The WiiWare version of Cave Story was slated to be released nearly a year ago, just in time to mark the fourth anniversary of the original game's December 2004 debut. Obviously, that didn't happen, and with each week that goes by without the cult classic making an appearance in the WiiWare lineup, gamers have grown more skeptical of its existence (despite a few appearances at trade shows throughout the year). Yesterday, though, Nicalis's Tyrone Rodriguez dropped by our offices with a near-final version of the game in hand: Proof that it really is on its way, and soon.
At this point, Cave Story is a practically done deal. Sure, Nicalis has been saying that for a year now, but this time they can back it up. Rodriguez pointed out a few minor bugs in the demo version as I played -- trivial issues, like a misplaced line of dialogue -- but clarified that we were looking at an older build of the game. The current version, he says, has made it through its complete reprogramming and visual facelift (courtesy of original Cave Story creator Daisuke "Pixel" Amaya) and is currently working its way through Nintendo's approval process. Assuming all goes well, Cave Story will be up for download within a matter of weeks.
