Feature: My Predictions of Nintendo's E3 Conference [2012 Edition]

It's that time of year once again - E3. On June 5th of this year, only a few weeks away, many of us will be witness to Nintendo's press conference both online and, for those who are particularly lucky, in the seats of the Los-Angeles Convention Centre. Whether a gamer is only mere metres away from the likes of Reggie Fils-Aime, Shigeru Miyamoto and Satoru Iwata among others, or on the other side of the world, E3 is always a fantastical experience. Last year's conference was something of a disappointment. Following the mesmerising spectacle that was the announcement of the 3DS, alongside a massive line-up of brilliant looking Wii games back in 2010, the reveal of the Wii U, Nintendo's new home console, wasn't handled well at all. The entire conference was something of a shambles, with practically no new announcements (with the exception of Luigi's Mansion 2 and the full-on reveal of Super Mario 3D Land) and only new gameplay footage of titles we were already aware of. 2010 was so brilliant because of how utterly surprising it was. While many rumours surfaced before the show, nobody expected a new Kid Icarus, a brilliantly revolutionised Zelda game and a GoldenEye reboot among other brand-new, fantastic-looking titles. E3 2012 was very much the opposite.

Thankfully, similarly to the build-up to Nintendo's E3 2010 conference, we barely know what we're going to get this year. A number of rumours have found their way onto the 'net in the past few weeks (some more ridiculous than others, but more on that later) and we do know to expect what Nintendo are referring to as the 'true' reveal of their latest hardware, but other than these two factors we aren't enlightened of what is going to be revealed on the 5th day of next month. I, for one, am wholly excited about this. As aforementioned, it very much feels like it's going to be a repeat of the conference two years ago that was oh-so brilliant, and that's blatantly no bad thing. Yes, there is the chance that this year could be another disappointment, but let's not get all doom and gloom, especially on the run-up to the biggest gaming event of the year. In case you didn't deduce from the title of this post, the following paragraphs will make up the third edition of my E3 predictions, specifically regarding the Nintendo conference I've been banging on about up until now. In case you didn't catch the last two posts on this topic, you'll find them in the post archive to the right, but if you're looking to the future then read on. In the space of several paragraphs, I'll be discussing my thoughts on what has been predicted for Nintendo's conference this year, as well as my own silly predictions. Sit tight and start reading, and after that, share this post and drop me a comment regarding your own predictions! Now, let's start with the obvious, shall we?

The True Announcement of the Wii U
I don't want to keep going on about this, but the Wii U reveal of last year was ridiculously underwhelming and didn't get me too excited about the hardware. It's a clever idea, and visually the console seems like it's going to be a stunner (according to rumours, three times as powerful as a PS3) but I couldn't help but feel a little cheated, especially after the brilliant 3DS reveal one year prior. At their 2012 E3 conference, Nintendo are undoubtedly going to be showing off the hardware and its software properly, and the one way that they could have me develop excitement for it is to show some brand-new, first party games. The following suggestions might seem a bit ambitious, because they are, but regardless these titles would practically make my E3. First off, some of you may know that I've been playing F-Zero GX on GameCube recently, after abandoning it for a fair while. For a game on its platform, it looks obscenely good graphically, and while I don't consider visuals to be the number one aspect of game design as many others do, a new arcade racer starring the tight-suited Captain Falcon and his chums would be brilliant on Nintendo's new system. I reckon it would show off the visuals of apparently technically amazing Wii U, and prove to be a much-anticipated release if they do end up revealing it. Similarly, Mario Kart is perhaps the big N's most popular racing franchise, and a new iteration of that would be superb too. While I'm swerving in the direction of so-called 'casual games', a new edition of Wii Sports (or in this case, Wii U Sports) would also be great, as long as they don't waste too much time showing it off. Not everything should be about what are widely viewed as harcore titles, you know.

Project M - The True Final Send-off for the Wii?

Today I'll be writing about something a little different. Granted, the subject of this post is still related to gaming, more specifically Nintendo gaming, but the core subject is all but official and not in ties with the company. In case you're not aware of Project M, or think I'm referring to Metroid: Other M's code-name, allow me to enlighten you: This is a new evolution of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, completely fan-made and completely legal thanks to the clever, safe method used to launch what is essentially an unlicensed modification. In fact, scratch the word evolution from that last sentence, because in essence this development of Brawl is more of a devolution, and I certainly don't mean that in a negative way. You see, the main goal of the project's group of experienced developers is not to add new stages, items and characters, but to modify them to balance Brawl into an evolution of Melee, hence the M in the title of the project. Nicknamed Melee 2.0, this interesting project is anything but a step-backwards for Smash Bros. In fact, it might just be a worthy send-off for the Wii, even after the already flabbergasting Skyward Sword.

If you read my review of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, you'll know that I and many others believe it is among the greatest Wii games of all time, and I mean that as it's highly unlikely that it will be topped what with the Wii U coming along to replace the console soon. Project M is essentially a free expansion of the title, adding new stages and alterations to the character roster to balance things out. However, the main goal of the project is to bend Brawl more in the direction of Melee, adjusting the gameplay to make it much more fast-paced, skill-based and ultimately similar to the GameCube iteration of Smash Bros. As the project's official website (found right here) clearly states, however, Project M doesn't intend to be a full 1:1 Melee clone, and instead a brand-new version of the brawling experience we know and love; One with rich, free-flowing fighting mechanics, L-canceling and all. Excited? So am I. The second demo of the mod has been released, but unfortunately it's NTSC only - In other words, currently inaccessible to those playing on a Europe-based Wii, yours truly included. Americans, eh? Those lot get everything before us. Except Xenoblade. Ha.

Ranting Time! My Thoughts on New Super Mario Bros. 2

Last week I finally got around to finishing and publishing my thoughts on Super Mario 3D Land in the form of a comprehensive review. I expressed my opinions that, while the game was highly enjoyable and boasted the same excellent presentation you find in most main Mario titles, it suffered from a severe lack of innovation, difficulty and length, even when going for 100% completion. Despite the latter two concerns, it was the borrowing of 3D Land's predecessors' elements that was the main let-down for me, but when a certain new Mario platformer heading to the 3DS this year was announced at a recent Nintendo Direct mini-conference, I flipped. If you want a poor analogy to describe my views on the pesky plumber's next handheld outing briefly, here you go: If Super Mario 3D Land was a joke, this is a very, very bad joke. Me and my analogies, eh?

Let's get one thing perfectly clear before I express the initial concerns I have with this title; I realise that we've only seen four screenshots of it, and that the game will properly be announced at this year's E3 conference. I'll also admit that the game certainly doesn't look bad. I may have bashed 3D Land for its frustrating flaws, but that didn't stop the game from being very fun to play, leading to me awarding it a respectable score of 79%. I fear that New Super Mario Bros. 2, at least judging from the four images we've seen of it, will suffer the same fate as my most recently reviewed Mario platformer, in that it looks like it's going to be another uninspired affair. Unfortunately, it seems, even moreso than the aforementioned 3DS title. Let's hark back to the history of the 2D Mario platformer, shall we? Each individual title since Super Mario Bros. on the NES revolutionised the concept and look in some way or another, with the possible exception of the up until recently Japan-exclusive we know as The Lost Levels. Doki Doki Panic makeover or not, the English version of Super Mario Bros. 2 was significantly different from the original game, and Super Mario Bros. 3 introduced so much that you'd be surprised at the fact it appeared on the NES. Super Mario World stretched out the formula of Super Mario Bros. 3 to new boundaries not possible on its previous console predecessor. New Super Mario Bros. on DS brought the 2D Mario platformer back after many years in limbo, making itself the killer app for the dinky handheld. And finally, New Super Mario Bros. Wii added multiplayer for the first time, as well as some great concepts and the best visuals ever seen in a 2D Mario game. The ridiculously named New Super Mario Bros. 2 just appears to be the DS game again, albeit with some concepts from Super Mario Bros. 3 implemented. I don't know about you, but I'm beginning to get a little sick of the Tanooki Suit...

Here's a challenge: see if you can spot anything new in this screenshot! Clue: There isn't anything new in this screenshot.

I wouldn't have as much of a problem with New Super Mario Bros. 2 if they had shown-off something brand-new at the games announcement, but alas, they didn't. Somehow, Nintendo had the cheek to unveil the game alongside four screenshots consisting of elements from New Super Mario Bros. on DS, with the addition of the Tanooki suit. It makes the 'New' in the title of the game utterly ironic, and not even in a hilarious way. Speaking of the title, why is it called New Super Mario Bros. 2? Surely they should've called it New Super Mario Bros. 3, or better yet New Super Mario Bros. 3D given it's the third in the semi-series. Just another rant-inducing gripe that the announcement imprinted into my skull. Even under close inspection there's absolutely nothing to speculate about the game so far, and while I'd be surprised if Nintendo didn't innovate in some way or another with this title (possibly with foreground-background elements like Donkey Kong Country Returns?) it's not exactly clever to unveil a game with nothing new to accompany it in the form of footage or screenshots. I would've been happier if the Big N hadn't shown any screenshots at all, at least then I'd be anticipating the game without any annoyance. Here's hoping that the obvious E3 announcement of New Super Mario Bros. 2 proves more interesting. Mario's latest platformer is coming in August on this year, which is the main reason for my rant. If a game is out in a matter of months and it seems that they don't have anything new to show of it, that's a bad sign. Regardless, we'll find out more next month...

REVIEW: Super Mario 3D Land

Super Mario. The duo-tone suited, mustachioed plumber that kick-started it all. Back in the days of the Nintendo Entertainment System in the mid-eighties, this platforming hero begun to gain popularity and eventually became a household name, granting Nintendo the clear view of making the dinky hero who truly launched the company into the realms of success, like the plumber himself advancing through a stage with the use of a novelty human-cannon, their proud mascot. Over the past 25 years, Mario has featured in quite literally countless games, a wide variety of genres and many different scenarios, with very few hiccups along the way. The main 2D titles; Super Mario Bros. and its two sequels, Super Mario World, a number of handheld iterations and more recently, the New Super Mario Bros. games have retained a feeling few other platformers have to offer, and this sustainability is mostly thanks to the fact that Nintendo rarely stray away from the roots of the franchise, with each title typically involving similar gameplay mechanics and the usual 'princess is kidnapped by giant turtle, plumber sets out to rescue her' storyline. This simplicity may have grown roots over the years, but never too many to transform Mario's main games, 2D or polygonal, into something as complex as Zelda or Metroid, at least if you forget some of the various spin-off titles, Mario role-players in particular. You should forget about those for the purpose of this review, however, because today I'll be dissecting Super Mario 3D Land, the most recently sprouted olive branch from the tree of simplicity that is the 2D Mario genealogy. This branch is one that sticks out at you more than any of the others, and it's all thanks to stereoscopic 3D, but while the game certainly holds up visually, how does it fair against its predecessors?

Despite my metaphorical description of a tree that houses the 2D Mario titles, the plumber's 3DS debut isn't strictly speaking a game that plays out on a 2D plain. In fact, as you'd expect from a platform that can handle this sort of thing, the game involves movement in all angles with full 360-degree movement being nothing but compulsory while you navigate levels, yet 3D Land has a lot more in common with the 2D classics than the more recent epics such as the Galaxy games. This is, in essence, a 2D Mario tribute that plays out on a 3D plain. The mixture of the side-scrolling games' formulaic structure and the tight controls of the polygonal releases certainly makes for a delectable experience, albeit one that isn't quite fresh - if anything, close to becoming rotten. Super Mario 3D Land isn't at all a bad game, it's just the flaw of it being all too familiar brings it down a little, and what's worse is that the gripes I and others had with the stereoscopic debut of the plumber don't end at a lack of innovation. Without trying to sound like a sceptical Mario hater, this release is far too easy, far too short and full of re-hashed ideas. With the plumber's 3DS debut, it feels like Nintendo have taken the ingredients that made past titles starring the heroic plumber so superb, and mashed them all up into one, afterwards adding a sauce that acts as the glitz of eye-popping (calm down, not literally) three-dimensional visuals. Super Mario 3D Land is without a doubt new enough to warrant a purchase, but that doesn't stop it from feeling familiar to its predecessors and unfortunately lacking in innovation.