The Death of the Exclusive

The fight for console exclusives rages on
On Monday morning, Microsoft made the surprise announcement that "Final Fantasy XIII", formerly a Sony Playstation 3 exclusive, would be available day and date for Xbox 360 in North America and Europe.

It was possibly the biggest "surprise" announcement at the E3 Business & Media Summit in Los Angeles, but it also signifies another exclusive title shifting camps since the next generation of consoles were announced back in 2005.

"Assassin's Creed", "Grand Theft Auto IV", "Devil May Cry 4", "Ace Combat 6", "Virtua Fighter 4", "Resident Evil 5"* are all titles that Microsoft has secured over time, bringing once hyped "only-on-Playstation" franchises to their console.

Multi-platform development seems like the only answer large publishers can come up with now that budgets on their major titles are soaring to unbelieveable heights. Yet, as many were sure that Final Fantasy XIII would never jump ship and assume multi-platform status, the announcement shouldn't really surprise after the Game Developers Conference announcement that any game created using Crystal Tools could be ported easily to PC and 360.

To be fair, Sony has attempted to turn the tables and seek prior Microsoft exclusives but without the same impact. Timed exclusivity of Unreal Tournament 3 and Haze have not influenced hardware sales, instead being met with mixed reception by critics. Although "Bioshock" has recently been released from Microsoft exclusivity, it was no where to be seen during the Sony Press Conference. As last year's near unanimous Game of the Year, it would have been impressive to highlight some of the new features for the PS3 version, yet Sony didn't take the opportunity to do so.

The only major exclusive (by a third party publisher) left in the Sony bag belongs to Konami as "Metal Gear Solid 4" remains the tactical espionage action adventure of the year. But as the year continues to progress, and the final sales numbers of MGS 4 come out, we could only wonder if that exclusivity will continue.

Dear Nintendo, Can We Please Have Zelda: Four Swords Adventures on Wii Ware...

I can get quite hysterical at times, especially regarding things that I believe in. For a while now, my foul mouthed rants and raves have centered around many different things. And I can be a very clueless joe at times, I know. But I have a bone to pick with Nintendo tonight, and it's been building for quite some time.

Of course every hardcore fanboy and fangirl out there is already concerned with the obvious point: Where are my hardcore Nintendo games, Reggie? Why aren't you giving hardcore gamers what they want. And the whaambulance continues to roll on.


For the record, I'm over that one. It's clear to me that Nintendo does what Nintendo wants. Period. But rather than piss and moan over the point everyone seems to make (and remake), I want to offer a suggestion, a possible idea. Something that I would love to see, if Nintendo would deem it fit to give.

The game idea I'd like to see is, The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures for Wii Ware.

Talk about a game idea that was ahead of its time. Think back and soak in those clumsy link cables (each sold separately), the mandatory multi-Gameboy setup for multiplayer, and the chance that your friends were probably too poor to play the intricate and competitive (and only console) co-op Zelda ever. If "Zelda: Four Swords Adventures" managed to sell well for the Gamecube in 2004 (Wiki guesstimates over 400,000 copies) no one has the right to complain about the recent growth in the and-you-need-this-peripheral-in-your-living-room-too market.


Zelda: Four Swords in 2004 (again, on Gamecube) may not have made much sense, but a Zelda that's supported by an online infrastructure like Wii Ware does. And you can keep the graphics the same Nintendo, really. Those sprites were just fine the way they were. But then you could spruce up the place a bit, add some 3-D, and really make it shine. A boss here, some DS support (if you must), and violla! a game that anyone in the masses can enjoy (and that hardcore types can go nuts for). Multiplayer Zelda in cute downloadable form (with decent netcode, please). A grand Hyrulean adventure, indeed.

I don't find my request unreasonable. In fact it's entirely do-able, if Nintendo is up for it.

If only E3 2008 could give me that. My decade would be set. And I'm not arguing that this is the only thing Wii Ware needs, its just the thing I'd like to see most of all. Pray, you the reader do the same.

**Yes, I realize Zelda: Four Swords Adventures was originally part of the GBA port of The Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past (my favorite, by the way), but I really would prefer this on home console than a DS remake.

You're protests, if any, are duly noted**