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December 13, 2012

Demo Report – Rayman Legends

Filed under: Editorial Rants — Tags: , , , , — Jamie Love @ 10:46 pm

Demo Report Rayman Legends
Ubisoft’s demo for the Wii U exclusive Rayman Legends has finally arrived via the eShop – I suspect if you’re a Wii U owner you’re all over that, and if not, you should be.

The short demo offers access to three separate stages, which serves up three distinct flavors of play evolving from last year’s multiplatform rebirth powered by Ubisoft’s sexy little engine that can – so long as can involves making the screen pop with organic flow and crazed character creations.

While Toad Story serves up a more traditional Rayman platforming area, Teensies in Trouble introduces players to the idea of using the gamepad to aid the on-screen character, which in single-player mode is controlled by AI, with the player moving platforms, slicing ropes, and tickling large enemies to pave the way forward.

The entire demo is stolen by Castle Rock in the end though, which takes the speed run formula of Origins and creates a rock themed slide through a stage where the rhythm of the music syncs to the actions on screen. There’s the strangest bit of Muppets vibe to the play of this stage, and aside from telling you that it left me grinning like an idiot, it might be entirely easier to offer up video, which you can catch below.

Of course, you could also boot up ye olde Wii U and sample the offering for yourself – and then, like come back and let me know what you think.

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June 12, 2012

E3 2012 – Hands On with Nintendo

E3 2012 nintendo Wii U
Following Nintendo’s E3 2012 Press Conference, there were plenty of voices of concern regarding the showing, particularly a lack of first-party titles associated with a yet to be cemented launch window. And while I was a bit surprised in this regard as well, given how easily a simple series of teaser trailers for Super Smash Bros., or further adventures in the Star Fox and/or Metroid franchises might have worked to lessen skepticism, I’ve become a bit Zen about the issue.

Nintendo’s Press Conference seemed to focus intently on a wider audience beyond those that had gathered in Los Angeles for the event, and if the Publisher’s showing in 2010 taught me anything, it’s that Nintendo has proven with past hardware releases that they can summon titles from the void to suddenly turn the frowns of the hardcore faithful upside down. They’ve done this on the Wii, the 3DS, and the 3DS eShop in recent memory, though there is something to be said for the lack of consistency that sometimes makes their surprise announcements as necessary as a drop of water is to a man lost in the desert.

What seemed most noteworthy this year, aside from the 3DS being pushed off the stage to make space for the Wii U, was Nintendo’s interest in multiple media streams. In many ways, Nintendo’s attempt to reach out through more channels could be blamed for lessening the showmanship people have come to expect from an E3 Press Conference that opens the show every year. On the other hand, if you’re familiar with Nintendo’s rather dinosaur-like approach to social media in the past, their growing interest in reaching out to more people through more channels is something that should be encouraged – we just need to remember that such pursuits involve continual experimentation and don’t always promise ideal results.

And now dear Sugarfiends, it is time to take a walk through the hands on time I managed to scavenge with Nintendo’s first and third party offerings. The list seems a bit light this year, but in earnest, I tried to bring back as much first hand information as possible.

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