Support NeoGAF

[SantaC]

What do you think of Nintendo's media blackout methods? Nintendo tends to be very secretive with their franchise titles like Mario and Zelda. According to Matt-IGN, he believes that there will be a 1 year media blackout of new Zelda screens until next E3. I do believe him.

Many people probably think it's a pain, and I do too, but is it something negative? I don't think so. Unlike 3DR and their DNF police, Nintendo always delivers in the end, and you know that. There WILL be a "Mario 128" and there WILL be new media of the GCN Zelda.

This E3 was a blast for me since the Zelda surprise, and that convinced me that this media blackout methods Nintendo are doing succeeds in the long run.

Compare this with etc Halo 2 who gets new info and screens quite often. What do you prefer?

 

[MightyHedgehog]

I think it's best to give little bits here and there for maximum effect.

 

[hirokazu]

bits of info will probably tricle out as rumour for people to speculate on during the media blackout anyhow, doesn't really matter to me, even if they were to release a whole lotta stuff now, that doesn't push the release date forward by any means.

 

[Ranger X]

To keep stuff secretively is good. But just give some tiny bits along the way.
I think that if Sony would have kept a couple of games as a secret or with next to none details, they would have give us a 2 times better impression this last E3.
But Nintendo blocking the screenshots for a year maybe a bit too much...

 

[neptunes]

they're very keen on keeping things confidential.

no leaks EVER!

 

[Kon Tiki]

Compare this with etc Halo 2 who gets new info and screens quite often. What do you prefer?

Info? yes. Screens? Not so often.

 

[Culex]

Nintendo loves keeping secrets. Even if the secret is that their secret is shit, they'll go to all lengths.

 

[neptunes]

screens and info create hype!

and of course you all know hype isn't always good.

 

[BobbyRobby]

They shouldn't create an orgy of hype, but they have to make casual people aware that a realistic Zelda is coming out.

 

[Kon Tiki]

screens and info create hype!

and of course you all know hype isn't always good.

I was commenting on your Halo 2 example.

 

[neptunes]

I never said anything about halo 2 (you probably got confused)

and letting the public acknowledge the existence of the new zelda is a good thing.

 

[BuddyC]

i usually end up blacking myself out of media coverage for certain games.

but with halo 2, the more i can find out about the multiplayer, the happier i am.

 

[Kon Tiki]

I never said anything about halo 2 (you probably got confused)

and letting the public acknowledge the existence of the new zelda is a good thing.

I meant the thread starter.

 

[arter_2]

at some points nintendos secrecy has been annoying at most but i like it in the long run because it gives me something to wonder about.

 

[Dan]

Personally, if info is arriving in large amounts really early on, I just get worn out on the hype. I like how most GBA projects get little attention and then appear and there's plenty of surprise for me. I haven't been aware of all the features for months, I haven't seen every single environment and situation five times a piece in screenshots, and it's just an overall more refreshing experience. Whether that's good for the industry and sales, I have no idea. But personally, I like things more on the secretive side than when games like Halo 2 receive all kinds of large yet trivial media updates each week. It's overkill.

 

[Wellington]

This is going to result in another one (or a set) of Matt's typical "I know something you don't ." crap I'd bet.

 

[TheDiave]

Seeeeeeecrets!

Matt just wants something to blab about to feel important.

 

[Subitai]

I think Bungie has it balanced best. They trickle stuff out, but there's still going to be a ton of surprises on Nov. 9.

 

[Ranger X]

Seeeeeeecrets!

Matt just wants something to blab about to feel important.

LMAO

 

[Keio]

It's strange how only in gaming people get excited by the tiniest tidbit of information. I'd be happy if Nintendo just worked in peace on LoZ, M128 etc. and then showed them all at the next E3.

Lord of the Rings being the only exception, I just can't see movie fans reeling from a picture in the trailer: OMG WTF Brad Pitt is going to dual wield guns OH SHIT it's going to be the greatest film ever in 1 and 1/2 years. Or maybe in the music industry: WTF Prodigy used one sample from Eric Clapton OH SHIT their cd is going to be teh best when it comes out after five years of hype.

 

[TheGreenGiant]

I just can't see movie fans reeling from a picture in the trailer: OMG WTF Brad Pitt is going to dual wield guns

so we agree that Halo2 fanboys are stupid? They could have had MC drop turds and use that as grenades and I believe they'd still cheer. ... Maybe not. But dual guns + going ballistic + OMG does not equate. Never mind this, There was no halo2 disussion in this thread.

Nintendo

so.. as a fan, I've become acustomed to being surprised/dismayed/horrorfied.amused by Nintendo. They are way more *insert any adjective from above* than Sony and just more fun than MS.

 

[AniHawk]

They shouldn't create an orgy of hype, but they have to make casual people aware that a realistic Zelda is coming out.

I'm sure they will during the holiday season of 2005.

Damn, that's 17 months away...

 

[Keio]

I've become acustomed to being surprised/dismayed/horrorfied.amused by Nintendo.

I have to admit that during this years E3 the only "moment of revelation" I felt was during the Nintendo Conference, when I realized how the DS would work and how I'm going to enjoy playing Animal Crossing on it.

What I personally like about Nintendo is that usually they show something more than just a "new game" - more like new types of games and ways of playing.

So even though I'm looking forward to things like Halo 2 and the PSP, they also feel like a continuation of an already obvious route. I'm all for Nintendo keeping secrets as long as they can give me those "moments of revelation".

 

[Die Squirrel Die]

I think it's a balance. Totally blacking doesn't really work for me, but neither does over doing the media.

On the one hand, you don't want to reveal too much about the game. You want there to be suprises when you first play it. On the other hand too many screens of the same area get redundant after a while.

So take GTA:SA for example. So far all the shots have been of Los Santos. While some people have complained about this, I hope that Rockstar stick to their guns, so that the first time I see San Fierro and Las Venturas is when I'm actually playing the game. However I don't want to be burned out on Los Santos before I play it so they should keep the media to a relatively low level.

Back to the blackout thing. I don't think it's a great strategy because it can stop the game hype reaching the wider public. So I don't think Nintendo should blackout entirely on Zelda until next E3. However they shouldn't be releasing new media every week. I'd say they do a new trailer for around November/ December to encourage people to not only think of the current lineup of RE4/MP2/etc. but also whats still to come. Nothing major though. Perhaps an extra 15-30 secs of footage incorporated into the existing trailer that showcases maybe a new dungeon, perhaps new ability, but still don't give the major theme of the game away.

Next around March next year a longer trailer, maybe around 3-5 minutes. Another new location, maybe some more new gameplay features, and also some non-Link characters (not the bad guy or Zelda though, if they are in it), still keeping the theme and most the major gameplay additions under wraps.

Finally next E3, big 10 minute trailer, playable demo, major theme revealed, storyline set-up revealed. Maybe more enviroments.

On the whole enviroments issue. Personally I believe that they should enumerate them, and then only reveal about 1/4 before the game releases. They should also keep some of the earlier stuff hidden. I don't want to have to play through 6 or 7 hours before I hit something that I haven't seen before. So say there's 8 dungeons they should show 2 maybe 3 at the most before. But not the first 2 or 3. Instead maybe dungeons 1, 3 and 6.

 

[puck1337]

I think we'll probably see a screenshot or two in January-March 2005. They seem to like doing that sort of thing.

 

[ge-man]

The whole blackout thing is a doubled edge sword. When information does finally trickle out you're like to generate a shit load of excitement. In the mean time, however, people can easily forget.

The opposite is true as well. Overexposure is a good way of killing a games hype, especially if said game has to scale back hyped features to make out one time or because of overambitiousness. I think Fable is the best of example of this today. There's still a lot of hype that it's riding on, but changes to the core of game have simmered the hype down.

As other has mentioned, Bunige is doing a pretty good job with Halo 2. I also like the approach that Capcom took with RE4 by keeping the media to a minimum until a final design was set in stone.

 

[heavy liquid]

I thought Nintendo handled this year's E3 and the release of information on the DS quite well. They released just enough trickles of information on it to keep everyone's interest piqued before the acutal conference.

 

[SantaC]

I remember that Nintendo dropped a few screenshots of Zelda OoT alittle now and then back in the days. I was overjoyed everytime they showed some new media.

 

[AssMan]

Jesus Christ? Another year until new Zelda media? Nintendo are crack heads! I KEEP IT REAL!

 

[aperfectt00l]

I think it's a balance. Totally blacking doesn't really work for me, but neither does over doing the media.

On the one hand, you don't want to reveal too much about the game. You want there to be suprises when you first play it. On the other hand too many screens of the same area get redundant after a while.

So take GTA:SA for example. So far all the shots have been of Los Santos. While some people have complained about this, I hope that Rockstar stick to their guns, so that the first time I see San Fierro and Las Venturas is when I'm actually playing the game. However I don't want to be burned out on Los Santos before I play it so they should keep the media to a relatively low level.

Back to the blackout thing. I don't think it's a great strategy because it can stop the game hype reaching the wider public. So I don't think Nintendo should blackout entirely on Zelda until next E3. However they shouldn't be releasing new media every week. I'd say they do a new trailer for around November/ December to encourage people to not only think of the current lineup of RE4/MP2/etc. but also whats still to come. Nothing major though. Perhaps an extra 15-30 secs of footage incorporated into the existing trailer that showcases maybe a new dungeon, perhaps new ability, but still don't give the major theme of the game away.

Next around March next year a longer trailer, maybe around 3-5 minutes. Another new location, maybe some more new gameplay features, and also some non-Link characters (not the bad guy or Zelda though, if they are in it), still keeping the theme and most the major gameplay additions under wraps.

Finally next E3, big 10 minute trailer, playable demo, major theme revealed, storyline set-up revealed. Maybe more enviroments.

On the whole enviroments issue. Personally I believe that they should enumerate them, and then only reveal about 1/4 before the game releases. They should also keep some of the earlier stuff hidden. I don't want to have to play through 6 or 7 hours before I hit something that I haven't seen before. So say there's 8 dungeons they should show 2 maybe 3 at the most before. But not the first 2 or 3. Instead maybe dungeons 1, 3 and 6.

I completely agree...and i won't bitch about this method either like most. I see it as a constructive way of building up to a great game that you know you wont be disappointed with.

 

[SantaC]

Jesus Christ? Another year until new Zelda media? Nintendo are crack heads! I KEEP IT REAL!

That's not official. It's just Matt speculating.

 

[aperfectt00l]

Jesus Christ? Another year until new Zelda media? Nintendo are crack heads! I KEEP IT REAL!

I Highly doubt that it will be that long for new media but even if it does take that long of a wait to get my eyes on some new footage, I will not complain.