Team Ninja wants to work on another Metroid game

[HYRUL3]

Calling Sakamoto a scapegoat means all criticism against him is unfair.

Alright, maybe I should rephrase that. The criticism against him is fair, which is why people blame all of Other M's problems on him. However, I think that accusation is unfair. Not all of it could've been him. I'm sure some of the bad ideas were originally TN's, or something.

I agree with doc about Nintendo using only their devs with minimal external input.

[Infinity's End]

I actually blame a lot of MOM's screw ups due to was completely unfamiliar with modern 3D game development. His inexperience led to the game's downfall, and a lot of it felt like "too little too late" which turned off a lot of people who had set their expectations quite high, almost unreachable proportions. The gameplay in MOM is great, but a lot of it could have been done so much better. If a more capable director was able to collaborate with Sakamoto and make a new Metroid for WiiU, I think they'll be able to make a comeback. YS is not a bad director, he is just inexperienced with modern 3D game techniques. It isn't fair to demonize him; he's quite a capable game designer, which is extremely sad to see how many people respond to him. He should probably stick to making Wario Ware and other ecclectic games for Nintendo.

If it sounds like I'm a Sakamoto apologist, I guess I am. But I'm also a game developer, so I empathize with him easier rather than people who aren't.

[Daya]

^
I can apologize with that.

[Infinity's End]

The worst part are the people who firmly believe that MOM sucked because Gunpei Yokoi wasn't alive to help on the game. Yokoi died in '97, meaning he didn't work on Fusion or Zero Mission, or any of the Primes, either. Indeed.

[HYRUL3]

I actually don't have many issues with the gameplay. My issues are story and dialogue, which he took credit for prior to release.

Great designer, but not a writer. Have ideas? Sure, but talk them through with a few talented writers first and have them do the actual writing.

[Dryn]

I actually blame a lot of MOM's screw ups due to was completely unfamiliar with modern 3D game development. His inexperience led to the game's downfall, and a lot of it felt like "too little too late" which turned off a lot of people who had set their expectations quite high, almost unreachable proportions. The gameplay in MOM is great, but a lot of it could have been done so much better. If a more capable director was able to collaborate with Sakamoto and make a new Metroid for WiiU, I think they'll be able to make a comeback. YS is not a bad director, he is just inexperienced with modern 3D game techniques. It isn't fair to demonize him; he's quite a capable game designer, which is extremely sad to see how many people respond to him. He should probably stick to making Wario Ware and other ecclectic games for Nintendo.

If it sounds like I'm a Sakamoto apologist, I guess I am. But I'm also a game developer, so I empathize with him easier rather than people who aren't.

There's nothing wrong with defending Mr. Sakamoto. He receives too much unwarranted hate in my opinion. Some say he shouldn't be involved in the next Metroid game, but I think that's unfair.

[HYRUL3]

Agreed. I am okay with him designing. No issues there.

[DarkPhazonElite]

I want to see a much better storyline with better writing. The gameplay was pretty darn good, just needed some polish. They have got to do something about that "first person=sitting duck" thing, however. Sure, I can handle the FP view well, but my husband was getting creamed. My husband said this: "This is a really fun game, but it doesn't suck me in!" The Primes are fun and they sucked me in. I don't know much about game developers or Sakamoto, so I personally have no idea who's at fault, but someone screwed up somewhere in MOM. I know they can do better. I hope they do.

[James Pierce]

I think it'd be fine if Team Ninja worked on developing a game and got it published by Nintendo. But it should probably be a new IP. Major Nintendo franchises should probably only be worked on by Nintendo's own dev teams, with a just little bit of collaboration with other companies if absolutely necessary.

The problem with that idea is that it is terribly unrealistic. Nintendo collaborates with other developers not because they want to just for the sake of it, but because they lack the man power to create their games on their own. Even EAD has had to outsource development on Super Mario 3D Land, and Skyward Sword to make reasonable deadlines.

I like to look at this as the same case with EAD and Super Mario Sunshine. I remember that that game was considered a big disappointment after it was released. However the developers didn't just run away from the franchise and turned to something new. Instead they sat down and analyzed what worked, and what needed to be improved on. Then using that knowledge, they found ways to improve on their work, which in turn led to the creating of Super Mario Galaxy, one of the most beloved Mario games.

This is what Sakamoto and his team need to do before even getting on the phone with Team Ninja or any other potential developers. I know that if Sakamoto, Hosokawa, and the other Metroid leads work at this, they'll be able to create a game that blows everyone away.

[Naner]

I say let 'em handle the jiggle physics and be done with it.

...


Seriously though... Yeah, Sakamoto gets a lot more lashing than he deserves. Other M actually plays pretty darn great. I often feel like it would've been praised a lot in that regards had it been one of the first batch of major Wii games instead of one of the last. The game's level design isn't perfect, but it does capture a lot of that Metroid (particularly Fusion) feel in 3D. Team Ninja's unfamiliarity with the hardware probably caused some of the game's flaws, too.

[HYRUL3]

I say let 'em handle the jiggle physics and be done with it.

...


Seriously though... Yeah, Sakamoto gets a lot more lashing than he deserves. Other M actually plays pretty darn great. I often feel like it would've been praised a lot in that regards had it been one of the first batch of major Wii games instead of one of the last. The game's level design isn't perfect, but it does capture a lot of that Metroid (particularly Fusion) feel in 3D. Team Ninja's unfamiliarity with the hardware probably caused some of the game's flaws, too.

I've never thought about it, but saying it would be praised if it had been one of the first Wii games is actually a good point. It probably would have, at least for controls and gameplay.

Story would still be a mess though.

[Aiddon]

Calling Sakamoto a scapegoat means all criticism against him is unfair.

Where the HECK did you get an idea like that? Being a scapegoat just means getting blamed for stuff that wasn't your fault. You can be a scapegoat and still get some deserved criticism thrown at you; it just means at least SOME of it wasn't their fault. It's why I found the Other M blaming issue to get a bit more complex when NG3 was a critical bomb. The second that happened a LOT of "It's all Sakamoto!" arguments suddenly became moot or had to jump through hoops to make their arguments work.

[rondus18]

Calling Sakamoto a scapegoat means all criticism against him is unfair.

Being a scapegoat just means getting blamed for stuff that wasn't your fault.

I know, fuck me, right?

That being said, Sakamoto is to blame for everything Team Ninja did wrong. Sakamoto hired Team Ninja. It was his responsibility to choose a studio that could handle the project. He chose poorly. You can hardly blame Team Ninja for just doing what they do. I don't really understand why you think Team Ninja = bad means Sakamoto (they guy who thought they were "the best fit") = not that bad. Unless you didn't know he was the guy who brought them on board.

Also, Team Ninja releasing a bad game doesn't make "It's all Sakamoto!" arguments moot. One, see above. Two, Team Ninja have stated that working with Sakamoto was a learning experience so this could just prove that Sakamoto is a bad influence. This is called spin. All you need to do is phrase it right and NG3's poor reception can mean anything you want it to.

On the subject of Team Ninja, Metroid, and the wisdom behind hiring them, lets break this down. Metroid is a series that is known for subtly and nuance and focuses heavily on exploration. It also stars a protagonist that has been viewed as a bit of a feminist icon. Samus has never been made to wear armor like this and is held in high regard for being the first female to star in her own game.

Team Ninja is a studio that is known for making fast paced action games that are neither subtle nor nuanced. They've never made a game about exploration and of course lets not forget about the boobs. I don't really see why they should be involved in another Metroid game. Perhaps they could improve on Other M in a squeal, but they should never have been involved in the first place.

[HYRUL3]

You know, now that you've broken down what they've worked on in the past, and what they're known for, I retract my original post (which was something along the lines of "as long as they only focus on making the game look pretty and play well") and change my stance to:

They should stay far away, and should've been kept far away to begin with.

I think the link in your post, followed by "female icon", is what did it for me.

[Infinity's End]

I just found it funny you linked to two completely unrelated, oversexualized Namco characters, and not an oversexualized Team Ninja game girl.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: HAL or Intelligent Systems should make the next Metroid, no one else.