There will be a follow-up to last year's best-selling WiiWare title, LostWinds. This was confirmed by Frontier via a press release sent out earlier today. The sequel will be entitled LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias. Details and screenshots after the jump.

We know there is a crisis and we need to cost cut but it seems like not everyone is for buying pre-owned games. David Braben of Frontier thinks that this threatens the game industry. Read up on his opinions on the matter after the jump.

The last time someone spoke of providing the power of choice to the consumer, the idea wasn't exactly hoarding over an air of dissatisfaction with software. Nintendo's highly anticipated WiiWare launch is just rounding the corner, and while we can expect a fair share of shovel-"WiiWare," we're told by independent developers that the service is all about empowering the customer with the final decision. Learn more at the full story.

LostWinds from Frontier Development was one of the first big titles announced for WiiWare. Unfortunately, we've heard precious little of it until now. Head on over to the full article for LostWind's gameplay details.

Frontier Developments is taking a bold step in the direction of WiiWare development as it announced the details of its first title for the Nintendo service with LostWinds for the Wii. The game puts you in the role of Toku as it places "the power of the wind in the palm of your hand." More details and screenshots of the game in the full article.

While some may say otherwise, noted game designer David Braben (of Elite fame) has chosen to take a snipe at the Manhunt 2 controversy in an interview with CVG, saying that games the likes of Manhunt 2 should not be created since they attract negative attention towards the video industry.

Braben said that while Manhunt 2 was given a Mature rating, people who are accustomed to other Mature titles but with lesser degree of violence than Rockstar's highly-controversial game (such as the Metal Gear Solid franchise, for one) will buy the game, not aware that Manhunt 2 packs in higher levels of violence and gore.

He goes on to say that "While Manhunt 2 might have brought short term gain to Rockstar, it damages the reputation of the industry as a whole, long term…"

The "short term gain" he refers to may very well by the high-level of interest spurred about by Manhunt 2's controversy. However, Braben said that in the long run all the negative attention will eventually cause the loss of the video game industry's respectability.

What do you think? Do you think David Braben's points are valid? Do share your thoughts by clicking on the Comments link below.

Read Braben's entire interview in the Read link!

 

It's no secret that the Wii's enjoying the limelight in this leg of the next-generation console race, all thanks to its motion-sensing capabilities with the Wiimote that had not only gamers off the couch and moving around, but also got the non-gaming demographic into the hobby of playing video games. However, David Braben, veteran games developer and the mind behind titles such as A Dog's Life, Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 and Thrillville, thinks that the Wii is merely a fad, and will fade into obscurity after the public has had enough about it.

In an interview, David Braben compared the Wii with the EyeToy, in the sense that people also thought highly of the PS2 camera, but soon got tired of it. His statement, snipped from the interview and in verbatim:

What's interesting is that people are talking about the novelty of the Wii as if it’s something completely revolutionary but actually we went through this same process with EyeToy, which allowed for gaming where you can stand up and do active physical things, but the EyeToy as a device lasted maybe eighteen months before people got bored with it, so that’s something that we should bare in mind with the Wii.

While I personally can agree that the EyeToy was indeed revolutionary for its time, it didn't get quite the amount of software support from Sony. Of course, there are the titles such as Eyetoy: Play and so on, as well as the games where they feature the EyeToy as an optional control device, but it didn't really get the sort of support that the Wiimote's having right now. We need only to look at some of the games (i.e. Manhunt 2, Trauma Center: Second Opinion, Super Mario Galaxy) to see how well the "gimmick" is supported.

Well, that's Braben's and yours truly's two cents about the Wii. How about you, dear reader? Have anything to share about the Wii being a fad? Let us know by your comments!

David Braben, co-creator of the classic, Elite and the founder of Frontier Developments, was interviewed by Ellie Gibson of Game Industry Biz, and he shares us a thing or two about next gen, among other things.

First off, the Wii. Braben thinks "it's just fantastic", innovation-wise and all. However, he also says that he's a bit worried that future consoles will go to "that direction" as well.

Regarding the PS3, he says that "it has the potential to be a PC replacement". And it's a cheaper alternative, too. After all, if you want to play games in your PC that are of the same caliber as PS3 games, you'll have to dole out cash, which is most likely more than what you'll pay for the PS3. He also commends the PS3 for not being a "narrow system", as not only can it be used for gaming, but for web browsing and uploading pictures (among other things) as well.

Nice as the next gen consoles may be, he says that they have a long way to go, as he says that the toll chains they are using now are still based from the previous generation. However, he says optimistic on the improvements on gaming that will happen in the future. He says that even though right now, we can't take full advantages of the said machines, but "it will be exciting when you can".