With the other two console companies having had their press event, it’s time for Nintendo to show what it has got with their Digital Event. Let’s see the Nintendo E3 Field Report:
Good:
Games, Games and Games
Like Microsoft, Nintendo’s Digital Event was all about the games. We got Zelda, Kirby, Yoshi, Pokemon as well as a new game called Splatoon, which looked like an interesting online arena fighter on Wii U. Also, the announcement of Palutena and Miis kept the Smash Brothers hype up and the trailer of Xenoblade Chronicles X was good to see. Even though there was a quick chat about Amiibo, it was bearable and didn’t go on hour ages like at the Sony event. The hardcore were satisfied and enough new stuff to keep people happy so good job Nintendo.
A Nice Dash of Humour
The Robot Chicken segments were very funny, it was nice to see Nintendo not only take the piss out of themselves but the fanboys which constantly complain about Nintendo’s press conferences. Also, the Smash trailer which had Reggie and Iwata fighting each other was pretty damn hilarious, especially seeing Iwata flipping through the air and his ‘hand gesture’ recovery. It was nice to see an actual bit of humour in one of the press conferences, instead of snide jabs at other companies.
Bad:
The Elusive ‘2015’ Release Window
The main complaint I have with the Digital Event was that too many of the games shown had the dreaded ‘2015’ release date, which doesn’t help anyone. It is just a massive tease, leaving fans to float in the aether, waiting for more news to come over the next year. To be honest, E3 is the place where we should have release dates. I mean, we still got games announced but still, I want to know exactly when these games are coming, dammit!
Overall Rating:
For me, Nintendo has won the conference game. It showed loads of first party games, as well as some brand new stuff, it kept the Smash Bros hype going and with the promise of more stuff via the Treehouse Event, the mysterious 3DS game reveal and the Smash Bros Invitational tournament, we only seek to get more information. They by no means smacked it out of the park, but the sheer amount of first party stuff and a nice bit of humour worked well and made for a more interesting conference compared to the other two, so good job Nintendo. The only thing I can really say it was a bit too short and they teased too much but with the absolute gauntlet of Nintendo stuff to come, we’ll no doubt be satisfied by Nintendo’s content. Amiibo is just a Skylanders rip off but at least you don’t need to play games like Smash 4 so I can let it slide. Why it wasn’t a stage show is beyond me.
