Time magazine previews Wii, Wario Ware, and Zelda: TP
by Blake Snow 
{ May 7th 2006 at 8:45PM }
Time Magazine recently got their hands on Nintendo's next-gen console Wii for a full-featured article in the publication's upcoming issue (May 15, 2006). Though the article has yet to surface online or in print, some excerpts have surfaced via Lexis-Nexis and provide playable details for a new Wario Ware Wii, a tennis game, and Zelda: Twilight Princess control details.In regards to playing the above three mentioned games, the article had this to say: "It's a remarkable experience. Instead of passively playing the games, with the new controller you physically perform them... The sense of immersion--the illusion that you, personally, are projected into the game world--is powerful. And there's an instant party atmosphere in the room."
We'll have our grubby hands on this thing in only two days... More to come.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
AC @ May 7th 2006 8:57PM
So what was the point of this article? lol jk , see everyone loves the Wiivolution :-D VIVE LA WIIVOLUTION!!!
Madster @ May 7th 2006 8:58PM
Only two days!! I'm really excited for this E3, as I haven't been in a long while. Nintendo don't let us down! and Sony, do show actual games please!
It's a good time to be a gamer ;)
jay @ May 7th 2006 8:58PM
I honestly think this will be the greatest gaming experience ever. I simply cannot wait to get a Rev/Wii. My interest in the other consoles has just gone downhill. I think Nintendo was right when they said "beefing up games doesn't do it" and "this will cause a gaming revolution".
LongshotX @ May 7th 2006 9:03PM
I can just see angry mothers yelling at their kids in Wal-Mart when they see them waving controllers and pretending they are like swords and boomrangs, etc.
Revadarth @ May 7th 2006 9:07PM
Some excepts have surfaced eh? Exceptions, or just excepts?
Angus @ May 7th 2006 9:08PM
Wario Ware Wii? The wiivolution can't come soon enough!
en sabur nur @ May 7th 2006 9:08PM
These testers are exactly the market that nintendo is going for. these guys are probably people who dabbled in games before, but after playing the revo... wii, they wanted more. This is great for nintendo, since the support for this port will increase as up and coming developers see the system as a tool to show their creations to the mass as a whole. Basically; crazy innovative games that will never see the light of day on systems that require millions to develop and distribute clones.
Nick @ May 7th 2006 9:11PM
Whole thing is up on lexis nexis, if you have access. Just read the article, and its good to hear someone so enthused about Nintendo's latest.
Good luck searching!
Imadogg99 @ May 7th 2006 9:19PM
4. "Some excepts have surfaced eh? Exceptions, or just excepts?"
Either they fixed the post and didn't give you credit, or it said "excerpts" and not "excepts" all along...
G @ May 7th 2006 9:24PM
Article here:
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.video.nintendo/browse_frm/thread/0c34d048d64a8afd/1a7d188027394f91#1a7d188027394f91/
Daniel D @ May 7th 2006 9:46PM
I wonder if that boy was really Autistic or if he was just a model for the front, or perhaps even weirder he could have been an autistic boy model which would be quite a coincedence.
Shiggy @ May 7th 2006 9:49PM
You forgot Bunny Hopper. It was mentioned in a side bar:
"Another game I was given to try out was a completely new game currently codenamed Bunny Hopper. Shigeru Miyamoto explained that this was a game that he has been working the most on and he believes that it will be the next Nintendo smash hit. Bunny Hopper is a game much like Mario, except you control a rabbit named Fred. The way you control the rabbit is unique as you use two remotes to move him around. Shigeru Miyamoto explains that this game will show gamers the type of gameplay that is possible using these new controllers. I was impressed in my brief playtime with the game and I look forward to playing the full version when it is released."
vidGuy @ May 7th 2006 9:53PM
Ahem!
"After Warioware, we play scenes from the upcoming Legend of Zelda
title, Twilight Princess, a moody, dark (by Nintendo's Disneyesque
standards) fantasy adventure. Now I'm Errol Flynn, sword fighting with
the controller, then aiming a bow and arrow, then using it as a fishing
rod, reeling in a stubborn virtual fish. "
Freddy Q @ May 7th 2006 10:34PM
After Warioware, we play scenes from the upcoming Legend of Zelda
title, Twilight Princess, a moody, dark (by Nintendo's Disneyesque
standards) fantasy adventure. Now I'm Errol Flynn, sword fighting with
the controller, then aiming a bow and arrow, then using it as a fishing
rod, reeling in a stubborn virtual fish. The third game, and probably
the most fun, is also the simplest: tennis. The controller becomes a
racket, and I'm smacking forehands and stroking backhands. The sensors
are fine enough that you can scoop under the ball to lob it, or slice
it for spin. At the end, I don't so much put the controller down as
have it pried from my hands.
John Schappert, a senior vice president at Electronic Arts, is
overseeing a version of the venerable Madden football series for
Nintendo's new hardware. He sees the controller from the auteur's
perspective, as an opportunity but also a huge challenge. "Our
engineers now have to decipher what the user is doing," he says. "'Is
that a throw gesture? Is it a juke? A stiff arm?' Everyone knows how to
make a throwing motion, but we all have our own unique way of
throwing." But consider the upside: you're basically playing football
in your living room. "To snap the ball, you 'snap' the remote back
toward your body, which hikes the ball," Schappert says. "No buttons to
press, just gesture a hiking motion, and the ball's in the hands of the
QB. To pass the ball, you gesture a throwing motion. Hard, fast
gestures result in bullet passes. Slower, less forceful, gestures
result in loftier, slower lob passes. It truly plays like nothing
you've ever experienced."
Of course, hardware is only half the picture. The other half is the
games themselves. "We created a task force internally at Nintendo,"
Iwata says, "whose objective was to come up with games that would
attract people who don't play games." Last year they set out to design
a game for the elderly. Amazingly, they succeeded. Brain Age is a set
of electronic puzzles (including Sudoku) that purports to keep aging
minds nimble. It was released for one of Nintendo's portable platforms,
the Nintendo DS, last year. So far, it has sold 2 million copies, many
of them to people who had never bought a game before.
The real demographic grail for any game publisher is, of course, girls.
And although females have historically been largely impervious to the
charms of video gaming, Nintendo has made inroads even there, with
products so offbeat that they barely qualify as games at all. In
Nintendogs, the object is to raise and train a cute puppy.
Electroplankton can only be described as a game about farming tiny
singing microbes (surely every woman's dream?). In Animal Crossing, you
take up residence in a tiny cartoon town where you plant flowers and go
fishing and design shirts. You can visit other players' towns and trade
shirts with them. The reaction from traditional gamers tends to be
'Fine, but who do I shoot at?' But Animal Crossing is a hit, and
Nintendogs has sold 6 million copies. (Incidentally, Miyamoto points
out that Animal Crossing wasn't originally designed for girls. "Many
female schoolchildren are purchasing and enjoying it," he says,
cracking himself up. "Also ladies in their 20s. But the fact of the
matter is, this game was developed by middle-aged guys in their 30s and
40s. They just wanted to create something to play themselves.")
It has always been Nintendo's habit, maybe even its compulsion, to bet
its big franchises from time to time. That's one reason it has been
able to transform itself so completely over the years; it began life in
the late 19th century as a playing-card manufacturer. It's also the
main reason the company keeps really large reserves of cash handy, in
case things go awry. Look at the disastrous Virtual Boy, a 3-D game
system that was released in 1995 and retired, unmourned and largely
unsold, in 1996. Look at the name they come up with for their new
console. For years it was known by the predictable but perfectly
serviceable code name Revolution. It has now been rechristened the
Nintendo Wii, an unreadable, unintelligible (that daunting double-i!)
syllable. (For the record, it's pronounced "we," and the i's are
supposed to represent the new controller ... never mind.)
But the name Wii not wii-thstanding, Nintendo has grasped two important
notions that have eluded its competitors. The first is, Don't listen to
your customers. The hard-core gaming community is extremely vocal--they
blog a lot--but if Nintendo kept listening to them, hard-core gamers
would be the only audience it ever had. "[Wii] was unimaginable for
them," Iwata says. "And because it was unimaginable, they could not say
that they wanted it. If you are simply listening to requests from the
customer, you can satisfy their needs, but you can never surprise them.
Sony and Microsoft make daily-necessity kinds of things. They have to
listen to the needs of the customers and try to comply with their
requests. That kind of approach has been deeply ingrained in their
minds."
And here's the second notion: Cutting-edge design has become more
important than cutting-edge technology. There is a persistent belief
among engineers that consumers want more power and more features. That
is incorrect. Look at Apple's iPod, a device that didn't and doesn't do
much more than the competition. It won because it's easier, and sexier,
to use. In many ways, Nintendo is the Apple of the gaming world, and
it's betting its future on the same wisdom. The race is not to him who
hulas fastest, it's to him who looks hottest doing it.
Angus @ May 7th 2006 11:05PM
Had to copy/paste it all? :|
BOB @ May 7th 2006 11:10PM
How ironic is it that the main article is on autism, when "Wiimote" sounds like it is "Remote" being said by a kid with autism!?! I think it's funny.
John Lucas @ May 7th 2006 11:45PM
There's no doubt about it.
Wii is the future of gaming.
Nobody else really matters.
The next generation belongs to Nintendo.
It was inevitable.
Sony puts out some good stuff but they are just a paper tiger. Nintendo STILL rules this industry and always has.
The Wii will remind the doubters who runs this show & I can't.
Nintendo is the best thing to happen to the videogame industry since the invention of the videogame industry.
Call these statements 'fanboy' & such if you'd like; I don't care.
I appreciate the competition but the truth of the matter is without Nintendo gaming loses its luster.
Bring on the Wii at E3!!!
John Lucas
(that name gets less & less weird the more you say it. Who'da thunk it?! Revolution is starting to sound more & more foreign)
alraydius @ May 7th 2006 11:49PM
"....Bunny Hopper is a game much like Mario, except you control a rabbit named Fred. The way you control the rabbit is unique as you use two remotes to move him around..."
Two remotes? I wonder if the reporter was calling both the wiimote and the nunchuck as two remotes? Or two wiimotes, period. This goes back to when someone stated the two 'i's in wii may indicate two remotes coming with the system. And being a new-Miyamoto IP and probably system launch title (or pack in?), it doesnt seem far from the truth. I hope so. Wii means We. We doesn't mean I drop 200 on the system and then 30 on a remote so wii can play together.
John Lucas @ May 7th 2006 11:56PM
*correction*
that line was supposed to read:
"I can't wait!"
(wish they had an edit mode on this blogboard :P )
John Lucas
Saint Vegas @ May 8th 2006 12:34AM
"And because it was unimaginable, they could not say
that they wanted it. If you are simply listening to requests from the customer, you can satisfy their needs, but you can never surprise them."
headshot!
(iwata ownz gamers, omg hacks)
C-Dub @ May 8th 2006 1:01AM
If the Bunny Hopper game requires two controllers to play the game - it's a pretty safe bet that the system will come with two controllers!!! YEAH!!!!
-C
raindog @ May 8th 2006 1:10AM
Kids with autism don't usually have speech impediments; usually they just don't talk at all.
Paul Gale @ May 8th 2006 2:19AM
Wow, excellent news. Time Magazine revealing Wario Ware for Nintendo Wii, plus making it seem even more likely that Zelda: Twilight Princess will have two different versions availabe is huge. The new issue of EGM goes on sale May 15th however, and there's an exclusive big story on the Nintendo Wii in it. Don't pass this one up!
Paul Gale
1up.com
nootau @ May 8th 2006 2:30AM
I think they should release it differently, maybe a collectors version that has Wii packaging, with it on a DVD instead of miniDVD. And they could release the regular version as a miniDVD for stores.
For marketing, they should market it as a last gen gamecube game. Unless they have upgraded the graphics to be Wii graphics, it will look dated. They should not market those dated graphics as Wii graphics. People who would pre-order the collector version would understand (those who would care if it was a Wii Disc or Gamecube Disc....i'd personally, as a hard core gamer, would prefer it on Wii DVD) that it is not Wii graphics.
Most people who are not keeping up with the industry would wonder why the graphics are so bad compared to a PS3 or Xbox 360 so they must market it as a Gamecube title.
idioteraser @ May 8th 2006 3:02AM
nootau ah PS3 titles will not look any different from 360 titles. Most gamecube games look better then most 360 games already released.
I hate to tell you but they will not release two different versions if they are smart. They will just have two minidvds.
Two different versions is double dipping which a lot of people got to hate with dvds.
Twlight Princess was always meant to be a gamecube title. Miyamoto is a perfectionist. If he delays a game it always turns up far better then any other delayed game.
When he delays a game expect to be surprised.
They are only adding wiimote support because they can if it wasn't delayed it wouldn't have had the support added.
Deth @ May 8th 2006 5:53AM
^no offense dude, but you are blind. gamecube games look better than 360 games? i think YOU should have been on the front cover of the time magazine. you are the second or third person ive seen with that opinion. how long will this farce perpetuate?
Cheers!
chiax @ May 8th 2006 7:00AM
Two big reservations about the wii that I have out here which I hope joystiq and its readers help to answer is this:
1. With this new way to play games, don't our arms get tired from waving the remote around a lot? Sure it might be fun, but what about long durations of play? Can our arms take the stress? I'm talking about 2-3 hours of gameplay here.
Compared with the standard joypad that the 360 and probably the ps3 will (probably) adopt, which one would you play longer?
The joypad is a tried and true concept which can let us play for long hours. I'm not so sure about the wii.
2. Force feedback or rather in this case, force holdback.Say for sword fighting games, the remote acts very much like a hilt to a sword. You see your opponent, you swing. Clang! Your sword hits your opponent's blade. But you don't actually feel any force holding your sword back, get what I mean? Will this break the realism? Yes I do know force feedback is built in but you just dont feel the enemy's blade holding you back.
Opinions are very much appreciated. If these two doubts are cleared, then I will say wii is the revolution! (pun intended)
Gazbin @ May 8th 2006 7:10AM
I am fast turning off Microsoft & Sony. I don't like where they are taking the video gaming industry.
Both of these cowboys want to put advertising into games. If I buy a DVD Movie, I sure won't cop advertisements so why would I accept seeing it in a game that I just spent good money for? NO ADS IN GAMES! (Google: ? Microsoft game advertising ?)
Both Microsoft and Sony support the use of Spyware. (Google: " Sony Spyware Music ", and " Microsoft Bill for Spyware ") How can we trust them with online gaming? They will want to tie in our usage patterns (What we play, when we play, and with whom) and sell it to the highest bidder.
Both Microsoft & Sony want to serve up video games the same way as todays bland movie studios serve up their movies and TV shows. Remove: script, acting quality, originality, heart & sole and replace with cheap eye candy special effects and marketing hype. The game studios are making a narrow band of games (must be based on an existing ?franchise? and then churn out episode add-ons like a sausage factory. I play games because I am bored with the crap range of movies & TV shows.
Both Microsoft & Sony want to rent us games on-line instead of allowing us to purchasing outright. They don't like us playing our games too long, or selling / trading in games, or worst of all; swapping with our buddies. They want dumb people who will consume often.
Both Microsoft & Sony are over-marketing the game industry. I bored with the monotonous language used by the pseudo hip game designers. Count the number of times they say ?we are excited? or ?delivery of innovative content?. Blah blah blah. Bang!
The Sony formula for success: Over hype under deliver + Proprietary lock-in formats, DRM and Spyware + jack off marketing people = BORING!!!! Time to take a financial bath.
Go get em Nintendo.
idioteraser @ May 8th 2006 7:47AM
Deth go play gamecube games such as Metroid Prime, Resident Evil 4, Rouge Leader and several others.
They easily blow anything the xbox has out of the water. They look better then anything the 360 has as well.
Most people who own a 360 now have it in their closet or traded it in. Sheesh why do you think the Japanese take more on a trade in on a DS then a 360 or sell 360 games for 20 bucks brand new when these same games sell close to seventy bucks in America? Because people are not impressed with xbox 2 since it doesn't have any graphical leap over what exists now.
idioteraser @ May 8th 2006 7:52AM
You don't wave your arm around if need be. Most people already make those motions the revmote needs when they play if they are a nongamer. Watch what happens when you hand a racing title to someone they often jerk the controller as if it was a sterring wheel.
If your arms get tired then you need the exercise the wiimote gives you.
Nick. @ May 8th 2006 9:24AM
That's odd; where'd the article in Google Groups go?
PeteL @ May 8th 2006 10:43AM
Hey idiot - Gamecube has better graphics than xbox 360? That's ridiculous. You must comparing the systems on a 19" TV. Do you even have a 360? Try playing some GR:AW, FN3, PGR3, COD2 and Oblivion on a large screen HDTV.
I know... games are not all about graphics. I am really looking forward to Wii.
DCSimian @ May 8th 2006 11:03AM
Games like Metroid Prime, Resident Evil 4 and Rogue Leader are fantastic visual accomplishments, but I do think it's a bit of a far cry to say that they are better in visuals than 360 games. They are certainly impressive for the last generation of systems, and yes, they are on par with some games of the upcoming Gen, but I wouldn't say better. Don't get me wrong, I think they look great. But play Fight Night 3, GRAW, and/or Oblivion...they look damn good.
Anyway...Viva la Wii! (I think I've finally come to terms with it...) It's great that TIME magazine did an article on it. They need more mainstream magazines to give it coverage...any chance to get in a Rolling Stone issue? That would be rad!
helo @ May 8th 2006 11:28AM
idioteraser
stop acting like a damn fanboy. Most 360's are in the closet and not being used? That's the stupidest statement ever. Do you have proof of that because everyone I know with a 360 plays it all the time.
I HAVE a Gamecube and played Metroid Prime and the AMAZING Resident Evil 4. No doubt they are fantastic and I love my gamecube and the Wii will sit right next to it in the future. But apparently you're either Hellen Keller's long lost brother, just another nintendo fanboy or own a tv from 1988. The 360 graphics are sharper, higher-def and amazingly more detailed. It's hard to go back to pre-high-def graphics on the older systems although I'll admit to playing Resident Evil 4 on Gamecube because it is and always will be fantastic. And even though the Wii won't be high-def, the controller is compelling enough for me to buy it and enjoy it.
And that's what I'm getting at. ENJOY the games (all of them no matter what system!) and stop acting like a blind fanboy to one and perpetuating stupid blatantly false statements about other systems.
Matters @ May 8th 2006 2:25PM
idioteraser: I don't agree with you at all and I'm a Nintendo fanboy. Those games you listed don't look better than almost ANY 360 game even when they aren't in HD.
Although I do think RE4 is probably more fun than just about any 360 game that is out right now.
Marc @ May 8th 2006 5:11PM
AC
You took my catchphrase and tweaked it! *high-five*
VIVA LA REVOLUTION!
Deth @ May 8th 2006 8:31PM
Idiot- i have played those games and beaten them(and many others). I still cannot believe you think GC has better graphics.
I do not keep my 360 in the closet as I still play it more than every other system. The only game that is played even close to the time i spend on the 360 is Guitar Hero.
Cheers!
GTG @ May 8th 2006 9:48PM
"Instead of passively playing the games..."
Damn it, I like to sit back and "relax" to play video games. I go to the gym to work out. I sit back and play video games when I want to relax and have some fun.
I don't see why some people are so obsessed with the idea that everyone is really dying to flail/wave/flap/swing/flick their controllers in order to try to enjoy a game. I've already got enough hand/wrist stress from computing and gaming as it is. It's understandable for niche, short-timespan of play titles is fine (DDR, Guitar Hero, Light Gun games, etc), but not as a primary control mechanism for a majority of games...especially not for extensive games with long levels. It's not like these control methods are really that new or revolutionary.
GTG @ May 8th 2006 9:56PM
I'm not a Sony fan by any means (I've had gripes with their consumer gear since before they even thought of the Playstation) and I think they definitely talk the most 100% BS, but...
"Over hype under deliver + Proprietary lock-in formats..."
Can you say N64 and cartridges? Gamecube and its discs? Nintendo is by no means a spotless player in the industry either...not by far.
Gazbin @ May 21st 2006 4:26AM
GTG
"Over hype under deliver + Proprietary lock-in formats..." Sure there have always been proprietary media for games, but Sony wants to own the proprietary media for Games, Movies, Music - everything. The problem is that they are not good leaders. They lie too much, cannot innovate, are difficult to deal with, are selfish, are relatively low tech (compared to their peers) and have a poor track record (Betamax, Minidisk, A-Trac, AIT, Memorystick, UMD etc...).
When you see things like the "Sony Rootkit scandal" where they where caught loading in Spyware and virus programs into their music CD's you kind of know that Sony is untrustworthy.
The hype, the 100% marketing BS, and the outright lies they spew just adds to the stench that surrounds them now days. Sony has no credibility left. So who cares that they are dying.