E3 2009 - Nintendo News

After disappointing the "hardcore" crowd at last year's E3, Nintendo was looking to redeem itself at this year's expo. I think they're strategy going into it was to mention Mario as many times as possible. Works for me =].


New Super Mario Bros. Wii is a great idea. The classic game still holds up to this day; thanks to the Virtual Console, it's one of the most played games on my Wii. Updating it with better graphics, some WiiMote functionality, and a four-player co-op/vs mode is genius. The people at Nintendo are experts at getting people to drop cash on the same damn game over and over again. Even with 18 million copies of the game already sold on the DS, watch the Wii version sell like hotcakes. People are already complaining about the game's lack of online play, but I think it's better for it. Play with real people. Your siblings, your cousins, your friends, your dog. Do it.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii - Fall 2009


Easily the most surprising announcement of the conference, Nintendo announced that it had teamed up with development group Team Ninja (Ninja Gaiden, Dead or Alive) for the next installment in the Metroid series. With Metroid Prime 3 still standing as one of the most celebrated games on the console and the complete Prime trilogy being prepped for a re-release, Metroid: Other M is a great way to move forward with the franchise without rendering the previous offerings irrelevant. Team Ninja's fingerprints are all over the trailer and I'm excited for this new, darker approach to Samus Aran and her backstory. Good on you, Nintendo.
Metroid: Other M - 2010


Yay! Mario's never gotten a full sequel on the same console before but, even when the original Galaxy was released, it just felt like there would be a sequel coming. The game, admittedly, looks a lot like the first Galaxy with the addition of Yoshi, but Miyamoto reassures us that the game is 90-95% brand new. Galaxy was a stellar game and my only real complaint was that it was a tad too easy. With WiiFit Plus, Nintendo seems to have demonstrated that they are indeed listening to user feedback, so perhaps we'll see an increase in difficulty in Mario's next space outing. Either way, exciting!
Super Mario Galaxy 2 - 2010

So, hardcore gamers will likely still find something to grumble (loudly) about after this year's E3, but these announcements coupled with news of Tatsunoko vs Capcom seeing an American release has me plenty satisfied with the Wii's prospects for the upcoming year. What about you? Placated?