Author Topic: Was Hunters Delayed? (Read 11976 times)

NRevolutionR · « **on:** August 17, 2005, 01:45:29 PM »

In addition to Nintendogs, Nintendo DS has a strong lineup of games arriving before the end of the year. These include Advance Wars: Dual Strike on Aug. 22, Trace Memory on Sept. 26, Metroid Prime Pinball on Oct. 24 and Mario & Luigi 2 in Q4. The new price for Nintendo DS also gives consumers another excuse to buy a Nintendo DS to be ready for the upcoming Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, the wireless gaming service to launch later this year with a Mario Kart racing game and an Animal Crossing community-building game.

Ok, according to Nintendo's own statements about great upcoming DS games, Hunters is nowhere to be found. This leads me to believe that they have delayed it, and hopefully, they will be adding a/the much needed online mode.

Note: Metroid Pinball is still scheduled for October.

Artimus · « **Reply #1 on:** August 17, 2005, 02:18:08 PM »

IGN still says October 10.

stevey · « **Reply #2 on:** August 17, 2005, 03:16:04 PM »

so they it skiped AC and mario kart too

hudsonhawk · « **Reply #3 on:** August 18, 2005, 05:32:41 AM »

I'm surprised no one noticed this gem from last week's IGN Mailbag:

Quote
Hi Craig all I wanna know is if Nintendogs, Metroid Prime Hunters are both coming out August 22? I'm wondering this because I get a Game Informer magazine every month and it says in that Metroid is coming out in October, and the release date on ign says August 22. Well I dont know what to beleive but I trust you guys more. Help Craig im DESPERATE!

Forrest

Metroid: no way in heck is it going to be an August 22nd release, so we're just going to have to fix that entry in our database. It might not even make an October release, either. Stay tuned on that front, there may be some interesting news to report about that game.

-- Craig

Pale · « **Reply #4 on:** August 18, 2005, 07:42:03 AM »

Matt Assamasina is really trying to drum up hits this week.

BlackNMild2k1 · « **Reply #5 on:** August 18, 2005, 08:12:16 AM »

Actually I beleive that quote is from the ign.DS channel, as it addressed to Craig not Matt.

ANd I do remember hearing about a delay a little while ago and it was rumored/hoped that they did it to add in the much needed yet mysteriously missing internet/wifi capabilities that were supposedly "very easy to incorporate once the tools are available"

hudsonhawk · « **Reply #6 on:** August 18, 2005, 08:15:19 AM »

I'd rather have the game now, rather than have them delay it a year shoehorning an online component into it.

There's plenty of online love coming, no doubt a lot of shooters as well. Not every game needs to use every feature.

More likely, if it's delayed it's because it's not very good, not because they want to rework the multiplayer infrastructure to use the online model.

Bill Aurion · « **Reply #7 on:** August 18, 2005, 08:22:39 AM »

What's funny is that if anyone would know anything about things related to Ninty's DS Wi-Fi plans, it would be IGN... =\

Ian Sane · « **Reply #8 on:** August 18, 2005, 08:44:37 AM »

"I'd rather have the game now, rather than have them delay it a year shoehorning an online component into it."

How is adding online play to a game designed specifically with multiplayer in mind that requires each person to have their own screen and link multiple systems together "shoehorning"? What's the difference in terms of gameplay between linking with a DS player in the same room and one across the country? This isn't like adding multiplayer to Metroid Prime 2. This is a game that pretty much demands the inclusion of online play. Hell, practically EVERY DS game that has multiplayer should be online. Everyone has to have their own system to play anyway so why not?

Pale · « **Reply #9 on:** August 18, 2005, 09:00:20 AM »

Quote
Originally posted by: BlackNMild2k1
Actually I beleive that quote is from the ign.DS channel, as it addressed to Craig not Matt.

ANd I do remember hearing about a delay a little while ago and it was rumored/hoped that they did it to add in the much needed yet mysteriously missing internet/wifi capabilities that were supposedly "very easy to incorporate once the tools are available"

I stand corrected....

change that to "Looks like the asses over at IGN are really trying to drum up hits this week."

vudu · « **Reply #10 on:** August 18, 2005, 09:44:20 AM »

Ian Sane - When are you going to get around to picking up a DS? Just curious.

I'll waste you in Hunters.

hudsonhawk · « **Reply #11 on:** August 18, 2005, 09:45:59 AM »

Quote
Originally posted by: Ian Sane
How is adding online play to a game designed specifically with multiplayer in mind that requires each person to have their own screen and link multiple systems together "shoehorning"? What's the difference in terms of gameplay between linking with a DS player in the same room and one across the country? This isn't like adding multiplayer to Metroid Prime 2. This is a game that pretty much demands the inclusion of online play. Hell, practically EVERY DS game that has multiplayer should be online. Everyone has to have their own system to play anyway so why not?

Because the game was so far in development by the time the online plans were complete is why not. The engineers said so themselves; to add online to the game would entail throwing out the underlying infrastructure completely and starting from scratch.

We're not talking about adding a new costume here, we're talking about a change that would delay the game by a sizeable amount.

The DS needs A-list titles right now too desperately to move something back just because people think every game needs to use every feature. A delay of that magnitude would cause more harm to the system than excluding online would.

I agree, going forward, all the multiplayer games should have online. That's my blue sky. MP: Hunters 2? Throw it in there. Actually, that makes me realize - this is exactly the same thing as Halo and Halo 2. MS hadn't finished the Xbox: live APIs in time for Bungie to fit them into the game. Instead delaying it to throw in some cheap, thin online component, they released the game with local multiplayer only and concentrated on a deep, full-featured, smooth-running online mode for the 2nd one.

Getting Halo out in the launch window sold a lot of Xboxes; getting MP:H out by Christmas would do the same for the DS.

Ian Sane · « **Reply #12 on:** August 18, 2005, 09:51:30 AM »

"Ian Sane - When are you going to get around to picking up a DS?"

When Nintendo releases something that I feel is worth owning a DS for. Metroid Prime Hunters isn't it by the way. I personally have no desire to ever buy that game. I just feel that it would be dumb to release a high profile offline title that is so obviously suited for online play after online DS games are already on the market. Once Mario Kart and Animal Crossing are out with online play people are going to expect that to be common place. Releasing an offline multiplayer DS game would be like Konami releasing two player TMNT games.

KDR_11k · « **Reply #13 on:** August 18, 2005, 10:18:45 AM »

Perhaps Nintendo pushed it back so it'll get the infrastructure it needs. There was quite some backlash so that decision doesn't seem unlikely.

The engineers did NOT say the underlying system is flawed (how can it? The internet is just a large network, why should it differ from normal network gaming?), they merely said the online infrastructure will not be ready by the time MPH is released (kinda like how Halo can be tunnelled without problems but doesn't support online natively because XBox Live didn't exist back then). Now Nintendo is delaying it to make sure the infrastructure is in place and online works.

BTW, there's a neat trailer at NoE's VIP (users with registered Nintendo stuff*) section that shows the game in action from the perspectives of not just Samus but other hunters as well. They all have their own heads down display**.

*=I think it's stupid to make promo material members-only but maybe the marketing idio^H^H^H^Hgenii at NoE know better...
**= Reminds me, Earthsiege 2 had one of those and you controlled it with the mouse so there were games benefitting from two screens with the lower being a touchscreen even before the DS.

couchmonkey · « **Reply #14 on:** August 18, 2005, 10:30:07 AM »

I'm in favour of delaying it for online. My bet is the game wasn't going to make it's August release, and then Nintendo started to realize how it would look if the game was launched alongside Mario Kart and Animal Crossing - without online. Personally, I don't know anyone that owns a DS, so without online or a serious single player mode, this game isn't going to cut it for me.

As with Twighlight Princess, I'm glad to see that Nintendo has started delaying products in the name of quality again. I agree the system needs new games badly, but it needs games badly right now, not in October. By that time North America will have about 15-20 new games including Mario Kart, Nintendogs, and Castlevania.

hudsonhawk · « **Reply #15 on:** August 18, 2005, 10:34:26 AM »

Quote
IGN: With multiplayer being Metroid Prime Hunter's focus, and Nintendo's stance on going online with its Nintendo DS software, what can you tell us about the possibility of this game going online?

Kensuke Tanabe: Unfortunately, the game won't support the multiplayer internet function of the Nintendo DS. To do it, it's not that easy and we'd have to build the infrastructure for it to work properly. The timing of the game release and the building of the infrastructure just didn't match. So while it won't be online, multiplayer will still be very very fun.

In retrospect, perhaps what he means by this is the server-side infrastructure. Matchmaking service, the game game hosting, etc.

Still, not worth pushing back the game for, imho.

Quote
Originally posted by: Ian SaneI personally have no desire to ever buy that game.

I love how that doesn't stop you from bitching and moaning about it.

Bill Aurion · « **Reply #16 on:** August 18, 2005, 10:38:25 AM »

Quote
Originally posted by: Ian Sane
"Ian Sane - When are you going to get around to picking up a DS?"

When Nintendo releases something that I feel is worth owning a DS for. Metroid Prime Hunters isn't it by the way. I personally have no desire to ever buy that game. I just feel that it would be dumb to release a high profile offline title that is so obviously suited for online play after online DS games are already on the market. Once Mario Kart and Animal Crossing are out with online play people are going to expect that to be common place. Releasing an offline multiplayer DS game would be like Konami releasing two player TMNT games.

Oh, please...Kirby is well worth the price of admission...I've told you this before, too!

Ian Sane · « **Reply #17 on:** August 18, 2005, 10:43:48 AM »

I'm not really a big Kirby fan. His games are usually pretty good but we're talking a $100+ purchase here. I'm not going to spend that kind of money for a game that I'm only sort of interested in.

Bill Aurion · « **Reply #18 on:** August 18, 2005, 10:47:16 AM »

Fun fact of the day: I hate Kirby games, generally...In fact, I only picked up Kirby to have something to play on a trip I was going on...The game is just that fun and different from the past Kirbys...I'd say it's a mix between Sonic (the old Genesis ones, of course) and Kirby...

vudu · « **Reply #19 on:** August 18, 2005, 12:21:23 PM »

Quote
"Ian Sane - When are you going to get around to picking up a DS?"

When Nintendo releases something that I feel is worth owning a DS for.

Kirby, Meteos and Advance Wars DS. There are three reasons. Plus it's $20 cheaper now. You can't go wrong with that.

stevey · « **Reply #20 on:** August 18, 2005, 01:19:21 PM »

"ANd I do remember hearing about a delay a little while ago and it was rumored/hoped that they did it to add in the much needed yet mysteriously missing internet/wifi capabilities that were supposedly "very easy to incorporate once the tools are available" "

Planet GameCube News Article: Metroid Pinball DS, Metroid Prime: Hunters Delay and there no online play

mantidor · « **Reply #21 on:** August 18, 2005, 04:59:39 PM »

yeah and its more than six month old news, it isnt that crazy it can get online play, but of course I wont get my hopes up yet.

kirby_killer_dedede · « **Reply #22 on:** August 19, 2005, 04:10:43 AM »

Animal Crossing DS will be bigger than World of Warcraft, I say.

Read the N-Sider E3 special.

You will wet yourself.

Guaranteed.

KDR_11k · « **Reply #23 on:** August 19, 2005, 09:48:38 AM »

The official release date here (according to Nintendo's GC booth) is 2006 and it will have a "full singleplayer mode". Well, they said the same about Pokemon Colosseum...

NoE was smart enough to put up exacly one DS running the E3 2005 (or 6?) demo of Hunters. Noone played it because they didn't get past the "waiting for other players" screen. Did I mention it didn't even broadcast the game for singlecart games?

hudsonhawk · « **Reply #24 on:** August 19, 2005, 11:36:12 AM »

Then maybe my theory was right: I wonder if the game just sucks?

If they are delaying it, hopefully it's so they can flesh out the single player mode.

It would look bad though. They made a statement by including that demo with the system: "Look what we have in store, just around the corner!*"

*and by just around the corner we mean in a year and a half.

News:

Author Topic: Was Hunters Delayed? (Read 11976 times)