Nintendo Made Good Impressions; But They Aren't Leaving Empty Handed

Nintendo didn’t have a new console to unveil this year, but that didn’t stop them from making an appearance at E3. I’m excited for Nintendo’s first party games like Mario Kart 8, but that’s just the problem. It’s “Mario Kart 8”. As a retro gamer I don’t see a problem with popping in Super Mario Kart or Mario Kart Double Dash!. I have to admit that the 12 player online deal is pretty cool, but outside of that it isn’t something I’m willing to fork dough over for just yet. Don’t get me wrong- Nintendo made it look like a lot of fun- but I’d have to invite my adult pals over to play it, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.. though in college this game along with Dokapon was known to ruin relationships. Although Retro, the gaming studio behind Metroid Prime is back making a Donkey Kong sequel, it feels the same as Super Mario Kart- I’m going to wait.

The format of the latest Mario games is cool and well done, but it’s getting stale in my opinion. It does seem like a fun muitiplayer game though. You can never go wrong with a good Mario platformer though- I just wish I could get more than 15 hours out of one. While I have never played Pikmin, I know a buddy of mine is very excited about Pikmin 3 coming out. That’s an actual change I am very happy to see. Ditto on Bayonetta 2- if I recall correctly this is exclusive to the Wii U. If I were to pick up the Wii U in the future- I am probably going to look into getting this game. There was a secret trailer release of some game that looked like it combined Zone of the Enders and Monster Hunter- I’m definitely interested in that bit.

It’s always good to see Zelda in almost any form, except the CDI games. I like the look and UI changes to the Wind Waker HD remake, but as a hardcore Zelda fan this isn’t enough to get me to bite. I will tell you what is though- that new Zelda game coming out for the 3Ds- A Link to the Past 2. That’s enough for me to bite, and it helps that the 3Ds has a healthy selection of titles to choose from. I know we should really be discussing the Wii U here- but the 3Ds has some good stuff for it down the pipeline. I know quite a few people who are going to go bonkers over the new Pokemon X and Y games. Hell, I might even bite. I haven’t played a Pokemon game since Red/Blue/Yellow, so I might as well put that on my bucket list.

I really liked the look of Skylanders SWAP Force- and again it’s a 3Ds title. I am really excited about Sonic: Lost World though. It seems SEGA went retro on this one and took a playbook from Mario Galaxy in its unique level designs. And hell… you know what? It’s coming out on the 3Ds too. One place I think the Wii U really shines along with the Playstation 4 this year is there friendliness with indie developers. Dungeons and Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara peaked my interest- it looks like a remake of Golden Axe, but better. Depending on the price I’d give Shovel Knight a try too. 

It looks like Super Smash Bros was Nintendo’s trump card this E3- and for good reasons, the series is extremely popular. I’d be interested in getting at least one of the titles, and to make a safe bet I would probably pick up the 3Ds version. I know a lot of people that are going to be very happy about Mega Man joining the fray. Super Smash Bros. was kind of…. Ruined for me during college, however I am still willing to play the way it was meant to be played- with friends. It should be a lot of fun. 

I like what Nintendo has put down on the floor- their lineup isn’t as solid as the behemoth Sony, but they make dang good games and Nintendo is historically the best when it comes to 1^st party titles. I am sold on one thing however- and I wasn’t sold on it back in 2011 when I got to get my hands on a demo unit. For the Wii U- I’m really not that enthralled with it yet. I may look at it again at next year’s E3, but right now I’m looking at the food in the oven and it just isn’t ready yet. 

I am thinking about looking at buying a Wii U in either 2014 or 2015, with the latter more likely. As for the 3Ds, that baby is done and ready to enjoy. Nintendo has convinced me to get the handheld- not just for the Zelda game, but for a couple of other first party hits and third party ones as well. Good job Nintendo, you made a sale. My final verdict on E3's press conference? good. They have some exciting stuff in the pipeline, especially for the 3Ds. If you're like me and you're on the fence about something Nintendo, I say now is a good time to bite on the 3Ds, but give the Wii U a little more time in the oven. Hopefully the temperature wasn't set too low initially.