Nintendo had their big moment this morning at E3, where they announced a number of items we can look forward to this year, the most anticipated of all being their brand new console, uncreatively titled the “Wii U.” The conference surprised many today, as no one really knew what to expect from the industry giant, but in the end it ended up just confusing those who paid attention. However, there are fortunately some things we can know for certain, and I’ll be sure to let you in on both what we know as well as what we can only speculate on.
And what a glorious 25 years it has been
The conference started out with Nintendo’s CEO and founder Shigeru Miyamoto speaking to us about the Legend of Zelda’s 25th anniversary. He announced the release of some pretty cool Zelda-related items, such as a commercial CD commemorating the 25th anniversary, with some of the most well-known music in past Zelda titles, as well as a soundtrack to the upcoming 3D reboot of the famed Ocarina of Time. Which, according to Miyamoto, has greatly improved graphics, and will feature a Master Quest and a Boss Battle Mode. I’m fairly certain that the 3DS Master Quest will be the same as the Gamecube version, but I am as yet unsure exactly what the Boss Battle Mode will be like. I’m guessing that it will let you relive any boss fight you won in your current session of the game.
Additionally, Miyamoto announced the release of the Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening for download to the 3DS (available by the end of the day), and a free download of the four player Zelda Four Swords 3DS experience (available next month). Miyamoto also took the time to tell us about a worldwide 25th anniversary Zelda concert, featuring an orchestra that will be playing the most iconic pieces in the Zelda franchise. The concert will start this Fall, but no other information as far as dates or locations is available yet.
With the crowd on the edges of their seats knowing what’s coming, Miyamoto finally moves on to discuss the next installment in the Legend of Zelda series: Skyward Sword. While Miyamoto spent probably as little time as humanly possible on this topic, he did confirm that this title will be available this holiday season, and he made the bold statement that Skyward Sword will be “the most satisfying Zelda experience to date.” Other than that, however, he only took the time to tell us about a special edition of the WiiMote they’re creating for the 25th anniversary of the Legend of Zelda, which is admittedly really cool looking, but wasn’t quite what we were looking for in today’s conference.
With that, Miyamoto exited the stage, and in his place was Satoru Iwata, Nintendo’s global president, here to speak to us about…about what? Well, after teasing us with the anticipated new console, he decided to talk about some upcoming games for the 3DS. He started with Mario Kart 3D, which was actually not very entertaining. Don’t get me wrong, it looks like it will be fun to play, but the video didn’t show me anything all that different from normal Mario Kart, save for a new item that’s basically a kite that allows the character to glide for a while. Iwata says that Mario Kart 3D will be available this holiday season.
Starfox 3D was probably my favorite announcement in this portion of the conference. Not only does it look amazing in 3D, but it has some really cool features, such as being able to control your craft with either the normal controls or by tilting the device in whichever direction you’d like to go. Also, the multiplayer has been given a creepy addition: you will now be able to see you opponents’ reactions via the included camera on the handheld. It’s uncertain at the moment if this will slow down gameplay, but at least you can know now not to invite your friend that plays in the nude. Starfox 3D will be available this September.
Super Mario 3D was the next to be unveiled. I didn’t see anything special about this release; it looked more or less like your typical Super Mario game, though I can certainly see how the 3D will add a new element to the gameplay. Not much else can be said about this one, but there’s still a lot of time for more announcements to be made before its release some time next year.
The next 3DS game on Iwata’s list was the new Kid Icarus: Uprising. Again, not a lot of information was given about this new installment (they were obviously saving as much time as they could for the announcement of their new console), but from what was seen I could tell that it will look extremely good in 3D, and that they’ve added what appears to be a decent 3-on-3 multiplayer component to the game. This is definitely something to stay tuned into until its release some time next year.
The final upcoming 3DS game that Iwata showcased was the long-awaited Luigi’s Mansion 2. From the short video they showed, I was unable to see how the 3D would add much to the experience, but I’m honestly just glad Nintendo is making this game in the first place. According to Iwata, Luigi’s Mansion 2 is not just a sequel, but a “completely new game,” and will feature “not one, but several new mansions.” I would like to hear more about this, but looks like we’ll have to wait until the game gets closer to its 2012 release date.
After discussing the 3DS’s upcoming first party titles, Iwata played a video montage of a few of the upcoming third party titles, which included two Resident Evil installments, Driver: Renegade, Ace Combat, Tekken 3D, a Tetris reboot, and Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D. So overall, it’s apparent that Nintendo is really trying to keep the hype up for their new handheld device, which has not been selling as well as they had hoped. However, with a line up such as this one, the portable console will no doubt get the attention of a number of both hardcore and casual gamers.
Expect this guy to be making a lot of noise these next few years
The next announcement was made by Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo’s chief operating officer, and promised an exciting future for Pokemon fanatics. He said that owners of Pokemon Black and/or White on the 3DS would be privy to an extended Pokedex that would be available for download on a Virtual Console tailored specifically to the 3DS. This Pokedex would allow for friends to share their information with each other, and it will apparently have an interesting photo shoot option, allowing you to insert any Pokemon into a regular picture. All in all, this is a must-have for any hardcore Pokemon fans.
From here, Nintendo finally moved on to the unveiling of their newest console: The Wii U. The sheer amount of information needed to fully understand Nintendo’s vision with this device requires more space than I have available, so stay tuned for an in-depth run down of the new Wii and an explanation of how it will change the world of gaming even more than its predecessor did.
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