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Yoshi Wii U game by Kirby's Epic Yarn team announced
It only takes a look at this newly unveiled Yoshi game for Wii U to know it's by the Kirby's Epic Yarn team. The as-yet-unnamed Wii U game will feature the same art style and likely some of the same mechanics of Good-Feel and HAL Laboratory's charming 2010 platformer.As revealed on this morning's Nintendo Direct, Yoshi's Island and Yoshi's Story director Takashi Tezuka will supervise the game's development. %Gallery-177049%
Kirby's Epic Yarn spun down to $30 on Amazon
Crocheting is super hot right now, you guys. Take it from a gaggle of scarfmakers like us: You want to get in on the textile movement before it passes you by. Here's a good starting point! Amazon's Deal of the Day is the threaded platformer Kirby's Epic Yarn, which is now on sale for $29.99.
Kirby's Epic Yarn to wind up in Europe Feb. 25
While it still stings, we're sure, to have to wait until 2011 to play Kirby's Epic Yarn, Nintendo revealed a European release date today that isn't too far into next year: February 25. You won't be able to get it for Christmas, but you could conceivably have some gift cards left over from the holiday, at least. Perhaps it took Nintendo a while to translate all the cutesy descriptions of the collectible furniture items. Or perhaps it's taken Nintendo of Europe several months to stop hugging all the copies of the game long enough to get them into boxes.
How Kirby's Epic Yarn challenges players through humiliation
In a new English edition of "Iwata Asks," in which Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata politely interrogates designers and employees about recent games, there's an interesting discussion regarding the difficulty of Kirby's Epic Yarn. Specifically, it's about how developer Good-Feel cut out deadly traps and objects in order to preserve the game's endearing, fluffy and fun atmosphere. "As a team, we were extremely opposed to the idea of an action game where the game wasn't over when an enemy got you," said producer Etsunobu Ebisu. "We debated that for quite a long time." At first, levels in Kirby's Epic Yarn (formerly Fluff's epic yarn) were full of thorns, a thrilling contrivance that didn't sit well with the game's warm aesthetic. Later, however, "we thought it would be fine if we just made a fun game the way we're good at," Ebisu explained. This led to the introduction of a different characteristic in obstacles, with failure to avoid them resulting in the loss of Kirby's collected beads. You can collect them once dropped, but the in-game currency -- used to unlock bonus levels, for instance -- acts as a strong measure of success at the conclusion of a stage. "When serious gamers play, they want to clear a level without any mistakes like running into enemies, so this game is made so you really feel regret when you run into enemies and a strong sense of achievement when you clear a level without any mistakes," said producer Nobuo Matsumiya. Or, as Iwata succinctly put it: "As a gamer, it's humiliating to bump into an enemy."
This sucks: No Kirby for Europe or Australia until 2011
With his rotund shape and waddling gait, we would never consider Kirby to be a particularly hasty creature -- still, we never would have expected his latest adventure, Kirby's Epic Yarn, to take months to reach European and Australian territories. Nintendo Australia recently confirmed that the title, released earlier this month in the U.S. and Japan, would see 2011 launch in PAL regions. (Online retailer Play suggests that it'll only arrive in March.) In the months between, a dedicated European fan could probably recreate the game using actual yarn. Hey, why hasn't anyone done that yet? Get crafty, you guys.
Kirby's Epic Yarn review: Warm and fuzzy
Kirby's Epic Yarn is clearly intended for children. Even more than other Kirby games. Its cutscenes are storybook sequences narrated by a single voice actor, who does little voices for each character. The main antagonist is an evil knitter. You are pulled into a magical sock. You can't die. But even though I seem to be well beyond the age range of this game, I was thoroughly charmed by Kirby's Epic Yarn, and I absolutely delighted in the sight of every stage. Developer Good-Feel, quite honestly, put more thought into the presentation of this game than it needed to. This was clearly a labor of love for everyone involved, and that love comes through in the final experience. %Gallery-95460%
The Epic Yarn of how Fluff's game became Kirby's
Kirby's Epic Yarn bears little resemblance to traditional Kirby games, and it partners the beloved pink sphere with a new character, Prince Fluff. It turns out, according to an Iwata Asks interview with Good-Feel and Nintendo staff, that there's a good reason for both -- Epic Yarn was originally Prince Fluff's game. Wario Land: Shake It! director Madoka Yamauchi came up with an idea for "World of Fluff" and designed it around the Prince Fluff character. Nintendo loved the idea, but thought something was missing from the "warm" world Good-Feel had created. Nintendo proposed turning it into a Kirby game last year. Producer Etsunobu Ebisu said that having Kirby in the world gives Epic Yarn "a greater feeling of existing." Also, we're sure, Kirby gives it a greater feeling of hope for good sales.
Thank Japan for this new Kirby's Epic Yarn trailer
Nintendo announced the Japanese release date for Kirby's Epic Yarn -- October 14 -- and released a new trailer for the occasion. We've embedded it after the break, but we encourage you to go to Nintendo's site anyway, for the most charming video controls you'll ever, ever see.
Impressions of Nintendo of Japan's amazing summer lineup
While Americans are still busy complaining about Nintendo's E3 presentation, Japan got a double dose of amazing Wii games right in the middle of the summer. And Rhythm Tengoku Gold on the DS, as if the lineup wasn't mindblowing enough. Wired's Chris Kohler, who can apparently afford very fast shipping, has already put a few hours into the whole lineup, and wrote up detailed impressions of both Wario Land: Shake It! and Fatal Frame IV. Both are, basically, in line with their respective series, feeling like they're supposed to and providing the same kinds of challenges, with the addition of sensible motion controls that work well. For example, the pointer in Fatal Frame IV controls the flashlight. As if to prove that it's still Fatal Frame, Kohler says that it isn't scary at first and that the characters move too slowly. Yep, that's Fatal Frame. %Gallery-26293% %Gallery-14901% Source - Wario Land: Shake It! impressions Source - Fatal Frame IV impressions
