Here's a subject that's definitely been on the minds of many Legends fans: why the Nintendo 3DS for Mega Man Legends 3? Why not a current home console, or even the regular ol' DS or PSP? MML3 producer Tatsuya Kitabayashi answered this query a couple days ago, but we now have ourselves a more elaborate answer via an IGN interview with Capcom USA's Christian Svensson:"With the 3DS for Mega Man Legends 3, one of the things you'll find about new hardware are early adopters tend to be more core. They're passions and informed about things. Anytime there's a new piece of hardware, there's an opportunity to either establish new IP or reboot IP that maybe should have done better last time around. That was really more of the strategy with the 3DS, to reach a new early adopter audience. We won't be there at launch with the game, but there are some interesting things that we're doing that will hopefully be perceived as visionary and really fan embracive."
It all comes down to economics, it seems. For Mega Man Legends 3 to sell efficiently, Capcom is hoping to reach out to early system adopters by releasing the game on a new platform fairly early into its lifespan, though not at system's launch.
The way I see it, if Capcom can get MML3 out the door shortly after the launch of the 3DS, then the game will have a much better chance of selling simply because of a lack of competition. Summed up nicely by Unity member Deva-Princess, "this means that customers looking for quality games will have less options to choose from and are more likely to pick up Legends 3, improving it sales, getting the series more potential fans, and improving the chances of a possible Legends 4 or Legends-like MM game."
What do you think? Agree with this strategy or do you have a rebuttal? Feel free to sound off in the comments.
Credit: GoNintendo
Of course it's a good strategy. That's business for you. However, developing this game with "good" quality will take at least 2 years.. though, how long has it been in development, I wonder?
ReplyDeleteI agree with the statements at the bottom of the article, but for the plain fact that it's not home console is again, Capcom worrying too damn much. What does CAPCOM have to worry about? They're one of the top third party developers/companies. If they do things right, they wont have to worry about loss. Which, in the end, it all comes down to money and business. Business is bullshit, lol. In the end, I await Capcom to boot up this legendary franchise and give it their creative all. With most of the original Legends games team back in action, it's sure to feel right at home.
ReplyDelete@ Omar:
ReplyDeleteI would bet that it had been in development for at least a year. We first heard of it at San Digeo Comic-Con, which was about three months ago?
OSS last year seemed kind of rushed out the door to boot, rushed to the point where I was convinced that Capcom had most of the EXE/SF development team working on something else, like... Legends 3.
And of course it's good strategy. It worked brilliantly for the EXE and Zero series, after all. I think Capcom waited a bit too long to jump to the DS with Star Force and ZX in comparison.
This seemed obvious to me from the beginning. Makes good sense.
ReplyDeleteOf course it comes down to money. That's really what video game making is about. It's not some magical form of entertainment appearing out of sheer will of kind guys from some enigmatic Japanese company, it's a business.
ReplyDeleteI mean, I don't see the problem. It's obvious a game like that is hardly viable on a "big" home console, DS has been out for 6 years and has poorer 3D than it should have, PSP is about to be either replaced or phased out and as for Wii... I guess that could work too, but they decided for 3DS.
And really, no one owns a 3DS yet. What were people who complain about having to get a 3DS to play brand new games thinking back when they changed their Gameboy Advance to a DS or Playstation 1 to Playstation 2? It's absolutely normal.
The strategy of releasing it near the launch of the system seems to be a tried and true marketing method for Capcom, since it definetely helped Battle Network establish itself among all the ports and fledgling GBA titles of the time.
ReplyDeleteWe all know how successful that series went on with all the fans it garnered, and basically the same deal for the not far off Zero series.
hope for early adoptors to have to buy it. Sounds good on paper but what about the millions who own wii, ps3, xbox, ds, psp. It doesn't take a genius to understand theres more wii's in homes than there will be 3ds's.
ReplyDeleteThis is a stupid strategy. Yes theres more games to compete with it on the ps3 and xbox, but the wii give me a break theres nothing except for what nintendo shell sout once a year.
If they want to sell billions shoulda made it a wii game.
I was hoping for a Wii release, but 3DS is just as awesome!
ReplyDeleteI'm just glad it's not for the PSP2. While my PSP is pretty cool, there aren't many games for it that appeal to me. I'm not going to invest in a portable that could turn out the same.
It's an excellent strategy. I just hope that Inti Creates also adopts this strategy and releases some ZX sequels for the 3DS. I have to agree somewhat with Alilatias. The reason that the ZX games did not sell as well as Capcom hoped was not because they were bad games (I think that they are better than the Zero games personally), but because Inti Creates and Capcom did not have a good release strategy. Such failures include not releasing the first ZX close enough to the release date of the Nintendo DS, and not advertising ZX Advent enough before release. Maybe the 3DS will be an opportunity that Inti Creates needs to revive the ZX franchise.
ReplyDeleteah, the same ol' strategy. milk as much money from a project as you can, while doing as little work as you can. this could be built for multiple systems, and the sales would only increase. they'd still have the early addopter audience, and the people that don't want to buy a gimm er, "3D" system could have the game on a bett, i mean, "different" system. besides, with a PSP, you can at least play it on a TV if you want. i'm sorry, but this is lazy, especialy considering that they're a company known for being money hungry.
ReplyDeleteI don't see why people are complaining already.
ReplyDeleteIf a company does not make money, then you have no company. So people who think that companies are bad for wanting to make money would not make very good businessmen.
And given the various functions of various systems, and the fact that the 3DS is new and there are not yet any people confortable with developing for it (as from what I hear it is a lot different than the DS (which was fairly similar to the AGB) in development there are many reason why the game would be made solely for the 3DS.
I think it will also definitely boost sales of the 3DS, because as you just said, there's not much else out there announced for the 3DS at the moment. Most of the stuff that's announced is a remake of some game that's already out there (or in the case of Kingdom Hearts, _technically_ a new game, but seemingly very similar to past entries). So Nintendo is probably extremely happy about this decision.
ReplyDeleteI love how some people say putting Legends 3 on the 3DS is bad strategy compared to putting it on a home console, while overlooking the fact that Legends 1 and 2 sold extremely poorly when they were released late into the PSX's (and later N64) lifespan in the first place.
ReplyDeleteThere's a reason why port begging gets you banned at NeoGAF. Are you really concerned with Capcom actually making a profit off of this, or are you requesting that this game be released on a console instead due to personal preferences?
I wish we would have gotten a better answer than this, or rather that the real reason was something else. They want to appeal to the "core" gaming audience of early adopters? Shouldn't Legends 3 be looking to appeal to the biggest audience it can? Why introduce an additional barrier to entry by hoping the customer will buy a new console just for it?
ReplyDeleteI have no doubt that releasing on the 3DS is a gamble. Capcom has alot of extremely "delicate" franchises that have been out of comission for years because the company's not under the impression that they would be successful nowdays. MegaMan Legends is definitely one of those series. This means there are already people in Capcom that doubt that MML3 will succeed. If the game does poorly, those people are proven right, and the series is shelved for another 10 years. So then this new game HAS TO SUCCEED, by every possible measure.
Given all this, why would you add to the risk of success by developing for a new console? And now with the explicit intention of addressing only the core audience?
I've had my doubts that the 3DS is the right step from even a franchise standpoint. How many series that begin on consoles become more successful with a sequel in a handheld system? How many handheld games make magazine and webpage headlines, or are otherwise more relevant to the gamer community and market than full-console releases? Why not go for the best possible gaming experience, on current-generation consoles which are already successful? Shouldn't MML3 be made as relevant as it can be?
I was hoping the answer to those questions was something like "the 3DS is easier and cheaper to develop for". That still is a depressing motive, but at least it's more sound than "we want to appeal to the core gaming audience".
its a good strategy but..
ReplyDeleteanyone with mid-brain can think
new console = no hacks/emu (for now) & few games
no hacks/emu = no piracy
no piracy+few games = $$$$
im not in favor of the piracy im just saying, thats the reason why 3DS
anyways just thank capcom for letting keiji inafune make this game at last
p.d: dont complain it will be cool to see MML in 3D
I do agree it would be cool to see megaman legends in 3d however often the ds games were very very short and when it comes down to it a new 3ds could cost between 200-400 bucks,as much as a die hard megaman legends fan as i am im not gonna pay that much just for one game(although i do want the new resident evil also for 3ds)so capcom has a few games in mind for the 3ds,this game will have to be one hell of a game in other words for people to get a new system with possibly a pre-order bonus maybe a data plushie?
ReplyDeletejust hear my warning
ReplyDeletewait until a new 3DS (3DS Lite?) comes out (unless you are a nintendo collector)
i hope that 3DS have backlight
@MegaMac: What Capcom has to worry about is it selling poorly, as the first two games did.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a great strategy, Unless the 3DS is like the PSP, and it's hacked around 24 hours after it hits the market, this would also cut down on the big enemy of game sales: Piracy.
ReplyDeleteI swear, if anybody pirates Legends 3, I will give them a swift punch in the balls, if there was ever a series that actually needed game sales, it's this one. I'm actually considering buying more than one copy, so I can keep one sealed and in pristine condition. I really hope this gets us a Legends 4 within, I don't know, 3-4 years?
This is what they did with MHX right? MHX bombed, right? MMPUed also bombed, right?
ReplyDeleteI think the Wii should have been a better choice.. but hey, they already have MM2 in 3D announced for it.. Since most of the main MM games seem to be on portables (MMZero- entirely on a handheld- EXE, 90% on a handheld save one GC game- and SF and ZX both entirely on handhelds), Capcom is kinda like Squeenix.. most of their major work, the big games, seem to be portables.
Whenever they get to another X game, I am going to hope it's at least on the Wii, but y'never know.