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Red Steel 2 director unsure on Kinect, Move potential
In developing Red Steel 2, Ubisoft Creative Director Jason VanderBerge learned quite a bit about Nintendo's optional Wii MotionPlus accessory (and how people use it). So he seemed like a good person to ask about the potential of Sony and Microsoft's impending motion control accessories, the Move and Kinect. When we did just that, catching up with VanderBerge after his talk at GDC Europe this week, he was a bit ambivalent about the subject.
The Red Steel 2 director's field guide to Wii Remote swingers
If there's one thing Ubisoft Creative Director Jason VanderBerge learned in playtesting Red Steel 2, it's that different people respond to the simple direction "swing the Wii Remote like a sword" in very different ways. At his talk at GDC Europe today, VanderBerge showed off just how different those swings can be, using a cane to demonstrate the movements of the seven major types of Wii Remote swingers he's identified. Besides being highly entertaining, the demonstration showed just how hard it is to train motion control players to perform even simple actions the way a developer expects. We weren't quick enough to get a video of the hilarious, high-energy performance, but we did manage to snap some pictures that show off the intensity of VanderBerge's flailing. Hit the break and see how many of these specimens you've encountered in the wild.
Ubisoft reports $76.2 million operating loss in fiscal year 2009-10
Ubisoft today released its financial earnings report to investors for fiscal year 2009-10 (ending March 31), reporting sales of €871 million ($1.1 billion) with an operating loss of €60 million ($76.2 million). CEO Yves Guillemot softened investor reaction by saying: "The global economic crisis had a pronounced impact on the video game industry in 2009, which contracted by nearly 10 percent year-on-year. Ubisoft's sales were hit particularly hard, falling 18 percent over the full year despite a stabilization in the second half of the year." Ubi's Q4 sales were up 1.9 percent year-over-year to €210 million ($266.7 million), outpacing internal guidance by €10 million ($12.7 million). The company says the inflated numbers are due partially to "a strong increase in sales of Just Dance," the "ongoing exceptional performance delivered by Assassin's Creed 2 which sold-in nearly 9 million units during the year," and higher-than-expected sales of both Red Steel 2 and Avatar. And Guillemot predicts a sunnier 2010-11. "We forecast a return to profitable growth in 2010-11 with positive cash flow generation, driven by a games line-up that is more closely tailored to growth segments based on strong franchises." He also notes his excitement for new technology driving increased sales, saying, "Lastly, the upcoming launches of new consoles, including Natal and Sony Move, should enable us to capitalize on the technology investments that we have undertaken in recent years and re-energize the casual games segment." Source -- Ubisoft FY2009-10 Sales & Earnings Report (warning: PDF link)
NPD: Red Steel 2 sold 50,000 copies through April 3
Based on NPD figures (via Kotaku), Ubisoft's sequel, Red Steel 2, managed to sell 50,000 copies in its debut month of March -- up until the end of the NPD's catalog period, April 3. Admittedly the game was released at the tail-end of the month on March 23, but we'd still classify the sales as "decent." A Ubisoft representative broke it down to Kotaku like so: "Considering that the NPD sales only accounted for 12 days on the store shelves and that NPD doesn't include all retailers we are looking forward to a complete month of sales data to see where we stand." We're anxious to see how it'll do in April and suggest you sheathe your "it's on Wii so it won't sell" sword until the April NPDs arrive.
Review: Red Steel 2
Click to enlarge I'm not going to sugar coat it: Red Steel 2 isn't a hardcore first-person shooter. In fact, it's not actually an FPS per se, unless you take the acronym to mean "First-Person Sword-er." What Ubisoft Paris has made here is an arcade-style game that most closely resembles a good old-fashioned hack-'n-slash side-scroller -- only viewed through the eyes of its protagonist. There's some light exploration -- even some hidden areas and items to be found -- but Red Steel 2 is, at its heart, a brawler that relies heavily on combos, special moves and finishers. There's some shooting, but it plays only the slightest supporting role to the main attraction: Swinging the Wiimote around like a sword and looking cool (on-screen, at least) in a stylized, sci-fi western world. %Gallery-88746%
Cut a rug with Red Steel 2's enemies in the latest trailer
Well sure, the baddies from Red Steel 2's "Enemies" trailer aren't quite dancing, per se, but there is quite a bit of fancy footwork going on -- not to mention tons of other stuff getting cut, as you might imagine. From the adorably named "Katakara" to the not so subtly named "Ninja," it seems that Red Steel 2 is full of flamboyantly exaggerated personalities, all of which are ready to put a sword or bullet through you at a moment's notice. Oh, and if you were wondering how your foes will stop your combination of bullets and sword charging full speed at them, you'll want to pay extra close attention at the end there (spoilers: they handle it like jedi). %Gallery-51378%
Reggie: Nintendo doesn't like pushing control schemes on devs
The thing about Wii MotionPlus is that there haven't been a whole lot of games supporting it. Outside of last summer's Wii Sports Resort (and upcoming Red Steel 2 and Flingsmash) there's really only some sports games utilizing the tech. According to a recent interview with Reggie over at MTV Multiplayer, it's because Nintendo isn't really pushing for any kind of control scheme from third parties. "What's unique with Nintendo is we don't force our developers to stick to a particular type of control scheme, and you've seen that -- everything from the new Metroid title to be single remote driven to FlingSmash utilizing the Wii MotionPlus," he said. "So it's all about what's right for the game." While we're inclined to agree with the latter part, we still wonder why nothing is using MotionPlus -- especially since it's something that greatly improves the core functionality of the Wiimote. And considering almost everyone has MotionPlus by now (or soon will, if they're Walmart shoppers looking for a great bundle), why not develop with MotionPlus in mind? As for more MotionPlus games from Nintendo, Reggie teases "more titles that are coming" and that it "continues to be a core part of what we do." So, the take away is this: even though Nintendo just released a new piece of hardware, it's not too worried about supporting it with content -- kinda like every other peripheral the company has ever released. Yeah, we're talking about you, Wii Speak!
Hands-on: Red Steel 2 (2009)
Dear 2010, It's a chilly December day here in New York City. Ubisoft has stopped by with a copy of Red Steel 2, forcing me to adhere to a strict embargo, one that ends in a brand new decade: February 22, 2010. I hope with the new decade comes flying cars, robot servants and -- perhaps more reasonably -- a better version of Red Steel 2. You see, here in 2009, Red Steel 2 continues to control poorly. Once again, Red Steel fails to capitalize on the dream of "1:1" sword controls, as Wiimote swings still translate into predetermined animations. Although Red Steel 2 requires the MotionPlus accessory, the game doesn't demand precision or finesse; all enemies are seemingly killed the same way: by stabbing them in the back. Battles are largely reduced to waiting for an enemy to attack, dodging and then swinging wildly at the enemy's weak point. Any other method seems ineffective, with gun play serving a largely decorative purpose. (Enemies seem to block every shot you fire.) %Gallery-51378%
Red Steel 2 trailer is having a bad day
This latest Red Steel 2 trailer proves one thing: life is tough in the west. Sure, we've played enough Oregon Trail to know all about the dysentery that plagued the settlers of our old west, but did you know, even in alternate universes, the west is just as wild? Let's not discount the hardships a katana-wielding cowboy must face, folks. It really makes you reflect on what's important in life -- looking all badass. [Via Nintendo-Online]
Red Steel 2 launches March 23 in US, March 26 in Europe
After pushing most of its anticipated titles from Fall 2009 into the new year (and some even further), Ubisoft has finally revealed when Red Steel 2 will exit the saloon doors and somersault onto retail store shelves. The latest trailer -- titled "Caldera" -- reveals the Wii-exclusive sequel will release on March 26 in Europe, while GameSpot confirms the game lands in the US on March 23, as previously suggested. Ubisoft plans to launch Red Steel 2 in two flavors: Standalone software for $50 and bundled with the Wii Motion Plus add-on for $60. GameStop preorder customers will also get exclusive access to two in-game swords. We're still smitten with the sequel's new manga-esque, East-meets-West visual style and "desert-bound, high-tech metropolis" setting, but we're also still holding our breath to see if Ubisoft can tweak the "canned" gameplay we experienced during our last hands-on with Red Steel 2.
Red Steel 2 coming March 23, Ubisoft site says
It appears that Ubisoft has unceremoniously dated Red Steel 2 for March 23, 2010, according to the publisher's site. Ubisoft mentioned the release window last July and didn't include Red Steel 2 in its recent delay announcements. We've contacted Ubisoft to confirm the date. The Wiire notes that Ubisoft slashed Red Steel 2 sales projections by half -- to 500k expected units sold -- during its financial update last week. Hopefully, the MotionPlus-required game has worked out its control issues in the six months of extra polish time it's received. %Gallery-51378% [Via The Wiire]
Red Steel 2 dev diary brings a sword to a gunfight
Most of the doubt surrounding Red Steel 2 has to do with the swordplay -- and it's for good reason. The bandana'd thug-slashing permeating the entirety of its predecessor just flat out didn't work, most of us can surely agree. But this latest video diary shows how the addition of Wii MotionPlus has really changed the experience in the sequel, at least from a slashing and stabbing perspective. See for yourself in the footage above.
Red Steel 2's TGS trailer introduces your buddy Payne
He may be introduced as "a nice guy," but we're betting Red Steel 2's newly introduced character "Payne" isn't quite as friendly as the trailer above would let on. Sure, he may take you for rides on his motorcycle and ... um ... show you the inside of his new truck (?), but won't he get you killed when his path of destruction drags you down with him? The risk is yours, friend, should you decide to take the chance. You'll have plenty of time to decide between now and the notoriously vague "early 2010," when the game's set to hit store shelves. With a sword! There, are you happy?!%Gallery-51378%
Red Steel 2 director would 'love' to see series on 360, PS3
During a Q&A session following the PAX demo of Red Steel 2, creative director Jason VandenBerghe told Joystiq that he would "love" to see Red Steel arrive on other platforms. When asked about the possibilities of the new motion control options headed to PS3 and Xbox 360, VandenBerghe said, "I personally would love to see any and all consoles have more sword fighting experiences." He then added that any decision to develop the series on other consoles would be up to Ubisoft. Here's hoping Ubisoft decides to throw us more than a deluge of Rabbids once the 360 and PS3 climb aboard the motion control bandwagon.
Red Steel 2 walkthrough highlights ninja juggling
Ubisoft has unleashed a developer walkthrough of Red Steel 2, where creative director Jason Vandenberg takes us through one of the game's levels. There's plenty of context-sensitive prompts to ogle and lots of swordplay, not to mention that super strong double-barreled shotgun, but the real value is in juggling those ninjas. We can definitely see ourselves having fun playing clay pigeon with a few ninjas.
Ubisoft's Guillemot explains Splinter Cell, Red Steel delays
Maybe this afternoon's news that Splinter Cell: Conviction – aka Badass: The Game – and Red Steel 2 were being delayed from later this year to the beginning of next year took you by surprise. Not us, Reader. We've become so desensitized to the pain of losing highly anticipated titles like Conviction to the vagaries of a tumultuous market that we can no longer tell delays from cancellations. We've got it bad. So, we tuned into Ubisoft's conference call this afternoon in the hopes of gleaning some new information from CEO Yves Guillemot. To our pleasure, Mr. Guillemot provided some details explaining why one of his company's already very delayed major releases would be delayed further. "Red Steel and Splinter Cell are going to greatly benefit from the additional polishing time we are providing and will clearly be among the leading brands on the Wii and 360 for the March quarter," Guillemot said. If you'll recall, Splinter Cell: Conviction had already missed its original 2007 release date. When asked why these two games were being delayed, Guillemot explained, "The changes on Splinter Cell and Red Steel – it's just a question of polish. The team was asking that they couldn't be with the level of quality on all the maps and all the game for the end of the year, so they had asked for more time to be able to come with a better product, for both of those games. The quality of the games is there for what you've been able to see at E3, but we were not able to have that same quality on the full game of those two products." Of course, in a conference call full of analysts and investors, the tiny matter of lost sales came up. Guillemot admitted that, for "those two products, it's around a million units" of lost sales in the first month. However, when faced with releasing subpar titles or losing a stronger opening month, Guillemot came down strongly in favor of the latter. "We really think with the level of quality that we'll be able to obtain with the time we give them we will have a long shelf life for those products," he explained. "Now, because [Conviction and Red Steel 2] are launching during that quarter, they will not do as many units for the first month as they would have done in November/December, but we think that on the long-term they can achieve more units than what they would've done." And it sounds like Ubisoft's patient partner for the still Xbox 360-exclusive Conviction – that would be Microsoft – doesn't mind waiting another couple months. Guillemot says, "We still have the full support of Microsoft because they know that if we can bring a very high-quality game this will help their machine. So we still have the full support from them." And if they deliver a quality game, they'll have the support of gamers as well. Your move, Ubi.
Steel yourself: Red Steel 2 pushed to early 2010
Sam Fisher's latest will have some company on the new releases wall in the "March quarter" of 2010 (read: before 03-31-10). Ubisoft has delayed the planned holiday release of the Wii MotionPlus-exclusive Red Steel 2 to early next year for undeclared reasons.Although the sword-and-gun FPS is probably the most anticipated of the company's forthcoming Wii lineup, the list of incoming 2009 games still includes the likes of Rabbids Go Home, Shaun White Snowboarding World Stage, Academy of Champions and TMNT Smash-Up.
Hands-on: Red Steel 2
click to enlarge We stopped by Ubisoft's San Francisco offices late last week to spend more time with its upcoming Nintendo platform lineup. Although we'd played many of the same games -- at the same stage of development -- during E3, now was the time to really focus on details. So, first up was Red Steel 2, a game that initially had us smitten with its manga-esque East-meets-West visual style, but failed to impress once we took hold of its controls.So, once again, we were faced with the extremely short demo / gameplay primer Ubisoft had created for last month's trade show. This second look didn't leave us any more enamored with the mix of sword slashing and pistol shooting, but we were able to get a better idea of exactly what didn't feel right. At the same time, we came away even more impressed by the game from a visual standpoint than when we'd first seen it in action.%Gallery-51378%
This Week on the Nintendo Channel: E3 interviews
This week, the Nintendo Channel has been flooded with a variety of interviews about big upcoming Wii titles. There are interviews with the folks behind FFCC: The Crystal Bearers, Red Steel 2, Cave Story, and, as you can see above, Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles. So, hit up the video above, then if you want more E3 interview goodness, be sure to boot up your Wii and check out what's on the Nintendo Channel.%Gallery-47570%
E3 2009 highlights: The Nintendo roundup
Nintendo E3 2009 checklist: Mario? *check* Zelda? *check* Metroid? *check* Are we missing something? Head past the break to find out!
