E3 2006 - Nintendo Edition

[The Amstor Computer]

...and before I piss off for a coffee, EGM are also claiming that both Mario and Super Smash Bros will be appearing on Nintendo's new system this autumn.

If the rumoured release of the system sometime between September - November holds true, these could both be launch titles. That sets Nintendo up with a launch lineup that looks like:

Mario
Super Smash Bros
Red Steel
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers
Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (technically a GameCube title, but playable and enhanced on Wii)
Tony Hawk Downhill Jam (looks awful, but it's there)
Rayman Raving Rabbids
Madden

...plus a bundle of other third-party titles, plus whatever else Nintendo are set to announce tomorrow. Looking pretty good so far.

[The Amstor Computer]

Controller rumoured to have both mic and speaker, plus a small amount of onboard memory for storing sound samples (and other data?)

Sound feedback from the controller as another form of feedback from the game itself - gunshots, blade scrapes etc.

[Marbles]

If they get a Star Wars game together with that Contoller as your light sabre (with built in 'swishing' noise'), mmmmmmmm

[The Amstor Computer]

Whole load of stuff to update with, but I'll start with Nintendo-published titles for the DS that were announced. There will be more in the way of third-party games over the week, but this is what Nintendo themselves will be bringing to the handheld this year:

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Chibi-Robo: Park Patrol

In the last Chibi-Robo adventure, our diminutive hero restored happiness to the Sanderson home, but in this DS sequel, he?s taking on the great outdoors.

Playground equipment in the park is mysteriously disappearing and the flowers in the park have been transformed by evil monsters. It?s up to Chibi-Robo to save the day and make the park a nice place to visit again.

This time around, Chibi-Robo gets to flex his mechanical muscles in new and interesting ways. He rides buggies, cars and boats across lawns and ponds, fights mysterious enemies with his trusty squirter, dances in the park to give life to the plants there and builds playground equipment to make the park a better place.

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Clubhouse Games

It?s game night and everyone?s invited. Play more than 20 classic board, card and party games alone, with friends or via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.

With familiar favorites like checkers, darts and poker, Clubhouse Games is for everyone and part of the Touch Generations library. Video game newcomers will appreciate the easy-to-use interface.

Players can challenge up to seven friends with one game card via Multi-Card Play or DS Download Play. Can?t play checkers without shouting ?KING ME!? across the table? The in-game (PictoChat?-like) feature takes table talk to a new level.

There?s no need to lug around cards or boards when you want to play a quick game. Clubhouse Games is one-stop gaming that will appeal to everyone?s tastes, whether they?re in the mood for bowling, backgammon, bridge or billiards.

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Custom Robo Arena

Custom Robo: The sport of tomorrow. In the not-too-distant future, competitors battle customized robot warriors in holographic battle arenas. Victory is determined not only by fighting skill but also by how well Robo Commanders design their robot gladiators, so players need both brawn and brains to survive.

Explore a sci-fi landscape as you fight toward the Custom Robo championship, powering up your Robos with tons of unique parts There are literally millions of possible Custom Robo combinations, giving you complete control over how you fight your battles.

Players can challenge their friends to one-on-one Robo battles anytime and anywhere using either Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, Multi-Card Play or DS Download Play.

Outside of the battle arenas, Custom Robo Arena plays like a role-playing game in which players walk through the futuristic city setting and interact with other characters as they struggle to win the Custom Robo championship.

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Donkey Kong: King of Swing DS

Get back into the swing of things as Donkey Kong goes vertical.

King K. Rool is up to no good again, and it?s up to Donkey Kong to swing into action. Using the same simple control scheme that made the DK: King of Swing Game Boy Advance SP game so accessible and fun to play, players of all skill levels can swing and climb to new heights made possible by the dual screens of Nintendo DS.

Adventure mode features Diddy Kong as a sub-character, and players can look forward to new moves, new items and a bunch of minigames sure to make them go bananas. Not only that, but fun tutorials that ease new players into the game also can be accessed as minigame challenges.

If players are more in the mood to rumble, they can take on up to three pals in fun multiplayer challenges using DS Download Play and the DS Local Area Network. They can pick from Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, Dixie Kong or Funky Kong, and let the monkey business begin.

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DS Air

Players take their elite strike fighters to the skies and hunt down a mad dictator before he takes over the world.

Features

-- As Nintendo?s first realistic flight shooter on Nintendo DS, DS Air lets players customize their fighters with a state-of-the-art weapon loadout.
-- Send wave after wave of enemy fighters to their doom in dogfights over land, sea and air.
-- Meet a wingman for co-op play and soar to victory over Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.

After being driven from his seat of power, a vicious dictator has fled to a remote, mountainous region to plan a military uprising. Mysteriously, the opposing army?s forces have received reinforcements, leading to speculation that an unknown nation is lending military assistance to the uprising. An ace pilot in an elite strike-fighter wing has been tasked with crushing the opposition forces and returning peace to the troubled region.

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Elite Beat Agents

(Note - essentially a remake of the cult Japanese title, Ouendan)

In a jam? Well, all these guys DO is jam! Prepare to rock as these beat masters use their groovy moves to save the day.

Features

-- As the music plays, players tap the screen, trace rhythmic patterns and keep the beat as the story unfolds on the top screen.

-- Every scene is accompanied by rump-shaking tunes, but players have to keep the Elite Beat Agents grooving. The worse players do, the worse the story might end up.

-- Rhythm games have come and gone, but no one has ever seen anything like the Elite Beat Agents. Whether they?re helping a lost dog find its way home or helping a babysitter charm a hunky football player, no crisis is too weird.

The public knows of government agencies like the FBI and CIA, but little is known of this super-secret agency. Code-named ?Elite Beat Agents,? these men in black are heroes? heroes and the coolest group of guys this world has ever known. Of course, according to official records, they do not exist.

Their leader, an ex-CIA agent named Commander Kahn, scans the world for cries of help. When he finds one, he dispatches the agents, who assist their targets by performing a song and dance. The hypnotic nature of their rocking revives the targets with ?Groovy? energy that boosts their willpower and helps them overcome their obstacles.

Every stage is presented in a storyline fashion. All stages share similar basic elements and game flow: The player gets introduced to the target?s problem in a comical intro. Commander Kahn dispatches the agents to the scene. The agents arrive in a special ?Beat Transport? that is tailor-made for the situation. The song starts as the agents and player meet the target. By tapping and tracing patterns that appear on-screen, players play along with the song?s rhythm. The animated story changes depending on how well the player performs. After each section, the player gets judged. Depending on the Elite-o-meter?s judgment, the story will go well or poorly. If the player makes it though the whole song, he or she will be judged on the whole thing and get one of three endings.

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Hotel Dusk: Room 215

Los Angeles, 1979. You are Kyle Hyde, an ex-cop turned salesman trying to track down a missing friend. Clues lead you to an eerie, old hotel rumored to have one very strange room ? a room where wishes are granted. It?s up to you to unravel the mystery in Hotel Dusk: Room 215, a gritty new graphic adventure for Nintendo DS.

Features

-- Players hold their Nintendo DS like a book and use the touch screen to grill characters, search for clues and solve mystifying puzzles.

-- Players follow the plot twists and turns as they hunt for their missing friend and investigate the mysteries of Hotel Dusk.

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The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass

The epic story of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker continues as Link finds himself lost and alone in unknown seas in a new adventure. Featuring intuitive touch-screen controls and innovative puzzles, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass offers new challenges for fans of the series and an easy-to-grasp introduction for gamers new to The Legend of Zelda. But time grows short, and only the Phantom Hourglass can buy Link the minutes he?ll need to survive.

Features

-- The stylus makes controlling Link easier than ever. Tap on the screen to make Link move, or sweep the stylus around him to swing the sword. Players can even draw a path for his boomerang and send it flying into hard-to-reach targets.

-- Players can stash the map on the top screen for quick reference or drop it to the touch screen to make notes, study enemies, or chart a path for their boat to follow while they man the cannons.

-- Compete with a friend over a local wireless connection: Guide Link through special dungeons to capture the Triforce or command the forces that oppose him.

Many months have passed since the events of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, and Link, Tetra and Tetra?s band of pirates have set sail in search of new lands. They come across a patch of ocean covered in a dense fog, in which they discover an abandoned ship. Tetra falls into danger when she explores the ship alone, and Link falls into the ocean when he attempts to rescue her. When he washes up unconscious on the shores of a mysterious island, he is awakened by the sound of a fairy?s voice. With the aid of this fairy, he sets off to find Tetra ? and his way back to the seas he once knew.

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Magical Vacation

The students of Will O? Wisp magical academy have a little problem: Their teacher has mysteriously disappeared. After commandeering a handful of rockets to rescue her, they?ve wound up on a strange (and sometimes scary) adventure through outer space. Now players must rescue both their classmates AND their teacher ? and just maybe the whole solar system while they?re at it.

Features

-- Explore strange planets. Players see the sights of this strange, sci-fi fantasy setting as they uncover the secret behind their teacher?s disappearance in this epic role-playing game.

-- The stylus controls everything, from combat to conversations to outfitting allies. Simple controls make it easy to play but a challenge to master.

-- Players can link up wirelessly with five friends and explore the amigo dungeon together ? they?ll find unending challenges and incredible rewards as they delve into the depths of this unique multiplayer experience.

Madeleine, a respected and powerful teacher at Will O? Wisp magical academy, tells her students that she will undertake a dangerous mission in space and trains them for combat should the need arise. After not hearing from her for some time, the kids stumble upon a hangar of rocket ships. One by one, they board individual ships and crash land on distant planets alone. Players hop from planet to planet assembling the group of classmates. Once together, they learn of an evil sorcerer ? a former student of the academy who now has ambitions to destroy reality ? and set out to stop him.

The game?s combat plays like a traditional role-playing game. The difference comes from the command wheel and the stylus interface. Players tap on the attacks they want to use and then tap on an enemy to target. The game focuses on magic attacks: Each character has a "sign" linked to one of the planets that determines the type of magic he or she uses. As the planets move through the solar system, the effectiveness of magic spells shifts, requiring an ever-changing battle plan: Monsters and characters grow stronger as their planets shift into prominence and weaker as they move out of those positions. Players can check the planets' positions by tapping on the astrolog.

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Mario Hoops 3-on-3

It?s a whole new ball game as Mario rocks the rim on the Nintendo DS.

Get that magic touch. There are plenty of basketball games out there, but none with the hands-on control of Mario Hoops 3-on-3. Players use the touch screen to get their game on as they execute tricky dribbles, special passes and sweet shots ? all with strokes and taps of the stylus.

Players choose their teams of three characters from the Mario universe and hit the parquet. Power-ups like Red Shells and Bob-ombs can turn the tide as they chase down coins ? they will affect the score, so players collect as many as they can as they drive to the hoop.

Whether playing against friends on a local wireless connection, jamming through a tournament or just playing mini-games, there?s a mode for everyone.

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Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis

Pauline, is that you? Plenty of surprises await in Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis.

Features

-- In the original Mario vs. Donkey Kong?, Mario? was trying to find all the Mini Marios ... but this time, it?s up to them to save the day. Players use the stylus and the touch screen to guide Mini Marios through mind-boggling, obstacle-filled levels.

-- Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2 allows players to create their own maps with a new level editor. Once a map is created, players can send it across the world via Nintendo? Wi-Fi Connection. Players also can use Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection to download maps created by others, check out a player-ranking system and access special bonuses. These unique features are sure to be a smash hit with puzzle fans everywhere.

-- Pauline returns! Pauline appeared in the original Donkey Kong? as the woman that Mario was attempting to rescue, and was one of the first recognizable characters created by Nintendo. After a decades-long hiatus, Pauline is finally returning to the world of video games in Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2. Pauline is the object of Donkey Kong?s misplaced affections, so players must rescue her all over again.

It seems folks love those Mini Mario toys. So much so that the Mario Toy Company has expanded the line to include Mini Donkey Kong, Mini Toad and Mini Peach figures to the series. With all these toys bringing him more money than he knows what to do with, Mario decides to fulfill his lifelong dream and open a theme park called Super Mini Mario World.

The opening-day crowd includes Pauline and Donkey Kong, who immediately falls head over heels for the lovely lass. The proud ape tries to show off his Mini DK toy to Pauline, but she picks the Mini Mario toy over his and the jealous Donkey Kong becomes enraged. He smashes the displays, destroys the toys and takes Pauline to the top floor of the amusement park. Players must find Pauline and save the day.

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Tenchu: Dark Secret

Tenchu: Dark Secret places you in the shoes of ninja assassins charged with protecting the life of a princess. Stalk your enemies with sword in hand, plant explosive traps in the underbrush, or strike with an assortment of realistic ninja weaponry?the choice is yours! With over 40 single-player missions and the ability to construct your own weapons and items, Tenchu is sure to keep your sword hand busy for a long time.

Strike at a Friend!

Prove your mettle with the metal by challenging friends to a local wireless multiplayer match! Tenchu: Dark Secret boasts three unique modes and a whole host of options to keep each match fresh and fun. Whether you're creeping through a bamboo forest to plunge a dagger into your friend's back or setting a trap to steal his precious dumplings, you're going to need a towel to wipe the sweat from your hands!

Shop Online!

Need a new bamboo trap? Short on shurikins? Just hop online! Tenchu: Dark Secret allows players to buy, sell, and trade items via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. You can choose to transact with either friends or strangers.

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Starfox DS

Star Fox returns to its roots with a blistering space shooter on Nintendo DS.

Features

-- Lylat needs help. Players hop into their Arwing fighter and fight through a unique branching storyline of missions, all rendered in gorgeous 3-D.

-- Star Fox DS brings a whole new strategic element to the series with a commander's view of the mission. Using the touch screen, players can draw the routes they and their teammates will take, then battle the enemies they encounter as they take over bases and strategically advance across the map.

-- Players can blow their friends out of the sky as they dogfight with up to eight players over a local wireless connection or take on up to four players from around the world on Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.

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Sudoku Gridmaster

Walk into any airport or train station and you're likely to see someone with a Sudoku book. The number-based puzzle game has taken the nation by storm, and now a dedicated Sudoku title is coming to the Nintendo DS! Once you've played Sudoku Gridmaster, you'll never go back to pen and paper again!

Sudoku Gridmaster uses intuitive Touch Screen controls that make solving the puzzles faster and easier than ever! Simply touch the square you want to fill in, then touch your answer on the number pad! You can also choose to forgo the number pad and write your answer directly on the Touch Screen.

Sudoku Gridmaster has plenty of helpful gameplay features to help you solve even the most complicated puzzles. Beginners will love the four in-depth tutorials that can be accessed at any time?even in the middle of a game!. Experts will appreciate the ability to highlight entire rows and columns with a single touch. And everyone will wonder how they survived without the ability to highlight all instances of the same number at once!

No matter what your experience, Sudoku Gridmaster has a puzzle for you! The game features puzzles in four difficulty settings (practice, easy, normal, and hard), and also has a fun unlockable system where you earn stars by performing well. If you gain enough stars, you'll be able to take a test and prove your skills. Pass the test to win a special award and open up even more puzzles!

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Yoshi's Island 2

Return to the colorful wilds of Yoshi?s Island in a new platforming adventure for Nintendo DS.

A mysterious floating island has suddenly appeared over peaceful Yoshi?s Island. Soon after its arrival, a gaggle of kids vanishes from the island school. Thankfully, Baby Mario, Baby Peach and Baby Donkey Kong manage to avoid being kidnapped. Now, Yoshi and the three young superstars must set out on a wild and colorful quest to rescue the kids and investigate the ominous island hovering overhead. Thanks to the power of Nintendo DS, all of the lush vistas and perilous paths of Yoshi's Island span two screens.

--------------------------------

Right, more info on Wii as soon as I can get it up here. Looks very cool, but definitely not a graphics powerhouse.

[The Amstor Computer]

More info on the games in a moment, but this concept video showing in-game footage and a wide variety of the titles they're lining up is a good place to start. All of the games in the vid are for launch or for 2007 and are first-party titles. The players shown with each game are exaggerating for effect, but it should give you an idea of how the games are played.

Click on the link below, then click on the first link in the Movie column.

Link: http://www.nintendo.co.jp/n10/e3_2006/index.html" target="_blank">Nintendo's Japanese E3 site...

[The Amstor Computer]

More info on the games in a moment, but this concept video showing in-game footage and a wide variety of the titles they're lining up is a good place to start. All of the games in the vid are for launch or for 2007 and are first-party titles. The players shown with each game are exaggerating for effect, but it should give you an idea of how the games are played. The graphics are - even in the small video box - clearly not up to PS3, but they do seem to be more impressive than the GameCube and in some instances within spitting distance of 360 titles. It's fairly obvious software on Nintendo's machine isn't going to be as gorgeous as on the other systems, but it's not going to look ugly & I think the benefits of the control scheme may outweigh any graphical disadvantages.

Click on the link below, then click on the first link in the Movie column. The second vid has more game footage from other launch and third-party titles.

Link: http://www.nintendo.co.jp/n10/e3_2006/index.html" target="_blank">Nintendo's Japanese E3 site...

[The Amstor Computer]

Right, a very brief rundown of what's been happening with news so far:

No launch date or price announced for Wii. Will be priced lower than their competitors and will launch this year, but specifics will likely come once they've seen what Sony and Microsoft do next.

Controller looks great. Now has a built-in speaker so players can hear effects - the twang of a bowstring as they release it, then a thunk from the TV when it hits - and the analogue section of the controller has motion sensitivity. That means both parts of the controller have motion sensitivity, though the main section (the bit that looks like a remote) can also relay it's position in space to the console.

The machine is clearly less powerful than the PS3, but some games are nudging at the heels of what the Xbox 360 is currently capable of. It's not a graphical powerhouse, but it holds its own.

The console will feature a service called WiiConnect24. It's always on, and always online. When in sleep mode it consumes very little power (Nintendo compare it to the power consumption of a lightbulb) and being always connected means games companies can send updates or additions to your games while the console isn't in use. Example given was that gifts could be sent to your Animal Crossing town, or friends could visit while you were asleep.

A wealth of first-party titles shown or announced, along with a fair few third-party games. A brief list follows. All titles marked with an asterisk are exclusives:

Super Mario Galaxy *
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess *
Wii Sports *
Wario Ware: Smooth Moves *
Symphony Conductor *
King Chef *
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess *
Project H.A.M.M.E.R *
Fire Emblem 10 *
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption *
Excite Truck *
Disaster: Day of Crisis *
Tony Hawk Downhill Jam *
Rayman Raving Rabbids
Red Steel *
One Piece
Madden '07 *
Call of Duty 3
Medal of Honor: Airborne
Pilotwings *
Sonic: Wild Fire *
Elebits *
Trauma Centre: Second Opinion *

There are plenty more, and more to be announced over the next few days. Wii Sports looks fantastic, though. The design deliberately harks back to the classic NES Sports series, and it's a compilation of various sports titles (Baseball, Tennis and Golf are confirmed, though other games may be added). Each game is controlled by using the Wii remote as though it were the racquet, club or bat. You can scoop under balls for a lob, make soft putts by varying the swing of the controller etc. etc.

Also forgot to add a couple more to the DS list:

Diddy Kong Racing
Phoenix Wright 2

[Meathook]

Let's hope that Nintendo get their act together on the media front as there was very little back up for the Cube and N64 here in Blighty , also not many games on launch which is where Ninty seem to be putting it right for Wii.
Hurrah!!!

[Devons Daddy]

i wonder if the WII could be the dark horse on the console war,

great games,wonderful immersive play with the new controller, i love those games in the arcade where you duck and shoot or slice and thrust, grendade throwing and jumping about,all great stuff,

low price,decent media coverage,as long as the big boys play EA sports, rockstar, and people like rebellion make WII versin of their products it could be nintendos second coming.

[Gothmog]

Well EA have already joined in with Madden '07 which is a good start for the US market.  There certainly seems to be a nice mix of games on list already.  Final Fantasy and Fire Emblem are sure to keep the RPG/strategy gamers happy.

IGN had a interview with one of the Madden developers recently with an interesting bit about how they were trying to use the controller.  you sort of flick it to "hike" the ball then you target your receiver and gesture with the controller to throw.  How you gesture affects the speed of the pass so you can do fast bullet throws or slower, lazy arcs.

[Roger Godpleton]

Is Zelda DS going to be all dungeons, a la Children of Mana?

[Banners]

So, I think I'm back in the Nintendo camp, despite the Wii's daft name, concerns about the controller and its relatively lacklustre graphics.

I'd also be concerned about an always-on service arbitrarily sticking stuff on my machine I either wouldn't want or know about. The potential use of push-advertising would be horrendous too... "Hello - buy our stuff!" every time you turn on. Urgh.

But, the PS3 looks mediocre and over-priced and I don't want a second PC (ie. a 360), so what are you to do...

However, the Wii remote seems to use AA batteries. Is that right? If so, I will not be a happy bunny if the gameplay keeps cutting out.

I thought I'd be more hyped about E3 - but there seem to be a lot of 'buts' around everything. Nothing I've seen of the Big 3 ahead of the actual show has made me think "woah - cool!" Yet.

M@

[Tex Hex]

The Super Mario Galaxy footage made me so happy!

-hex

[The Amstor Computer]

Mbanners --

The graphics are puzzling at the moment. There's some stuff there that looks gorgeous, if not quite up to the level of the 360 or PS3 (Super Mario Galaxy and Sonic Wild Fire both look lovely) then there's some stuff that looks GameCube or sub-GameCube level (Downhill Jam being a particularly good example).

One suggestion is that not everyone has access to the final dev kits yet, which would explain why a lot of Nintendo's first-party titles look great but most of the third-party stuff (Japanese devs aside) looks a bit ropey. There's also an interesting factoid in the official spec sheet - apparently the GPU is still in development. Perhaps that explains the widely varying quality?

As for the controller running on batteries, I'm not sure whether that's final, but I wouldn't worry about having your controller cutting out on you. I'd expect a lifespan akin to the wireless mouse I've got (perhaps a bit less if the sensors and rumble need more power) and I got several months out of that before needing to change batteries. Nintendo's hardware is typically robust and well-designed, so I'd expect them to be pushing for the max battery life to make sure using the controller is as simple and painless as possible.

[Art]

In terms of architecture the X-BOX 360 isn't really a second PC, it's 2 Power PC Macs bolted together...