Nintendo E3 Preview

Since Nintendo announced that they wouldn’t do an E3 press conference a few years ago, we thought they were cutting costs. Now it seems like a more efficient way to deliver the news. They don’t need to cram journalists into an auditorium and perform live for little reason. Last year really showed off the proper way of airing a prerecorded video: with trailers airing one after another, explanations by developers and kooky funny moments like their Robot Chicken skits. This year, Mega 64 helped them introduce their plans for this year’s E3, so don’t expect the wackiness to end. Though within that, also expect a ton of fun game announcements.
https://youtu.be/zbvzyY1FKr0
Believe it or not, the Wii U has a bigger momentum going into E3 this year versus the 3DS since there is a lot more announced for it. What we know we’ll see in some form are Xenoblade Chronicles X, Yoshi’s Wooly World, Fatal Frame V, Mario Maker and Star Fox since they are all slated for this year. Other than that, there is also Devil’s Third and Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem, which do not have any firm date. There’s also Zelda, but Nintendo already told us to not expect it at E3 and we’ll see more of it in 2016, and to be honest - that sounds like it won’t be a Wii U game anymore and will instead launch for NX.
Of course this is E3, so we have to expect a bunch of announcements that will launch within the next 365 days of it. Last year we saw Captain Toad, Splatoon, Kirby and the Rainbow Curse and Mario Party 10, which have either released or will all be on shelves before E3. In terms of guesses, we have honesty no clue since Nintendo has been on a random streak this generation. They already released most of their staples for the system (2D Mario, 3D Mario, Super Smash Bros. and Mario Kart), so all that is really left for an every-system release is Animal Crossing. Otherwise we have seen curve balls like M-rated games like Bayonetta 2, Devil’s Third and Fatal Frame; or spinoffs like Hyrule Warriors, Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem and Captain Toad.

DLC is one thing we’ll see at E3 since the leaks for Roy and Ryu for Super Smash Bros. have already been all but confirmed. Other than that, they might unveil another character that we don’t know yet, or they can do a DLC Pack 2 for Mario Kart 8. These two games have become platforms to build on, and really good ones, so keeping them in public eye is only a good thing.
Here’s the thing. For the first time since 2012, the 3DS seems to be in a bit of a dry spell. Nintendo green-lighted everything back in 2011 to bring much needed software to the system, and now that all of it is out, we’re waiting for another batch. Not only is there nothing coming out, but we aren’t even excited for anything since Nintendo hasn’t announced anything. All we know is that Fire Emblem and the Animal Crossing spinoff, Happy Home Designer, are on the way, so this popular system needs a new slew of game announcements to keep the momentum going, especially if they want the New Nintendo 3DS XL to keep selling.

Outside the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo already told us to not expect their Quality of Life (QOL) project, their smart device games or NX news. With the exception of the NX, which won’t be unveiled until 2016, they said the other projects aren’t meant for an E3 audience, so expect very little on it.
Though they stopped doing live press conferences, they still rent out the Nokia Theater for other events. Last year saw the Super Smash Bros. Invitational and this year will see the return of the Nintendo World Championships. We now know that players will duke it out in eight very crowded Best Buy locations with the Championship Mode in Ultimate NES Remix on Nintendo 3DS, with the finalists getting hauled off to LA to compete in the Nokia Theater, live on Nintendo’s Twitch channel.
Like every other year, there’s little to work off of Nintendo. They have so many secrets hiding within, and with their run this generation, it’s hard to pinpoint what. At least we can rest easy knowing that it’ll be fun. See you at E3!