Nintendo E3 2009 Wrap
Nintendo and Sony headlined the busiest day of E3 this year, with back to back keynotes that were sure to keep us entertained on E3 2009 Day 2.
Nintendo started proceedings with a bang. After a slight delay Cammie Dunaway kicked things off with a Mario montage, leading in to the announcement of New Super Mario Bros. Wii. The all new 4 player Super Mario title was demonstrated on stage and will certainly please Nintendo fans of old.
Unfortunately the excitement level dropped directly after as Cammie went on to announce the leaked Pre-E3 Wii Fit Plus - a game that is heading in a 'new direction' and would help people "create a specific workout program that's perfect" for them. Cammie showed off a range of new minigames, including skateboarding and barrel jumping, which finally puts the gamer in Mario's shoes.
Reggie then came on stage to start talking about 'innovation' and went into a promotion for Wii MotionPlus and Wii Sports Resort, two items that were announced at E3 last year. Nintendo's Bill Trinen showed us that Wii Sports Resort will begin with skydiving, and then gave us a look at the very interesting archery and basketball games. Reggie reminded us that third party developers are making use of Wii MotionPlus, including EA with Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 & Grand Slam Tennis and Sega with Virtua Tennis 2009.
Reggie dropped an interesting statistic by claiming that more 3rd party games were sold on the Wii and DS than any other platforms. Wow! He used Square Enix as an example of upcoming RPGs by showing off a trailer for Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearer and Kingdom Hears 358/2 Days. Continuing the RPG trend Reggie discussed how Bowser sucks, and this time he literally means it. In Mario & Luigi RPG: Bowser's Inside Story the famous brothers have been shrunk and find themselves inside their nemesis!
The biggest under the radar announcement was that of Golden Sun DS. After a 6 year absence one of the best RPGs of the GBA era is back, and deserved way more excitement than it got.
Cammie replaced the Nintendo of America President on stage to announce Woman's Murder Club, an interactive book for the Nintendo DS. This is all about 'taking risks' and trying new things. It's definitely an interesting concept, and one we'll see more of if it turns out to be a success. Continuing with the DS content she announced COP: The Recruit. An open-world third-person urban crime game, Cop puts players behind the wheel, and on foot, as a street racer who's faced with the choice of returning to his criminal ways, or helping the police. The action packed trailer looked like GTA meets Driver mixed in with some Anime style cutscenes.
The DSi has some interesting unique features, including the ability to download content and 'applications' from an online store. In keeping with this theme Nintendo announced that it is developing a system for users to be able to share DSi pictures on the World Wide Web. Users will be able to take pictures with their DSi and then directly upload them to their Facebook page straight from their DSi console. WarioWare DIY is another DSi exclusive title and will allow players to create their own microgames, using features such as the DSi camera, then send them to their friends locally via Wi-Fi.
Nintendo President Satoru Iwata came on stage and confused everyone. He gave an extremely long, seemingly unnecessary speech, about Nintendo attempting to increase its audience. He said there are three active groups - those who actively play, those who never play and those who might. If gaming is to grow, it must come from the "maybe" group. There are 295 Million people in Japan, Europe and the US actively playing games. Then there's another 145 Million who say they might be involved in games. He continued to discuss non-gamers for quite a while and it seemed as if he didn't really have a point.
Eventually Iwata announced the Wii Vitality Sensor - a device the plugs into the bottom of your Wii Remote and receives information about your heart rate by being attached to your finger.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 was announced to the surprise of many since a new Mario title was announced at the start of the show. Check out the trailer to see Mario running around the spherical world, this time with the help of Yoshi. Super Mario Galaxy 2 is the first true sequel to a 3D Mario title, and the first time two 3D Mario adventures will appear on the same console.
Reggie reads the blogs. He knows we want more mature titles from third party developers. So, he decided to show us three games on the horizon that fit this description, and one of those games was Dead Space Extraction.
Nintendo started the show with a surprise, and ended it with a massive shock, by announcing that they were teaming up with Team Ninja to bring Metroid: Other M to the Nintendo Wii. It's Metroid like you've never seen it before, and as Reggie says, it takes a name you know well and turns it into something new. The game is due out next year and features a mix of 1st and 3rd person gameplay. With that Nintendo concluded their Keynote for E3 2009.
Later in the day, at their roundtable discussion, Shigeru Miyamoto confirmed that a new Wii Zelda title is in development. Don't expect it until 2010 at the very earliest and reports that we won't see it again until next E3 suggest it may be further away than that.
Sony E3 2009 Wrap
The morning continued with Sony's Conference starting at 4am local time. Jack Tretton started proceedings by thanking everyone for coming and stated that they won't be "out done" by anyone. He discussed the success of the PS2 and that Sony was the first company to have 3 successful consoles in the industry at the same time along side the PS3 and PSP. inFamous is just one of 35 titles to come exclusively to the PlayStation 3 in 2009 and looks set to further increase the 13 million PS3 that have already been sold worldwide.
Sony played montages of various upcoming games throughout the entire keynote. Out of all the videos the show early in the piece Heavy Rain received the biggest applause.
The PSP was a major player in the keynote as Sony officially announced "the worst kept secret of E3" the PSP Go. They also confirmed that the new iteration of the handheld wouldn't make the PSP-3000 or UMD obsolete and that they intended to continue to support both in the future, even after the PSP GO is released.
Sony did have a surprise or two in store for us, however, by bringing out Kojima to announce Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker for PSP. It is set 10 years after the events of MGS3: Snake Eater and is said to be a true sequel to that title. The game is set in 1974, where a powerful group takes over Costa Rica.
Gran Turismo PSP kept the good news coming for PSP fans as it was announced along side the PSP Go and showcased with an impressive trailer. There will be over 800 cars, 35 tracks and 60 layouts of those tracks. The game will also run at 60 fps. It will be a launch title along side the PSP Go.
Finally Agent was announced exclusively for the PlayStation 3. "We have always enjoyed making action games, and with Agent we are making what we believe will be the ultimate action game," said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. We didn't get any images or footage but nobody is going to complain about an exclusive game from Rockstar.
Sony dropped a bombshell during their E3 2009 keynote speech when they announced Final Fantasy XIV Online exclusively for the PS3 and PC. A small trailer was shown, although no gameplay was in the trailer. The response to the announcement was one of amazement, as the audience at the keynote didn't quite know how to react to it.
In keeping with the FF theme Sony revealed that Final Fantasy VII is going to be released on the PS Store for download.
The biggest shock of the morning came when Sony announced their new motion controller for the PS3. While the controller was still in the form of an early prototype it worked in a similar way to the Wii Remote. However, with the aid of a camera it appeared to detect movement better than the current Wii Remote. Dr. Richard Marx, creator of the EyeToy, demoed the controller on stage, showing off its real-time movement and how precise it is with the gamer’s swings. We'll post the video of the demonstration shortly.
Sony also announced Mod Nation Racers - a community and creative-focused title from developer United Front Games. The title will be a kart racing title, allowing you to generate your own characters and build your own karts.
Another PS3 exclusive, God of War III will be hitting shelves during March 2010. It just snuck in towards the end of the conference and we're glad it did with a trailer. The gameplay is just as we expect it to be - gory, violent and action-packed! The environments look stunning and the enemies just as massive and aggressive as we remember from the first two mind-blowing titles. And with that Sony Concluded their Keynote.
03/06/2009
Nintendo was disappointing at E3 last year to say the least. However, a year later Nintendo has promised bigger and better things at the number one gaming conference on the calendar. After ‘downsizing’ in the past two years, the real E3 is back this year. Back to being the specular event it should be, and more importantly what we all want it to be. But will it deliver on the announcement front?
Over the course of the week we’ll be looking at what Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft have in store for us this year. What we expect to see, what has been teased, predicted and what we’d like to see surprise us this year.
What’s Expected
"From Nintendo's perspective, we always go into E3 with a very high bar wanting to satisfy not only the core fans but also ourselves” said Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. After a disappointing show last year, fans have a right to be skeptical. However, with the recent release of the DSi, and a lack of big name titles from Nintendo themselves on the Wii, this time around the Big N need to pull out something special. If they don’t I fear many loyal fans may begin to jump ship.
Kid Icarus Wii
Where is it? It should have been announced ages ago! Nintendo need to pull out their big guns this year, making E3 the perfect time to revive Kid Icarus.
We want Kid Icarus on Wii!Resident Evil Archives: Resident Evil & Resident Evil Darkside Chronicles
One is a remake and the other is an on-rails shooter, but one thing is for sure, Resident Evil sells well on Wii. It may not be Resident Evil 5, but if sales of past games are anything to go by Wii fans love the RE series. Both of these Capcom titles will be on show at E3 and can be penciled in to sell over a million copies to the mature Wii audience.
Tatsunoko Vs Capcom
Originally released only in Japan, a western release for Tatsunoko Vs Capcom was recently announced and the game has been confirmed to be on show at E3.
Red Steel 2
The first Red Steel had a great concept; the execution just didn’t match it. Red Steel 2 will be set in a desert-bound, high-tech metropolis. The title will also take full advantage of the Wii MotionPlus peripheral. We expect to see Red Steel 2 on show at E3 and hopefully, with the help of 1:1 motion, it’ll play as it should have the first time around.
Wii MotionPlus
MotionPlus will be released a few days after E3 wraps up. Expect Nintendo to give it one last pre-launch promotion at E3. Wii Sports Resort, Ninty’s first and currently only title to use the device, was announced last year and will launch worldwide in 6 weeks. Expect Nintendo to really push MotionPlus as it is essentially transforming the Wii into the motion controlled beast we all thought it would be 2 years ago. No doubt they’ll have a few big name games in development that make use of the device.
The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks
Announced at GDC’09, Reggie hinted that we would get a confirmed release date at E3. In fact besides that the Nintendo of America President has been tight lipped regarding what we can expect from E3 (besides an improvement on last year).
Pokemon Heart Gold and Pokemon Soul Silver
It wouldn’t be Nintendo without Pokemon. The remakes of Pokemon Gold and Silver for the DS were recently announced, and we expect Nintendo to show off some more footage at E3.
Wii to DS Connectivity
The DSi has expanded Nintendo’s audience who own both the Wii and DS, making E3 the perfect time to start pushing DS to Wii Connectivity. Perhaps a new Wii Zelda could connect to Spirit Tracks or Mii’s could become transferable to the DSi menu.
Metroid Prime Trilogy
The three Metroid Prime games all on one disc with remastered Wii controls is something to get excited about. Seeing how the game itself has already been announced don’t expect it to be a big feature, but some more info would be nice.
What's been Teased
Two new games from High Voltage Software
The developer of The Conduit teased us by confirming they will announce two new Wii games at E3.The first will be a FPS which they hope to make technically stronger than the very impressive The Conduit. The second is “a different kind of a thing.”
Sadness
The survival horror title was one of the first announced for the Wii; however, we are yet to get a single in-game screenshot or trailer. Developer Nibris has teased that we may finally get a glimpse of the title running at E3.
Coloured Wiis/Wii Remotes
Rumours of coloured Wiis and Wii Remotes have been around since the console launched. There’s nothing more concrete this year to suggest that we’ll see them than in the past, besides the fact that the console has now been out for a few years, and that’s generally when Nintendo decide to get colourful.
Is it time for Nintendo to get colourful?Zelda & Mario Wii
Nintendo have hinted that these are in development, and now is the time to announce at least one of them. Zelda seems like the obvious choice seeing how Zelda: Twilight Princess was released back in 2006, and it was a GameCube port. In saying that, don’t be surprised if Nintendo go big and announce both of them to make up for the lack of software last year.
Capcom Mystery Title
We know that Capcom’s ‘mystery title’ is an action game and will be developed by Capcom Japan. What we don’t know is anything else. At this point in time we don't even know what console it'll be on.
Surprise us! The things we want to see
Pikmin 3
Where is Pikmin 3? I’ve been playing the New Play Control version of Pikmin 2 this week and it seems almost criminal that the Wii hasn’t had an instalment in the franchise. While we’re on the topic a DS version wouldn’t go astray either.
Pikmin and the Wii and/or DS go together so well. Where's Pikmin 3?Donkey Kong
I’d love to see a real Donkey Kong game for either the Wii or DS. We haven’t had one since DK64 (Jungle Beat and what not really don’t count). While it wasn’t the same as the Donkey Kong Country games I thought it was a solid transition from 2D masterpiece into the 3D arena.
Mario Tennis Wii
I wasn’t a fan of the controls in New Play Control Mario Power Tennis, but I’d like to see Nintendo give it another crack. Wii MotionPlus should help with the lack of accuracy which plagued the GCN remake.
GTA Wii
It’s not likely, but that’s what people said last year and seemingly out of nowhere GTA: Chinatown Wars for the DS was announced. It received critical acclaim from game publications and fans despite not selling as well as Rockstar may have liked. It’s really a matter of if they think the market is there on the Wii after what may have been a mature audience experiment on DS.
Super Smash Bros. DS
This almost definitely won’t happen, but we can dream. After doing so well on consoles it seems blatantly obvious to us that the franchise should go portable. Yet Nintendo, who must have their reasons, chose to keep it exclusive to their home console. Maybe one day, but we hope at this year's E3!
02/06/2009
On April 2nd, 2009, Australia will see the release of the third iteration of Nintendo's popular handheld gaming device, the DS. Named the "DSi", the system was first announced at the Nintendo Press Conference on October 2, 2008 in Tokyo, Japan. The "i" in the name is meant to symbolize the two cameras that are built into the handheld, looking like a pair of eyes.
So what exactly is the DSi and what makes it differ from previous iterations of the handheld?
27/03/2009
In 2004 Nintendo unleashed the most successful handheld system of current times, the Nintendo DS. The systems had a set of features that were a mile long, including Touch Screen, dual screens, Wi-Fi and built in microphone to name a few. Things were looking good, and with a catalogue of successful games behind it, the system was destined to be a hit.
In 2006 Nintendo re-released the console with a sleeker, smaller and more elegant design, titled the Nintendo DS Lite. It was smaller, lighter, looked nicer and featured brighter screens. The DS Lite has become the face of the Nintendo DS, and is now the model of choice.
But April 2009 will see the release of another re-design of the handheld. The Nintendo DSi boasts larger screens, dual cameras (one inside, one on the outer shell), smaller design, new user interface and SD memory card slot for AAC playback. Launching at a price of $299 at EB Games around Australia, is the DSi worth an upgrade from your Lite?
With the inclusion of cameras it would be safe to suspect a slew of titles created to take advantage of the new hardware, which of course would render the DS Lite un-useable. This is a double edged sword however, as the DSi doesn't include a gameboy advanced port. Gamers who own many accessories that utilize this port (including the popular Guitar Hero franchise) simply need to make a decision, do you want the newer device but lose your games and accessories, or do you want to continue to enjoy your hardware that you have purchased.
The DSi doesn't boast any major hardware upgrades in the performance scale, so ultimately it will be up to Nintendo to make the ultimate decision - will they continue to support the DS Lite, or slowly phase it out of production.
What are your thoughts on the DSi? Will you be upgrading from your DS Lite?
The Nintendo DSi launches across Australia on April 2nd 2009
23/03/2009
The Voice
The fourth episode of The Voice is now here!
In this weeks podcast, Tano and Heller discuss the release of GTA IV: The Lost and Damned, the latest Dead to Rights and the upcoming release of the DSi. They go through some of the latest reviews, covering Street Fighter IV, The Lost and Damned and F.E.A.R. 2, and discuss the importance of a game console being an "entertainment" system.
For the next podcast, we will be giving you the opportunity to have your reviews read out and discussed on the show. All you have to do is submit a review to one of our sites. Five will be chosen from across MyMedia to be included.
Don't forget to email us your suggestions, opinions and topics you'd like to discuss to podcast@mymedia.net.au.
Download the MP3
http://resource.mymedia.net.au/podcasts/TheVoice4.mp3
Listen to it online
Subscribe to it via iTunes
26/02/2009
If you already own the console, does the new improved redesigned version, which is normally just smaller, appeal to you? In recent years this has been happening more and more often, especially in the handheld arena, so people must be sales in it. Who is buying these though? People that never had them in the first place? Collectors? Gamers who are addicted to new technology? Or are we all playing right into the hands of the developers and essentially buying a ‘new’ piece of old hardware?
It was announced today that the Nintendo DSi will launch in Australia for AUD $299.95 on April 2 this year. For those of you who have followed the third redesign of the console you will know it features some minor enhancements including two cameras and interactive voice recording along with SD card support to double as an MP3 player. Nintendo will also be releasing a range of apps and games for download through DSiWare. The issue is that both the original DS and the DS Lite launched with a price tag of just $199.95. Essentially the DS hardware is over 3 years old, however Nintendo have found a way to not only avoid lowering the price tag but to raise it by $100. Sure there will be some cool new apps and features using the relatively cheap cameras, but the games will still be what you can play on the original DS today.
The PS2 Slim, the Gameboy Advance SP and the PSP Slim & Lite (and now the new PSP ‘Brite’) are other examples of revised hardware for existing consoles recently, and all have sold relatively well. Is it ingenious marketing to find a new audience, a ploy to extend the consoles lifespan or simply developers being too lazy to release a new system entirely?
The PS2 was a great system, and is arguably still alive today. Much of that success in it’s twilight years may have come from the fact that it was ‘re-released’ and revitalised by the PS2 Slim. Had this not been the case many of the final great games may have been held of and moved to the PS3, forcing gamers to upgrade to the more expensive machine. In the next few years Sony will no doubt release a slim model of the PlayStation 3 if they are serious about making it a 10 year console. Microsoft may also follow suit if they want to give the 360 a substantial lifespan and not cut it short as they may have done with the original Xbox.
Purchasing a console you already have with some minor revisions can be hard to justify, especially the beefed up price of the DS. However the slim console does have some major advantages for existing console owners. That is that you don’t have to upgrade as soon. Sure Nintendo would love everyone to buy a DSi, and will try and through the new download feature. But by no means do you have to upgrade, a majority of the full retail releases if not all should still work on the original or DS Lite. Overall it should increase the consoles lifespan resulting in more games still being published during its final years. Win, win, more games for existing consoles owners, and a new model for the fanboys and those yet to purchase the system.
Are you interested in slim or redesigned models of existing consoles, especially ones that you already own? If a slim PS3, 360 or perhaps even Wii came out would you buy it? Perhaps it would need some new features like the DSi to entice you, perhaps a HHD for the Wii, built in Wi-Fi adaptor for the 360 or PS2 compatibility replaced in the PS3.
The end result of redesigning existing hardware is extending the lifespan of the system. If you have no interest in even upgrading to the next console then this is nothing but good news, if you just purchased your console perhaps you feel a little ripped off. The slim model console will more than likely push back the release of the next generation system, however it prolongs the experience of the current generation without forcing you to upgrade. In saying that increasing the price as Nintendo have done with the DSi seems a little step, it’ll be interesting to see how it sells in Western markets.
19/02/2009