Topic: The Big Thread of Wii Launch Pessimism: All the things that could go wrong!

[please let me in, please]

a giant monster sent to destroy the power rangers steps on all the wii shipments and games, then when fighting, steps on nintendos headquarters.

[Spak-Spang]

I could read the headline from Nintendo now.  An unknown entity has bought our entire first shipment of Wii hardware.  There will be a short delay until new Wii hardware is available.  However, we have upped your reported sales for the first quarter by 100%

Mankind ending wouldn't be so bad.  We would all go to the afterlife, which if we are in heaven will have tons of Nintendo products, and I hear heaven has a killer online network with no lag and unlimited bandwidth.

Miyamoto dying would be tragic, yet at the same time Nintendo has several brilliant and creative minds at Nintendo.  It could end up being a blessing in disguise, as younger developers get more chance to push their creative visions in bolder means.  It could become a new direction for Nintendo.

And finally I submit to you the reason Vogons haven't destoryed mankind is because they are such big Nintendo fans in the first place.

[mantidor]

Quote
Originally posted by: couchmonkey
I'm surprised nobody suggested games getting delayed.  A delay for MP3 seems entirely possible to me.  Something like that could hurt.

Oh I wouldnt care, the demo at E3 didnt give me a good feeling, I was happy when people were saying that Corruption might end up being a 2007 title. I actually would be more confident if Retro delays it, I have this fear that in Japan they are pushing Retro to get the game out no matter what at launch and that would affect the overall quality, lets hope for the best, the guys at Retro haven't dissapointed me so far.

Quote
Originally posted by: JonLeung
You've got Majora's Mask as your avatar...don't you like Zelda?

Probably I like it too much, thats why I want it to be a perfect game no matter how good or bad the launch is or how it will affect Nintendo financially, I wouldve have prefered if all the focus was on the GC, to make it really the best game possible, now theres the doubt that maybe the game could have been better if the focus wasn't splitted.

I love Zelda, but Nintendo is a company and their first and most important objective is to make money, not to make good games. The TP deal just confirms it.

[Ian Sane]

"Well E3 is the most extreme case of using a controller, and is DEFINATELY not optimal playing conditions."

If this is the case does that mean that at every E3 Wii games are going to play like sh!t?  That would get pretty annoying after awhile.  Every impressions reading like "well this game's controls were an exercise in frustration but it might just be the E3 environment screwing with the remote... or it might actually just be a lousy game.  Wait for the final review!"  It's bad enough that Nintendo makes us wait so long for information.  Now we have to wait longer for impressions too.

[Strell]

Obviously the longer amount of time Nintendo spends with the remote, the better they'll be able to plan an E3 setup to best facilitate demos, Ian.

C'mon now.

[Spak-Spang]

Ian:  No it means that a couple of things.  

1) Nintendo needs to figure a new means of doing Wii games for E3...perhaps finding a more optimal means of presenting it.  Remember this is new technology even for Nintendo...some unforeseen mishaps may have occured.

2) Nintendo finalizes the technology and those mishaps from the first E3 never happen again.  Why do we expect perfect in every element of the control the very first time we see it.  We forgive early game demos at E3...lets also forgive hardware until we can have the final products in our hands and in our homes.

3) You are right, and the optimal conditions can never occur at E3.  So Nintendo will have to throw private media events during E3 to truly show the software off, and at the same time have a presence at E3.  Simple.

All I originally meant was, people are judging early hardware in a very harsh enviroment for technology.  Lots of radio signals, Wifi, blue tooth, lights, lasers, sound waves, several Wii systems in close proxy to each other.  space limited and cramped to how people will play at home.

E3 is not a chance to see how hardware and software will be when you finally play it.  But it is an industry event to give the media a taste of what will be available in the future.  

I think there is a reason why E3 is industry only, because too many people would walk away from E3 with false impressions and understandings of what they just saw and played.

[EasyCure]

worst thing that could happen??

Wii only ships in lime green with no new color schemes to EVER be released.

oh and miyamoto passing away is pretty high up there too...

[antman100]

It costs more than $200 and doesn't come with at least one each of the following:
Remote
Nunchuck
Classic controller

Game delays are relative: if the Wii (God, I hate that name) comes out in Sept. and "launch" titles are delayed until late November, no big deal.  If it comes out in early Dec. and games are delayed until 2007, it would be brutal for holiday sales.



And just to get this off my chest:

No HD.  

[Athrun Zala]

Quote
Originally posted by: EasyCure
worst thing that could happen??

Wii only ships in glossy pink with no new color schemes to EVER be released.

oh and miyamoto passing away is pretty high up there too...

fixed ^^

on a side note, way too much pessimism here

[Kairon]

This is a thread where pessimism is allowed because we're compiling all the possible scenarios for slip-ups come launch that we can think of and anticipate!

~Carmine M. Red
Kairon@aol.com

[Ian Sane]

"Why do we expect perfect in every element of the control the very first time we see it."

Well I don't recall any controller issues with the Cube at its first E3.  It's not uncommon for games to be unpolished at E3 but I don't think the controller itself for a Nintendo console has had issues at the show before.

[Smash_Brother]

Quote
Originally posted by: mantidor I love Zelda, but Nintendo is a company and their first and most important objective is to make money, not to make good games. The TP deal just confirms it.

Maybe you weren't paying attention the first time so let's try this again:

1. Your Gamecube is gathering dust because Nintendo didn't bring enough 1st party support to acquire the sales which result in better 3rd party support.

2. Releasing Twilight Princess on the GC and only the GC would be putting high octane gas into a broken car.

3. Nintendo needs to convince everyone that the Wii can sell the big numbers so that developers will feel safe in developing for the console, thus ensuring AAA 3rd party titles for the duration of its life span. The GC did not make these numbers and it suffered immensely.

If you want to argue, write up a compelling argument about how, despite all evidence to the contrary, the GC has received consistent excellent titles throughout its entire life span, enough that 3rd party developers have shown unrelenting support for the console and in no way are large 3rd party devs dropping support for the console altogether (Midway, Akklaim, etc.).

Twilight Princess will be the Wii's #1 selling title at launch, I guarantee it. It will probably be the game which will be credited for pushing the most Wiis at launch and will provide a compelling reason to own the console years after launch (just like Halo for the Xbox). In fact, I'd bet an appendage or two that TP sales will blow Halo 3 sales clean out of the water.

This is Nintendo's final shot at the home console market. If they grab last again, the Japanese executives at Nintendo are going to push for them to leave the home console market in favor of focusing all of its efforts on the DRASTICALLY more profitable handheld market.

Twilight Princess boasts 100 hours of gameplay: the biggest and greatest Zelda adventure to DATE. I would be pissed at Nintendo if they DIDN'T release a Wii version. This is the killer app to end all killer apps.

For you to piss and moan about the fact that Nintendo is doing everything they can to avoid another 3rd place finish is laughable, like their decision to release a Wii version of TP was an affront to you personally.

I want Nintendo to finish first this time. I want the Wii to be a console which receives so much 3rd party support that I have a backlog of excellent games to go through rather than sitting there through the summer drought, watching PS2 titles top the sales charts.

TP launching on the Wii will give it an immensely solid launch, coupled with Sports, MP3, Red Steel, Wario Ware, CoD3, etc., the Wii will have every genre covered, including not one but two, possibly three killer apps (if they can get Red Steel working properly, it'll be killer for many).

So please, stop being angry at Nintendo for doing what's best for everyone, their customers included.

Quote
Originally posted by: Ian Sane
Well I don't recall any controller issues with the Cube at its first E3.  It's not uncommon for games to be unpolished at E3 but I don't think the controller itself for a Nintendo console has had issues at the show before.

Think analogue stick on the N64.

How well did people adjust to it and how quickly? It took me a little while to get used to it. I'm sure the Wiimote will be no different.

[JonLeung]

Whenever they say "100 hours of gameplay", it never really is, though.  I would wager I could finish the game AND do the side-quests in half that time or LESS.  (Well, unless they have some crazy side-quests like "collect all ten Golden Skulltulas...and one only appears every ten hours" or something that will definitely push it over 100 hours just by design.)

I typically finish games to the max, and I don't think any game has taken me over 100 in-game hours except the Pokémon games.  I might love a 100-hour Zelda, sure, but unless they expect me to stop in awe for twenty minutes every time I see something new, I seriously doubt it will be that long.

Okay, wait - there is one Zelda game I haven't finished to the max...because of a little something called the Hylian Loach.  #%$@!  What, is that only catchable after putting in 100 hours into Ocarina Of Time?  >_<

[Ian Sane]

"Whenever they say '100 hours of gameplay', it never really is"

Or it is but a huge chunk of that time is needless busy work like level grinding or fetch quests.

[NinGurl69 *huggles]

Quote
Originally posted by: JonLeung
Whenever they say "100 hours of gameplay", it never really is, though.  I would wager I could finish the game AND do the side-quests in half that time or LESS.  (Well, unless they have some crazy side-quests like "collect all ten Golden Skulltulas...and one only appears every ten hours" or something that will definitely push it over 100 hours just by design.)

I typically finish games to the max, and I don't think any game has taken me over 100 in-game hours except the Pokémon games.  I might love a 100-hour Zelda, sure, but unless they expect me to stop in awe for twenty minutes every time I see something new, I seriously doubt it will be that long.

Okay, wait - there is one Zelda game I haven't finished to the max...because of a little something called the Hylian Loach.  #%$@!  What, is that only catchable after putting in 100 hours into Ocarina Of Time?  >_<

It took me ~50 hours in a 4-day period to get EVERYTHING in Majora's Mask on my first file, from first opening the game to the very last heart piece.  That was a fabulous 50 hours.  FABULOUS.

The Hyrule Loach shows up in the pond starting just before dawn, until full morning (it doesn't just appear; you must enter the pond during this window).  Basically, wait for the Moon to disappear from Lake Hylia's horizon, then enter the pond.  What's important is to catch it while it's resting at its original starting spot.  If it leaves the spot, then it has completely lost it's appetite, and very rarely will it return to its spot -- so exit the pond and try again.  It is possible to scare it from its spot if you make too much noise by running or swimming.  The Sinking Lure is not necessary.

[Donutt007]

Oh, here's something that could go very, very wrong....people waiting in line overnight dressed as a Wii-mote.

What else could go wrong....ummmm, we all end up loving it so damn much that we take a month off work and all lose our jobs,  

[Nephilim]

recharge battery in the controls are dodgy, 1,000,00 wii remotes returned in first month

[EasyCure]

what else could go wrong....i know...

every wii owner with a girlfriend has their wiimote stolen by them (the girlfriend) the second they get up to use the bathroom, and your wiimote is never to be seen again because she's using it as a sex toy while you're crying over the fact you can't play your with your Wii

[GoldenPhoenix]

I believe, to be serious, the worse thing that could happen is Wii launch AFTER PS3. That could be a huge blow Nintendo, and perhaps cause them to lose the system war.

[mantidor]

here we go again

"1. Your Gamecube is gathering dust because Nintendo didn't bring enough 1st party support to acquire the sales which result in better 3rd party support."

I play my GC almost daily, and I still have plenty of games I havent bought and I want.

"2. Releasing Twilight Princess on the GC and only the GC would be putting high octane gas into a broken car."

So? I couldn't care less.

"3. Nintendo needs to convince everyone that the Wii can sell the big numbers so that developers will feel safe in developing for the console, thus ensuring AAA 3rd party titles for the duration of its life span. The GC did not make these numbers and it suffered immensely."

and they are going to prove that the wii can push millions of software units with Zelda? LOL, that sure is going to convince third parties yes sarcasm... maybe if Red Steel has good sales third parties can be confident, but Zelda selling well in a Nintendo console is the status quo, its no indication of anything, third parties arent stupid.

"If you want to argue, write up a compelling argument about how, despite all evidence to the contrary, the GC has received consistent excellent titles throughout its entire life span, enough that 3rd party developers have shown unrelenting support for the console and in no way are large 3rd party devs dropping support for the console altogether (Midway, Akklaim, etc.)."

I dont understand this at all. The wii isnt going to break apart if it has no TP, why do you think that the wii is "doomed" if such thing happens? A single game will never save a console, not even the "all mighty" ocarina could do it. The GC didnt have -just- the problem of a lackluster launch, it has media storage problems , it has a long period without any games, its marketing sucked big time, it had already lost a lot of ground to playstation's brand and recognition, etc, etc ,etc. It was a whole lot of problems, not -just- the launch.

"Twilight Princess will be the Wii's #1 selling title at launch, I guarantee it. It will probably be the game which will be credited for pushing the most Wiis at launch and will provide a compelling reason to own the console years after launch (just like Halo for the Xbox). In fact, I'd bet an appendage or two that TP sales will blow Halo 3 sales clean out of the water."

Thats absolutely NOT going to happen. At the best case scenario the number of sales for the two games maybe will be comparable. Stop pretending that Zelda is allmighty and omnipotent, thats just fanboyism. The compelling reason to buy the console is very likely to be wiisports, and I wouldnt be surprised if the game outsells Zelda, or any other "non-game" for that matter.

The launch of the wii and the console itself isnt going to be doomed if you remove TP from it, the wii has the right price, the right software and finally, the right image with the gaming public (the name notwithstanding). It will help obviously, Ive never denied it,  but it isnt a make-or-break deal for the console.

[Kairon]

One raindrop raises the ocean.

Now please, move the Zelda Wars to another, more appropriate thread! Thanky you1 Have a nice day!

~Carmine M. Red
Kairon@aol.com

[mantidor]

"One raindrop raises the ocean."

I agree, but I could live without the ocean being a milimeter higher, Im only complaining about one single raindrop after all . The console is on a really good track, It has to be a lot of negative things put together to affect this nice change. The response to the remote has been a lot better than I expected, I thought that the press was going to be really divided being such a change, but the only site Ive seen who complained a lot was joystiq. Theres enthusiasm on third parties too. The only big thing that  could go wrong is if its priced at $600, but few companies are THAT nuts .

[wandering]

You are vastly underestimating the effect a good launch game can have. Remember Halo?

You're saying the Wii would still be fine without Zelda. And yeah, it probably would. The Wii wouldn't sell quite as well, of course...it would take a little longer to build up momentum, a little longer for third party games to pile up, but it probably wouldn't be a system killing loss, you're right.

...The real question is, why do you care? I don't like sugar-free rum ice cream, but I don't put up a fit when I go to get an ice cream and the flavor is there, because I think it somehow affects the quality of the other ice creams or whatever.

[Crimm]

Quote
Originally posted by: EasyCure
what else could go wrong....i know...

every wii owner with a girlfriend has their wiimote stolen by them (the girlfriend) the second they get up to use the bathroom, and your wiimote is never to be seen again because she's using it as a sex toy while you're crying over the fact you can't play your with your Wii

I would count that as something going very very right.

[Kairon]

I should add a new item to the list:

Iansane and Mantidor fuse into a new, more powerful entity: MANTISANE! (Iandor?)
This new monstrous being rampages through downtown Tokyo, confronts a giant Donkey Kong and, depending on whether this is the American or Japanese version, either lives to fight another day or disappears beneath a bloody whirlpool in the sea.

Either way, Nintendo's Tokyo Studio is unfortunate collateral damage and SSBB gets delayed into 2008.

~Carmine M. Red
Kairon@aol.com