Nintendo, Miyamoto Preview 2004 Releases

Thanks to Cube Europe for its article discussing forthcoming Nintendo products for 2004, including insight from Shigeru Miyamoto on his in-progress games. The information, sourced from Official Nintendo Magazine in the UK, "states that Metroid Prime 2, Geist, Pokemon Fire Red and Leaf Green will all be released in Europe before the end of the year", meaning a U.S. release for these games are also likely during 2004. Miyamoto is fairly guarded about his current projects, which also include Pikmin 2, and comments on the continued mystery behind the next Mario title: "With Mario 128 I have been challenging many unprecedented things, not found in existing video games... [and] prone to lose their freshness or to be imitated once they go public." Which Nintendo products are you most looking forward to this year?

Sounds cranky

[Snowspinner]

I wonder if the translation was bad, or if Miyamoto was on a particularly cranky day - he usually comes off as much more genial than in that interview.

One has to assume Nintendo's got a bang-up E3 planned this year, though. Obviously the DS, but I'd guess new Mario and Zelda games announced at E3, as well as footage of Metroid Prime 2... probably good, considering the criticism they took for being underwhelming last E3.

Space World

[dancingmad]

I wish Nintendo would recapture some of that old magic and do Space World again this year. For you kids, Nintendo used to have it's own trade show where Nintendo and third parties showed of their new games.

As mentioned in the comments, Nintendo's E3's have been rather underwhelming, but they have enough stuff to do a proper SW this year. However, I think the era of Nintendo having it's own little circle jerk (even a fun one) is over.

Don't get me wrong, I'm drooling over a myriad of things scheduled and rumored for this year, most defintely including Prime 2, Mario, Pikmin 2, Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, and some others.

mario 128

[oskillator]

I'm most looking forward to Mario 128... but I don't know if it's coming out this year! I understand if he doesn't want to give up gameplay details, but I would like to have a sense of at least the order of magnitude regarding the release date.

Re:Sounds cranky

[aweraw]

Think about it:
...
Geist (Halo clone)

You should reserve judgement on a game until you've seen more than just a couple of screenshots... From my understanding, this game will be a bit more like Messiah [gamerankings.com], in that you are infact a ghost of sorts, and the object of the game is to complete certain objectives by possesing the in game inhabitants.. the difference lies in the fact the in Geist, you have to scare the bejezus out of your potential flesh vessel before you can take them over...

Halo clone? I think not... except maybe that they're both from a first person perspective... but if that were case, wouldn't HL2 just be a Catacombs3D clone?

I know it's one of the games I'm looking for, and it's certainly not because it's a Halo clone (if it was, I prolly wouldn't even know it's name)

I want Mario 128 to be great!

[krazykong]

Otherwise, I fear the worst for our beloved Miyamoto. I also fear for the industry as a whole. Shigeru has this god like image. It's as if whatever he touches becomes a gold factory for Nintendo. He could sneeze on the most irrelevant Nintendo product and make it an instant success. I'm not even saying he stumbled onto a good idea and ran with it. He really is that good. This week a couple of articles about Eugine Jarvis appeared on slashdot. "Who is he?" "Why just about the greatest video game designer that ever lived....... well besides Miyamoto." What's funny, is that I don't even think that Myamoto even knows how to code. But for the past 22 years, he's done nothing short of being ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT.

He is a god. I worship him. I have sacrificed my dignity (as I am approaching 30 years old with a Game Cube instead of a PS2 or XBox) for him. I know, I place him on a high pedestal. But look at all he has done.

• Donkey Kong He made a little known playing card company, a bit player in the video game industry, a household name.
• Super Mario Bros He single handedly brought us out of the 80's video game crash.
• The Legend of Zelda He brought computer role playing games, a delicacy, enjoyed only by the nerdy elite, to "joe console".
• StarFox He laid the groundwork for the 3D Poly revolution a generation early.
• Super Mario 64 He confirmed that a 3D platform game, based off preexisting 2D elements can still be among the best games ever to be played.

I am a Miyamoto groupie. If I was good looking and female, I'd follow him around begging to have his baby.
But I'm scared...
This past generation of Miyamoto products leave something to be desired. They aren't bad. They aren't complete idol crushing abominations like Episodes I and II. They just aren't as good as they used to be, and I hope this isn't the beginning of a very depressing downward trend.
I really want more than Mario 128 to be good. I want it to be great. I'm running out of heroes.

Re:I want Mario 128 to be great!

[krazykong]

Ok, sorry for comparing Miyamoto to George Lucas, that wasn't fair. He still has the ability to make a good game. I guess I'm just asking if he hast the ability to make a GREAT game. That game that parents have to drag their children away from the demonstration at wall mart kicking and screaming. I've played all the games mentioned. They are very good. But in reality, how much of the "goodness" is based on our respect to it's creator, buying the game because, after all "Hey It's Miyamoto, It will be great regardless". Since you asked...

• Wind Walker Beautifully, and very faithfully to the series. Zelda's dungeon puzzles are a staple of the franchise, and this one doesn't fail in that respect. But what did they add to the experience? the replaced the ocarina with a different instrument, the horse with a boat, the firefly with a mischievous fairy. But nothing was "added".
• Pikmin Brilliant. It was a great way of taking RTS elements and making them feel, well, very "Miyamoto--eske". Spielberg has a way of doing that with his movies. But , I have to ask myself, would the game have sold as well without the Miyamoto notoriety?
• Luigi's Mansion I tried to explain this game to my friends.... "It's like Resident Evil, right.... but instead of traumatizing scary zombies, it's cute mario ghosts and a silly vacum cleaner. But it works, I swear!" I honestly had more fun running around the mansion shouting "Marrrio!". At, best, it was "kinda fun".
• Sunshine Highly polished graphics, awesome physics engine, superb game balance, but then again so was 64. My favorite parts were the quick levels where they took away the FLUD device and put you in an abstract block maze. My knuckles still hurt thinking about it. But it was like 5 years after 64 came out. I wanted more. And don't you think that towards the end, the game felt a little (c'mon just a little bit) "rushed".

You have a good point. We can't always judge every new game by the greatness of the past. Maybe SMB was just one of those flukes in history that got everything right at the right time. But I want to think that that new "shock and awe" game is right around the corner, the one that makes all the heads turn, the one that turns the industry, an industry that I love, but don't like where it's headed, on it's head. I want the game that once again, levels the playing field, and makes the competition go "What have we been doing making, 30 FPS clones?" And if anyone can make that game, it's him.

Re:I want Mario 128 to be great!

[Rallion]

Oh, man, I laughed so hard when I read the comparison between Luigi's Mansion and Resident Evil--because as messed up as it seems, I actually manage to consistently confuse the two when I think about them. I think I was playing through both of them at the same time or something. I'll be thinking about RE and remember some scary room, then remember that a big cartoon Luigi was in it.

Yeah, I'm messed up. Go ahead and laugh.