I'd rather Nintendo announce some new IP that is core gamer oriented.

Kev888 @ Aug 26th 2008 6:21PM

I think bukizzle is referring to Majora's Mask, not Twilight Princess

TX2 @ Aug 26th 2008 4:37PM

A little Translated earthbound trilogy would probably tie over more than a few of us until that time.

dagguis @ Aug 26th 2008 6:32PM

Amen.

TheOverlord#2 (is playing MM1 and Okami) @ Aug 26th 2008 9:07PM

Yea, Nintendo, just get MOTHER & MOTHER 3 on a single DS cartridge and release Earthbound on the VC when it releases!

Soiden @ Aug 26th 2008 4:40PM

I think is the good chance for third parties. They should try to create great games and gain a space in all Nintendo gamers hearts.

Because they've always complained about first-party games taking all attention.

mike h @ Aug 26th 2008 4:55PM

There are seriously no games coming out that I'm interested in, other than the conduit and maybe the tales games. If that's all I have to tide me over for 2-3 YEARS, I'll sell the wii for gas money.

MRB1G @ Aug 26th 2008 4:47PM

i agree 3rd parties are doing their thing to tide us over until nintendo gets there but i am just happy to hear that ninty are still doing something.

just have to wait.... as always..... l8 2009-mid 2010....:''(

Mr Khan @ Aug 26th 2008 4:48PM

Fortunately, the early half of 2009 has a nice lineup of 3rd party titles. I at least will be satisfied chaining The Conduit, MadWorld, and Sonic and the Black Knight together

Real Nintendo fanboys remember the dark days, software wise, of the GameCube era, and are used to the meatier, core-franchise stuff taking a while to arrive

I can imagine, since they deliberately mentioned the new Pikmin, that it's further along than whatever EAD Tokyo and EAD Group 3 are up to. It's also unknown which group exactly is working on Pikmin 3

Either way, there's plenty worth playing between now and late 09

acefondu @ Aug 26th 2008 4:53PM

That they wasted their time on crappy titles shouldn't be an excuse. I don't feel like I should wait in line because they want to make games for grandma. Really, making games for the non-hardcore gamer shouldn't require the core staff developers attention. Supped up solitaire and brain games can be made by game developer grad students, let the pros handle the good games.

Mr Khan @ Aug 26th 2008 5:11PM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_EAD

Look down the group division. Only two of the groups have worked on Wii ____ style games, and one of those two was specifically formed to make Wii Fit

What they did wrong, i think, was release Mario Kart Wii too early. If they had held MK Wii back, they could've polished it up (which it needed. The online play was silky smooth, but everyone agrees it could've looked a helluva lot better), had a big title to sit next to Animal Crossing for holiday 2008, and then it wouldn't have looked like a year-long wait. But they are not "making" the good devs work on casual games and diverting core products till later

Shadow31 @ Aug 26th 2008 5:05PM

...I seem to be alone in being annoyed with Nintendo about this. I understand how in reality there weren't a large amount of first party core games for other platforms... but they've never had a gap like this. Not this long. No, I don't mean the length of time between two core games, but rather the length of time between the hyping of core games. Nintendo always has had something cool on the horizon. Sure, they have Zelda, Mario, and Pikmin coming, but where's the hook? They haven't given us much to get excited about. "Yeah, the games are coming eventually." So what, we bide two years of our life waiting on them? This is why I'm annoyed. Not to mention, though there are more third party games than the last couple generations... there are fewer ones worth a buy. And no, I'm not saying that because we're bogged down in shovelware. There seriously are less good third party core games than the past Nintendo systems, unless maybe if you include the bunch of remakes Wii is getting.

Oh, and in a way, they're skipping this holiday season for us core gamers. The largest number of good games are released between August and December. They aren't giving us a single core game in this entire half year, there's usually at least one, many times 2 or 3 (Animal Crossing hardly counts as a core game, even though I admit as a core gamer I enjoy it). Fine, Wario is coming, but honestly, more than half the gamers I've talked to aren't Wario fans. He has a good amount of fans, but Wario generally is forgotten in the list of core games.

Last, they basically confirmed it'll be well over a year before the next core game, with their track record. Past early [insert year here], nothing really is released until fall of that year, unless they've already delayed it numerous times. Oh yeah, and by the way, THEY ALWAYS DELAY CORE GAMES NUMEROUS TIMES. Meaning if they aren't even having a release date until late 2009, they likely won't get any out in 2009. Plus, yeah, they don't have any release dates.

I'm just being realistic here. Oh, and I am definitely prepared for the flaming, because flaming has become oh so popular on this site as of late, unfortunately.

Nathew @ Aug 26th 2008 5:10PM

how can you say "I seem to be alone in being annoyed with Nintendo about this" when half the internet is bitching about this continuously?

Mr Khan @ Aug 26th 2008 5:14PM

Yeah. If anything, the people who AREN'T bitching are in the extreme minority

But i see what you mean. What we're seeing is the unfortunate results of their new policy about not announcing games until they pretty much have them ready. Smash Bros and Twilight Princess both suffered from having too much lead-time, so now they've gone to the opposite extreme, and aren't talking about anything until they can show something off

Nigeria @ Aug 26th 2008 5:15PM

Stop describing yourself in marketing terms.

Shadow31 @ Aug 26th 2008 9:07PM

Okay, I phrased that first sentence badly. I was the first person to reply negatively about this, and I was sure people would immediately have issues with it then. Guess I set myself up there, should've been clearer.

And this is almost worse than announcing it too early, now I can't get excited for it. Delays are annoying, but it's worse to not even have games to delay.

D. @ Aug 26th 2008 10:55PM

I was actually quite happy with this post until I got to "approximately two to three years". Is Nintendo joking? Not only will we be going the rest of this year with Animal Crossing alone, but there won't be anything for the majority of next year either, or possibly the entire year. This is laughable...It was pathetic at first, but now I can only laugh. I have seen very few third-party games worth the box that they're in. And as far as Wii ___(Fit, Play, Music, etc. [all of the above])? That ship has sailed. I'm quite disappointed in Nintendo to be honest.

bug frawg @ Sep 1st 2008 10:23PM

ummm... the statement was 'core games take 3 years to develop'
and not 'you'll have to wait 3 years for core games'

'we're making pikmin', coupled with the hinting beforehand sounds a bit like it would already be in development.

Ninegauger @ Aug 26th 2008 5:08PM

Fine... I'll give you your 3 years and in the mean time play another console.

Nathew @ Aug 26th 2008 5:09PM

i have no rage, and i think anybody who does seriously needs to chill and look forward to madworld.

Nathew @ Aug 26th 2008 5:13PM

by the way, am i the only one that replays old games? i just started a new wind waker game. i wish people would quit bawwwing about the lack of new games when they have tons of classics collecting dust.

JayVe @ Aug 27th 2008 8:06AM

I play old games all the time. I like going through the GameCube section of used games to find all these awesome GameCube games I missed out on last generation. You can have a LOT of fun for very little $$ that way.

Edge @ Aug 26th 2008 5:20PM

Betrayed.

You screwed the pooch and you know it. I guess it's going to be more Wiieisure-inducing spaz out sessions... now with music!

Marco @ Aug 27th 2008 11:08PM

2 to 3 years!!! Hahahah Nintendo is so pathetic, by then the new XBOX will be ramping up, and after that the Sony will start spinning there new Console....nintendo your a JOKE!! Look for those of you who don't know Nintendo is an ASIAN console ok, and asians have a KID mindset and they love them Dam KID games, YAH in 2 or 3 years we will have Super mario XXXX, Donkey Kong XXXX, Mario kart Space Racer, and all those other crappy titles, GOD you suck nintendo

Mr Khan @ Aug 26th 2008 5:24PM

lol. You can try harder than that

Nigeria @ Aug 26th 2008 5:28PM

E for effort.

Paroxysm @ Aug 26th 2008 5:26PM

When they said "We haven't forgot about you! We're working on new Zelda and Mario games for you" was the final straw that made me go out and buy a 360 the next day. Nintendo are so out of touch. Yes Mario and Zelda are fun but are Nintendo so creatively bankrupt that that's all they can think of to appease core gamers? They can just pull them out as some kinda golden carrot and we'll just lap it up like the good fanboys we are?

Region restrictions, long regional delays, price fixing, screwing around developers with release dates (wiiware), inabbility to create original games for anything but the "casual" crowd. Frankly if I wasn't a fanboy I'd just sell my collection and even now I'm thinking about ditching most of it.

Hopefully the lapse in titles will make MadWorld a hit though.

Morning Toast @ Aug 26th 2008 5:32PM

Why does "core gamers" always equate in to Mario and Zelda? Those are Nintendo's core games, but are those really the games we are begging to see on the Wii? I've personally had my fill of Mario and Zelda.

And I don't (entirely) blame Nintendo for leaving everyone out in the cold. What about third-parties? They're as much to blame as Nintendo. Hopefully the third-parties will jump on this time to put out some good, solid games - lord knows their window of opportunity is big enough.

hellhammer @ Aug 26th 2008 6:52PM

This is my only concern. Starting production on another new Mario or Zelda game just seems desperate.
I don't understand Nintendo's reluctance to re-create the other classic IP's they've got just fucking laying around.

With Nintendo sitting on amazing franchises like Punch-Out!!, Star Fox, Donkey Kong, Kirby, (2D) Metroid, Kid Icarus, and the new IP's that have conveniently vanished like Disaster or Project Hammer, the Wii would have an absolutely fantastic line up.

But instead we're working on another Mario and Zelda.

ChrisCanberg @ Aug 26th 2008 6:05PM

Hahah jesus christ guys. Take a chill pill.

Does Nintendo EVER disappoint with first party titles? No.
Oh, and are there gunna be a shitload of awesome third party games showing their faces from now through mid 09? Absolutely.

Just to name ALL the games that should have sparked SOME sort of interest...

de Blob
The Conduit
MADWORLD
Deadly Creatures
Dead Rising Chop Till You Drop
Dark World Overlord
Sonic Unleashed
Sonic and the Black Knight (which actually sounds and looks very well made from what I've heard from it)
Castlevania Judgement
House of the Dead Overkill
Samba de Amigo

Sure some of these games may not appeal to some people as much as they do others. But come on, there's still other stuff to play.

Also, I agree with Nathew. Play back some old games. I do that all the time and its awesome to experience a great work of art all over again. Virtual console, too. I'm sure there's something on there that people are interested in.

Plus its not a sin to play other consoles. I'll be getting a 360 to play the new Banjo Kazooie game coming out. As well as Resident Evil 5 and Street Fighter IV when they both come out.

Give Ninty some time.

Gewurztraminer says: R.O.B. is the last Cylon! @ Aug 26th 2008 5:48PM

Consider me unconcerned.

I have plenty to catch up on as it is. Besides, with GH:WT and RB2 coming soon, I definitely won't have time to play the games I already don't have time to play.

Frost @ Aug 26th 2008 5:52PM

Hearing this mindset from Nintendo makes me even more annoyed that the Wii is doing so well! Nintendo doesn't have any real pressure to come out with mind blowing games, because they can rehash some old D.S game - and get a zillion people buying.

How come I always seem to get into Nintendo at the wrong time, I missed out on the Super Nintendo and persisted with the Mega Drive (Genesis) - Got a N64, realised it was terrilble apart from a few great titles and then sold it for a playstation - missed out on the cool Gamecube era completely!! then got a Wii - and now they attempt to 'destroy the psychological barrier' - did anyone else think that sounded a bit aggresive at E3? Maybe it was lost in translation.

Nintendo talk about 'Evergreen' titles, does this mean they can release a game with the same graphics as the 'Dire Straits - Money for Nothing' video (we can only dream)- and then proclaim people to enjoy it for years to come??

Personally I think this latest stance from Nintendo is from a company that no longer has to compete or innovate. The controls can be really frustrating, after playing SSBB - I wish more games supported the gamecube controller, I forget how great gaming was - when you don't get sore wrists from pointing a remote at a screen the whole time.

Don't get me started on the Sniper rifle in M.O.H Heros 2 ! ... unplayable!! ... I'm tired of the Wii super successful gimmick! Bring back the Nintendo of old that didn't make as much money and cared about making cool games. Also bring in some quality control standards on third party games, general people have pretty much no idea if a game is from Nintendo or not ... so if a consumer has a bad experience buying Wii game that resembles a $5 PC supermarket game - it does reflect on Nintendo whether they think it does or not.

Anyhow - there are some things that I'm looking forward to on the Wii - Dead Rising (hope its as cool as my brothers version on 360) ... Madworld (as long as they don't ban\cut\mii it !! ) ... HOTD: Overkill ... and the game that would heal all wounds - Resident Evil 5 ... another quick rant!! Why did Nintendo have exclusive RE rights until I bought a Wii ?? *rant*

If Nintendos stance is that the 'core' games are in the pipeline (no mario pun intended) - couldn't they at least come out with some kind of official solution to the cord in between the wiimote and the nunchuk, or some kind of non line of sight based pointer? they are raking in so much money. or even dare I say it - a '32x' ish graphics booster - just so that Wii owners don't have to miss out on just about every cool game that comes about, and settle with the Atari 2600\Wii version.

The Wii has so much potential - and thats the problem, after playing RE4, I couldn't go back to playing it with a dual analog controller. Graphics wise, I've seen some amazing graphics on the Wii ... it is capable
with the developing effort put in.

But if it follows the current path, it is destined to end up much like the Matrix sequels - sure they raked in a lot of money, but was there any fun ?? ''

Gewurztraminer says: R.O.B. is the last Cylon! @ Aug 26th 2008 8:30PM

Well, at least you can catch up on SNES and GCN titles...? *shrug*

SolarEnergy @ Aug 26th 2008 5:52PM

The trolls are hungry. :D

Really now, I think Nathew is right. With a ton of classic games sitting around, most of which aren't even bad to look at, Why bother complaining about new titles not coming out just yet? In addition, there's likely gonna be a great group of VC/WiiWare goodies coming out in the near future, not to mention a lot of Third party stuff. Not having another Zelda or Mario for a while isn't gonna be that big of a deal.

And for the record...last I checked, Sony is based in Japan. *chucks argument out the window*

Feba @ Aug 26th 2008 6:14PM

all I have to say is: who the hell cares what Nintendo is doing, honestly? Yes, there are some classic franchises we need to see on Wii. Yes, they're going to be a while.

There are plenty of good third party titles on Wii, and more on the horizon. There's also WiiWare, which gets entirely too little notice.

It looks like we're going to have a good holiday season, and a great spring and summer following it. After that, we're probably going to see Nintendo's offerings up for holiday '09.

People are constantly bitching about the lack of third party penetration on Wii, and now that there's a nice big clearing for some third party games to really take off, they're complaining about that too? what?

Jon @ Aug 26th 2008 6:30PM

F*ck it, I have too many games to play as it is... only got my Wii a few months ago :). Plus, I still have my 360 laying around (which has never RROD'd!).

Animal Crossing will last me a while. I still haven't beaten most of the games I have now - so I'm not upset. I'm sorry for those who got their Wii when it came out, because I can see how you'd be upset. But, Nintendo makes great games, I'm sure they'll be worth the wait.

CamranChaos @ Aug 26th 2008 6:34PM

I honestly thought that everyone would be used to this by now. Consider this for a moment: how many TRUE first-party games does Sony and Microsoft truck out for their systems? Still not nearly as many as ol' Ninty! Give them some time!

I'll admit, I haven't even touched my Wii in around 2 months, save for some WiiWare games. I've even gone as far as to hook up my Sega Saturn to pass what free time I even have anymore. I guess what I'm saying (and I mean no disrespect by this) is that if you're going to whine about a lack of first-party software for a system designed to occupy only a fraction of your spare time, maybe somebody needs a new hobby. =/

Alvin @ Aug 26th 2008 7:24PM

nintendo wants my to calm down and wait!?

oh heeellllll nooooo!!!

im jumping on the PS3 wagon, i can't just relay on Nintendo

Tim @ Aug 27th 2008 1:07AM

Of course you can relay on Nintendo! Just pass the Wii-remote to your friends like a baton!

RossGough @ Aug 26th 2008 7:28PM

i'm just annoyed because if you think about it, no matter who is right in this argument, i don't see a game that is as nice as Galaxy, and developers obviously have the equipment to do so since nintendo themselves proved it.

Snuk the Great @ Aug 26th 2008 7:47PM

There is one thing people seem to forget. It takes a lot more time to create a Mario or Zelda game then something like Wii Sports. Just look at the content you have to make for each. Wii Sports has a few 'courses' and the character models could be done by anyone. Zelda and Mario Galaxy have new textures and models flying in every minute in the game. It just takes more time.

Makalu @ Aug 26th 2008 7:54PM

Now I see the benefits of owning both a Wii and a 360. While I'm waiting for new Zelda/Mario games, I can enjoy Fable 2 and Mirror's Edge (I know they aren't out yet either, but they're closer).

Anthony @ Aug 26th 2008 8:45PM

I know Nintendo's first party games are always great but i think its too early to release a new Zelda and Mario. Zelda i can see because the Wii never really got its own game since TP was on GCN. But Mario just came out last year. I would rather Nintendo make a new Starfox or kirby. There hasnt been a real kirby game since N64.(I dont count Air ride since it was a racing game) Or they should make a new ip, Am i the only one who remembers Project H.A.M.M.E.R? The only wii game im currently looking forward to is The Condoit.(spelling?) Good thing there a bunch of good PS3 games to pass the time while I wait for Nintendo :P