Should have done an FPS at least, if they wanted it to still be a retelling as it is. The view swings around all over the place anyway, and characters move back and forth, so it's not like they have the levels as cardboard cutouts like some rail shooters can do, every area was seemingly fully modelled so it should have just been explorable

I didn't have a rocket launcher the first time I played against the Tyrant, slots full. That was a shitty moment... I don't remember having problems with that Veronica boss though, just try to see what you're supposed to hit to stop him from hitting you, it has a few different phases iirc, which you pass by shooting environment stuff when it indicates it, either by Claire screaming or by looking at it or whatever else, I don't know.

This year Nintendo has a lot of software that may not do huge numbers but their combined hype should keep the Wii sales healthy. If it's true they will put out more as they said they wanted to do to keep the Wii going instead of just quit as others have been willing them to (which we can't really know for some time as they tend to only announce games a few months in advance lately), I think they can cruise as long as they want, and only put out a new system when they're ready and willing, not out of necessity. They may, but don't need to. I think a 10 year life cycle is only possible this gen because people don't feel they got their money's worth, despite the raving fanboys of any side, or even the raving reviews with many highly rated titles that don't really do much for gaming as past titles used to, and are in the end just some time killers while gamers wait for the classics, like B titles would be last gen.

Wii Force Unleashed II. It's supposed to be from the main team for once, and uses this engine.

Yeah, not exactly the full reported potential of that engine, but it should better the trashy first...

Just how I personally feel about all 3 systems as of now:

I still like Xbox 360 the best as their whole style and strategy appeal to me more at this point. Its hard for me to think of Xbox as a #3 system, because they really have just obliterated PS3 from a marketing and software perspective. I think one place MS dropped the ball, was not keeping the Xbox priced lower than the PS3...it started $200 cheaper and they should have done more to keep it that way for longer.

But outside of the durability problems, Xbox to me was and is the system with the most high-quality software, and surprisingly the most variety, this generation. Best controller, best online, and usually the better multi-platform stuff.

PS3.....I feel like I've been TRYING to love the PS3 ever since it launched. TRYING to love it as much as the PS2 (there's no way I could love it like the PS1....IMO that was Sony's best system. PS2 just rode its coattails). It may be more popular now, but have they really done much to deserve it? It just seems like its been riding the software wave that the Xbox kicked off for the last 4 years. Even the 1st-party titles to me don't seem as inspired as in the PS2 era, and I definitely prefer Xbox's 1st-party titles more. It still feels like a glorified Blu-Ray machine that ALSO plays games to me. It still feels like it has an identity crisis...even though they've done some things to try and bring back that PLAYSTATION vibe. I guess it still feels too similar to Xbox to really take it as serious as past PS consoles.

Wii....well the system's been a sales success no doubt about that. The new controller was a great idea, and its a great compliment to a standard pad...though I still feel some games on Wii would be better using the Classic, and feel Nintendo tried to force Wii controller use too much. Nintendo's arguably done a better job with 1st-party software on Wii, than they've done on any console before. The system has a good amount of great games, and a few real classics. Its a shame as always that it was so underpowered, as I feel we would have seen much better 3rd-party support with a powerful machine. As popular as it is, and as great as some of the games are, I still probably have to rank Wii last, personally for me, in terms of Nintendo consoles. I definitely liked Gamecube and N64 more...just because they were geared more towards my interests. And obviously SNES and NES were amazing.

Sales for all 3 here on out? Nintendo need to start dropping the price. They do that, and it continues to sell briskly up until the next console (as in, SOMEBODY's next console). Xbox will continue to kill in America...Sony will gain even more marketshare in Japan...and they'll both be neck and neck worldwide basically forever. I think new consoles will begin to get talked about next year.

Castlevania looks really damn good. That's quickly becoming one of my most wanted games.

The new Castlevania looks amazing, but until the reviews are out I'm not going to bother being interested. The 3-D Castlevanias seem to get worse with each installment.  I honestly think the N64 Castlevanias were their best attempts at doing 3-D and that's just sad.

robio said:

The new Castlevania looks amazing, but until the reviews are out I'm not going to bother being interested. The 3-D Castlevanias seem to get worse with each installment.  I honestly think the N64 Castlevanias were their best attempts at doing 3-D and that's just sad.

I actually really liked the N64 Castlevania at the time...if nothing else it had a great atmosphere. Funny thing is, many publications gave it great reviews...then started acting like it was horrible a few years later. But yeah, I liked it more than the PS2 games.

edgecrusher said:

Castlevania looks really damn good. That's quickly becoming one of my most wanted games.

The screens look pretty but the level design just tells me flat out what sort of game it will be. Doesn't look like there is any kind of decent platforming there. I'm not interested.

edgecrusher said:

Sales for all 3 here on out? Nintendo need to start dropping the price. They do that, and it continues to sell briskly up until the next console (as in, SOMEBODY's next console). Xbox will continue to kill in America...Sony will gain even more marketshare in Japan...and they'll both be neck and neck worldwide basically forever. I think new consoles will begin to get talked about next year.

I enjoyed reading those insights.

Agnates said:

The Wii wasn't ever going due to third parties, so I don't see why it would stop because of them. Not the mention the Cube was kept afloat even though it was doing nowhere near as good even for first party titles, since it was still very profitable for Nintendo as they always make a profit on both hardware and their software sells great. Besides, sales were 20% down but that's probably close to how much less software third parties released. We kept seeing reports of third parties saying so and so (great) profit percentage was via Wii, yet announcing many less titles than they did for other systems. I think this year at least seems healthier than usual for third party releases too, what with COD, GoldenEye, Force Unleashed II (hated the first but it sold good so), Conduit 2, Sonic, and a few more... Most of these should do a couple hundred thousand copies at least, going by their often mishandled predecessors. We also have the occasional title announcement that will likely be set for next year, like that Earth Seeker game.

I agree with what you say here. I'm just wondering, because obviously nintendo gets a  fee from every 3rd party sale, if the platform becomes less hospitable and even more saturated, will that spark a new system? As soon as 3DS was announced all these stories about the relief about nailing the DS piracy problem, was there - as that was affecting game sales.

That leads to another interesting question. I don't know about you guys but the 3DS seems to be positioned as a blatant out and out gamers machine. It seems like it's almost a reaction by Nintendo to say that hey, we can still bring the f***ing goods. The features and announced titles are like a gamers dream come true. It seems a world away from these touching is good casual, brain training hippie titles that DS is best known for by the washed masses.

Maybe the DS/Wii gave them back a certain confidence? I'm wondering, do you guys think that Wii 2 or whatever nintendos next machine is - do you think it will be positioned in the same way. An almost, warm embrace, welcome-back from Nintendo to the hardcore gamer?

I don't see what makes 3DS a gamer's dream (wasn't the DS already that for quite a long while, with all the JRPG stuff, until the PSP somehow - moneyhats? - got more steam and started getting big productions from Square, Konami, and Capcom among others?) more than a casual's dream.The 3D thing I think is more because they think in this form it's the next thing to attract casuals, not just core gamers. For many it will be their first 3D experience. Sure, they announced good collaborations already, but they did several for Wii as well. I think it's more that third parties realise they went wrong and try to get onboard early this time than Nintendo themselves trying to go that way. Besides, they've got the casual market by the balls, of course they'll announce new titles of the Brain Age and Nintendogs type, but now they know their way around these paths, and don't need to solely focus on that and only put out that kind of software leaving the more core offerings for later as they perhaps did with the Wii. That it will have better online features and what not is merely natural progression, just as Wii improved on the Cube (lol).

Finally, regardless of Nintendo's intentions, I don't think that, at least internet-wise, anyone will just embrace them. Did that ever happen since the SNES, outside super-hardcore fans, or those who rout for the underdog? I mean, despite the great DS library most people online seemed to treat them as if Wii (and questionable complaints over it) is all they had to show. And the N64 and Cube most certainly weren't all casual geared or anything. It's just some kind of tradition to basically slam them no matter what, from the Sony dominance days or something, since they were basically the first to bring mainstream casuals and Hollywood-ism into a previously very niche hobby, so many of the now very loud gamers that started gaming that period did so mostly thanks to Sony. Though I suppose it's kinda weird how Microsoft got into the game with no backlash, but I guess they basically also brought Western gaming to console land, with FPS, WRPGs, online and what not which weren't common outside PC previously, so for those who started gaming with Sony (or even Nintendo and SEGA), Microsoft brought a whole new world, which to PC gamers may be just as tired as console types perceive say, Eastern titles, but to them seem new.