What I want to see from Nintendo at E3 this year

Ask just about anybody about last year’s E3 and they will say Nintendo was the clear winner. The event itself is not about winners and losers but we the gaming public decide among ourselves who provided the best showings, and without a doubt last year it was Nintendo. With the combination of the company’s Digital Event along with the games they showed off they provided an amazing and truly memorable year for Nintendo. Splatoon was also the biggest highlight of the year as we didn’t expect it, but Zelda U also can’t be ruled out, what we were shown of the game was limited but it provided enough to excite us, and weren’t we excited. The question now is can Nintendo match the same success of last year and win E3 once again? Well I feel with the right things available and the right focus the company should dominate so here is what I want to see from Nintendo at E3 this year.

A new Metroid game

The obvious announcement we all want from E3 this year is Metroid, many have been hoping for a new Metroid since Metroid Prime 3 which was released back near the start of the Wii’s lifecycle (during the Wii’s lifespan there was also Metroid Other M which ,any didn’t like). Many hope that a new game will arrive in the same vein as Metroid Prime but this is not what we are here to discuss, I will get into that more later. Since the announcement of the Wii U Metroid has been one of the most asked for games and the lack of Metroid over the last few years has disappointed fans, however this could be the year Nintendo could unveil a brand new Metroid to be released sometime next year. I know for a fact this will make a lot of people happy and while I have not been active with the Metroid franchise personally I look forward to what Nintendo could do with the Wii U and Metroid.

F-Zero

Again, I am going down the obvious route, last year Nintendo made fans happy with the announcement that a new Star Fox game was in the works but Nintendo still has two other franchises that need attention. The first is the previously mentioned Metroid and the second is F-Zero, it has been a long time since we last saw Captain Falcon hop into his car and go soaring through the race tracks of F-Zero at high speeds. In fact the last time we saw a new F-Zero game was back on the Gamecube and in all that time we have been crying out for Nintendo to revive the franchise. The chances of this happening are low but I like to dream, this E3 would be a great chance for Nintendo to shift their focus and put the spotlight on their smaller and even lesser known franchises, and even give Mario the chance to take a break from the machine that is milking all the creative juices from his Italian body. This would be a great chance to provide a racing game with a difference that differs from Mario Kart and makes up for the absence of third party content on the platform. F-Zero is overdue for a return and after the games hiatus all these years it has plenty of potential for a future and it would be a great announcement for E3.

A surprise new original game announcement

I like many others jumped for joy last year when Nintendo announced Splatoon (of course I was watching the presentation live in the middle of the night so I had to be silent), the game did what many of us had wanted from Nintendo for the past few years something new, something original, and what a better place to strive for then Nintendo’s take on the popular third person shooter genre. With Nintendo the sky is the limit, the company can pull anything out and get us excited because we know it is likely to be great, and Nintendo needs to capitalize on the success of last year and show off something new and original once again. I can’t begin to fathom where Nintendo could go with the next original idea they have, particularly considering the company’s history of great ideas they span multiple genre’s. Just look at their roster of games, they all cover a different genre and type of game, modern Metroid covers first person shooters, F-Zero and Mario Kart cover racing, and even Pikmin covers the real time strategy genre. Nintendo has it all and if they bring out a surprise announcement of another original game then the company is going to be having quite a good time at E3.

Make a big deal of Star Fox

Sad news came earlier this year, no Zelda U in 2015, worse still no Zelda U at E3. When Nintendo made the announcement that Zelda U was not going to appear at E3 many basically signed Nintendo’s death warrant as Zelda U was the big game Nintendo needed for this year to get people excited. So, with no Zelda what is Nintendo to do, well that is an easy one Nintendo has a dark horse in its pocket that could use the spotlight and work well in Nintendo’s favor. Of course I refer to a particular game announced last year which we never saw, and that games name is Star Fox, this one is a no brainer of the two franchises people want most to appear on the Wii U, the one we know exists is the perfect candidate to get the attention. First thing’s first at E3 Nintendo will need to show a jaw dropping trailer which of course will provide our first look at the game showing off Fox Mccloud and his team in all their high definition goodness, while also showing off the games giant, exciting space battles. By showing off Star Fox right and getting us excited for the game Nintendo will be forgiven for the absence of Zelda U. Secondly Nintendo will need to make a point of a playable build of the game for E3, the demo will prove if the game will be fun and hone in on the nostalgia of the brilliant Star Fox 64. Perhaps also setting up Star Fox style props will make people more aware of the game. Either Nintendo needs to make Star Fox known this year and make it the game we need to remember, however my previous ideas will still work in helping Nintendo but this is a major one for me.

New Pikmin game for the Wii U and/or New Nintendo 3DS

Since its debut back on the GameCube we have three entries in the Pikmin franchise, a disappointing total considering how great the franchise. Following the success of the original Pikmin game Nintendo was quick to capitalize on the success and release a sequel in 2004, and fans like myself waited for a new game to arrive, and how long did we wait? We waited nine years for a new game to arrive, sure the game was worth it but nine years is a long time (it’s as annoying as waiting for Square Enix to release Kingdom Hearts 3), and I don’t know about you but I am not ready to wait that long for a fourth game. There is so much that can be done with Pikmin and it would be great for Nintendo to get up in their Digital Event and say “yes, you will not be waiting nine years this time in fact we are ready to show you Pikmin 4, please take a look”. Pikmin is another franchise that Nintendo fans would appreciate the announcement of and surely it would help Nintendo to have another E3 that is theirs, and if done in combination with some other big announcements there will be happy Nintendo fans the world over. Nintendo could even announce the game for either of its two platforms, in fact while I would prefer it on the Wii U as there is still a lot more potential for Pikmin on the platform, I still think it is time for Nintendo to go portable with the franchise and the New Nintendo 3DS would be perfect for this. The capabilities of the console are still yet to be fully proven and what better way than to offer the strategy of the franchise and offer us a Pikmin adventure on the go using the systems unique features.

Super Mario Sunshine for the Wii U

It is no secret that the Gamecube was a failure as far as consoles are concerned, and that is sad news considering the platform had some truly great games. One such game that never saw the rise to greatness was Super Mario Sunshine, the game was different and unlike a lot of traditional Mario games it tried to tell a story that was engrossing. Given that it is Mario 30th anniversary this year E3 would be the perfect time to announce a remake of a game that truly needs it. Think about it, earlier in the year Nintendo announced that there would be no new Mario game (Mario Maker not counted) this year, note the key word no “new” Mario game, a remake has not been ruled out. What a better way to give note to Mario’s anniversary then reviving the past and at E3 many would love to see this and so would I, plus this doesn’t go overkill on the remakes and fans will be happy to have this much requested game.

A quick update on Zelda U

We already know Zelda U will not be at E3 but Nintendo could still throw us fans a bone and at least give us a little notice of how the game is going. I would also at least appreciate a title which I can take solace in knowing, given the game won’t be present I doubt it would happen but Nintendo is known to surprise us and this would be perfect to tide us over.

Some kind of third party support

A console cannot live on exclusives alone, not even a great one like the Wii U. Last year the final nail was put into the Wii U’s coffin as third party support literally died on the console, Assassin’s Creed is but a sweet distant memory, Call of Duty vanished and every other kind of support just up and left the room. All we have left in the Wii U’s corner of late is Skylanders and Disney Infinity but in all seriousness how much longer can that support last, if I am being honest not long at all, there is a clock counting down for in their life on the platform and it is quickly running out. Nintendo needs to drum up third party support even if the chances now are really low and the Wii U may as well die, still I hold out hope that maybe Nintendo has been in talks with Activision or other third parties and have got a couple of third party announcements to show off at E3. I am still hoping for Call of Duty Black Ops 3, and other parties to have an announcement for the Wii U, I am hoping.

A new Koei Tecmo collaboration

My final hope is for Nintendo to announce a new collaboration game between Nintendo and Koei Tecmo. Last year Nintendo and Koei Tecmo released the fantastic Hyrule Warriors which went above and beyond my expectations, I honestly still can’t believe how much I loved the game. Following the success of last year’s game I imagine another game would be great to see, but what could it be? Warriors crossed with Fire Emblem, Warriors crossed with Mario, dare I say Pokemon Warriors that would be awesome. Another collaboration would be great for the Wii U and would really provide more love for Koei Tecmo’s franchises by putting them in new light.