Japanese Developers 'Nervous' About Making (Wii) Games

linkDevelopers 'Nervous' About Making Wii Games Japanese newspaper claims developers are worried about Wii's future. UK, October 11, 2007 - Despite Nintendo reporting it can't keep up with demand for its Wii console, a Japanese newspaper is claiming that developers are concerned its bubble is about to burst, with some actually nervous about making titles for the motion-sensing machine, in case they don't sell.

This comes from The Nikkei Business Daily, which has been speaking to software houses about their thoughts on the future of Wii. Several developers claim that Nintendo has been the only beneficiary of Wii's success as it was able to predict demand for the console, while other publishers were forced to catch up quickly producing titles - some of which ended up as flops.

Meanwhile, others think that the Wii is only a fad and its popularity will fade. One unnamed president of a developer told Nikkei: ''The Wii is like the 'Billy's Boot Camp' weight-loss program on DVD. People bought it out of curiosity, and it's likely a lot of them haven't used it''.

According to Nikkei, concern is also growing in the Japanese industry after sales of Wii slowed considerably to just 168,000 units - the worst month of sales since December 2006. Now companies are ''on guard for signs of a major change''.I call BS on these so-called developers. So... Nintendo could predict the unprecendented demand and the third parties couldn't? BS. They disregarded the system from the very start then produced shoddy games and cried when they didn't sell. Nintendo has been a large beneficiary as it's one of the few companies producing compelling content on the system. And they forget that games like red steel and rayman fromUbisoft have sold a million each and that games like RE4 have substantially surpassed expectations. Or that the announcement of Monster Hunter 3 on Wii has boosted Capcom's share price according to Bloomberg. Sales of the wii have considerably dropped in Japan, but so have sales for just about everyone else (the PSP riding high with new hardware skus on offer has even dropped). They need to take an SAS approach: who dares wins. They can't sit on the sidelines, half ass their games with spin offs or rush jobs then complain about it. Japanese Developers 'Nervous' About Making (Wii) Games
I don't put much more stock in this article than I do in most mainstream articles about gaming. Not a single name of a person, developer, or publisher was given. Without something like that to back it up, I fail to see why thiseven qualifies as news. Journalism has gotten so shoddy it's ridiculous.Japanese Developers 'Nervous' About Making (Wii) Games
Grow some balls and get to making babys dammit! I mean games...
Yeah, looks like they all placed their bets too soon. Still, they are right to be nervous. Nothing they putout can compete against MP3 and SMG and theyknow it. I think the Wii is past the point when novelty mini games could make a developer a quick buck. At least until the next Mario Party comes along (shudders). I think Wiiware is the answer for those nervous devs.
[QUOTE=''nopalversion''] Yeah, looks like they all placed their bets too soon. Still, they are right to be nervous. Nothing they putout can compete against MP3 and SMG and theyknow it. I think the Wii is past the point when novelty mini games could make a developer a quick buck. At least until the next Mario Party comes along (shudders). I think Wiiware is the answer for those nervous devs.[/QUOTE] Well there is no doubt that metroid is a great game but it's hardly a commercial success for developers to be afraid of. The plain truth is that firstly, everyone expected the wii to bomb. Secondly they put all their eggs in the competitors baskets. Now they can't ramp up production, they are behind and are still trying to work out the sort of product they should be putting out, whilst still porting old titles and tarting them up. EA made some brave stabs, but they also made ports and some shoddy games. Boogie costing £50 (making it the most expensive wii game - on a budget system) was a huge mistake and a 60% review average isn't endearing consumers to that title. They made a great stab at overhauling the Sims in My Sims yet sacrified depth for the building technique and missed most of what made the sims the sims. Now they are making trite like EA Playground and expecting that to do well. I think games companies should stop thinking about wii as some sort of casual, kiddy friendly shallow pool waiting to be milked and start thinking about it like they would any other home console platform. Make some great games, market them well. You'd have a hell of a lot more success that way. Even these spin offs like soul calibur legends seem like a poor afterthought and if it flops they have only themselves to blame. EDIT: Capcom's share price reached a 5 year high from the Monster Hunter 3 announcement.
I getting really sick and tired of these devs making excuses because they got caught off guard,it's there own damn fault for writing it off so early.It seems like if nintendo sells 100 million wii's they'll still have to prove that it's not a fad.
In terms of hardcore games, Nintendo has treated the Wii like the GC2. Most third parties don't have much development experience with the GC (which may explain why most third party Wii games look like garbage), and fewer still experienced much success. So I don't see why anyone is shocked and horrified that many third parties are following in Nintendo's footsteps, offering the same level of support they did to the GC, plus casual games. If Nintendo went farther outside of its comfort zone and experienced commercial success doing it, doubtless third parties would follow. Sony didn't just hope that third parties who tended to release first person shooters on the Xbox would see the light, they published Resistance, which showed that there is a big market for first person shooters (in relative if not absolute terms) on the PS3. MS didn't merely hope that makers of family friendly games would see the light, it put its money where its mouth was and funded Viva Pinata (a commercial failure, but an interesting game nonetheless).
Well, the entire market in Japan is one giant sea of doubt. I don't think there's any platform (save the DS) that developers really can feel comfortable with in the territory. The 360? Not even a question. The PS3? Nope. The Wii? Maybe if you're Nintendo.The problem isn't the Wii, or the PS3, or even the 360, necessarily, but the Japanese public. No one really knows what they are thinking, and then there's always the possibility that the market is simply dying off over there (as it showed signs of doing a few years back) and it's been on life support thanks to the Wii, DS and PS2. If I were a Japanese developer/publisher, I wouldn't concern myself with figuring out what will make an already finicky market buy my product, I'd worry about selling my product in two vastly larger markets that buy games in established patterns. Big and predictable versus finicky and tiny? C'mon devs, it doesn't take a rocket scientist.
[QUOTE=''CarnageHeart''] If Nintendo went farther outside of its comfort zone and experienced commercial success doing it, doubtless third parties would follow. Sony didn't just hope that third parties who tended to release first person shooters on the Xbox would see the light, they published Resistance[/QUOTE]Nintendo published Metroid Prime. Games like Red Steel and Resident Evil 4 have sold well. So I really don't think it's Nintendo's fault that developers aren't making other type of games successfully on the Wii. It really is developer laziness and they got what they deserved for those poor games - poor sales.
Quite honestly the only 3rd party developer I feel for is Konami as they are the only ones who deserved better. They created two original and intriguing games. Elebits which got little to no marketing and Dewey's adventure which seemed a baby stillborn. Why does no 3PD bother advertising? It's what's changed Nintendo's fortune.Every other house (especially ubisoft) got much better than they deserved for their efforts so far. As GG said shunning the system offhand and then playing catch up with rush port jobs and poor mini game compilation deserves little reward so they have no grounds for complaining.I'm sure all the good 3rd party devs in Japan (capcom, atlus, konami etc) will do good business on the Wii as they do on the DS.
[QUOTE=''bugsonglass''] I'm sure all the good 3rd party devs in Japan (capcom, atlus, konami etc) will do good business on the Wii as they do on the DS.[/QUOTE]I've heard good buzz on Elebits, but Konami has basically put all their eggs in the Metal Gear basket. There was a time when Konami shot out awesome game after awesome game, but now they're kind of irrelevant save for Metal Gear and Silent Hill. I think that is a much more concerning trend that goes well beyond just being a Wii problem. Atlus kicks ass, but they only print, like, three dozen copies of each game they make. There have been times that I've wanted to buy an Atlus game (right after release, no less) and have been unable to locate a copy. Atlus seems very content being a ''coulda been'' company based on the way their titles get distributed and advertised. I realize they are a small house and all that, but still.
[QUOTE=''Shame-usBlackley'']If I were a Japanese developer/publisher, I wouldn't concern myself with figuring out what will make an already finicky market buy my product, I'd worry about selling my product in two vastly larger markets that buy games in established patterns. Big and predictable versus finicky and tiny? C'mon devs, it doesn't take a rocket scientist. [/QUOTE]Well, Capcom's doing something that's a safe bet for them. By taking a franchise that predictably sells in big numbers, Monster Hunter, and moving it as an exclusive on the Wii at this phase shows some shift in developer approach in the Japanese market. Also, according to sales numbers, this year there's been a shift in balance in DS software sales, where last year, Nintendo accounted for over 3/4's of game sales on the DS, and this year they've drifted to about 1/2 of game sales, indicating, to a degree, a shift into a more balanced software market share in Japan on Nintendo platforms.Lastly, the creation of the likes of WiiWare will probably ease developer worries to some degree regarding making games, due to how it, as well as other Online distribution models, allow for companies to more easily produce a game without a publisher, taking lower risks as a result, and can put out games at lower price points for consumers, both small scale and larger scale games.
[QUOTE=''Shame-usBlackley''] the market is simply dying off over there [/QUOTE] Frankly I expected this to happen over here this gen.Myinterest in the industryhas largely been due to its ability to come up with completely new game ideas over the years. Very little of it seems fresh to me now so I'vetended to move on to other pastimes. Maybe the Japanese are similar in that respect.
[This message was deleted at the request of the original poster]
[QUOTE=''ymi_basic''][QUOTE=''Shame-usBlackley''] the market is simply dying off over there [/QUOTE] Frankly I expected this to happen over here this gen.Myinterest in the industryhas largely been due to its ability to come up with completely new game ideas over the years. Very little of it seems fresh to me now so I'vetended to move on to other pastimes. Maybe the Japanese are similar in that respect.[/QUOTE]Eh, I don't think the market is dying off, as it has shown an increase in the past two years. 'course, that's primarily due to DS contributions, but there are glimmers that the Wii and PS3 will also push things forward.The market has been in a decline from about 1997 until 2004/5, so it's at least promising to see a sort of upward trend in that market.
[QUOTE=''Skylock00'']Well, Capcom's doing something that's a safe bet for them. By taking a franchise that predictably sells in big numbers, Monster Hunter, and moving it as an exclusive on the Wii at this phase shows some shift in developer approach in the Japanese market. [/QUOTE]Yeah, Monster Hunter is pretty much only popular in Japan, so that makes sense. I was put off by the news at first, as it seemed to contradict Capcom's global focus, but then I realized that was exactly what they were doing. It's a series that has only done well in Japan, so the move makes sense. I also noticed in Capcom's talk they mentioned the high cost of time and resources being a factor in the move from PS3 to Wii, and that's something I've been expecting to happen sooner. But my point still is that Japanese companies worrying themselves over Japan is myopic. It's like looking in your pantry and worrying about food when there's a twelve course feast on your dining table. The other two-thirds of the market should be the focus. It's bigger and less unpredictable when it comes to what sells and what doesn't.
[QUOTE=''Shame-usBlackley''][QUOTE=''Skylock00'']Well, Capcom's doing something that's a safe bet for them. By taking a franchise that predictably sells in big numbers, Monster Hunter, and moving it as an exclusive on the Wii at this phase shows some shift in developer approach in the Japanese market. [/QUOTE]Yeah, Monster Hunter is pretty much only popular in Japan, so that makes sense. I was put off by the news at first, as it seemed to contradict Capcom's global focus, but then I realized that was exactly what they were doing. It's a series that has only done well in Japan, so the move makes sense. I also noticed in Capcom's talk they mentioned the high cost of time and resources being a factor in the move from PS3 to Wii, and that's something I've been expecting to happen sooner. But my point still is that Japanese companies worrying themselves over Japan is myopic. It's like looking in your pantry and worrying about food when there's a twelve course feast on your dining table. The other two-thirds of the market should be the focus. It's bigger and less unpredictable when it comes to what sells and what doesn't. [/QUOTE]
I caught myself being a big hypocrite when I saw the Monster Hunter news, and hopefully you guys will be able to laugh with me, instead of at me.  At first I was frustrated to see the PS3 lose another exclusive, especially since Capcom just announced that they were done making PS2 games and were moving on to the PS3... then I got to thinking about how I always whine about how the Wii has terrible third party support, and how I'd love to see developers take it seriously.  So my sad and pathetic inner fanboy wants good Wii games, but only if they don't hurt the PS3. :D
I'll hate campcom if they cancel re5 and dmc4. That doesn't make sense as both games have always been on a sony console! :cry:
[QUOTE=''Shame-usBlackley''][QUOTE=''bugsonglass''] I'm sure all the good 3rd party devs in Japan (capcom, atlus, konami etc) will do good business on the Wii as they do on the DS.[/QUOTE]I've heard good buzz on Elebits, but Konami has basically put all their eggs in the Metal Gear basket. [/QUOTE] It's a great little game but it's one of those games that must be a nightmare to market. To actually explain in a limited time how its played and what's it's about. Even looking at a single screen can be confusing as to what it is and what it's trying to acheive. There's a great character and sty-le about the game too, if only they would push it more. Look at the trailer, it's quirky fun character designs and a great playful atmosphere. Elebits-trailerreview
[QUOTE=''gamingqueen'']I'll hate campcom if they cancel re5 and dmc4. That doesn't make sense as both games have always been on a sony console! :cry: [/QUOTE]Remembering that RE4 launched on the GC and Code Veronica launched on the DC, so while I see what you are saying, Capcom have done fairly long exclusive launches on consoles not made by Sony.