Wii U's Bayonetta backlash

First off, I once again neglected this blog.  Too much preparation for the upcoming Mists of Pandaria.

A couple of weeks ago, The Wii U information, from pricing to release date, was finalized.  Not only that, but the Wii U will also come with something that no previous system has: A means of watching TV.


Nintendo announced that its new Wii U game console will be available in the U.S. on Nov. 18, coming in two flavors. The white "Basic" bundle is $300 and comes with a GamePad and Wii U with 8 GB of memory. But it makes more sense to pick up the $350 black "Deluxe" bundle, which includes a 32 GB Wii U system, charger, stand and Nintendo Land. Nintendo Land is a pack of 12 mini games which use the GamePad and allow 5 people to play at once.
The Wii U systems also will have a new entertainment hub called Nintendo TVii. It takes all the video available from Netflix, Hulu and Amazon, and also taps into what's available on live TV from your cable provider. All that data is funneled into one menu that you can browse through on the GamePad screen. Search for a show, network or genera, and it'll show you all the options without having to hop between different apps and menus for each service. It also lets you set recordings on a TiVo DVR. Nintendo TVii also has a social feature where you can comment about what you're watching and see what you're friends are saying in real time. (Also, check out this analysis by Matthew Moskovciak: The Wii U is trying to succeed where Google TV failed.)

Finally.  A means of watching Television through my video game system.  Take that Google, Microsoft and Sony. 

However, something got my attention when the price was announced and it wasn't pretty.  No.  This was the worst thing to happen to gaming since Final Fantasy VII was announced for the Playstation.  And I don't mean exclusively, since no one likes an emo for a hero and a Mama's Boy for a villain.

The surprise announcement was made during the Japanese Nintendo Direct broadcast earlier today.


Yusuke Hashimoto, who was producer of the first game, has stepped up to directing. Hideki Kamiya is supervising production.
Atsushi Inaba will be serving as producer on the sequel. His previous efforts include God Hand, Okami and Vanquish. He's also working on Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance and The Wonderful 101 (formerly Project P-100).

Mari Shimazaki, designer of the titular protagonist returns as character designer. Hirono Sato is lead game designer, having wrapped up work on Anarchy Reigns, and Masami Ueda returns to compose the soundtrack.

Bayonetta 2.  Come on.  Why did you go with Bayonetta 2?  I mean, come on.  It's not like the game itself was announced, then cancelled


Bayonetta 2 has been the subject of intense rumour and speculation. The original was critically acclaimed, is highly-regarded among third-person character action game aficionados and oft-requested by fans.

Whispers of a sequel began in August last year, when Hideki Kamiya teased a Bayonetta 2 reveal in Famitsu. Kamiya quickly followed up his Twitter teasing by saying the statements quoting him were a mistranslation and Bayonetta 2 would not be announced.

After short period of silence talk Bayonetta 2 started up again when an unnamed Sega employee promised an announcement "fairly soon". Unfortunately, this was followed by a rumour that the game had been outright cancelled leaving those dreaming of a squel with little to cling to.

.......
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

They actually cancelled the game, and then uncancelled it.

Well, following the Bayonetta 2 announcement, a backlash followed.  Many gamers threw a nasty fit and Destructoid's Jonathan Holmes had this to say.


Arguably the biggest surprise at yesterday's Wii U press event was the announcement of Bayonetta 2, and that the game will be a Wii U exclusive published by Nintendo. My first thought was "This will get people who think that Nintendo 'only cares about the casuals' to see that the publisher is making a real effort to broaden their appeal."

Turns out I was right. I just didn't expect that some people would be so angry about it. Below you'll find just a smattering of some of the comments from Bayonetta "fans" who are very upset over the news, including the usual death threats, plans for boycotts, and announcements that the announcement of a new videogame has "REALLY RUINED THEIR DAY."
Exclusivity always makes some people feel left out, and that sucks, but in this case we're talking about a game that is lucky to be getting a sequel at all. I expected fans of the original game to be universally pleased that Bayonetta's adventures will continue, even if it means that they may have to purchase a Wii U to be a part of them.

For years, people bashed Nintendo for not having more M-rated, "AAA" third-party exclusives. When they make an effort to change that, people complain. My guess is that these people just won't be satisfied with Nintendo until they go out of the videogame business entirely. They seem to enjoy hating the company, and it makes them unhappy when they are given reasons not to.

We hate Nintendo for not having more M-rated AAA games, and we hate Nintendo for having more M-rated AAA games.  It's only logical, if you're a hardcore gamer.  But Inaba had to go and throw salt on our wounds.  You can take alook at the Destructoid Article 1 link to see some of our "Ahem" complaints.


He elaborates, "We are not viewing this as a change of platform. We were looking for a partner to create Bayonetta 2 and Nintendo was a strong, cooperative partner that was willing to create and grow Bayonetta 2 together [with us]. As a result the platform became the Wii U." There's really only one way to interpret this: Nintendo was the only company that demonstrated any significant interest in getting the game made.

No, they are not the only company.  Though if it were on Steam, I'd still throw a crybaby fit because Sony is the only true gaming company, even though they have other stuff coming out.   But I bet no one is gonna care about the Wii U.  That system is gonna flop so bad that Nintendo will have no choice, but to be bought out by Apple.

A number of different GameStop stores told Polygon that the retailer's already reached its allocation for the pricer Wii U SKU company-wide, while another retailer Target has also stopped taking pre-orders for the model on its website.
According to one anonymous GameStop employee, reserves of the Deluxe edition were nearly half-full in the first few hours. The source did not indicate if GameStop will receive more Deluxe editions closer to launch.
Last week Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime claimed that early Wii U Wii U pre-orders were "extremely strong".

.........

You know, I think I'm gonna go cry now.  You know what that sound is?  That's the sound of Nintendo destroying my childhood love for video games.



Works Cited
CNET
Computer and Video Games Article 1
Destructoid Article 1
Destructoid Article 2
Computer and Video Games Article 2

NPD July 2012: Betrayal edition

Folks, before I get down into NPD July 2012, I am teed off right now.  Kevin Butler, the guy who was the official spokesperson of the Sony Playstation, was recently caught playing a Nintendo Wii system.



I know it's a Bridgestone commercial, but come on, Kevin.  Weren't you supporting the Playstation 3?  I mean, who do we have to get to promote the system: Charlie Sheen?

Anyway, it's a bit of a downer for July 2012's NPD in which even DC and Marvel Comics aren't powerful enough to keep the industry from another low

At number 10: Deep Silver's Dead Island for the PC, 360 and PS3, because even Zombies want their vacation

At number 09: Activision/Blizzard's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 for 360, PS3, Wii and PC, proving that every gamer is a patriot on the inside.

At number 08: Take 2 Interactives NBA 2K12 for the 360, PS3, Wii, PSP, PS2 and PC, though I bet no one can jam like Michael Jordan did

At number 07: Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed: Revelations for the 360, PS3 and PC, as Ezlo is still a capable assassin.

At number 06: Activision/Blizzard's Call of Duty: Black Ops on the 360, PS3, DS, Wii and PC, all while its sequel is still being anticipated

At number 05: Warner Bros's Batman Arkham City for the 360, PS3 and PC with a Wii U version coming out later this year

AT number 04: Ubisoft's Just Dance 3 for the Wii, 360 and PS3, leading to a number of nerd rages

At number 03: Activision/Blizzard's  The Amazing Spider-Man on 360, PS3, 3DS, NDS and Wii, though its lack of being first is enough to make Stan "The Man" Lee rant.

At number 02: Warner Bros' Lego Batman 2 for Wii, 360, NDS, PS3, 3DS, PSV and PC, marking 2 Batmans on the list

And finally at number 01: EA's NCAA Fottball 13 for 360 and PS3, though that's gonna flounder compared to Madden.

And finally, hardware numbers(Or just the 360 and DS and 3DS)

360: 203K(-26.7%)
3DS: Above 124K
NDS: Above 120K

Though the 360 is still chugging above the competition, that ain't saying much since it can barely make above 200K.  We can't say much about the Wii and the PS3, but the DS is still holding on and the 3DS is slightly above.

What will August bring?  Can the new 3DS XL and New Super Mario Bros 2 give the 3DS a boost?  Will Madden get the gaming industry a kick in the rear?  Stay tuned.  But first, a moment of silence.  In a few months, City of Heroes and City of Villains will have all of their servers shut down.  But you can take action.  Below the Works Cited are two links for you to look at if you want to save City of  Heroes and City of Villains

Works Cited:
NeoGAF
GamePolitics article on end of City of Heroes
The fight to save City of Heroes from Gamepolitics