Blast Works: Budcat Responds

By: Derek Yu

On: July 26th, 2007

So we all raged a bit about Blast Works, and then Davide “Gendo Ikari” Mascolo suggested that maybe instead of sitting in our room with the lights out, listening to Linkin Park, we get proactive and write Budcat and Majesco an e-mail. Good idea! So I sent one out.

And lo and behold, I got two very quick reponses. One, from a Jeremy Anderson, Managing Partner at Budcat Creations, and one from a [representative who asked that her name be removed] at Highwater Group, who does PR for Majesco. The [Highwater rep] sent me a fact sheet and told me that Majesco would be in contact with me, but I haven’t heard from them yet. Jeremy, however, addressed my questions, and you can see what he said (along with my e-mail) after the jump.

My words are in italics and his in orange:

"Hi, this is Derek Yu from The Independent Gaming Source, a website covering news from the independent gaming community.

1. Will Kenta Cho be credited fully in the game itself?

Absolutely. We respect the work Mr. Cho has done on Tumiki Fighters and his other titles, and it has been our plan since day one to make sure he’s credited with the game’s original design.

2. Will Kenta Cho be mentioned in any advertisements or marketing relating to the game?

Yes, that’s the plan.

3. How much involvement does Kenta Cho have in the development of the game, aside from his creation of the original version?

None. We are using his original design as a foundation and building upon it.

4. Will Kenta Cho be at all financially compensated for his involvement in the development of the game?

Sorry, but as a policy, we do not comment on financial matters.

Apologies if this seems accusatory, but as fans and peers, it’s important to us that a small developer like Kenta Cho is compensated adequately for his hard work and graciousness.

Derek"

So there you have it! I have to say, I was surprised at how quickly they got back to me. Satisfactory answers for the time being. We’ll see how things go.

Siliconera Interview: Kenta Cho

By: Derek Yu

On: July 24th, 2007

There’s a short interview with Kenta Cho up on Siliconera where he talks about Blast Works and console development. Some choice quotes:

I’m a bit saddened that it seems Kenta Cho is not involved more in the development of this port. The fact that he seems unaware that Blast Works is now going to include, at the very least, rRootage, but possibly also Gunroar and Torus Trooper, makes me uneasy. Not sure why Siliconera didn’t ask him about this.

The guy seems incredibly easy going and happy to see his games on consoles. But if there were ever a time when I’d like to see someone’s name in front of a game title, it’s now.

De Blob: Hands On

By: Derek Yu

On: July 6th, 2007

IGN has a hands-on preview for De Blob on the Wii that includes images and video. What can I say? This game looks great.

The preview reveals, amongst other things, the due date (February or March of 2008), the number of levels (12 to 16), the control scheme (very much Wii friendly), and the story (which involves a fascist corporation called Ink Corp. that has leeched the world of color).

Hell yes I can!

De Blob Headed for Wii

By: Derek Yu

On: July 2nd, 2007

De Blob, one of this year’s IGF Student Showcase finalists, is heading to the Wii thanks to publisher THQ and their development studio Blue Tongue. In the game you play a giant blob of paint trying to cover the city in… yourself. It’s fun, it’s original, it’s pretty, and apparently even Tetris creator Alexey Pajitnov praised the game highly at this year’s IGF.

The original game can still be downloaded for free here.

Congrats, fellas!

(Source: GameSetWatch, Image Source: GoNintendo)

Blast Works

By: Derek Yu

On: June 28th, 2007

Don’t tell me this is going to be a trend where American companies take great Japanese freeware and port it to a console, molesting the software as much as they can in the process. “Coming up next, it’s La Mulana! Or should I say: ExploreyTown for the PS3! Just like you remembered, except now in 3d and we got 50 Cent to rap the new theme song for the game!” Cha-ching cha-ching!

Because this Gamasutra report is the only place I’ve seen Kenta Cho’s name mentioned with the Blast Works press release, I’m extremely dubious about K.C.’s involvement in and support for the creation of this new Wii title. Because really, not even a quick name-drop in the release itself?

Also, the name “Blast Works” makes me think about either a steel factory or explosive diarrhea. Or exploding diarrhea in a steel factory. Either way, it’s horribly generic and doesn’t begin to evoke the playful theme of the game.

Fail. Would love to see Tumiki Fighters on the Wii, though. With full support of Kenta Cho with 90% of the royalties going to him.

Download Tumiki Fighters for free here at Kenta Cho’s website.

(Thanks to raigan for the heads-up.)

EDIT: Here’s the actual press release (Kotaku).

WiiWare

By: Derek Yu

On: June 27th, 2007

No, it’s not a new line of clothing for babies. (Well, unless you want your babies to wear games produced for download onto Nintendo’s Wii Console.) We’re talking about Nintendo’s answer to XBox Live Arcade, baby.

Thanks for the heads-up, Tennis!

Pollen Sonata Teaser

By: Derek Yu

On: May 30th, 2007

A small teaser video for a Wii prototype by a Danish indie team seeking a publisher. I can’t find any other information about the company or the game. The obvious comparison for me is to Cloud… and also Pilotwings! But it’s hard to tell what there is to do other than float and roll around (the big insect at the end was cool, though).

(Source: 4 color rebellion)

Tumiki Fighters: Wii?

By: Derek Yu

On: April 16th, 2007

Tumiki Fighters, Kenta Cho’s toy block shmup that lets you attach your defeated enemies to you Katamari-style to increase your firepower, is purportedly hitting the Wii:

“…recently Tumiki Fighters appeared in a retailer’s database with Majesco as the publisher. This could be a Wii-make of Tumiki Fighters or the other (dismal!) possibility is that it’s an all new game that’s using the same name.”

For Linux and Mac ports of this lovely game, check out its Wikipedia entry.

Wii Stole it From Microsoft!

By: Shabadage

On: January 26th, 2007

According to this article, the following statement (Stolen directly from the article in question) is true.

“Nintendo has developed a programming system that will allow small independent developers to make games for Wii download service.

“We cannot confirm at this time in what format the new content will be delivered, but in the future there will be original games available for download through the Wii Shop.”

Is there perhaps an XNA competitor on the horizon from Nintendo? One can only hope so.

(Source: computerandvideogames.com)

Colocoro

By: Shabadage

On: January 15th, 2007

Well, it was only a matter of time before someone made a game for the PC that’s compatible with the hacked Wii-Mote. Colocoro is such a game, and like lots of Wii games; it’s very simplistic, and quite a bit of fun.

The goal of each level is to deliver your ball to the blue exit. It all sounds fairly simple and easy, until you realize that you need to bump, rotate, and move the playfield. Warps and enemies also try to ruin your day.

I haven’t gotten a change to play with a Wii-Mote sadly, but from what I’ve been seeing, it works flawlessly and adds a lot of fun. At less than a 1 meg download, there’s really no reason not to give this fun little game a try, even if you don’t plan on hacking your Wii-Mote. (There’s mouse control too).