PixlBit

Nintendo’s E3 Digital Event was an amazing presentation this year. They went all out with the video, even to the point of enlisting the animators of Robot Chicken for intermission scenes. So many games were introduced: Bayonetta 2 bundled with the first game (with additional customs added), a Yoshi Yarn game, the Amiibo toys, Mario Maker, Hyrule Warriors, and then some. I personally recommend watching the video if you haven’t yet (that being a big if) but here are my personal highlights:

Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire

Mega Evolutions are everywhere. The rest of the Generation 3 starters are getting their own Mega Evolutions, as well as Groudon, Kyogre, Sableye, and Diancie. While some of the NPC battle models are still static sprites the animation for the player character looks a bit more fluid. In-game looks just as amazing as X/Y if not more colorful. Hopefully there will be an update for X/Y or existing data that hackers missed so some of us who have eventual plans of getting this game will have chance of getting other games showcased from E3.

 

Splatoon

While I don’t have a Wii U I actually want this game. It’s a game of angry squids engaging in a massive turf war with ink guns to spray the whole map and drench it in bright colors. There’re even a number of weapons to choose from: the standard ink SMG, the ink-zooka, the ink-roller, even an ink-sniper rifle. The squids even have their own version of The Hammer of Dawn (Gears of War). Use the ink to control the flow of battle, such refilling ink, swimming quickly to an area, super jumping across the map, and even waiting in the ink to ambush an enemy. It’s a multiplayer madness at its chaotic finest.

 

Zelda Wii U

Yes, there’s a Zelda game coming to the Wii U. The main focus of this presentation is going back to the first Legend of Zelda, where the world map was more alive. They applied this to 3D Hyrule and it looks amazing. It looks like an actual world with things just waiting to happen, which it did in the presentation.

 

Super Smash Bros.

Aside from the inclusion of the Amiibo figures entering the brawl, the developers decided to put in the Mii Fighters, three classes of fighters that Miis can take on: Brawler, a hand-to-hand fighter; Sword Fighter, a fencer with agile blade skills; Gunner, a Mii equipped with an arm cannon with different long range options. For each class there will be four different options for each special move, which means not only Miis will actually be more like fighters opposed to shoe-ins but they’ll be unique to the player. And to top off the new title we’re getting some divine intervention.

 

Oh, and Pac-Man is a newcomer to the brawl. Not exactly hyped for him, but given how he got some better treatment in this game opposed to the last fighting game he was in I'll give him plenty of slack. Bonus points if he gets a hammer.

 

This was far better than the Nintendo Direct from last year and while it’s still sad they didn’t have a live conference two great things came from this: Nintendo is still able to produce games as well as give other parties a chance to develop great titles for them, and, best of all, Iwata vs. Reggie “My Body is Ready” Fils-Aime!