Wii U: Reggie Talks Friend Codes, Achievements, Miiverse Moderation, and More
11. June 2012 by Elijah Holt
Reggie Wii U Nintendo had plenty of answers to our questions about the Wii U at E3; from launch titles to online functionality, the Big N shared all of their knowledge at the conference.
Well, almost all of it. The folks over at Kotaku managed to pry a little more information out of Reggie in an interview a few days ago. Friend Codes, Achievements, Miiverse Moderation, and plenty of other topics of interest were discussed during the interview.
Here’s Reggie’s thoughts on the topics listed above and more:
GamePad Battery Life
Retail versions of the Wii U would have a charging port at the bottom of the GamePad, as opposed to E3 models that charged from the top.
“I have to say that, as a company, we are amazingly conservative when it comes to giving guidance on things like battery life. If you go back to the 3DS discussion on battery life, the numbers we gave before launch vs. the reality of launch were very different. So what I would tell you is that Nintendo is absolutely committed to making sure that the battery life for the Wii U will not get in the way of the gaming experience.”
Off-TV Play
Off-TV Play is the ability to play games on the GamePad screen.
It will likely be labeled on Wii U game boxes.
“(The ability to view and play Wii U games on the GamePad screen rather than on a TV screen is a) capability [that] is there for every game but it’s a developer’s choice if they want that to be part of the experience.”
Wii U Pro Controller
“And you could say that our competitive controllers look a lot like our controller. Fundamentally, ergonomically, it’s driven by what feels good in the hand. The controller has been in development for quite some time, and it’s based on feedback that, for certain games and for certain experiences, that type of controller offers a richer experience.”
Miiverse Moderation
“The way to think about how we will ensure a positive consumer experience with MiiVerse… first, there are parental controls. As a parent you can choose for your child not to have any MiiVerse conversation. You can do it only with friends. You can do it with everyone.”
“The second level is going to be essentially a technology-driven scan to make sure that inappropriate words and inappropriate pictures don’t make it onto MiiVerse.”
“The third level is going to be the community that will police and flag items.”
“The fourth level is for a human review at Nintendo.”
“Let’s take that example. I need help with level so-and-so. The technical scan happens. There’s no bad words. It happens.” (With no queue!)
“If the community is flagging it or if there’s an issue where the consumer is continuously trying to send inappropriate content. Because this is account driven, if Stephen Totilo is continuously trying to send inappropriate content then we have the ability to message this.”
System-Level Achievements
“We will have that. Once you start getting into game-specific [Achievements] that’s developer driven.”
(Microsoft may require every game to have Achievements, but) “That is not our philosophy.”
Friend Codes
“There are friend codes, but it’s not the existing friend code system. What do I mean by that? Here’s what I mean: you will be able to identify people as friends and have a certain level of interaction vs. a different level of interaction for the more general population. The method by which you identify someone as a friend is a lot simpler than what’s happening today with Friend Codes.”
Reggie agreed that it was difficult to add friends on the Wii, but assured that those unhappy with the Wii’s Friend Code system will be happier with the Wii U’s.
Wii Digital Content
Reggie confirmed that game saves and Virtual Console/Wiiware games could be transferred to the Wii U.
Data Storage
“The main message we’ve communicated is that it’s got USB ports so you can keep adding storage to your heart’s content.”
Wii U-3DS Connection
“It was last year that we talked about a new Smash Bros. that will have some interoperability, some linkage between Wii U and Nintendo 3DS. Obviously [Smash Bros. lead designer] Mr. Sakurai, having just finished Kid Icarus, hasn’t made a ton of progress on that game, but that’s going to be the one where we talk about how the two systems could work together on one game.”
Single-Touch vs. Multi-Touch
“When we went through the building of this and, given some of the functionality, we thought that single-touch was a more appropriate option, especially when you’ve got other button configurations.”
“Certainly there’s a cost to it. Again, we envision this as a controller that you’re putting in your hands and you’re doing a two-screen experience. The concept of putting it in your lap to do multi-touch for us just feels unwieldy.”
Used Games
“We don’t have a policy surrounding used games. We have not put in place any technology to go after the used game business.”
Black and White Wii U’s?
“We are showing white and black [Wii U’s] here [at E3]. We haven’t said anything about launch.”
Topics that Reggie Had Nothing to Discuss
New Virtual Console platforms
Off-TV Play for Virtual Console games
Wii U launch price
Wii U launch lineup
Klik om te vergroten...
