EPTI begin with the Nintendo conference. The overall theme of this conference would be that of Nostalgia. It encapsulates the essence of what Nintendo what striving to achieve, giving the fans a variety of games that will appease our desire to play and relive those glorious moments of the past with games such at Mario Kart. Those finger blistering days are still engraved into our memories, and will forever be there as a level of standards that are not so easily met. I find it in such a way that currently, it is not so much a competition between Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft. More so, it is a battle between Sony and Microsoft, while Nintendo is doing their own thing. This was emphasized and shown clear to all gamers at this years E3. So did Nintendo succeed in their aspirations at this years E3, or did they fall under the spotlight of the other two gaming companies?
One of the beginning keynotes that was made was Nintendo was aiming toward working on the experience more so than simply the technological aspect. The experience comes when the technology and game-play work seamlessly together and molds into a single, awe inspiring moment. Nintendo begins their journey with the new installment to the Zelda franchise with The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword for the Nintendo Wii. As with other releases of Zelda games, Shigeru Miyamoto presents with his take on the video game. Of the entire Conference, I found this to be the weakest and most disappointing of moments. When Shigeru Miyamoto passed it on to Bill, it came off as awkward. There were a few reasons why this moment was quite disappointing for an avid Zelda fan such as myself. The first reason was on the introduction to the game. Prior to showing the game, they showed remnants of the older games, as if to guide us to the newest game. Following that, they showed demo-like portions of the game but never really gave us anything really to grasp onto. It seemed somewhat rushed and most definitely not fitting for the Zelda experience. There was no epic music, no cgi introduction, or story given to us.
The problem I have with this is that, I understand they wanted to show the new working mechanic of the game while using the wii plus. There is an incentive to give the consumers a new experience while playing the game. But the style of playing was not what originally drew in countless fans. It was the story, the areas, the feel of the game. And that followed using an intelligent, working controller mechanic. This decision was also why it left many of us feeling empty afterwards. There was so much emphasis on the controls instead of the game itself, it was all that more damaging when they had technical difficulties. The first few swings of the wii controller, I could see it was not working in sync to Shigeru Miyamoto. Alas, they carried on and it got to the point where they simply could not continue. Had they gone with an intro, story, catered to the avid fans, and then move to the controller, there would not have been such a void. After the conference, I did not know how to feel about the game. I had not been shown anything that really makes me like or dislike the game. I have almost no opinion on it, which is sort of sad. Later in E3, the Nintendo producer Eiji Aonuma gave an interview that goes into more detail for the story and the game itself. You can fine the interview here: E3 GamespotE3 Gamespot
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Continuing with with Epic theme, we get yet another (and not the last) Nostalgic game. What is pink, squishy, adorable, and loves to eat its enemies? You guessed it, Kirby is back with its new installment, Kirby's Epic Yarn. We get a glimpse to many of the abilities Kirby will have in this new installment. We get to see Kirby grabbing enemies with a string, undoing a zipper (part of a building), turning into a car, riding a surfboard, and even riding a spaceship. The game has many more mechanics that we have not seen. While watching it, I got a feeling that it took the old-school Kirby from the gameboy and combined it with Little Big Planet. It looks like a lot of fun, and just makes me want to play yet another game.
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The next game has come a long way since its first release in 1986 (the year I was born). It has long since made its way into a plethora of games such as Super Smash Bros Melee. The game that I am speaking of, has been the idol to many guys out there, the Laura Craft for Nintendo. We all know her as Samus Aran from Metroid. This time, she is making her way back in Metroid Other M. The last few games for Metroid were not my cup of tea. I did not like the fps version of the game. It was amazing for its time, and groundbreaking. It looked amazing, but I just did not love it. Luckily though, Metroid Other M will not be simply fps. It will allow for you to play in an fps mode as well as third person. Roaming in all directions, as well as a side scroller. This game will arrive in stores, August 31st. Alas, the next game, at least for myself, trumps the news of a new Metroid game.
He is large, grumpy, and wears an awesome tie. We played him back in the day on the N64 with a fun and entertaining sidescroller. Donkey Kong has finally made his return. Although he has been in a few other titles recently, we have not been able to enjoy his very own game. Donkey Kong Returns this holiday. The levels, jumps, and barrels, are all reminiscent to the N64 version. Of course, with added features and exciting new monsters to fight. There is no shortage of bananas in this title as you ride the mine cart, it truly is a remake, and upgraded version of the game we have grown to love.
From the titles we have seen, I do believe Nintendo has done an amazing job at giving us a feeling of nostalgia. The memories of the past, the feelings in our hands, the blisters on our fingers, all those images and sensations seem to flood in as we watch the conference. These games may not be groundbreaking, they may not be the game that you scream to play. But it is the sort of game that brings you back to people's youths and brings us back to games that we loved to play and had fun. The conference at this point can be summed up into two words, Nostalgic and Fun. This is what Nintendo tries to do that differs from that of Sony and Microsoft. While they do add some mechanics, they focus on graphics and well, explosions. They cater to people's addiction, always wanting the next big explosion, the next intense moment to fulfill their fix. Nintendo on the other hand, they sought out to find new mechanics and to make games enjoyable and fun. They may not be the next blockbuster, but they will at least be fun. Nintendo has focused on giving games a new, fun mechanic for us to use. For example Kirby's Epic Yarn. We are giving yarn, and the ability to alter and change the world by messing with the yarn and zippers. Unraveling the world to find its secrets. There is also Epic Mickey, were we are able to either create or destroy, paint or well, remove the paint. This illustrates the point further that what is important to Nintendo is the experience of the games. Thus far, I think they have done a spot on job of it. What followed is probably one of the biggest news and well, experiences of E3 for Nintendo. Their introduction and first hand use of the new Nintendo 3DS.
There has been a lot of hype surrounding the Nintendo 3DS. Will it be good, or will it be shite? Well, at this E3, we were given an opportunity to finally see the specs and try it out. First off, the 3DS will have a 3.54-inch widescreen LCD displace with a resolution of 800x240 pixels and 400 pixels have been set for the 3D viewing. There will be the touchscreen as well which will be 3.02-inches and 320x240 pixels. Along with the displays, there has been an added analog for control, although it does not seem as if one can use both button and analog to strife in a shooter. The power button has been moved to the right side and the Select, Home, and Star have been moved below the touchscreen display. There are three cameras in total on the 3DS. They are all .3 megapixel cameras, two of which are placed on the outside and one in the inside (much like a cam to a laptop). All three cameras have a resolution of 640x380. The reasoning for having two on the outside is that it can actually take 3D images to be viewed on the 3DS (obviously). Near the top, to the right of the LCD screen, lies an adjuster for the 3D. You can choose between varying forms of 3d, from maximum down to none at all (for those who may not wish to have it on at the time or who feel squeamish when watching it). It will have WiFi and allow for sleepermode wireless which allows for transmission of data while asleep, for games such as Dungeon Quest IX. And finally, it will support the 3DS cards as well as SD cards of up to 2 GB in size.
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Well, with the specs out of the way, what of the 3DS itself? Well, it will be a bit larger than the original DS's which allowed for the larger control space and display. The new screen looks simply amazing and has the potential to surpass even the PsP graphically. We saw an example of this with the new game with an old character titled Kid Icarus. This should be the case since it is a newer handheld and should at least be able to surpass PsP (which is somewhat dated considering there were many rumors of a next-gen PsP at E3 to make up for the losses from Psp-Go). Consequences of the device not requiring special 3D glasses is that, it requires a sweet spot to see the screen in 3D. This is a problem since it means you can't really move around too much and those watching will not see it in 3D. Granted, this was the consequence of not requiring glasses, so it is a give and take at this point.One point, or aspect that was mentioned, was the rationale behind not having two touchscreens. Smudges ruin the 3D experience, and for that reason, they decided to stick to an LCD screen without touchscreen instead. Although marketing was about it being 3D without the glasses, i find its strength lies in publishers and not technology. I was astounded and in awe by the titles being brought to the 3DS. Even now, I am uncertain just how to go about addressing them all. So i decided to list the Publishers and games that follow for the ones I thought were most exciting. Special thanks to Kotaku for publishing the list and games. *I will not list every game, some I do not find as exciting to left it out for time and space*
Nintendo: Animal Crossing, Kid Icarus: Uprising, Mario Kart, Paper Mario, Star Fox 64 3D. Zelda: Ocarina of time.
Acitivision: DJ Hero 3D.
Capcom: Resident Evil: Revelations, Super Street Fighter IV 3D.
EA: FIFA Soccer, Madden NFL, The Sims 3.
Hudson: Bomberman.
Konami: Contra, Hideo Kojima's Metal Gear Solid Snake Eater 3D "The Naked Sample".
Majesco: BloodRayne: The Shroud, A Boy and His Blob.
Namco Bandai: Dragon Ball, Gundam, Pac-Man & Galaga, Ridge Racer, Super Robot Wars.
SEGA: Sonic the Hedgehog, Monkey Ball.
Squre Enix: Codename: Chocobo Racing 3D, Dragon Quest IX, Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts.
Tecmo Koei: Dead or Alice 3D, Dynasty Warriors, Ninja Gaiden, Samurai Warriors 3D.
Tomy: Lovely Lisa 3D, Naurto Shippuden Action
THX: Marvel Super Hero Squad Infinity Gauntlet.
Ubisoft: Assassin's Creed: lost Legacy, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Chaos Theory.
Warner Bros.: Batman, LEGO.
For the full list, please visit: Kotakaru
I can't imagine anyone having an issue with the lineup for the 3DS. One that I was very excited to see was the new Star Fox. I must admit, it took me by surprise. For a long time now, there has been a desire for a real Star Fox title to come out. By real, I mean one similar to that of the Nintendo 64. So many people loved the game, there were even tournaments and competitions for beating it in certain times. Sadly, the titles that followed after were grossly disappointing. For myself at least, I had given up hope that I would ever see the a Star Fox game that I could love. The Mario Kart looks every amazing and shows us just how far the 3DS can push its graphics. There are times when I think it is even that of the Wii. These games (even without the 3D) will be a blast to play and I cannot wait to try them out. I am also wanting to try out the Zelda: Ocarina of Time for the 3DS as well. I have become accustomed to the gamecube controllers so I do not know how they will feel on the 3DS. But I am sure the analog will come in handy.
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Overall, I was very pleased with this years Nintendo Conference. They knew their competitors and they knew how to advertise themselves to being not like the others. Not requiring a heft price tag for glasses and a new television just to have a 3D experience. Hardware wise, they did a good job but overall, their gaming franchise was probably the most appealing. The Nintendo Conference is probably the one I had the greatest time with and simply enjoyed. I do rank it above that of the Microsoft's Conference, but I am still debating which of the two were better, Sony or Nintendo? I am sliding toward Nintendo at this moment. The next review I will be writing up is on Sony's conference. There will be a lot there and a lot to speak about. I am just hoping that Nintendo continues to give us great titles and I look forward to their next conference. I will try to rate all of them once I am done with them, so be sure to look forward to that.
I do hope for my first blog this one turned out alright. Blog, or article, which ever of the two. I leave this blog with one last thought and question, directed to Sony (because of Nintendo's theme and overall feel), "Where is my Crash Bandicoot!"
