Nintendo have proven time and time again that they are at the forefront of first-party games development and this year's E3 Press Conference has made it evident that there is no likelihood of them slowing down. This year’s keynote saw every Nintendo franchise make a return to either the handheld Nintendo DS or the Nintendo Wii. Did your favourite make the cut?
“Technology is Only a Tool”
Eager to diminish the significance of Microsoft and Sony’s advances into the realm of motion-controllers, Nintendo were quick to emphasis the game experience over the significance of the technology. Unfortunately for Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto technology appeared to get the better of him.
While showcasing the new Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, the latest entry in the Legend of Zelda franchise, the audience bore witness to multiple clumsy movements and the apparent unresponsiveness of the Wii remote. Throwing bombs with a wave of the remote took several attempts, and when Miyamoto switched to the bow and arrow, the camera angle promptly shifted to a view of Link’s feet from which it refused to move. Apparently the “wireless interference” which had bugged Apple’s conference is spreading.
Nevertheless, when the game was working it looked beautiful. The art style appeared to be a mixture of Twilight Princess and the GameCube Zelda title, Windwaker, with cell-shading having been lightly applied to reinforce cartoon-like look to the game. The Wii-remote and Nunchuck worked together to simulate a sword and shield with the Wii Motion Plus recreating the movements of the Wii Remote with flawless accuracy. It was an unfortunate start to the conference given the significance of announcing a new Legend of Zelda for the Wii; however, the early technical difficulties were quickly passed by as Nintendo were keen to show off the other new additions to their games library.
“Entertainment That Can Cross Culture, and Age, and Gender”
Understanding the market demand for sports titles, quoting games such as Pro Evolution Soccer and NBA JAM, the next announcement was Mario Sports Mix. Boasting several mini-games such as soccer, volley ball and basket ball, Mario Sports Mix appeared to be a hybrid of Mario and Sonic at the Olympics and Wii Sport firmly rooted in the Mario franchise. Boasting a greater diversity of content than titles like Mario Strikers Charged it should prove to be a more enticing entry in Nintendo’s sporting line up.
Before moving on to the more hardcore gaming audience two more casual titles were shown. Wii Party, announced earlier in the year, made an appearance declaring the inclusion of 14 mini-games reminiscent of Mario Party series.
Finally Just Dance 2 was announced, and after inviting the audience to “join the movement” showed off the 8 player modes and just how ridiculous families can look while dancing, Wii Remote in hand. Just Dance had proven to be a big success for Nintendo Wii first time around, and a sequel will no doubt succeed.
The Golden Boys
Announced last year at E3 2009 the world was shown the first teaser for a new instalment in the handheld RPG franchise, Golden Sun. With the aid of a new trailer showing off the new 3D rendered graphics, calling to mind the Final Fantasy DS entries, the full name was revealed to be Golden Sun: Dark Dawn.
The first big surprise of the conference, however, was the announcement of Activision’s plans to release a brand new Wii exclusive Golden Eye 007. With obvious throwbacks to the original Golden Eye 007 released on the Nintendo ’64 in 1997 both in level design and multiplayer modes (paintball and melee only being among those named) it was apparent that the new game was not a complete rehash of the old cult classic. Online multiplayer has been added and the character models appeared to have been updated to coincide with the current state of the film franchise, Pierce Brosnan now looking suspiciously more like Daniel Craig than one might remember.
“Honouring 80 years of Disney Creativity”
A Disney Mickey Mouse game has been rumoured for months and the Wii exclusive found its name: Disney Epic Mickey. The third-person plat-forming segments appeared to be broken up my 2D side scrolling sections, all of which immersed the player in the rich history of the Disney franchises, from the original steam boat Mickey Mouse clip through to Peter Pan.
The key mechanic focused on the player’s decisions to create or erase; throughout the course of the game the player would be given the option to solve problems through painting anew, or paint thinner and the destruction it brought. The decisions made would shift the attitudes of the NPCs and the look of the world around you. Will you create or erase?
“Kirby’s Got Game”
As the Nintendo keynote reached its midpoint, three more games were given time on the big screen. The first was a new Kirby game, entitled Kirby’s Epic Yarn. Out this fall, the gameplay appeared very reminiscent of Super Paper Mario in terms of the gimmicky relationship between the player and their scenery. The key to the aesthetic was the manipulation of the material scenery: zips were pulled to dismantle obstacles, and whips of yarn utilised to stop incoming missiles.
The final revelation before Satoru Iwata took the stage to reveal the Nintendo 3DS was the announcement of Retro Studio’s new project, Donkey Kong: Country Returns. What appeared to be a return of the side-scrolling Donkey Kong franchise appeared a curious choice of projects for the company which brought the world the Metroid Prime Trilogy, since heralded as some of the best First Person Shooters ever made. Nevertheless, the return of a Donkey Kong title to a Nintendo home console set the auditorium buzzing as Iwata took the stage reading to announce the future of handheld gaming.
David Burroughs - Having studied for a degree in History from the University of Warwick, I have given serious consideration to my future, and more ...
