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Resident Evil 4 on Wii official, Umbrella Chronicles an on-rails shooter
Pity the Resident Evil fanatic. Not only has the poor guy had to buy two chainsaw controllers and brave two Resident Evil movies (and now suffers cold sweats anticipating the third), but according to Famitsu, he'll now have to buy a third version of Resident Evil 4, this time for Wii.An intrepid NeoGAF member translated the info from the most recent issue of the Japanese magazine. The new version (presumably the unannounced game that Capcom hinted at last month) uses the Wiimote for aiming, naturally, but also uses it for stabbing zombies, as God intended. There's no word yet on whether or not it will reach North America, but a listing for the game briefly appeared on Gamestop's site, and the thing's already been localized once, so it would seem like a lock.The scans say that the game will also include a trailer for Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles which we know is due out before the end of 2007. Also, the Gamestop listing had the game set for June 25, so maybe you'll be whiling the summer days away holed up, slashing zombies -- suntan be damned!
Wii Warm Up: Revamping games for the Wii
We talked about reusing assets already, but this kind of falls under a different topic. We're talking about GameCube games and even games on other systems being revamped for use on the Wii. The recent rumors regarding a new port of Resident Evil 4 showing up on the Wii, with revamped controls natch, is what got the metaphorical hamster running on the wheel in our head. Trust us, don't look in there, you won't find a single hamster (lots of other rodents in there, though).So, we were wondering if there is a market for these types of games on the Wii? Certainly, a game such as Resident Evil 4 is going to sell in just about any incarnation it is presented (seriously, that game was amazing), but is there a market for other games like this? Would you be on board with other GameCube games being redone on the Wii? What third-party titles, that have graced other systems, would you like retooled with the Wiimote in mind?
Resident Evil Wii will be seen in 480p, 16:9 glory
Speaking to IGN, Capcom's senior director of strategic planning and research Christian Svensson has confirmed that Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles for Nintendo Wii will be presented in Expanded Definition 480p progressive scan and 16:9 widescreen.The revelation shouldn't be too surprising, considering the previous iteration Resident Evil 4 was letterbox widescreen on the GameCube (and given the option for true widescreen on the PS2 version). However, true to Nintendo's focus elsewhere, the list of games that use 480p / 16:9 widescreen is currently pretty small. Though the Wii, as Nintendo presents it, is a system that prioritizes interaction over graphical proficiency, the system is at least as powerful as two GameCubes duct taped together (we kid, we kid). We expect the graphics of the games to reflect the console's ability and would like to see those visuals in as crisp an image as possible, whether the game in question is realistic or comical in presentation. We hope Capcom's decision is just part of a larger trend of future Wii releases. It is unknown if Umbrella Chronicles, currently scheduled for a late 2007 release, will be present at Capcom's Gamers Day event April 12.
Shakeup for Castlevania film
Rumor is that director Paul W.S. Anderson (of Resident Evil and AVP) is off the Castlevania film slated for 2009. There's no word yet on who might take over in his place. We can only guess what horrors the studio might have in store for us next. We're not too fussed; this blogger, at least, was way more interested in this other project anyway. Movie adaptations of video games are just risky and almost never work out as well as we could hope. Is it too much to dream that perhaps the Castlevania movie will just disappear? Just spend that money on making more games!
Umbrella Chronicles to support 480p, 16:9
According to reports on the Capcom forums, by way of Capcom employee Christian Svensson (he's the Senior Director of Strategy), we receive confirmation that Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles will indeed support progressive scan and 16:9, something a lot of Wii owners want from their games. Personally, we're glad ourselves, because when we totally geek out with this game, we want it to look as good as possible. Svensson couldn't confirm if the game would feature Dolby Pro Logic II or not at this time, but history has taught us that Capcom usually employs DLPII in their games (at least during the GameCube era they did).[Via Go Nintendo]
Resident Evil 5 news next month? Maybe
Capcom will be holding a press event next month (on April 12th to be specific), revealing details about its 2007 products. We'll most likely hear plenty of news concerning the recently announced 360 version of Devil May Cry 4, but we may be in store for some Resident Evil news as well. A concerned poster by the name of Drdark on the Capcom message boards made known his desire to see some news about the upcoming PS3 and 360 Resident Evil 5 and Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles for Wii. Capcom's senior director of strategic planning and research, Christian Svensson responded to Drdark saying, "You may be slightly pleased and slightly disappointed then."While the fanboys inside beg us to shout out that Resident Evil 5 news is on the way, we have to agree with 1UP that Svensson is probably referring to Umbrella Chronicles for the Wii (especially considering RE5 could easily be a 2008 title). For now though, it can't hurt to dream.[Via 1UP]
Dead Rising and Lost Planet to remain Xbox 360 exclusives
var digg_url = 'http://www.digg.com/gaming_news/Dead_Rising_and_Lost_Planet_to_remain_Xbox_360_exclusives'; At least "as far as current plans go." So says Capcom's senior director of strategic planning and research, Christian Svensson, posting on the official Capcom forums in the midst of a Devil May Cry outcry. When asked by fans whether the company's new mulitplatform strategy would extend to their pair of successful Xbox 360 titles, Svensson explains that "Dead Rising and Lost Planet are not slated to appear on Wii or PS3," noting that the reasons for the continued exclusivity "are quite convoluted" and are bound by a slew of suspicious non-disclosure agreements. He goes on to say that Capcom's current approach -- which sees Resident Evil 5 and Devil May Cry 4 coming to both PS3 and Xbox 360 -- is for future titles and isn't meant to be applied in a "retroactive" manner. Of course, this comes just days after Svensson used the forum to respond to sulking petitioners and their disdain for Devil May Cry gracing multiple platforms. "We are certainly moved that people are so passionate about our products that they would go to such extremes," he said in a seperate thread. "At the same time we feel that allowing more people access to our content pleases far more people than it displeases (after all, we're not denying DMC4 to anyone that was already going to get it). It really is the best decision for the company and for consumers." Apparently, Dead Rising and Lost Planet simply missed the multiplatform boat. [Thanks, mocoworm]
Capcom has more planned for the Wii
Capcom has laid it out on the line and one thing has made us especially happy (well, just me really): Resident Evil Umbrella Chronicles is still on-track for a 2007 release. Yes, we know what the game is, but we just don't care. If it has the name Resident Evil on it, we're buying it.In the interest of everyone else out there besides this lone blogger, the rest of the tidbits are especially delicious. Capcom has announced Devil Kings 2 for the Wii (in Japan only as of right now), which if you're one of the folks who didn't play the first game, you can read about it here. Capcom also notes that they have several unannounced titles in the works for Wii, one of which will be revealed in the next few weeks.Oh, thanks Capcom, don't you know that information such as that hurts us more than it helps us?
Inafune talks RE4 engine and the Wii [update 1]
During the recently-concluded GDC 07, Keiji Inafune (do we really need to tell you who he is?) talked about the problems of porting new-gen titles over to the Wii. First, he commented on the possibility of bringing over engines from two of the company's latest new-gen games, Dead Rising and Lost Planet. The possibility, it turns out, is non-existent, as he said these titles' engines were optimized for cross-platform use. What will take their place? The Resident Evil 4 engine, it would seem. While Keiji commented that the industry is really craving photorealistic graphics, he is still interested in creating the types of franchises that enjoy iconic mascots, such as Mega Man. Mr. Inafune even commented that Capcom is working on a secret project, to be revealed at a later date. He did not comment, however, if the title would be for the Wii.[Update: loltypo. Thanks, Markus!]
Former Clover members start up new studio
You know something's rotten in the games industry when the reward for producing a magnificent adventure like Okami is the complete liquidation of your studio. All is not lost, however, as the former members of Capcom's Clover Studios have moved their aspirations to fresher soil. GameDaily BIZ reports that the team's new studio, Seeds, is currently in the process of hiring new employees to join a current roster of 51.Amongst those lies a designer trifecta: Viewtiful Joe's Atsushi Inaba, Resident Evil's Shinji Mikami and Devil May Cry's Hideki Kamiya. Seeds has yet to announce any projects, but a cel-shaded, survival-horror title (with a guitar-wielding protagonist) would certainly be a good start.
Capcom talks M-rated games on the Wii
One evolution with the Wii has been the decline in the media and gaming culture calling a Nintendo console kid-centric. Christian Svenssen, Capcom's Senior Director of Strategic Planning & Research, caused some rumblings when he referenced the kiddie image in a forum post on the Capcom forums. The controversial quote: "If there is a 'core player base' on Wii (and it's [sic] might be so broad, there might be no such thing as 'core'), within two years, it will probably be largely a younger player (or at least younger than 360 or PS3)." Despite the best efforts of the Nintendo Defense Force, we're inclined to agree that, by merit of taking a family-focused approach to marketing, children will likely be given this as a first console or as a system that parents feel they can enjoy with their offspring. However, Svenssen is quick to remind forum readers that, in announcing their strive for a broad focus, mature does not equate to broadly appealing, which in turn is not necessarily "kiddie." On the fourth page of the thread, Svensson notes that Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles may not be the only M-rated title to be released on the Wii from Capcom ("One never knows what our teams in Japan will cook up down the road," he remarks), but that the likelihood is dependent upon the success of other M-rated titles on the console. Some M-rated titles we know coming up include Manhunt 2 and Suda 51's No More Heroes.
Nintendo holds key to franchise longevity, profitability
As noted earlier, a list published by UK newspaper The Independent reveals what many already assume; Nintendo's Mario is the best-selling franchise of all time. Coupled with the second best-selling franchise Pokémon (also a Nintendo property), the two series, which have sold a combined 348 million games worldwide, account for nearly 34% of the total sales of the top-twenty best-selling franchises; which include two additional Nintendo IPs ranked in the top ten, Donkey Kong and Zelda. So what's Nintendo's secret?Cross-culture appeal, spin-offs (e.g., racers, sports titles, puzzlers), brand saturation (e.g., apparel, card games, TV shows), and E-ratings all appear part of a profitable formula built for the long haul.
Dream Games: Resident Evil 4
Dream Games is a new weekly column where we explore a game we'd love to see on the PSP. Feel free to check in, and comment, every Tuesday.Resident Evil 4To kick-start this feature, I decided to shoot for the stars. Resident Evil 4 is without a doubt one of the finest games created in the last generation. The game completely reinvented the Resident Evil formula, placing the camera behind the game's protagonist, Leon, freeing the player from the notorious tank-like controls the series was infamous for. With its chilling enemies and brilliant gameplay, the game earned an impressive 96 average on Metacritic.Why PSP?Resident Evil 4's behind-the-back perspective removes one of the greatest frustrations of most PSP action games: the lack of camera control. The Gamecube original rarely utilized the second analog stick, simply because it was unnecessary. The game's intuitive controls come from its simplicity: a single button controls much of the action that you'll need. Resident Evil 4 was one of the few games that ran in widescreen only last generation, making the PSP's 16:9 display even more ideal.Is it possible?Although the controls may be well suited for the PSP, the game's technological requirements may mean this game will never see the light on our system. Capcom did an incredible job squeezing this game onto a PlayStation 2, and I doubt that their technical mojo would fail on the PSP. If a port of this fine game isn't being made, hopefully the PSP will see an original Resident Evil of its own: one that uses the same, elegant control scheme used by Resident Evil 4. And if we don't get Resident Evil, at least we can look forward to Silent Hill.
CG cutscenes and gaming culture
In an interview with Lost Planet Community's Brian Dunn, Cutscene Director Yoshiyuki Tonoe and Director Kenji Oguro discussed the differences between how cutscenes are used in Western and Eastern gaming worlds. Their decision to use real-time cutscenes in Lost Planet stems from their research into how Western developers tended to tell the story within the game engine, whereas Japanese developers typically rely on CG graphics for the cinematic storytelling.Tonoe dates the Eastern obsession with CG cutscenes to the original Biohazard (released March 1996), though arguably Square Enix had already begun to look into CG before the horror title's release with Final Fantasy VII, whose long development process began in 1995. "The latest CG movies found in games are stunning and really help sell the game," said Tonoe, "but when I think about how they are used to tie the story to the gameplay, I wonder if they are effective at making the games any better."Pictured are some of the games used as reference material during Lost Planet's development. Tonoe cites The Lord of the Rings games, whose cutscenes were amalgamations of movie footage and in-game footage, as "above what Japanese developers were doing at the time."Specific to their game, Tonoe remarks that there are 33 cutscenes in Lost Planet, totaling 73 minutes, averaging just under three minutes with the longest cutscene at around six minutes in length. What's your preference -- explosive CG eye candy or more immersive real-time storytelling?[Via 1UP]
The good, the bad, and the OHGODWHEN
There's an interesting feature over at CVG detailing ten games to watch for on the Wii this year (similar to what we did for the DS). Now, as this is a list from the UK, they've included some games with which we American gamers have already been blessed, but the rest of the lineup is interesting indeed. Of course, they highlight Wario Ware: Smooth Moves (we so can't wait for that), but the lion's share of the list goes to the most obvious -- and long in coming -- games for the Wii, like Metroid Prime 3 and Super Mario Galaxy (and the less talked about, but also cool Disaster: Day of Crisis). Of course these are going to be great games, but on what shall we pin all our hopes and dreams between now and the oblivion of year's end? It hurts to see so many great games on this list when we know they have no firm release date. Reggie promised us that there'd be no drought, but things are looking a little dry from the vantage point of this list. Potentially awesome, yes, but a little dry all the same.
Resident Evil 5 plays hot & cold
The following Resident Evil 5 details have traversed three languages (from Japanese to German to English), so accept with caution. According to Famitsu Xbox, via GameFront, passed along by GamersReports, Capcom won't release the next Resident Evil until 2008, stalled in part by an effort to get the game running at 60 fps.While the game will attempt greater environmental interactivity, more interestingly, Resident Evil 5 will allegedly feature hot and cold weather changes, affecting certain (unspecified) gameplay mechanics (possibly dehydration, frostbite, etc.). Developers are also focusing on enhancing character models, including facial muscles capable of a full range of expression, and realistic hair and skin rendering.
Resident Evil films to culminate in 'Extinction' ... or not
Rumors of a fourth flick in the Resident Evil film series have been seemingly laid to rest with the release of Sony's official Resident Evil Extinction synopsis. The document clearly refers to Extinction as "the third and final installment" of Paul W.S. Anderson's misbegotten master work. Of course, as Sly is again proving this holiday, some franchises just don't stay down.Don't be surprised when, after completing his Castlevania interpretation, Anderson brews up another Resident Evil sequel.[Thanks, Sean]See also: Third Resident Evil film to be buried in desert
PSone downloads begin on 11/22... in Japan
In just a few hours, Japanese PS3 and PSP owners will be able to download and play PSone games on their PSPs. The following titles will be available for only 525 yen (less than $5) each: Resident Evil Director's Cut (Capcom) Konami Antiques MSX Collection Vol.1 (Konami) Konami Antiques MSX Collection Vol.2 (Konami) Bishi Bashi Special (Konami) Arc the Lad (SCEJ) Jumping Flash! (SCEJ) Hot Shots Golf 2 (SCEJ) Silent Bomber (Bandai Namco Games) Tekken 2 (Bandai Namco Games) Playback of the games requires the newly released 3.00 firmware. PLAYSTATION 3 owners will be able to play the downloaded games on their home consoles in the future.[Via IGN]
Killzone commercials are Resident Evil-y bad
While I do appreciate the effort, these new Killzone: Liberation commercials remind me too much of the original Resident Evil intro - both are chock full of bad acting. Thankfully, the game seems to be a lot better than these commercials. But thanks to Sony's PS1 emulation feature, you'll soon be able to replay Resident Evil on the go.
Resident Evil heads to PSP in November (via PSone emulation)
The PlayStation Store that'll be available on your fingerprint-covered PLAYSTATION 3 in a few weeks will feature PSone games for you to download and play on your PSP. Japan will have 9 games available at its launch: Bio Hazard Director's Cut (Resident Evil) BishiBashi Special Everyone's Golf 2 Jumping Flash! Konami Antiques MSX Collection Vol.1 Konami Antiques MSX Collection Vol.2 Mister Driller Silent Bomber Tekken 2 Strangely, no Ridge Racer (it was the first game to show off PSone emulation on the PSP). My personal picks have to be Resident Evil and Mister Driller (if the same games come out to America). According to Eurogamer, Sony plans on adding ten more games to the roster every month. That's about twice the content provided by Xbox Live Arcade Wednesdays.[Via Joystiq]
