Welcome to the Rumor Mill, a biweekly feature at N-Sider that covers the latest rumors surrounding everyones favorite videogame company, Nintendo. For those unfamiliar with the Rumor Mill, here is a short history lesson of how it came to be.
The Rumor Mill was originally a forum thread started in the Events Board by user Jamesc395 to cover rumors relating to E3 2003. Unfortunately, Dean Bergmann (N-sider Technical Support) shut the board down do to lack of interest shortly after the topics creation. Once it became clear that the topic was not going to be revived, I (NR1) took it upon myself to restart it in the General Discussion Board under the name Rumors: The Pre-E3 Storm on May 7, 2003. The topic was an instant success; reaching three pages in eight days with over 90 comments. Shortly after, I started a more permanent topic on August 17, 2003 under the name The Rumor Mill, which can still be viewed at the very top of the General Board.
Now that we got that out of the way, let me explain exactly how the Rumor Mill works. This page, which is the main page, is known as The Mill. This is the place where you can read about the latest rumors and speculation on Nintendo and its products. The second part, which is linked at the bottom, in known as the The Storage Room. The Storage Room is where you can locate any past rumors discussed in the Rumor Mill feature.
With that all out of the way, lets get this mill turning!
Pilot Wings for N5 by Factor 5?
First Reported by: IGNcube
Date Started: April 30, 2003
Status: Unknown
The writers over at IGNcube started this little rumor back in April 2003. At the time, they reported that the title was heading to the GameCube and being developed by none other than Factor 5, famed developer of Rogue Leader, and not EAD. It wasnt until a few weeks later, in May, that they claimed that they were able to confirm this information, but neither Nintendo nor Factor 5 ever officially announced it.
Now, IGNcube has updated readers by informing them in their October 14, 2003 mailbag that Pilot Wings has been moved over to the GameCubes successor. If this turns out to be true, then Factor 5 will have a good 3-4 year head start on development of the game for the new hardware. Considering that Rebel Strike only took 2 years to complete, gamers should expect very impressive visuals and game play mechanics from this Pilot Wings title.
At this point in time, it is unknown when the title will ship or if it will have any type of GBA link-up features, but it is widely believed that it will be ready for the N5 launch sometime in late 2005 or 2006. More information is expected in the coming months.
Game Boy Advance 2 Next Year?
First Reported by: Nintendo Official Magazine UK, Issue 133
Date Started: October 2003
Status: Unknown
At this past May's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles, Sony announced their plans to go head-to-head with Nintendo in the handheld sector of the Console Wars. According to Sony, the PSP (Playstation Portable) would be released in late 2004 with graphics that rival the PS2. Those are some very powerful words from Sonys camp, but what about Nintendo? Well, rumors quickly spread across the net about Nintendos plans, but the Big N remained silent.
It wasnt until the October edition of the Nintendo Official Magazine UK, Issue 133, came out that the first remotely solid word was spoken on the subject. According to them, "Development sources have told NOM UK that they're expecting to take delivery of development kits for the Game Boy Advance's successor before Christmas. The technology is all but finalized, so this gives developers time to ready titles for a predicted 2004 launch.
No information on its specs have been given at this time, but according to inside sources at EB Games, Nintendo plans to hold a press conference this February in regards to a major product that will launch in the 2004 holiday season. It is widely believed that this will be the first time Nintendo will unveil the specs for their next-generation handheld, with software and 3rd party support to be shown three months later at E3 2k4.
Rogue Squadron Trilogy Goes X?
First Reported by: IGNxbox
Date Started: October 10, 2003
Status: Unknown
According to IGNs Xbox division, Factor 5 and Lucas Arts are planning to bring the Nintendo exclusive Star Wars series to the Xbox at the end of 2004. Apparently, all three titles, Rogue Squadron (N64), Rogue Leader (GCN), and, Rebel Strike (GCN), will be packaged together under the name Rebel X to coincide with the release of the eagerly awaited Star Wars Trilogy (the original trilogy, not the new trilogy) on DVD.
Now, George Lucas has said a number of times that he has no plans to release the original Star Wars films on DVD until Episode III is completed and out, but that is still a good two years away. So, has Lucas had a change of heart? Not likely. Considering Natalie Portman has been rumored to be filming several scenes while working on Episode III that will be edited into Return of the Jedi; the odds arent too great for a DVD release next year.
Julian Eggebrecht, President of Factor 5, has said on several occasions that they like to develop for only one system, which happens to be GameCube at this time. It has been reported that Julian said the following in the Maniac Forums:
The message is a rumor from IGN XBox. As I said frequently, we at present are developing only technology for the XBox and PS2 consoles. The Gamecube offers a sufficient basis for our games, and we prefer developing for it instead of the other two platforms, so it is definitely the main platform for our games. It is also no secret that we prefer to develop our games exclusively for the Gamecube console. This Christmas will show whether the Cube can remain a viable console - I have high hopes for it, especially with the price reduction. To that extent we will see how things are starting to shape up starting next year, and make any future business decisions regarding developing games for the other consoles at that time.
Interesting. It seems that this may only happen IF sales of the latest Rogue game dont perform up to Factor 5s anticipations. So all you Cube owners out there that dont want to see these games go to Xbox, be sure to pick-up your copy of Rogue Strike this winter!
However, Kaiser Hwang, the IGNxbox Editor, says in the October 17, 2003 mailbag that "It's coming, I guarantee it. It's pretty much up and running on the Xbox already. Or so I hear."
Is Kid Icarus On Its Way?
First Reported by: Numerous Sources
Date Started: July/ August 2003
Status: Unknown
Speculation about a new Kid Icarus game has been around longer than the GameCube itself. For those that arent familiar with this title, Kid Icarus was a game released on the NES back in 1987. The story follows the adventure of an Angel named Pit in a universe based on Greek mythology. Pit must battle monsters with his bow and arrows in the dark underworld to defeat the wicked Medusa.
The game is a cult classic, but like many classic Nintendo games, it has been neglected over the years. It was only blessed once with a sequel for the Game Boy called Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters, which was release in 1991. Its for this reason, that feelings are strong for the revival of this forgotten franchise.
The first clear vision of a new Icarus title came on August 6, 2003 when IGNcube ran their first Fact or Fiction: The 10 Biggest Rumors on GameCube. When the editors discussed the fate of the Capcoms Dead Phoenix, they brought up the possibility of it being altered into a Kid Icarus sequel. It made sense, but on October 15th Atushi Inaba, producer of Viewtiful Joe, told British magazine CUBE that it wasnt going to happen. Here is the exact quote:
CUBE: Can you shed any light on the rumors that Dead Phoenix might be turned into a Kid Icarus Nintendo collaboration?
Atsushi Inaba: Haha, I hadn't heard that rumor! That's definitely not happening!
Fortunately, there is still one other possibility that is being floated around, and thats that Silicon Knights (Eternal Darkness, Too Human, and Twin Snakes) is working on it. This rumor sparked when Denis Dyack, president of Silicon Knights, told GamePro Magazine the following:
GamePro: What other games would you like to re-make in the same way as Metal Gear Solid?
Denis Dyack: I would say Resident Evil but that has already been done. There are many games that I would like to see this done to but if I were to say one it would probably be Kid Icarus.
Why is this important enough to pass as a plausible rumor? Well, back before Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes was officially announced, Mr. Dyack slipped a little hint by gamers in an interview reported on February 28, 2003 by IGNcube.
If you look at games that I personally find very appealing, like Metal Gear Solid, they have huge amounts of flash and they've got the content as well. So I think that's the direction we're going to go in next time.
Ever since this comment, readers have been focusing very hard on everything Dyack says. Could he be hinting at a Kid Icarus title, or is he just messing with gamers minds?
Also, in a more recent interview with IGNcube, Denis Dyack refused to answer questions relating to development team sizes. He expressed his fears to IGN of people being able to calculate when their next title will arrive. This shows that Silicon Knights has something to hide; perhaps a Kid Icarus title? Only time will tell
External Storage Device for GCN?
First Reported by: Game Labo Rumor Column
Date Started: October 16, 2003
Status: Unknown
According to Game Labo, Nintendo plans to release an external memory device to fix the limited storage space available to GameCube owners. The gadget is described as a Zip Drive that can save up to 40 GB of data.
It is no secret that Nintendo made a huge mistake by releasing the tiny Memory Card 59 at launch, but Nintendo corrected this problem a year later with the Memory Card 251. So, why would Nintendo release something like this now, being that its so late into the game? More importantly, why hasnt Nintendo released the SD-Memory Card Adapter in the United States to fix this? The adapter came out on July 18, 2003 in Japan, but gamers outside of Japan still have no idea when to expect it.
The whole memory issue is complicated and likely not to end soon. I guess this is just one of those rumors that needs to be watch carefully to see what happens.
Sonic the Hedgehog in Mario Kart: Double Dash??
First Reported by: Unknown Sources/ New York Times
Date Started: December 2000
Status: Unknown
This is a very old rumor, which was started back when rumors were going around that Nintendo was on the verge of purchasing Sega. On Wednesday, December 27, 2001, sources close to the negotiations told the New York Times that a deal was very close between the two companies and it would cost Nintendo around $2 Billion to become the sole owner of Sega. Both companies quickly denied the reports, and the buy-out never occurred.
"There is absolutely no chance that Nintendo will buy Sega," said Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi.
On January 31, 2001, Sega finally exited the hardware market and announced their intent to develop for Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft platforms. Rumors quickly started to flood the net that Nintendo and Sega were becoming very close as a result of the buy-out rumors the pervious month. Everything from Nintendo and Sega teaming up to make a new RPG staring two characters named Odnetnin and Ages to Sonic being in the next Super Smash Bros were being reported.
During E3 2001, Nintendo finally unveiled the very first GameCube software to the public. One of the titles happened to be Super Smash Bros. Melee, which instantly caused an uproar that Sonic was going to be in the game. Unfortunately to the disappointment of millions of fans, the little blue guy was not a fighter.
Even thought past rumors failed to pan out as true, rumors continued to persist that Sonic was going to team up with Mario in a game.
It wasnt until February 26, 2002, that solid information started to come in about these rumors. It was during Miyamotos European tour that he said the following to Ananova:
The situation is that we are having a series of meetings about Mario Kart for GameCube and we have come to the point where we will be making some drastic changes to the last games. Sonic the Hedgehog might be one of the drivers!"
Well, its hard to argue with language like that from the Steven Spielberg of videogames himself, but sadly, Sonic and Tails were not present in the E3 2003 demo of Mario Kart: Double Dash.
However, news website Jeux-France, has suddenly brought this rumor back to life! On October 21, 2003, they published the following images.
As you can clearly see, Toad and his girlfriend are playable characters in the last image, but they are not available in the first two images. Up until this point in time, no one had any idea that either Toad or Toadette were in Double Dash, which means that they are both secret drivers! Also, the two karts in the first two images are newly unveiled as well.
What does this all mean? First, this tells us that if there are two secret characters, then there is still the possibility of more secret characters. Second, it tells us that Nintendo is really good at keeping things under raps, since that game is scheduled for a November 17, 2003 release, which is exactly 24 days from today. So, even though Sonic still isnt confirmed this close to release, that doesnt mean that Sonic and Tails arent in it!
UPDATE: 11/10/03
New secret drivers have been unveiled! This time we have King Boo (Luigis Manson) and Petey Piranha (Super Mario Sunshine). We still have no word on Sonic or Tails, but we will keep you posted when official word comes that either of them are in Double Dash or not.
Thanks go to Nintelligent.net for images.
Resident Evil Announcement Soon?
First Reported by: Famitsu
Date Started: October 22, 2003
Status: Unknown
Famitsu and several other Japanese sources are reporting that an announcement regarding the Resident Evil franchise will be made very soon. All that is known about this rumored announcement is that it will not relate to Resident Evil 4 or Resident Evil: Outbreak.
On September 13, 2001, Capcom and Nintendo struck a deal that made the survival-horror series exclusive to the Nintendo GameCube, and initiated a remake of the first Resident Evil title. Could this announcement have something to do with Nintendo/ Capcom agreement? Both Capcom and Nintendo have said in the past that the agreement never involved a pay-off, which means Capcom could possibly discontinue this relationship at anytime.
"The one thing I want people to know is, we haven't necessarily received money from Nintendo for deciding to make the Biohazard series exclusive to GameCube."
Of course this is just pure speculation at this point in time, but note worthy nonetheless. However, Capcom did say the following on April 4, 2003:
"In line with our announcement on September 13, 2001, we have no current plans to bring Resident Evil 0 and Resident Evil, two titles currently in release for the GameCube, to other platforms. Also, with regards to Resident Evil 4, which is currently undergoing development, we plan on releasing the game only as a GameCube title."
So, unless they have changed their minds since then, Cube owners shouldnt worry too much about this scenario.
For all we know this could relate to the Resident Evil movies, or Capcom is going to announce a new spin-off television show based on Resident Evil. I guess we will just have to wait and see how this turns out
UPDATE: 11/10/03
It has been discovered that the original story quoted was actually mistranslated. There is no announcement and there never was one. I would like to apologies for any confusion that many have been caused.
UPDATE: 12/16/03
On November 16th, several websites reported that the latest issue of Game Labo Magazine states in its rumor column that a new Resident Evil title, other than Resident Evil 4, is already in the works. No platform was specified, but given Big Ns current relationship with Capcom and the RE franchise, it is likely for a Nintendo platform.
Well, that will do it for this weeks Rumor Mill. Be sure to check back in two weeks for a brand new edition filled with the latest Internet rumors surrounding Nintendo. Until then, be sure to send in your gossip and rumors, and checkout "The Rumor Mill" topic in the N-Sider Forums for discussion on these rumors and more.