Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Ideas For The Legend of Zelda Wii U Game Part 1

   The Legend of Zelda is simply a masterpiece of a series. It brought a lot of great ideas to the gaming world, inspired many great new franchises and is my personal favorite video game franchise of all time for its fantastic and enduring gameplay. You may realize how excited I am to know that there is a new Zelda games in the work. Not only that but it's the first real HD Zelda game ever! But do you think HD is enough to make Zelda Wii U one of the best games on the console? Well, no, not really. There are quite a lot of things for the new Zelda to overcome to truly become one of the best games on the console and it needs some new ideas to keep the franchise fresh. So, here is a list of ideas I want to see in the new Zelda game. Keep in my this list is personal and that it is mostly about the gameplay elements of Zelda rather than its story.


A Large Open World

   From the very beginning, Zelda was about exploring your world, finding treasures and helpful items. The games never truly forced you to go one way. You chose YOUR way, you could explore whatever damn level you want. Though, in recent years, as much as I loved games like Skyward Sword, Zelda has been less open to exploration than before. See, the joy of Zelda was that you would be rewarded for wandering around and finding new areas. It also gave a deeper feeling of immersion since, much like in real life, you don't have set path to follow, you have the one you choose for yourself. Add to that my thirst for exploring every little area in a game and you have almost all the reasons I want Zelda to be open world. We never asked for Zelda to be linear but surely want it to be open world so why not give the fans what they want. With Eiji Aonuma saying Skyrim is inspiring him, this might actually happen.


A challenging gameplay

  Oh challenge, how much I love thee. Why do developers not realize anymore how important you are. Yeah, if you didn't know this, challenge in a video game is very important. It keeps the player on his toes making the whole experience much less boring than it would if it were easy, making even the smallest achievement much more rewarding not to mention that if you keep dying over and over chances are that you'll take some time to practice your skills to actually overcome the challenge which means you'll take more time into beating the game than you would if the game was easy. Look at the NES games for reference. For some reason Nintendo doesn't understand that and think making the game easier makes it more fun. Well, guess what, a game can be just as fun if not better if it were challenging for the aforementioned reasons. Since a lot games have taken ideas from The Legend of Zelda it's time for Zelda to take ideas from other games. Let's take Dark Souls for example. Part of the challenge in Dark Souls has to do with your stamina management (Skyward Sword did that and should build upon this mechanic) and having to face ruthless enemies that will not hesitated killing you. They don't take 3 whole seconds to charge a damn strike, they'll often keep striking you and drain your stamina down by doing so. They also do tons of damage not just taking away half a heart of a full heart with one strike. Of course, it doesn't need to be the most punishing thing ever but a good challenge is always welcome.


Bring back stamina 

   To continue what I said in the last point, I'll go deeper in explaining why bringing back the stamina mechanic from Skyward Sword is a good thing for the next The Legend of Zelda game. The Stamina mechanic introduced in Skyward Sword may have been an inconvenience but when you actually think about it, it brought a new layer of challenge to the game. For instance, horizontal and vertical spin attacks, some of the most power slashes in the game, couldn't be spammed. Also, you could hang on to a ledge or climb grass forever, meaning you actually had something to worry about. Thanks to this mechanic, we also had the chance of bringing the ability to run. Of course, you couldn't run forever which since it will just make it too easy to get to places faster. That's all thanks to the stamina mechanic. Let's not stop on Skyward Sword, there another game that did this too, even better if I may say so: Dark Souls. One of the factors that made Dark Souls challenging was the fact that you had to manage your stamina, as I said in my previous point. Almost eerything consummed your stamina from sword slashed, to running, to blocking an enemy's attack or even dodging, you needed to make good use of your stamina. That made the player think about how he should handle the adversary rather than mindlessly attacking his foes. Zelda Wii U has the potential of taking this mechanic and make it better, to make the game's combat and even exploration a little deeper than your normal Zelda.


No more hand holding!

    Skyward Sword did a lot of things right, a lot of ideas introduced in this game were, I thought, great, like the previously discussed stamina mechanic.But Skyward Sword has also done some things wrong. For instance, the hand holding. Whoever thought it would be fun to be interrupted every so often just to make sure everything is fine was a great idea probably didn't understand what the fans wanted. Hand holding is almost insulting since it treats you like a kid with no brains and therefore, cannot take on the challenge alone. It's also annoying in the way that it repeats the same information over and over again as if we had Alzheimer or something. Fi kept interrupting the gameplay for things I knew already. Low on health? That's what the hearts on the top left and beeping noise are for. Battery is low? I can see the damned icon on the bottom of the screen. Considering the fact that the Wii U now has the wonderful thing known as MiiVerse, there is almost no need to have a damned character like Fi telling us what to do and holding our hand. Just go to MiiVerse and tell the people that you are stuck and they are going to help you. 

Monday, July 22, 2013

Possible first party developers for Nintendo

      This is a topic I've been thinking for quite a while. As you all know, Nintendo has released their brand new home console, the Nintendo Wii U, just a few months ago. The Wii U is Nintendo's first step into the HD realm. What does that mean? That means games will take longer to develop which explains why Nintendo is teaming up with other developers so they can speed up the development, as stated in their latest Nintendo Direct. But teaming up with other developers isn't the only thing they need to do. Nintendo will need more first party developers like the EAD teams, Retro Studios, Monolith Soft, etc. They can either found new studios or buy existing studios (Like what they did with Monolith Soft). Since I can't guess what studios they will found, I'll focus on the existing developers. This is not a countdown, remember that. This a list of possible developers Nintendo can acquire. These are based on rumors or preferences or both. So I will start with the first one.


RARE Ltd. 

     I'll say it right away, I do NOT want Nintendo to acquire Rare Ltd. I know this might sound shocking, especially if you are a kid who grew up in the 90s when Rare (Or should I say Rareware) were still producing excellent AAA games but please understand I have my reasons why I don't want Nintendo to buy them back. Let's start with the reason why I decided to put Rare Ltd. on the list. You see, a while ago, there was a rumor suggesting that Nintendo was considering buying Rare back. Then, around the same time, another rumor showed up saying Nintendo is negotiating with Microsoft so they can bring back Banjo Kazooie. It even claimed Retro Studios was developing the new Banjo Kazooie. These are all rumors, of course. Even if it was possible for Nintendo to buy Rare back, I would not want them to do so for a reason. You see, a lot of people think Rare will magically turn into its awesome former self, making amazing AAA games all over again. Well, the truth is that the modern Rare is nothing more than a shell of its former self. A lot of people who used to work at Rareware back in their glorious days have moved to other studios after Microsoft bought them. Then, you have the fact that Tim and Chris Stampers (The founders of Rareware) left Rare Ltd. This is why I don't want Nintendo to buy Rare back, they're not worth it anymore.


SHIN'EN

     Now for a developer I actually care for. Shin'En might be one of the lesser known developers on this list. But that doesn't mean they aren't awesome. Unlike the previously mentioned Rare, I'm putting Shin'En on the list because they have potential to become a Nintendo developer. I first discovered Shin'En with a demo of a little game called Jett Rocket (An excellent WiiWare title) back in 2011. After that playing the demo for that game, I realized that Shin'En was a fantastic developer and decided to buy their next game, Fast Racing League which even, to this day, is my favorite WiiWare game. After that, I noticed a few things. Much like most first party Nintendo developers, Shin'En games were very polished. Second, after playing Fast Racing League, I realized that they had a LOT of potential to develop the next F-Zero. Also, after doing a little research, I discovered that every single one of their games were made for Nintendo systems. All these qualities can make Shin'En a potential Nintendo first party developer. Plus, if they become Nintendo first party developers, they might get more recognition from people.


SEGA

     You read that right. It's SEGA, the biggest and most fearsome rival Nintendo ever had. With all the doom and gloom stuff surrounding SEGA and its financial status, many people speculate that maybe a company like Microsoft or Sony or, in this case, Nintendo are going to buy SEGA and save them from whatever problem they're in. So, what could SEGA bring to Nintendo. TONS OF SERIES! We all know SEGA keeps making new series, most of which are targeted to the hardcore audience and with Nintendo having SEGA on their side will eliminate the one of the Nintendo haters' most overused argument that Nintendo is for kids. Not only that but the games lineup will increase drastically. Though, considering how big SEGA is, that would cost Nintendo a crap ton of money.


Platinum Games

     Here's one Nintendo fans want to have, Platinum Games. Ever since the announcement of The Wonderful 101 at E3 2012 (Known as Project P-100 at the time), people have speculated that Nintendo should buy Platinum Games because they are co-developing said game. Flash forward to September 2012 and Nintendo announces that Bayonetta 2 will be a Wii U exclusive funded and published by Nintendo. This further kept the rumor train going. The interesting part is that Hideki Kamiya, an important figure at Platinum Games, is willing to develop Nintendo franchises like StarFox. Given the fact that Platinum Games are quite a small studio, this means it will be easy for Nintendo to buy them if they want to. Not to mention, much like SEGA, Platinum Games could bring ''hardcore'' games to Nintendo and further destroy the arguments used by Nintendo haters claiming Nintendo does nothing more that ''kiddy and casual games''. They could bring action games like Bayonetta, which Nintendo lacks and even third person shooters like Vanquish. 


Atlus

   Oh boy, this one is the hot topic right now. Nintendo buying Atlus. Let me make this long story short. Atlus is owned by Index Corporation who owns several different companies, they got caught doing shady stuff and they're also in a bad financial situation and they are going to sell some of their companies, like Atlus. Ever since this news appeared on the inter webs, rumors started spreading that Nintendo is one of the companies interested in buying Atlus. And with Nintendo being richer than Sony and Microsoft's gaming division, this makes Nintendo a likely candidate in buying Atlus, that is if the rumors are indeed true. But with Nintendo having a very close relationship with Atlus, having crossovers and promotions with Nintendo's Fire Emblem series, it wouldn't be surprising Nintendo jumped in to save them. This news is extremely hot at the moment so we'll wait and see how this whole situation turns out.


   That's about it for this article. Please, apologize my ignorance.

Ideas for the next Star Fox game

  While a new Star Fox has yet to be announced, we can assume there will be at least one coming out this generation since Miayamoto himself wants to make one. That's saying something. And since I like discussing about games before they come out, I thought it would be great to talk about one of the games that seriously need to make a come back. There tons of great ideas I want to see in the next Star Fox games and that's what this article is all about. With that said, let's start with the first and most obvious one.


Online Multiplayer


     Like I said before, this is obvious. A big part of what made Star Fox 64 AND Assault fun was the multiplayer mode. Being able to play against three of your friends and taking down their Arwing, that may be simple, but it was fun as hell. But with online multiplayer could expand the awesomeness of the multiplayer mode given you'll be able to play with (Or against) people from all over the world when your friends aren't available. Also, it can allow for more players in a match rather than just four. Online modes can be Death Match and Team Death Match (And if you can do more, good). And of course, we'll be able to play as characters from the Star Fox team, Wolf's team and even Bill's team. But don't limit yourself to only characters from Star Fox 64. You have the Cloud Runners too, you know and it would be cool if we saw more characters from other series too (Samus and Pit anyone?). Heck, why not have a character editor so we can make our own characters? Also, don't get limited to just Arwing battles. Do something similar to Assault where you could go in your Arwing or use the Land Master whenever you want to use them. Oh, and make maps big enough. The online alone will make the next Star Fox worth the wait. Oh, and a ranking system would be really nice. 


More Power-ups and Weapons

         In the past couple of Star Fox games we had (The rail shooting ones) we had power-ups. The Twin Beam power-up, the Hyper Beam power-up and Smart Bombs were all power-ups we could use in the last Star Fox games. But now, we need more. More beam variety, more power-ups and upgrades because, while it won't change the gameplay dramatically, it will certainly be a lot better to have more than have less. Here are a few ideas I had. You can seeker beams. Yes, we had this sort of feature in Star Fox 64 but what I am talking here is Metroid Prime 3 style of seeker beams (Actually, in Metroid Prime 3, they were missiles but whatever) where you can lock on to several enemies at once and then release it to destroy every single of them. Than you can have flame throwers (Yes, flame throwers) for close range attacks. Another idea I had that I found interesting was the inclusion of upgrades. For example, you can't boost for a very long time but, if you upgrade your boost, you will be able to boost for longer period of time and you will go faster. You can also improve your ship's durability, your beam's power, etc.


Commands

      Since I'm hopeful that StarFox is going to come back from the dead someday and that the new game may come to the Wii U, I've been thinking about how the game could utilize the Wii U GamePad. Thankfully, I have an idea which will get rid of a problem people had with previous, On-Rail StarFox games: Slippy. On your GamePad, you will have a couple of commands. Here are some examples: Follow Me (Select one or all members of the StarFox team to follow you), Attack (Order one of your buddies to take down an enemy, like the ones constantly go after Slippy), Disperse (The members of StarFox who follow you will go on their own). Properly using this mechanic will make helping Slippy a breeze.


Foot Missions

    Ever since games like StarFox Adventures and StarFox Assault were released, fans of the original and N64 games were very clear that what they want is Fox to stay in his Arwing and not do missions on-foot. While I can understand the reasoning, I sort of have to disagree. Personally, I think having only the aerial gameplay isn't a good thing because it will be a step back from Assault which introduced on-foot gameplay, Land Master gameplay and Arwing gameplay. While you could say the Assault on-foot gameplay was half-assed, we need some sort of variety, not just the Arwing gameplay. Plus, StarFox can do something along the lines of Sin & Punishment for the on-foot missions in which the game is still on-rails but you are now controlling Fox. We don't need the game to be 50% Arwing and 50% on-foot, we just need enough land missions for the gameplay to be varied.




     That about does it for the new ideas for the next StarFox game. You see, there is quite a lot of new things we can introduce to the series. So far, I don't have any other ideas for a new StarFox game but if you do, please share your ideas. Here's hoping the anthropomorphic spacial mammal makes a comeback on the Nintendo Wii U or the Nintendo 3DS. 

Friday, May 3, 2013

Plans For The Future

     Yes, I haven't done a countdown or even written an article in quite a long time. Why? College. Nuff said. But don't go thinking I have nothing planned for the future. In fact, I have many articles and countdowns I plan releasing some time after my semester is over. Here is a list of articles I'll be/I was working on: Possible First Party Developers For Nintendo, Top Four Favorite Seasons (Oh yeah, I WILL be doing that), Ideas For A New Star Fox Game, Top Thirty Favorite Games Of All Time and since my semester ends the same week of E3, chances are I might do an article that is E3-related (Keyword: Might). With all that said, I really want to go back to writing in my blog.

Friday, February 8, 2013

Nintendo's upcoming E3 2013 Press Conference talk

     I know what you're thinking. Yes, E3 is still months away. But who cares? While I try not to hype myself up after the utter disappointment that was E3 2012, we can all agree that E3 2013 will be a big step up from the crap we got last year. Why am I saying this? Well, after Nintendo's most recent Nintendo Direct, they announced some very interesting things (We'll get to that, don't worry). And with more and more rumors appearing on the Internet, why not take a wild guess at what might be at E3, specifically, Nintendo's E3 Press Conference. We'll go through what WILL be at E3 (What is confirmed), what MIGHT be at E3 (What will likely be there but hasn't been confirmed) and what I WANT to be there (What might not be there but that I personally want). This is based on what Nintendo said in the past and rumors. Also, since we're months away from E3, there might be some new rumors that pop up. Let us begin!


1. What WILL be at E3


3D Super Mario game

One of the many first party games announced in the latest Nintendo Direct, it's none other than Super Mario... in 3D. It's to be expected, really. While I skipped New Super Mario Bros. 2 & U, I am hyped about Mario's next 3D adventure. Either it's because it's actually different from the past entries or simply because it's the only 3D platforming series Nintendo has as of now. We've yet to see what it would look like but I'm sure it will be fantastic.


Mario Kart U

Again, another game that was announced to be at E3 by Nintendo themselves. This time, it's Mario Kart. I'm kinda hyped about this one but not too much. Why? Well, it's expected to see a new Mario Kart every time a new console comes out and because I would prefer a new F-Zero game instead. But I always enjoy Mario Kart. It's just that I prefer F-Zero. Oh and there would be playable demos.


Super Smash Bros. 4

 Of the three games that will be at E3, this is my most anticipated one. Heck, I've done a whole month dedicated to this one game. Yet again, it was announced by Nintendo themselves that it would be at E3. We can expect, at the very least, a trailer and some in-game pictures. Also, it's the first portable Smash Brothers game.



2. What MIGHT be at E3

Now for what hasn't been announced for E3 but most likely will be there.


Monolith Soft's new Wii U game

  Possibly the biggest surprise of Nintendo's most recent Nintendo Direct. People speculate that this is a sequel to Xenoblade, a game I very much enjoyed on the Wii or a sequel to Xenogears because of the red ''X'' and the mechs. I think this is a game that will link these two worlds together. Basically, it's an open world Action RPG game, much like Xenoblade, only this time, creatures are bigger, the environments are bigger, there are mechs and a possible online co-op mode. All in all, if we got a trailer that shows some gameplay, I think that means we'll most likely see some more gameplay at E3. Heck, we might see a playable demo!     


Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem

    Another big surprise coming yet AGAIN from Nintendo Direct, it is Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem. This year looks like a great year for Fire Emblem. First, the series is getting a new 3DS game and now there is a new one coming to the Wii U. But, this time, it is a crossover with Shin Megami Tensei. The game is being developed by Atlus, who makes great RPGs by the way. So far, we only have a teaser. No gameplay so far. But if this game appears at E3, we might get some screenshots or maybe some actual gameplay.



Yoshi's Epic Yarn (Working Title)

    Yes. It's another game, y'know, from Nintendo Direct. This time, it's a Yoshi game. It's made by the same people who made Kirby's Epic Yarn. There was some gameplay shown along with a few screenshots. From the looks of it, it seems like a 2D or 2.5D platformer. And that's about all we know about the game. Personally, I am excited (I love platformers) and since we were able to see some gameplay of the game, we might see some more at E3 2013.


New Retro Studios game

   We've yet to see what Retro Studios is working on. It's been nearly two years since they announced they were working on a Wii U title. It was said that they were going to show their game at E3 2012 but it was later pulled off (Which explains how Nintendo's E3 2012 ended on such an awkward note). Rumours on what they were working started spreading. Some people thought they were working on a Zelda game (Which Mister Miyamoto confirmed it wasn't). All we know is that it's a game that fans want. People would think it is Metroid, a new Donkey Kong game or the one I think they might be working on, a Star Fox game (Since Retro Studios have a tendency to revive long dormant franchises). Either way, if the title was ready to be shown at E3 2012, I think it's not far-fetched to think that it would finally appear at this year's E3.


The Legend of Zelda stuff

    When I say ''The Legend of Zelda stuff'' I mean that there are quite a lot of Zelda games that can be shown. For one, we have the Wind Waker Wii U remake that was announced in the latest Nintendo Direct (Again!). So far, we only have screenshots. Then, we have an original 3DS Zelda game. In the past, Nintendo said they would focus on an original 3DS Zelda game before they remake either Majora's Mask or A Link To The Past. Then, you have the new Wii U Zelda game that is also in development. Apparently, Nintendo wants to rethink the conventions of Zelda (Maybe making it like a true Open World game like the first one) and let you play the game by yourself (Maybe that means no more hand holding, which is a good thing). As far as we know, the Wii U Zelda game has begun development for quite a while now. Who knows, we might see some screenshots or something like that. All we know is that it would try to be different from the rest of the other 3D Zelda games.


Bayonetta 2

    The game that caused fanboys to rage. Bayonetta 2 was announced as a Wii U exclusive back in September. Back then, all we got was a teaser trailer. Last week, we got a behind the scene kind of trailer where the developers in Platinum Games discuss what they're planning to do with Bayonetta 2. Apparently, there will be tons of different locations, new ideas to expand the world of Bayonetta, the scale of the game will be bigger, etc. So far, Bayonetta 2 is one of the many collaborations Nintendo is handling. We didn't get any gameplay so far but we might see a gameplay trailer of the game.


Miyamoto's new IP

     It's been a while since Miyamoto has made a new IP. His newest IP is Pikmin from way back in 2001. But apparently, Miyamoto is working on a new IP. What is it exactly, we don't know. So far, it seems that he is working with a newer and smaller team. Also, while we have no idea what genre it would be, what the story is about or anything else, Shigeru Miyamoto expressed interest in making a First Person Shooter. Who knows what he is concocting?


Pokemon X & Y

    Pokemon X & Y was announced back in the beginning of January.  It showed us the starter pokemons (Chespin, Froakie and Fennekin) as well as the two main legendary pokemons. There was also some gameplay (Which was in 3D) and some other features. While I'm not a big Pokemon fan, that doesn't mean I am not excited for the game. Maybe we will see more new pokemons and maybe new mechanics. Either way, it is likely we'll see this game at E3. Maybe Nintendo will do the same thing they did last year and prepare an event for the 3DS only. 


Wii U Peripherals 

        Nintendo just released the Wii U about two months ago. You know what that means? That means we might see some peripherals. What kind of peripherals? I don't know. But since it's a new console, we can definitely expect some peripherals. Nintendo usually likes to show their bigger and more interesting peripherals at E3. Since I have no idea what they are working on, I can't say more than that.
     

 Third Party games

        Nintendo gets a lot of hate for their lack of third party support but with Iwata promising that they will focus on third party support on a later Nintendo Direct (Since the last one was for the First and Second Party games) and said that collaborating with other developers is one of Nintendo's strategies, we can expect some new third party Wii U games at this year's E3. There are petitions going on to bring Dark Souls 2 to the Wii U, rumors of a Metal Gear Solid and Final Fantasy game coming to Wii U, rumors claiming Nintendo will fund more games, similar to Bayonetta, including one that will cause shock waves and more partnerships of the sort. Take these rumors with a grain of salt but we can expect some third party games to be shown at Nintendo's E3 2013 Press Conference.



3. What I WANT to be there

These are games I personally want to see. Some might happen, some might not.


Nintendo VS. Capcom

     I don't know why but crossovers always get me excited. I've wanted to see Capcom crossing over with Nintendo since a few years ago and with Nintendo's trying to collaborate with developers to bring (And secure them as exclusives) to the Wii U, it might actually happen. Sure, Capcom made some stupid decisions recently but with Nintendo (Hopefully) on their side, they might do something great. In fact, Capcom actually made great games for the Nintendo consoles last generation with games like Monster Hunter Tri and Tatsunoko VS. Capcom. Also, both Yoshinori Ono and Satoru Iwata are aware of the idea. All I have to say is..................................MAKE IT HAPPEN!!!


Custom Robo

   Highly unlikely but man will I be happy. If you read my Top Ten Nintendo franchises that need to make a comeback list, you'd know I really want to see a new Custom Robo game. Personally, I think the game should change its combat system a little bit. Something along the lines of Budokai Tenkaichi would be great. After all, Custom Robo is a Fighting series. But the odds of this ever happening are pretty low and that's why I don't have much to say about it.


Project H.A.M.M.E.R

    Back in 2006, Nintendo showed a game called Project H.A.M.M.E.R. Basically, you were a tough guy beating the crap out of robots using a big hammer. It looked rather... hardcore, for lack of a better word. Unfortunately, it got cancelled in 2007. There was no official reason as to why it was cancelled (As far as I know). The reason I'm putting this game here is because there are rumours going around that Nintendo might bring it back to the Wii U. I personally take it with a massive grain of salt but it would be great to see it make a come back.




   Needless to say, there are quite a lot of great games that will (Or might) be there. This year is all about software for Nintendo and that's why I'm so excited. But remember, keep your hype level down or else you might be disappointed. Even if it looks like E3 2013 will put E3 2012 to shame, we should lower our expectations. It's something hard to do, especially when we'll be weeks or even days away from E3. With that said, I hope you enjoyed the article.