Nintendophiles 12.28.06
Posted by Theo Fraser on 12.28.2006
It’s the final Nintendophiles of 2006, so come celebrate the end of a tremendous year with all the Nintendo goodness you could possibly ever want!
OK, you'll have to forgive the relative shortness of this week's column. Let's just say my Christmas pudding had a little extra brandy in this year…
It's been a bit of a slow week news-wise, with everything at the Nintendo HQ winding down for Christmas and the New Year festivities. Well, that, and Reggie going into a week-long hibernation. I mean, that's what he must do at this time of year, right? I can't imagine the Reggienator sitting down to a nice Christmas meal with family. If he did, he'd probably look like this:
"My name is Reggie Fils-Aime. I'm about kicking ass, and taking names…and eating mince pies?"
Soooo…no real news to report then. I could make it up, of course. Alright, here's the ideal news that we could have seen this week:
Super Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime: Corruption, and Super Smash Bros Brawl all released tomorrow in shock announcement! And all 411 columnists are given $150 gift certificates to redeem on the games!
Sony admit defeat and file for bankruptcy. But hand over the rights to Metal Gear Solid to Nintendo.
Dixie Kong is discovered to be based off of a real woman! And she has the hots for an internet columnist by the name of Theo Fraser!
Some actual details are released on Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles.
Wii demos up for download on the Virtual Console! (Hey, come on, that's not too far-fetched!)
Yes, well, in case you haven't guessed, I'm a bit short on material this week, so this week's column is dedicated to the coming year, and all the possibilities that 2007 will bring us! Read on, my fellow Nintendophiles...
The Big Games of 2007
Super Mario Galaxy
This one really doesn't need any sort of explanation. At first, I didn't think it was going to be quite as revolutionary to the gaming world as Super Mario 64, but as more information and screenshots are released in drips and drabs, I'm not so sure anymore. The varying levels of gravity featured in different levels open up endless possibilities for different types of gameplay, and Nintendo's realisation of space will be something magnificent to behold. We've seen them do fire levels, water temples, dank forests and the like on countless occasions, but rarely have Nintendo ventured into space. To be honest, I don't think we'll see anything new until E3 (or it's replacement, at least), where a decent sized playable portion should be available. Until then, we'll just have to sit tight and pray for a speedy development.
Disaster: Day of Crisis
The idea behind the plot of this game has got my panties twisted in a bunch; I'm THAT excited. For those that don't know, the game follows Ray (just Ray, apparently. No surname has been confirmed as of yet. See artwork below.), a one man army who takes it upon himself to deal with the Special Forces, who are doing very naughty things. There's been an abundance of natural disasters, see, and the SF unit have used the disasters as an excuse to harvest the world's nuclear weapons. Bit cheeky, really, isn't it? Nintendo have stated that they hope to give the player a real sense of the terror experienced in a natural disaster area. Earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanoes have been confirmed…here's hoping for tornadoes, purely because they rock. Apart from all that destruction business, that sucks. I'm hoping the natural disaster bit will work like the Nemesis from Resident Evil 3; you don't know when they're going to strike, i.e. it's not scripted. At any moment a tornado could sweep down and cause havoc. You could be in the middle of searching for a particular item. You could even be in the middle of a hectic gunfight, when all of a sudden, BAM! Molten lava rains down upon you, and you have to find cover, all the while the Special Forces are doing their best to fill you with bullet holes. Pure speculation on my part, but that kind of non-linear play would make Disaster: Day of Crisis an exhilarating experience from start to finish.
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Just pause for a second and imagine it…online Super Smash Bros battles. Mario vs Solid Snake in a Nintendophile vs Sony fanboy "Battle of the Mascots" match. That is the stuff dreams are made of. For once, this isn't a game we have to sit and speculate about. We know what Super Smash Bros is like, we know it's brilliant. Brawl won't radically change the series; we can tell that by the way Nintendo have said it'll be compatible with Gamecube controllers. What it will do, however, is build upon what we know and love in order to cement itself as a key Nintendo franchise. Trust me, when this is released sometime in the Summer, it'll be a BIG deal. You might want to consider pre-ordering now…
Metroid Prime: Corruption
Judging by the E3 demo, Corruption looks to have a much more narrative-focused gameplay, which in my opinion will really kick the series into the stratosphere. I like the idea of Samus actually being used as a bounty hunter. In previous games, we've always picked up when Samus arrives at a planet. But in the course of Corruption, Samus boards a huge vessel of some kind, and interacts with friendly people (presumably human) who require her services. That could add an interesting dynamic to the proceedings.
I'm excited to see if any other Wii-specific control methods have been implemented, like the twist-the-remote-to-open-the-door deal. Of course, we wouldn't want anything tacked on for the sake of it, but if Retro have something in mind that will really add to the experience as a whole, I'm all for it. Recent information suggested that Samus' ship can be controlled in some parts of the game, so that is definitely high up on my "I want to see that in action" list. Imagine a Lylat Wars-style trek between planets! *Drools*
Come, one and all, jump on the bandwagon!
I, Theo Fraser, hereby officially start the hype for No More Heroes. With one game, all your lightsabre (sorry, "beam katana") fantasies can become a reality. And it looks beautiful. It carries the same style of visuals found in Killer7, as well as being just as bloodthirsty, but that's pretty much where the similarities end. Killer7, as great a game as it was, was basically on-rails (it's a bit more complex than that, but put simply, ‘on-rails' sums it up best). No More Heroes (developed by Grasshopper Manufacture, the team behind the GC gorefest) is much more free-form, with the game being set in the fictional city of Santa Destroy, which you are free to explore at your leisure. Travis, the hero of the game, can travel via his trusty motorbike, and possibly via other methods of transport, as some screenshots show detailed cars as the main focal point. Missions and side-quests can be picked up GTA-style from various points on the map. And that ‘GTA-style' comment was just a throw-away remark; this really does look like the Wii's answer to Grand Theft Auto.
The game is still in a relatively early stage of development, with the scheduled release date being late 2007. As such, the information we've been given may well only barely scratch the surface of what No More Heroes has in store for us. If Killer7 is any indication, we may not know the full story until actual review code is available. Let's hope that doesn't happen, however, as I am far too eager to get my hands on a playable version. So, when you're enjoying a nice, cold alcoholic beverage this New Year's Eve, raise a glass for Grasshopper Manufacture, as we should all be thankful that they have taken to the Wii so well.
Well, that's gonna do it for Nintendophiles this week. Hope you all enjoyed Christmas, and have a great New Year! See you back here next Thursday for the first Nintendophiles of 2007, where (fingers crossed) we'll have some proper news for you.
In the mean time, you'll no doubt be seeing my name plastered across 411 as I am totally, unashamedly whoring myself out over various columns in the coming week. So, keep an eye out for:
Column of Honor in the Wrestling section, where I give my picks for the ROH Year End Awards
The 2006 Wrestling Year End Awards, a huge feature that nearly all the staff here at 411 have contributed to
The Game of the Year Awards, right here in the 411 Games zone!
And last but not least, Sean McCabe and myself take a trip back through time, looking at Nintendo's history in the latest Retrospective. This week, it's the SNES, Nintendo 64 and Game Boy Advance.
So basically I'm like the Matt Sydal of 411 right now. Probability of ROH fans reading this? Somewhere between "highly unlikely" and "WTF, dude, seriously? Get a grip." In which case none of you would have got that joke. Still, in case some of you actually are ROH fans…why aren't you laughing? It was funny…wasn't it?
On the third day of Christmas, my tr-…oh balls, I can't use that one any more
Xbox-a-gogo by Joshua Richey has a very tasty Lost Planet video inside. That's the last time I EVER refer to Xbox-a-gogo as containing something tasty. Make the most of it, and check it out.
Hmm…VERY interesting. In this week's SIXAXIS, Andrew Mellick runs down the Top 10 Video Game Santa Clause fill-ins…and whaddya know? Half of them appear on Nintendo consoles. Uh, I don't quite know what that proves…but um…that's 1-up for Nintendo, right? Right? Gah, go read the article.
Vincent Chiucchi has a festive Select and Start News Report for you this week, and he's got everything you need to know about what went down at the SpikeTV Video Game Awards show.
Vincent Chiucchi also has another edition of Gaming Trends, where he looks at the major video games award ceremonies, and gives his tips on how to create the perfect awards show. Are you paying attention, SpikeTV?
Fact or Fiction with Caleb Newby and Andrew Mellick has some interesting questions to ponder. See what Caleb and the spawn of Satan have to think on issues such as Wii games without motion sensing, Sega leaving ‘Nights' well alone, the Master Chief showing his ugly mug, and Sony being unethical shmucks.
Will Scott's Unlockable Content analyses the last-gen console war, giving his thoughts on how the PS2, Xbox and Gamecube stacked up against each other. We all know the Gamecube kicked ass, but still, it's a good read.
Damian Sarcuni, I know your pain. I know it all too well. In this week's Angry Gaming, Damian tackles the queues of New York's Rockefeller Center in his quest to purchase a Wii.
Most importantly is the 411 Games Holiday 2006 Roundtable, complete with Buyer's Guide for Christmas and the New Year! Still need incentive to read it? I'm in it. Yeah, NOW you can click the link.
