Mario Galaxy given 9-month release window

31 Comments by Ross Miller Nov 29th 2006 11:15AM
Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Action, Adventure

Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime has updated Stephen Totilo on the planned release for Super Mario Galaxy. Mark your calendars with a big sharpie drawn across many pages: Fils-Aime expects the game to come out sometime between the end of March and Christmas.

Why not say "by the end of 2007?" Well, it's bad business -- Nintendo has three titles (WarioWare: Smooth Moves, Wii Play, and Mario Party 8) coming out between now and March, and then Metroid Prime 3 seeing a release sometime after March. To say Mario Galaxy is coming out before Christmas gives analysts the clue that it might be poised to elevate their holiday lineup, unless Smash Bros Brawl or some heavy-hitting third-party titles can step up to the plate by then.

Past March 2007, we don't yet know Nintendo's first-party lineup. Fils-Aime hints that some announcements will be coming in January. If Nintendo has learned from their follies with the GameCube, then we should have a consistent release schedule for the next year. If not, then we'll probably get one hit game every now and then, followed by long intervals of drought.

[Update 1: It's StePHen Totilo, not SteVen. The change has been made, you can call your snipers off at anytime now.]

Tags: mario, mario galaxy, MarioGalaxy, super mario galaxy, SuperMarioGalaxy

Read

(Page 1) Reader Comments

Agent MOO: Nov 29th 2006; 11:20AM

Reggie the cable guy FTW!

Flash: Nov 29th 2006; 11:27AM

Nintendo says its not going for graphics, but this Mario game is looking better than most of M$'s games
(plastic of war included)

: Nov 29th 2006; 11:28AM

"If Nintendo has learned from their follies with the GameCube, then we should have a consistent release schedule for the next year."

The problem with GC wasnt that there were huge gaps between AAA launches.

The problem was that there were nearly ZERO third party AAA titles for GC (RE4 exempt). Nintendo fans will wait forever for the AAA Nintendo franchises, but, if they want anything that doesnt have Mario or another Nintendo mascot on it, they have to go elsewhere.

So, the concern shouldnt be the schedule of Nintendo franchises... the concern should be getting third party AAA titles... that DONT SUCK (like RedSteel) and are above and beyond anything availble on PS3/360 (Madden Wii scored marginally better than the GC version).

Brandon: Nov 29th 2006; 11:30AM

I thought this was coming out in March. Now I'm sad. Even more sad that I still don't have a Wii, but this only increases the overall sadness.

crono141: Nov 29th 2006; 11:32AM

Look at DS release schedule. They've learned their lesson.

kiwi: Nov 29th 2006; 11:35AM

Perhaps August 26, 2007... exactly 5 years after Mario Sunshine was released.

Hard to believe it's been 5 years since a "real" Mario game for a console (non handheld) has been released...

On another topic, what about Super Paper Mario? That was supposed to be a GC game released this fall I believe, but it was moved to the Wii...

Fuzz: Nov 29th 2006; 11:38AM

What about Paper Mario??? When the hell do we get that? This better not be one of those games that fades out of existence. I havn't heard anything on it in awhile.

TxdoHawk: Nov 29th 2006; 11:49AM

If the big N is smart, they've been slowly putting together more top-notch teams for first-party development. Sales records have shown that Nintendo's fanbase is there mainly for (suprise!) Nintendo games. Especially with a system like the Wii (where AAA third party titles that really play to the system's strengths will likely be few and far between, especially at the beginning), Nintendo needs to step up and fill those gaps in release.

Will they do that? Tough to say, and this is why I am playing wait and see with the Wii. Remember the DS situation? There was a long, long post-launch drought, and now the system reigns as the top portable, no contest. I bought in early and regretted it...so this time I'm going to play it smart. (I already have a 360 and current-gen systems I can barely keep up with anyway!)

buttlover: Nov 29th 2006; 11:51AM

This game looks better than ms games flash? What are you smoking and were can i get some... Sure the graphics on the wii look nice IF you have a standard definition tv. But some of us have 51 inch lcd hdtvs now and the difference is enourmous between 360 and wii then. Thats why i recommend 360 and ps3 only if people have an hdtv first.

Mikeawesome: Nov 29th 2006; 11:53AM

So it's coming out christmas, then.

Shagi: Nov 29th 2006; 11:54AM

But but Kotaku and Wikipedia said it was comming out before march, how could they be wrong...Reggie doesn't know what hes talking about.

Hunta2097: Nov 29th 2006; 11:55AM

I have to add my support to the "Where's Super Paper Mario" thread... I was REALLY excited about getting that for my GC, only to find the Wii wanted it - which is fine as I wanted the Wii.

The game looked near-finished when shown this year... I WANT MY PAPER MARIO!

Joystiq, I demand you follow this up!

I'm hoping 3rd-party support goes past releasing Wii versions of DS games... i'm not too interest in playing Trauma Center on the Wii as it's not breaking new ground.

]-[

Busterspace: Nov 29th 2006; 11:56AM

Total crap. This was promised as launch or first six months. Thanks Shiggy, thanks a ****ing million.

Silver: Nov 29th 2006; 12:00PM

Waiting a full year for Mario Galaxy would be LAME!!! Hope it ain't so.

OT, who's going to be the first to figure out how to transfer Mii images from my Wiimote to my Mac via Bluetooth?

32_Footsteps: Nov 29th 2006; 12:08PM

Wait, by AAA game, do we mean "absolutely incredible game," or "everyone buys it" game?

Because if we're talking about the former, the GC had the best version of SoulCalibur 2, Resident Evil 4, and Tales of Symphonia. I think those all qualify for the second as well.

Not the murderer's row that Sony had, but still more than often given credit for.

shivr: Nov 29th 2006; 12:13PM

@Mikeawesome

yeah, basically

Bean Counter: Nov 29th 2006; 12:16PM

NINTENDO IS SCREWING US AGAIN!!

Tigidal: Nov 29th 2006; 12:22PM

Screw Mario Galaxy... When does a new MarioKart w/ online multiplayer drop???

Earl: Nov 29th 2006; 12:32PM

On the other hand, I will be more than happy to wait for a polished finished Mario, than a half way done Mario. I expect nothing but quality from Nintendo, and happily waited years for Zelda: TP. Why? Cause I know when Nintendo released TP, it would be excellent and worth the wait.

Earl: Nov 29th 2006; 12:32PM

Shagi!!
Sony's red headed step child...
Must be so frustrating for you that you HAVE to take time out to knock the Wii.
What's it like to be a fanboy of a system you can't even buy until next year? You call me a "troll," shame on you Shagi.

aegies: Nov 29th 2006; 12:42PM

i don't think it's completely fair to blame nintendo alone for the dismal performance of third party software on the gamecube. even the multi-platform games that did release for the system that sold well on other consoles didn't sell well at all on the gamecube (the tom clancy games, for example), because the owners of the system didn't seem interested in buying something if it didn't have mario or a nintendo property prominently featured. third party games that did sell well on the gamecube included soul calibur II (with link, obviously), and nba street vol. 3(?), which had mario and co. featured as a team. if a developer can't sell multi-platform titles on the system, then they will generally be more hesitant to put exclusive third party content on a console. the cheaper development cost for the wii should help get more third parties interested, but just remember: the best selling game on the console so far was nintendo's launch title, by a hefty margin. as long as nintendo's primary audience for their systems remain fans almost exclusively of nintendo's franchises, they're going to have problems.

ackmondual: Nov 29th 2006; 12:53PM

I thought "AAA title" just means it was made by a big company like Nin, Sony, EA, etc. that's big in vid game dev.

Enzo: Nov 29th 2006; 1:48PM

I think that's part of what they're trying to fix though aegis. They're looking at a market that aren't video game fans for the most part. The more casual gamers that buy into the system, the more people that could care less if I game is first or third party, just that it's good.

crono141: Nov 29th 2006; 2:00PM

No, AAA typically means a game of the ultra high quality. Zelda, Gears are AAA. The Sims 2 is not: Though spore will probably be considered AAA. AAA titles are the kinds of titles that are system sellers.

Gamer G: Nov 29th 2006; 2:14PM

The Wii is so cheap and differnt it will sell bucket loads but as normal all 3rd party games will be put in the shadow by the big Nintendo franchies simply because they are such big budget and brilliant everything else seems pointless.

These Nintendo games are more than enougth reason to buy a wii imo.

Mr. Khan: Nov 29th 2006; 4:10PM

I find more interesting the comments on Metroid Prime 3

If they say "after March" i would guess they mean AT LATEST April or May, since AAA Blockbusters are NEVER released between Memorial Day and Mid-August

And i think August 26th, 2007 would be nice and significant for a release date (for SMG)
And remember, Shagi, that tentative Wikipedia launch date was supplied by Best Buy

And quote me on this; Super Smash Bros. Brawl will be released in the same month as Halo 3 (or at most 30 days removed from Halo 3 release)

iFreddy: Nov 29th 2006; 4:21PM

Do you really want them to rush this game?

zenprism: Nov 29th 2006; 5:22PM

I was playing the hell out of Mario 64 up until my Wii up and died yesterday.
So maybe I'll get my Wii back from service before Galaxy drops. Can't wait to play a new Mario.
Also can't wait to get my Wii fixed. Grr...

meta: Nov 29th 2006; 6:06PM

This is Nintendo. And this is Mario. They will take their sweet time and polish it until it's gold, and you will love it.

They will release it when it's perfect, and not a second before.

This game is the TRUE sequel to Mario (previously known as Mario 128). Sunshine was a side project.

When this game releases, it will be 11 years after Mario 64.

Miz: Nov 29th 2006; 8:48PM

If you read some of the latest "Iwata Asks" interviews, you'll get an inside look at how freaking crazy Miyamoto is when he's working on a game. Rest assured, if this game comes out late, it's SOLELY because Miyamoto woke up one morning with a crazy idea that will take several extra months to implement.

watkinzez: Nov 29th 2006; 9:44PM

Wait, people are surprised of the possibility of a Christmas release?

Learn about Rise of the Argonauts in this video interview SOCOM Confrontation: new screens showcase action, UI PixelJunk Eden certainly is different	Bring back the Warlord's Battlegear model WoW Rookie (End of the Semester Edition): Dealing with difficult people Insider Trader: Enchanting, the final stretch
HouseMarque's XBLA game: Golf Tee it Up Frank O'Connor leaves Bungie for more Halos Community Content: Back at Blackout Edition	Headache de Amigo: busy screenshots, possible maracas Dr Mario: Take ten of these screenshots in the morning Friday Video: Tresling
DS Fanboy Lite: May 10 - May 16 Metal Slug 7 trailer introduces new Super Vehicles Nintendo sponsors Handheld Learning Conference	The funky fresh intro of Phantasy Star Portable Bleach: Soul Carnival trailer hidden in Heat the Soul 5 PSP maintains easy dominance in Japan

Breaking News »