By Louis Bedigian
GameZone.com
I’m reminded of the words of Senator Palpatine, who (in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones) told his constituents that he would make a “grand army of the Republic to counter the increasing threats of the separatist.” In video-game terms, Nintendo is the Republic, and Sony and Microsoft are the separatists.
For nearly 10 years, Sony ran circles around Nintendo. Once the original Xbox launched, Microsoft began to cut into potential sales of GameCube. Nintendo 64 owners who loved GoldenEye 007 flocked to Halo, along with everyone else in the world. For Nintendo, this was not a good time. Had it not been for the Game Boy and Pokemon, the company might not have been able to continue turning huge profits during those very rough years.
After getting its butt kicked, Nintendo finally realized that it couldn’t become the number-one console manufacturer with delays alone. Actual game releases were needed, and after watching the success of its own DS platform, Nintendo realized that new technology is also of great consumer interest.
Thus, the Mario and Zelda maker formed a grand army – which included new Zelda and Mario games – and released a new console, Wii, to the most obsessive crowd of gamers (both hardcore and casual) the world has ever seen.
This is important because we are only days away from this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo, the show Nintendo has continually used to unveil new games and consoles. In other words, this is the annual event where Nintendo reveals its battle plan.
Now that the company has teased us with hype for the motion-controlled Zelda, which will reportedly debut at the show, one question remains: has Nintendo mounted another grand army? And if so, will it be enough to ward off Colonel PS Move and General Natal?
E3 Predictions: Nintendo Wii Announcements
Zelda Hype: The new Zelda will without a doubt be the focus of Nintendo’s E3 press conference. In fact, I’ll bet Nintendo is considering a 50/50 split between hype for Zelda and the 3DS.
Zelda Gameplay: It’s safe to assume that we’re all predicting motion-controlled battles that allow us to control Link’s sword with expert precision. However, if the developers can pull that off, something tells me that swordplay is the tip of the iceberg. Link has a whole arsenal of weapons that could be revolutionized, but the most impressive feature may very well be the puzzles that are created with the MotionPlus adaptor.
New Racing Game: Nintendo made a fortune off the Wii Wheel, a peripheral that wasn’t anything more than a nicely sculpted piece of plastic. Considering the sales potential for a new racer (Wii Wheel owners want something new), and the sales potential for additional Wii Wheel sales, this announcement feels like a safe bet. That being the case, you have to wonder: will it be a new F-Zero? Or will the Wii be the first system in history to get two Mario Kart sequels? It did get two Mario Galaxies, so you never know…
Hmmm, Mario Kart Galaxy. That has a nice ring to it, eh? Imagine the world-bending, gravity-defying possibilities of a racing game set in the universe of Mario Galaxy. (Hint to Nintendo: If this game doesn’t already exist, please start development on it immediately!)
Wii Vitality Tease: There are conflicting reports as to whether or not the Wii Vitality sensor will appear at E3. I’m betting that it will, but I wouldn’t be surprised it was only shown as a trailer/hands-off demo.
Wii Fit Upgrades: This one’s a no-brainer. Though it’s possible Nintendo will unveil a true sequel to the world’s biggest workout video game, it is more likely that Wii Fit will receive another upgrade. (Possibly several upgrades, if Nintendo intends to hold Wii Fit 2 for the Wii’s successor.)
Balance Board Games: Will third-party developers finally start to experiment with the amazing Balance Board? I won’t get my hopes up. But I will keep my thumbsticks crossed.
Pikmin: The long-awaited Wii sequel…could miss another E3. Pikmin 3 was confirmed last year, but that doesn’t mean a thing in development terms. We don’t know how long it has been in production, or if the project is going well. To me, the game feels a little like the illusive Mario 64 2. While I do not believe that Pikmin 3 will be cancelled (as Mario 64’s sequel was), I would not be surprised if it was still 18 months away from release – and thus another E3 away from a proper hands-on unveiling. If we’re lucky, we’ll get a 90-second trailer.
MotionPlus: Despite the adaptor’s huge sales (thanks entirely to Wii Sports Resorts), the MotionPlus isn’t exactly a success. Sure, millions of us have it. Some gamers have several in their home. But aside from Wii Sports, which isn’t much more than a collection of mini-games, there aren’t any good games supporting the adaptor.
At this year’s E3, I expect that to finally change. We may not get the long-rumored Star Wars lightsaber game (the developers must be struggling to make it work probably, assuming it really does exist). But now that so many Wii owners have a MotionPlus, and now that Nintendo is packing it with the system, why wouldn’t third-party developers want to cash in? It could lead to some interesting multi-platform releases between the Wii and (who saw this coming?) PS3.
More Shooters: For better or worse, expect a few third-party developers to announce new first-person shooters for Wii, most of which won’t utilize the MotionPlus adaptor. Also expect a few on-rails-style shooters to be announced.
Other Announcements: It seems unlikely that Nintendo will attempt to bring Nintendogs to the Wii now that a new DS is coming. (The 3DS and canines are a much better match.) But I do feel like some other sequel is upon us, and that it will come from a franchise that hasn’t hit the Wii yet. Could it be Tetris or Professor Layton? Both games fit within the mainstream appeal segment Nintendo loves to reach.
If it’s not Tetris …why not? Why is Nintendo avoiding the opportunity to produce a motion-controlled version of its prized puzzler? Tetris DS was brilliant, and there’s no reason to believe that a similar level of brilliance couldn’t be achieved on Wii.
