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11-28-2006, 08:13 PM
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 #1 |
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Needle Mouse
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Kansas City, MO
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MTV Interviews Reggie
Courtesy of MTV News
Quote:
NEW YORK — Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America president, is a man on a mission. His mission is to sell the red-hot Nintendo Wii and make sure people who have them love them.
"Are we feeling good about our success? Do we think we can have more success in the future? Absolutely," he said during a stuffed 40-minute interview with MTV News in a hotel just south of Central Park. "I do think that highlights a difference between us and our competitors: We're not arrogant. We don't view success as a right. We feel we need to earn success every day. And we're going to do that by being true to the gamer."
In the same hotel 51 weeks ago, Fils-Aime gave MTV News an early handle on the Nintendo Wii controller (see "First Look: Nintendo Revolution Controller Feels Smooth As Puppet Strings"). Now he's ready to talk about any Wii topic under the sun — to a point.
"We're looking at this as about eight days into the mission," he said, opening with a report of the company's recent success. Nintendo has sold 600,000 Wiis in North America and nearly half as many extra Wii controllers, Fils-Aime said (see "Wii Unmasked: Nintendo Reveals Price, Launch Date, Lineup Of Games"). The company has also sold more than 450,000 copies of "The Legend of Zelda: The Twilight Princess." He said "Red Steel," "Rayman Raving Rabbids" and "Madden" all have sold well, as has the surgery game "Trauma Center: Second Opinion."
He offered a preview of the Wii's winter lineup. In addition to support from third-party game developers, Nintendo will publish three more titles for the Wii by the end of March: "WarioWare: Smooth Moves," "Wii Play" and "Mario Party 8." The first two will be released in January, the latter in March. All are compilations of shorter games.
"WarioWare" is a continuation of a popular series that barrages players with seconds-long games. "Wii Play" contains nine brief games, including an homage to "Duck Hunt," and will come packed with an extra Wii controller (but not a nunchuck). Nintendo has shown contraptions that turn a Wii controller into a "Duck Hunt"-style gun or, in the company's terms, a "zapper." "Wii Play" would seem to fit the bill, but Fils-Aime said, "We want the right title" to introduce it with.
Word broke of that early-2007 Nintendo trio earlier this month. Some fans complained that there weren't any meaty adventures on the list and predicted a winter gaming famine similar to the one that followed the launch of Nintendo's last two consoles. "I disagree with the comparison," he said. "I wasn't here for the GameCube launch, but there was a time period when there were no titles. There wasn't even titles you could or could not sink your teeth into. 'Wii Play' and 'WarioWare' are going to be hugely fun titles."
And for people who want more of an adventure to sink their teeth into once March passes? "Of the next batch of Nintendo releases, 'Metroid' is going to be next on that list," he said. And "Super Mario Galaxy"? Fils-Aime said to expect it any time between the end of March and next Christmas.
He fielded every question, even if he couldn't always give a rosy answer. People want Wii controllers bundled with nunchucks? If people start buying them in a one-to-one ratio, Nintendo would consider offering a bundle. Is there a DVD-playing Wii coming to the U.S. any time soon? "The answer is no." Will third parties start using the Miis — Wii player avatars — in their games? Fils-Aime said developers outside Nintendo now have the ability to drop them into their games as well, but,"Is there anything I've seen? No." Does he think the Reggie Mii his colleagues at Nintendo made looks like him? "The one they made had more of a scowl than the one I made."
Fils-Aime hyped an upcoming baseball game from 2K Sports as a perfect title for the Wii controller and said that "Godfather" Wii from EA is "very interesting." And he leapt to the defense of the weakly reviewed but strong-selling Ubisoft Wii game "Red Steel." "I think a lot of the reviews have been overly critical. Does it take you a few minutes to get used to the control scheme? Yes. Once you get used to it does it play extremely well? Absolutely. I think a lot of those reviews are overly harsh. Just like the, what was it, the IGN review of 'Wii Sports.' They're negative on the graphics of the game, but we always said what the graphics would be. I think that's people just being hypercritical."
Some gamers are panting for the Wii to offer online play. Where's that? "The first online game will be 'Pokémon Battle Revolution' in Japan, so that is certainly a candidate in the U.S." He said there are other unannounced online titles in development. "For the consumer who is saying, 'Gosh, when is Nintendo going to get on board with online play?' The answer is very early in 2007."
Nintendo had promised something called Virtual Console Mondays for the Wii, a weekly release of vintage games downloadable onto the Wii. This past Monday only saw one new title added to Virtual Console. "On every Monday, you can expect between one and five titles ... essentially on an ongoing basis." Fils-Aime said the company is still planning to release about 30 titles by the end of the calendar year. That's about 20 fewer than Nintendo is releasing in Japan, which Fils-Aime said is because some games "may make perfect sense in Japan but we don't think in our marketplace have a lot of potential."
So how about some American favorites like "Tecmo Super Bowl" on the Wii's virtual console? Fils-Aime said licensing rights for old sports games can be tricky. "We're focused on the big titles that the pain is worth the gain." Naturally, then, the mammoth Nintendo 64 hit "GoldenEye" would be worth it even though the game's developer is now owned by Microsoft and the James Bond license was recently snatched up by Activision? "Would I love to see it on virtual console? Absolutely. But there are a lot of issues there." He made it sound like there's a chance. "Suffice it to say we would love to see it, so we're exploring all the rights issues."
Fils-Aime confirmed that Wiis connected to the Internet will automatically download surprise bonus material from Nintendo, but he wouldn't detail what kind of unexpected messages or channels might pop up. "I'd hate to ruin the surprise. Is there activity that we're working on for before the holidays? The answer is yes."
For Fils-Aime, some of the projects he'd love to see happen in the U.S. can only be executed by his bosses in Japan. As a result, part of his job is to lobby for what he thinks American gamers want. "The piece that I am more and more involved in is really looking longer-term and making sure the full range of games are being brought to the Americas. Making sure we have core gamer games like 'Metroid,' like 'Galaxy.' Making sure we have our types of market-extension games not only for Wii but for DS. Where's our analogous cooking game? Where's our analogous 'Brain Age 2' for DS?"
Fils-Aime said he'll be doing some lobbying in Japan come January. Around that time, he also expected a "plethora" of Wii announcements. But 40 minutes into his interview, he was clearly done revealing company details.
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Last edited by Joester : 11-28-2006 at 08:19 PM.
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11-28-2006, 08:15 PM
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 #2 |
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Thanks for all the fish.
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Michigan
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Quote:
NEW YORK — Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America president, is a man on a mission. His mission is to sell the red-hot Nintendo Wii and make sure people who have them love them.
"Are we feeling good about our success? Do we think we can have more success in the future? Absolutely," he said during a stuffed 40-minute interview with MTV News in a hotel just south of Central Park. "I do think that highlights a difference between us and our competitors: We're not arrogant. We don't view success as a right. We feel we need to earn success every day. And we're going to do that by being true to the gamer."
In the same hotel 51 weeks ago, Fils-Aime gave MTV News an early handle on the Nintendo Wii controller (see "First Look: Nintendo Revolution Controller Feels Smooth As Puppet Strings"). Now he's ready to talk about any Wii topic under the sun — to a point.
"We're looking at this as about eight days into the mission," he said, opening with a report of the company's recent success. Nintendo has sold 600,000 Wiis in North America and nearly half as many extra Wii controllers, Fils-Aime said (see "Wii Unmasked: Nintendo Reveals Price, Launch Date, Lineup Of Games"). The company has also sold more than 450,000 copies of "The Legend of Zelda: The Twilight Princess." He said "Red Steel," "Rayman Raving Rabbids" and "Madden" all have sold well, as has the surgery game "Trauma Center: Second Opinion."
He offered a preview of the Wii's winter lineup. In addition to support from third-party game developers, Nintendo will publish three more titles for the Wii by the end of March: "WarioWare: Smooth Moves," "Wii Play" and "Mario Party 8." The first two will be released in January, the latter in March. All are compilations of shorter games.
"WarioWare" is a continuation of a popular series that barrages players with seconds-long games. "Wii Play" contains nine brief games, including an homage to "Duck Hunt," and will come packed with an extra Wii controller (but not a nunchuck). Nintendo has shown contraptions that turn a Wii controller into a "Duck Hunt"-style gun or, in the company's terms, a "zapper." "Wii Play" would seem to fit the bill, but Fils-Aime said, "We want the right title" to introduce it with.
Word broke of that early-2007 Nintendo trio earlier this month. Some fans complained that there weren't any meaty adventures on the list and predicted a winter gaming famine similar to the one that followed the launch of Nintendo's last two consoles. "I disagree with the comparison," he said. "I wasn't here for the GameCube launch, but there was a time period when there were no titles. There wasn't even titles you could or could not sink your teeth into. 'Wii Play' and 'WarioWare' are going to be hugely fun titles."
And for people who want more of an adventure to sink their teeth into once March passes? "Of the next batch of Nintendo releases, 'Metroid' is going to be next on that list," he said. And "Super Mario Galaxy"? Fils-Aime said to expect it any time between the end of March and next Christmas.
He fielded every question, even if he couldn't always give a rosy answer. People want Wii controllers bundled with nunchucks? If people start buying them in a one-to-one ratio, Nintendo would consider offering a bundle. Is there a DVD-playing Wii coming to the U.S. any time soon? "The answer is no." Will third parties start using the Miis — Wii player avatars — in their games? Fils-Aime said developers outside Nintendo now have the ability to drop them into their games as well, but,"Is there anything I've seen? No." Does he think the Reggie Mii his colleagues at Nintendo made looks like him? "The one they made had more of a scowl than the one I made."
Fils-Aime hyped an upcoming baseball game from 2K Sports as a perfect title for the Wii controller and said that "Godfather" Wii from EA is "very interesting." And he leapt to the defense of the weakly reviewed but strong-selling Ubisoft Wii game "Red Steel." "I think a lot of the reviews have been overly critical. Does it take you a few minutes to get used to the control scheme? Yes. Once you get used to it does it play extremely well? Absolutely. I think a lot of those reviews are overly harsh. Just like the, what was it, the IGN review of 'Wii Sports.' They're negative on the graphics of the game, but we always said what the graphics would be. I think that's people just being hypercritical."
Some gamers are panting for the Wii to offer online play. Where's that? "The first online game will be 'Pokémon Battle Revolution' in Japan, so that is certainly a candidate in the U.S." He said there are other unannounced online titles in development. "For the consumer who is saying, 'Gosh, when is Nintendo going to get on board with online play?' The answer is very early in 2007."
Nintendo had promised something called Virtual Console Mondays for the Wii, a weekly release of vintage games downloadable onto the Wii. This past Monday only saw one new title added to Virtual Console. "On every Monday, you can expect between one and five titles ... essentially on an ongoing basis." Fils-Aime said the company is still planning to release about 30 titles by the end of the calendar year. That's about 20 fewer than Nintendo is releasing in Japan, which Fils-Aime said is because some games "may make perfect sense in Japan but we don't think in our marketplace have a lot of potential."
So how about some American favorites like "Tecmo Super Bowl" on the Wii's virtual console? Fils-Aime said licensing rights for old sports games can be tricky. "We're focused on the big titles that the pain is worth the gain." Naturally, then, the mammoth Nintendo 64 hit "GoldenEye" would be worth it even though the game's developer is now owned by Microsoft and the James Bond license was recently snatched up by Activision? "Would I love to see it on virtual console? Absolutely. But there are a lot of issues there." He made it sound like there's a chance. "Suffice it to say we would love to see it, so we're exploring all the rights issues."
Fils-Aime confirmed that Wiis connected to the Internet will automatically download surprise bonus material from Nintendo, but he wouldn't detail what kind of unexpected messages or channels might pop up. "I'd hate to ruin the surprise. Is there activity that we're working on for before the holidays? The answer is yes."
For Fils-Aime, some of the projects he'd love to see happen in the U.S. can only be executed by his bosses in Japan. As a result, part of his job is to lobby for what he thinks American gamers want. "The piece that I am more and more involved in is really looking longer-term and making sure the full range of games are being brought to the Americas. Making sure we have core gamer games like 'Metroid,' like 'Galaxy.' Making sure we have our types of market-extension games not only for Wii but for DS. Where's our analogous cooking game? Where's our analogous 'Brain Age 2' for DS?"
Fils-Aime said he'll be doing some lobbying in Japan come January. Around that time, he also expected a "plethora" of Wii announcements. But 40 minutes into his interview, he was clearly done revealing company details.
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Last edited by Dolphin : 11-28-2006 at 08:22 PM.
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11-28-2006, 08:21 PM
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#3 |
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Ready to Fly
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: California
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Goldeneye still has a shot!
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11-28-2006, 08:23 PM
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#4 |
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Thanks for all the fish.
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Michigan
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I was under the impression that Goldeneye always had a shot. They've been hinting at it for a very long time now. I'd say it has more than just a shot at this point.
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11-28-2006, 08:24 PM
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#5 |
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君たち だけ の フアイティング
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Los Angeles
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I wonder how the heck they'd get all the different licensing thingies in order to get Goldeneye up, though...
think they'd have to pay Rare? That'd be gay if they did...
__________________
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11-28-2006, 08:27 PM
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#6 |
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Needle Mouse
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Kansas City, MO
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Dolphin
I was under the impression that Goldeneye always had a shot. They've been hinting at it for a very long time now. I'd say it has more than just a shot at this point.
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That's because interviewers and fans have asked them. They aren't ruling it out, but "working on it" and a "sure thing" are completely different. |
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11-28-2006, 08:32 PM
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#7 |
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Gehl Powah!!!
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Virginia
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I don't like that BS about VC games not being right for different markets when they don't have to pay a penny for marketing or packaging.
And I wish Metroid came out sooner than April. And I do like how he's honest, but frankly we should be able take that for granted.
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11-28-2006, 08:32 PM
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#8 |
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Thanks for all the fish.
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Michigan
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Joester
That's because interviewers and fans have asked them. They aren't ruling it out, but "working on it" and a "sure thing" are completely different.
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They've had hints elsewhere, for instance in a nintendo.com poll a while back.
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Originally Posted by Habitatgc
I wonder how the heck they'd get all the different licensing thingies in order to get Goldeneye up, though...
think they'd have to pay Rare? That'd be gay if they did...
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Well, I don't think Rare has much to do with it considering that Nintendo purchased the license and published (payed for) the game. Activision may have some say, but I don't think rights expire on old games developed under older licenses. |
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11-28-2006, 10:45 PM
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 #9 |
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Sabor de Soledad
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: NM
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Very nice interview 
__________________
I was young and confused and your mom didn't want me around no more. Now pass me dem damn collard greens! |
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11-29-2006, 12:38 AM
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 #10 |
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Whomp
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: windsor, on
Posts: 275
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Mario between March and Christmas? So much for "If not by launch then within 3 (or was it 6?) months". Jerks.
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11-29-2006, 12:42 AM
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#11 |
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Ready to Fly
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: California
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by daylight
Mario between March and Christmas? So much for "If not by launch then within 3 (or was it 6?) months". Jerks.
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This is Nintendo. Don't ever take their release estimates as something set in stone. |
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11-29-2006, 12:52 AM
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#12 |
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Whomp
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: windsor, on
Posts: 275
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Oh, I don't, I just wish they'd be honest for a change.
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11-29-2006, 01:07 AM
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 #14 |
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[?]
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: Florida
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Coconut
"Wii will be under $250"
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The revolution will launch with smash bros online!
the wii will be region free!
you can use a usb hard drive!
we will never launch without a mario title ever again!
news and weather and internet browsing on day 1 !
dvd movies!
ONLINE GAMES!
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11-29-2006, 01:20 AM
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#16 |
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It's Not Lupus
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: MI, USA
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by George
The revolution will launch with smash bros online!
the wii will be region free!
you can use a usb hard drive!
we will never launch without a mario title ever again!
news and weather and internet browsing on day 1 !
dvd movies!
ONLINE GAMES!
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Thanks for reminding us jerk  |
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11-29-2006, 01:30 AM
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#18 |
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[?]
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: Florida
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Coconut
Oh and they did launch with a Mario title  |
virtual console doesn't count 
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11-29-2006, 05:10 AM
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 #19 |
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Treasure Hunter
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Sainte Maxime
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Mario Part 8 in March????????
me get!
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11-29-2006, 05:30 AM
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#20 |
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What about us?
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: England, UK
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That's March for North America. Which likely means much later for us - especially if you go by the last few MP releases. I hope Metroid makes it out in the first half of next year, though. Then I'd like to see Retro Studios do something different. PLEASE.
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