Wii-U thoughts so far

[isiolia]

And, so far, Battlefield 4 is actually launching on current consoles. So, no there is no excuse for it to be missing from Wii U for tech reasons which at this point in time is a flaky argument at best. This is not a "oh, guys, Frostbite 3 just won't run on Wii U" sort of issue.

In the interview they have up on Eurogamer (which is what the Kotaku article quoted), the Frostbite engine not being on the Wii U is the first thing they mention.

Simply put, the vibe is mostly one of it not being worth the effort to do. Whether that means due to low sales, not being able to get the results they want, or the release being the last one with current specs/tools, I dunno. But, whatever the actual reason, having a lack of developer presence has never really been a good thing.

[dsheinem]

Unreal Engine 4 won't be on Wii U either:

http://kotaku.com/the-wii-u-wont-be-get ... -462919060

[AppleQueso]

Yup, this sure is looking like a typical post-SNES Nintendo console to me.

Sucks.

[ZenErik]

The only thing that surprises me about this are the people who seem surprised.

[isiolia]

Unreal Engine 4 won't be on Wii U either:

http://kotaku.com/the-wii-u-wont-be-get ... -462919060

Yet, it will be on cell phones (and browser games). Granted, the pace of mobile tech will probably see it eclipse the Wii U in a year or three, but still...

[dsheinem]

The only thing that surprises me about this are the people who seem surprised.

I am not terribly surprised, but I figured maybe it would be scalable enough to work on a Wii U in some form or fashion (same with Frostbite). The complete lack of support for these engines is the difference between "watered down port" and "no port at all". It makes it that much less likely that major third party publishers will want to have anything to do with Nintendo in the near future.

[CavZee]

Yup, this sure is looking like a typical post-SNES Nintendo console to me.

Sucks.

I can't really see how this "sucks" unless you're a hardcore Nintendo fan who will never buy more than 1 console in a gen.

In my eyes it's great to have at least one of the big 3 do do something different and have their own unique identity. Looking at this gen, the PS3 and 360 offeredmore or less the exact same games, content, and experiences. Where's the fun in that? I'd rather have it like the 32/64 bit era where each console had it's own identity and were truly different.

I'm a fan of video games, not so much companies. If everything is headed multiplatform releases on similarly spec'ed hardware then that IMO is bad for gamers as a whole.

[ZenErik]

Heh. For me the 360 and PS3 offer drastically different experiences. Otherwise I wouldn't have both of them. Shmups for 360. Everything else on PS3.

[dsheinem]

Yup, this sure is looking like a typical post-SNES Nintendo console to me.

Sucks.

I can't really see how this "sucks" unless you're a hardcore Nintendo fan who will never buy more than 1 console in a gen.

In my eyes it's great to have at least one of the big 3 do do something different and have their own unique identity. Looking at this gen, the PS3 and 360 offeredmore or less the exact same games, content, and experiences. Where's the fun in that? I'd rather have it like the 32/64 bit era where each console had it's own identity and were truly different.

I'm a fan of video games, not so much companies. If everything is headed multiplatform releases on similarly spec'ed hardware then that IMO is bad for gamers as a whole.

To be clear, I wouldn't play third-party games on the Wii U anyway. At least I can't see myself playing many of them. My point was that many people do want parity across consoles, and when it doesn't exist it hurts sales for the one. Strong third party support guarantees longer life and more strong first party titles, and the lack thereof worries me.

[Stark]

To be clear, I wouldn't play third-party games on the Wii U anyway. At least I can't see myself playing many of them. My point was that many people do want parity across consoles, and when it doesn't exist it hurts sales for the one. Strong third party support guarantees longer life and more strong first party titles, and the lack thereof worries me.

Well also, I think many consumers don't buy every console in a given generation, like you or Erik or myself. So 3rd party support may sway them towards the WiiU, as the one console they buy, if they like Nintendo games and games like AC or ME or CoD.