E3 2009: Nintendo Press Conference

By
Ryan Bloom
– June 2, 2009


Does Nintendo finally make good on their “Core” promises?

Ever since the Wii launched in 2006, Nintendo has been fighting an uphill battle to capture the attention of a brand new market of consumers while simultaneously holding the attention of current gamers. Year after year, people from around the globe have watched as Nintendo rattles off impressive sales figures and goes on about the new generation of gamers, and E3 2009 did not deviate much from the formula.

The conference kicked off with the unveiling of “New Super Mario Bros. for Wii“. Looking like a high-resolution version of the Nintendo DS original, the major new feature that sets it apart is four player simultaneous co-op. Much like “The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords” games on the Gamecube and Gameboy Advance, NSMB For Wii has players working both together and against one another cooperatively in real-time, all on the same screen.

From there, the press conference jumped in to Nintendo’s usual song-and-dance of sales figures and games for expanding markets, such as “Women’s Murder Club: Games of Passion” for the Nintendo DS, from famous romance/mystery novelist James Patterson. The Wii Motion Plus was on display, with a live demo of Wii Sports Resort, featuring sky diving, archery, and basketball.

DSiWare was showcased, with a focus on user-created content. Mario vs. DK: Minis March Again features a level editor and allows users to trade levels, and WarioWare DIY allows you to create your own “microgames”, with full-featured graphics and behavior editing tools. Though Zelda: Spirit Tracks was given a passing mention, there was no new trailer to speak of – though the game is playable on the show floor.

Perhaps the strangest thing Nintendo’s ever shown came next: The Wii Vitality Sensor. Essentially a little plastic sleeve for your index finger, the Wii Vitality Sensor is said to read many different elements of your mental condition – your mood, your heart rate, all kinds of stuff. Perhaps the strangest of all is that despite unveiling the Wii Vitality Sensor, no games were shown supporting the device.

Super Mario Galaxy 2

But Nintendo saved the best for last: It began with the unveiling of Super Mario Galaxy 2, which, as the name implies, is more Super Mario Galaxy – only this time, Yoshi joins Mario in his quest across the stars as his trusty steed. Doesn’t look like a whole lot is changing between the two games – though Yoshi seems to be receiving a lot of attention in the form of unique things Mario can do while riding him, the rest of the game mechanics look pulled straight out of the first Super Mario Galaxy; the trailer even flashed a glimpse of the return of Mario’s Bee Costume. Still, it’s more Super Mario Galaxy – that’s probably not a bad thing.

Yes, that's Samus Aran.

But definitely, the biggest surprise of the conference, was a collaboration between Nintendo and Team Ninja, the developers partly responsible for Tecmo’s Ninja Gaiden series, in the form of Metroid Other-M. Though the trailer didn’t say much, it looks as though it’s a re-envisioning of the origins of Samus Aran; we see her in what appears to be some sort of Military Academy, reporting to a Commanding Officer and everything.

Gameplay seems to be primarily from a third person perspective with some occasional switches to first person for certain elements. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the gameplay is extremely action oriented – very reminiscent of Ninja Gaiden, except instead of Ryu Hayabusa jumping around, throwing shurikens and cutting demons with his katana, it’s Samus Aran shooting aliens in the face.

In all, it turned out to be one of Nintendo’s more impressive press conferences in recent years, though for some, it still may not be enough.

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