Twilight Princess to Release After E3?

[Doctor Setebos]

Does Amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com) know something we don't? An email to interested purchasers today claimed that The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess will be released May 15th, 2006, and their product page (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009UBR3A/qid=1146522352/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-1030671-6717526?%5Fencoding=UTF8&v=glance&n=468642) seems to agree. From the email (the one I received, in any case):

Dear Amazon.com Customer,

We've noticed that customers who have purchased Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door are also interested in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for the GameCube. For this reason, you might like to know that The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess will be released on May 15, 2006. You can pre-order your copy by following the link below.
I'm assuming this will be a huge Nintendo E3 announcement that may have gotten out just a tad bit early.

Thanks to bgivnin for the additional submission.

[Kefkataran]

Amazon fucks up their release dates CONSTANTLY. They did osmething similar with Nintendogs (and had it listed for extra-cheap) and then just rescinded it. Annoyed me.

[ezra]

Is this for rizzle?

[Zeal]

Fifteen days from now without any marketing or publicity? Failed.

[Lizard Dude]

Possible mixup with New Super Mario Bros.?

[Major Dan]

This one will have to work hard to get me to buy it. I'll have to wait and see. :confused:

[Kefkataran]

Fifteen days from now without any marketing or publicity? Failed.

A ZELDA game? Shut up.

And I still don't believe this.

[JazGalaxy]

Nah.... that doesn't really make any sense.

Unless they're going to drop the price of the GC and put out Zelda in one big attempt to expand their user base before the system dies...

[sickfallout]

I don't believe it either, because if I did, and it was bogus, I'd be sad forever.

[hideouslywrinkled]

Amazon fucks up their release dates CONSTANTLY. They did osmething similar with Nintendogs (and had it listed for extra-cheap) and then just rescinded it. Annoyed me.

I think it's a mistake too. The same thing happened to me with Nintendogs. And something similar happened with the last Harry Potter book.

Of course... if this ties into that May 4th announcement leaked by 1up I'll happily eat my words.

[Doctor Setebos]

I can easily see putting an incorrect release date on a game listing being a mistake. But sending out an email to potential buyers indicating the release date update? I don't see that being an accident.

[Draft]

A ZELDA game? Shut up.

And I still don't believe this.what was the last zelda game that launched WITHOUT a major advertising push?

Don't rack your brain, because it's a trick question. They've all been promoted heavily. Game companies don't do "surprise" releases. It's bad business. Bad for them, because sales are low. Bad for retailers, because they don't have time to prepare. Bad for consumers, because "surprises" generally mean shortages.

This is fake. Zelda will come out with the Wii, and Nintendo will position it as a Wii game.

[Doctor Setebos]

This is fake.I doubt Amazon.com is really in the business of "faking" game release data. A mistake it could be, but it isn't "fake". :D

[Ph00p]

SWEET JESUS I'm in! I hope its true, but it probably isn't :/


Its pretty obvious though that the next big thing is the DS Lite and there accessory packs slated for June 1st for it with the announcement on may 4th.

[MaiXu]

Even if this were going to be a big Nintendo bombshell, May 15th is just too early. Maybe if it were at the end of May, or even the beginning of June, but mere days after E3? Sorry, no. It's likely an Amazon mistake and nothing more.

[Draft]

I doubt Amazon.com is really in the business of "faking" game release data. A mistake it could be, but it isn't "fake". :Dwell yeah you know what I mean.

[Kefkataran]

I can easily see putting an incorrect release date on a game listing being a mistake. But sending out an email to potential buyers indicating the release date update? I don't see that being an accident.

That's an automated thing. They don't manually do that and send it out.

This is fake. Zelda will come out with the Wii, and Nintendo will position it as a Wii game.

I agree that this is false. All I was saying is that a Zelda game would sell just fine even without a major advertising push beforehand.

[Heretic Machine]

Do I need to remind everyone that this wouldn't be the first time a release-date shocker that has appeared at E3 for a big name product? You know, like a new game console?

During the Electronic Entertainment Expo in May of 1995, both Sega and Sony were expected to use their keynote address at the beginning of the show to discuss their 32-bit systems, proposed price point, and planned release date.

CEO of Sega of America - Tom Kalinske - took the stage first and shocked the entire videogame world by informing everyone that the Saturn's launch date was, in fact, that day. Systems and a handful of games had been shipped to retailers nationwide and would go on sale that morning with an MSRP of $399.99. This was four months earlier than the "official" release date of Sept. 2.

Taken from 1up (http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=1&cId=3142283).

[MaiXu]

Do I need to remind everyone that this wouldn't be the first time a release-date shocker that has appeared at E3 for a big name product? You know, like a new game console?

[stuff about the Saturn]

Taken from 1up (http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=1&cId=3142283).

Yeah, but ... that was a total failure. A surprise launch left retailers bewildered, customers uninformed ... in short, it left Sega with a big smug smile of surprise and little more. I doubt anyone is anxious to repeat Saturn's "success" in this respect.

[Doctor Setebos]

Yeah, but ... that was a total failure. A surprise launch left retailers bewildered, customers uninformed ... in short, it left Sega with a big smug smile of surprise and little more. I doubt anyone is anxious to repeat Saturn's "success" in this respect.
Yeah, please don't use the Saturn as an example of a "successful" surprise release date announcement. :D

[Heretic Machine]

Yeah, but ... that was a total failure. A surprise launch left retailers bewildered, customers uninformed ... in short, it left Sega with a big smug smile of surprise and little more. I doubt anyone is anxious to repeat Saturn's "success" in this respect.

I'm just saying, this would not be without precident.

[Spigot]

I would love it if it were true, but I bet it's just Amazon's release dates being wrong.

[Entropy Effect]

This is fake. Zelda will come out with the Wii, and Nintendo will position it as a Wii game.

Which is why the only way this is true is if the real surprise early release date is the Wii, and Twilight Princess is naturally released at the same time.

Even so, I can't see May 15th happening, but I wouldn't be surprised if the Wii launches earlier than the currently expected holiday 2006 window.

[MajSheppard]

Zelda is Thanksgiving. No changing that.

[Draft]

Do I need to remind everyone that this wouldn't be the first time a release-date shocker that has appeared at E3 for a big name product? You know, like a new game console?



Taken from 1up (http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=1&cId=3142283).No need to remind me. I was pretty much basing my opinion on surprise launches on the Saturn debacle.

[TheBrainKills]

They could launch a Gamecube version and then launch the Wii version later. This would sell them more games .... the sneaky bastards.

[Entropy Effect]

A quick Google showed a few sites had news blurbs about the Amazon date of May 15, 2006 back in December, making it even less likely this has any chance of being a real date.

[Wedge]

I don't believe it either, because if I did, and it was bogus, I'd be sad forever.

QFT!

I don't believe it either, because if I did, and it was bogus, I'd be sad forever.

QFT twice!

[Kelegacy]

I spoke with my PR contact at Nintendo today and they confirmed the following:

You guys are retarded. And:

It'll be out this fall.

[thecrazyd]

I spoke with my PR contact at Nintendo today and they confirmed the following:

You guys are retarded. And:

It'll be out this fall.
You have a PR contact in Nintendo? Can you get me free swag?

[51|RandoM]

It would kind of make sense, in a way, not that I believe for a moment this is true. But suppose I wanted to super hype a AAA title? Announce an early release date at E3, voila, instance media coverage galore for free. Due a week of tv spots on mtv or whatever to get the rest of the cubers informed and there you go.

[Phanto]

I really don't think TP is going to be release in the GC I know they said that the game "will be relased in GC and Wii, but in my opinon it would be a lack of respect to released that game in the GC, correct me If I'm wrong but the GC is almost dead and it would not be apropiate to release that "great game" or should I said franchise on a almost dead system.

[NonSoft]

I really don't think TP is going to be release in the GC I know they said that the game "will be relased in GC and Wii, but in my opinon it would be a lack of respect to released that game in the GC, correct me If I'm wrong but the GC is almost dead and it would not be apropiate to release that "great game" or should I said franchise on a almost dead system.

Some of the best games ever made have been at the end of a console's life. Chrono Trigger comes to mind. ;)

[Spigot]

Some of the best games ever made have been at the end of a console's life. Chrono Trigger comes to mind. ;)
QFT indeed!

As well, Twilight Princess is shipping for the cube, but the last I heard it was going to have Wii-enabled capabilities. The Wii is backwards compatible, so it's not like they'd be undercutting the system by releasing it on the Cube at the time of the Wii launch.

I can't believe I actually typed Wii four times in this post and it didn't feel unnatural...

[Entropy Effect]

I spoke with my PR contact at Nintendo today and they confirmed the following:

You guys are retarded. And:

It'll be out this fall.

So Zelda will be out this fall but... Wii will be out in early July? Please? :D

[MaiXu]

So Zelda will be out this fall but... Wii will be out in early July? Please? :D

And isn't that DS Zelda (Phantom Hourglasss or something?) due out this fall as well?

Now that's odd. Two original Zelda titles, one hardware launch (Wii), one hardware relaunch (DS Lite), and a host of other titles for the DS and the Wii launch.

Looks like this fall will be a very busy time for Nintendo. And a very expensive time to be a Nintendo fan.

[NonSoft]

And isn't that DS Zelda (Phantom Hourglasss or something?) due out this fall as well?

Now that's odd. Two original Zelda titles, one hardware launch (Wii), one hardware relaunch (DS Lite), and a host of other titles for the DS and the Wii launch.

Looks like this fall will be a very busy time for Nintendo. And a very expensive time to be a Nintendo fan.

Expensive? All of that probably won't cost as much as an xbox360 and a game or a PS3 and a game. :eek:

[Stormwatcher]

I really don't think TP is going to be release in the GC I know they said that the game "will be relased in GC and Wii, but in my opinon it would be a lack of respect to released that game in the GC, correct me If I'm wrong but the GC is almost dead and it would not be apropiate to release that "great game" or should I said franchise on a almost dead system.

That's bullshit. Nintendo made it pretty clear that the game will be released fot the Gamecube.

[boratika]

I spoke with my PR contact at Nintendo today and they confirmed the following:

You guys are retarded. And:

It'll be out this fall.
And people think Nintendo are out of touch.

[Magnanimous Gnome]

Yeah, but ... that was a total failure. A surprise launch left retailers bewildered, customers uninformed ... in short, it left Sega with a big smug smile of surprise and little more. I doubt anyone is anxious to repeat Saturn's "success" in this respect.

Don't forget that some big shot on Sony got on stage right after and announced simply that the PSX would cost $300 at release. That killed a lot of the Saturn hype right there.


I can't believe I actually typed Wii four times in this post and it didn't feel unnatural...

See, people are getting used to the name already. Everyone bitched about it and most said that they'd never get used to the name and it was so "unnatural", but I've already seen complaints and jokes die WAY down, and lots of posters are using the new name without batting an eyelash. Pretty amazing for the "worst console name ever."*

*quote courtesy of random Internet idiot

[mkelehan]

Not a prayer. No prayer. They need to announce a date, let people preorder, let the date sink in, and have a sales explosion in the first week that makes headlines.