Nintendo Press Conference Wrap-up – E3 2012

Nintendo’s E3 press conference wrapped up a few hours ago so let’s compile everything that was shown with my own comments on what we saw.

Let’s begin with the start of the conference that showed Pikmin 3.  Pikmin has always been an interestng game. I’ve loved it’s cute, quirkiness. Pikmin 3 looks fantastic and really shows off the improved graphical power the Wii U has over the Wii. Fans have been waiting for a sequel for a long time, and it’s only fitting it’ll be in the launch window of the Wii U.

Next we move on to New Super Mario Bros U, a brand new iteration of the NSMB series on the Wii U. Graphically it looks almost identical to it’s Wii counterpart, save for the more vibrant colour. 4 player co-op returns with some interesting new features. While this is a cute title and fun to play with friends, the core Nintendo fans are expecting something bigger and it looks like we’ll be waiting.

Arkham City: Armored Edition offers brand new content and gameplay mechanics with use of the Wii U pad. Is it enough to justify a re-purchase of a game many of us already own? I don’t think so. While it’s great that Nintendo is FINALLY getting some great 3rd party support, we need to see this with NEW games, not rehashes of year old games.

ScribbleNauts Unlimited… I’ve never played a ScribbleNauts game, but this looks interesting… for kids. Maybe this game would be fun in a drunken stupor, but I can’t see myself waiting in line to get this.

Wii Fit U. Another game focussing on fitness and well-being. I didn’t even attempt to get a video up for this because for the 1 success story that exists with the game, there are 8999 failures. These games have appeal, to bums like myself who are too lazy to actually make an effort to work-out. You buy the game, play it for a week or two, then it collects dust. Will it sell? Of course. That doesn’t mean it’s a success, because it will never achieve what its meant to.

Sing. Umm. Aren’t there enough of these games already? Isn’t this genre milked to the last drop yet? I can’t wait for the next big interactive genre, sleep. Highscores all around!

New Super Mario Bros 2 for the 3DS. Yes! Wait.. no? I really don’t understand how Nintendo plans to release 2 NSMB for the Wii U and 3DS, that will be extremely similar. The games will be fun as most first party Nintendo games are, but I can’t help shake the feeling that we’ll end up paying for the same game twice on different consoles. At least with the PS3 and Vita you get some cross platform play. Hint hint Nintendo.

Paper Mario Sticker Stars.  I _LOVE_  Paper Mario games.  I’ve waited awhile for a new one and I’m excited for this game.  You may notice I use “charming” a lot when referring to a lot of Nintendo games.  That’s because they are and there’s no better way to describe them.  Paper Mario games are perhaps the most charming of all Nintendo franchises.  The gameplay is always evolving and fun.  The art style is fun.  But what really sets Paper Mario games apart is the dialogue of the characters.  It’s silly, funny, mature, clever, and so on and so forth as I stroke Paper Mario’s brush.

Luigi’s Mansion Dark Moon! Finally! Something people have been waiting on for awhile. A new Luigi game. I will definitely pick this up on launch. It’s not a rinse and repeat annual sequel. Breathing fresh life into a franchise that needs some love is the right thing to do Nintendo, great job!

Lego City Undercover.  HOLY! SHIT! Where did this come from? It’s fresh, it LOOKS fun, it’s LEGO. What else does it need? This game will be huge. Kids will love it. Adults will love it more. It’s taking Lego to a new level. It’s more mature, but it still retains that endearing charm that make Lego games appealing for everyone.

ZombiU.  The Zombie genre has been over-saturated for awhile now. But these games are primarily on the 360, PS3 and PC. Nintendo doesn’t get the Zombie love it deserves so this is a step in the right direction. The Wii U pad offers new, innovative ways to survive the inevitable zombie apocalpyse. The game needs some polish and it needs a truly compelling story to set it apart. I like it at this stage, we’ll see where I stand in the next few months.

NintendoLand… Closing up the conference with the announcement of this game. You could say my feelings are mixed. Disappointed at the lacklustre ending of the Nintendo Conference? Yes. Confused at what this game is supposed to be? Yes. Does it have some appeal with the announced core franchises and 7 more to be revealed? Yes, it has some appeal. For all I know, this could be the next sleeper hit from Nintendo that goes on to sell 30 million copies. I don’t believe it, but time will tell.

Overall, I think Nintendo had a solid performance at E3. Reggie Fils-Aime did a great job hosting again. He’s well-spoken and has great stage presence. There were ups and downs, but this year there were more ups. There’s still an entirely 3DS dedicated conference tomorrow from Nintendo so the scale could tip even further in their favour. Great job Nintendo! Here’s to the future.

-GamingRendo