Vice Recap: Nintendo E3 Conference

Hey GamingVice readers, this is a fun read of exactly what Kevin and I were thinking as we watched the Nintendo Conference early this morning. Nintendo had a lot of new stuff to show during the conference including everything from a new Metroid by Team Ninja and Nintendo for Wii in 2010, a Golden Sun DS game and two brand new Wii Mario games, Mario Galaxy 2 and New Super Mario Bros. Wii along with a ton of third-party announcements! :

• We’re here at the Nokia Theater where Nintendo broadcasts their E3 press conference from Club Nokia. Enthusiasts gather to anticipate surprises that are to come.
• The Pixelated Geek interviewed Roger and he performed a Nintendo rap. EPIC.

• Apparently, immediately after the conference, we’ll be able to play demos hands-on as game kiosks rise from the stage. That’s epic too.
• Their main message – EVERYONE’S GAME intended for EVERYONE (every connection, every audience, every generation – casual audience). DS games and Wii games.

• Cammie Dunaway Executive VP Sales and Marketing Nintendo of America, Inc. takes the stage. Professional connection to video games. NPD last year – video games were just as big as home video and toys, bigger than music + movie box office put together. Focusing already actively involved as gamers before, now it’s different. Woman playing DS on a plane, uncle calling for tips on Mario Kart. Build audience in different ways. Goal – create surprise, absolute innovation?, sort of creeps up on you (grin, shout buried in the level).
• Slideshow of Mario and his dominance in games. Mario – 200+ games and 200+ million units sold. How to make him into 4th dimension? Key to next surprise.
• New Super Mario Bros. for Wii! AWESOME!
• Bill Trinen, Senior Manager, Product Marketing – demonstrates SMBW. MORE PLAYERS – 3 other people join in (2 marios, 2 toads). You can pick up and carry other players. Can help save them or kill them by throwing them at enemies or pits. Lots of coins to collect and classic warp pipes and hidden areas. Main game – 1-4 players, Play with and against each other. Can call for more players during gameplay. Propeller suits, use wii-mote to fly up to save themselves from pits or elevate to a higher plane. Screen will pan out to spread out, guys in the back get wiped off screen. End of level – how many enemies you stomp, coins collected, and ranks your performance. Available Holiday 2009.
• Wii Fit Plus moves to an added direction. Workout routine which is right for you. Player enters a locker room, and the game becomes your own personal trainer. You can mix and match individual exercises, can target body area for strengthening, toning, conditioning, keep track of calories you burn. Not entirely about fitness, it’s a lot of fun. 15 new balance games – juggling, skateboarding, perfect 10 (swing hips to different combinations to get the number ten), Jumping over cannonballs and pits (just like Mario). Available Fall 2009.
• Reggie Fils-Aime – President and Chief Operating Officer Time for some ass-kicking and taking names. Nintendo’s primary weapon for mainstream breakthrough – interface. 1st – Wii-remote then Wii balance board. Now – Add an extension to Wii-mote (Wii Motion Plus)- new sense of realism, feels and plays more real; precision control. Physical reality = new proving ground for game innovation.
• Wii Sports Resort Trailer – ping pong, basketball, swinging a katana, archery, golf, jet-skiing, canoe, frisbee.
• Bill Trinen comes out again to demo the game. Wii motion plus detects position, angle, how and where you hold control, apply to game, offers precision in motion. Wii Sports Resort Demonstration – Jumps out of airplane, turn and twist, position mii to grab other skydivers, dive straight down to speed up descent or flat out to grab more friends, land on the island for the resort. Archery – hold wii remote vertically just like a real bow, press A button to grip, hold Z to draw back bow string, every pan is accurately detected on the screen. Have to compensate distance (by arcing shots), wind, and moving target to hit the target. Longer you hold string, there will be less focus on the shot. Reggie Fils-Aime comes out to help demonstrate basketball (3-pt contest) with Trinen. Hold Wii-remote, aim, and flick wrist for style and accuracy. Reach down to pick up ball, reach up and flick. Reggie wins 19-17 (money ball saves him). Available July 26.

• 3rd Party Motion Plus Support: EA - Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 – bundled with Wii Motion Plus, EA – Grand Slam Tennis, Sega – Virtua Tennis 2009. Every little mistake you make will be faithfully reflected in the game. Ubisoft – Red Steel 2 – playable ONLY with Wii Motion Plus control.
• Square-Enix Blowout:  FF: The Crystal Bearers – action RPG with Wii Motion Plus? Sept 29 – Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days for DS – feature the Nobodies/Organization XIII.
• Reggie mentions a newfound focus on RPGs. Long time bad guy sucks, literally – Mario and Luigi Bowser’s Inside Story. Brothers are in Bowser’s internal pipes. RPG where you control Bowser and the brothers alternatively. Available Fall 2009 (US and EU). SURPRISE! - Golden Sun DS announced for Spring 2010. ALL OVER MY FACE!
• DS 3rd party talk. THQ – October 13 – James Patterson Women’s Murder Club Games of Passion – mimic the novel. Detective game. Ubisoft – C.O.P. the Recruit - young NY cop forced undercover to prove his partner’s innocence; Dan Miles – underground street racer – take down terrorist leader (first mission). Use stylus to aim and shoot, also a game map on the touchscreen while you drive. Style Savvy aimed at women audience. Compete in Runaway Contests, manage shops, and shopping in other people’s shops.
• DSiWare!  Focus on user generated content – Flip Notes Studio – movie maker -  available Summer 2009. Mario vs Donkey Kong Minis March Again – make up levels – available June 8 downloable at DSiWare. WarioWare DIY – make your own WarioWare games. Summer 2009 – automatically upload photos from DSi to Facebook. Facebook integration is a big win.
• The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks available at the showfloor this week.
• Satoru Iwata comes out – talks about expanding gaming population. 3 different gamer groups – active, never played, maybe. Japan + US + EU – 295 million active players. Japan + US + EU – 149 million potential players. Pull in more players (there’s gonna be a player waiting to jump in to the action while 2 others play). Potential answer? Sneak peek – Wii Vitality Sensor – connects to Wii-remote; measures heartbeat. ”Achieve greater relaxation.” – use it as a way to relax in a video game. Crowd is dumbstruck and saddened. Epic fail if this is the big announcement.
• Wait, hold on. Big news…2nd full 3D Mario title on a single Nintendo console – SUPER MARIO GALAXY 2. Yoshi is back in Galaxy 2 and you can ride him, different Yoshis have different skills (inflate). Snow levels, underwater levels, dark areas, Bee Mario is back, black and white area, dark areas with boo, dark areas with evil red Mario dopplegangers following him, snowman Bowser, more ships coming out of portals. . EPIC WIN, way to psych us out with the Vitality thing. Galaxy 2 is a 2010 title.
• Reggie says. “I want more” – 3 exclusive Wii 3rd party titles. Oh boy…Sega IP - The Conduit – available in 3 weeks (June 2009). Capcom – Resident Evil The Darkside Chronicles – Leon S. Kennedy, Claire Redfield, Steve Burnside are back. Shooter and action. Mysterious lady contained in a capsule in the end of trailer. Sherry? EA - Dead Space Extraction – “I can feel them all around” . Way to pull out the mature hardcore titles.
• Wait, hold on. One more thing, Reggie mentions a partnership with a major studio working on a classic Nintendo franchise. Prepare yourself, this could be Zelda or Icarus…
• HOLY CRAP! OMG, OMG, OMG. Metroid: Other M developed by TEAM NINJA as PROJECT M – available 2010. Looks very gritty, has what looks to be 2D and 3D gameplay, looks heavily action oriented and much unlike any other Metroid game. ”Time to go.” It apparently goes deeper into Samus’s story and deeper into Metroid universe. HOLY CRAP! MEGATON!
• One final promise to revitalize franchises and new devices to transport you to new levels of gaming and the conference is done. WOW, way to make a comeback Nintendo.

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