Once upon a time Rare though they had a winner; a game which would end all the confusion between a hardcore console and a kiddie console. Viva Piñata was supposed to change the way we think about Xbox 360 gaming by showing off a title that would make children feel more inclined to game on a “big boys console.”
Unfortunately, execution of Rare’s new franchise title came with a few rough patches, namely Gears of War. Earlier on they had press releases and conferences about how this game was going to interact with users, inspire them to watch Viva Piñata the cartoon to get new recipes for the game which would allow you to create new breeds of Piñata. There were a few flaws in the plan. They didn’t hype the game enough prior to the release and then they decided to launch the game during the over-hyped Gears of War title.
Oddly enough my children (two and four years of age) would rather watch Sponge Bob and Dora reruns than a single episode of Viva Piñata. I thought the show was cute and the bright colors and crazy creatures would draw children like moths to a flame, but they just didn’t care.
My children were too young to play the first Viva Piñata and it didn’t provide enough interest for them to watch me play it and invest the hours. I found the game to be creative and fun… for awhile. Once my happy little Piñatas started eating each other and fighting constantly I realized the joy was gone. If I want to listen to screaming and fighting I’ve got my own children, babysitting Piñatas in a fake garden just wasn’t doing it for me.
Now, Viva Piñata: Trouble in paradise has been given a date of September by Eurogamer. Rare is stating we’ll have 30 new Piñata’s to play with along with new environments, co-op play and other cute options. Admittingly, Drop-in/Drop-out co-op play does sound kind of neat but my emotional scares from the first title have not healed yet.
I was told there would be a great deal of downloadable content (DLC) for Viva Piñata. but found nothing available after I purchased the game and, if content exists now, I’ve long since lost interest in the game. The idea was solid, the demographic was available but the execution went flat. You cannot expect older gamers with children to believe Microsoft or Rare are planning to give us real kids games when you release a single title and show us no other kids games for two years.
At this point, if you’re looking for a console with more kid-friendly gaming you’re going to buy a Wii every single time. Titles on the Wii work for both young adults, teenagers, kids and older grandparents while the 360 goes strong with the 18-34 year-old male demographic.
If you want to be serious about bringing kids on board, Viva Piñata is going to need some friends not just a single sequel. Otherwise, you’re going to find out quick that the 18-34 demographic will simply nod politely and move on to their next great fix… Gears of War 2 perhaps (November, 2008).
If the upcoming Viva Piñata franchise executes like its prior title there will definitely be some trouble in paradise.
@Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12 PC controversy rages
Having an MMO as the multiplayer component of a game is actually a good idea. The problem is the ‘only 3 months free’. I mean in such cases you’d better add a free-mium MMO.
@THQ: Next-gen consoles will be discless:
That will make it easier to distribute games, in areas with good bandwidth.
Question is: if the costs of the physical medium is removed, why won’t the price of the games go down?
As for Steam, do you know that you can back up your games on a separate storage media?
@Quantic Dreams claims they lost 10M euro on used games
Gah! You can’t lose something you never had.
Make the product more attractive new. Dunno, add multi-player validated by the CD key.
@3DS sales jump 260% following price drop
The big question is, does this cover the costs? Otherwise, 260% or not, they’re still at loss.
@Syndicate reboot finally confirmed and unveiled by EA
So, this will become something like DeusEx mixed up with E.Y.E. . Quite original 😛
I guess that if it is well polished, it might become a multi player hit.
As for hate mail Paul, make sure you’re on the show.
“I hope you die”? Really? Here’s a news flash: everybody dies.
@QOTW: I can’t really remember any remakes; on the other hand I became a PC gamer in 2001, so that’s one possible explanation.
And while Doom 3 can be considered a remake of the first Doom, I didn’t play the first one so I can’t compare the two.
@QOTW: but! If UT 2003 can be considered a reboot of the UT franchise, then yes, UT2003 was a bitter disappointment: the flak cannon – turned a bit lame. No sniper rifle. No assault game mode.
help!!!!!! I cant download the episode
somethings wrong with the link plz fix it
yes it now works
Tiger Woods PGA PC – I honestly can’t believe that people play golf games in general, let alone the PC. I can’t see how swinging a mouse forward and back could be interesting to anyone. EA is probably thinking that if you’re dumb enough to buy this shit, you don’t deserve a full game.
Next Gen Discless – Nope. In no way would I see that working out. Like Jordan said, look what happened to Patapon 2. Or just look at the PSP Go, that didn’t work out nearly as well as they thought.
Losing Money on Used Games – I’m sure that they did loose a lot of money on used games, but nowhere near the amount that they claimed. There are various other reasons why there are more people playing than copies sold.
3DS Sales Jump – That doesn’t mean much at this point. Like Herr Alien said, they are still in the negative, as they were when they first launched it at the price of $250. They could mark them down to a dollar and I’m sure the sales would jump enormously, but it wouldn’t be covering the money that they had to spend to get the product to the consumer.
QOTW – Bionic Commando was pretty bad, but that is the only one that I can think of. Wasn’t ever a big fan of Duke Nukem, so that doesn’t apply to me, but I’m sure it does to millions of others.
Now, the hate mail. Paul, possibly being my favorite on the show, is going to be hard to hurt in fear of him calling me a “Loser.” The mere fact that you are asking for hate mail signifies that your bloated ego needs something to take it down a peg, only so that it may rise and be a more cocky, douchey version of the one left behind. No one leaves you hate mail because you are simply undeserving. I care more about the gum cemented into the sidewalk than I do the hopefully fictitious character known as “Paul”. You are the cancer of the earth and may God have mercy on your soul.
Alright. Is that good for Paul. It is out of love that I do this, not hate. Hope to hear back on the next show. 😀
dang, my comments didnt make it can you re post it here plz