Nintendo’s live presentation yesterday evening marked the end of the big press conferences for E3, and all in all was a pretty impressive showing from the big N. Teaming up with Robot Chicken brought us some hilarious sketches throughout the presentation, poking fun at Nintendo and the press in a very smart way, and I loved how well it was pulled off. But what about the games?
Miis Are Confirmed For Super Smash Bros
To start the conference off in style, we got a very odd opening fight sequence with Satoru iwata and Reggie Fils-Aime. As the fight went on, we learned that the Miis are coming to the Smash Bros series as playable fighters, so now you can truly fight as anyone you want. Not only are they the Miis we know and love, but they will be split into three different play styles; brawlers, sword fighters and gunners. These will all function differently, with the brawlers using more action based combat, sword fighters using fast paced sword play and gunners opting to shoot their enemies down. The Miis are looking like very interesting characters, and I hope to see more from them as we get closer to release in Winter.
Nintendo Reveals Amiibo Figures For Super Smash Bros
Like I predicted, Nintendo came out guns blazing and showed off their answer to Skylanders and Disney Infinity, Amiibo. These range of NFP figures feature all the upcoming fighters in Super Smash Bros. and can aid you in battle. If you are already playing a character in a match, simply place the figure on the Wii U pad and these characters are brought into the fight to help you out. These figures will be coming to other Nintendo games in the future as well, with games like Mario Party 10 and Mario Kart 8 already lined up. However during this showing, the sad news broke that Super Smash Bros. for the 3DS will be delayed until October 3rd from it’s original Summer release schedule.
Yoshi’s Woolly World Is (Finally) Shown Off
After the game was originally announced simply as yarn Yoshi last year, now we finally got the official title of Yoshi’s Woolly World and a look at the gameplay. The game seems like a mix between the original Yoshi’s Island series and Kirby’s Epic Yarn, except instead of being made from yarn, everything in the game looks as if it has been stuffed with fluff and stitched together. Yoshi can eat enemies to create eggs just like in Yoshi’s Island, and can also be joined by a buddy in co-op mode. I loved what I saw of the game, and cannot wait to see more of it. Yoshi’s Woolly World is coming to Wii U In 2015.
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker Is Revealed
This one took me by surprise; Captain Toad is getting his own spin off from Super Mario 3D World with Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker for the Wii U. Captain Toad had his own puzzle missions in Super Mario 3D World which fans fell in love with, so its fantastic to see these puzzles getting their own game with Captain Toad at the helm. The game will be based around platforming puzzles in a small rotating environment, which allows you to see through multiple perspectives, just like in Super Mario 3D World. One of the smaller titles shown off at the show, but I am really looking forward to it, looks like a lot of fun.
The Legend of Zelda Wii U Is Revealed
We all hoped it was going to be there, but damn I never expected it to look that good. Yes that’s right folks, we finally got a glimpse of The Legend of Zelda for Wii U, and it is glorious. Eiji Aonuma talked us through the presentation, talking about the series history and explained that the new title will be far more open then anything in the series before, even surpassing Wind Waker in terms of scope. We saw a massive sprawling version of hyrule field, filled with flowing grass and mountains in the distance. Link is then chased on horseback from a huge spider-like creature, until Link shoots a glowing blue arrow directly into it’s face. We see a different version of Link as well, not wearing the Hero’s tunic, but instead something similar to what he wore on the island in Wind Waker. This was definitely the highlight of the entire press conference for me and I cannot wait to see more of this ambitious take on The Legend of Zelda series. The Legend of Zelda for Wii U is coming 2015.
Pokémon Omega Ruby And Alpha Sapphire Get A New Trailer
Directly after the bomb shell that was The Legend of Zelda Wii U, we got a new trailer for the new Pokémon remakes, Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. The trailer shows off new Mega Evolutions for Treecko, Torchic and Mudkip and the redone graphics, which unsurprisingly look a lot like Pokémon X & Y. Pokémon Omega Ruby And Alpha Sapphire both release on November 21st for 3DS.
Bayonetta 2 Gets A New Trailer And Will Come Bundled With The Original Game
Right after Pokémon ended, who else but Bayonetta swaggers onto the stage, with a brand new gameplay trailer showing all the fast paced action we love about the series in Bayonetta 2. But not only did the trailer show us more of the new game, we now know that Bayonetta 2 will be bundled with the first Bayonetta in the disc, along with a bunch of special Nintendo related costumes such as Princess Peach, Samus and Link. I am amazed that Platinum could even pull this off, let alone actually decide to do it. This bundle is an amazing deal, and for Nintendo fans who are new to the series, this is a genius way to get them caught up. Bayonetta 2 will release in October of this year.
Hyrule Warriors Trailer Shows Off New Characters
From fast paced action to fast paced action now as Nintendo showed more of their partnership title with Tecmo Koei – Hyrule Warriors. During the conference Nintendo revealed that both Princess Zelda and Midna (of Twilight Princess fame) are playable in the game, among other Legend of Zelda favorites from throughout the series. We saw the two characters in action, with Zelda using a collection of light arrows to vanquish her foes, while Midna uses her large hair hand to crush her opponents. Along with these character reveals, we also learned that the game will feature a two player mode, with one on the tv and the other on the Wii U gamepad. Hyrule Warriors is coming to the Wii U on 26th September, 2014.
Kirby And The Rainbow Curse Is Announced
After Hyrule Warriors we got the news that a sequel to the DS title Kirby: Canvas Curse is coming to the Wii U entitled Kirby and the Rainbow Curse. The game continues on with the original game’s mechanic of drawing paths to allow Kirby to move across the stage, only now you do with by using the Wii U GamePad. The game also adds a new claymation style to the visuals, which are really nice to look at. Fans of the original title will be happy to see its return, as the title garnered quite a bit of a cult following over the years and its good to see a different kind of Kirby back on the scene. The game will arrive on the Wii U next year.
Monolith Soft’s New RPG Revealed To Be Xenoblade Chronicles X
From cute pink blobs to gigantic anime robots now, talk about your polar opposites! Yes, Monolith Soft finally revealed more on their new JRPG, and it looks like it’s not just a spiritual successor to Xenoblade Chronicles, it’s literally in the same series; Xenoblade Chronicles X. The trailer showed off some pretty impressive giant robot action, full of Japanese shouting and anime ridiculousness. However with all the fun, we did learn that the game has been delayed until 2015. Fans of the series will have to wait a while until they can dive into the next installment of the Xenoblade Chronicles series.
Mario Maker Announced For The Wii U
Due to the leak early least week, this one was a no brainer that it would show up, but it did still surprise me at how in depth it is. If you weren’t following the leaks last week, Mario Maker is a game that essentially allows you to build your own Mario levels from an assortment of different tiles from enemies to power up blocks. The entire design process is done on a grid format (which looks very similar to Mario Paint), allowing you to place blocks and whatnot wherever you want. Surprisingly, the game allows you to swap between the class 8 bit version and a more modern New Super Mario Bros. style on the fly, which was a lot more impressive than what people originally thought. No release date was given as of yet, but it will be coming exclusively to Wii U.
New Multiplayer Title Splatoon Revealed
Now this one was a welcome surprise as Nintendo finally showed of a brand new IP, Splatoon. Splatoon is a 4v4 multiplayer shooter with a twist, you aren’t shooting other players so much, as you are shooting the walls with paint. The aim of the game is to cover as much territory with your teams color paint as you can, and at the end of the match the team with the most of the map covered in paint wins. You can and should shoot other players when you see them, as it temporarily knocks them out of play allowing you to spread more paint across the map. The game also includes the neat mechanic of allowing the characters to change from human to a squid at any time, allowing them to swim through the paint quickly while in squid form. The gamepad will display how much of the map is covered in your teams paint at all times and will allow you to leap to your friends location by simply touching the icon on the gamepad. The trailer also shows off a number of different weapons, including a giant rocket launcher that spreads paint all across the map. Nintendo is finally bringing something new to the table, and it looks like a fast and frantic entry in the shooter market, with that Nintendo flare. No release date has been given as of yet.
Lady Palutena Joins The Fight In Super Smash Bros.
Well turns out the leaks were correct, Palutena from the Kid Icarus franchise is in for the fight. The announcement came from a very cool anime style trailer where Link and Pit are stuck in a battle until Lady Palutena shows up and shows us what shes capable of. The goddess has never really been much of a fighter in the series, but shes a perfect fit for the series, using her staff and light shield to bash her foes in with godly style. She’s a quick fighter, much like Fox McCloud and hosts a number of heavenly attacks to combat enemies. Its fantastic to see more woman fighters in the series and more Kid Icarus love. Super Smash Bros. will release on 3DS this October and this holiday season for Wii U.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ezQ66-aHZQ
Devil’s Third Announced As A Wii U Exclusive
During the IGN showing of the Nintendo stream, we saw a new trailer for an unlikely Wii U exclusive, Devil’s Third. The game was originally to release on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC, but after THQ went bankrupt, turns out the rights went to Nintendo of all places. The game is a third person hack and slash melee combat game, very reminiscent of No More Heroes in gameplay and tone. While gameplay wise and visually the game doesn’t look like anything special, I actually am very interested in the title, as I love me some stupid pulpy over the top combat games, so I am pretty excited for Devils Third.
Star Fox Wii U Is Announced After The Show
In a very odd move now, the show ended with Shigeru Miyamoto playing what clearly looked like a new Star Fox title on the Wii U, but the show just ended there. Directly after this every big gaming website out there revealed that they had already played it and Nintendo confirmed that it existed, but never showed any actual gameplay, only pictures. The game will use the Wii U gamepad and the TV screen to show both first and third person perspectives. The gamepad will allow you to shoot in first person for a better aiming system, while the TV will feature the third-person view of the Arwing we all know and love. The Arwing can now turn into the Landrover at the push of a button, allowing multiple ways of traversal from on land to the sky. While many gamers were confused as to why it was not actually shown off at the conference, at a round table with Miyamoto he stated “Originally we weren’t targeting E3 as the announcement time for the Star Fox game but in developing it we really came to like it. And I also wanted to motivate ourselves to complete the game as quickly as possible.” The game is being developed in house, but Nintendo are looking for external help to finish the project. The game is in very early development stages and many reports have spoken of it in a very rough around the edges state. While its a little annoying at how much of a tease the ending of the show was, at least we know that a new Star Fox title is in development for the Wii U.
Two Other Wii U Gamepad Titles Revealed – Project Giant Robot And Project Guard
If the Star Fox news wasn’t confusing enough for you , Nintendo also revealed two other sci-fi based Wii U gamepad titles, Project Giant Robot and Project Guard. Project Giant Robot features the player making their own ridiculous skyscraper sized robot and fighting other giant robots in a series of challenges. The game features a physics based gameplay element, as the more insane you make your robot look, the more chance it will have to fall over. The idea sounds very similar to something like Sumo Tori, where the humor comes from the physics relating to the over the top fights you are seeing on screen. While the idea is pretty simple, its reportedly very fun. Project Guard on the other hand is Nintendo’s take on the tower defense genre. The player is tasked with installing a number of cameras in their base by using the Wii U gamepad to adjust location and rotation. Then the match starts, and you must keep an eye on every camera, waiting for giant robots to show up on screen. Whenever one shows up, you point the camera directly at them and shoot them with a giant laser. A number of different robots will be in the game, including stealth robots (can avoid sensors) and bird robots (can destroy cameras). The game idea sounds really fun as a simple little proof of concept and I would happily spend some time with it. Both of these projects do sound interesting, but I don’t think would be enough as fully fledged games on their own. Its a possibility that these will be included in this new Star Fox title, but these ideas don’t really fit in with the shoot ‘em up gameplay that the Star Fox series is known for.
Pac-Man Is Announced As A Fighter For Super Smash Bros
We all knew it was coming, and today we finally got confirmation that the last big gaming icon is joining the fight in Super Smash Bros. Yes ladies and gentlemen, Pac-Man is ready to fight. Along with Mario, Sonic and Megaman, Pac-Man rounds up the quartet of legendary gaming icons. Pac-Man resembles his newer 3D Pac-Man design from the Pac-Land series, but can change back to classic Pac-Man whenever he jumps or dashes. The hungry dot can throw pellets at enemies and basically call every Namco character to help out. His Final Smash is that he turns in to a massive unstoppable 2D Pac-Man.
Mario Party 10 Is Announced With Bowser Center Stage
Another announcement that was left out of the presentation now as Mario Party 10 was announced for the Wii U. This time you can play the usual four player fun minigame madness, but with a extra fifth character being Bowser. You play as the villain, you take control with the gamepad and basically try and stop your friends from winning minigames. I actually really like this addition to the usual Mario Party formula, it reminds me quite a bit of Dungeon Land. Mario Party 10 is set to release for the Wii U in 2015.
Mario Vs. Donkey Kong Announced For Wii U
The long running puzzle series that is Mario Vs. Donkey Kong is making its way to Wii U in 2015. This new title in the series will feature the usual toy based puzzles of the originals but will be played with the gamepad. The level creator is also back, now allowing you to share and download them online. I enjoyed the original Mario Vs. Donkey Kong on the DS, but I am really not sure what else they can add other then more toy based Mario characters (which you should definitely sell in real life Nintendo).
And that’s all the major Nintendo news from their events. Keep an eye on The Arcade for anything else important we think you’ll need to hear! As always, let us know what you think in the comments!