Topic: Nintendo and the Post-Release Patch

[nickmitch]

The main thing about this particular practice is that it opens the doors to developers who will rush a broken game with the promise of a patch and not deliver it one the game out due to low sales.  Which adds an element of risk to the buy.  (Though, that doesn't exist here, IMO.)  The other part is customers (us) not wanting to buy something we know isn't finished.  Then we get the peek behind the curtain of knowing that developers know the product isn't finished, but expect us to buy it anyway.  It causes a certain uneasiness under the guise that our buyer power is, in a way, weakened.

[Adrock]

But they weren't, during the Gamecube era Nintendo was rushing games out in order to meet dates for that system as well.  Nintendo made it clear over a decade ago they will rush games out if their system is struggling and needs games.  I agree it's sad much of the industry is releasing unfinished games that they just fix later but Nintendo releasing unfinished games to help fill their schedule isn't really a new thing.

I don't know, man. You mentioned Wind Waker in your previous post, and called it "incomplete forever." Nintendo updated the game a year and a half ago, and if it considered the game incomplete, it could have easily inserted additional content outside of tweaks like the swift sail. I suppose it's possible that, given Wii U's obscene lack of first party titles at the time, Wind Waker HD was also rushed, giving that game the unique distinction of being rushed twice.

When I said, "Nintendo was like the last holdout," I was specifically referring to the oh-we'll-fix-that-later attitude that has become common in this industry. Every game has content cut for a variety of reasons. Comparing Wind Waker to Splatoon is problematic due to the kind of content they're missing. I would have loved another dungeon or two in Wind Waker, notably instead of Jabun giving Link Nayru's Pearl. However, I'd argue that Splatoon's post-release patch is content the game shouldn't release without given the type of game it is. I'd hate for this to be the first step in Nintendo eventually deliberately releasing a broken game with the intent of patching it later.

[broodwars]

But they weren't, during the Gamecube era Nintendo was rushing games out in order to meet dates for that system as well.  Nintendo made it clear over a decade ago they will rush games out if their system is struggling and needs games.  I agree it's sad much of the industry is releasing unfinished games that they just fix later but Nintendo releasing unfinished games to help fill their schedule isn't really a new thing.

I don't know, man. You mentioned Wind Waker in your previous post, and called it "incomplete forever." Nintendo updated the game a year and a half ago, and if it considered the game incomplete, it could have easily inserted additional content outside of tweaks like the swift sail. I suppose it's possible that, given Wii U's obscene lack of first party titles at the time, Wind Waker HD was also rushed, giving that game the unique distinction of being rushed twice.

Nintendo's been on record saying that the reason they never put the missing dungeons from Wind Waker back into the game is because those dungeons were adapted and moved into Twilight Princess.

[Adrock]

Nintendo's been on record saying that the reason they never put the missing dungeons from Wind Waker back into the game is because those axed dungeons were adapted and moved into Twilight Princess.

And I'm on record (in the post you quoted) saying "it could have easily inserted additional content" which is distinctly different from saying "it could have easily completed and inserted the removed content from the original version." Nintendo repurposing those dungeons is common knowledge among Zelda fans. That said, Nintendo could have created new dungeons for Wind Waker HD if it really wanted to correct the pacing issues in that way. However, in the same interview Eiji Aonuma admitted to using Wind Waker's removed dungeons in other games, he admitted that not adding new dungeons was a conscious choice to stay true to the original version. The entire point of bringing this up is that Nintendo doesn't consider Wind Waker to be incomplete. Conversely, it does consider Splatoon to be incomplete, and is correcting that with a post-release patch.

[Louieturkey]

The entire point of bringing this up is that Nintendo doesn't consider Wind Waker to be incomplete.

If it wasn't complete and still got a 40/40 in famistsu, I wonder if it'd get a 42/40 if they actually completed it.

[Ian Sane]

The ability to patch is a tool and like most tools it can used for good and evil.  It is very difficult to find all bugs in a piece of software.  There were games in the past with serious bugs that were not a result of the developers being lazy or rushing things out the door.  It was just a mistake and everyone makes mistakes and the ability to patch would have been ideal to solve a simple mistake but instead those games just remained broken.  Online play adds a relatively new concept of players discovering a game balance exploit and having it completely ruin the game for everyone if it isn't addressed.  20 years ago if your group of friends didn't know of the exploit, it could exist in your offline multiplayer game and not ruin it at all.  The patch can be a tool for good to deal with unforeseen problems.

The sad thing is that the presence of a shortcut means that people will plan ahead to use it.  The problem is when the devs are thinking "don't worry we can patch it later."  That's the problem.  Nintendo is clearly thinking of that, instead of saving the patch concept only for emergencies.

[pokepal148]

But they weren't, during the Gamecube era Nintendo was rushing games out in order to meet dates for that system as well.  Nintendo made it clear over a decade ago they will rush games out if their system is struggling and needs games.  I agree it's sad much of the industry is releasing unfinished games that they just fix later but Nintendo releasing unfinished games to help fill their schedule isn't really a new thing.

I don't know, man. You mentioned Wind Waker in your previous post, and called it "incomplete forever." Nintendo updated the game a year and a half ago, and if it considered the game incomplete, it could have easily inserted additional content outside of tweaks like the swift sail. I suppose it's possible that, given Wii U's obscene lack of first party titles at the time, Wind Waker HD was also rushed, giving that game the unique distinction of being rushed twice.

Nintendo's been on record saying that the reason they never put the missing dungeons from Wind Waker back into the game is because those dungeons were adapted and moved into Twilight Princess.

Which is something I doubt because the TP dungeons are actually good.

[ejamer]

I'm a person who enjoys old games, often ends up playing games that were released a decade (or more) ago, and strongly prefers physical to digital purchases because of those gaming habits. Knowing there will be a post-release patch to add significant amounts of content is typically a huge disincentive to buy for me - although the idea that a game derives most of it's value from online play is also a deterrent, so maybe Splatoon was a non-starter for me either way?


The ability to patch is fantastic. The way some developers choose to use that option to accelerate release dates by expecting consumers to pay in advance for unfinished content is not.

[NWR_insanolord]

The ability to patch is fantastic. The way some developers choose to use that option to accelerate release dates by expecting consumers to pay in advance for unfinished content is not.

I think this is really all that needs to be said. Patching isn't a problem, but developers and publishers using it as an excuse for laziness is.