ou know, you'd think by now we Nintendo fans would be used to waiting. We've had to put up with numerous delays over the years, including some really brutal ones. I distinctly remember almost breaking into tears in late 1999 when Perfect Dark was delayed from Christmas until Spring the next year. We've also had to sit twiddling our thumbs for what seemed like eternity for the next editions of our favourite franchises; five years for a 3D Zelda and a decade for a 3D Metroid. Not to mention waiting on Nintendo to catch up with present, whether it be finally ditching cartridges or treating Europe like it maybe actually matters. We're experienced in the waiting game, but yet many of us display a glaring lack of patience with Nintendo.

It's probably no coincidence that the falling of patience has been inversely proportional to the rise of the internet. Now, we all love the internet. We love being able to find out right after a game is announced. We love being able to scrutinise every new screenshot and video. We love combing interviews for subtle hints about future games, and analysing them to our heart's content. But because of this, time seems to have slowed down massively. A day seems like a week, a week like a month, and those years-long gaps between the announcement and the release are dragged out for what seems like forever. Sometimes, ignorance can really be bliss. But there's no chance of ignorance anymore.

Firstly, game delays. There can be no question about it; game delays are good. Now, when publishers inexplicably delay the release of a game that has been finished it's ridiculous, but mostly games are delayed for the right reason. For the good of the game. If a developer needs more time to get the game right, then we should be nothing but supportive of their decision. Surely they know best? Yes, it's easy to criticise when a delay is preceded by hyperbolic boasts about the release date, but this is an industry staple more than anything. If anyone blindly accepts early guesses of release dates, then more the fool to them. Any release date should be taken with more than a grain of salt, as many are full of hot air. People need to accept that a game will be released when it's released. If it'll take a decade to get a game right, then so be it.

For proof of the pitfalls of a short development time, one needs to look no further than our own Gamecube. Two of the most anticipated and promising games undoubtedly suffered because of a stinted development life; I'm talking, of course, about Nintendo's Mario Sunshine and Zelda: Wind Waker. Much has been said and written, and shouted, about the Gamecube's two most controversial titles. So I'll avoid the comparative and well-documented merits of both, save to say that they are both good games, but show clearly the dire effects of a rushed release. Wind Waker is the more obvious title; there was even a part when the omission of an entire dungeon was glaringly obvious, that being the ability to get hold of Nayru's Pearl without doing much of anything, after having to negotiate puzzles and face up against bosses for the previous two. It was embarrassing to get it so easily. With Sunshine, the recurring shine objectives were the problem. Having to chase Shadow Mario on every level, a task which offered zero enjoyment, was ruddy ridiculous, to be honest. Worse still was the requirement to hunt down every blue coin to get all of the shines; getting the red coins on each level was fine, but that was just unbearable. I gave up at 106 shines - playing on was a chore I could do without.

I'm by no means implying that Nintendo enthusiasts' impatience was what forced Nintendo to release the two games before they were ready, more likely was that Nintendo needed the games out to rejuvenate lagging Gamecube sales. Publishers compromising game quality for something as seemingly trivial as the release date is always depressing (more recent examples are Enter the Matrix and Tomb Raider: Angel of Darkness), but the thought that such sacral and important franchises are vulnerable to this is downright horrifying. What all this serves to illustrate is that a game should be left until it is truly finished, and we should all just content ourselves with the knowledge that each and every delay we have to suffer means a more complete game when launch time rolls around.

Equally frustrating is the prevalent impatience with Nintendo's post-N64 recovery. Despite the applaudable gains made in areas like third-party relations, marketing and European treatment, people still enjoy pointing out what's still wrong with Nintendo. Do these people even remember what it was like during the dark days of the N64? Although games like Mario 64 and Ocarina of Time still haven't been bettered, the N64 was a serious step back for Nintendo in pretty much everything besides software quality. The choice of cartridges as the medium, Nintendo's 'Dream Team' philosophy and their own arrogance, meant that third-party activity was almost non-existant. Capcom's sole contribution to the console was a Mickey Mouse themed Tetris game, Konami wouldn't dream of giving us Metal Gear Solid, suggesting Square or Enix could come onboard would've had you laughed off the street, Activision titles were few and far between and the general third-party climate was a barren front. Look at the situation now. Nintendo are back working with SquareEnix, Capcom are delivering great games (including some exclusives), we're getting a MGS game off Konami and there is a more productive relationship with third-parties. Yes, we still have to head elsewhere for proper Final Fantasy games, Dragon Quest, Grand Theft Auto and others but that's an aim for the next couple of years, right?

Nintendo has also learned a good deal about marketing, thankfully. I realise that the American Mario Sunshine advert was godawful, and the Gamecube isn't the most publicised console, but I remember during the days of the N64 never seeing an advert for abhorrent stretches of time. With ideas like the Cube Clubs, smarter marketing (what were the chances of the N64 appearing in Playboy?), more frequent advertisements and cheaper consoles and games, it seems Nintendo is wising up, even though they're constantly playing catch-up to Sony in this area. Furthermore, say what you will about Animal Forest, but there's no denying that the European treatment is improving, with waiting times less than what they were years ago and good pricing. Nintendo still have major work to do in places like Australia, where it's lack of presence and indifferent attitude to the gamers there is criminal. But, again, all in good time.

The fact is that progress doesn't just happen overnight. It takes time. So deal with it.

I have a similar view towards online gaming. I fully recognise the potential of it, and how much it can enhance the gaming experience, but am willing to wait for Nintendo to come up with a model which works. Online gaming for Nintendo will be a huge step, and no doubt work needs to be done to get it right. I'd rather Nintendo take their time and deliver, then rush in just because everyone else is doing it, and balls the whole thing up. Some are of the view that Nintendo have no intention to enter online gaming, and talk of doing so is a smokescreen, behind which they're all sitting back, ignoring us, but I think that's absurd. Just because a couple of PR suits dismiss the idea doesn't mean that the core of Nintendo, the businessmen and producers and designers at Kyoto hold the same view. If online gaming is going to make Nintendo lose money, then why should they adopt it, just to please a group of vocal internet forumers? If they can find a model which makes money and which offers simple, fun, inventive Nintendo gaming, then we should be willing to wait until they do. Haste isn't always the best solution.

To demand that any games company hurry up and finish work they're doing is a terribly selfish thing to do. Games should be delayed as far as the developers feel is necessary to get the game right, and (unless game quality isn't the reasoning) there should be no whinging about it. A game is ready when it's ready. The same mentality applies to Nintendo's recovery; significant gains have been made, but many people seem to focus only on the ground not yet made up. Things will get better. Just be bloody patient.

Don't make me bring up a well-known proverb about a certain Italian city's construction.

Note: This could be the last in the current run of GameOffs. You see, I started out with a number of topics which I wanted to address, and have finished with them. That's not to say that by the time a fortnight rolls around I'll not have thought of another subject to write about. I just don't want anything to be set in stone, and be forced to write a crappy article for the sake of writing one. Just wanted to let you guys know.

Conor Smyth
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