Earlier this week, online services for Wii U and Nintendo 3DS went offline. As a result, players can no longer enjoy online multiplayer in games like the original Splatoon, or custom made content in games like Super Mario Maker. Chicken Wiggle on 3DS is one game that featured a lot of user created content, with more than 2000 stages created before the servers went offline. Thankfully, it seems this content is getting preserved! Atooi boss Jools Watsham has announced that all of these stages will be playable through Hatch Tales, an upcoming game coming to Nintendo Switch.ย
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“Just wanted to let you all know that all of the levels uploaded via Chicken Wiggle on 3DS will be available to browse, play, and download in Hatch Tales when it releases June 21 on Nintendo Switch (there’s over 2000 of ’em!)” Watsham wrote on the game’s Kickstarter page.ย
Preserving Older Content
Chicken Wiggle debuted on 3DS in 2017, just months after the arrival of the Nintendo Switch. Despite arriving later in the system’s lifespan, the game clearly managed to find a following. Chicken Wiggle‘s single-player campaign received praise from players, but the level designer was one of the game’s most beloved elements. It’s been known for some time that Hatch Tales would also include a level editor, but now we know the old content is sticking around as well.ย
It doesn’t make sense for companies like Nintendo to maintain servers forever, especially as the user base dwindles for older games. Still, it’s a sad thing when content is lost or becomes unplayable. By bringing back the user created content from Chicken Wiggle, not only is Atooi helping to preserve content that would have been otherwise lost, the developer is also making it so that a new audience on Nintendo Switch can experience it for the first time. If it all works out as planned, it could be a strong selling point for Hatch Tales.ย
Hatch Tales Controversy
While Watsham’s comments were met with a lot of excitement from Chicken Wiggle fans, many are cautiously optimistic. Hatch Tales was crowdfunded all the way back in 2018, and hasn’t been released after 6 years. Frustration among the fan community has only been exacerbated by Atooi’s lack of updates. The release date for Hatch Tales has been pushed back several times now, and there are a lot of people doubting the game will actually release on June 21st, as the post from Watsham claims.ย
Adding to the frustration, Atooi has released other games while fans have been waiting for Hatch Tales. In fact, this month will see the release of Dementium: The Ward on PS4 and PS5. That game was similarly brought over to Switch last year, marking another time that Atooi seemed to prioritize a different game as opposed to Hatch Tales. At this point, fans can hardly be blamed for feeling doubtful the game will actually release when Atooi claims!
Are you happy that this user generated content will live on? Do you think Hatch Tales will actually release in June? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter atย @Marcdachampย or on Instagram atย @Dachampgaming!
