100 Steps is 1 Game CoinI think the daily cap is pretty peculiar. 10 coins at 100 steps each is 1000 steps. An average daily step count of 1000 - 5000 is usually correlated to a sedentary life-style, yet Nintendo saw fit to only reward players for up to 1000 steps. Perhaps there will be some included tips that point out that about 6000+ steps daily has been found to relate to a healthier life, but perhaps not. I don't out-right disagree with only being able to earn 10 coins a day, mostly because I don't know the value of a coin for 3DS software content, but I am suggesting that it would have been a better decision to require a higher step count to get all the coins possible for a day, for the sake of health benefits and getting people to carry their 3DSes around on more occasions.
You can earn a total of 10 Coins a day
Maximum of 300 Coins
Can be spent in the Mii Plaza and AR Games (and other games that take advantage of Game Coins, of course)
I'm actually quite happy with the prospect of a fairly low max limit of holding 300 coins at a time. I know I for one will carry my 3DS around as often as possible, with StreetPass enabled, which means I could easily rack up the daily 10 coins, and in turn rack up coins faster than some people. I've always hated games where you accumulate too much money, because it just means I get nearly annoyed about finding more. The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass comes to mind, in that regard; no pertinent wallet cap (9999 I suppose), an abundance of money to acquire, and there isn't that much you need to purchase and/or it isn't priced nearly high enough to match what you acquire.
Are you guys excited about Game Coins, either for yourself, or for encouraging other people to carry their 3DSes around? Do you have an objections with them based on the details we have so far? Let me know in the comments.
Source (Japanese)
Translated info here
I like the concept of the Game Coins since it gives players an incentive to take their 3DS with them and there's a high probability for Street Pass events to happen as well.
ReplyDeleteI was hoping that the 3DS would 1000 coins at a time since Nintendo wants all 3DS owners to carry the system with them but I bet they could raise the count anytime they want though, so overall I like it.
@Falco8
ReplyDeleteAs far as I know, no developers have laid out how much their content will cost in Game Coins. Say there was a ratio of the average cost of the content vs. the maximum amount you can amass at any given time. That ratio could be the same if the max was 300 coins, or if the max was 1000 coins, but I do understand that we've been conditioned to associate a higher number with a greater value.
Yeah, I see what you mean, and it seems that getting to 300 coins is going to be hard according to some people on different sites. Which tells me that these people are really lazy (which I could relate sometimes) or I'm just used to walking around a lot.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure what I think of the Game Coins...as I don't really know what to expect from them in the long-term.
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of being able to spend them on AR games and Mii Plaza stuff, but...
I've got to judge it off of Nintendo's track record with the Wii's implementation of online services...or implementation of "new" ideas...and it's not good.
The Mii Channel is the exact same as it was 4+ years ago when it released basically...
Wii Speak = Failure, hardly supported at all
WM+ = Not Even Supported by Nintendo on a number of titles, that should implement it in some way
I mean, I just wish Nintendo would have SOME standards...but they don't even had a 3D standard for the 3DS...so I'm not expecting much from its other features/functions at this point.
@coffeewithgames:
ReplyDeleteyou have some great points there and I see why you are so realistic about Nintendo's upcoming handheld. However, in the realm of the Mii channel, it's one of the most popular software on the Wii and they have millions of Mii created around the world so I can see why Nintendo would go with the "If it's not broken, then don't fix it" bit, but it would be nice some dress accessories.
As for Nintendo's failure with the Wii Speak, I think Nintendo wanted the thing to be a social interaction with the family and Animal Crossing Wii was their experiment for the peripheral but since Animal Crossing didn't do so well, Nintendo might have noticed that Wii Speak wasn't doing its job, so they pulled the plug on it.
WM+....Nintendo has some time to announce some WM+ games during E3. Zelda: Skyward Sword is a-given but we'll have to see.
As you can tell, I'm optimistic about the 3DS and I can't wait for it but there's too many blanks for Nintendo to fill before I can give my judgment on it, but I know I'll make the best out of it.
@Falco8:
ReplyDeleteI have a 3DS reserved already, but I'm still skeptical at this point.
With Nintendo not even having a 3D standard for a 3D system...it's kind of baffling to me.
As for WM+, I don't have much hope for it being supported at this point...because Nintendo doesn't even support it with their games released AFTER the WM+ unit was...many of their games don't even have an OPTION for WM+ controls.
As for Nintendo and Wii Speak, I think it shows a poor business decision, and trying to re-invent the wheel, instead of simply using the wheel that already worked...the headset.
Nintendo took 2 years "developing" Wii Speak, when they could have simply released a headset back in 2006 for voice-chat in games? Makes no sense to me.
I understand Wii Speak might be good for casual games like Animal Crossing, and perhaps Endless Ocean...but really, I can't think of any Wii game that uses Wii Speak where more than two people are playing the game in the SAME room and online...where a headset couldn't do the job.
As for the 3DS though, I'm most interested in the AR games and how they end up getting developed...and hopefully we can purchase/unlock future AR games with the Game Coins.
@coffeewithgames:
ReplyDeleteOn your 3D topic, I thought it was a smart business move to let the developer and the consumer to choose whether they want 3D effects in their games since there will be some people who cannot handle 3D effects.
Also, on the developer side, they have multiple options of making their game including 3D or not. They could decide to just push the system to its limits without being restricted by the the 3D. Yeah, it would defeat the purpose of the 3D function but I would like to play my games comfortable than playing in frustration.
Also, I second your idea of unlocking future AR games. This would be really awesome if we could purchase dlc through game coins.
@Falco8:
ReplyDeleteAs for a 3D standard...even a small standard like, "The menus must have 3D effects" would be great...I know that not all 3DS users will use the 3D effect, which is why they have the slider for us users, but I think if Nintendo doesn't have some standards...we can expect a ton of shovel-ware and fast on the 3DS.
*Even though we're going off-topic, this is really nice discussion but I'll saying about game coins at the end.*
ReplyDelete@coffeewithgames:
Yeah I agree with you on that aspect, but one could say the same thing about the opposite aspect where 3D is the standard. I mean, for example, the Wii's control aspect is a standard motion control but the system got a lot of shovel-ware as well and that reason was that developers were either lazy or didn't know what to do with it.
Back on game coins, Lego Pirates of the Caribbean is officially confirmed for the 3DS but it looks like the developers are using the same strategy for the Lego Star Wars game. I hope they could find new ways of using the game coins.
"I mean, for example, the Wii's control aspect is a standard motion control but the system got a lot of shovel-ware as well and that reason was that developers were either lazy or didn't know what to do with it."
ReplyDeleteI would say Nintendo can also be blamed for the amount of shovel-ware on the Wii...they don't have to license the games, but if they don't...then they lose money from the licensing fees they don't get. The customers really lose, because Nintendo approves/licenses junk games, some that barely function properly sometimes apparently...yet the customers that purchase them lose, because Nintendo didn't want to test the game or have any standards, like they apparently used to with the "Official Nintendo Seal of Quality".
I just think A standard would be better than NO standard.
I don't mind the conversations moving natural into other subjects at all.
ReplyDelete@coffee
"As for WM+, I don't have much hope for it being supported at this point...because Nintendo doesn't even support it with their games released AFTER the WM+ unit was...many of their games don't even have an OPTION for WM+ controls."
Looking through the Nintendo published titles that released after the MotionPlus released, I don't see many examples that would be improved experiences from MotionPlus. Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games and Wii Party (to some extent) I could easily see being improved with Wii MotionPlus, but they are also third-party developed. Nintendo more than ever seems to want to be "a friend to third-parties." If that means making it easier on third-parties by not forcing MotionPlus use, that's their call. Maybe it's a mistake, but I don't think the lack of MotionPlus support in those games affected the sales of those games much at all.
When I look at other Nintendo published titles released after the MotionPlus (The Last Story, Xenoblade, Trauma Team, Super Mario Galaxy 2, Metroid: Other M, Mario sports Mix, Kirby's Epic Yarn, Donkey Kong Country Returns, Wii Fit Plus, Sin & Punishment 2, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Metroid Prime Trilogy, and some un-notable others), I see games where MotionPlus support would be superficial at best or, for something like Mario Sports Mix, would need to be redesigned completely.
In the end, MotionPlus is a peripheral and not a standard, like the Balance Board or Zapper, and isn't appropriate for every game. Nintendo has included MotionPluses with every Wii since May of 2010, so to some extent they are making it a standard. I've discussed it before, but the release of the PlayStation Move (September 2010) and future games will either encourage more MotionPlus use, or prove that developers don't really have ideas that need all the fidelity that gyroscopic controls add.
Standards are nice in some situations, but publishers put out the "shovelware" in the market because it makes money. Is it fair for Nintendo to block that profit? Does any console manufacturer have higher standards for their platform? I'm not sure, but a look at some of the games that do make it out for other platforms tell me they don't.