Nintendo, as is now tradition, has chosen a digital showcase in place of the mostly-used live format. Nintendo has had some shaky E3’s but still, many hold high standards for a company that has produced some of the greatest video games and consoles of all time. Hopefully Nintendo has exceeded our expectations this year, regardless of how high or low we’ve set them.
Here are the big announcements and reveals from Nintendo’s showcase for E3 2017:
Xenoblade Chronicles 2
A huge trailer showing off the story and English voice acting for Xenoblade Chronicles 2. Even more, there was epic gameplay featured! So many have debated whether or not this game would get delayed to 2018 but it looks surprisingly put together. Holiday 2017 is still the release window as of now.
Kirby – 2018
Kirby’s cute. We like Kirby, right? The focus to this title seems to be a multiplayer element allowing four players to go through levels together. This looks like a more traditional Kirby platformer, which is important since the Kirby franchise has seen many changes in recent years that have sought to add more mechanics to the platformer, but none of them have been a hit. Perhaps allowing us to play this game together will provide that satisfying experience so many have been waiting for.
Tsunekazu Ishihara announces core Pokémon title for Nintendo Switch
The head of The Pokémon Company announced that Game Freak is working on a core Pokémon title for the Nintendo Switch. He admitted it may not be out for more than a year, but what a promising concept to look forward to!
Metroid Prime 4 – now in development for Nintendo Switch
It’s real? It’s real! With nothing but empty outer space and a logo, Nintendo let us know that the Switch is getting a Metroid title. There was no launch window given, but something’s better than nothing, right? The most telling thing about this is that the next Metroid game will be a part of the “Prime” series, meaning it should focus on first-person combat and exploration.
Yoshi – 2018
This looks quite similar to Yarn Yoshi. The concept here, besides the adorable nature of the game, is charting a different course other than what is directly in front of Yoshi. It seems players will be able to deviate off course and not simply be stuck with just moving forward.
Koei Tecmo’s Fire Emblem Warriors
Fire Emblem Warriors is a hack-and-slash action video game developed by Omega Force, Team Ninja and Intelligent Systems. Here we had a trailer featuring some characters from the series, including Marth and newcomers from the 3DS title Fire Emblem Birthright/Conquest. The release window is still Fall 2017.
Keiji Aonuma showcases DLC for Breathe of the Wild
The first DLC expansion, The Master Trials, will include several new additions to the base game, including a new “Trial of the Sword” mode, where players will be forced to fight waves of enemies, but without any of their existing equipment that they’ve gathered over the course of their play-through. Completing the trial will power up the Master Sword further, allowing it to deal double damage at all times.
Additionally, a new “Master Mode” — i.e., hard mode — will be added, which increases the difficult by upgrading all the enemies found in the game (some of whom will now take to the sky on flying rafts), along with a variety of new armors and costumes inspired by earlier Zelda titles. This DLC will be available JUNE 30.
Nintendo also gave a brief teaser of the second DLC pack for Breath of the Wild, scheduled to release this holiday season titled “The Champions’ Ballad”. This DLC – schedule for Holiday 2017 – involves the four Champions — Daruk, Mipha, Revali and Urbosa — although more details on that are still forthcoming. New Amiibo figures based on the four Champions are also in the works.
Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle – August 29th
Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle is a strategy-rpg that combines the characters of Nintendo’s Mushroom Kingdom with Ubisoft’s Rabbids characters. In this game, Rabbids invade the Mushroom Kingdom, and Mario and gang team up with more friendly Rabbids to rid the kingdom of the nefarious invaders. Nothing really too new here.
More Rocket League – Holiday 2017
For those not familiar, Rocket League has been a huge hit on platforms like PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. This version will feature exclusive content and modes. Adding the Switch’s mobility, multiplayer will certainly see more forms other than simple online play. Speaking of online play, the Switch version will feature cross-network play, meaning Switch players can play with/against PC/Xbox One Rocket League players.
Super Mario Odyssey – October 27
This trailer started with a T-Rex. What the heck. This one focuses on more gameplay with an emphasis on the wackiness from the Mario series. For the first time, we get an idea of how Mario’s new hat works – allowing him to take control of certain characters, be thrown at enemies, used as a jumping platform and even act like a boomerang, grabbing coins for Mario. The worlds seem massive and the platforming looks like some of the most imaginative stuff we’ve seen from Nintendo – which is saying something.
Wait… Another Metroid??
This one was announced immediately after the Spotlight. In addition to Metroid Prime 4 on Switch, Nintendo revealed a side-scrolling game for 3DS called Metroid: Samus Returns.
This is a “re-imagination” of the Game Boy game Metroid II: Return of Samus, developed by MercurySteam, the studio behind the 3DS game Castlevania: Lords of Shadow. Metroid: Samus Returns will be out on September 15.
Following the game’s announcement on Treehouse Live, Nintendo featured original Metroid co-director Yoshio Sakamoto as well as MercurySteam co-founder Jose Navas to talk about the game in-depth.
Important to note: Nintendo will be showcasing more titles throughout the rest of E3. Be sure to catch more coverage of E3 at GWW!
What did you think of Nintendo’s E3 digital showcase? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!