As to what Zukas said, I would agree that it seems odd if Nintendo did cancel the game, but maybe they decided to/will use the game engine/technology from the game in a new game that they feel will generate more money.
It does seem odd, but Nintendo also has had a LOT of cases where even games featuring flagship characters have ben delayed for years, moved to a new system of cancelled (Mario, DK and Zelda games have been delayed, Kirby's GC title still hasn't shown up, Star Fox 2, etc etc) so it's not impossible for them to have reconsidered on the new IPs. This could be due either to the company wanting to devote more resources towards different game genres (including perhaps directing Monolith to something else) or the games themselves just weren't working out and they didn't want to get burned on them.
I expect we'll either hear some news about them during E3 or their prices should slump as they linger in development hell.
This is just speculation on my part, but it seems odd and unlikely to me that a company like Nintendo would finally buy out a third party developer like Monolith one month only to cancel it's most high profile game the next.
Interesting. Back in September development was "at a climax" and nothing has been heard since and now Nintendo removes it from their website list of upcoming games.
I wonder if both original IPs have b een axed now...can anyone find anything on their official site about this title?
You're looking at this wrong. In terms of this stock, Nintendo's purchase is a clear sign they see this game becoming a hit. As for other franchises, Nintendo and Namco were really close last gen, so collaborations (or even Xenosaga exclusivity) are not out of the question. What's the downside?
Yes, but Nintendo has not shown much interest in RPG games. Sure gba got a few & there are the semi rpg Paper Mario games, which were more about Mario than rpg. However, I don't see Nintendo that interested in making a normal rpg, FE doesn't count its an srpg. I see Monolith being used to work on Nintendo franchises in the future, just like Retro.
I have to agree with Starless on this one. Generally when one company purchases another company it is to fill a gap in their own business or to expand on something that their own internal resources are failing to accomplish. Buying someone else just happens to be cheaper than starting from the ground up or restructuring.
Will Nintendo owning Monolith Soft really affect the type of games Monolith Soft makes? If anything Monolith soft will start focusing more on RPG's. I'm sure Nintendo realises RPG's is one of it's weakest genres. Having a second party development team that is responsible for some truely excellent RPG's (some members of Monolith Soft worked on Chrono Cross when they were still with Square) working on some RPG's exclusive for the Wii (and DS) would be a great asset to Nintendo.
I can't believe Nintendo bought Monolith Soft. This upsets me greatly. Instead of looking forward to games similar to Xenosaga, now they will be making Nintendo type games and possibly not rpgs. Though perhaps there is hope they can reinvigorate a Nintendo franchise I guess.
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As to what Zukas said, I would agree that it seems odd if Nintendo did cancel the game, but maybe they decided to/will use the game engine/technology from the game in a new game that they feel will generate more money.