Crappy news

[OB1]

This better not be true, Derek! From N-Philes:

Are you desperate for a new Mario title after Super Mario Sunshine? You might have to wait until Nintendo's next home console. According to CCN Money it's possible that "Mario 128" will not be released for GameCube. CNN may just be reading too far into speculation though. The game is based off, or related to, the Mario technical demonstration at SpaceWorld 2000 that had all the Mario's running around.

We still don't know what the big announcement in spring 2004 will be about, but George Harrison of Nintendo says it's unlikely to be the next Game Boy or GCN. Which would mean they are going to go with another strategy to compete with the PSP. It would also mean that Nintendo is running out of time to get their console system announced and development kits out to companies if they want to get a head start.


Posted by Ethan Pearson, Founder, Director
Source: CNN Money

I don't know what to think of this, but I don't believe that first part. Miyamoto pretty much held up his hand and promised "in scout's honor" that we'd see a new Mario, Zelda, and Metroid game next year (or was it just a new Zelda and Metriod game?) for the Gamecube, so if Mario 128 gets delayed to the N5 then I'm going to have to sit down and cry for a while.

The second piece doesn't surprise me too much. I've been having some doubts over whether Nintendo is really going to be prepared to battle with the PSP when that launches next year, and when Iwata said that Nintendo would have something to combat the PSP I cringed, hoping that it would be a new handheld but knowing that it would probably just be some stupid add-on or a new FX chip for the GBA.

[The Former DMiller]

We had heard the Mario 128 delay rumor before, but couldn't get it confirmed so we never posted it. I think Mario 128 is better off as an N5 launch title, though. Nintendo needs some mega-hits to start off the next-generation and we have enough good games coming for GameCube to tide us over.

[OB1]

I'm all for Nintendo cancelling some Gamecube games in favor of having some great big N5 launch titles, but Mario 128 has supposedly been in development for several years now. The N5 probably won't be out until late 2006, so that would make the development time of Mario 128 around five years if it becomes an N5 launch game. That's just insane. EAD is the biggest developer in the world and if they can handle a brand new Zelda game in two years (WW) and then a sequel to that in another two years (the next GC Zelda), then why can't they handle more than one Mario title every five years? It's madness!

[A Black Falcon]

Hmm... no new Mario? I don't know, since we know nothing about Mario 128 I was never sure about it... I still wish it comes of course but I wouldn't be that surprised if its delayed, or moved to the next console.

As for the other part... no, that doesn't surprise me either. All I can say is that I hope its something good...

[OB1]

Miyamoto has talked quite a bit about Mario 128, saying how it has the freshness that Mario Sunshine did not have and how super-friggin-cool it's going to be. Well, in so many words.

[A Black Falcon]

Yeah, and what he's said has been about that general...

[OB1]

Well there's a rumor going around that Mario 128 is actually the Mario 64 sequel that Miyamoto mentioned during the N64 days. Remember when Miyamoto said that if people saw the sequel to Mario 64 that they might think it was a Luigi-only game? Most people assumed that Luigi's Mansion was that game, but we know that LM was not in development back when Miyamoto made that remark. So then could it have been Mario Sunshine? I don't think so since Luigi wasn't present in that game. Mario 64-II was also said to have several other controllable characters, sort of like Mario Bros. 2. Of course, things always change during development but I still don't believe that Mario Sunshine is Mario 64-II. I think Nintendo has been playing around with various ideas for Mario 64-II ever since 1997, and that Mario 128 is the evolution of those ideas.

[Great Rumbler]

If it does get delayed we'll know for sure that they have on big N5 launch title.

[A Black Falcon]

That is probably true... and Nintendo definitely needs top notch launch titles.

The only problem is, SFA, ED, RE0, etc. were delayed N64 games and they were nowhere near being NGC launch titles...

[OB1]

Yeah. :S

[EdenMaster]

Originally posted by A Black Falcon
The only problem is, SFA, ED, RE0, etc. were delayed N64 games and they were nowhere near being NGC launch titles...

I tend to think that games like these were scrapped ideas, revived when the GC came about. Did you ever see the screenshots from ED and RE0 when they were in N64 development? They looked terrible. I think after the Cube launched, they decided to make them again. But that's just my opinion, I could be wrong.

Now if they're beginning to make a good game NOW for the new system, then we might have something to look forward too when the GameSphere/GamePyramid/GameTrapezoid unveils.

Don't let us down, Nintendo.

[A Black Falcon]

No, they definitely weren't scrapped. All three of them were well into development when the N64 versions were canned for NGC editions, actually... there was no break in development between switching platforms, if that's what you mean. And what do you mean they didn't look good on N64? I thought they looked fine for N64 games...

It just took a lot longer than they hoped to redesign the games for newer hardware.

[EdenMaster]

Originally posted by A Black Falcon
I thought they looked fine for N64 games...

I meant compared to what they became on the GC. I suppose that isn't very fair though.

Oh, and I read it fine the first time, you didn't need to post it again :D

[A Black Falcon]

Huh? I don't get your point... they looked okay for N64 games... and then they basically started over with teh same idea on a new platform. But the original versions didn't look that bad, from what I can remember... given that they are on the N64 and not the Cube...