E3 2006 - Nintendo Edition

The Amstor Computer · 08 May, 2006, 09:11:27 AM

Hope no-one minds these threads, but I know there are quite a few gamers on the board & I thought it would be good to have a set of threads dedicated to the news coming out of this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo. I've started three separate threads so that news & discussion about one company, or games for their console, can be kept a bit clearer. For anyone unsure of what's expected this year, I've posted a brief summary of some of the main announcements expected.

NINTENDO

PRESS CONFERENCE

May 9 @ 5.30pm (available live on nintendo.com)

WHAT TO EXPECT?

The full unveiling of Wii, Nintendo's new console. The remaining secrets relating to the controller & the system hardware to be revealed. First real footage of Wii titles.

The announcement of the first-party launch lineup & other first-party titles set for release on the console. Major franchise games like the new Mario, Zelda: Twilight Princess and Metroid Prime 3 all expected to be shown, with at least two of them playable on the show floor.

A full list of third-party titles to be released, breaking the silence around the console's third-party lineup. Red Steel, Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz and a handful of others have been announced, but many other major titles from third-parties are expected.

The Virtual Console service to be revealed. List of titles to appear on the VC - at least initially - to be announced. Sega & Hudson have already committed to providing their classic titles on the service - will other companies follow suit? Pricing may be announced.

Wii launch date and price may be announced.

DS Lite showcased. Both New Super Mario Bros. and Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass are to be on show, but other major first and third-party announcements are expected.

Devons Daddy · 08 May, 2006, 11:42:10 AM

i have seen the DS lite, its on show here in singapore demo import versions only.
much improved on the orignal 80s styled one,

brighter screen as well,better placed microphone for nintendogs etc,stylus redesign more sturdy.
price currently said to be 25% higher on intial imports when available,pre orders being taken.

The Amstor Computer · 08 May, 2006, 07:30:23 PM

Yup, my DS Lite arrived at the weekend & I'm just blown away by the quality of the screens. It's a sexy piece of kit now, and coupled with the great (and growing) library of games, it's quickly becoming one of my favourite ever consoles.

And, to keep the thread up to date, here's a list of a few of the first-party DS titles damn-near-confirmed to be at E3:

Ouendan

The loopy DS rhythm title with new backgrounds, new storylines & Western music - possibly retitled as "Beat Team" or "Elite Agent Force".

Mario Vs Donkey Kong 2

A sequel to one of the finest GBA games of recent years.

Chibi Robo DS

A DS version of the quirky GameCube title where you play as a household robot.

Bico · 08 May, 2006, 09:55:27 PM

Ouendan's looney Jpop was what made the game so damnably playable. I'm not enthused by the idea of a Girls Aloud version - if I'm going to have game music stuck in my head most of the day, repeating and repeating until my brain grabs a metaphorical shotgun and makes for the local schoolyard, I'd rather not know what the lyrics mean, as it helps me think of it as maeningless noise, rather than incredibly poor songwriting. Having said that, I've watched so much anime by now that a lot of Japanese words are starting to appear in my brain in english. Those Japanese sure do sing about eyes a lot.

The Amstor Computer · 08 May, 2006, 09:59:35 PM

Well, I'm prepared to wait & see on the Ouendan front. I believe Nintendo are doing the localisation themselves & they usually put a great deal of effort into ensuring a quality product. Their Western versions of Donkey Konga were pretty damn good, so I'm happy to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Tex Hex · 08 May, 2006, 10:04:42 PM

While were talking about DS, have you read the New Super Maio Bros. review over on IGN? Cant wait...

-hex

The Amstor Computer · 08 May, 2006, 10:14:39 PM

Yeah, it's getting glowing reviews all round. I'm not sure whether I can wait for a UK release - though Amazon are claiming it will ship on May 15.

It seems to have lifted the best sections of the classic SMB series & melded them nicely with elements of SM64 and SMS to make a game that's true to the series' heritage, but advances the 2D platformer genre at the same time.

The interesting thing is that reports from a Wired reporter who has had a private hands-on with the DS titles for E3 suggest that neither this nor Zelda: Phantom Hourglass will be the DS game of the show. God knows what could trump that pair, but I'm certainly intrigued...

Tex Hex · 08 May, 2006, 10:22:42 PM

I couldnt wait for Metroid Prime Hunters to arrrive so I bought an import last month. The guy in the shop assured me there would be no regional compatibility issues (with eg: wi-fi or wireless link-up play), but Ive been hearing things to the contrary now that its out here. Does anyone know the truth? Should I go back and kick arse?

-hex

Marbles · 09 May, 2006, 04:15:25 AM

Nice first look/play with the new Controller article from Time magazine here ...

"It's a remarkable experience. Instead of passively playing the games, with the new controller you physically perform them. You act them out. It's almost like theater: the fourth wall between game and player dissolves. The sense of immersion--the illusion that you, personally, are projected into the game world--is powerful. And there's an instant party atmosphere in the room. One advantage of the new controller is that it not only is fun, it looks fun. When you play with an old-style controller, you look like a loser, a blank-eyed joystick fondler. But when you're jumping around and shaking your hulamaker, everybody's having a good time."

Link: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1191861-1,00.html" target="_blank">Time Review

The Amstor Computer · 09 May, 2006, 04:32:07 AM

Yeah, that was a cracking write-up, though a little uncritical (that said, Time isn't a specialist gaming publication).

The tennis tech demo sounds remarkable, though - very basic graphics, as the emphasis is on gameplay, but an apparently stellar use of the controller. From what it says it sounds like the controller essentially becomes the virtual player's racket & arm, with the movements you make determining the exact stroke your avatar makes.

The Warioware title should be a proof-of-concept, though. The huge variety of minigames typically present in these titles will offer a showcase to other developers so they can see exactly what the console is capable of.

This thing isn't going to have the stellar graphics of the PS3, but if the controller does turn out to be everything the previews have suggested then that graphical difference may be far less important than it seems.

The Amstor Computer · 09 May, 2006, 04:54:16 AM

More news coming in, direct from the Square-Enix press conference and from the new issue of EGM:

Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime to appear on the DS. Localised version of the recent Japanese DS hit.

Rumoured price for Virtual Console games will be something like

The Amstor Computer · 09 May, 2006, 04:58:04 AM

Bugger, don't know what happened there:

Rumoured price for Virtual Console games will be something like

The Amstor Computer · 09 May, 2006, 05:01:03 AM

Ah, got it:

Rumoured price for Virtual Console games will be something like sub-US$5 for NES titles, US$5 for SNES and sub-US$10 for N64.

Wii will be always online (what this means isn't clarified in the EGM article)

The controller will also house a speaker (this was rumoured for quite some time - may also contain a microphone)

A RUMOURED launch price of US$250 was floated by EGM in their article

The Amstor Computer · 09 May, 2006, 05:04:05 AM

...and more out of the Squenix conference:

Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors to be a Wii launch title. Possibly not part of the main Dragon Quest series, but a major title for the console which - along with the new Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles game - suggests Square-Enix are taking Nintendo's machine very seriously.

The Amstor Computer · 09 May, 2006, 05:15:01 AM

...and more from EGM and the Squenix conference:

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess will be appearing on both GameCube and Wii. Said to be 80% complete, delayed for graphical overhaul and adding Wii functionality. Will be substantially larger than Ocarina of Time. Will also have some form of online mode (exactly what isn't specified)

Metroid Prime 3 to be a 2007 release, so will not be appearing at launch. Still expecting it to be present at E3 tomorrow, though.

Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles. Two new games in the series. First up is Rings of Fate, a DS-only entry in the series. Wi-fi multiplayer confirmed. A Wii title formally announced - The Crystal Bearers. Some footage shown, no further info yet.