E3 Thoughts Part 3: Nintendo

Why am I reminded of abused wives going back to their husbands when I look at Nintendo? Maybe it is because last year Nintendo openly gave their core audience the finger and announcing they were leaving you for your parents!

This year felt more of the same with a booty call or two. First lets start with the good this time as it wasn't much.

• Super Mario Galaxy 2: OK that one caught me off guard, a sequel that sticks to the first games formula? I cant really complain considering Galaxy was brilliant, one of my favourite titles of 2007 (one of the few years I was fond of Nintendo where they didn't release a major Zelda title). Considering the first game won a crapload of Game of the Year awards you can tell this is going to be a major release. Oh yeah and theres Yoshi! I forgot about him/her/it... whatever it is!

• Metroid: Other M: Another great title from Nintendo in 2007 was Metroid Prime 3, a title I felt was superior to Halo 3 (yet didn't touch BioShock) and really showed off the Wiimote as a great controller for an FPS (after Call of Duty 3 & Red Steel fucked it). Other M has got me more excited than the Prime games for a couple of reasons, first the fact that its not all first person: it seems its got first person, 2d and 3d action as well. The 2nd reason that g0t me all pumped up for it is the fact that its done by TEAM NINJA! Yes I know Itagaki-san no longer works at Tecmo but that doesn't mean it wont rock. Don't forget... Shinji Mikami had virtually nothing to do with Resident Evil 5 and that still rocked.

• Despite nothing really new, there are a few interesting 3rd party titles coming including The Conduit, Dead Space Extraction and Red Steel 2 (provided it works this time!)
  

But that was about it for the good things, just 2 announcements and trailers and that was pretty much it, the rest was all downhill

• Wii MotionPlus. Yeah yeah we saw this last year and its already out... next

• Someone needs to remind Nintendo who the audience is at E3! Who that attends and watches these things give a flying fuck about Woman's Murder Club and Wii Fit Plus? Like last year Nintendo fills their show with the casual garbage and throws in a hardcore title every now and then just when your falling asleep.

• Wii Vitality Sensor? Are you serious Iwata? Gee that's great! We could possibly understand what your trying to get accross if you at least displayed a software demo or even explained what the point was except to help games put you to sleep. Seriously Mr Iwata, if a game puts you to sleep there is something seriously wrong with the game. Not to mention its already been done, you released Wii Music last year remember?

• Relying on 3rd party again to back you up, didnt work last year neither. You seriously have nothing for this year? Oh thats right, New Super Mario Bros Wii! Yeah because a multiplayer Mario that kills all sense of speed running (you know, the stuff that made Mario and Sonic the kings of the 2D world?) for something multiplayer? Sorry but it would be better off without it. I love 2D platformers, and its shame to see something like a 2D mario reduced to a gimiky excuse for Mario Party 9

• Cammie Dunaway... I hate Cammie fucking Dunaway! What on earth is this moron doing at a games convention AGAIN? She looks like my game hating aunty pretending to be hip! Microsoft got Felcia Day, the hottest gamer geek in the world! Nintendo got a Sarah Palin reject! Im dead serious, Dunaway trying to talk games is as laughably depressing as Palin was trying to talk forgin policy! I dont know what her credentials are but gaming is not one of them!

So all in all Nintendo had a few nice suprises but over all they sucked. I will give them credit though, they did better than last year. At least Miyamoto managed to avoid embarrasing himself this year.