Christian:
Good point, Fire Emblem is fantastic. And while the launch was weak, the launch window gave us some of their best titles.
Griffin:
Great graphics, fantastic gameplay and story, and the best CGI I’ve seen in a game. I’ve been starting to feel like, what can the Wii U really offer that my 3DS can’t? Aside from specific games, of course, but that’s just arbitrary and at Nintendo’s discretion. Mario 3D World could work on 3DS, it just wasn’t made for 3DS.
Michael:
Yeah, definitely. I want to get a 3DS again purely for Fire Emblem, but the Wii U failed to make the tablet functionality into a big selling point, whereas the Wii struck a chord with accessible motion controls.
Griffin:
Yes, definitely. Right. And it’s actually very surprising that Nintendo hasn’t capitalized on the tablet. I mean, they were gung-ho on motion with Wii the whole time. So, why not do the same here?
Christian:
Have you guys ever watched Zero Punctuation? He made a good point regarding the tablet. It takes a very defeatist standpoint for games.
Michael:
I guess the tablet has to compete in such a diverse market with iPads and nine kinds of android devices, too. And yeah, actually – I catch his reviews the odd time.
Griffin:
I have watched ZP before – what point does he make about the GamePad?
Christian:
He points out how they’re trying to make console gaming serious and innovative, but then someone comes along and boots you off the TV, so you slink into the corner with your hour left of battery life.
Griffin:
Good old Yahtzee, that crazy bastard. Just crouching with dark circles under your eyes, playing Mario in the corner.
Christian:
It’s supposed to innovate consoles, but instead it solves a problem that doesn’t exist.
Exactly, take your tablet to the prayer closet.
Michael:
Fair point.
Griffin:
Also, if motion didn’t get its true flagship and proof of concept until the end of the Wii’s life with Skyward Sword (in terms of a more hardcore game), that doesn’t bode well for a truly great GamePad game. In the short-term, Nintendo Land did not validate the GamePad in the way that Wii Sports justified the Wiimote. That said, Nintendo Land did have some super fun GamePad concepts that I think are underrated. It could be because it wasn’t bundled at first. Well, not with the basic set; I suppose it was bundled with the Deluxe, but still.
Christian:
The GamePad offers some cool innovations. But the fact that it’s just a gimmick doesn’t bode well. As of now, it just feels like a tacked on peripheral, kind of like a Kinect (just not utterly awful in every way yet).
Michael:
Yeah, absolutely. Even considering that 3D World — a game built exclusively for the console — failed to inject some life into sales figures reflects that.
Nintendo, go home!
Griffin:
Right. And even for, say, a new Zelda – what could they possibly be scheming? Some people (including myself) felt motion Zelda should be the new standard, so I don’t see them shoehorning in the tablet gimmick just because it’s there.
And yeah, perhaps it’s not Kinect awful, but it’s definitely a question mark.
Shall we transition into what they ought to try doing to improve?
Michael:
Sounds good!