If you haven’t heard, Bandai Namco Games has announced that they will be a worldwide distributing partner with Slightly Mad Studios, offering to bring to a retail shop near you for the PS4, Xbox One and Wii U. While this is a third-party game through and through, Nintendo definitely needs to jump on the bandwagon in the same way that Sony has partnered with Bungie and Activision for a PS4 bundle, and the same way that Microsoft teamed with EA and Respawn for the Xbox One bundle.
Now you might be wondering why Nintendo would want to take a risk on a third-party, crowd-funded, indie racing simulator for the Wii U; well it’s pretty simple, the Wii U doesn’t have any racing simulators and neither Sony or Microsoft will bundle in this fall when Microsoft has coming for the Xbox One and Sony has coming for the PS4.
Both companies would be committing market-share suicide for their respective brands by promoting a game that could easily trump their own first-party offerings. That’s a huge marketing no-no.
Out of the three big console manufacturers, it leaves only Nintendo and the Wii U to stand to gain from creating a bundle for the system with . Both Sony and Microsoft will be too busy marketing their own racing titles to try to gain an exclusive marketing edge with Slightly Mad Studios’ game, and the Wii U, to date, has no simulation racing titles to call its own.
While may be a multi-platform title, with some sleek marketing and proper advertising, Nintendo could definitely make something out of the deal that could see breaching into a market sector that they’ve never had for a Nintendo system: the hardcore racing simulation demographic.
Now some people might be saying that the Wii U version of the game won’t be on par to the Xbox One or PS4 version. But then the same could be said of the Xbox One or PS4 when compared to the PC version. What’s more is that the game is still targeting 720p at 30fps for the Wii U, according to My Nintendo News, which is no different than the resolution and frame-rate for on the Xbox One. The team is also making good on the Wii U’s multi-threaded capabilities and DirectX 11-equivalent GPGPU shaders, as noted by Nintendo Enthusiast.
Graphically I think the game will look good enough on the Wii U, and that means that the Big ‘N’ can focus more on marketing it as the first real-to-life racing simulator for a Nintendo console.
What’s more is that the Wii U will have special GamePad support and controls, which again, makes it a perfect marketing ploy for console gamers since they won’t have to buy any expensive racing wheel accessories to get motion or steering wheel-style control mechanics. I mean, when measured against the PS4 or Xbox One – both of which will need licensed third-party accessories to get the same sort of steering wheel functionality – it could easily make the Wii U look like the best bang-for-your-buck by comparison.
A lot of people always complain about Nintendo’s lack of third-party support, but would be the perfect opportunity for Nintendo to show that they not only have the support they need but they get exclusive features out of that support as well. It would also allow the company to reel in a market segment that probably still feels as if the Wii U is “just a kiddy console”. Seeing a game like in action on the Wii U via a few television ads would easily change their minds.
Of course, it’s probably a long shot that Nintendo would dig deep for this kind of marketing ploy, but it would definitely benefit them in capturing a broader market outside of who they’re already aiming to reel in when launches at the end of the year.
As for … the game is scheduled to arrive both digitally and on retail shelves this November, courtesy of Bandai Namco Games. You can learn more about the game by paying a visit to the official website.
TL;DR: Sony and Microsoft both have racing games due out this fall. Nintendo is in the advantageous position to promote for the Wii U by creating a special bundle pack.
