Straight Right Will Enhance Mass Effect 3 for Wii U

[Marshall Honorof]

Straight Right Will Enhance Mass Effect 3 for Wii U

The upcoming BioWare port will walk the line between innovation and faithfulness.

What happens when you take one of the most acclaimed (some would say infamous) games of 2012 and promise it as a launch title for the most unusual console in years? In the case of Straight Right, you get a lot of excitement and an equal amount of anxiety. BioWare charged the Australian developer with porting Mass Effect 3 to Nintendo's upcoming Wii U, and while Straight Right believes the console's idiosyncratic gamepad can enhance the experience of controlling Commander Shepard, it's also very conscious of maintaining original 360/PS3/PC release's feel.

"We're very conscious of not wanting to mess up," says Tom Crago, head of Straight Right. "We're taking something which ... was exceptionally good." One of the biggest changes to Mass Effect 3 is the inclusion of Wii U gamepad functionality. These features allow players to view a map of their surroundings with distinct markers for enemies and allies, select special powers on the fly, or even play the whole game on the gamepad (perfect for when your housemate needs the TV). Even so, Crago's primary concern was how to keep the game faithful to its original release. "You look at the game and think 'how could I possibly make this better?' ... But first and foremost you say, 'well, I don't want to screw this up.'"

Straight Right has been hard at work on the Wii U port since before Mass Effect 3 debuted on current-gen consoles and PC. "It's going to be a launch title, but of course we don't know quite yet when the hardware will launch. We intend to be there that same day," Crago assures. Whether there will be a market for the final entry in a core sci-fi RPG on Nintendo's new system is anyone's guess, but Straight Right hopes to provide an experience at least as good as that in March 2012. If you're a fan of the Extended Cut ending, it might be even better [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/118546-Mass-Effect-3-Wii-U-Ends-With-Extended-Cut].

Source: Eurogamer [http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-09-07-mass-effect-3-wii-u-developer-very-conscious-of-not-wanting-to-mess-up]

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[cidbahamut]

But why would you want to do this thing?

 

[Fappy]

A real time radar is always welcome. Don't know why they got rid of it in ME2 :/

 

[Gizmo1990]

You want to enhance it? Cut off the last 15 minutes. There, improved.

 

[WorriedSandwich]

Or make the whole game play in reverse, so it ends on a high note.

You're welcome Straight Right.

 

[Rainboq]

You know what they could do? Have the Wii U device act as your map; power and weapon wheels. That way switching and using powers would be more dynamic.

 

[coolbond]

thats the plan i think

 

[zelda2fanboy]

Umm, they do know the Wii U is coming out in like two months, right? Still, I made a joke awhile back about how I was waiting for this on Wii U, but now it seems like it might be a reasonable idea, especially if they include some of the DLC in this version.

 

[ToastiestZombie]

You know what they could do? Have the Wii U device act as your map; power and weapon wheels. That way switching and using powers would be more dynamic.

I think they're going to put all the powers on the pad, that way you don't have to cut the flow of the game everytime you want to use a power, bringing it closer to the PC's control scheme.

OT: I might pick this up, not sure though.

 

[blalien]

Post 4 until somebody bitches about the ending. A new record.

 

[Rainboq]

You know what they could do? Have the Wii U device act as your map; power and weapon wheels. That way switching and using powers would be more dynamic.

I think they're going to put all the powers on the pad, that way you don't have to cut the flow of the game everytime you want to use a power, bringing it closer to the PC's control scheme.

OT: I might pick this up, not sure though.

Yeah, that said, the pausing the game was always a good way to get your bearings and figure out who's shooting at you.

 

[Lucem712]

All the Wii U gimmicks in the world cant make up for the ending.

Still at least people who haven't played the game, but want to without porting over saved data from the previous two games will have an option (besides just not porting over in the now much cheaper versions already out).

Seriously, who is this marketed towards?

That's a good question, I mean, it maybe would be worth it if it was a full series port. All the Mass Effects with DLC in a neat little package. But...I mean, are they going to do what they did with the PS3 version?

 

[OldNewNewOld]

Seriously, who is this marketed towards?

People who want to have the WiiU and haven't played ME3.

 

[Tanis]

My question is this:
Why not release ME1/2 as a 'WiiU Pack' for those who haven't played the games, but want to?

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

Whether there will be a market for the final entry in a core sci-fi RPG on Nintendo's new system is anyone's guess

I don't think that matters as much to EA as getting a test title for Action RPGs on the WiiU and identifying any major porting/dev issues for the WiiU on a title they've already made buckets of money on... without looking too much like that's what they're doing.

 

[disgruntledgamer]

Is anyone really planing to play these games on the Wii U? I mean even if you wanted to play these with better graphics the Wii U isn't going to out due the PC. I don't see the point in buying older ports for the Wii U, but that's just me.