Nintendo's CES Announcement: What the Hell?

[Allegro]

Someone explain this to me. This can only make things more difficult for developers that want to work with Nintendo. They keep distancing themselves from a cooperative business scheme.

Confused devs respond.  

[dragn99]

Well, if Nintendo wants to do that with their own games......

Though hope they don't make it mandatory for other developers. Because yes, that would really just distance them from third party developers.  

[Waynebrizzle]

It's kind of a dumb idea now that I've thought about it.

I doubt it'll become something mandatory though.  

[Zephyrkitty]

Honestly, it can be kind of fun to watch someone play a game. I've had plenty of times where I'll be at a friend's house or at school and I end up watching someone else play through whatever part of the game they happen to be at; sometimes there's even a crowd watching and commenting on everything. That said, it's not nearly as fun when you can't talk to the person playing and suggest that they start spamming some move because the name or animation makes everyone laugh.

It would also eliminate the need for walkthroughs, which would be nice if people still paid for them.

I'll hold out my final thoughts until I see it implemented, but I can't see myself using this very much.  

[Ennokni]

Well, it's not like you have to do this if you're playing the game, so I guess it doesn't really matter. But it does seem kind of lame, the more stuff Nintendo adds to the Wii to make it more casual, the more I feel like one day playground bullies will make fun of me for being a wuss and having a Nintendo. Of course, being bigger than them, I'd punch 'em in the face.

How does game producer Ben Mattes talk in parenthesis's? I didn't know it was possible to do that verbally.  

[BlueSparker]

Where's the love? (sheds tear)
The timeless hours in my opinion, is what makes the game enjoyable and gives that feeling of accomplishment when you finish the game. This might sound dumb but...It's like Pokesaving your team in Pokemon D/P/Plat. instead of breeding and raising them. It sounds dumb. I mean you can make teams quicker and can afford to make mistakes but where's the love in that?  

[Meta_Fish]

It lets people skip through portions if they get too hard, right? Why aren't we bitching about how Nintendo is only patenting ideas for the casual gamers, then?

But really, this isn't going to be mandatory for other developers. I don't see why people are getting their panties tied in a knot. It's not the first time something like this has been made either, this is just on another level. I don't see what there is to be worried about anyway, because if Miyamoto is patenting this, then I think he knows what he's doing, since it's his idea.

Reading some of the confused developers comments, I don't see how they can be confused. Hopefully they just reread it a few times and can understand.

Ben Mattes, Producer of Ubisoft's Prince of Persia

"I read through it quickly, but I'm not sure I fully understand it yet. It makes sense to me in a purely linear game, but as soon as we get sand-box, or even remotely open ended, the number of variables would seem to invalidate the potential of this system.

ie: I'm in Fallout3 and have focused energy on sneak and unarmed combat. If I'm in a particular point in the game I can't pass, and I use this system, what 'recording' could the game know to use? It can't possibly have developer walkthroughs of all possible configurations of a character and strategies to pass through each in-game challenge. More likely as not, it would have one 'right' way to pass through a particular challenge...

It's not going to show you exactly how to pass through this scenario with all of the enemies laid out exactly as they are when you get stuck, with the same amount of ammo and the same amount of upgrades, other variables, etc. Honestly, its going to be used for something like a Zelda game, where you're stuck in a dungeon and you don't know what to do, so you watch a little video of the developer in that point, and then you can figure it out.

For a sandbox game, it could even work well. It's most likely not going to tell you what to do when you're just walking around aimlessly, but once you get into a mission or into a real part of the game, I'm sure it would be enabled and help you for puzzle solving or boss fighting.

Todd Howard, Game Director of Bethesda

"Most people stop playing a certain game because they get frustrated or confused by what the game wants them to do. It becomes work and frustration, as opposed to ‘playtime.’ This idea clearly tries to alleviate that. It’s much like passing the controller to someone who knows the game really well, so you can move ahead or simply enjoy the story. It’s the classic ‘challenge or entertain’ issue that designers often deal with. I think there’s a lot of ways around that, and remained confused by what people are actually allowed to patent these days."

I actually understand why he's confused. xd Now that Nintendo is patenting it, will no one else be able to use it? Alone in the Dark is known for using it, so if they made a new game, would they have to go through Miyamoto?

Michael Wilford, CEO Twisted Pixel Games

Kind Code is an interesting idea that is squarely aimed at reaching non-gamers.

And there it is! Because I, you, and your hardcore friends never get stuck in games. Ever. Otherwise, this guy actually seems to understand it.

It's a cool idea, one that I wish was retroactive or something, so I could see how to get past certain points in retro games, where I generally get stuck. In fact, I hope to see that become reality.

Edit:

BlueSparker

Where's the love? (sheds tear)
The timeless hours in my opinion, is what makes the game enjoyable and gives that feeling of accomplishment when you finish the game. This might sound dumb but...It's like Pokesaving your team in Pokemon D/P/Plat. instead of breeding and raising them. It sounds dumb. I mean you can make teams quicker and can afford to make mistakes but where's the love in that?

Think of it for a game like Zelda, instead. A competitive game is likely not to use something like this that often, but a single player experience could benefit greatly. Think about the last time you played a Zelda game, and that one boss you couldn't figure out how to kill, or what you had to do in the Water Temple or what have you.  

[5ir Psycho 5exy]

Handsfree gaming. I....don't like it.

I would enjoy this if it were something you could unlock in a New Game+ for replays, to skip past the boring parts you didn't really like doing, and maybe, maybe even that saving grace when you're hopelessly stuck in a handicapped playthrough, but I disapprove of the title screen turning into a DVD menu of sorts. neutral It might sell more casual gamers on to the idea of 'hardcore' games that they previously could never have gotten through, and in the end it will most likely sell more games (Which means more than all the complaints of the world combined), but it's just not right.

Nintendo's done worse, though. Let's not forget Mario on Ice. xd  

[Allegro]

My biggest biggest issue with this decision is not with the system itself. Harnessed properly, it could be very useful. I'd like to see the technology itself before I come to a conclusion, but I'm optimistic.

I'm more concerned with the attitude that Nintendo is taking as a business. I think we can all agree that Nintendo has made a miraculous bounce back form the brink to take the lead in the console wars, from a business standpoint. Remarkably, they've done so with a lack of third party support. Nintendo seems to have forgotten that it was that same lack of third party support which almost killed them in the days of the 64 and the Cube.

So now when it would be an ideal opportunity to embrace third parties, the board must have had a meeting that went like this:

"Hey, you know what we should do? Pioneer technology that will make it harder for developers to work with our systems!"

And I'm aware that it probably won't be mandatory, but how are you going to regard Nintendo if you're a dev? They seem like they're giving everyone the cold shoulder.  

[5ir Psycho 5exy]

I don't really see it as too much of a problem, on the business front. It'll be something interesting that only the Wii has, and there'll probably be a way around it. Since walkthroughs don't sell anymore, they could commission outside companies to create the assistant playthroughs to take out the headache for the developers. And since it's a big HEY ******** YOU to the Action Replay, which can mess up your games, who wouldn't be in on it?

Thinking about it more, I would think this should pique the developers' curiosity and compel them to work with Nintendo in a sky's-the-limit way. It would open limitless doors if suddenly, nobody had to stop worrying about the tasks set in their games being too hard, and it would do wonders for their games if they didn't get 'i rented it but couldnt find the kokiri sword n gave up lolol' word of mouth.

But then, who knows, maybe they're trying to duck out of games and back into loveshacks. Which would be awesome beyond words.  

[Denko]

Allegro

My biggest biggest issue with this decision is not with the system itself. Harnessed properly, it could be very useful. I'd like to see the technology itself before I come to a conclusion, but I'm optimistic.

I'm more concerned with the attitude that Nintendo is taking as a business. I think we can all agree that Nintendo has made a miraculous bounce back form the brink to take the lead in the console wars, from a business standpoint. Remarkably, they've done so with a lack of third party support. Nintendo seems to have forgotten that it was that same lack of third party support which almost killed them in the days of the 64 and the Cube.

So now when it would be an ideal opportunity to embrace third parties, the board must have had a meeting that went like this:

"Hey, you know what we should do? Pioneer technology that will make it harder for developers to work with our systems!"

And I'm aware that it probably won't be mandatory, but how are you going to regard Nintendo if you're a dev? They seem like they're giving everyone the cold shoulder.

I know if I was a big publishing corporation this would just appear to me as money wasted in extra development, leading me to skip the Wii and just go to 360 and PS3.
Even if it is optional, it just seems like from a economic standpoint, the Wii is just a hassle for businesses because of how different it is.
It means less great games for the Wii because of the nonstandardness of it all- basically the extra time it takes to port a game or something like that.
The developers and publishers are definitely not really risking their money making a Wii game, since the console is selling so well. But it's hard to ignore the feeling that publishers, in order to be as cost-effective as possible, would generally lean towards the more standard consoles as the way to release their flagship titles.  

[Allegro]

Denko

[
It means less great games for the Wii because of the nonstandardness of it all- basically the extra time it takes to port a game or something like that.

o hai 64 and cube how r u  

[nerdyninja]

This looks like something that really takes away the edge of beating that really ******** hard game. I was thinking about something like any of the LoZ games and I thought it was just kinda meh.  

[Xilo The Odd]

nintendo is trying to hard. they just need to develop MORE games not make each one easy for everyone.  

[Meta_Fish]

I don't see how they're giving people the cold shoulder. They're making something for their own games, so what? Nintendo made and patented Wii Sports, but did that stop developers from making other sport and mini-game games for the Wii using the Wiimote intuitively? No, it didn't. They're most likely copyrighting the name of whatever this program is, but other developers can most likely put something like it into their games if they see fit, but I think other developers are going to be too proud to embrace the idea, because it's going to be "ruining gaming as a media" just as everything else Nintendo does.

Denko, are you seriously thinking that the developers/publishers are going to go to 360 and PS3 because of something like this? The Wii is cheaper to develop for than the PSP, and it's the most successful gaming console on the market right now, with shitted out titles becoming million-sellers all the time. I don't think that Nintendo putting this program into some of their own games is going to ward off any potential developers.