Viewtiful Joe only for Gamecube? I don't think so

[segaomega21]

I was going through the list of GameCube games galore, and came across Viewtiful Joe, oh hey what a score. And what to my glittering eyes did appear, an only for GameCube triangle, not to fear. But then I remembered the PS2, I looked it up and it had one too! But how could it be there if it is not "only for" it must be a mistake you cannot ignore. If you can explain and let me know, I will surely be kind and call you my bro.   

[abe]

Can't tell if this is a serious question with all that rhyming, but I would imagine the original version of Viewtiful Joe for the GameCube had the "only for GameCube" on the front because when the game originally released only for the GameCube. The PS2 version didn't come around until around a year later. The Player's Choice version of Viewtiful Joe didn't have the "only for GameCube" text on the box.

[badATchaos]

same with RE4

[argyle]

I'm guessing you were too young to remember the Capcom 5 controversy?   Basically, Capcom announced 5 games for the GC that were going to be exclusive to the Gamecube. But of the 5, one was canceled completely, 3 were ported to the PS2 and only one (P.N. 03) actually remained exclusive. Here's some more info on it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capcom_Five

[segaomega21]

Thank you for letting me know, I wasn't sure just saw it and was a bit confused. BTW I was bored and felt like rhyming, I'm not quite sure why. I am now interested to see if  Xbox or PS2 exclusives have also been released on other systems as well at a later date.

I was definitely around during the controversy I honestly don't recall it at all. I didn't really pay attention to gaming news back then.

[disgaeniac]

Mass Effect was a big XB exclusive that wound up getting a PS3 release & (iirc), then a WII-U release.

on the other side - you've got the FF games which, afaik, didn't hit a M$ console until the last gen.

I'd say that at this point - there's going to be almost zero "true" exclusives that permanently *stay* exclusive, outside of in-house ones.

[thekosmickollector]

Same thing happened with Die Hard: Vendetta as well

[insektmute]

Mass Effect was a big XB exclusive that wound up getting a PS3 release & (iirc), then a WII-U release.

For the sake of accuracy, it's worth noting that Mass Effect worked out a bit differently. It was originally an exclusive because Microsoft published it; EA later bought BioWare, including all IP rights and standing contracts, giving them authority to port it to other platforms.

Gotta say though, I wish more games were exclusive to a particular platform. I miss the days when consoles were distinguished by their unique games as much their hardware, especially now that the hardware is ubiquitous.

[gf78]

I'm guessing you were too young to remember the Capcom 5 controversy?   Basically, Capcom announced 5 games for the GC that were going to be exclusive to the Gamecube. But of the 5, one was canceled completely, 3 were ported to the PS2 and only one (P.N. 03) actually remained exclusive. Here's some more info on it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capcom_Five

Beat me to it. I believe the Capcom-5 was the last big 3rd party exclusive push on a Nintendo console. I bought P.N 03 on release day. The memory of that game that sticks out to me the most is that your character kept moving around like her butt was itchy. 

[diazflac]

I bought P.N 03 on release day. The memory of that game that sticks out to me the most is that your character kept moving around like her butt was itchy. 

Haha. Having only recently discovered and played this game myself, I can confirm that's more or less how the whole game controls too. It's a bit....wonky.


On the note of Viewtiful Joe though, I'm fairly certain the only console release for Viewtiful Joe: Red Hot Rumble was on the gamecube. PS2 never got it.... On further investigation, wikipedia tells me it was also on the PSP. I guess that's not quite exclusive if you include portable systems.

Gotta say though, I wish more games were exclusive to a particular platform. I miss the days when consoles were distinguished by their unique games as much their hardware, especially now that the hardware is ubiquitous.

Agreed. These days it seems like most exclusive deals have a time limit baked in. Exclusive for the first year, or 6 months, or whatever it ends up being. It really just comes down to business. If you're the developers who have spent all the blood/sweat/tears/years-of-your-life making a good game, or you're the publisher who has invested money into getting said game to market, it's hard to blame them for wanting to cast as wide a net as they possibly can.

On the other hand though, I feel like consoles really need good exclusives.....not just temporary 6-12 month exclusives, but we're talking Nintendo and Mario games kind of exclusives, they have one home and that's where they live. It's part of what helps drive people to your business's ecosystem.

The more everything starts going multi-platform, the less reason I have to want to shell out $500 for that shiny new console. I can get those games elsewhere without having to buy a new console, and don't forget the perpetual sale (http://kotaku.com/were-buying-more-pc-games-than-we-can-play-1493402988)

Get enough good exclusive games that interest me that I can't get anyplace else however, and suddenly that $500 is a lot easier to part with.

[gf78]

Agreed. These days it seems like most exclusive deals have a time limit baked in. Exclusive for the first year, or 6 months, or whatever it ends up being. It really just comes down to business. If you're the developers who have spent all the blood/sweat/tears/years-of-your-life making a good game, or you're the publisher who has invested money into getting said game to market, it's hard to blame them for wanting to cast as wide a net as they possibly can.

On the other hand though, I feel like consoles really need good exclusives.....not just temporary 6-12 month exclusives, but we're talking Nintendo and Mario games kind of exclusives, they have one home and that's where they live. It's part of what helps drive people to your business's ecosystem.

The more everything starts going multi-platform, the less reason I have to want to shell out $500 for that shiny new console. I can get those games elsewhere without having to buy a new console, and don't forget the perpetual sale (http://kotaku.com/were-buying-more-pc-games-than-we-can-play-1493402988)

Get enough good exclusive games that interest me that I can't get anyplace else however, and suddenly that $500 is a lot easier to part with.

That's why I pretty much stick to Sony and Nintendo systems.  Nintendo will always have Mario, Donkey Kong, Zelda, etc. so if you are a fan of those series (which I am), you buy Nintendo hardware to play them.

Sony on the other hand not only has all the best 3rd party games, they have some of the best 1st party games which make their systems must-buys for me.  infamous, Uncharted, Last of Us, Gran Turismo, God of War, LittleBigPlanet and so many more exclusive games are why I love PlayStation.

Microsoft used to take chances like Sony back with the original Xbox.  They pumped out all kinds of games like Blinx, Voodoo Vince, MechAssault, etc.  It just seems that with the 360, they fell back on just using Halo, Forza, Gears and Fable over and over and let everything else go.  They appear to be trying to rectify some things with the Xbox One, but for the most part aside from the Halo's and Forza's, they are relying on paid 3rd party exclusives like Ryse and Sunset Overdrive.  They did a lot of damage to themselves back in the 360 days by disbanding various studios like FASA and Ensemble. 

[betelgeuse]

A few that say "only on" but got later released:

Bioshock 360/pc >>> PS3
Ninja Gaiden 360 >>> PS3 (Sigma)
Capcom vs. SNK 2 gamecube >>> PS2

I thought Eternal Sonata was too, but box doesn't say "only on". Released about a year later on PS3
Content changed a bit, but basically same games.

[evilnick]

Mass Effect was a big XB exclusive that wound up getting a PS3 release & (iirc), then a WII-U release.

on the other side - you've got the FF games which, afaik, didn't hit a M$ console until the last gen.

I'd say that at this point - there's going to be almost zero "true" exclusives that permanently *stay* exclusive, outside of in-house ones.

Mass Effect never came to the Wii U (only Mass Effect 3), and only Mass Effect 1 was originally an Xbox 360 exclusive, having been originally published by Microsoft.  ME1 only found it's way to the PS3 in the trilogy set.

[gf78]

Actually, Mass Effect was released as both a PSN download game and as part of the Trilogy set I believe simultaneously.  So technically, it was released stand-alone.

[insektmute]

Agreed. These days it seems like most exclusive deals have a time limit baked in. Exclusive for the first year, or 6 months, or whatever it ends up being. It really just comes down to business. If you're the developers who have spent all the blood/sweat/tears/years-of-your-life making a good game, or you're the publisher who has invested money into getting said game to market, it's hard to blame them for wanting to cast as wide a net as they possibly can.

Agreed, though I also think there's something to the idea that going multi-platform can be damaging to the game as well. From the quality perspective, the more systems that need to be developed for, the more resources have to be deviated away from the game content itself. Some companies will outsource (usually if releasing on PC or on a last-gen system), but that often results in one or more versions being lacking in contrast to others.

From the consumer perspective, multi-platform often sends the message that people can wait on buying because there's almost no chance the game will go OOP any time soon. This doesn't apply quite so much for more casual types, who might only play a handful of big AAA releases, but for those of us with multiple systems or relatively broad tastes, we tend to give priority to the Zelda's and Persona's of the world first.