Tons of high quality Nintendo news was released during today’s Nintendo Direct. Here are the details you need to know:
A New Zelda Is In Development
Before you get too excited, this game is still in the very beginning stages of development. However, Eiji Aonuma is promising to “rethink the conventions of Zelda.” It seems that the development team is looking at early Zelda titles as inspiration. For example, instead of using a linear dungeon progression system like the most recent Zeldas, the player might be able to conquer any dungeon in any order or induce some co-op features. Finally, this is going to be on Wii U so that means HD visuals.
Zelda Wind Waker Is Being Ported To Wii U
The Gamecube’s underrated Wind Waker is going to get a Wii U upgrade in August. Besides the obvious upres’ed visuals, the game is also being converted for use with the Wii U Gamepad. Remember the GBA connectivity through the Tingle Tuner? Well, perhaps this feature will be built into the Wii U Gamepad. Inventory management is probably a safe bet too. Miiverse is also supported and supposedly a new lighting system is also going to be in place. But I guess Nintendo was right – those cel-shading visuals have stood the test of time.
Nintendo Is Going To Have A Big E3 2013
A new Mario Kart, a new 3D Mario adventure, and Smash Bros are set to be unveiled at this year’s E3. The 3D Mario game is being made by the Mario Galaxy team but it is not yet known if this is going to be Super Mario Galaxy sequel or something completely new. Smash Bros is also going to have some sort of cross compatibility between the 3DS and Wii U versions.
Atlus and Nintendo Team Up
Sure, gamers were treated to Street Fighter X Tekken and Megaman X Street Fighter but I bet no one anticipated Fire Emblem X Shin Megami Tensei. Yes, this is a real thing. Intelligent Systems and Atlus will be bringing this game stateside and will most likely be a strategy RPG.
Monolith Soft Creating New Wii U RPG
The developer who gave us Xenoblade Chronicles on Wii has announced that a new RPG is in the works for Wii U. It is not yet known if this is going to Xenoblade Chronicles 2 but expect the high def visuals to be a standout feature.
Wii U Goes Retro
It was only a matter of time before Nintendo brought their Virtual Console service to the Wii U. Starting in April, Wii U owners will be able to download retro games of yesteryear and use the Gamepad and Miiverse. The good news is, all your Wii Virtual Console data can be transferred to Wii U. The bad news is, you will have to pay a $1 transfer fee per game. However, all Virtual Console games can still be playable through the Wii Channel on Wii U without the transfer fee but the extras, like the Miiverse features, will not be supported. Nintendo is also going to be promoting this Virtual Console launch by offering some games for $0.30 for 30 days. This special sale might only be for NES titles but hopefully a few SNES games make it into this limited time sale. GBA games are also slated for the Virtual Console service.
Wii U Party Announced
Like the Virtual Console announcement, this really isn’t that big of a surprise considering that Wii Sports, Wii Play, and Wii Party games were some of the best-selling games on the Wii system. This mini game compilation is bound to support multiplayer, HD visuals and Miiverse support. However, don’t hold your breath for an online multiplayer component because everyone knows Nintendo doesn’t believe in it.
Yoshi Returns In Yarn Format
Yoshi is going to be getting his first 2D platformer in about a decade in the vein of Kirby’s Epic Yarn. The team who created Yoshi’s Story and the director of Yoshi’s Island are going to be heading up development.
Miiverse Gets Upgraded
With system updates scheduled for Spring and Summer, the Miiverse looks to be upgraded with added community support, PC support, and mobile apps.
In all honesty, Nintendo fans were probably feeling a little disappointed as Pikmin 3 was really the only glimmer of hope for the last gen port friendly Wii U. But with this one announcement, Nintendo should have started the fire of anticipation for the Japanese giant’s shiny new hardware and future of the 3DS. E3 2013 is going to be the most important E3 for Nintendo in many years as Microsoft and Sony are expected to unveil their new respective systems. Stay tuned.