Topic: Screw it, I'm making a Devil's Third Topic

[Soren]

Devil’s Third is not a top-tier action game. It’s not even a mid-tier one. But let’s cut through the hyperbole here. No, it’s not much of a looker, but its graphics are not PS2 standard. It’s not the worst game Nintendo has ever published by a long stretch, particularly when you consider the likes of FlingSmash, Pokémon Dash, Super Mario Ball, and Urban Champion. In the pantheon of third-person action games, it’s not as shonky and tedious as Tecmo’s own Quantum Theory, nor as outright hateful as the risible Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z, possibly the most soul-crushingly miserable experience I’ve had in nine years of reviewing games. It’s a mediocre game with considerable performance issues and some laughable AI, but at the same time I’d be lying if I said I didn’t sporadically experience some base pleasures from this knowingly knuckle-headed game.

http://kotaku.com/devils-third-bears-the-scars-of-a-troubled-development-1720361169

[Evan_B]

Again, I don't understand why an action game that's flawed in the same way many action games are flawed is deserving of such flak. Don't people remember the review scores for the Wonderful 101?

[Enner]

Again, I don't understand why an action game that's flawed in the same way many action games are flawed is deserving of such flak.

Well, time is/should be a factor in criticism. Repeating the past mistakes of others should be some additional demerit, whether or not the game in question had enough time to avoid said mistakes.

[Evan_B]

THE HYPE TRAIN CONTINUES

After Famitsu awarded Devil' Third a solid 8, the game rocketed into European territories, receiving scores like these:

GameSpot – 3 / 10 BOOM!
DigitalSpy – 1 / 5 BOOM!
GamesRadar – 1.5 / 5 SPLODEY!
Kotaku – “No” COMBUSTIVE NOISE!

At this point, I must own this game, to see who is right. To see the beautiful train wreck, or the mind-wrecking beauty. This is so exciting.

[ejamer]

THE HYPE TRAIN CONTINUES

After Famitsu awarded Devil' Third a solid 8, the game rocketed into European territories, receiving scores like these:

GameSpot – 3 / 10 BOOM!
DigitalSpy – 1 / 5 BOOM!
GamesRadar – 1.5 / 5 SPLODEY!
Kotaku – “No” COMBUSTIVE NOISE!

At this point, I must own this game, to see who is right. To see the beautiful train wreck, or the mind-wrecking beauty. This is so exciting.

I fully expect the game to be terrible... yet still feel an irrational need to play it.


And since good games like Fatal Frame aren't getting physical releases anyway, what else am I going to go out and buy?  (These grapes, they are sour.)

[Evan_B]

Oh, I will buy Fatal Frame before I buy Devil's Third. I will buy Devil's Third when I have time- it's also releasing around the holiday slaughter that is Xenoblade Chronicles X, Rodea: The Sky Soldier, and Legend of Legacy.

[Ian Sane]

So Nintendo joins up with Team Ninja to make Metroid: Other M and it is absolute ass.  Then they team up with former Team Ninja head Tomonobu Itagaki to make this and it is absolute ass.  If Nintendo ever teams up again with anyone that has ever even so much as interned for Team Ninja I'm going to... bitch about it on the internet!

It must be really frustrating for a company like Nintendo that usually gives a **** about their games being good to put funding into a game like this and realize partway through that it is clearly going to be trash.

You figure this would get a digital release instead of Fatal Frame for the simple reason that you can't trade in digital copies of shitty games. Videogame companies are always afraid of used sales eating into new sales.  Which game is more likely to have owners quickly trade in?  Of course bad reputations also hurt sales so maybe they don't care.

Really terrible games that the publisher KNOWS are terrible usually don't get review copies shipped out to try to conceal bad word-of-mouth as long as possible.  NOA isn't releasing this until December, giving English-speaking European Wii U owners months to spread the word to North American gamers on how stinky this turd is.

[Luigi Dude]

Actually it kind of makes sense for NOA to give it a physical release in the middle of December.  Something like Devil's Third has a little more appeal to the average American audience with all the guns and shooting compared to Fatal Frame.  Release it during the busy holiday season in hopes some uninformed consumers who has plenty of money to spend might think, "hey, this game might be kind of cool" before discovering the tragic truth for themselves later.

Can see why NOA might think this game has a better chance of selling at retail during that time of year.

[Soren]

Can see why NOA might think this game has a better chance of selling at retail during that time of year.

You're giving NOA way too much credit.

[Evan_B]

The Wii U audience for gory, action-packed shooters doesn't exist.

Also, people fault the story in this game for its brevity and lack of detail, but isn't that the issue with all modem shooters? I guess it's only okay when it's not Nintendo. Although it was definitely okay in Splatoon since people didn't give a damn then.

[Luigi Dude]

Bayonetta 2 has sold over 150k retail copies in America so there is a small audience for M rated Wii U titles that still buy physical copies.  Plus just because it's getting a retail release doesn't mean it's getting Mario level shipments sent to stores, if anything it'll probably end up getting the lowest shipment of any game in NOA history since they know it's terrible and have no faith in it.

So yeah, not hard to see why something like this will get a physical release during December, the busiest shopping time of the year to take advantage of the rush in hopes that the already small audience this game could appeal to will impulse buy it.

[Ian Sane]

Bayonetta 2 has sold over 150k retail copies in America so there is a small audience for M rated Wii U titles that still buy physical copies.

I'm guessing the Bayonetta audience has a lot of crossover with the audience that follows gaming news and reviews online.  Still I think NOA should have released Devil's Third in some capacity simply because the Wii U needs every game it can get.  There is a certain value in offering the illusion that games are coming out on a regular basis (though NOA has put this in a cluttered part of the release schedule so they're not even doing THAT right).

[Soren]

Rumor has it that Nintendo of America may have damaged their working relationship with XSEED with their constant waffling over the publishing of Devil's Third. If so, it's a brutal blow. I can understand why XSEED is pissed if they were willing to take a chance with the game, only to have their work ruined by Nintendo's indecision.

[Ian Sane]

Rumor has it that Nintendo of America may have damaged their working relationship with XSEED with their constant waffling over the publishing of Devil's Third. If so, it's a brutal blow. I can understand why XSEED is pissed if they were willing to take a chance with the game, only to have their work ruined by Nintendo's indecision.

Because when you have very few allies the smart thing to do is burn MORE bridges.  Nintendo seems to have a good relationship with indies but I wonder if that's entirely because most indies are new to the industry and Nintendo just hasn't had enough time to make enemies out of them yet.  Hopefully this rumour in unfounded because XSeed publishes good stuff on the 3DS and I don't want to miss out because of Wii U dipshittery.

Aside from the very talented translation team is there anyone at a high level at NOA that brings anything worth a damn to the table?  Might as well clean house.  Most of what NOA does "right" is so routine and expected that you figure anybody with the slightest familiarity with business and videogames could run it as well or better.

[Adrock]

Most of what NOA does "right" is so routine and expected that you figure anybody with the slightest familiarity with business and videogames could run it as well or better.

If that was even remotely true, if just anybody could run a video game company, all of these companies wouldn't have gone out of business. In fact, the reason this is even a discussion is because THQ, a company that had been in the industry for over 20 years, closed down and Devil's Third was left without a publisher.

[Ian Sane]

Most of what NOA does "right" is so routine and expected that you figure anybody with the slightest familiarity with business and videogames could run it as well or better.

If that was even remotely true, if just anybody could run a video game company, all of these companies wouldn't have gone out of business. In fact, the reason this is even a discussion is because THQ, a company that had been in the industry for over 20 years, closed down and Devil's Third was left without a publisher.

NOA isn't so much of a videogame company but more of a regional distribution branch of the actual videogame company in NCL.  Their main role is to sell NCL's products in the United States.  If NOA goes out of business it will be because NCL themselves committed THQ levels of incompetence.  THQ went tits up because of their idiotic uDraw product which is well beyond what NCL allows NOA to do.

Anyway NOA appear to be way more incompetent then their European equivalent so I question the value in the current leadership in that branch.  What do the people on top bring to the table, aside from being not THQ terrible, that makes it worth keeping them?

[Adrock]

NOA isn't so much of a videogame company but more of a regional distribution branch of the actual videogame company in NCL.

Irrelevant. Using your qualifier of "anybody with the slightest familiarity with business and videogames," they're the same people.

NOA appear to be way more incompetent then their European equivalent

Le sigh. I don't have the energy to get into a big thing over why this is incorrect.

[BranDonk Kong]

The reviews are in! The game is terrible.

[ShyGuy]

The reviews are in! The game is terrible.

Your mom is terrible.

[NWR_insanolord]

The reviews are in! The game is terrible.

Your mom is terrible.

I can speak from firsthand experience when I say that this is indeed true.

[BranDonk Kong]

Hey, keep my mom out of this, and I'll keep this out of your mom. HI-YOOOOO!

[ShyGuy]

Official North American box art:



GET READY PEOPLE

[Phil]

I prefer the Japanese box art, but I can understand why Nintendo of America went for something more in-your-face for the American market. Still, I don't think I'm going to get this game, but I hope those that do enjoy it.

[Evan_B]

I do hope the box is actualy that shade of sickeningly greenish blue.

[Shaymin]

This is the one we're running with:

(h/t to hacker alias AgentLampshade)