Nintendo boss confirms new 3D Zelda and Mario games for Wii U

By: Muhammad Qasim Hassan

  |   December 3rd, 2012   |  

Uncategorized

Nintendo has revealed that new 3D Zelda and Mario games are in development for its first-ever HD console, Wii U.

The two brands have traditionally served as the backbone for Nintendo consoles and remained one of the biggest attractions for the consumers.

The Japan-based company, however, launched New Super Mario Bros. U along with the console, while deciding to leave Zelda in the pipeline for now.

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has confirmed that there are more Mario games in development for the recently-launched next-generation console, while further adding that a 3D Zelda game will also be announced in the future.

“We will announce the launch schedules for new 3D Zelda and Mario games in the future, but this is not the right opportunity for me to indicate when we will make such announcements,” Iwata said.

The fans of the Zelda franchise are understandably disappointed to find one of the most popular brands missing the launch of the console, but the confirmation by the company president about it being in development will surely make them feel a lot better.

The absence of a new Zelda game at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) earlier this year had a lot of fans disappointed and somewhat frustrated. It almost seemed as if Nintendo had ended up making a huge blunder by not giving enough priority to one of its most prolific franchises.

However, reports of Nintendo working on a new 3D Zelda game surfaced. A source reportedly well-informed of the company’s operations revealed that the game was slated for a 2014 release and described it as one of the most expensive projects that Nintendo had ever worked on.

The source further went on to add that the game is being developed on a new engine, which will take the visual features of the new 3D Zelda title to an entirely new level.

While Zelda and Mario games are expected to make Wii U even more appealing, Iwata acknowledged the importance of third-party support to help the new console find success in the market.

He admitted that strong first-party support may make significant contribution, but it is not nearly enough to help Wii U carry its own in the market or thrive.

Keeping this in mind, the company has decided to support a couple of titles from Platinum Games, which include The Wonderful 101 and Bayonetta 2, with the latter attracting a lot of criticism from the fans over being exclusive to Wii U despite the original game releasing on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

“Our first-party software alone can’t be enough to appeal to the different tastes of all game fans,” he said. “The decision of Nintendo that it will publish the two software titles from Platinum Games is one answer to this challenge.”

Wii U has already hit North America and Europe, while Nintendo is all set to launch its next-generation console Japan on December 8.