Nintendo is usually pretty miserly when it comes to revealing information about, well, anything (no matter how insignificant) but apparently they were hitting the sake last night and decided, "what the hell, no more secrecy in 2013, we'll just tell them about everything!"
We now have a pretty clear idea of what's going to be happening on the Wii U in 2013 -- Wind Waker HD, a new Mario platformer from the Mario Galaxy team, Mario Kart and all sorts of other quirky miscellania are on the way. Hit the jump for all the news and some trailers...
Here's the full half-hour plus Nintendo Direct presentation...
Here's a run-down of what was announced for those who are busy, or have a limited amount of patience for Japanese people speaking slow, halting English.
- Two Wii U system updates are coming in "spring" (likely sometime in April) and "summer". The updates will bring faster loading of games and apps, as well as updates to Miiverse, speaking of which...
- Users will be able to create their own Miiverse communities, not necessarily tied to any one game. You'll also be able to browse Miiverse from your smartphone (Miiverse will be hitting phones before the 3DS -- interesting).
- The April update will also bring the arrival of the Wii U Virtual Console. Wii U Virtual Console games will allow save states, customizable controls and the ability to play on the GamePad. In a rare bit of generosity from Nintendo, if you already downloaded a Virtual Console game on the Wii, you can upgrade to the Wii U version for only $1 for NES games and $1.50 for SNES games.
Oh yeah, you customize those controls.
Okay, enough system update and Virtual Console talk, hit the next pages for info on new Wii U games...
- Already announced stuff like Game and Wario, Wii Fit U, Pikmin 3 and The Wonderful 101 are arriving sometime between the beginning of March and the end of June. Oh, and hey, here's a new Wonderful 101 trailer...
...also, a little teaser for Bayonetta 2.
- Let's talk Mario, Mario, Mario! We'll be getting our first look at the new Smash Bros. at E3, although it may only be in screenshot form.
An HD game from the Mario Galaxy team is pretty much why the Wii U exists.
- New Mario Platformer coming from the team that did the Mario Galaxy games. Also, new Mario Kart, because nobody actually buys Nintendo platforms until the Mario Kart shows up. Both will be playable at E3.
- The makers of Kirby's Epic Yarn stick to the textiles theme with Yarn Yoshi. The game will be supervised by Takashi Tezuka, the guy behind everything from Mario 3, to Zelda: A Link to the Past, to the original Yoshi's Island.
- There's going to be a Shin Megami Tensei/Fire Emblem crossover. Will it be a strategy game, or a dungeon hack or could it be both? Yeah, I know this announcement probably confuses and/or bores most of you, but I'm pretty excited.
- Zelda news! Wii U is of course getting an original Zelda game. Not too much was said about the game, but apparently it's going to be less linear (as in, you'll be able to complete dungeons in whatever order you want) and it will feature some sort of multiplayer. Don't get yourself too hyped for a fully online multiplayer MMO-type approach -- this is Nintendo after all -- but still, sounds interesting.
- Oh yeah, and they're also doing an HD remake of Wind Waker, due out this year...
Looks pretty. Supposedly they're going to be "fine tuning" the game, but hopefully they go a bit further than that. Wind Waker had a great look and feel, but it also had its fair share of shortcomings. If they chop the dull Triforce quest and add the two extra dungeons the game was originally supposed to have, then I'll be first in line for the remake.
- Finally, Monolith Soft, the makers of Xenoblade Chronicles are making a new game. The game doesn't have a name yet, but it looks like a very very pretty Xenoblade sequel to me.
So, there you have it. The next year of Wii U has been mapped out. Game and Wario, Pikmin 3, The Wonderful 101, Bayonetta 2, Mario Kart, a 3D Mario Platformer, Wind Waker HD and Yarn Yoshi are all pretty much a lock for this year. Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem and Xenoblade 2 next year (hopefully). What do you folks think? Enough to get you on the Wii U train? For those who already have one, does this line-up justify your purchase?
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If past announcement-to-release timeframes are any indication, they will showcase the new 3D Mario at E3 and release it a year later around May 2014. Which makes it one and a half years after the console’s release. They’re pushing back the big releases with every new system.
Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate that they launched with Super Mario Bros. Wii U, but as much as I love it, it’s barely a new game. They’re getting lazy with their big franchises.. Mario 64 came out at launch, Mario Sunshine some 8 months after launch, Mario Galaxy a year after launch… and now? I’m happy to pass on another Zelda-Remake, Mario Spin-Off or Mii-themed Minigame collection. Just do your job of releasing two or three of the actual games that your fans are waiting for and I’ll buy your system…
North American release of Dragon Quest X — then I’ll buy the WiiU…
Hmmm, yeah, kind of conspicuously absent, but then this Nintendo Direct was only for Nintendo published stuff — maybe they’re not handling Dragon Quest X.
I love this and home it becomes industry standard. We hear about movies and television shows years in advance, but video game information is top secret until the last minute. If you want to build hype, let your fans know what you’re working on when you decide to start working on it.
A new game similar to Xenoblade but with transforming mechs and guns? I’m in.
I doubt it was the sake they were hitting that made them decide to reveal a ton of new things, more likely it was their sales figures.
Sales figures never got them to open up in the past — 5 years of Gamecube couldn’t get them to loosen their tongues.
WIND WAKER IN HD!? (faints, hits head on countertop, wakes up, realized that one remark doesnt justify and entire console purchase, breaks out Gamecube, starts new Wind Waker file)
Wii U: Hash and Rehash. Jesus. In 6 years, the next-gen “Wii Wii on U” will feature “Wind Waker Retro” to take advantage of the current “standard def” fad popularized by the iPhone 8′s “Pixelgram” app that reduces your photos to 64k bitmaps, along with “New New Super Mario Wii Wii” which of course is a 4-player remake of “Wrecking Crew”.