The “big three” pressers are over! Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony strutted their stuff and kicked off E3 2011 with a bang. Which company did best? Kindly vote for your favorite press conference and discuss!
The “big three” pressers are over! Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony strutted their stuff and kicked off E3 2011 with a bang. Which company did best? Kindly vote for your favorite press conference and discuss!
[poll id=”120″]
Are you ready for details on Nintendo’s next home console? How about information on the future of the 3DS? Any classic Nintendo franchises you want to see make a comeback? How do you think Nintendo of America’s new executive — the Dial soap guy — will do? Let’s see together in this Nintendo press conference live blog!
The Nintendo 3DS is getting a significant software update on June 6. I’m not at all interested in the new web browser. I should be excited by the new (and way late) Nintendo eShop online store. What really has me excited is the 3D Pokedex for Pokemon Black/White! Here are some details from the press release:
Within the Nintendo eShop, Nintendo 3DS users will also be able to download the free Pokédex 3D application and start collecting data for more than 150 Pokémon from the Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version games. This new application lets users view each Pokémon in 3D with animated motion and sound. The Pokémon image can be rotated 360 degrees, allowing users to zoom in and view it from any angle. The detailed Pokédex also allows users to search, sort and filter all of the data they receive in a variety of ways, making it the essential guide for Pokémon fans. Players can complete their Pokédex by sharing data with friends and using the SpotPass feature, or by scanning special Pokémon AR Markers (augmented-reality markers). Once users have received data for a Pokémon, the AR Viewer allows them to view that Pokémon image in a real-world setting in real time, and create photos to share with friends.
Unfortunately for me, I’ll be busy with that E3 thing when the 3D Pokedex hits. I’d love to spend hours just messing around with it. Priorities….
Nintendo has announced that starting June 7, 2011, Nintendo 3DS customers will be able to take advantage of more than 25,000 free WiFi hotspots. Free WiFi will be available at select shopping malls, Best Buy stores, and AT&T WiFi locations. Here’s a snippet from the press release:
As of June 7, a new alliance with Simon Property Group, the country’s largest owner, developer and manager of high-quality retail real estate, will provide Nintendo 3DS owners with complimentary wireless connections at nearly 200 Simon shopping malls throughout the country. Nintendo 3DS users can also access hotspots at more than 1,000 Best Buy stores. Through an expanded agreement with AT&T, Nintendo 3DS users will have access to nearly 24,000 of AT&T’s Wi-Fi hotspots.
It’s fantastic that Nintendo and its partners are offering this service. It encourages use of the 3DS and allows gamers to do more on the go.
What do you think of these partnerships? Does free WiFi make the 3DS more appealing to you?
There are a pair of interesting games coming out this week. First up is Hunted: The Demon’s Forge. I’m looking forward to this action-RPG. It’s made by the peeps at inXile (The Bard’s Tale), a company founded by Interplay OG Brian Fargo. It looks like an evolved version of Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance (one of my favorite games last generation). Fighting fans looking for action on the go will want to check out BlazBlue Continuum Shift II. Hardcore fighters raved about the first game and the second looks like it will deliver complexity that most portable fighters lack.
Any of you picking up new games this week?
After a huge release last week, there are a handful of interesting games coming out this week. The Nintendo 3DS gets a big franchise and big-boob jiggling in Dead or Alive Dimensions. Dirt 3 should keep racing-game fans happy, though fans of actual dirt might be disappointed. Last, but not least, is a move tie-in — Kung-Fu Panda 2 brings the adorable martial artisan back to consoles, but with some motion-control goodness this time around.
Any of you picking up new games this week?
The red-crested tree rat hasn’t been spotted since 1898, so scientists were thrilled to encounter one earlier this month. Too bad it’s nothing more than a frickin’ Pokemon! Just look at it. It’s obvious that this thing isn’t a “normal” creature. I’m also certain that it doesn’t call itself a red-crested tree rat. It surely has a cute Japanese-sounding name that it repeats over and over again.
Come on guys. Back me up on this one. Don’t you think this so-called red-crested tree rat is just a Pokemon?!?
After a few slow weeks, May brings several interesting games to the table. Brink has been getting a lot of buzz — some of my reviewer friends are high on this game and some are meh on it. Virtua Tennis 4 looks to bring the series back to glory. LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean serves up the cutest version of Captain Jack Sparrow ever. MX vs. ATV Live should keep motor sports fans happy. The First Templar is flying under the radar, but a few of my friends are digging this adventure game, saying that it nicely blends old and new.
Any of you guys and dolls picking up new games this week?
Normally I can’t be bothered to write about companies hiring new executives. For the most part, none of you care. Nintendo’s latest executive announcement was too good not to touch. The company has hired Scott Moffitt as the new executive vice president of sales & marketing for Nintendo of America. He’ll be reporting to NOA president Reggie Fils-Aime — you know, the guy that marketed Guiness beer, Pizza Hut, and Panda Express before taking Nintendo to new heights. How can Moffitt match up with Fils-Aime? Well, just look at this snippet from the press release:
Moffitt comes to Nintendo from Henkel Consumer Goods, where he oversaw North American operations for leading personal-care brands such as Dial, Right Guard, Tone and Pure & Natural. During his five years as senior vice president and general manager for the Personal Care division, he orchestrated an overhaul of the flagship Dial and Right Guard brands.
I love it! The dude sold soap and deodorant!!! That’s the perfect complement to the marketing strategies involved with selling stout beer, The Bigfoot Pizza (a Fils-Aime project), and mediocre Chinese food. Aren’t you glad you used Dial?!?
I’m late to the party on the Nintendo 3DS…and I’m trying to figure out where the party is. As a frequent flyer and huge portable gamer, the 3DS is off to a disappointing start. What was your…
Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, whether Derek Jeter is washed up, the brilliance of Hall & Oates, or your favorite Thundercat, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
I’m late to the party on the Nintendo 3DS…and I’m trying to figure out where the party is. I loved the potential of Nintendo’s latest portable gaming system at E3 2010 and the handful of times I got to play it between then and launch. After a few weeks with the system, I’m completely underwhelmed.
I have five 3DS launch titles and the only one I’m regularly enjoying is Nintendogs + Cats. That game hardly pushes the 3DS’ capabilities and the charm is largely the same as the original’s. I know that the 3DS will have great games in the future and I’m sure I’ll eventually love the system. As a frequent flyer and huge portable gamer, I’m really disappointed in the 3DS’ weak start. Next time I fly, I’ll probably leave my 3DS at home and play games on my iPad 2.
I don’t remember the last time I was this underwhelmed by a console launch. A new system usually brings something new and exciting to the table. The 3DS only does half of that. Where there any console launches that left you feeling flat? Kindly name the console launch (or launches) that disappointed you the most.
