2K4 Amphitheater Chat Transcripts
Transcript from the chat with NOA_Nate, NOA_Bill and NOA_Erik from Nintendo's Localization team.
NOA_BILL: I've been at NOA for about six years. The first game I ever worked on was Ocarina of Time. The game I'm on working on now is Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. I've worked on a lot of stuff in between, including the Zelda series, Golden Sun, Pikmin (and Pikmin 2), and others.
NOA_ANDY: How long have you been at it, Bill?
NOA_BILL: I'm a translator, by the way, which means I translate the game text, manuals, voice scripts, etc. Nate and Erik rewrite the translated text. I've been at NOA since 1998.
NOA_NATE: This year, I've worked a tiny bit on Pikmin 2, Mario Golf: Advance Tour, lots of secret stuff, and I'm currently been burning my life away working furiously on Paper Mario 2. Since I've been here, looooooooooooots of games. I worked on the original Paper Mario as well as Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga.
NOA_ANDY: Bill's the guy you usually see translating for Mr. Miyamoto at big events ...
NOA_BILL: Some of you may remember Nate and I from the Animal Crossing chat we did at Camp Hyrule a couple of years ago.
NOA_ANDY: Who could forget?
NOA_ANDY: :)
NOA_ANDY: Erik must be a slow typer.
NOA_NATE: I believe I served Bill several times at that event.
NOA_ANDY: :)
NOA_BILL: I'm the one who taught Nate to serve.
NOA_ERIK: I'm the new guy in the Localization team, so the list of games I've worked on is short - Pikmin 2. Wait, slow typer! I'll get you ANDY!
NOA_NATE: We force Erik to wear mittens as part of his newbie education.
NOA_ANDY: I'll stop hogging the questions ...
NOA_BILL: Andy let it out of the bag. I do indeed translate for Mr. Miyamoto when he is around. He's a great guy to work with. He almost never chastises me for mistranslating him!
JSR: Hi guys! I'm looking forward to Donkey Konga and of course, the song list is different for the US version (than the Japanese version). So, my question is: How did you guys go about picking the US song list for Donkey Konga?
NOA_BILL: Most of the songs in the Japanese version were songs that are only known in Japan.
NOA_BILL: Nate?
NOA_NATE: It was actually a really long process, first picking songs that would appeal to a wide variety of musical tastes, and then getting the rights to the ones we wanted. We didn't EVERYTHING we wanted, of course, but the list ended up pretty rocking, I thought. I would OWN you at Oye Como Va!
NOA_BILL: I put in the hard sell for Rock Lobster!
SAX1: what is your favorite game that you have worked on
NOA_BILL: Wow. Tough question. In terms of playing... probably Majora's Mask or SSBM. (We still play smash everyday at lunch.) In terms of working on, probably Wind Waker or Animal Crossing.
NOA_NATE: My current fave is easily Paper Mario 2, but I'm gonna have to say that it's an all-time toss up between Wind Waker and Super Smash Bros. Melee, AKA Possibly the Greatest Game of All Time.
NOA_BILL: Animal Crossing was a bear that took nine months to localize, but when all was said and done it was worth it.
NOA_NATE: Oh, and Erik's computer is broken everyone--he'll be back soon, though!
NOA_BILL: Typical, Erik!
NOA_NATE: He's crying, too, so we need HANKIES, people!
NOA_BILL: Erik's favorite game that he's ever worked on is Pikmin 2.
AWFULFAWFUL: Hey everyone! I was curious about how long in general it takes to translate the text and speech in games that have a longer course of gameplay, such as the Legend of Zelda series, or perhaps Tales of Symphonia?
NOA_BILL: Erik's a lot like Louie, by the way.
NOA_BILL: Ooo... Yeah... Zelda took us about three months from the time we started work on it until the game cleared debug and went gold.
NOA_BILL: That included translating the text and recording Nate to be the voice of Salvatore.
NOA_NATE: A game like Mario Kart Double Dash that's mostly menu text? 1 month. A game like Paper Mario 2 that has 15,000 messages? Muuuuch longer.
NOA_ANDY: When you say a month, how many hours a week is that?
NOA_BILL: We're still working on Paper Mario 2, but it is almost done. And it is very, very funny.
NOA_NATE: Depends on the game. A Mario Kat month is 40 hours a week, typical. A Paper Mario 2 month like July was 10-12 hour days, every day of the week, all month long. And it was sunny!
NOA_ANDY: Dedication, baby.
NOA_BILL: A month? A month is 30 days. For us, a month would be all weekdays, usually until fairly late, and sometimes weekends. Nate has pulled more than a few weekends on paper mario 2.
NOA_NATE: All worth it.
THE_DUDE: Do you guys use a special program for working on games? BTW I have hankies for Erik!
NOA_ERIK: A few weekends? Try every!
NOA_BILL: Thanks, The Dude. He could use the hankies and what not and what have you.
NOA_ERIK: Save the tissues for Nate - he's going to be crying when I get ahold of him from across the desk!
NOA_NATE: We use text tools that vary by game--some easier to use than others. You gotta find ways to make the text fit in the windows, you know?
NOA_BILL: The tools that EAD (Mr. Miyamoto's teams) use are great. Very easy to use. Others can be more challenging.
MARIOMANIAC10: I'm a huge Paper Mario fan... how did you guys like working on Thousand-Year Door? Do you feel it will be better than the original? What kind of new features will be in it?
NOA_NATE: I see from Ganon's fine form that Erik has returned.
NOA_NATE: Send to All: Oh my, I have no idea where to start on how much better this game will be. Hang on a second, I feel woozy.
NOA_BILL: Paper Mario 2 is a blast to work on. It will be better than the original, because this time we have not only Nate's sweet writing, but the awesome translation skills of one Scot Ritchey as well.
NOA_NATE: OK, this game is so good. Much, much longer. Much funnier. Much more challenging. Many more sidequests. Soooooooooooo good! I was a huge fan of the original as well (first game I ever worked on) and this one is my new favorite game.
NOA_BILL: The game itself is quite funny, both in the original Japanese and in the English. We of course (and by we I mean Nate) like to add in more humor than they had to start with.
NOA_BILL: Overall it has been a pretty smooth project.
NOA_NATE: Awww, don't let Bill fool you--he throws a lotta gold in there too.
CUBE_FAN90: Who are the singers of those songs in Wario Ware for GCN?
NOA_NATE: I sing those songs.
NOA_NATE: No just kidding.
NOA_ERIK: Paper Mario 2 blows my mind every time I see it. These two guys have done a fantastic job on it
NOA_BILL: Some of them were Japanese dev team members, but one was a girl who works here at NOA. You guys would love her.
SQUAREPANTS: How is it decided which games are translated? Do the translators (including yourself) decide which games will make the most profit here in the US? Some particular games, such as Mother 1 and 2 for Game Boy Advance, are classics that we'd like to see remade in the States. Is there any possibility they'll be translated in the future?
NOA_BILL: Sometimes we do get input into what games get released.
NOA_NATE: Sometimes we don't.
NOA_BILL: The localization team pushed hard for both Advance Wars and Fire Emblem.
NOA_BILL: Unfortunately, we don't always have the final say. It often comes down to how well a game will do once released.
NOA_BILL: The Mother game pak is one that I'd like to see get done eventually, but we aren't working on it right now.
EKANS28: How many games do you guys work on at a time?
NOA_NATE: Depends on how busy we are. In a perfect world, one, so we can devote all our energies. That said, I've juggled five before in various capacities.
NOA_BILL: Right now I am working directly on three, and am somewhat involved in one or two more.
NOA_BILL: When Animal Crossing was in, the whole team worked on that exclusively for six months before some shifted off to other projects.
NOA_ERIK: In other words, as many games as coffee and burritos will allow.
DSTARFOX: Does anyone have any anecdotes of bad translations? If so, could you tell us any specifics?
NOA_BILL: I never do any bad translation!!!
NOA_NATE: Must...find...PG-rated...story...
NOA_NATE: I tried to stick the line "All your basement belongs to us" in Animal Crossing but everyone yelled at me.
NOA_ANDY: Nice.
NOA_BILL: If you look at a lot of older games, you can see some, uh... problems. There was one game where a character that was male in the Japanese version ended up being female in the final US version...
NOA_ERIK: I would never have yelled at you about that. That rocks!
ZELDAS_MAJIK_101: Do you know why games such as Doshin the Giant were released in both Europe & Japan, but not in America?
NOA_BILL: Sometimes it comes down to resources.
NOA_NATE: You guys may not care, but one of Erik's nicknames is "Hate Giant"
GURUGURU213: Why did the text in the GBA version of A Link to the Past turn out different than the SNES version? What did you do differently?
NOA_BILL: Ultimately, though, it comes to down to whether or not spending the time to localization a title will pay off in the end.
NOA_BILL: Do you know Kensuke Tanabe? Producer of Metroid Prime? He wrote the original Japanese ALTTP text.
NOA_NATE: That's a Bill question, so I'll take this time to say that I'm looking at a DS right now.
NOA_ERIK: So am I. It makes me giggle with glee.
NOA_BILL: When we went to work on the AGB version, Mr. Tanabe said that when they did the original game, he didn't get a chance to do the text exactly as he wanted due to memory limitations.
NOA_BILL: So he made some changes to the Japanese text in the port, and we reflected those changes.
NOA_BILL: We also went through and tried to unify terminology with Ocarina of Time.
PYRO: You said Nate was the voice of Salvatore. Are there any other games you guys lend your voices to (even if it was a small tidbit of your voice)?
NOA_BILL: You can see in the newer Zelda games that we're trying to do a better job of using consistent terminology and tying the games together.
NOA_BILL: You'll see more of that in Minish Cap.
NOA_BILL: I was one third of the crowd in the N64 Smash Bros.
NOA_BILL: Nate was that awful... I mean Awesom Falco voice in the E3 version of Star Fox. NOA_Andy was Star Fox in that version!
NOA_ANDY: *blushes.
NOA_NATE: Most of our team was in Mario Golf Advance Tour, lots of us were in WarioWare, ummmm...there's a guy with a Boston accent on a chairlift in 1080 Avalanche that was me (I yelled something rude). We also did those horribly bad temporary voices for the E3 Starfox--they're much better now.
NOA_ANDY: lol
PPENALOSA99: Hey guys!!! I was just wondering, who are your favorite characters in Super Smash Bros. Melee???
NOA_BILL: ZELDA!!!
NOA_ERIK: Oooh! This is a hot topic around the office.
NOA_NATE: Ness or Mario.
NOA_BILL: I tend to rotate around. I like Zelda, Yoshi, Dr. Mario, and occassionally Pikachu.
NOA_NATE: I play like Gozer the Gozerian now, though, 'cause I'm too good. CHOOSE THE FORM OF THE DESTRUCTOR.
NOA_ERIK: I always go with Young Link. But then again, I always get worked by these jokers.
NOA_BILL: Erik the hate giant plays Link
NOA_BILL: NOA-Andy! how's your falco?
NOA_ANDY: ... uh ... I thought it was good until you stopped by yesterday ...
NOA_ANDY: I need to step up my skillz.
NOA_ERIK: Nate was so good with Falco that everyone almost rioted.
NOA_NATE: We practice by dunking this dude we work with named Noodle.
NOA_ANDY: My Ness is unstoppable. maybe.
NOA_BILL: Ahh, dunken noodles
SAMUSTHEWEIRD: What are the requirements for becoming part of the localization team?
NOA_ERIK: Yeah, we call getting dunked getting "Noodled"
NOA_BILL: 1) Excellent Japanese Language Skills
NOA_NATE: Good Japanese or writing skills and general radness at videogames.
NOA_BILL: 2) Excellent Writing Skills
NOA_BILL: 3) Food related nickname
NOA_NATE: Erik we hired just 'cause he smelled good.
NOA_ERIK: I do? EXCELLENT!
NOA_ANDY: OK, our time is almost up, but we have time for a couple more questions ...
NOA_TAYLOR: Shaun would fit it with his "Pickle" nickname.
NOA_NATE: Bring it!
NOA_TAYLOR: Too bad he can't speak Japanese.
NOA_ANDY: Here's a good one ...
MASTERGAMER0606: What was one of the first video games you've played and did you like it
NOA_NATE: Pac-man. Loved it.
NOA_NATE: There was Atari game named Shamus that I never beat, too...I'm still kinda obsessed with finding that game.
NOA_BILL: First game I ever played... Probably asteroids. It was pretty cool for a bunch of lines.
NOA_ERIK: The first game I ever played was Super Mario Bros. These other guys are old.
NOA_ERIK: Ancient, even!
NOA_BILL: I'm practically stone.
NOA_NATE: If it misbehaves, it gets the hose, Erik!
YUGIOH-TAMER: What Game characters do you relate to most?
NOA_ERIK: Forgives us!
NOA_BILL: As for non-electronic games, I play Shogi (Japanese chess) occassionally.
NOA_ANDY To YUGIOH-TAMER: Bill is a man of many talents, you see.
NOA_NATE: Yoshi.
NOA_BILL: Nate relates to Birdo the most.
NOA_ERIK: Some days I feel like Toad. Mainly because he's so rad.
NOA_ANDY: lol birdo ...
NOA_ERIK: Birdo?!
NOA_NATE: No wait, that's just because I need to use the restroom.
NOA_BILL: Erik relates to Tingle.
NOA_ANDY: I'm going to hog the final question -- What upcoming games should Campers be getting stoked about?
NOA_ERIK: That....was totally out of line, Ukiki!
NOA_NATE: Only days until Pikmin 2! It rules!
NOA_BILL: Did I see a question about Mario Tennis for GCN? If you live in Seattle, you can go check it out for yourself at Toy Test at the Seattle Center.
NOA_ERIK: OBEY OLIMAR and BEWARE OF THE COMEDY BOMB!
NOA_NATE: Then Paper Mario 2 shortly thereafter. It rules as well. Metroid Prime 2 obviously. Oh, and a little thing called THE DS LAUNCH!!!!
NOA_ERIK: Mario Tennis is really fun.
NOA_BILL: The Comedy Bomb! Good work, Erik!
NOA_ANDY: Well alright y'all. Thanks so much for stopping by Camp Hyrule 2004.
NOA_ANDY: Don't forget -- Your sign-ons will work all week so stop by again if you'd like!
NOA_NATE: Bye folks! Paper Mario 2 beckons me.
NOA_BILL: Pikmin 2 will be great! Have you seen the reviews? EGM, Game Pro... They all love it, and you will too!
NOA_ERIK: Paper Mario 2 is utter genius! That's all there is to say about it.
NOA_NATE: I'll swing by later in the week and say howdy.
NOA_ANDY: Cool.
NOA_ERIK: Nate and Bill have written one of the funniest games of all time.
NOA_ANDY: Alright, well get back to work YOU SLACKERS.
NOA_BILL: You may want to keep an eye for me later this week, too. I may pop into one of the cabin chats when you least expect it!
NOA_ERIK: And when he does...run!
NOA_BILL: Bwahahahahahahahaha!
NOA_ANDY: OK, thanks guys. See everyone tomorrow at 3:00 for the Nintendo Power chat event!
NOA_ANDY: *watches the curtains close.
NOA_ERIK: See ya later, everyone!
Transcript for the chat with the NP Krew from Nintendo Power Magazine.
NOA_ALAN: Wow, look at those campers fly!
NOA_ANDY: Send to All: Remember that this is a moderated chat, so pick a good question before you type something in!
NOA_JESSIE: Hi guys. ^-^/
NOA_ANDY: Hey Jessie!
NOA_JESSIE: o_O I'm a tent. :x
NOA_ALAN: A lot of the info we get in guides comes from the developers. I don't remember exactlly where the 12-year old info came from, but i think we got it from NCL
NOA_ALAN: Ha ha!
NOA_ALAN: I just answered a question no one else can see
NOA_ANDY: Welcome, everyone to the CH2005 NP Krew Chat!!!!
NOA_CHRIS: Hey people!
NOA_ALAN: Chris = tent
NOA_ALAN: Andy = the immortal flaming campfire
NOA_ANDY: Da NP Krew is in the house!
NOA_CHRIS: I'm here on time, and that's what matters.
NOA_ANDY: How do you guys like Camp this year?
NOA_ALAN: I've been poking around camp this week. The cabin rivalry is pretty fierce
NOA_ANDY: Yup, there's a stiff competition this year.
NOA_CHRIS: Yeah, people are playing for keeps.
NOA_JESSIE: Yeah, it always is. Has anyone had their underwear on the flagpole yet?
NOA_ANDY: Cabin 4 is in the lead, but Cabin 1 is on the move.
NOA_ANDY: We wised up to those tricks, Jessie. NOA HQ is now locked down.
NOA_ANDY: Wanna get to some questions?
NOA_JESSIE: Haha, good thing. Sure!
TSA: This is a question for the guys who write Player's Guides. In The Wind Waker's Player's Guide, I noticed you said that Link is 12 years old. How did you guys come of with that age, as well as how do you come up with some of the tidbits in the guides that arent't found in the games themselves?
NOA_ALAN: *ahem*
NOA_JESSIE: Alan got kicked.
NOA_TAYLOR: Hi :)
NOA_ANDY: I didn't do it ... ;)
NOA_JESSIE: Hi Taylor. :D
NOA_JESSIE: Haha
NOA_JESSIE: Well, TSA, I'll let Alan put in his 2 cents about that one, but in the meantime...
NOA_ALAN: Hey, i'm back!
NOA_CHRIS: I thought he looked a little older than 12, myself.
NOA_JESSIE: We are costantly in close communication with the development team and Japan when we write a guide.
NOA_ANDY: There he is.
NOA_JESSIE: *constantly
NOA_ALAN: Well, "close" communication. They yell at us a lot and we just kinda nod
NOA_JESSIE: Heh
NOA_CHRIS: He's 12, dag-nabbit! Put it in tha book!
NOA_ALAN: Mark it down!
NOA_JESSIE: ^-^;
JSR: Hey NP Krew! I was wondering, on average, how long does it take you guys to write a guide and what's the process that you go through?
NOA_CHRIS: Of course, that's through a translator.
NOA_JESSIE: Yeah
NOA_ALAN: It takes us between 2-3 weeks to write a guide, but the whole process beginning to end takes about 2 months
NOA_CHRIS: NOA Tommy usually spends only about 4 or 5 days workin' on his part of the books.
NOA_ALAN: We'd actually like to have more time on the writing and game playing end, but usually it just can't happen because of game deadlines and printing times and so forth
NOA_ALAN: We also spend a crazy-long amount of time copy editing the guides
NOA_ALAN: Oops, did i type that out loud?
NOA_CHRIS: Sorry, I got kicked. I wasn't saying anything funny anyways.
NOA_JESSIE: Hey, they should see the tent under your desk, eh?
MBI: What has been your favorite article been, over the years you have worked at Nintendo Power?
NOA_ALAN: When i wrote the Metroid Prime guide, i worked 90-100 hours a week and actually stayed at nintendo for a couple of nights
NOA_ALAN: Favorite article?
NOA_ALAN: Hmmm.... that's hard
NOA_JESSIE: Hmm...
NOA_JESSIE: Tales of Symphonia.
NOA_ALAN: I did a really cool april fool's article that didn't make it into the magazine, but i guess that doesn't count.
NOA_JESSIE: That was funny. XD;
NOA_CHRIS: Yeah, that was a shame.
NOA_ANDY: Alan -- Let us post it online!
NOA_ANDY: ... or was it not suitable for all ages? :D
NOA_ALAN: I like my Baten Kaitos preview this month. It's hard for me to remember more than about a week previous. My mind's going
NOA_JESSIE: Oh, and also the Skies of Arcadia Legends preview. That was super fun.
NOA_CHRIS: Yeah, working on multiple articles every month for a few years, and it's difficult to pull out all-stars.
THELINKMASTER89: How long do you usually have to play a game before you can rate them for Now Playing?
NOA_ALAN: It depends on the game linkmaster. For big reviews i like to spend hours with a game. For something like, say, Lotus Racing, you don't need more than about 20 minutes to realize that it's complete poo
NOA_JESSIE: Anywhere from a half hour if it's a simple game to half a day, myself.
NOA_ANDY: Diss!
NOA_CHRIS: Link, it depends totally on the title. Some games are obviously pretty straight forward, like puzzle games and younger platformers, so they're easy to get a grip on. Big games might be harder.
NOA_JESSIE: o.oa
NOA_ALAN: Take that Lotus Racing!
NOA_JESSIE: Haha
NOA_ALAN: Somewhere a single game designer is crying
NOA_ANDY: Yup. Maybe he's watching ...
NOA_JESSIE: >.>
CHEEZEYKID17: If you spend your time at work playing video games, what do you do to relax, and do you often get addicted to the games you are playing?
NOA_JESSIE: ...play more games. XD;
NOA_ALAN: Believe it or not, when i go home i usually play more games
NOA_JESSIE: And write, read, draw...
NOA_JESSIE: But mostly play games.
NOA_ALAN: But besides that, i also read about a book a week and go to movies
NOA_CHRIS: Sorry, I'm gettin' booted.
NOA_CHRIS: Back, tho'!
NOA_ALAN: I'm also a huge baseball nut, so i watch or listen to a lot of games and manage my fantasy team.
NOA_ANDY: I think the system boots you if you don't make enough wisecracks.
NOA_ALAN: Man, i should be here for life if that's the case
SUPAKOOPA6: What games are you guys/girls looking forward to this year? (for me its final fantasy I and II)
NOA_ALAN: Games i want: Baten Kaitos, Baten Kaitos and Baten Kaitos
NOA_CHRIS: I sleep a lot, in my spare time. Wait, you mean outside of work?
NOA_ALAN: But also Paper Mario 2, Second Sight, X-Men Legends, The Movies and maaaybe Lord of the Rings. I need to play it first
NOA_JESSIE: Baten Kaitos, definitely. (delayed, sorry)
NOA_ALAN: Resident Evil 4 is on there, of course, but that's a little ways off yet
NOA_CHRIS: I'm looking forward to Mario Tennis, and a better build of THPS2... the one we have is a little dicey still.
DARK_SAMURAI: When we think of Nintendo, we think of quality. I was curious why don't you guys wrap your magazines in that cover plastic stuff? My magazine always comes in soggy, and some other may too.
NOA_ANDY: Move to California or Arizona.
NOA_ALAN: Hey, i hear ya Samurai. My newspaper is always soggy here in rainy seattle.
NOA_CHRIS: Cost, mostly. Polybags are a chunk of cash to do.
NOA_ALAN: As for why we don't wrap it, i think it's a cost thing.
NOA_JESSIE: (AFK a sec :x)
NOA_CHRIS: I suggest getting a better mailbox, too.
GBA{+[__]--}: Hey NP Krew! I was just wondering, do you prefer to write reviews on games for the Gamcube or the Game Boy Advance? Or, do you not have a preference?
NOA_JESSIE: Sorry, back.
NOA_JESSIE: I don't have a personal preference, really. It really depends on the game. Sometimes I think I won't like a game, but then when I play it, I really like it.
NOA_ALAN: Hey GBA. It kinda depends on the game. I usually prefer GCN games, but if something like a Golden Sun or Shining Force comes along, that's always great
NOA_CHRIS: I'd prolly have to go with Virtual Boy.
SUPAKOOPA6: What are your favorite game genre(s)?
NOA_ALAN: Chris is real old skool
NOA_ALAN: I love RPGs, sports games and FPS
NOA_JESSIE: RPG and Strategy ^_^
NOA_ALAN: FPSes? FPSsses? Whatever.
NOA_CHRIS: It's funny, nobody lists Sports as their fave genre in Now Playing, yet it's those titles we prolly play the most around here.
NOA_CHRIS: In our spare time, I mean.
NOA_ALAN: Yeah, i'm always clocking fools in Madden and MVP
NOA_CHRIS: I like adventure shooters like Prime and Second Sight.
ONYXYOUKAI: Is it hard to meet the deadlines for your articles?
NOA_ALAN: And back in the day, we played NHL Hitz all the time. I mean, like, ALL THE TIME\
NOA_ALAN: Onyx: Some months are worse than others. If we also have a guide, it can be pretty rough
NOA_JESSIE: Sometimes it gets hectic around here, but it's usually not too hard to meet deadlines.
NOA_CHRIS: Onyx, not really. We're chained to our desks starting at about a week and a half from our deadline.
NOA_ALAN: Months where we don't have guides (which isn't that often anymore) aren't that bad. But it's still a lot of work
NOA_JESSIE: If someone is really slammed, we try to help each other out. :D
NOA_CHRIS: Except Alan.
NOA_CHRIS: He's on his own.
NOA_ALAN: The chains involve a lot of guilt and angry glances, but they work just the same as cold steel
NOA_JESSIE: Hah
NOA_DANO: Alan likes being chained up.
NOA_JESSIE: >.>;
NOA_CHRIS: Yikes!
NOA_JESSIE: *cough*
NOA_JESSIE: Next question!
IBMER: What do you think about Baten Kaitos and how well do you think it will do in America?
NOA_JESSIE: XD;
NOA_ALAN: Actually, i just wanted to use the phrase Cold Steel
NOA_ALAN: I'll be packing up my desk now
NOA_CHRIS: afk for a sec. Getting updates to a certain, magical game...
NOA_ALAN: IBMER: I just got back from Namco and looking at Baten Kaitos, and i think that it could be a very, very special RPG
NOA_ALAN: Like, FF III kinda special
NOA_JESSIE: Baten Kaitos is so amazing. I really hope it does well. I think it will, but I also thought that about Beyond Good and Evil. *sniffle*
ZEO2: If you dont get your picture or enveplope posted in the month after you mailed it, Is there a chance you could get it posted in another month?
NOA_ALAN: As for how it will do, i don't know. It doesn't have a huge order right now, and it's got a really weird title. It's also coming out at the same time as a lot of other big games
NOA_ALAN: Yay! Chris just handed me Metroid Prime 2! Guess what i'm doing after this chat! *drools*
NOA_JESSIE: Yes, Zeo2. We often hold onto art if we don't have enough room for the art we received that month.
NOA_DANO: Alan is your game in Spanish or French?
NOA_ALAN: Lots of art gets posted up at my desk
NOA_ALAN: Dano: Hopefully english. The version i had this morning was in German
NOA_ALAN: Verbotten! Samus ist nicht!
NOA_DANO: Yahwol!
NOA_JESSIE: Lol
NOA_JESSIE: Hey, let me translate. XD;
GAMECUBEVIC: How are the Screen test captions chosen?
NOA_CHRIS: Most of the good art ends up on the walls around here, too.
NOA_ALAN: I have art at my desk that shows link eating a piece of chicken. That's high comedy
NOA_CHRIS: Chicken!
NOA_ANDY: Cucco, yo.
NOA_DANO: Tastes like Tektite!
NOA_ALAN: Vic: I go through all the entries and pick out the ones that make me laught
NOA_CHRIS: Vic, dartboard, like all of our reader entries.
NOA_ALAN: Or, the ones that make me laugh that i can print. We get some extremely funny and VERY inappropriate captions
NOA_CHRIS: Keep it up!
NOA_JESSIE: Hehe
NOA_ALAN: Shame on you and so forth
CROSSING142: So, has the NP Krew been enjoying Pikmin 2?
NOA_ALAN: I'm the Prime Minister of Pikmin!
NOA_JESSIE: Yes :D It's a super fun game. It's tough to find a game that has equal levels of fun and innovation.
NOA_ALAN: sorry, booted again
NOA_ALAN: Story of my life
NOA_CHRIS: I felt the wrath of the same golden boot, alan.
NOA_JESSIE: I haven't been booted. :P~~~
KAS2001: How do you feel about the upcoming Pokémon Games Fire Red and Leaf Green?
NOA_JESSIE: *waits for it*
NOA_ALAN: Now i know what it feels like. I'll never boot again
NOA_ALAN: You know, i never think to play pokemon, but when i do i get really into it for like 50 hours. Then i tend to put them away again
NOA_CHRIS: They're a lot of fun. It's cool seeing the progression of pokemon as far as it's come, then bring it all back to the original. The wireless adapter should've been done years ago. It's supereffective.
NOA_ALAN: I never feel the need to find every last pokemon, but i think as an rpg they're pretty good
NOA_JESSIE: I like what I've played so far. They could have just remade Red and Blue, but they didn't. They added all sorts of new features in addition to completely revamping the graphics. That made it all the more fun for me.
NOA_ALAN: supereffective isn't a word, by the way. Don't let us fool you
TIKIMAN: I've always wondered, who answers the player's pulse letters?
NOA_CHRIS: Pokemon gets a weird rap, but the core games are still pretty good.
NOA_JESSIE: That's been me for the last year or so. Now Steven Thomason is your Player's Pulse man.
NOA_ALAN: Mr. Miyamoto answers all player's pulse letters
NOA_JESSIE: >.>;
NOA_ANDY: OK guys, we have time for just a few more ...
NOA_CHRIS: NOA Tommy is a video game genius. He knows stuff that we wouldn't be able to find out through years of research.
NOA_ANDY: Lemme pick some reeeeal hard ones ...
NOA_ALAN: Yeah, Steve is a vid savant. It's scary
NOA_CHRIS: I prefer vidiot savant.
NOA_ALAN: Touche
SHADOW191: When you review games and write articles and stuff do you get paid?
NOA_CHRIS: En garde!
NOA_ALAN: I don't get paid, but i do gain 200 EP for each article
NOA_ALAN: And occasionally i find a few gold pieces in my desk
NOA_CHRIS: Heck no, Shadow. We're lucky to get bread crumbs and water. But they have these *delicious* 1up mushrooms to keep us happy.
RUNNINGWITHSHEEP: NP crew, I was wondering, if there was one game that you would recommend EVERYONE who had a gamecube to buy, what would it be?
NOA_JESSIE: Tales of Symphonia~
NOA_CHRIS: Shaq-fu 3.
NOA_ALAN: Running: Um... i would say either Metroid Prime or Pikmin 2 off the top of my head.
NOA_ANDY: OK, one last question ...
NOA_CHRIS: Prolly Metroid Prime. It's just head and shoulders above most games.
NOA_ALAN: But a lot of it depends on what kind of games you like. Tales, Madden, Super Mario Sunshine are all also really good
NOA_ALAN: But Prime is just perfection
NOA_CHRIS: Soul Calibur II, maybe?
NOA_ANDY: *cough* SSBM
NOA_ALAN: *glances at MP 2*
NOA_CHRIS: I like me the fightin'.
NOA_ALAN: Oh yeah, SSBM
NOA_JESSIE: Yeah, everyone loves that game.
NOA_ALAN: Andy pwns at SSBM, by the way
NOA_ALAN: He can defeat all comers
NOA_ANDY: *blushes.
NOA_CHRIS: alan is teh suck
NOA_DANO: Alan did you forget about Minority Report?
NOA_ALAN: chris is teh wannabe
NOA_ANDY: lol ... OK, here we go.
CRYSTALBLADE12: I know that Nintendo Power has alot of competition to put up with. How do you try to get ahead of the game?
NOA_ALAN: Minority Report is my own special love. Others just don't understand
NOA_CHRIS: Blade, mostly through sleep and offsite work parties.
NOA_CHRIS: Oh, and sabotage.
NOA_ALAN: Crystal: We work really hard to put out the best magazine we can. Sometimes it's kind of an uphill battle, but mostly it's just a lot of hard work and staying in touch with the industry
NOA_ALAN: Oh, and sabotage
NOA_ANDY: Well said.
NOA_DANO: Don't forget early access to the games and direct access to the developers....
NOA_ALAN: Dano: Yeah, when they actually talk to us that helps too
NOA_DANO: Well, when they feel like giving them to us.
NOA_CHRIS: We're trying to get the magazine going in some new directions right now, too. It is a process we should do all the time, but we get lazy.
NOA_ALAN: I'm looking at YOU Electronic Arts
NOA_DANO: And, when they allow us to publish the information.
NOA_ANDY: Thanks a lot for stopping by Camp Hyrule y'all. Any closing words?
NOA_CHRIS: Otherwise we have to do another NOA Alan envelope artwork spectacular article AGAIN.
NOA_ALAN: Closing words?
NOA_CHRIS: fermer
NOA_ALAN: Um... keep the faith in NP. There's big changes afoot. Oh, and take a serious look at Baten Kaitos.
NOA_ALAN: And Prime 2
NOA_JESSIE: Have fun at camp everyone, and thanks for the great questions! ^-^/
NOA_CHRIS: Thanks, everyone!
NOA_ALAN: Yeah, thanks everyone but chris
NOA_ANDY: OK, thanks again and feel free to stop by anytime!!!
NOA_CHRIS: I pwn Alan
NOA_JESSIE: Lol...
NOA_JESSIE: Take it to the parking lot you two!
NOA_ALAN: chris is not teh pwn
NOA_ANDY: *slowly closes the curtains ...
NOA_ALAN: *opens the curtain and waves before a big cane pulls him offstage
Transcript for the chat with Reginald Fils-Aime, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Nintendo of America.
JUSDBERUBE: Hello Mr. Reggie Fils-Aime. I have a question about the Nintendo DS. Will it be able to play GameBoy and GB Color games? Also what screen will the backward compatable games be displayed on? Also need a sidekick? Thanks. ~ #1 Reggie Fan and King Nintendo Fanboy JusDBerube
NOA_ANDY: Oops. Please disregard that one for now ...
NOA_ANDY: Slippery keyboards ... :)
NOA_ANDY: Four mintues to show time.
NOA_ANDY: *opens the Amphitheater curtains.
NOA_ANDY: And now, for the moment you've all been waiting for! It's my pleasure to introduce to you Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo's Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing. Welcome to Camp Hyrule, Reggie!
NOA_REGGIE: hey there!
NOA_TAYLOR: Hi Reggie!
NOA_ANDY: Before we get going, could you please explain to our campers what it means to be the EVP of Sales and Marketing at Nintendo?
NOA_JUMPMAN: Hi Reggie*CLAP*
NOA_REGGIE: Well, first its one of the coolest jobs around
NOA_REGGIE: I get to set the direction for all the activity that the players see in the marketplace
NOA_REGGIE: and to have first crack at all the games!
NOA_ANDY: Nice!
-MAGIC-: Hi! I was wondering what is your favorite feature on the Nintendo DS and what feature you think will be most popular with people who buy the DS. Thanks!
NOA_REGGIE: My favorite feature is the touch screen
NOA_REGGIE: that's because of all the great new games and gameplay that is being done
NINTENDOFANBOYX: To Reggie: How does Nintendo plan on advertising the DS? Will Nintendo go for a more underground or mainstream approach?
NOA_REGGIE: We'll do a bit of both
NOA_REGGIE: we are doing some very interesting things right now with SP and GameCube
NOA_REGGIE: we'll contiune to push the envelop with DS, but to also do very underground, far out things as well
NOA_REGGIE: I can't share all the detail right now ... trust me it will be innovative!
MUKUSIX: How does Nintendo plan to seperate the Nintendo DS and the Game Boy Advance line from one another? It seems like the DS is far superior being able to play AGB games. How are they going to be marketed differently to make it clear to the consumer that Nintendo DS and AGB are differnent platforms or as you like to say, differnt pillars.
NOA_REGGIE: On GameBoy, that product right now is mass ... meaning we've sold 22 Million Advance and SP units
NOA_REGGIE: the people that don't have GameBoy Advance are younger players, and late adopters
NOA_REGGIE: so, we'll push that part of the market for GameBoy ... keeping it cool and approachable for the mass, mainstream audience
NOA_REGGIE: For DS, it will be more targeted
NOA_REGGIE: Going after the early adopter ... and an older consumer
NOA_REGGIE: That's because the gameplay is more complex ... leading to more complex games
NOA_REGGIE: So the consumer here will be older, willing to pay more for the latest technology, and wanting games that are a bit more advanced
MUSTARDOFYOURDOOM: Reggie, what convinced you to work for nintendo?
NOA_REGGIE: I'm a big Nintendo fan from way back starting from SNES.
NOA_REGGIE: So for me, helping to grow this company was a very exciting opportunity.
NOA_REGGIE: And, I thought given my experiences in other young businesses, I could bring lots of fresh thinking and new ideas to Nintendo.
GAMECUBEVIC: Do you think that Halo 2 will over-shadow Metroid Prime 2?
NOA_REGGIE: As a gamer, I enjoy playing a wide variety of games, and it's clear that no two games are the same. So, Metroid Prime2 will be very different from Halo2.
NOA_REGGIE: Metroid Prime2, at its heart, is a great Samus game where unlocking the puzzles and thinking about the adventure is an important part of the experience.
NOA_REGGIE: It's not simply a "go into a room and shoot everything in sight" type of game... which is what Halo is to me.
NOA_REGGIE: So even though Metroid Prime2 has a great multiplayer element, which is brand new to the Metroid franchise, at its heart it will still be a very different game from our competition.
NOA_REGGIE: Plus, the way we are marketing Metroid Prime2 is to make sure that it stands out from all of the other gaming clutter, and to make it hugely successful in the marketplace.
NINTENDOMATT63: Mr. Reggie Fils-Aime were you always a great speaker? Cause I'm pretty sure everyone would agree that every time you speak it is just pure genius. Also how do you study the product you advertise?
NOA_REGGIE: I think the reason I have such passion for Nintendo and this industry is because I've been playing lots of games for the last 15-20 years.
NOA_REGGIE: What you hear when I speak is this passion... and I'm glad it comes out sounding "pure genius."
NOA_REGGIE: The folks I work with would just tell you I'm an every day guy... that's just having loads of fun.
NOA_REGGIE: ...my kids would say that too.
FROBRO3000: Hi Reggie. I've seen the new commercials, which advertise 3rd party games. Will we see large ad campaigns for RE4, the biggest 3rd part game to ever hit the GC?
NOA_REGGIE: We are working with Capcom right now on the advertising and marketing direction for RE4. We both have huge expectations for this game.
NOA_REGGIE: The new GameCube spots on air right now featuring Metroid Prime2, RE4, Goldeneye: Rogue Agent, are an example of how we want to make sure our advertising and marketing speaks to the core gamer.
NOA_REGGIE: I hope all of you like these new spots.
WINGS19: Reggie, Nintendo has been one of the most popular companies of the past twenty years or so. Since you've been there, what has been the most rewarding aspect of your job?
NOA_REGGIE: I have to say, it's doing stuff like this and speaking at E3.
NOA_REGGIE: I love talking with and getting feedback from our consumer... hearing about the things we do and hearing about the things we can do better.
NOA_REGGIE: That's how I learn every day.
NOA_REGGIE: The other rewarding part of my job is seeing the improving sales on GameCube and Game Boy which lets me know we are being successful in the marketplace.
MARIO_MAN13: When can we expect some Nintendo DS kiosks? Or maybe even just some special playtests?
NOA_REGGIE: We're working really hard to finalize the software for DS.
NOA_REGGIE: As soon as we complete that work, we'll begin communicating the titles and all of the other launch information for DS.
NOA_REGGIE: We hope to get playable demos and interactives in front of consumers before too long.
BURNING-STAR: Reggie do you think that Pikmin 2 will be a great hit?
NOA_REGGIE: We think Pikmin2 will be one of the huge titles of the holiday season. We just finished the new advertising for Pikmin2...
NOA_REGGIE: AND IT'S GREAT!
NOA_REGGIE: The advertising is really funny and captures the spirit of this very unique game.
NOA_REGGIE: The advertising will start in about a week. And I'm sure all of you will love it as much as I do.
HARKLAN: Which genre do you think will be the most popular in 2005? (RPGs, Fighting, Shooters, etc)
NOA_REGGIE: For us, I think we will do well in RPGs, Shooters, and unique puzzle games...
NOA_REGGIE: because these genres can really be shown off on Nintendo DS.
NOA_REGGIE: Plus, genres like Sports and Racing games, can have a real unique game play on DS too.
NOA_REGGIE: So, I guess the genres that will do the best are the ones that will have games on Nintendo DS...
NOA_REGGIE: because DS will be the game to have this holiday season and all through 2005.
PRINCESSZELDA789: Hey Reggie! I was just wondering what you think of the new GCN Zelda that's coming out next year.
NOA_REGGIE: The new GCN Zelda will undoubtedly be the biggest console game of 2005.
NOA_REGGIE: That's because it will leverage everything that makes Zelda unique...
NOA_REGGIE: plus have the more mature Link and new fighting abilities to appeal to even the most jaded hard-core gamer.
NOA_REGGIE: So, based on everything I've seen, the game will be just HUGE.
MISTERHERO: What do you mean when you said you want a Mario more relevent to today's teens? How and why should he be changed?
NOA_REGGIE: I think that today's teens are looking for unique games and unique game play...
NOA_REGGIE: just like I was 15 years ago.
NOA_REGGIE: When SuperMario first came out, it was a WOW for gamers of that generation.
NOA_REGGIE: When Mario64 came out, it was a WOW for that generation.
NOA_REGGIE: We need, and will create, a Mario game that WOWs this generation.
JC29: Is there a release date for the Nintendo Revolution? Thanks in advance!
NOA_REGGIE: We are hoping to share lots of information on Revolution during E3 2005.
NOA_REGGIE: But, we believe that we have lots of opportunity still on GameCube.
NOA_REGGIE: So for us, the big question is how we manage growing our GameCube business with launching new technology and new game play with Revolution.
NOA_REGGIE: We are committed to launch Revolution at the same time our key competitor moves to the next console cycle.
NOA_REGGIE: And Revolution will truly bring new, "never been done before" aspects to the industry.
NOA_REGGIE: Stay tuned!
BOUNCERBOY15: How do you feel about Nintendo's position on the market?
NOA_REGGIE: That's a tough question...
NOA_REGGIE: On one hand, I am pleased that we are growing market share and that the business overall is very healthy.
NOA_REGGIE: Game Boy Advance represents almost 18% of the total market and it has much more room to grow.
NOA_REGGIE: The new Metroid bundle is selling very strongly and of course, everyone is waiting for DS.
NOA_REGGIE: But, I am not satisfied being number 2 in the total industry.
NOA_REGGIE: And I'm not satisfied with our position in the console segment.
NOA_REGGIE: So, we have a few tricks up our sleeve to drive share, both now and when we launch DS.
NOA_REGGIE: My committment to all the Nintendo fans is to grow the business with great games and great new game play.
NOA_REGGIE: This is the innovation that Nintendo has always been known for, and why I'm so passionate about making the gamer say "Wow!"
AGENT079: If you weren't involved the gaming indusrty, what might you be doing instead?
NOA_REGGIE: Scuba diving in Hawaii, which is what I hope to be doing after the successful launch of the Nintendo DS!
ANUBIS: Hello. Did you think that when you came out and spoke at the E3 press conference that you would get so much press? Things like all the fan sites and publicity.
NOA_REGGIE: Never in a million years did I think the fan sites and websites would happen the way it did after E3.
NOA_REGGIE: To me, Nintendo had great games and great information to share during this E3.
NOA_REGGIE: I was lucky enough to be the one delivering all this great news.
NOA_REGGIE: Plus, I guess my energy and passion for Nintendo came out... and the gamers really sparked to that.
NOA_ANDY: OK, let's wrap it up with one final question ...
TORCH665: Mr. Fils-Aime, you've been quoted as saying, "9 have tried and 9 have failed". How can you be so sure that the DS won't fail?
NOA_REGGIE: First, the "9 have tried, 9 have failed" comment is reality.
NOA_REGGIE: I actually owned an old Game Gear and saw how weak that product was both because of battery life and the lack of great games.
NOA_REGGIE: I spent time at the Nokia booth during E3 and for myself saw the problems that they are experiencing right now...
NOA_REGGIE: no great games, small screen, a hybrid product that doesn't do much very well.
NOA_REGGIE: I've been lucky enough to see a lot of detail on DS.
NOA_REGGIE: Plus, as a consumer, I think I know what gamers want.
NOA_REGGIE: So my confidence for DS is based on having great games from us and our third-party developers.
NOA_REGGIE: With over 120 games in development, with titles like Madden and Rayman, I know we'll have great games.
NOA_REGGIE: Plus, with 2 screens, touchscreen, wireless, voice recognition I know that we will bring new game play to consumers as well.
NOA_ANDY: Well that was awesome, Reggie. On behalf of everyone at Camp Hyrule, I'd like to thank you for taking the time to stop by the Amphitheater. It's been great.
Back to main