''Project H.A.M.M.E.R.'' was a

beat 'em up The beat 'em up (also known as brawler and, in some markets, beat 'em all) is a video game genre featuring hand-to-hand combat against a large number of opponents. Traditional beat 'em ups take place in scrolling, two-dimensional (2D) levels ...

video game in development by

Nintendo Software Technology Nintendo Software Technology Corporation, doing business as Nintendo Software Technology (NST), is an American video game developer. NST was created by Nintendo as a first-party developer to create games for the North American market, though the ...

for the

Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major home game console, ...

. The team's other projects included ''

Metroid Prime Hunters ''Metroid Prime Hunters'' is an action-adventure game published by Nintendo and developed by its Redmond-based subsidiary, Nintendo Software Technology, for the Nintendo DS. It was released in North America in March 2006, with other territori ...

'', ''

1080° Avalanche ''1080° Avalanche'' is a snowboarding video game for the GameCube, developed by Nintendo's in-house development studio, Nintendo Software Technology, and published by Nintendo. It was released in 2003 in Europe and North America, and in Japan ...

'', and '' Wave Race: Blue Storm''. ''Project H.A.M.M.E.R.'' was originally announced at E3 2006. No information regarding the game has been released to the public or media since the game's original announcement. Rumors began circulating in mid-June 2007 that the game was not going to be released, and that the development team had gone to work on other games. Nintendo confirmed at E3 2007 that development was on hold. Beth Llewelyn, senior director of public relations at Nintendo of America, made a point to note that despite the game not being a focus of Nintendo’s, ''Project H.A.M.M.E.R.'' "may come back" in the future. A report revealed that the game was cancelled in 2009 due to creative internal conflicts at Nintendo Software Technology.

History

, a team at Nintendo, began development on ''Project H.A.M.M.E.R.'' in 2003 for the

video game console. The project's internal

codename A code name, call sign or cryptonym is a code word or name used, sometimes clandestinely, to refer to another name, word, project, or person. Code names are often used for military purposes, or in espionage. They may also be used in industrial c ...

was "Machinex" and it was designed for Nintendo's Western and

hardcore gamer A gamer is a proactive hobbyist who plays interactive games, especially video games, tabletop role-playing games, and skill-based card games, and who plays for usually long periods of time. Some gamers are competitive, meaning they routinely ...

market. Unlike classic Nintendo games, the title was brutal and gritty. The game was officially announced at the 2006

Electronic Entertainment Expo E3 (short for Electronic Entertainment Expo or Electronic Entertainment Experience in 2021) is a trade event for the video game industry. The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) organizes and presents E3, which many developers, publish ...

. Silver Ant, another studio, produced the game's

computer animated Computer animation is the process used for digitally generating animations. The more general term computer-generated imagery (CGI) encompasses both static scenes (still images) and dynamic images ( moving images), while computer animation refe ...

cutscenes A cutscene or event scene (sometimes in-game cinematic or in-game movie) is a sequence in a video game that is not interactive, interrupting the gameplay. Such scenes are used to show conversations between characters, set the mood, reward the ...

. The project was revised several times even though it had almost reached completion. In one incarnation, the project became "Wii Crush" with cuter graphics but similar gameplay. A postmortem from former developers explained that the game's

Wii Remote The Wii Remote, also known colloquially as the Wiimote, is the primary game controller for Nintendo's Wii home video game console. An essential capability of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact ...

motion were never sufficiently enjoyable. The developers blamed the game's failure on the culture and racism of Nintendo Software Technology's senior Japanese leads, who the developers reported as ignoring their input on the cultural interests of the game's Western market. Developers began leaving the team around when the game became the cuter "Wii Crush". The developers reported that the senior staff fired ''Project H.A.M.M.E.R.'' lead designer and did not take personal ownership of the project's faults.

Nintendo of America is a Japanese multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produced handmade playing cards. ...

conducted an internal review that showed the company's lowest morale scores. The project was finally cancelled in 2009. In July 2021, additional information unveiled from the 2020 Nintendo Gigaleak revealed its title internally as "Hammer Man" and spoke about its beat 'em up style resembling musou gameplay.

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite web , url=http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2015/07/project_hammer_expose_reveals_torrid_state_of_affairs_at_nintendo_software_technology , accessdate=July 24, 2015 , title=Project H.A.M.M.E.R. Exposé Reveals Torrid State Of Affairs At Nintendo Software Technology , last1=McFerran , first1=Damien , date=July 4, 2015 , work=Nintendo Life * http://www.avclub.com/article/report-claims-reveal-sad-fate-nintendos-unreleased-221816 * https://www.engadget.com/2015/07/05/untold-story-of-nintendo-project-hammer/

External links

IGN Wii page
Action games Hack and slash games Nintendo games Nintendo Software Technology games Cancelled Wii games Science fiction video games fi:Nintendo Software Technology Corporation#Videopelit