Topic: About the launch titles

[NWR_pap64]

I have to admit that with some of the Wii launch titles getting less than perfect scores from both fans and the media I began to worry about the system's overall performance as well as mark in the industry. But then I realized, this is a problem ALL systems go through when they launch.

The common problem at system launches is that there are few games that make full use of the system's powers and are less than perfect. Some people seem upset that the Wii is going through the same thing, but it isn't the first and certainly won't be the last.

Let's go back a year, when the XBOX 360 was released, the first next gen console to be released. Can you tell me which launch game proved the console was a step above and beyond the original XBOX? Very little.

Perfect Dark 0 was a so so FPS, a majority of the third party games were ports, Dead or alive 4 was basically Dead or alive 3, Kameo was a disappointment etc. It took the system a year before it could get the killer apps and show its true potential.

Let's look at the PS3. Can you tell which launch games convince people that its worth paying 600 dollars to play beyond? None.

Hell, look at the DS. The DS had a very crappy launch, with only one or two titles using the touch screen, while the rest were updated GBA ports. And now its a phenonemon, and it took a year for it to gain that.

So what I am getting at is that its silly to worry about the disappointing Wii launch titles and faulty game designs since no console launch was able to prove its system's powers on day one, and the Wii has actually gone higher than that, showing games that, while still raw, are very fun, deep and prove that games can be great on the system.  

[raptorspike]

But people were expecting a killer launch title or two. Nintendo was the laughing stock of the last generation. Now they have the attention of the gaming industry, and they needed something to really make them go "WOW! I want a dev kit!"

[BranDonk Kong]

I don't think anyone is disappointed with the Wii launch titles. It launched with effing Zelda for Christ's sake. That's all you need.

[NWR_pap64]

Quote
Originally posted by: raptorspike
But people were expecting a killer launch title or two. Nintendo was the laughing stock of the last generation. Now they have the attention of the gaming industry, and they needed something to really make them go "WOW! I want a dev kit!"

You forget that with every console launch people expect nothing but killer APPs and very few of them actually deliver. Like I said, the XBOX 360, the PS3, the DS and even the PS3, XBOX and Gamecube launched with very few titles that were worth owning. The Wii launch lineup may be far from perfect, but there's no denying it is far BETTER than what Nintendo did with the GC and the DS.

And despite what reviews say, people will grow fond of the games. Zelda is the most anticipated Zelda game ever, there is a wide variety of third party games and Wii sports has turned out to be one of the best decisions Nintendo has done regarding the Wii.

There's no denying the Wii launch and its games will be more fondly remembered than, say, the DS or GC launch.

[capamerica]

The thing that the Xbox360 had going for it and which was a good reason to buy one was the fact it was the first next gen system and it looked really good. The launch line up was indeed not that great and a majority of the line up was also on the Xbox and PS2, BUT the Xbox360 made them look 1000x better which in the PS3/360 market is all the system needed to do.

The PS3 has nothing and it can't even push the system on the fact that games look better since Microsoft has already done that for the last year. PS3 looks just like the Xbox360 so people are not buying it because it looks better. The only ones out there buying the PS3 are 1. Ebayers who want to make alot of quick cash and 2. Diehard Sony Fanboys. No real gamer in their right mind would be going out and buying a PS3 there are no games and the games that are worth playing are already on the Xbox360 which is $200 cheaper and looks just as good (if not better) then the PS3. The PS3 is in a bad spot right now and their must have killer apps are still 1-2 years away.

I don't think the Wii had a bad line up, I feel its actually better then the Xbox360 and even the GameCube (I don't have to say its better then the PS3 since even the n-Gage had a better launch then that) Me and S_B already own 5 games, I have 2 (maybe more) more on the way with in the next couple weeks and we have already rented 2 more on top of that. And with the exception of Monkey Ball we have loved them all.

[NWR_pap64]

Quote
Originally posted by: capamerica
The thing that the Xbox360 had going for it and which was a good reason to buy one was the fact it was the first next gen system and it looked really good. The launch line up was indeed not that great and a majority of the line up was also on the Xbox and PS2, BUT the Xbox360 made them look 1000x better which in the PS3/360 market is all the system needed to do.

Even then, some of the titles didn't look graphically impressive. Perfect Dark 0 was par, Kameo looked cute but nothing mind blowing, Dead or alive 4 was amazing looking, but was a slight step above DoA 3, King Kong looked nice, Call of Duty 2 did as well, but very few of them were able to convince people that the 360 was leaps and bounds in the graphics department.

It took a year for it to get the truly standout titles (like Dead Rising and Gears of war), and the marketplace is actually brimming with promise.

[WalkingTheCow]

? ? ?

. . .Uh, didn't we all realize this was a very good launch? The ratings look a bit above average for a launch lineup to me. On top of that there's actually the famed "killer ap" on launch day. What the hell are you guys on about again? And who doesn't know that the majority of launch games don't show off a system's full potential. . . And why the hell am I writing this response?

[Hocotate]

The Wii launch ran circles around PS3 and XC. We have Zelda at launch and people are complaining lol. You know if they launched with Mario, SSBB, and Metroid, in addition to Zelda you would be complaining about how they need to space their release dates and that certain games are stealing hype from others... and 3rd party games are being severely overlooked. Some people just have to complain about something I guess

[RickPowers]

Not every console gets a launch title with average ratings of 97%.  I fail to see how that, coupled with some 8.0-8.5 games, is a problem.

[blackfootsteps]

The problem is probably that the big number two game, Red Steel is not faring so well and this is clouding peoples' judgments of the entire launch.

[LuWoo75]

I watched x-play yesterday and every game exept red steel got a 4 star or better rating.  If people are letting one game deter them from getting the rest then..........oh well.   PS3 games are getting horrible reviews except Resistance fall of man, so i don't know what some people want.

[Rhoq]

Personally, I am enjoying Red Steel quite a bit. Yes, moving the camera and aiming via the Wii-mote is frustrating at times - but the game is still pretty damn fun. Also, I fail to see what the big complaints over the graphics are. I am satisfied with how the game looks. I wasn't expecting anything more than GameCube quality to begin with. The inconsistent cut-scene styles (comic book, FMV etc.) add a bit of charm which to give the game it's own identity. For a launch title, the game works. Could it have benefited from more development time? Yes, but I'm happy enough with the game to rate it a 7.5/8 out of 10.

[hudsonhawk]

Don't forget Oblivion launched with the 360, probably the closest thing in terms of quality and sheer quantity of gameplay to Zelda launching on the Wii (I'd take Zelda any day of the week but it's still a great game).

But the PS3 has nothing in the league of either of those games.

[SixthAngel]

Oblivion did not launch with the 360.

I don't see the complaining about the launch lineup either.  The system even comes with what is apparently a quality game.

[couchmonkey]

I think a lot of the secondary games are a bit disappointing - Excite Truck without four players, Red Steel's not that great, and supposedly Super Monkey Ball is not up to par with the originals - but you've got Zelda, and a lot of those other games are still good, just not amazing.

I'd rank this as a better launch than any other system since Dreamcast.

[hudsonhawk]

Quote
Originally posted by: SixthAngel
Oblivion did not launch with the 360.

I don't see the complaining about the launch lineup either.  The system even comes with what is apparently a quality game.

Whoops, you're right - my bad.

[Ian Sane]

The Wii's flagship title is Zelda.  The Cube's was Luigi's Mansion.  That's a big difference.  I think the overall Cube launch lineup was better.  It had more good games while the Wii is more like the Xbox launch with one major killer game and lesser titles accompanying it.  But that's proven to be a better model.  The Xbox and Halo survived the post-launch drought better than the Cube with it's several good games but no super killer app.

The only problem really is that technically Zelda isn't an exclusive and it wasn't designed from the ground up for the Wii.  But it is still a great game and it is coming out on the Wii first so it's not like Super Mario 64 DS where a lot of people had already played the game years before.

It would be nice if the third party games were a little better.  So far most complaints have been against third party games.  Since the remote was revealed there has been a fear that while first party games would probably be great, third parties would struggle with motion control.  So far the Wii third party selection hasn't done a whole lot to destroy that fear.  The Wii could use a third party game with controls as smooth as Nintendo's own lineup.

The PS3 launch lineup sucks though.  For example I can't even name a PS3 launch title.  All the hype has been around the console itself so I'm clueless as to what games are actually available.

The concept of a sh!tty launch seems to be common now but it wasn't always that way.  Prior to the PS2 usually a new console had at least one absolutely huge launch game that is still fondly remembered today.