Miyamoto's big secret Gamecube game: Pacman??!!

[OB1]

Good Lord, I can't believe that I'm the only one at Tendo City who sees how incredibly stupid Nintendo is for showing off a bunch of gimmicky GBA-GC games at E3 instead of something people actually want. What's wrong with you people?? Do you not care about Nintendo's future?? Do you really think that people are going to buy Gamecubes to play these little games??

And did you think about what I said, ABF? Four Swords and Pacman aren't going to sell Gamecubes because in order to play the games you need GBAs, which means that they'll only be selling more GBAs! If they want to sell Gamecubes then they have to make GBA games that become significantly better with GC support. Like say, a Pokemon game for the cube that lets you design monsters, envinronments, etc. for the GBA Pokemons. Add in all of the other stuff from games like Pokemon Stadium and you'd have a huge hit on your hands. GBA owners are not going to buy Gamecubes for little multiplayer games that you have to play in front of the T.V. You have to entice them buy making them think that they have to get a certain Gamecube game in order to get the most out of a certain GBA game that they own. That makes perfect sense and you know it. Nintendo is going about this whole thing backwards.

[lazyfatbum]

OB1/ Every game Nintendo has mentioned that uses the GBA require one GBA. The other players use GC controllers. It's not about trying to get people to buy Gamecubes anymore. It's about getting people hooked on to an idea. one that will be fully lit when GC2 hits. All Nintendo wants to sell now is their name.

Nintendo's thinking for the future. High profits, low cost and happy gamers. What do we complain about the most?

1. Price of software.
2. Time it takes to produce software.
3. Lack of online/LAN support.
4. Hardware not being exploited (mostly by 3rd parties).
5. Quality of software's game content (mostly by 3rd parties).

So, Nintendo decides to outsource their top franchises to 3rd parties to create high-standard games just as Nintendo has always done. But where has that gotten Nintendo? Third Place. A giant, beautiful, 5 years+ in the making demi-God of a game produced by the top minds at Nintendo has gotten them third place because today's game players simply dont care. We're all spoiled ADD shock-jocks looking for our next high and we simply do not have the time to gawk at a brilliant project. Games SMS a game that can easily put most platform games to rest, has dropped out of sight after generating millions of sales. It's like it never existed now; People have moved on to the next big Nintendo project, which was of course Zelda. It too has generated millions of sales and is now slowly winding down, within a month or two it wont even be remembered. The same for Metroid Prime. So now, the 3rd parties spend the money to produce the games, and most of it goes to them with a cut to Nintendo. Nintendo spends nothing and gets a profit.

Nintendo sees the new trends and it's wised up considerably. Shit, I bet an online multiplayer Pacman game that sells for 30 bucks with an Ethernet adapter will outsell Metroid Prime and Zelda: WW combined in its first few weeks. Welcome to the new machine - You get gobs of software, all of it mass produced and re-packaged memories of yester-year with new modern twists. It costs them nearly nothing to make or upgrade, it costs you nearly nothing to buy, and you can slap it online (for a monthly fee) and play it until you get bored of it. This is sadly what happens to every single game ever made since the dawn of the industry to today. No matter how good, how brilliant, in-genius, spectacular, genre-creating, I dont care if it gave birth to Jesus Christ; People will get bored eventually, and it will collect dust.

The New Nintendo stands before you; it answers all your questions, it grants every wish and fixes any complaints. In a few years, it will be like the pure essence of MTV Executives and it will make more money than you can imagine without lifting a finger and we all took part in this new creation. But the downside is that the Golden Project is dead.

The multi-million dollar uber-project is an old joke now.

Enter the Matrix for GC has cut scenes with real actors. They filmed these extra scenes while they were working on the actual movie. Can Nintendo do that? No. Will Enter the Matrix generate huge sale numbers because of those cut scenes alone? You bet. Can Nintendo pump so much hype and buzz through print ads, commercial spots, movie tie-ins and product placement that you cant help but feel like you need this game or else you'll die? Nope. Nintendo cant even generate hype when they try to, it's all about word of mouth when it comes to how consumers handle Nintendo. No cool factor, no pop, no Hollywood magic or bloated endorsements.

And now Nintendo admits defeat to its enemies. The people that forced this change; the game players, have turned Nintendo out faster than a pimp at the school dance. With all the new business knowledge I’ve gained from school, it's so easy for me to see what Nintendo's doing and I’m happy for them. Nintendo will be #1 so far ahead of the competition that the console market will be a mirror to he hand held market - total ownership, a monopoly that would (and will) make Bill cry at night while sleeping in his money bin. Give it a decade to be fully realized, but you can see it squirming in the womb right now. And when it's old enough to take flight, Nintendo will be synonamous with everything game related, right down to the plastic it's pressed on. And no one will ever realize that at one time, games were made to be a form of art, because no one will care.

So welcome the new Nintendo with open arms, if you dont you'll be grinded up in to jelly along with anything else that stands in its way.

Of course, this could all go horribly wrong.

What if Nintendo gives people what they want, and those people realize they didn't want it. Then we'll be playing Mario on a system that doesn't say Nintendo anywhere.

The funny thing is, everyone fears that Nintendo will become a software only company. But what they're not seeing is that right now, Nintendo is becoming a hardware only company. It's like a giant pyramid scheme of sales reps. Nintendo sells the meat, the third party's, owned either partially or wholly by Nintendo, sell the bread, and cuts a profit from it. Meanwhile, the only games they'll be working on is what people want right now, the games that are making the most money - Pure shit. Games that I wouldn't wipe my ass with in fear of its transparent nothingness infecting my free time.

The cool part is, while Nintendo is changing for the best (worst) they're still more talented than every developer combined. For Nintendo, the in-house production of the golden project is dead; long live the fun factor of the cheap, in-house produced game of the future. Golden projects will still exist, they'll still take 5 to 10 years to be created and they'll still cost millions to produce. And Nintendo will still have their hands in it in the creativity department, but most of the cost of producing will fall squarely on the 3rd parties shoulders... just as most of the profits will. Most...

And all Nintendo has to do is make the systems to play it on.

[OB1]

So Nintendo is going to become number one by not making any more first-party games? And making these CG-GBA games that won't push consoles is a good thing? What exactly are you talking about?

BTW I'm sure you were talking about GTA when you mentioned "pure crap" games that sell well. Have you even played any of them yet? Even Miyamoto recognized how great they are, and he even said that games like GTA are good the industry. Here's a direct quote from him:

GameSpy: What do you think of the Grand Theft Auto series?

Miyamoto: I have looked at Grand Theft Auto. The basic concept was very well done. Regardless of what the content of the game was, the level of freedom that you had in that one big city was a very good idea. Obviously it has gotten a lot of press because of the moral issues; but even aside from that, the game was done in such a way that gives it great gameplay. I think that is the reason that Grand Theft Auto is selling.

Looking at this from the other side, I think we should welcome this game. Everybody is making all of this fuss about the incredible graphics and movies that they have in the games these days. For a game like Grand Theft Auto, which is not nearly as polished in terms of the graphical look, to do so well is positive for the game industry.

He has a good point there.

[lazyfatbum]

I wasn't just talking about the GTA series, and I was talking more about the Japanese market, not here.

To answer your questions, read my post again. You missed something.

[Darunia]

For once OB1 I'm with you. We've seen a turn around not since since the sides of the War of the Austrian Succession flopped to those of the Seven Years' War. I don't see this doing anything for Nintendo either...few will be the die hard GBA fans who'll buy a Cube just for that connectibility. Shiggy's right with his appraisal of GTA...awesome game.

[Nintendarse]

I want to make this very clear. Recently, personal opinion of a product and personal opinion of the product's effect on Nintendo have become frighteningly blurred. These are two separate things. Thus, they should be separate. Too often, our egos get wrapped up in liking a game that we automatically assume that everyone else should think the same way, and thus the game will sell well. The reality is that each of our little opinions of a product is an infinitesimal (really really small) part of Nintendo's audience. So, in a sense, my personal opinion of Pacman has very little influence in the scheme of things. Therefore, I shouldn't even consider my personal opinion of a product when I think about the game's sales.

Keeping that in mind, I don't think this is the kind of innovation people are looking for. Certainly not the hardcore gamers that attend E3. The unknown is whether the mass market would grasp this. Unfortunately, Nintendo's got a problem. The numerous Nintendo fans that are dedicated enough to get the full GBA 4-player setup (in general) wouldn't be interested in these simple games. On the other hand, the casuals that might be interested in these games might look at the hurdles (buying a peripheral or several GBAs) and just say, "It's not worth it." For these reasons, I think that these connectivity games will not break out of a small niche.

Personally, I'm not interested in 4 swords (too many GBAs), Tetra's Trackers (doesn't look fun), and Pacman (unless it's less than $20). These aren't the game experiences that excite me. But again, that has nothing to do with the fact that I think the games will not bd successful. As I tried to explain about Celda, I thought the art was beautiful, inspired, and wonderful. Simultaneously, I thought that the art style that I liked was not paletable to the mass market. As I said, I try to keep these two separate, as they are two different things.

[OB1]

And you ended up being wrong as Zelda sold very well in both North America and Europe.

I'm definitely going to buy Four Swords if it's not over $30, but I'm still very dissapointed by the fact that it's a GC game and not a GBA one.

[Darunia]

I don't even think I'll do THAT much. The whole concept is very weak to me. This is a waste of resources and time... I'd much rather see the next full-fledged Zelda game on the heels of Wind Waker... but who wouldn't.:(

[lazyfatbum]

How can you expect to see a true Zelda sequel to WW in two months since it's release? :/ This is exactly what i'm talking about, no matter how cool the game is, people play it religously until it's finished and then forget it like it wasn't even there. Nintendo needs atleast 3 to 4 years to make a completely new Zelda game; There is a new one but it's been in the works since post production ended on Ocarina of Time and we'll probably see it by next year. So Nintendo decides to make cheap fun games that play off of WW's and 4 Swords gameplay for people to play with until the next Zelda hits and you guys complain about it. Geez.

[OB1]

I never expected to see a sequel to WW this year. I did however expect to see a Capcom GBA Zelda and at least one original game from EAD this year. But what to we get from them? Pikmin 2. Now I'm really looking forward to Pikmin 2, but it's essentially the same game as the first one but without the time limit and with some multiplayer support. That's terribly dissapointing from the biggest and developer in the world, don't you think?

[lazyfatbum]

Not at all when you consider that they're neck deep in helping 3rd parties with their franchise games and designing games for the GBA/GCand GC2.

It's like the N64's final years; They had Rare release games while they worked on GC stuff. You cant expect a company to keep pumping out huge titles every month, they need time.

As for the Capcom Zelda, well I have no idea. And what are you so dissapointed about? F-Zero GX, Metroid Zero Hour and Prime 2, MGS: TS etc etc. Not to mention all the weird games coming out from no-name developers that look extremely promising. None of you guys have talked about Conan or BG&E, Splinter Cell 2, Knights of the Temple god it goes on forever. Not to mention Mario Kart Double Dash which we know will be online. Just settle down and bask in the golden light.

Dont forget that Nintendo already said that a brand new Mario, Zelda, Eternal Darkness, Luigi's Mansion, Super Smash Bros, you name it; Are all getting new games. Plus Nintendo will probably be showing off their brand new franchises this year. This E3 was great, what are you so down about?

[Great Rumbler]

Originally posted by OB1
That's terribly dissapointing from the biggest and developer in the world, don't you think?

But, OB1, weren't you the one who said you didn't expect anything big from Nitendo at E3 becuase they were probably going to save it for Spaceworld?

Ah, here it is:

Yay! Although I guess this means that Nintendo is going to be holding back a few things from E3 and save them for Spaceworld... Mario 128, anyone?

[OB1]

Because there's a good chance that Spaceworld won't be on this year.

Now lazy, don't get me wrong here. I think this year is going to be great for Gamecube owners. I was just very dissapointed by Nintendo's E3 showing and the complete and total lack of any new unannounced EAD games. Miyamoto was talking about this remarkable new game that would take advantage of the GBA-GC hookup and it ended up being Pacman. That was really dissapointing.

[Sacred Jellybean]

OB1: Why do you say that there's a good chance Spaceworld won't be on this year?

[Darunia]

Yea, OB1...whats up with that.

needs atleast 3 to 4 years to make a completely new Zelda game

Ehh I dunno about that...MM was out what, two years after OoT and was a jewel of cartridge gaming. WW was out 3 years later and to me anyway is lacking. I don't think games get good with age. Keeping it in the pot for longer doesn't make them better...they're not wine and cheese.

[OB1]

Wind Waker was made in two years.

And I keep on saying that about Spaceworld because Nintendo of America is saying that there won't be one this year.

[Sacred Jellybean]

Who was it that said it <u>would</u> be on? I'm too lazy to go back and check.

[Darunia]

I hope you're wrong about Space World.

[OB1]

I hope I'm wrong too.

And Beanjo, it was announced a few months ago. Search around TC for the news link.

[A Black Falcon]

OB1, OB1, OB1... you honestly think EAD will release ONE original game this year? Really?

And as for Spaceworld, I still don't see why it'd be cancelled... it sure seemed like they said it was on!

[OB1]

What? The only EAD Gamcube game coming out this year is Pikmin 2, as far as I know.

[A Black Falcon]

Nintendo releases some games with no warning.

Also, games released here this year COUNT! Zelda was released this year.

And how about the Nintendo Puzzle Collection? Is that EAD?

[Sacred Jellybean]

Oh, it looks like Nintendojo is the one who announced that SpaceWorld was back on... damn, and I was hoping it was a reliable source...

[OB1]

Zelda doesn't count since it was finished and released in Japan last year. We're talking about how few games they make, ABF.

[A Black Falcon]

I'm talking American releases, and it was released here this year.

Nintendojo? That does make it sound a lot less likely... :(

Oh, and what about the Puzzle Collection?

[OB1]

It doesn't matter when it was released in the states. We're talking about their development cycles. They're the biggest developer in the world yet they only have one new game this year, and it's largely the same as the last Pikmin.

[Great Rumbler]

From Cube-Europe:

We Nintendo fans have a tendecy to overreact sometimes. Well, less of a tendecy, more of a natural instinct.
So, naturally, when Nintendo turns up a pretty lacklustre performance at E3, after all the waiting and anticipating and optimism that goes with it, Nintendophiles get pretty angry. Not all of us obviously, some have managed to remain level-headed about the whole thing. But there have been those that flooded our message boards with claims of Nintendo`s demise, of Gamecube`s ruin, of ditching Nintendo for a PS2 or Xbox. Apparently, Gamecube has no good games coming out for it. Yes, apparently EAD are just sitting about on their asses all day. And apparently, no Zelda game will ever be good again because two Zelda mini-games Nintendo showed were pieces of crap. It`s all news to me.

Okay, let`s get one thing straight; E3 is just a show. Yes, it`s normally the biggest few days in the gaming calendar, and an event of big importance to the console-makers, but it is just one show. E3 is not a window to everything developers are working on, it isn`t the be-all and end-all of gaming, it`s not a fountain of wisdom granting knowledge of everything that`s happening in the industry. As one N-Sider forumgoer so rightly remarked, gamers can find it hard to see outside E3, like a child who knows only the small world around him, not the wider one out there. While we used to be able to use E3 as a guide of sorts for the year ahead, it`s increasingly becoming a closed affair. A disappointing line-up wasn`t exclusive to Nintendo though, Sony and Micrsoft both had a pretty average shows, albeit with a few stunners in the mix (Halo 2 and Half-Life 2 come to find).

But lets ponder one thing; would E3 have been such a disappointment if Nintendo had`ve kept the unveilings of Mario Kart, Pikmin 2 and Metal Gear Solid until then? Hell no. It seems that Nintendo are unfortunately listening to complaints about their famed secrecy. I for one dislike this transparency, and prefer the good old days when tip-lipping was Ninty`s traditional policy. At least then we had some good surprises at E3. Yes, we had some surprises at E3. But mostly, they weren`t very encouraging ones. I`m not going to dwell on the subject, but those two Zelda games are a joke, and don`t deserve the precious franchise. Sure, we can wait until we learn more about them, but it`s nigh on impossible they`ll turn out anything but dire. My apathy is shared with this gimmicky GC-GBA connectivity/multiplayer focus. For that`s all it is; a gimmick. And it doesn`t deserve the time of Nintendo`s developers when they could be working on something more important. Like making the coffee.

However, the more cynical of us have lept on these obvious failings, and ignored the positive points of the show. There was the highly-promising Geist, Custom Robo, Mario Kart (which loks brilliant fun), Pikmin 2 and some on MGS and the next Metroid Prime. Nintendo seem to taking a more aggressive stance in regards to Gamecube`s successor, determined to launch early while doing their own thing. I for one am totally happy with this. Yes, it means a short life for Gamecube, but it`s a worthy sacrifice if Nintendo aren`t to repeat the mistakes they made with the N64 and GC.

But some people seem to think that this, coupled with the unexciting E3 performance, means there`s nothing left in Gamecube, that Nintendo have given up and we should all be discarding our purple cubes to the trade-in booth at out local games store. To them I say; riddle me this - which console will see Skies of Arcada, one of the best RPG`s of recent times, Splinter Cell, the fantastic Viewtiful Joe, XIII, F-Zero, Mario Kart: Double Dash (a game that looks set to be the best multiplayer game in a while), Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles, Metal Gear Solid, Harvest Moon, Pikmin 2, Soul Calibur 2 (probably the greatest 3D beat-em-up ever) between now and Christmas? Gamecube, that`s what. And which console will see Metroid prime 2, Rogue Squadron 3, Animal Crossing 2, Resident Evil 4, Unity, Billy Thatcher, Skies of Arcadia 2, the last Phantasy Star game, and a bunch of other geat games in the future? Yep, you guessed it; Gamecube. And that`s only the announced games.

Where`s EAD on that list you ask? Look to Spaceworld I say. There`s got to be one. Obviously Nintendo have got games under development at home, I really don`t think that much of their efforts are being channeled towards the next console, like they`re just ignoring Gamecube or whatever. But who knows why they didn`t showcase them at E3. Probably could`ve stolen the show. Oh well. It`s just one show. One bad E3 does not suddenly make Gamecube obselete. It does not magically make all the great games we know, and don`t know, are coming disappear. The great games are still coming, E3 doesn`t change that.

Yes, E3 wasn`t very exciting. Get over it. When passion boils into extreme cynicism, just don`t lose your head with apocalyptic warnings. There`s still life left in your Gamecube, a bad four days for Nintendo doesn`t change that. So everyone, just calm down.

-By Conor

[OB1]

I really hope that what I read was wrong and Spaceworld really is on this year.

[Dark Jaguar]

Haha, he's exactly right! Nintendo is finallly opening up a bit and we see what happens. Instead of a sudden rush of "amazing announcements" ala last year, they all get out one by one, so when E3 comes around, nothing's left to wow us with except the stuff they still want to keep secret at that time. They aren't going down hill, it's just that with them being as open as other companies we finally just see that in fact Nintendo always has been the company to release hits here and there the whole year, with only the sudden info rush to really give the illusion that those games are coming at us all at once. I prefer them being open, as opposed to that guy, but they should be open about more important things like their online plans too. It's not just them slowly being more open with their stuff, they need to really sell it the second they let the info out. Don't just inform us "oh, by the way, Mario Kart is online, you see we got this online thing going that will be built into lots of games, just so you know". SELL it to us. Tell us everything we have been telling each other in our enthusiasm. Microsoft SOLD their Live kit, Nintendo just informed of their online plan. They should have some huge ads for it all, maybe built into games in the demo menu (which they would do well to add to their games again), so people can't wait to get online. They might also consider pulling a Sony and packing the broadband adapter with Mario Kart.

[OB1]

I do think they should have helf off the Rebel Strike and Mario Kart announcements until E3. It's not like they unveiled Mario Kart months before the show; they showed it just a week before E3!

BTW here's some more news to confirm what I heard about Spaceworld. I got it from today's ign mailbag:

Mario 128
Hey, now that E3 is over, what kind of cool games do you think the
big N will be showing off at Spaceworld? Possibly Mario 128?
- Kasey

Peer responds: First of all, I'm not sure who started the rumors about a Spaceworld expo this year, but if there's one happening then neither we nor Nintendo know about it. That said, it's likely that Nintendo will opt for increased presence at the fall Tokyo Games Show. Wait, strike that. Nintendo NEEDS to have a presence at the fall Tokyo Games Show if it wants to expand its audience beyond its traditional Mario/Smash Bros. target market in Japan. I don't think Mario 128 is going to show itself this year quite yet, otherwise Nintendo would have used a clip or trailer to bolster its meager in-house E3 offering. I imagine Nintendo's focus in Japan this year will be on promoting Final Fantasy on GC and GBA, the new Mario & Luigi GBA title, Mario Party 5, F-Zero, and Japan's most popular mascot diversion, Mario Kart.

Damn. :(

[A Black Falcon]

That stinks...

[Sacred Jellybean]

Aww. :(

[Great Rumbler]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

[OB1]

Yeah. :S

Now do you understand why I was so dissapointed with E3?

[A Black Falcon]

Yes, more.

[OB1]

It's tough being so misunderstood so often.

[A Black Falcon]

http://www.n-philes.com/php/epvfzkaalfekukzkfvkp.php

The Cube screenshot looks cool!

[Great Rumbler]

The three players controlling the Ghosts are what makes the game different. Each Ghost has a circular field of vision that allows him to see a small area of the map. To track Pac-Man, the yellow hero leaves a short trail behind him that the Ghosts can track if they are quick enough. The Ghosts can also eat the floating fruit to increase their field of vision. However, if Pac-Man eats the fruit he will decrease the vision of all three Ghosts. He can, of course, still eat the Ghosts by chomping one of the four Power Pellets. When a Ghost catches Pac-Man, play pauses so Pac-Man can switch spots with the Ghost who ate him. This continues until time is up, and the player who earned the most points while Pac-Man wins.

Sounds like an awesome party game.

[A Black Falcon]

Yes, everything I've read has said that its an extremely addictive multiplayer game...

[A Black Falcon]

http://www.gameforms.com/features/interviews/palomares/

Intresting interview on Gameforms... they ask some tough questions with a Nintendo rep. Read!

As for 'why in this thread', well there are about 15 decent candidates and this one is closest to the top of the thread list. :)

During E3 2003, Gameforms' Kyle Buchanan sat down with Dan Palomares from Team Nintendo to get some details on Nintendo's latest big push, the connectivity feature between Gamecube and Game Boy Advance.
Gameforms: Two years ago, Nintendo came to E3 to push the Gamecube. Last year, Nintendo was pushing marquee titles like Mario and Zelda. Now that the Gamecube is in the middle of its run, how does that affect what you focus on at E3?

Palomares: This year, Mr. Miyamoto has focused on connectivity more than ever before, with titles like Pac-Man, where you have your friends controlling the ghosts [on the Gamecube], and someone controlling Pac-Man on the GBA. There’s also Four Swords, which is a great game in the style of A Link to the Past on the GBA, which I’ve played a lot. So I think there’s more focus from Nintendo - and more focus from Mr. Miyamoto - on connectivity, because it’s giving you an added feature that nobody else can give to you. We’re also focusing on third-party support. We obviously have great relationships with Konami, Capcom, Namco, Squaresoft. We’ve got all these great developers. So that’s what we’re focusing on this year.

Gameforms: Now about connectivity – it was mentioned at Nintendo’s conference as one of the things that hadn’t really caught on yet with gamers. How does Nintendo think that a bigger focus on that will make an impact, considering it hasn’t already?

Palomares: Well…I think overall, we feel that connectivity is something that can really enhance gameplay. You haven’t yet seen the tip of the iceberg on what connectivity can do. You know, Pac-Man is a great game, but I don’t think that’s the limits of connectivity. You think of a game like The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, where you have the connectivity there, and it’s definitely not necessary but it evolves the actual experience of the game. And I think Nintendo feels if we don’t do something innovative on [connectivity], something that really gets other developers thinking, “How can we use it?”…that’s the end goal. You know, product developers like EA are doing a big thing about connectivity this year, too, with Nintendo Gamecube. And so we’re really focusing on that this year, and pushing it.

Gameforms: Pac-Man isn’t a very hard game to program. Isn’t that a game that could have been executed by linking four Game Boy Advances, rather than getting the Gamecube involved? What is it about that game that makes it necessary to use the Gamecube?

Palomares: [long pause] Well, that’s a question. I think definitely that if you have three ghosts, you have limited room to see on the screen, and so [on Gamecube] you can see where your partners are, so it’s more like a thing where you can connect with your friends when you’re the ghosts, and say, “OK, I’m over here, and Pac-Man’s right here.” And if you have your own screen [on GBA], or all the players have their own screen, then you can’t communicate very well or see well with them.

Gameforms: Why would each player’s game have to take up the whole GBA screen? I think the Game Boy Advance could handle split-screen Pac-Man without much difficulty.

Palomares: Right, right. Well, that’s a good point. Pac-Man, like you said, is a very, very basic design, one of the best designs ever. But I don’t know how much more they’re gonna add to the show’s version. It’s still the first look at Pac-Man. Miyamoto’s a brilliant guy, so I guess we’ll have to wait and see what he has planned.

Gameforms: Another thing that was mentioned at the press conference was that the Gamecube systems hadn’t sold through this past year according to projections. Won’t the push for connectivity only focus on a niche of players that have a Gamecube, a GBA, and friends with GBA’s, instead of bringing in new players that don’t have either system?

Palomares: Well, it’s definitely…I mean, connectivity is not the main road we are going to take. We’re still going to be focusing on games, and we’re always going to be looking to give an enhancement to the experience of playing games. Basically, I don’t feel like we’re alienating anybody by focusing on connectivity. If anything, we’re definitely pushing our product. You know, Game Boy Advance is obviously a very popular system. There’s a lot of people that still don’t have it, but I keep it with me all the time. The SP appeals to a more mature audience, the backlight is good…when you think about the Game Boy and the older demographic we’re talking about, who started playing games on the NES, you get the same quality of games as back then on a portable machine, or, if anything, with higher quality. You’ve got over a thousand titles on the Game Boy system. So I think people are going to start looking at that. It’s got a lot of RPG’s, a lot more coming out that should be good, and a lot of games that I think appeal to the older demographic. So I think it’s going to be something that will push more hardware.

Gameforms: You’re telling me that connectivity is like a bonus, something that’s not going to alienate anyone. But what about a title like Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles, where the only way to play it in multiplayer mode is to round up a bunch of people with Game Boy Advances? Why isn’t that a game that can be played in multiplayer with Gamecube controllers?

Palomares: Well, at this point, I don’t know if that’s going to be the final version. I don’t know if it’s going to stay that way, or if they’re going to look at that and say, “You know…” Nintendo is all about feedback, and E3 is one of the things where we come out here to see what people’s reactions are. A lot of the games out here are still experimental. We’re kind of playing with the ideas, putting them out and seeing what people think, what the reaction is gonna be. So we don’t know that in the final version of Crystal Chronicles, you’ll have to play in multiplayer with a Game Boy Advance. One advantage of it is that you can switch weapons on the fly, you can move everything around. And I think a lot of the people who will be playing Final Fantasy own a Game Boy Advance, just because of the large library of RPG’s that it has.

Gameforms: Well, that’s the thing: I know I’ve got a Game Boy Advance, but most of my friends don’t. So if I want them to come over and play a Gamecube game with me, now they won’t be able to unless they’ve got a Game Boy Advance.

Palomares: Well, with [Crystal Chronicles], I don’t know if that’s going to be the final version, so it’s something we’ll look into and we’ll see what happens in the end.

Gameforms: I know that some Cube owners are concerned about what games are left to come out, now that so many of its marquee titles have arrived or are going to soon. You’ve got your Mario Sunshine, you’ve got your Zelda, your Mario Kart, your F-Zero, et cetera. Are there still going to be games coming out in any of Nintendo’s major franchises past next year?

Palomares: Well, there are definitely bigger titles in the works. You heard Mr. Kojima yesterday, talking about how this collaboration with Metal Gear: Twin Snakes is building a relationship. Squaresoft’s coming back – you’re going to see more of that. You’re going to see more Konami, more of Capcom. Nintendo does video games, and you’re definitely going to see things in the works. We have a really strong lineup right now. Like Geist - that’s a first person shooter, and everyone said, “Oh, Nintendo doesn’t do first-person shooters.” F-Zero, that’s going to be a strong title. Definitely Mario Kart. We have a whole bunch of great relationships, and we’re basically loaning out franchises, like Namco with Starfox, or Sega with F-Zero. We’ve also got stuff coming up with Squaresoft and Konami. Nintendo isn’t going to stop making great games.

Gameforms: I think that a lot of players have been thinking about the next system from Nintendo, especially because of Nintendo’s claim that they’re going to get this one out first to market. It’s early, and there are always delays, but do you have any idea what time period Nintendo is shooting for to release that system?

Palomares: I know it’s going to be earlier. Personally, as a gamer, I don’t buy into that hype of “Oh, we have to get the new system out, we have to be first.” What matters more to me is what games are out now, what I can play now, because I don’t want to worry about games that are coming out in 2005 or 2006, whenever the next system comes out. I don’t want to miss out on the great games that are coming out now. To me, new hardware is great, but there has to be something to play on it. The Gamecube is obviously a big improvement over the N64, and the new system will obviously be a big improvement over the Gamecube, but right now I’m focusing on the Gamecube because it’s got great titles.

Gameforms: I agree that software is the most important factor in the success of a system, but you’ve got to think about hardware and market reception because they both affect whether the system will have a long life or not. Do you think Nintendo has learned things in those areas from the launches of the N64 and Gamecube that are going to affect how they position the next system?

Palomares: Well, definitely. I mean, in developing the Gamecube, we start to see certain things we like about the Gamecube, certain things we like about connectivity. There’s a lot of potential. I think the guys we’ve got working on the new hardware, they’re out there. They know what’s hot, they know what people want, and they’ve got a lot of ideas. It’s also important to make it affordable.

Gameforms: But is it going to be purple? Sorry, I’ve gotta ask. Nintendo’s always been labeled a kids’ toy, so they release the first model of [the Gamecube] in purple? How does that help debunk that image?

Palomares: Well, there was purple and black. Two different colors. A lot of people don’t like purple, but the Gamecube is still a Gamecube. The hardware is the same, right? A lot of people are into some new colors. You know, when I saw the Cube with the mirrored look for the first time, I was all about that. "Hey, I want that one!"

Gameforms: Yeah, me too.

Palomares: I definitely feel that. But to me, it’s more important to have enough systems out there. So if Nintendo launches a system in one color just to get more systems out there, that’s more important to me than having multiple colors. I upgraded to a Platinum, but it’s still under my entertainment system, and I only ever look at it when I’m putting a game in. I don’t think color really makes a difference in the launch of a system. I think the fact that it’s portable makes it cooler.

Gameforms: All right, one last game question. Miyamoto has said once before that there may be a new Mario game in development that will provide the leap forward that maybe we didn’t get with Mario Sunshine. Can you confirm that there’s another Mario game in development for Gamecube?

Palomares: At this point, I know as much as you do about the new Mario. EAD is really secretive about software like Mario. It’s on a need-to-know basis, and right now I don’t need to know.

Gameforms: Nintendo is always so secretive about upcoming releases. Why can’t they come out and officially say there’s a new Mario game in development? Shouldn’t they be trying to build a buzz and help people feel that they’ve made a safe purchase in their system?

Palomares: That’s probably more of a marketing question than anything else. If you look at the market itself, Nintendo builds genres. You’ve got Zelda, you’ve got Mario 64, or Mario Kart…Nintendo definitely builds those genres. As soon as we put something out, people will try to do it. We don’t want to put things out there too early, and have competitors try to steal that idea. We definitely know that we are good at what we do, and we want to keep that edge.

[OB1]

Great interview by gameforms. It's great to see that they're not afraid to ask the tough questions.

Pacman looks cool if it's a pack-in with another game for is going to be sold at a low price. This certainly is no replacement for Mario or another new EAD game (remember that this is the only EAD game aside from Pikmin 2 that's coming out this year).

[A Black Falcon]

Yeah, unlike Nintendo fansites, they sure are being tough... and as per usual Nintendo dodged a bunch of them.

Gameforms: Another thing that was mentioned at the press conference was that the Gamecube systems hadn’t sold through this past year according to projections. Won’t the push for connectivity only focus on a niche of players that have a Gamecube, a GBA, and friends with GBA’s, instead of bringing in new players that don’t have either system?

Palomares: Well, it’s definitely…I mean, connectivity is not the main road we are going to take. We’re still going to be focusing on games, and we’re always going to be looking to give an enhancement to the experience of playing games. Basically, I don’t feel like we’re alienating anybody by focusing on connectivity. If anything, we’re definitely pushing our product. You know, Game Boy Advance is obviously a very popular system. There’s a lot of people that still don’t have it, but I keep it with me all the time. The SP appeals to a more mature audience, the backlight is good…when you think about the Game Boy and the older demographic we’re talking about, who started playing games on the NES, you get the same quality of games as back then on a portable machine, or, if anything, with higher quality. You’ve got over a thousand titles on the Game Boy system. So I think people are going to start looking at that. It’s got a lot of RPG’s, a lot more coming out that should be good, and a lot of games that I think appeal to the older demographic. So I think it’s going to be something that will push more hardware.

Like IGN used to say... he must be one of the Nintendo Jedis! :)

[OB1]

But that guy is just stupid.

Nintendo's main focus at E3 was the GBA-GC connectivity thing. Gameforms is right.

[A Black Falcon]

How is he stupid? He makes a bit of sense... but its tough when you must say the Nintendo line and that line has no good answer for the question...

[OB1]

He's certainly no Perrin Kaplan. He says one thing and then tries his best to retract it. It's quite hilarious. And some of his answers are very dumb.

[A Black Falcon]

well, no, he's certainly no Perrin Kaplan. And he does contradict himself a bit... he must be new at this. :)