Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Factor 5 developing for Wii



Factor 5, the Californian development studio (´Turrican´, ´Rogue Squadron´, ´Lair´) formerly based in Cologne, Germany, is developing at least one Wii game, IGN has learnt.

Company president Julian Eggebrecht confirmed that the studio is underway with at least one all-new Wii project -- and it's not a Virtual Console game. Beyond that confirmation, Eggebrecht was mum, but he did note that the new title would not simply re-use old Rogue Squadron tech; whatever it is, significantly updated or even completely new tech has been developed to help accommodate it. (...) Fans can rest assured that whatever the company's new Wii game is, it's a safe bet that it'll look good and push the hardware.

At one time, Factor 5 was pegged to develop a sequel to Pilot Wings for the then-codenamed Revolution. Nintendo even went so far as to list the San Rafael-based studio as a "partner" in its official E3 presentation. Since that time, though, the company has been busy with the PS3-exclusive Lair and thus, work on any Pilot Wings sequel is thought to have been halted or cancelled altogether. Incidentally, IGN believes Factor 5's Wii title is an altogether different beast.




This is good news indeed. Factor 5 is renowned for its emphasis on outstanding graphics and sound. The studio even had an input on the Gamecube´s hardware architecture.

But what could they be cooking up? Could it perhaps even be another ´Star Wars´ title?

EDIT According to Kombo, Factor 5 is developing a new ´Kid Icarus´ game.

Kombo has learned from a credible source that said Wii game is in fact a new installment in Nintendo's cherished Kid Icarus franchise. According to sources, Factor 5's Kid Icarus title is being developed ground-up for Wii. It will not use one of the developer's previous GameCube graphics engines.

In case you are wondering who Kombo is, they used to be called Advanced Media Network or Advanced MN.


Sources: IGN, Kombo
Thanks to: Joystiq, NeoGAF, Anonymous

25 comments:

Anonymous said...

Good looking Wii game = confirmed

I hope it's a Turrican FPS, but it'll probably another SW game... however, my Wii starves for a good game!

Falafelkid said...

Hi Superuser.

My Wii starves for a good game!

It need not starve. Here are my recommendations:

Must-haves:

Super Mario Galaxy
Metroid Prime 3
Zelda: Twilight Princess
Resident Evil 4 Wii
Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles
Link’s Crossbow Training & Zapper
Excite Truck
Kororinpa
Battalion Wars 2
The Godfather: Blackhand Edition
Scarface


Solid titles:

Red Steel
Call of Duty III
Medal of Honor Vanguard
Prince of Persia: Rival Swords
WarioWare: Smooth Moves
Rayman Raving Rabbids 1 & 2
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
Super Paper Mario
Big Brain Academy Wii
Mario Strikers Charged Football
Rockstar Games presents Table Tennis
Need for Speed Carbon
Dragon Blade: Wrath Of Fire
Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga
Pokémon Battle Revolution
Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn
Trauma Center: Second Opinion
Ghost Squad
Manhunt 2
Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Anniversary
Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaro´s Treasure


Sleeper hits:

SSX Blur
Eledees / Elebits
Dewy´s Adventure
Endless Ocean
Mercury Meltdown Revolution
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
(terrible cutscenes but good control scheme, nice graphics)
Blazing Angels
(fantastic nunchuk control scheme)
Cooking Mama
(terrible, terrible instructions - but great fun once you know what you are doing)

Anonymous said...

i picture a boy with begging bowl at mr nintendos door in the snow PLEASE SIR CAN WII DEV FOR YOU AGAIN.... cubeboy101 the greatest poster on the net PREDICTED THIS VERY THING HAPPENING.....

I new they would come running back silicon knights pick up the dog and bone call the greatest gaming company on earth apolagize and come home....

nintendo he who laffs last laffs loudest and longest
sony fans your noncence loyality to playstation branding is the act of brainwashed baffoons

Anonymous said...

new engine for wii i know this sounds a bit generic and pc/360ish but id like a first person game by factor 5 it just seems a good idea

Falafelkid said...

Just for your information: Julian Eggebrecht has always said he would like to develop for Wii. This is simply confirmation that a concrete offering is in the works. It´s no surprise at all. Julian still has very close contacts within Nintendo.

After the last Games Convention, I wrote:

Julian Eggebrecht, head of 'Lair' developer Factor 5, seemed genuinely keen to work with the platform, but was highly sceptical of Nintendo's seemingly lacklustre marketing for 'Metroid Prime 3'.

From a business point of view it would even make sense to prioritize casual games. A title like 'Brain Training' costs a pittance to develop when compared to the Retro Studios shooter, but has sold more units than most titles will ever achieve. Let us hope that Nintendo will not simply act out good business sense but realises the advantages of a broad portfolio that is broad enough to include the hardcore crowd.


It looks like Nintendo did realise the importance of a broad portfolio...

h said...

Hopefully it is not another Star Wars game. I like Star Wars but it is stale.

Anonymous said...

as good as rouge sqodron seris is except 3s on foot BS i really want a out and out hardcore experiance and no licenceing BS

Anonymous said...

I would just like to state that to me, Dewy somehow fells a whole lot fresher than Mario Galaxy...

I'm actually having a very good time with it.....it takes great advantage of the wii controller to begin with......

it simply feels fresh and new....that's whats missing from Mario and Metroid....Mario only took subtle advantage of the Wii controller while staying true to analog movement...Metroid while having its moments (skytown for example) just didn't feel right and fell short of my high expectations....it lacks the complexity, virtuosity
spirit and inspiritaion of the first Metoird Prime imo

But anyway as far as Dewy is concerned I think it is THE slept on title so far on Wii....it's beyond my copmprehension how it would get such average reviews(except for onm uk).....but........then again...hhmmm... I guess it might as well be due to the cute cartoon look that western gamers don't come to terms with. I have to say the look didn't bother me at all. It does have a unique charm.


What I loved about it from the get go was how they nailed the controlls they really immerse you in the game.

Videogames feel fresh again all of a sudden :)

Furthermore I like how its challenging but at the same time relaxing and low key somehow ....the music is no slouch either.

Call me insane but I prefer it over Mario ...not because it's "better" or more "epic" which its obviously not..but becaus it provides a fresher, newer expirience.....it's my favourite Wii game so far .....it also offers some of the cleanest effects and textures I have seen yet on the system.

I don't know but Metroid Prime 3 didn't
convince me at all and Mario starts to run out of steam and ideas about half way through the game (after you beat final bowser.)


As for Factor 5 ;) ....I know it would happen eventually ......Egg is back...and graphics thirsty as ever.

;)))


-IALS

Anonymous said...

Falafel posted:"Kororinpa
Battalion Wars 2
The Godfather: Blackhand Edition
Scarface"

Really? that good? should I give them a shot? Wow who would have thought that you have the time to play all those games btw.

;)

-IALS

Dopple Boppler said...

Zack and Wiki is only "solid"? Granted, I haven't played every game on your list, but if it wasn't for Mario Galaxy, Zack and Wiki would have been my game of the year, hands down, and I love Metroid Prime 3, Halo 3, Guitar Hero and Rock Band.

Anonymous said...

Hey,

I have been to your webpage alot of times and really find it interesting.

Just found this really cool article about the Nintendo Wii and making it 3D, just amazing:
Nintendo Wii Remote Video

Anonymous said...

Hi Andreas/Falafelkid!

Thanks for the list but:

Super Mario Galaxy I ALREADY OWN THIS
Metroid Prime 3 I ALREADY OWN THIS
Zelda: Twilight Princess I ALREADY OWN THIS
Resident Evil 4 Wii PLAYED IT 3x THROUGH ON GC
Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles HAVE TO IMPORT BC I LIVE IN GERMANY -> TOO EXPENSIVE
Link’s Crossbow Training & Zapper NO THANKS
Excite Truck I ALREADY OWN THIS
Kororinpa NO THANKS
Battalion Wars 2 MAYBE IF IT'S CHEAPER
The Godfather: Blackhand Edition NO THANKS
Scarface NO THANKS

Solid titles:

Red Steel I ALREADY OWN THIS (AND IT SUCKS AFTER A WHILE)
Call of Duty III I ALREADY OWN THIS (GOOD BUT BUGGY)
Medal of Honor Vanguard I GET MY WAR FIX WITH COD4 ON PS3
Prince of Persia: Rival Swords NO THANKS
WarioWare: Smooth Moves NO THANKS
Rayman Raving Rabbids 1 & 2 I ALREADY OWN THE FIRST AND IT SUCKS AFTER A WHILE
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock PREFER PART 1 +2
Super Paper Mario PREFER D&D RPG
Big Brain Academy Wii NO THANKS
Mario Strikers Charged Football I ALREADY OWN THIS
Rockstar Games presents Table Tennis NO THANKS
Need for Speed Carbon NO THANKS
Dragon Blade: Wrath Of Fire NO THANKS
Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga NO THANKS
Pokémon Battle Revolution NO THANKS
Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn IS IT OUT IN GERMANY? THEN MAYBE...
Trauma Center: Second Opinion NO THANKS
Ghost Squad NO THANKS
Manhunt 2 ONLY UNCUT
Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Anniversary NO THANKS
Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaro´s Treasure IT'S NOT OUT YET, OR!?

Sleeper hits:

SSX Blur I ALREADY OWN THIS
Eledees / Elebits NO THANKS
Dewy´s Adventure NO THANKS
Endless Ocean MAYBE SOME TIME LATER (DON'T FEEL LIKE IT AT THE MOMENT)
Mercury Meltdown Revolution NO THANKS
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix NEVER!

You forgot HEATSEEKER which is a pretty nice
arcade flight sim with bad ground textures...

Let's see what FACTOR 5 can do. I'm pretty confident it won't be a minigame collection and that's A GOOD THING!

Anonymous said...

another great news - famitsu gave brawl 40/40

can't wait anymore...

Anonymous said...

yeah, anyway fal, what's your comment regarding johnnylee's head tracking VR hack? that's what you have been waiting for, right? i'm surprised you didn't posted this as news... you instead gave us some crappy xbox-metal gear news....

this looks very good, seems cheap and simple.. it could work very well in games. glasses could be sold just like zapper

...zapper looks like pice of crap compared with this. it's funny how nintendo itself didnt came up with this.. this guy is just brilliant

Falafelkid said...

Hey everyone.

As far as Johnny Chung Lee´s little software tool is concerned, we tested it for our last program in the studio. It worked pretty well, but it´s much more effective if you close one eye. Lee also told us that he has not yet been approached by any game publishers.

Check the entire show´s video stream and fast forward to the last studio introduction. It´s after my report on the P2P streaming application Zattoo and before the last item about new gadgets at the Consumer Electronics Show.

Our presenter is also playing around with it at the very end of the show. Enjoy!

Oh, and Perodetlic.

(...) you instead gave us some crappy xbox-metal gear news.

If you think a software tool that shows what Wii technology is capable of, but does not relate to a concrete game (nor is it very likely to) more important than news and a thorough recap concerning the exclusivity status of one of the most anticipated titles coming out this year... do I need to finish that sentence? ;)

Falafelkid said...

Hey Superuser.

Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles HAVE TO IMPORT BC I LIVE IN GERMANY -> TOO EXPENSIVE
Link’s Crossbow Training & Zapper NO THANKS


Oh, you are missing out. Boy, are you missing out.

Anonymous said...

Call of duty 4 on wii would be great! lol

You really should limit the lenght of the frontpage.. it's way to big....

M. Ferreira said...

I have to second Falafel's suggestions for Mercury and Kororinpa. Both are fantastic games that REALLY show off the Wiimote's abilities. :) Trauma Center's just an awesome game on the whole, and really does get exciting after the first chapter.

Umbrella Chronicles and Ghost Squad are truly fantastic (though GS is a bit short). They're pretty much the grade of light gun games that people SHOULD be expecting on a console.

Anonymous said...

@ Falafelkid

Ok i'm (again) thinking about getting RE:UC...
:)

RGB said...

I also 2nd Kororinpa, it is one of the Wii titles I played more hours of. It is a good game and is kind fo a game that can only be played on Wii.

RGB said...

BY the way, make a Turrican please F5.

Or Thornado would be nice.

Anonymous said...

try Dewy its a great unique laid back low key adeventure....with innovative motion controlls

please support good 3rd party games like Dewy

-IALS

Anonymous said...

factor 5 developing kid ikarus for wii

http://wii.kombo.com/article.php?artid=11331

Falafelkid said...

Hi Anonymous.

Just found this really cool article about the Nintendo Wii and making it 3D, just amazing.

Check my comment nine comments above yours.

Anonymous said...

Designers will mostDiablo 3 Items likely advertise 21 million Wii models along with Redmond, Washington-based Milliseconds will certainly ship Nine.A million Xbox video gamesGW2 Gold consoles, based on Daiwa.