In this post: the Western (third party) studios in charge of Nintendo franchises that are coordinated by SPD 3:
CURVE DIGITAL
| Developer | Latest game | Release date | Other games and projects | Next game |
| Curve Digital | Ultratron | May 2015 | Fluidity series
Stealth Inc. series The Swapper Lone Survivor Thomas was alone Titan Attacks |
Action Henk |
What are they working on?
Curve Digital is known for developing, porting and publishing digital titles. They work on the Fluidity series for Nintendo and develop the Stealth Inc. series, of which the latest title Stealth Inc. 2: A game of clones, came to WiiU before it was ported to other consoles. They also ported Lone Survivor, Thomas was Alone, The Swapper, Titan Attacks, Ultratron and OlliOlli to the current generation of Nintendo consoles.
While a new Fluidity title may be in the works for Nintendo WiiU, it has already been confirmed that they will still be porting Action Henk to Nintendo WiiU. The title will still release this year. Most likely Curve Digital will add other indie titles to their portfolio in the coming months, which may end up on WiiU (and 3DS) as well. A good contender is OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood.
What does this mean for WiiU?
Curve Digital has been very generous in releasing digital titles for Nintendo’s home console. Action Henk will be the seventh title they release on WiiU. More will definitely follow, with OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood being a very good contender.
KUJU ENTERTAINMENT
| Developer | Latest game | Release date | Other games and projects | Next game |
| Kuju Entertainment | Art Academy: Atelier | July 2015 | Art Academy series
Battalion Wars series Zumba series |
(?) New Zumba game |
What are they working on?
Kuju Entertainment has two studios working for it, namely Headstrong Games and Zoë Mode.
Headstrong Games just released Art Academy Atelier (Home Studio in the U.S.) for Nintendo WiiU. They have developed every Art Academy title so far. It is, however, unlikely that we will see another Art Academy game for current generation Nintendo consoles. Work on a new Art Academy for the next Nintendo console may have started.
Headstrong Games also developed both Battalion Wars games in the past. It is not unlikely that they would be asked to develop Battalion Wars 3, which may still come to WiiU. It is, however, possible that the franchise (together with the Advance Wars series) lies dormant at the moment.
Zoë Mode is best known for its work on the Zumba series which is published by Majesco Entertainment. The series had its most successful entries on Nintendo Wii. Zumba Fitness: World Party was released for WiiU December 2013. No titles in the Zumba series have been released since then (I think). Zoë Mode has also worked on games with the Grease license (for Nintendo systems) and has developed SingStar and EyeToy games for Sony. It is uncertain what games they will still release on Nintendo consoles in the future. Maybe in 2016 we will see the return of the Zumba series of WiiU? Get your dance moves ready!
What does this mean for WiiU?
Kuju Entertainment just released Art Academy Atelier on WiiU. Chances for another one of their games being published by Nintendo on WiiU are slim. In 2016 we may see another Zumba game on WiiU though, unless Majesco Entertainment doesn’t hold the license to that series anymore.
MONSTER GAMES
| Developer | Latest game | Release date | Other games and projects | Next game |
| Monster Games | Xenoblade Chronicles 3D | April 2015 | Excite series
Donkey Kong Country series NASCAR: Dirt to Daytona |
(?) Diddy Kong Racing 2 |
What are they working on?
Monster Games’ specialty is racing games. They have worked on the NASCAR and the Test Drive series in the past (mostly for non-Nintendo platforms), but have been working exclusively on Nintendo franchises ever since the release of Excite Truck for Nintendo Wii in 2006. They have made two other titles in the Excite series (Excitebots and an Excitebike remake) since the release of that game. The Excite series has been dormant for this generation of consoles (apart from the 3D version of the original Excitebike on 3DS) and it is unlikely we will be seeing another game in the series anytime soon, unless a port (or remake) is in the works.
In 2013 Monster Games ported Donkey Kong Country Returns (a Wii game) to the Nintendo 3DS. They also assisted Retro Studio in the development of its sequel on WiiU, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. Most likely they have been given the Donkey Kong Country IP to work with now, so that Retro Studios can focus working on another (or entirely new) Nintendo franchise. Because of their track record in the racing genre, the next Donkey Kong game may not be a Country game, but may be Diddy Kong Racing 2, which has been rumored to exist. They may be working on it by themselves or in cooperation with Retro Studios. The game could be a cross gen game for WiiU and NX.
The last game Monster Games released was Xenoblade Chronicles 3D for the New Nintendo 3DS. They may be releasing another port of a Wii game on (New) Nintendo 3DS in 2016 (or possibly in 2017). Maybe they will get to port one of their own franchises this time around: Excite Truck 3D? Let the race commence!
What does this mean for WiiU?
Because they have a WiiU development kit and have only assisted Retro Studios on Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze for WiiU, it would seem likely for Monster Games to still produce a game of their own for Nintendo WiiU. Diddy Kong Racing 2 seems possible, though the title will most likely be playable on NX as well, and may be a collaborative effort with Retro Studios.
NEXT LEVEL GAMES
| Developer | Latest game | Release date | Other games and projects | Next game |
| Next Level Games | Luigi’s Mansion 2: Dark Moon | March 2013 | Punch-Out series
Mario Strikers series Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Transformer: Cybertron Adventures |
Metroid Prime: Federation Force |
What are they working on?
Next Level Games is currently working on Metroid Prime: Federation Force for Nintendo 3DS. After the big success of Luigi’s Mansion 2 on 3DS it was expected that they would get to handle another big Nintendo franchise. Metroid is definitely big enough.
In 2014 Next Level Games announced that they will be working exclusively with Nintendo from now on. And who knows, if Federation Force turns out to be a better game than people are expecting it to be, maybe they’ll get a chance to develop the next big Metroid Prime game for NX?
Next Level Games is also known to have a development kit for WiiU in their offices. They have, however, not released a single game for the console yet. With a team of 70 people working for them, it is unlikely that the only game they were able to produce in a period of five years is a Nintendo 3DS game. We may thus still see a game from them on WiiU. Most likely a sports game. The next Punch-Out? Probably not. The next Mario Strikers? Far more likely. Super Mario Spikers? The pitch for that Nintendo Wii game was never greenlit in the first place and probably never will be (instead we got that Mario Sports Mix game from Square Enix).
What does this mean for WiiU?
A team of seventy people which has a Nintendo WiiU development kit and which only has released one (very successful Nintendo 3DS) game in the last five years? That must mean they have been working on something else as well. Perfect contender: Mario Strikers WiiU which will be released after Spring 2016, and even more likely: around Holiday 2016. As such it will not be released too close to Camelot’s Mario Tennis (Holiday 2015) and Sega’s Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games (Spring or Summer 2016).
N-SPACE
| Developer | Latest game | Release date | Other games and projects | Next game |
| n-Space | Skylanders: Swap Force | October 2013 | Geist
Heroes of Ruin Skylanders 3DS series Call of Duty DS series 007 series |
(?) Sword Coast Legends |
What are they working on?
n-Space is mostly known for developing spin-off games of big name franchises for mobile platforms. They have made, among others, Nintendo (3)DS versions of entries in the Call of Duty, Skylanders and 007 series which are all published by Activision. They have not been making mobile versions of Activision franchises since the release of Skylanders: Swap Force in 2013.
They also developed the Nintendo Gamecube exclusive shooter Geist, which was published by Nintendo itself, and the Nintendo 3DS exclusive RPG Heroes of Ruin, which was published by Square-Enix. It is unlikely that they are working on sequels to these games.
n-Space is known to be working on a Dungeons and Dragons RPG, called Sword Coast Legends which will release on current gen home consoles and PC this September, though not on Nintendo WiiU. It is not likely to receive a port to WiiU, but since it is unlikely that they are producing anything else for WiiU at the moment, let’s just dream that they will eventually port this game to WiiU. Dream a little dream for me!
What does this mean for WiiU?
n-Space will not release any games on Nintendo WiiU.
RETRO STUDIOS
| Developer | Latest game | Release date | Other games and projects | Next game |
| Retro Studios | Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze | February 2014 | Metroid Prime Series
Donkey Kong Country series Maro Kart 7 |
(?)Diddy Kong Racing 2 |
What are they working on?
Retro Studios is best known for its work on the Metroid Prime series and the Donkey Kong Country series. All of their games have been praised by critics. They finished working on Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze somewhere in 2013. From the credits of that game, it became clear it was not the whole team at Retro Studios that did work on the game. Production of an entirely new WiiU game may thus be well underway. This game may be a third Donkey Kong Country game or it may be another Nintendo franchise (old or new) entirely. A follow-up to Donkey Kong 64 isn’t entirely out of the question either.
Also, because Retro Studios have assisted EAD 1 with the development of Mario Kart 7 (they developed the retro courses and provided the Donkey Kong character assets), it has been rumored that they have been working on Diddy Kong Racing 2. It is possible that they are co-developing this game with Monster Games, who also have experience in the racing genre, as well as with the Donkey Kong franchise. Diddy Kong Racing 2 will most likely be a cross generation game and will have a WiiU and an NX version.
What does this mean for WiiU?
We may still see one more Retro Studios game on Nintendo WiiU. This game will probably be cross gen and will most likely be centered around everybody’s favorite ape. Possible contenders: Donkey Kong Country Returns 3, New Donkey Kong 64, Diddy Kong Racing 2.
TT Fusion
| Developer | Latest game | Release date | Other games and projects | Next game |
| TT Fusion | LEGO Ninjago: Shadow of Ronin | March 2015 | LEGO City Undercover series
LEGO (3)DS series |
(?) New LEGO 3DS game |
What are they working on?
TT Fusion is a subsidiary of TT Games, which itself is a subsidiary of Warner Bros.
TT Fusion has made two games in the LEGO City Undercover series which were published by Nintendo in 2013. One game for Nintendo 3DS, and one game for Nintendo WiiU. Because the original WiiU game was generally well received and because the engine is already there, it shouldn’t prove to be impossible for TT Fusion to make LEGO City Undercover 2 for Nintendo’s current generation of consoles. Spring 2016? Why not. TT Games has been pushing out LEGO games like crazy!
TT Fusion also develops most of the mobile versions of LEGO games (Nintendo (3)DS and Playstation Vita). Sometimes they get to create original games for these mobile platforms (e.g. LEGO Ninjago: Shadow of Ronin) and sometimes they develop the mobile spin-off of a home console LEGO game (e.g. The LEGO Movie Videogame). They will, most likely, produce another LEGO 3DS game before the handheld console’s successor shows up. Possible even 2… or make that 5!
What does this mean for WiiU?
TT Games will still release LEGO Marvel’s Avengers on Nintendo 3DS and Nintendo WiiU and LEGO Dimensions on Nintendo WiiU this year. The next few LEGO games, whatever licenses they may use, will also appear on Nintendo WiiU. Whether TT Fusion will get to make another Lego City Undercover game for WiiU remains to be seen, but here’s hoping! One thing is for sure: there will never be a shortage of LEGO games on Nintendo platforms.
CONCLUSION
Nintendo’s (former) Western partners have mostly been focusing on developing Nintendo 3DS games. From Cruve Digital we can still expect to see some digital only releases on WiiU. From the other Westerns partners we should not expect too much. And if another game from these studios does come to WiiU it is most likely ape related.
This is an updated version of an article I wrote for my blog. Original article @ https://makeaccountlater.wordpress.com/2015/07/11/the-future-of-nintendo-whats-to-come-after-spring-2016-4/
Check the Make Account Later blog @ www.makeaccountlater.wordpress.com
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