Overly Positive

Overly Positive’s perpetually optimistic commentary on all things E3 continues with a look at what Nintendo and the hottest-selling console on the market, the Wii, had to offer, courtesy of Gamespot,Kotaku, Sarcastic Gamer, and Destructoid: 

-Wii Vitality Sensor Revealed as new Innovation: Not to be outdone by Microsoft’s reveal of Project Natal, their first foray into motion control, Nintendo introduced the Wii Vitality Sensor, which will sense a player’s pulse, state of mind, and probably what you had for breakfast, and respond to that. No applications of this sensor were actually shown, but Nintendo has put itself out in the front of the “active” gamer experience once again. Practical applications probably include responses in survival horror games, accuracy in FPS’s, and telling you that you haven’t showered, need some sun, or have to go to the bathroom. It was a tease, but one that hopefully we’ll see applied in the future.

-Itsa’ Mario Times Two on the Wii – Mario is iconic in the gaming world, and to try to draw the core gamers back to their fold, Nintendo announced two new Mario titles for the Wii – Super Mario Bros.Wii, featuring 4-player co-op, and Super Mario Bros. Galaxy 2. And for those of you who hadn’t gotten enough Mario and wondered where they could possibly go, Nintendo has gone so far as to explore Bowser in great, perhaps disgusting detail in Bowser’s Inside Story for the DS, where you’ll actually go into Bowser himself to see all his bodily functions at work. Ever curious about whether or not Bowser gets enough fiber? Maybe you’ll find out. Anyway, Mario’s dropping in on the Wii, so the platform-y goodness might just be enough to dust off those Wiimotes.

-Metroid Game Forges Unholy, Breast-Enhancing Alliance With Team Ninja – The anchor of Nintendo’s presentation was the surprise announcement that the next Metroid game, Metroid Other M, would be a partnership between Nintendo and the remnants of Team Ninja, famous for creating Dead or Alive and the Ninja Gaiden series. First and Third-person action highlighted the brief trailer, which seems to make Samus a more agile, active character. Here’s to hoping that we get more Ninja Gaiden in the form of difficult/innovative battle sequences and less Dead or Alive bouncy chests and paper-thin volleyball T&A simulations.

-Nintendo Reads the Gaming Blogs, too – Twice in their presentation, Nintendo referred to the perception foisted upon them by the gaming industry of giving the middle finger to its core gaming audience in favor of the far more profitable casual one. Reggie Fils-Aime talked about having “read the blogs” before introducing the last of the core game lineup while Satoru Iwata launched into a 5 – 10 minute response to why Nintendo’s strategy is justified (the answer – “someone has to do it for the good of the industry, because more gamers is a good thing”). Whether or not you buy the argument from Nintendo, it takes cajones to come out and respond directly to the browbeating you’re getting into the gaming world. If the new “serious business” mode of Cammie Dunaway (as opposed to “annoying soccer mom” mode) didn’t give off this vibe, the rest of the Nintendo heavyweight presenters certainly did.

Surely there was plenty of other offerings, such as the in-game demo of Wii Motion Plus through Wii Sports Resort, the announcement of Wii Fit Plus, Golden Sun, Final Fantasy, and Kingdom Hearts for the DS,  and the gaggle of what us geeks would file under “Miscellaneous”, including a fashion game, a murder book club game, and whatever else they could throw at the audience. But Nintendo, threatened for sure by the encroaching presence of the 360 and the PS3 into their motion control territory and trying to weather criticism of running to the casual moneybags, had to come out with a balanced, serious showing, and they performed fairly well in many good spots.