Bond
07-12-2007, 11:43 PM
Legendary game designer holds court with Zelda director Eiji Aonuma at Nintendo round table, shows levels previously unseen by the public.
SANTA MONICA, Calif.--As day two of E3 draws to a close, Nintendo is holding its annual developer roundtable in an intimate meeting room at the Loews Hotel in Santa Monica. A select handful of press members have assembled and are awaiting entry to hear presentations by Nintendo design luminaries Eiji Aonuma, director of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and Shigeru Miyamoto, who...well, who needs no introduction by now.
As attendees enter the room and find their seats, Nintendo public relations manager Eric Walter introduces the program and runs down the agenda. We'll hear from Aonuma first, who will present a game demo and then host a question-and-answer session. We'll hear from Mr. Miyamoto afterward.
[4:52] That conference was geared to a wide audience, which is why the program emphasized Wii Fit. But today, we're looking at the hardcore games, starting with Galaxy.
[4:54] Miyamoto feels that the peripheral pursuits of a game designer are important in informing his or her work on a game. For instance, he's become more health-conscious and has weighed himself regularly on a daily basis, which directly inspired Wii Fit.
[4:55] Wii Fit and Mario Galaxy do have one thing in common--both are being designed to be accessible to anyone.
[4:56] Nintendo is hoping to attract new audiences to Mario Galaxy with a second-player assist mode, which lets another person play alongside the first player (this feature will be demonstrated shortly).
[4:56] Gravity is a big gameplay feature in Galaxy--there will be varying levels of gravity that will factor into the gameplay.
[4:58] One inherent benefit of Galaxy's focus on small planetoid-like levels is that camera control is essentially handled automatically. Since the land masses are so small, the camera's always on the action.
[5:00] They're now going to show off a new level not yet shown here at E3.
[5:01] He shows how, after you've collected enough star pieces, you can feed them to a friendly little star dude. His hunger sated, he zooms off into the sky and creates a new little planetoid.
[5:03] Mario ascends a multi-level planetoid crawling with goombas and covered with spiky plants. He uses a star launch pad to fly over to a capsule-shaped level which he runs around the outside of.
[5:03] Once inside, the capsule becomes a sort of side-scrolling level, as Mario can only run left and right around the perimeter of the capsule.
[5:04] Different areas of ground have different gravitational properties here--some have low gravity, others have inverted gravity that send you right up to the ceiling.
[5:05] The game will have 6 greater areas with 40 galaxies spread across them. Of course, there will be 120 stars to collect, so this should have all the bulk of a typical Mario adventure.
[5:07] Now Mario is floating in a bubble around a star-shaped object, with Miyamoto using the remote as a pointer to click each of the five points of the star. A beam of light shoots out when the point is clicked to help slowly steer Mario. Meanwhile, a menacing-looking black hole floats in the sky.
[5:09] Showing another advanced level, the Star Beam Trail. Now the assist mode is being demoed, as a second player is using her own pointer to help Mario out. The second player will be able to block enemies and such with this pointer.
[5:11] Miyamoto points out that now backseat game players actually have their own pointer to tell their friends where to go or what to do.
[5:11] Of course, assisting players can use their pointer to interfere with Mario a little bit as well.
[5:12] Mario is running along a pathway of blocks floating in space that are constantly and rapidly shifting position and reforming the path in different directions.
[5:13] Next up: the Beach Bowl Galaxy.
[5:14] Not all of the game's levels will be set in space--this one is made out of stones and is set in a blue, slightly cloudy sky.
[5:15] Miyamoto misses a jump and falls off the stones into a very visually appealing vortex of water in the middle, which sends him flying into a black hole and costs him a life.
[5:15] Next, the Cookie Factory Galaxy.
[5:17] This candy-colored level features music from Super Mario Bros. 3 (level 1-3, we think?). It has Mario running along a vibrant conveyor belt marked with numerous holes of many shapes.
[5:18] Even Miyamoto has some trouble--he falls through several holes before inviting a member of the audience to try. But he says even when you die repeatedly, it's still fun in this game to keep trying.
[5:19] The assist mode will let parents help out their small children when playing the game--or maybe the children will need to help their parents instead.
[5:20] Now moving on to the Q&A session.
[5:22] The setup of Galaxy will be similar to Mario 64, in that you'll revisit stages multiple times to claim multiple stars.
[5:23] You knew this was coming--one press member asks about Reggie's comments at the media briefing that Galaxy is the first worthy successor to Mario 64. Does Miyamoto agree? What does this say about Super Mario Sunshine on the GameCube?
[5:24] Miyamoto feels one of Mario 64's best qualities was the simple joy of exploring its 3D environments. The new spherical levels in Mario Galaxy give that same sense of satisfaction.
[5:24] Q: What other applications does Miyamoto see for the Wii Fit controller in the future?
[5:25] A: There's a variety of possibilities. One example is a snowboarding game. In fact, Wii Fit already includes a skiing game, so adapting this would be easy. Third parties will be free to develop their own ideas for the Wii balance board as well.
[5:27] When asked about ideas that didn't make it into Mario Galaxy: The game is still in development, so technically all ideas are still in play.
[5:27] Here's an obvious question after the announcement of Wii Fit: Has the success of the Touch Generations games made Miyamoto less interested in developing traditional or hardcore-style games like Mario Galaxy?
[5:28] "You certainly don't have to worry about that." He's having a lot of fun working on both Galaxy and Wii Fit, and he thinks it's perfectly acceptable to have simpler games that can be completed in a few months while also working on more ambitious projects that take years to complete.
[5:33] When asked about more applications of the Wii balance board, some medical professionals have already expressed an interest in using the device for possible treatment of patients.
[5:36] Miyamoto comments on the recently announced peripherals like the Wii zapper and steering wheel. Since the expensive technology is all contained in the Wii remote and nunchuk, Nintendo is able to release numerous such peripherals at low cost.
[5:42] When asked whether the balance board will be available in different sizes for different markets, Miyamoto says consideration may be ongoing, but whether or not a "super-sized" version will be available in America isn't decided. (Yes, his words.)
[5:42] How long has Mario Galaxy been in development? It's being created by the team that made Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, and development began as soon as that title was finished.
[5:44] Regarding his involvement in Galaxy: He was director on Mario 64, but he's more closely involved with the actual game design for Galaxy. So in a sense, he's more involved in this project than he was in Mario 64. Development is taking place in Tokyo, but the team can send him new builds of the game over a high-speed network so they can video-conference and discuss design every day.
[5:49] Will Mario Galaxy's difficulty be tuned for skilled hardcore players or will it be made easier for a wider audience? Miyamoto has struggled with that question of balance for a long time. For Galaxy, he wants a sufficient level of challenge that the player will feel satisfied with completing the later objectives. He's been increasing the game's challenge level over the last few months, to the point that the team has almost expressed concern it will be too hard. But of course the final balance will be as close to ideal as possible.
[5:51] With that question, Walter retakes the stage to thank the attendees for sharing in the excitement of Nintendo's very busy last year. We're off to hit the boardwalk and continue our E3 coverage through the last day of the show.
Source: Gamespot (http://www.gamespot.com/news/6174737.html?action=convert&om_clk=latestnews&tag=latestnews;title;0)
SANTA MONICA, Calif.--As day two of E3 draws to a close, Nintendo is holding its annual developer roundtable in an intimate meeting room at the Loews Hotel in Santa Monica. A select handful of press members have assembled and are awaiting entry to hear presentations by Nintendo design luminaries Eiji Aonuma, director of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and Shigeru Miyamoto, who...well, who needs no introduction by now.
As attendees enter the room and find their seats, Nintendo public relations manager Eric Walter introduces the program and runs down the agenda. We'll hear from Aonuma first, who will present a game demo and then host a question-and-answer session. We'll hear from Mr. Miyamoto afterward.
[4:52] That conference was geared to a wide audience, which is why the program emphasized Wii Fit. But today, we're looking at the hardcore games, starting with Galaxy.
[4:54] Miyamoto feels that the peripheral pursuits of a game designer are important in informing his or her work on a game. For instance, he's become more health-conscious and has weighed himself regularly on a daily basis, which directly inspired Wii Fit.
[4:55] Wii Fit and Mario Galaxy do have one thing in common--both are being designed to be accessible to anyone.
[4:56] Nintendo is hoping to attract new audiences to Mario Galaxy with a second-player assist mode, which lets another person play alongside the first player (this feature will be demonstrated shortly).
[4:56] Gravity is a big gameplay feature in Galaxy--there will be varying levels of gravity that will factor into the gameplay.
[4:58] One inherent benefit of Galaxy's focus on small planetoid-like levels is that camera control is essentially handled automatically. Since the land masses are so small, the camera's always on the action.
[5:00] They're now going to show off a new level not yet shown here at E3.
[5:01] He shows how, after you've collected enough star pieces, you can feed them to a friendly little star dude. His hunger sated, he zooms off into the sky and creates a new little planetoid.
[5:03] Mario ascends a multi-level planetoid crawling with goombas and covered with spiky plants. He uses a star launch pad to fly over to a capsule-shaped level which he runs around the outside of.
[5:03] Once inside, the capsule becomes a sort of side-scrolling level, as Mario can only run left and right around the perimeter of the capsule.
[5:04] Different areas of ground have different gravitational properties here--some have low gravity, others have inverted gravity that send you right up to the ceiling.
[5:05] The game will have 6 greater areas with 40 galaxies spread across them. Of course, there will be 120 stars to collect, so this should have all the bulk of a typical Mario adventure.
[5:07] Now Mario is floating in a bubble around a star-shaped object, with Miyamoto using the remote as a pointer to click each of the five points of the star. A beam of light shoots out when the point is clicked to help slowly steer Mario. Meanwhile, a menacing-looking black hole floats in the sky.
[5:09] Showing another advanced level, the Star Beam Trail. Now the assist mode is being demoed, as a second player is using her own pointer to help Mario out. The second player will be able to block enemies and such with this pointer.
[5:11] Miyamoto points out that now backseat game players actually have their own pointer to tell their friends where to go or what to do.
[5:11] Of course, assisting players can use their pointer to interfere with Mario a little bit as well.
[5:12] Mario is running along a pathway of blocks floating in space that are constantly and rapidly shifting position and reforming the path in different directions.
[5:13] Next up: the Beach Bowl Galaxy.
[5:14] Not all of the game's levels will be set in space--this one is made out of stones and is set in a blue, slightly cloudy sky.
[5:15] Miyamoto misses a jump and falls off the stones into a very visually appealing vortex of water in the middle, which sends him flying into a black hole and costs him a life.
[5:15] Next, the Cookie Factory Galaxy.
[5:17] This candy-colored level features music from Super Mario Bros. 3 (level 1-3, we think?). It has Mario running along a vibrant conveyor belt marked with numerous holes of many shapes.
[5:18] Even Miyamoto has some trouble--he falls through several holes before inviting a member of the audience to try. But he says even when you die repeatedly, it's still fun in this game to keep trying.
[5:19] The assist mode will let parents help out their small children when playing the game--or maybe the children will need to help their parents instead.
[5:20] Now moving on to the Q&A session.
[5:22] The setup of Galaxy will be similar to Mario 64, in that you'll revisit stages multiple times to claim multiple stars.
[5:23] You knew this was coming--one press member asks about Reggie's comments at the media briefing that Galaxy is the first worthy successor to Mario 64. Does Miyamoto agree? What does this say about Super Mario Sunshine on the GameCube?
[5:24] Miyamoto feels one of Mario 64's best qualities was the simple joy of exploring its 3D environments. The new spherical levels in Mario Galaxy give that same sense of satisfaction.
[5:24] Q: What other applications does Miyamoto see for the Wii Fit controller in the future?
[5:25] A: There's a variety of possibilities. One example is a snowboarding game. In fact, Wii Fit already includes a skiing game, so adapting this would be easy. Third parties will be free to develop their own ideas for the Wii balance board as well.
[5:27] When asked about ideas that didn't make it into Mario Galaxy: The game is still in development, so technically all ideas are still in play.
[5:27] Here's an obvious question after the announcement of Wii Fit: Has the success of the Touch Generations games made Miyamoto less interested in developing traditional or hardcore-style games like Mario Galaxy?
[5:28] "You certainly don't have to worry about that." He's having a lot of fun working on both Galaxy and Wii Fit, and he thinks it's perfectly acceptable to have simpler games that can be completed in a few months while also working on more ambitious projects that take years to complete.
[5:33] When asked about more applications of the Wii balance board, some medical professionals have already expressed an interest in using the device for possible treatment of patients.
[5:36] Miyamoto comments on the recently announced peripherals like the Wii zapper and steering wheel. Since the expensive technology is all contained in the Wii remote and nunchuk, Nintendo is able to release numerous such peripherals at low cost.
[5:42] When asked whether the balance board will be available in different sizes for different markets, Miyamoto says consideration may be ongoing, but whether or not a "super-sized" version will be available in America isn't decided. (Yes, his words.)
[5:42] How long has Mario Galaxy been in development? It's being created by the team that made Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, and development began as soon as that title was finished.
[5:44] Regarding his involvement in Galaxy: He was director on Mario 64, but he's more closely involved with the actual game design for Galaxy. So in a sense, he's more involved in this project than he was in Mario 64. Development is taking place in Tokyo, but the team can send him new builds of the game over a high-speed network so they can video-conference and discuss design every day.
[5:49] Will Mario Galaxy's difficulty be tuned for skilled hardcore players or will it be made easier for a wider audience? Miyamoto has struggled with that question of balance for a long time. For Galaxy, he wants a sufficient level of challenge that the player will feel satisfied with completing the later objectives. He's been increasing the game's challenge level over the last few months, to the point that the team has almost expressed concern it will be too hard. But of course the final balance will be as close to ideal as possible.
[5:51] With that question, Walter retakes the stage to thank the attendees for sharing in the excitement of Nintendo's very busy last year. We're off to hit the boardwalk and continue our E3 coverage through the last day of the show.
Source: Gamespot (http://www.gamespot.com/news/6174737.html?action=convert&om_clk=latestnews&tag=latestnews;title;0)