The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess delayed to 2006, not coming to Revolution

[StuOhQ]

Faxanadu said:
They never said it would not go to Revolution. They said it would not be moved off of Gamecube. Gamecube got Twilight Princess, so everything is fine.

Didn't the Gamecube received the game later than the Wii? What's worse is that word is the Gamecube version was all but done when they decided to shift focus to the next big thing (Wii). Of course, it was in the interest of adding vital new elements (motion controls) to the game that caused the delay. Sounds to a "T" like what we heard when they delayed Zelda U. They had "discovered all new mechanics" that they wanted to implement, or something along those lines.

This sounds exacly like Ubisoft's excuse of delaying a near finished "Rayman Legends" for the Wii U, so that they could port it to other consoles and release all versions around the same time.

If Nintendo weren't diverting so many people to NX development, we'd have "Zelda U" this Christmas, and more on the plate for Wii U 2016... Hell, maybe the Wii would have had more staying power past it's initial surge of casuals had Nintendo paid more attention to retaining their hardcore fans.

*This post get's very wordy and speculative past this point. Feel free to bow out*

A finished "Twilight Princess" for the GCN in 2005 - or at least well ahead of a Wii version -  would have pleased Nintendo's fan base. I know I wouldn't have went ahead and purchsased an Xbox 360.  We have to assume that the GCN would have moved more units in that last year at $99 with the support of a timed-exclusive Zelda title (the darker game that fans had been asking for since the Gamecube's tech demo).

That would have bought Nintendo a little time to fully flesh-out the Wii (instead of rushing a 2006 release).  There's little chance Nintendo would have invested in a fully HD console at that point, but they might have had a 720p-capable Wii console (even the Original Xbox could output 720p/1080i on some titles). At that point, Microsoft and Sony would have still had no answer to motion controls out of the gate and, when that particular craze died down, Nintendo would have had a console that didn't look truly awful on an LCD television. The Wii looked fine on a tube CRT - but it's a fuzzy mess on modern screens, and Nintendo didn't even package the Wii with a component cable when HD sets became the norm. 

A 720p Deluxe Edition "Twilight Princess" would have undoubtedly sold as much as the SD-version released and they would have had a double dip, including the 2005 Holiday sales on the GCN while the game was still fresh. With releases like "Metroid Prime 3" and "Mario Galaxy" running in 720p through component,  it would have taken some of the dazzle away from the 360 and PS3 running in HD.  Development of these titles in HD on the Wii would have been slower, but that initial surge of system sales was lead by "Wii Sports" and the influx of casual gamers.  Mii-based titles, and other light fare could have still been developed for 480p - much like how the biggest titles on PS2 and Xbox started supporting higher resolutions, while the early games and smaller projects were standard definition only. 

Flash forward to the release of the Wii U, and Nintendo is already moderately comfortable with HD development and is ready to tear through the games that otherwise had them bumbling for the past few years. With Wii U development running smoother, SM3DW could have been available closer to launch, "Pikmin 3" and "Tropical Freeze" could have dropped at their originally planned strategic dates, and there would be more of the Gamecube and Wii era fans left over to gobble up the titles (since they didn't run off to the PS360 so quickly when HDTVs took off). 

By the time the PS4 and XBO launched, Nintendo would have moved many more Wii U's and they could have had "Mario Kart 8" ready to make Sony and Microsoft's launch titles look even more embarrassing....

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The point of this fanboy-fantasy alternate history isn't that things would have certainly gone down this favorably for Nintendo had they released "Twilight Princess" on time, and it's not that they didn't make big money with "Twilight Princess" on the Wii. I'm trying to say that Nintendo may have made the decision that garnered them more money in the short term, but hurt themselves more in the long run by tarnishing their relationship with their fanbase.

I lost a lot of resepect for Nintendo last gen in the wake of their decision to put a quick buck before those who had stuck with them through thick and thin. I considered the Xbox 360 to be my main console for that generation, and it took games like "MK8" and "Sma4sh" to really make me fall in love with Nintendo again. Now, I see history repeating itself with "Zelda U". 

Not every Nintendo console is going to be a cultural phenomenon like the Wii. The next time they have another Wii U, there are going to be fewer diehard fans there to help them limp through until their next console. Nintendo has talked recently about announcing the next Club Nintendo. The best "loyalty program" that they could possibly provide would setting an example with the Wii U that Nintendo won't abandon people that buy their consoles just because it's not a smash hit.

Nintendo made money last quarter. If they keep releasing games, they'll keep making money. I don't begrudge them for starting work on their next console, and hope that it is a major success. I, and other Wii U owners, will certainly do more to make it a success if Nintendo stands by us during this transitional phase.

I don't expect them to plan more projects for the Wii U at this point. I do hope, however, that the teams that are already working on Wii U games will devote 100% of their energy towards releasing the Wii U titles before moving on to NX development.