Nintendo took a non-traditional route this year. Clearly
behind in the console war, yet still vehemently defending the Wii U as a great
piece of hardware, Nintendo opted out of a live conference in favor for a web
conference. Unsurprisingly for Nintendo, it was an odd conference. Interspersed
throughout with scenes of Nintendo characters animated by the makers of Robot
Chicken, Nintendo did have some fun things to unveil.
Super Smash Brothers Wii U
This section started with a stylized dual, a la Smash
Brothers, between President of Nintendo America Reggie Fils-Aime and Nintendo
President Iwata. After a few spectacular moments, the movements transitioned
into the Smash Brothers universe and they were replaced by their Miis,
officially announcing the ability to use Miis in the game. You will be able to
customize your fighting style with 3 main types (Brawler, Sword fighter and
gunner) and further with 1 of 4 specials for each class, giving a total of 12
fighting style options for your Miis. The game has some other new things added
to it, including compatibility with their new accessory the Amiibo, which I
will discuss below. Also revealed was that the 3DS is getting a version of the
brawler as well. Should be good! Look out for this one Winter 2014.
Amiibo
Amiibo is Nintendo’s answer to the likes of Skylander and
Disney Infinity. They will be selling many figurines in the image of their
famous characters, and will be adding support of these toys into multiple
upcoming games. So far the only one that will have it in for sure is Super Smash
Brothers, but they promise to reveal details of bringing it to Mario Kart 8 as
well. The toys release alongside Smash Brothers this holiday.
Yoshi’s Wooly World
The sequel to the highly successful Kirby’s Epic Yarn,
Nintendo brings us Yoshi’s Wooly World. Also stylized in a world made of wool,
the game looks just as charming and fun as Kirby’s was. The game will have no
time limit and reward exploration of the levels. This game will be available next
year, no solid date yet.
Zelda Wii U
And there we have it, my reason to buy a Wii U. I bought the
Wii for Twilight Princess, and the gamecube for Wind Waker, and now I will buy
the Wii U for this upcoming Zelda game. The world is cel shaded, a style that
doesn’t usually have me sold, but I can’t deny it works, and it is gorgeous.
The art style is bold, and it all flows together beautifully. Their biggest
promise with this game is the world will not be segmented or linear in any way.
The world will be open to explore, serene (save when the big baddies tear it
up), and massive. The short clip they showed details a transition between a
grassy field and a forest as a fight begins, and I caught myself drooling a
bit. The buzz around the web is that the character shown doesn’t appear to be
link, and I can’t disagree, there are definitely differences. It could be
Sheik, Princess Zelda’s alter ego from Ocarina… but only time will tell. Again,
this game will be out 2015.
Pokemon Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby
Two classic Pokemon games are getting massive makeovers with
these titles.
Bayonetta 2
I never played the first Bayonetta, but it got great
reviews. As such, I don’t have much of an opinion here. The fighting takes
place in hell, and the art style works for the game…
Hyrule Warriors
Dynasty Warrior games are kind of a guilty pleasure of mine.
I enjoy them far more than I probably should...but getting to run through hordes
of minion characters executing massive moves that knocks dozens out at a time…it’s
fun. Now Nintendo is bringing me this style game in the world of Hyrule. If I
wasn’t sold on a Wii U before, I am now. In addition to the minions to kill,
Hyrule Warriors will stay true to the Zelda games and provide plenty of giant
bosses to kill. The multiplayer will utilize the Gamepad, allowing one player
to watch the TV while the other plays on the tablet…which seems a bit unfair,
but more aesthetically pleasing than split-screen to be sure.
Mario Maker
One of the most exciting titles announced is a
non-traditional…and yet as traditional as it can get…Mario. In this game, you
get to create the levels a la the original Mario Brothers. You will have all
the tools you need to create a classic 2d side scrolling Mario Game. It looks
fun, and I feel very evil levels will exist in no time.
Splatoon
This last title had me almost as intrigued as the new Zelda.
Splatoon is a 4 v 4 shooter game…with a twist. You play as a sort of
human/squid hybrid. Your gun shoots ink, and your primary goal is to end the match
having inked more of the level than the opposing team. In human form, you can
ink the world and enemies (killing them), including over your enemies already
existing ink. In squid form, you can swim through the ink, diving under the
surface to wait in ambush or leaping across great distances, or up inked walls.
It looks very intriguing, and if the gameplay is as smooth as the demo, I feel
I could lose many hours to it.
Wrap-Up
Even when not there in person, Nintendo managed to put out
some great announcements and get their fans excited. Hell, at the very least
they have successfully sold a system to me.
Today was the last day of E3, I will spend the next few days
pouring over all that has come of it, and get a few more opinions out before returning
to a calmer pace next week.
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-Mac
