3DS Rant!

I am surprised that people are saying the 3DS is a failure, it is doomed, etc. According to the information I can get my hands on, which may or may not be accurate, the 3DS has sold nearly 5 million units in about 6 months – the same amount the Nintendo DS sold in its’ first 6 months of release.

One of the big differences between the 3DS and DS launches is the launch date. The 3DS launched in February/ March, while the DS launched in November/December. The DS was able to take advantage of the Christmas holiday sales, a time when more people typically purchase items for gifts and such. Therefore, it seems impressive to me that the 3DS has sold an equal number of units considering it had no holiday to take advantage of. I admit that I am not an expert on Japanese holidays, so there may be a big Christmas-like event in February/March which helped sales of the 3DS in Japan. Even so, sales of the 3DS being equal to that of the DS within the same timeframe seems like a positive start for the platform, especially considering the hefty price tag of $250.

Now, fair enough, sales of the 3DS dropped dramatically after the initial launch, and this seems obviously tied to the fact that there are a serious lack of decent games to purchase – a big mistake. But, as an owner of a 3DS, I am happy to see that successful brands like Super Mario 3D Land, Mario Kart 7, Cave Story 3D, Shinobi, and Bit. Trip Saga are being released in 2011. These well-known titles should give a lot of people a reason to buy the 3DS for Christmas, or before. And, we can’t forget the enhanced ports Zelda 64 and Star Fox 64 to whet the appetite.

The future looks bright. So, what really disappoints me about all of this is how publishers are reacting to the situation. Before the price drop and news of Nintendo’s financial situation were released, publishers were already playing the wait-and-see game. They wanted to see how the 3DS performed at Christmas. Sure, games were being developed, but at a cautious level. We were fortunate enough to already be working with Majesco on Face Racers: Photo Finish, which was originally destined to be a DS title that took advantage of the DSi camera, but switched to become a 3DS title shortly after the new handheld was announced. We were also fortunate enough to sign on with Ignition to develop Planet Crashers 3D for the 3DS prior to the dramatic news of the price cut et al. And, we’re publishing Mutant Mudds on Nintendo eShop ourselves!

It has always been difficult to find funding for original third-party games on handheld devices. Even though there have been some truly amazing original third-party games released on handheld platforms in the past. I expect it was not easy for the creators to convince their publishers to fund them to market. We managed to release four original titles on the DS, and I am confident we’ll develop many original games for the 3DS in the future. But, right now the outlook of publishers for original content on the 3DS is not good in the short-term.

Publishers say that they are waiting to see the sales of the 3DS over Christmas before committing to any new titles. But… why? Sales so far are pretty darn good. Sales of the aforementioned titles are sure to increase sales of the hardware. So, right now seems like a perfect time to start the development of a title so it can be released next year, when the number of 3DS owners has doubled from today. Unfortunately, it seems as though publishers do not have long-term vision. Short-term is their world, and this is probably largely due to being public-companies and such, but that’s a different story. The reality is that the majority of third-party publishers (I say majority, because there are still some great publishers out there that “get it”, and are in the business for the right reasons) are waiting on Nintendo to release their awesome first-party games to increase sales of the platform before third-party publishers will step up and release their own. Unfortunately, history tells us that publishers will more-than-likely opt for licensed titles over original titles in 2012 and beyond. It is a safer bet, and there are always plenty of licenses out there to take advantage of. And, when I say take advantage of, you know what I mean!

So, there you go. Take what you will from my polite rant. Personally, I think it is a foregone conclusion that the 3DS will be successful. The writing is on the wall. The success of the 3DS is reliant on the games released for it. And, as usual, (most) third-party publishers will rely on Nintendo’s great first-party games to fuel hardware sales and let the same ol’ story play out. You can also bet they’ll complain about Nintendo dominating the market and it not being “fair” for third-party publisher to “compete”. Give me a break. Third-party publishers, this is your chance to shine. Shine get!

ATV Wild Ride 3D - Looking For a Publisher!

www.atvwildride.com

Introduction:

The debut of Renegade Kid's original arcade ATV racing title for the Nintendo DS, ATV Wild Ride, was met with high praise from the gaming press - making it hands-down the best ATV racing title available for the platform.

Evolution:

The next exciting installment of this off-road thrill ride, ATV Wild Ride 3D, turns the dial up to 11 with more insane airborne tricks, dramatic panoramic vistas, exhilarating audio, and a brand new "Wild Ride" power-up; enabling players to reach new intense speeds - bringing the excitement of extreme ATV racing alive.

You are thrown into an adrenaline-charged off-road trick-racing event across the globe. Hold onto your handlebars, it's about to get wild!

Main Features:

• A true 'console' ATV racing experience for the Nintendo 3DS.
• Utilizes the proven power of the award-winning Renegade Engine.
• 12 Exotic locations, with 48 extreme tracks to tear up.
• 6 new locations, with 24 new tracks.
• Unlock 6 "retro" Nintendo DS locations, with 24 "classic" tracks (enhanced to utilize 3DS graphical capabilities).
• Perform dozens of insane airborne tricks to earn nitro boosts.
• Land 3 consecutive "hard" tricks and enter "Wild Ride" mode; increasing your overall speed for a short period of time.
• Skid around corners, soar over chasms, and experience the speed rush with physics-based racing dynamics.
• Up to 4 players go head-to-head with Internet and Local play for ultimate bragging rights.
• Expected ESRB rating: E - Everyone.

Day 5: A Week in the Life of a Game Developer

Day 4: A Week in the Life of a Game Developer

Day 3: A Week in the Life of a Game Developer

Day 2: A Week in the Life of a Game Developer

Day 1: A Week in the Life of a Game Developer

I thought I'd do something a little different this week. A lot of people who visit my blog and/or comment on my videos on YouTube seem interested in the process of making games. It was something I was always interested in as a kid, while I was at school. So, this week I am going to attempt to record a blog each day of this week to give you an idea of some of the things that may happen in a typical week at a video game studio.

Mutant Mudds: Game Content

Some info on the game content of Mutant Mudds...

Levels: Mutant Mudds contains a total of 40 challenging levels. There are a total of five worlds. Each world contains 4 regular levels. Each regular level provides access to a secret sub level. When you add all of that up, you get 40 levels. However, only the first four worlds (16 regular levels & 16 secret sub levels) are initially presented to you. You must collect the Water Sprite from each of the first 32 levels to unlock the fifth world. Now, the fifth world is a little different from the first four worlds. Each level in the fifth world is locked. You must collect all of the Golden Diamonds from the first world to unlock the first level in the fifth world. There are 100 Golden Diamonds in each regular level. The secret sub levels do not contain any Golden Diamonds. There are a total of 400 Golden Diamonds to collect in the first world to unlock the first level in the fifth world.

Power-ups: Some of the secret sub levels require the use of a power-up to gain access to them. There are three power-ups that can be purchased from your Grandma's shoppe. She has an unhealthy obsession for Golden Diamonds, and demands steep prices for her gadgets. Each power-up is temporary, and will be lost when a life is lost. Do not fear, collected Golden Diamonds are never depleted from your inventory; once you've earned them they can never be taken away. If you lose a power-up before it has been utilized, you'll just need to visit the shoppe, purchase the power-up, and try again.

Multi-Tiered Completions

Completion 1: Collect the Water Sprites from the first 16 regular levels. This results in celebration ending #1.

Completion 2: Collect the Water Sprites from the first 16 regular levels and their 16 secret sub levels. This results celebration ending #2 and the unlocking of the fifth world.

Completion 3: Collect the Water Sprites from all 20 regular levels and their 20 secret sub levels. This results in celebration ending #3, immense self-pride, and a special surprise!

Mutant Mudds: Amazing Reception

I went to E3 2011 with a little 3DS demo in my pocket, called Mutant Mudds. It is a project that was started out of pure love for platform games. A chance to make a game for ourselves with no outside input from anyone, and no consideration for how well it may or may not sell. A true indie effort, if you like. Mutant Mudds is unlike any title we have developed at Renegade Kid. Caution has been thrown to the wind. We are fortunate enough to be able to develop this title without the need of funding from an outside source. This is the pivotal reason that enables us to develop what we want, just because we want it.

My main mission at E3 was to get the word out about our game that is destined for the Nintendo 3DS eShop. I honestly did not expect the response to be so positive. I did not expect to find as many gamers who wanted the same things that we did. The reception for Mutant Mudds at E3 was amazing. Everyone who played the game genuinely enjoyed the experience. They commented on the old and the new contained within the game. 16-bit era platformers have long been dormant, and Mutant Mudds seems to be a welcomed breath of old-school fresh air.

I want to send a sincere thank you to everyone who shares our love of 2D platform games, and have shown their support for Mutant Mudds. It makes all of our hard work well worth it. We have a few months left before Mutant Mudds will be ready for release. We will continue to make what we think is good. And we hope you like the result.

Here are some of the kind words expressed in the gaming press:

"I absolutely loved Mutant Mudds."

- James Higginbotham, Pure Nintendo

"Portable gaming just doesnt get any better than Mutant Mudds."

- Andreas Asimakis, Games Abyss

"A landmark title for the 3DS eShop, the 3DS as a system, and the next generation of video game devices as a whole."

- Austin McLaughlin, Nintendo Everything

"Mutant Mudds is everything a platformer fan could ask for."

- Corbie Dillard, Nintendo Life

"This game feels great."

- Neal Ronaghan, Nintendo World Report

"A 3DS eShop title that is definitely on my radar."

- Justin Berube, Ripten

"There's a lot of Nintendo love in here."

- Tony Ponce, Destructoid

"Easily one of the most enjoyable titles I had the opportunity to play at the E3 show."

- Corbie Dillard, Nintendo Life

"The kind of challenge that fans of classics such as Mario and Mega Man enjoy."
- 8-Bit Jay, BYTE

Mutant Mudds E3 Footage