Microsoft's game development group general manager Chris Satchell has stated that he finds Nintendo's WiiWare service "confusing," and has criticized it for not enabling the game developing community enough.
"I've been a little confused by WiiWare," Satchell confessed to Spong. "The more I look at it, the more I'm confused, because it sort of doesn't really look like something for independents. At best it's what we would call a registered developer program."
Satchell compared WiiWare to Microsoft's XNA program, stating that while MS allows independent developers a platform to create and share their work, WiiWare says "Well, if you kind of work with us we can possibly kind of, back door or grandfather you into some kind of developer program which is a lot like our professional developer program."
Is WiiWare as Satchell claims? Something that only half-heartedly pushes indie development and does little to empower it? Is XNA going to be the Holy Grail that indie devs seek instead?
Or are all claims of big companies wanting to help independent gaming the horsesh*t we all kind of know they are?
Jim Sterling serves as reviews editor for Destructoid.com, head of the Podtoid podcast, and produces a number of news stories, original features, one-of-a-kind videos. With his passionate argumentative style, controversial opinions, harsh delivery, and dedication to brutal honesty Sterling is a name that you can't help but recognize.
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Contest:
12:03 PM on 06.19.2008
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Or am I just dumb?
Nintendo have no XNA type agenda with Wii Ware at all, which is such a shame but goes to show how draconian they can be. Its strange that Nintendo talk about growing the market, but it seems they don't mean the same for the developer side.
I guess the big N is happy enough with shovelware disc games, so they don't want it cloggin up the limited blocks on the Wii internet storage
But Microsoft is a presumptuous cock-hole...
You chaps will see this MS guy is right in the end, when no new talent arrives through Wii.
huh? hasn't new talent already arrived on the Wii?
Yep, just like both $ony and Nintendo. Balance, motherfucker - do you have it?
I think you pretty much hit the nail on the head, and anyone who thinks differently is deluding themselves. They want to "help" independents in as much as they want to make as much money as possible by doing as little work as possible to the point right before it's not considered "independent" anymore, because "independent" currently holds a particular stigma with hardcore gamers.
Y'know, not being connected to the internet makes the whole storage issue a moot point for those particular Wii owners, given that you have to be connected in order to download the shit that would lead a person to need it in the first place.
Logic. When it hits you, your mind will fucking explode.
@ Sharpless
Given that we're talking about Microsoft here, it's not unreasonable to assume that he's not being so much "unbalanced" as it was that he was, y'know, making a smart-assed comment relevant to the topic Jim presented to us.
You are clearly unfamiliar with Quest.
Independent developers want to make their games free, but neither WiiWare nor XBLA/XNA will ever allow free games on their service.
The best example of this idea comes from Newgrounds.com where flash game after brilliant flash game is put up for free by indie developers who simply want other people to see their work and play their games. Yes, horrible shit is posted as well, but that's what the voting system is for; to filter out the shit. Using that as an excuse not to allow free games is as poor as the excuses for why Microsoft wants to de-list games. They aren't mucking up the list of available games, Microsoft's ability to search and sort among them just sucks.
The only way independent developers will truly be supported is when they can make and publish their games for free. However Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo will never allow this as the costs to host and support a newgrounds.com like portal would be monumental and the gain would be too little.
Right cause Nintendo is this nice and dainty company, its an angel among the devil consoles like PS3 and 360.
You sound like SUCH a raging Nintendo fanboy, constantly apologizing and excusing what they do while railing on the other companies for doing the same fucking thing.
How many times has either company done this? To many to count at this point so stop acting like Nintendo is innocent and needs to be defended AND that Wiiware is be this hugely amazing thing.
You already have games that might be to big for Nintendo's storage limit, BRILLIANT MOVE THERE BIG N.
The way I see it, the Wiiware will like XBLA, occasional fun and original games that people will forget about within days after the luster of "OMG THIS IS SO FRESH AND UNIQUE FAPFAPFAPFAP" wears off.
I could care less about what's out and what's coming for Wiiware, nothing looks impressive, I'll just use that space for my games.
I'm sure you feel so witty and high five your friend sitting next to you when you do that.
What he said looked innocent enough to me, given the context of the conversation. That said, you're right. I'm not familiar with him. If he's got a track-record of acting like a douche, I wouldn't know it.
@ Kyousuke Nanbu
What crawled up your chromosome deficient ass and died? All I was getting at is that Nintendo's business aint Microsoft's, not that what Nintendo has done is necessarily any great fucking shakes.
If you're going to respond to someone, much less respond to them in a disrespectful manner, you better fucking make sure you've not only read what they've said, but are able to comprehend it. FYI, comprehension doesn't involve reading complete bullshit into someone's words that doesn't actually exist, you psychotic half-wit.
Look, I'm not the kind of person to beat around the bush. If I wanted to be the sort of tool you pride yourself in being, I would have straight up said something like "Nintendo's WiiWare is an awesome service, who the fuck is Microsoft to say shit about it?", but that's not what I feel, being pretty fucking apathetic towards WiiWare on the whole, given what I feel to be pretty lackluster offerings on the whole as of yet, as well as the whole storage issue that needs ironing out.
No, I just don't like the practice each one of the big three engage in, wherein they slam each others shit like a bunch of presumptuous douche-bags. They each have their own shit to tend to, but they spend way too much time acting like holier-than-thou assholes towards their competition and thier efforts, and I think it's fucking retarded. None of three available consoles are perfect, so rather than presuming to dictate to one another how shit should be done, they should all be working on ironing out the faults in their respective systems.
Now, this particular discussion was in regards to comments from Microsoft, so the company bore the brunt of my ire this particular time out. Makes sense, no? The outcome would have been the same no matter who had said it. It's an idiotic, childish practice, just like the one that leads cock-holes like yourself to spray textual diarrhea all over his keyboard, heedless of whether or not any of it is warranted.
So yeah, in the future, I'd like you to read and comprehend what it is I'm saying before presuming to compensate for your lack of any authority in your everyday life by treating me like shit for it. Oh, if I'm being a tool, feel free to call me on it. But please make sure I've earned it first, asshole. Otherwise you can sit and spin for all I care.
No, I was just pointing out how silly it is to dismiss an online storage solution on the basis that some people don't have their Wii connected to the internet, when the only people who are going to need storage in any form are *GASP*, those who take the Wii online to....download those storage-eating VC and WiiWare games! Makes sense, doesn't it?
Look, I totally think Nintendo needs to give us something in the way of expanded storage, and have from day one. It's why I don't download anything these days. I don't want to move shit around, especially as I'm the sort of person who might play a game for ten minutes, then play something else. The idea of swapping files in and out of an SD card is as unappealing to me as it is anyone else, especially with that in mind. So yeah, I do want storage, and I think Nintendo can shove the VC and WiiWare right up its ass until it brings a solution to the table.
Got it? Good.
He's one of Destructoid's most hardcore, frustrating Sony fanboys. Pretty much just visits the site to dump on Microsoft and blow Sony.
go count to 10 then tell mommy about it little boy.
See, if you did more than skim over my post until you were satisfied that there was enough there to allow you to act like a free-range asshole, you'd see that it's far from being about nerd rage. It's about being fed up with tools like you and the butt-plug over there and the way you treat people. You guys know that if you tried to pull this shit in your everyday lives, you'd get your crooked inbred faces caved in, so you hide from behind the safety and anonymity of the internet, and take pride in acting like immature little fuck-nuts without consequence.
So no, this isn't about nerd rage, it's about not standing by and being talked down to by two socially-inept teenage fuck-faces just because you think that you can get away with it.
Ah, I see. Consider my previous statement retracted then.
06/19/2008 13:09
@Quest
Yep, just like both $ony and Nintendo. Balance, motherfucker - do you have it?
sorry i don't talk with nerdz like you ... get a girlfriend and leave videogames for a while :)
@ Cyberxion ... shitless don't like me and i don't care ... because dumbass like him who spend most of there time on a gaming site ... just prove me that he's a fucking retard
the guy spend most of is time here vs is little 360 ...always bashing against sony and he doesn't have a PS3.
So the guy others like me fanboys ... but he's the one here.
like a said the guy is an idiot
sry