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.
You’re looking to pickup a copy of Guitar Hero World Tour, but you’re currently unsure which bundle does what and how much each will cost. That has now been made clear and gamers can go about their holiday shopping business later this month (Oct. 26th) to pickup the bundle of their choosing.
Hey guys, why does Paul have to leave? I know you’ve been saying you would leave if you didn’t get enough comments, so I’m sorry I didn’t post last episode! I’ll miss you being on the show, glad we still get some more episodes with you, you have a fun energy and insight into gaming that makes the show great.
It’s also terrible about that story about the young woman committing suicide, another sign of ignored infrastructure of our roads, bridges and mental health of the people. This isn’t politcast though (joke for Dan Q).
I want to know if Jonah has been playing the Pillar’s of Eternity, I’ve been playing quite a lot and enjoying it. I think it really recaptured the feel of the Infinity Engine games, great writing and even improved upon it. For example the Text Adventure choices were a nice addition to the game. They also fixed old abuses like with the Rogue being able to stack a bunch of traps and cheese kill a boss, you can only place one trap per area so no insta kill. Not to mention the pickpocketing merchants and selling the items back to them.
@Game Time commitment: I agree with you about the time issue, getting older I have less time and this is why I stopped playing World of Warcraft and avoid all MMO’s. I only play games that I can quit out of at a moment’s notice if needed to. I’m still into RPG games; PoE isn’t as open world as Skyrim was. Paul is right about story, a game can have a great story but if the gameplay is boring grinding of fighting to get your XP up enough to advance to the next area you just don’t want to bother.
@Lego Dimension characters: I love the idea of Doctor who we need some games these characters, I think DW should have a puzzle game series it’d fit the character and show idea more than what they have done so far. A Lego DW will have to do for now I suppose. For me I’d want the older Doctors like the 7th or 8th doctors, I loved the Victorian Tardis those two had.
@Nintendo Theme Park: Excuse me while my inner child goes berserk with sheer joy. I would die of just pure happiness being able to walk through a Hyrule castle or Mario land. Paul is right the Nintendo IP’s deserve a large scale area of rides, exhibits, games, and more. I mean I’m actually thinking there needs to be some sort of bounce house where you can step or jump on goombas, have a Yoshii Ride and so on. I also loved the Harry Potter world stuff and hope the Nintendo theme park will be as good as that. Could you imagine a foam sword fighting as Link? I can!