Topic: Radio Free Nintendo: Episode 143

[Yoshidious]

In the absence of Jonny, Nick DiMola joins the RFN crew to talk Excitebots, Punch-Out!!, Billy Mitchell, and to speculate like there's no tomorrow.
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/podcastArt.cfm?artid=18284

 Episode 143: Standard Deviation    

 Download in AAC Format          Subscribe to AAC Feed    

Download in MP3 Format          Subscribe to MP3 Feed    

Subscribe via iTunes (Please rate and review, too!)    

Jonny couldn't join us for this episode, so Greg sits in as host and Nick DiMola joins the rest of the RFN crew to share his early thoughts on Excitebots: Trick Racing ahead of his review. Also in New Business: James ventures deeper into red-and-black virtual reality with Wario Land, Greg discovers how many more VC Arcade games the Japanese market already has than everywhere else, and Jon re-enters the workforce with his backlog of unfinished game reviews still intact.    

Listener mail gives everyone a chance to express their disbelief at both the omission of SD card music support for Excitebots and the very existence of Billy Mitchell before heading into the news. Following some musing on sales numbers, the Wii MotionPlus/Sports Resort launch schedule and new Punch-Out!! details, we close things out by indulging in what we do best (or at least most): baseless speculation about future Nintendo titles!    

Don't forget, the fifth RetroActive feature title is the (in)famously uncompromising Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts, but don't be afraid to join in with the discussion on our forums because your comments could appear among our war stories in Episode 144.      

Credits:    

This podcast was edited by Greg Leahy.    

Music for this episode of Radio Free Nintendo is used with permission from Jason Ricci & New Blood. You can purchase their new album, Rocket Number 9, directly from the record label, or download it from iTunes, or call your local record store and ask for it!  

[AV]

listening right now. The virtual boy discussion reminds me of

Angry Video Game Nerd Virtual Boy

 

Space harrier video

and

Starblade video

[Plugabugz]

RFN/RT are the only two things keeping me same amongst all my exams. MORE PLEASE.

[Jonnyboy117]

It's always exciting to download an RFN that I haven't heard yet.

[Crimm]

It's always exciting to download an RFN that I haven't heard yet.

PREPARE TO BE LETDOWN

[NWR_insanolord]

So did you not get my listener mail or was it just too awful to read?

[Plugabugz]

It's always exciting to download an RFN that I haven't heard yet.

PREPARE TO BE LETDOWN

*patiently waits for Kid Icarus Party*

[TJ Spyke]

I would like to point out that Mitchell is not the bad guy that "The King of Kongs" makes him out to be. He is a lot nicer and the documentary was edited and filmed in a way to deliberately make him look like the bad guy. I think EGM or GI actually had an article and interview with him where they detailed all the inaccuracies in it designed to make him look bitter and a bad guy. The guy is the best in the world at Donkey Kong, the best are always gonna get hated on.

[yoshi1001]

Gotta sell those DVDs somehow, TJ.

One other possibility for the "mystery game"-I don't know if they could improve the controls enough from the WiiMote scheme, but a DS Smash Bros. game would certainly shake things up for the holiday season. Hey, I can dream, can't I?

By the way, it took 17 years for Nintendo to fix the Power Glove with the WiiMote, so we should have a working Virtual Boy successor in 2012.

[TJ Spyke]

I am not saying I don't understand why they did it, not sure I would do the same thing though (I hate it when a documentary maker takes a bias approach towards their subject).

Regarding the game Nintendo wants GameStop to hold space for. I pretty much agree that the only thing I can really see it being (if Nintendo really did tell them it's a core game) is the new Mario or Zelda Wii games. These two teams have been working for quite some time.

[Jonnyboy117]

A documentary is a work of art like any other film, and it's impossible for it to be unbiased.  With that said, the film probably is unfair to Billy, but it's also quite clear (and has not really been disputed) that he was inappropriately close to the Twin Galaxies people and was working with them to preserve his image more than the integrity of the process.  I understand they have significantly improved their standards and procedures since the film was made.

[ShyGuy]

Thanks for stating the Madworld is very niche. Brawlers/Beat 'em Ups are niche.

[GoldenPhoenix]

Should be interesting to see what Conduit does, that is not a niche genre, though if the game isn't well received that could really hurt it. Now if it is near the level of admiration that Madworld has been getting I think it will be the perfect litmus test.

[Jonnyboy117]

Oh by the way, my uncle lives quite close to Billy's restaurant in Hollywood, Florida.  He said they have awesome wings, and he has met Billy there.  (I think most customers meet Billy.)

[Yoshidious]

So did you not get my listener mail or was it just too awful to read?

Could you tell us what your email was about? I'm not sure whether we would have received it or not just from looking through old messages.

[NWR_insanolord]

I sent it a couple weeks ago so it might have gotten lost. It was about whether the storage solution had made any of you go back and pick up any VC or WiiWare games you may have passed on to avoid cleaning the fridge.

[GoldenPhoenix]

I think Nintendo will have two core titles for this Christmas. The next Zelda game and Pikmin 3, my guess is that Pikmin 3 would be released in Septemberish and Zelda in November. There will also probably be a more casual game in the Wii series as well. IMO, it is too early for another Wii Fit, the game is still selling really well, there is no need to release a sequel.

[NWR_insanolord]

Yeah, if New Super Mario Bros. hasn't gotten a sequel because it continues to sell I don't see why they'd make a new Wii Fit when the original has been in the NPD top 10 every month since its launch.

[GoldenPhoenix]

Yeah, if New Super Mario Bros. hasn't gotten a sequel because it continues to sell I don't see why they'd make a new Wii Fit when the original has been in the NPD top 10 every month since its launch.

Also Nintendo has set kind of a precedent of releasing two or three titles in the Wii series. Right now we only know of one, Wii Sports Resort. Last year it was Wii Fit, Wii Play, and Wii Music. They space them out to be about 4 months apart.

[Mop it up]

Last year it was Wii Fit, Wii Play, and Wii Music.

I'm not sure if you're talking about a different region, but in North America Wii Play was released in February of 2007, over a year before Wii Fit.

[TJ Spyke]

I wonder if North America will ever get Wii Chess? Europe got it as a retail game, then it came out in Japan as a WiiWare game. I hope Nintendo releases it here either as a retail game or WiiWare game (the reviews made it seem like a pretty decent game).

[GoldenPhoenix]

Last year it was Wii Fit, Wii Play, and Wii Music.

I'm not sure if you're talking about a different region, but in North America Wii Play was released in February of 2007, over a year before Wii Fit.

Oops my bad! Lol guess I'm still in shock over Wii Play still being in the top 10.

Also if that comment about saving shelf space is true, who says it is necessarily a 1st party game? It could be a massive 3rd party franchise that will be announced for the holidays at E3. Nintendo gets a lot of flak for holding this stuff close to their chest but it seems to be a growing trned for companies to keep games close to their chest until 4-6 months before release. We hardly know of anything truly exciting coming out this winter for any console.

[Mop it up]

I wonder if North America will ever get Wii Chess? Europe got it as a retail game, then it came out in Japan as a WiiWare game. I hope Nintendo releases it here either as a retail game or WiiWare game (the reviews made it seem like a pretty decent game).

I actually do think this will hit North America eventually, perhaps late this year. My guess would be that it will be WiiWare since it likely won't be all that popular, but I guess you never know.

Oops my bad! Lol guess I'm still in shock over Wii Play still being in the top 10.

That is pretty crazy, though we all know it sells because of the Wiimote. I'm sure some people who bought it didn't want the game, but had no choice because there were times when stores had no Wiimotes in stock but plenty of Wii Play.

[Crimm]

Even if Billy is made out to be more of a bad guy than he is, he's still a cartoon character.

[GoldenPhoenix]

Even if Billy is made out to be more of a bad guy than he is, he's still a cartoon character.

Coming from James "Wormhead" Jones that is a devastating statement. j/k