920°

Nintendo responds to petition to include Robin Williams tribute in Zelda game

Polygon:
"A fan-petition for Nintendo to include a character named after Robin Williams, who died earlier this week, has so far collected almost 90,000 signatures."

FarEastOrient3551d ago

How hard is it for a company to say yes or no? Come on big N make it happen.

hay3551d ago

Well it's not so obvious, hordes of suits having a say, and with additional horde of shareholders having even more to brag about conclusion is quite obvious, that communication on corporate level is similar to 5 year olds on a playground. It would be awesome his likeness as a king of Hyrule but...

...for us Mr Williams was a ray of light, there's no denying it, but unfortunately for people holding licenses to his roles, stand ups and overall work he was just a product to capitalize on, remember how MJ was killed and how much money his legacy made? Like more than ever before?...

We consumers see the world differently than suppliers.

sinspirit3551d ago

While I personally think it would be awesome for him to be in the game because of his love for the franchise it isn't that easy.

They have to think where he would fit, make sure it doesn't dishonor his memory, and most likely contact family to get their permission out of respect for him, and they aren't going to do that so soon after his death.

DVAcme3551d ago

@hay: Oh, come on, the only thing Nintendo needs to do is put a small screen before the game starts that says "In memoriam: Robin Williams". They could literally program that in in less than a minute, yet it'd mean so much to so many people. And pragmatically, cynically speaking, it'd be a great PR move.

admiralvic3550d ago

"How hard is it for a company to say yes or no?"

Ever hear the expression "give someone an inch and they'll take a mile?" Thats part of the problem with companies listening to complaints / protests, since it leads to a precedent that they might not want to start. Like if this petition works, then every petition going forward will have that "well they did it for Robin Williams" or people claiming that Nintendo has listened to them in the past and they might work going forward.

Lets also not forget how quickly this (his death and the subsequent petition) and how long it would take for them to not only agree they should do something, but get all their cards in order (like what SinSpirit said) and then finally implementing it in a way that honors him without ruining him image or making it seem like they're trying to capitalize on his death.

With that being said, I think DVAcme's example skews more towards the capitalization of his death than an hour. By first putting it in such an obvious location (these things typically go in the credits), it's like saying "We at Nintendo think it's so important to let you know we're honoring Robin Williams that we're going to make it the first thing you see after the credit screen." This could also go either way with PR, since some people will try to make it a controversy.

So in the end, no matter how simple / easy a direct answer would be, there are many shades of grey. Plus outright stating no, they will not honor him, will piss people off and lead to more BS / drama.

3550d ago
GordonKnight3550d ago

It is a touchy subject. With the tribute it might make it hard for Zelda Williams to play the next game in a series that she loves. Even with Zelda U dropping next year it would be too soon.

Nintendo respects Zelda and won't go against her wishes. It's way too early to ask her what she would want, so I can see why they have no comment.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 3550d ago
dredgewalker3551d ago

No harm in giving him a tribute to one of his favorite games.

frostypants3550d ago

Who disagrees wih this? What the hell is wrong with people? My God...

The Great Melon3550d ago (Edited 3550d ago )

I would think a simple easter egg such as an NPC named Robin would be a cool addition that isn't jarring to the game. There are plenty of NPC names to choose from, might as well name one of them Robin.

Back-to-Back3550d ago

He named his daughter Zelda. It's obvious this man is due a tribute.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 3550d ago
DarkOcelet3551d ago ShowReplies(1)
700p3551d ago

It seems kinda disrespectful to do that though. He killed himself but then to profit out of his death is bad.

dafegamer3551d ago ShowReplies(2)
Benjammin253551d ago ShowReplies(1)
HammockGames3551d ago

He named his daughter Zelda (you can guess why), so I seriously doubt he or his family would have any objections to this.

That said, I agree it should be subtle (i.e. easter egg). Fans would pick up on the inclusion.

Hellsvacancy3551d ago

"He named his daughter Zelda" really? that's pretty awesome, didn't know that

DVAcme3551d ago

@Hellsvacancy: Yep, and he was quick to point out that she isn't named after the wife of F. Scott Fitzgerald, she's named after the PRINCESS. RW was a big fan of the original back in the 80s, and even did a series of commercials with his daughter talking about what LOZ meant tot them, very heartwarming cute stuff.

lizard812883550d ago

Zelda Williams was also in the Smash Invitational. She picked Greninja

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

Kivespussi3551d ago

I see your point. A lot of people disagree because they only look at it from their perspective. I do agree with them to some point, I would be honored to have a tribute in a game after I die. But it varies from person to person. Some people and their families could find it disrespectful.

But what I do not agree though is that it would be "profiting out of his death". It's not a game revolved around him, the game just could contain something small that tells that it was sad that he passed away.

BiggerBoss3551d ago

His daughters name is Zelda. I highly doubt his family would find it disrespectful

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 3550d ago
chrissx3551d ago (Edited 3551d ago )

Ninty make this happen.Great man who affected the whole world his charm. even named his daughter Zelda

dcj05243551d ago

Wait, was Robin involved in Nintendo games before? I find it odd that they want him in Zelda. Maybe it's just me.

Drithe3551d ago

Williams named his daughter Zelda after the game. People are being pretty stupid with Robin Williams and this so called tribute.

dcj05243551d ago

Oh ok, in that case go for it Nintendo!

dafegamer3551d ago

He is a great Zelda fan and has starred in many Zelda commercials. Hell he even named his daughter after the Princess Zelda

Drithe3551d ago Show
fallacious3551d ago Show
DVAcme3551d ago Show
Show all comments (87)
80°

How Many More Victims, Like Garry's Mod, Will Nintendo's Hurtful Crusade Create?

Hanzala from eXputer: "As Nintendo takes out 20 years' worth of stuff from Garry's Mod, I watch in shock, thinking why it continues to hurt and discourage its fans."

RiseNShine2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

The irony that some of the most disgusting business practices come from companies like Disney or Nintendo, i can't even begin to understand what terrible damage was Garrys Mod making to Nintendo bottom line, imho they're getting pretty nervous about where they're heading in the future, handhelds are no longer something exclusive to Nintendo, from Steam Deck to many others, now you can play the latest games and pay a fraction of the price on Steam sales, so it's up to their exclusives, which just on their own would make hard to justify purchasing a closed overpriced hardware with outrageous price policies (Super Mario Odyssey is still 60 euro 6 years later!), and as a home console they're always underperforming compared to Sony or Xbox.

gold_drake1d 22h ago (Edited 1d 22h ago )

i cam guarantee you, that their exclusives alone is what drives switch sales. they sell in the 10s of millions of copies.

nintendo created their franchises to be sort of nostalgia driven, exclusive only on nintendo.

people will always buy the pkmn games as they always bring in new younger fans amd is family friendly

mario kart, the same thing, mario games in general.

zelda games are system sellers. animal crossing for the casual gamers.

nintendo doesnt need third vame devs essentially. they made sure with the switch and the limitations that they looked more to pc ps and xbox.

its sad, but nintendo is more than fine with what they're doing. they positioned themselves to appeal to the more casual gamers.

but to your point, im not sure why they're doing this rly.

Inverno1d 20h ago

Look at how they handled Nintendo games being streamed or uploaded on YouTube in the past. They killed Yuzu and Citra even when they had nothing to do with ToTK being leaked, not to mention it was basically unplayable on emulation the week it was leaked. Smash Bros tournament, that was fairly recent. They shut down their online services without any care for purchases made. I bought a switch after skipping their last 2 consoles and handhelds but I don't plan on buying anything Nintendo in the future. They take things to the extremes, they legitimately hate their fans. They're honestly right up there with the likes of Acti, EA, and Ubi, only difference is that they disguise themselves as being family friendly all the while being shady.

80°

Nintendo's Massacre Of The 3DS And Wii U Is Finally Complete, Regrettably

Hanzala from eXputer: "The cruel hammer of Nintendo has fallen. Farewell, 3DS and Wii U, you surely brightened my life and many others; you won't be forgotten."

280°

Xbox's Preservation Step Sets A Much-Needed Example, Especially For Nintendo

Hanzla from eXputer inquires: "If Xbox can care about preserving its games and legacy, what exactly is wrong with Nintendo, trying to kill game preservation single-handedly?"

purple10122d ago

Ahh yes the good old game preservation of saving all your games to a removable hhd on the Xbox 360, taking it round your mates house, setting up multiple tvs to
Be met with “save data corrupted, please re download”

Or how about removing 360 games
From the store
, download them now or else, and, better hope to god that save data doesn’t corrupt, or it’s lost for ever

Nice one ☝️

Zeref22d ago

It's better than what Nintendo and Playstation is doing. It might not be perfect but at least they are TRYING. Unlike the others.

DarXyde22d ago

Trying? Take off the blinders for a moment, mate.

1. A failure to preserve games is just that: a failure to preserve games. Don't try to sugarcoat it: NO ONE is doing it properly. Better than awful is nothing to write home about.

2. At the time of this comment, isn't it the case that you need an internet connection to play Xbox games even if you buy physical discs that are hardly in circulation anymore? I don't have a Series X and I can't verify, but I think that is correct. I'm fairly certain you can at least play PS5 games at version 1.0 (not much of a win really when many games require day one patches). I think Microsoft's all digital, licensing approach is by far more aggressive than anyone else's. They really try to push you to game pass where you lose your entire library by umm.... Skipping a month of payments.

I don't think anyone is doing it right whatsoever. Don't get me started on Nintendo, who goes after anyone looking to preserve their games better than they ever would with extreme litigation.

Don't be a simp for any of these companies. Get it together.

PhillyDonJawn22d ago (Edited 22d ago )

@DarX never speak on Xbox again. You lost all credibility with your internet connection comment. Smh you have 0 clue and misinformed yet speaking on something you don't no squat about.

Einhander197221d ago

What has Sony done exactly? You guys keep deflecting to Sony but I am not actually seeing any results, and ai am certain nothing that you can come up with even comes close to what Microsoft has done and what they have tried and failed to do, like tie all your disks to your account on xbone.

Microsoft removed their whole indie section when they moved to the xbone because they were going to only allow games on the service that came from a publisher, id@xbox started after xbone launched and it only exists because Sony embraced indie and Microsoft was forced to cancel their plans and reverse course.

And every single game that was part of games for windows live including disk games (I have gta 4 on disk that won't work) so hundreds of games that use that DRM no longer work unless the company themselves patched it out which of course very few did.

MrBaskerville21d ago

Not trying. Tried. they killed of the backcomp program years ago. They set something up again, but sounds like it's more of an attempt to save the current library on whatever they are planning next. With luck they save everything and more, but let's see. I could see them killing off parts of the OG xbox and 360 libraries. Can't imagine that they would allow us to play Forza 5-7 in the future.

With that said, I do like what they've done and really wish they could have done more.

shinoff218321d ago

Zeref

So killing off physical media is trying what exactly. Ms don't really give a fk if you think they do your kidding yourself.

Profchaos21d ago

They are not trying this team is established for forward compatability the team is. It interested in preserving Xbox or 360 games.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 21d ago
isarai22d ago

Is that why Hellblade 2 is digital only?

Zeref22d ago

Just because it's digital only doesn't mean you can't preserve it. Just put it on an external and you have the exact same functionality of what a disc does.

MrNinosan22d ago

Guess you're trolling, but if you actually think that's how it works, I'd recommend buying some braincells.

mkis00721d ago (Edited 21d ago )

Volitile vs nonvolitile data. A disc will not corrupt either. A drive can be corrupted.

Einhander197222d ago

This is just a scammy PR move to distract from the fact they are going digital only and trying to push streaming and subscriptions only.

No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft.

Without discs there is no preservation, preservation can't be done by the rights holders it can only be done by the consumers, anything else is a lie.

22d ago Replies(3)
Einhander197222d ago

Anyone remember xblig which Microsoft removed their whole 360 indie section removing hundreds of games from people?

22d ago
22d ago
Zeref22d ago

Do you know you can put your games on an external and preserve them that way? There are no benefits to discs. ZERO. Idk why some of you are still obsessed with them.

DarXyde22d ago

Because games like Persona 5 exist. It's STILL V1.00. On Playstation, that's a win because 1.00 is installed on the disc—no need to download anything.

If a game does not require any updates, it's all on the disc.

Extremely low bar in the modern era, of course. It's not much of a win by any stretch.

But for now, physical media does have a purpose, at least on Playstation.

Einhander197222d ago

That is factually not how game licensing works, try plugging your hard drive into someone else xbox, It's not going to work, and it won't work if the licensing servers ever go down.

Einhander197222d ago

Anyone remember games for windows live.

I have around a dozen games, some on Steam itself that will not work because Microsoft shut off the licensing servers.

BehindTheRows21d ago (Edited 21d ago )

I do. I STILL have games (Gears of War being the big one) I cannot access because Games for Windows LIVE is total garbage and no one has held Microsoft accountable.

Zeref21d ago (Edited 21d ago )

You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership.

Chevalier21d ago

"You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership."

Damn how many times do people got to explain your idiocy to you? You can take a copy of Persona 5 like someone used as an example and play that game on ANY console WITHOUT logging in which means I can lend the game to a friend without internet and they can play my game. Can you lend your hard drive to anyone without logging in for them to play? NOPE. That is a huge difference and if you think otherwise then sorry you're an idiot.

Tacoboto21d ago

"No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft."

Ubisoft is literally erasing games people bought from their libraries... My PS1-3 discs are useless on modern hardware. Nintendo's re-published and resold almost their entire Wii U library, and the eShop is completely dead with no BC mechanism in the Switch software. Microsoft publishes everything they make today day one on Steam and Xbox/Windows. Sony only brings to PC the titles they think you might want some years later and Nintendo won't even design a functional long-lasting joystick.

You're absolutely trolling and not serious if you think Microsoft today is the worst offender.

shinoff218321d ago

Yay steam

Not everyone fks with computers though. The disc is still the best way as a console player. Period.

Tacoboto21d ago

How do Sony and Nintendo feel about these discs from 2001-2013?

Don't be stupid, you know Xbox is the best at this today.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 21d ago
Hofstaderman22d ago

Nobody wants this. Sales or the lack of it in the case of XBOX is very telling. I wonder how the adorably all digital series X will fare. Adorably dismal perhaps?

crazyCoconuts21d ago

Only time will tell, but for from someone like me suspecting that Xbox is trying to gracefully exit the console market, that "forward compatibility" team is trying to get Xbox games playing on Windows PCs. I mean, it's nice that they're not planning on exiting with a "enjoy your games while the hardware still works" message, so that's nice. They still have a brand to protect via Microsoft so probably feel obligated to have a better exit strategy.

Xeofate21d ago (Edited 21d ago )

That is not their plan, their plan is to transfer users accounts to the cloud.

Phil Spencer himself said as much a few months back, plans could have changed but I think people are reading way too much into one statement where Phil said he would allow Epic on xbox because he wants to be able to sell xbox games directly on other platforms. Aka, instead of selling Sea of Thives through PSN he wants to have an xbox store to sell his games on PlayStation without giving PlayStation any money.

Again, it's extremely unlikely that Phil plans to put PC on xbox and licensing would prevent them from just giving out other publishers games purchased on xbox copies of thier games on PC, Microsoft does not own their games.

crazyCoconuts21d ago

The thing that doesn't align with the cloud strategy is the giving up on exclusives. You'd still need strong exclusives for cloud streaming - it's still a "platform" , just with a lower upfront hardware investment. I feel like they've learned what PS learned with PSNow long ago. We're not ready to stream games and it's only gonna lose them money to try at this point

FinalFantasyFanatic21d ago

I would love that, I'd buy up some of the Xbox games if they could run on PC, like the Rare Replay, Lost Odyssey and Dead or Alive Ultimate, probably a pipe dream though.

Show all comments (43)