“I still feel it was a very novel approach-and a very interesting idea.” He concludes the interview continuing to talk about the system in past tense. Unfortunately, because tablets, at the time, were adding more and more functionality and becoming more and more prominent, this system and this approach didn’t mesh well with the period in which we released it.” “I think the assumption is we were trying to create a game machine and a tablet and really what we were trying to do was create a game system that gave you tablet-like functionality for controlling that system and give you two screens that would allow different people in the living room to play in different ways.

It was hurt, not helped, by the rise of tablets.

In the Miyamoto interview, he expands on why the gamepad failed to make an impact. And while it may work to some extent (personally I hated gyro-shooting in Splatoon and these Star Fox controls seems redundant), it’s really, really late in the console’s lifecycle for this case to be made.įrom moment one, Nintendo should have been building games around the gamepad, and though they did on occasion, most of the time, the gamepad served only as an upgraded menu at best, or in say, Mario Kart 8, it was best known for being a digital horn you could honk during a race. One possible alternate use for this system mentioned is co-op, where the Platinum Games team says a parent could steer the plane with a Wii nunchuck, while their child shoots on the gamepad.īetween Splatoon’s gyro-shooting, Mario Maker’s use of the gamepad for level design and Star Fox’s perhaps even over-enthusiastic integration of the functionality, it’s clear Nintendo is finally making the case for the gamepad’s existence. It requires players to simultaneously juggle two screens at ones, much of the time, with one view the traditional third person rear-of-plane camera the series is known for, while simultaneously using the gamepad’s in-cockpit view to shoot, which seems like it could get a bit dicey. While most everyone is certainly excited about a new Star Fox game, the gamepad integration has looked a bit…confusing, at best.

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