All in all the Big N didn’t seem to be that focused on major title’s this year but more on a few hardware announcements and while the new hardware is exciting for Wii fans, the lack of big game announcements is a bit disappointing. Here’s a breakdown of the major announcements.
MotionPlus
A new hardware add-on for the Wiimote that finally delivers what we were always hoping the Wiimote would deliver. 1:1 motion sensitivity (or near to it as reports seem to indicate). One can only start salivating over the idea of a true motion sensitive light-saber game. The MotionPlus add-on will come bundled with Wii Sports Resort, which carries on the Wii Sports franchise and shows off the increased motion sensitivity.
WiiSpeak
It’s no secret that Nintendo have always been lagging in the online department but finally they’ve come through with ONE of the things we’ve been asking for. Online chat is coming to Wii. I’m a little confused as to why they’ve opted for a mic that sits on top of the TV instead of a headset. Even more confusing is the fact that they already have a Nintendo branded Bluetooth headset for the DS.
It also looks like it’ll only work for games with the design built in. So far that would include the newly announced Animal Crossing game, which is more of what AC fans have come to expect. Personally though, I’m hoping for some sort of WiiSpeak Channel that can run in the background of other games. Doubtful but I’m an optimist.
1st Party Games
Nintendo only really showed off three 1st party games, two of them targeting the casual gaming audience and one for fans of an existing franchise. Wii Sports Resort shows off the new MotionPlus with a variety of holiday themed sports mini-games. Looks like there’s more party fun heading our way.
Wii Music finally seems to be on its way. Again it’s looking like more party fun for the casual gamer. Imagine a very dumbed down Rockband that doesn’t require accessories that take up the lounge room.
The final game they showed off was Animal Crossing: City Life. This game appears to be what AC fans have come to expect plus voice chat. Of course there’s nothing wrong with this but it would be nice to see a new franchise coming from the Big N.
In addition to these games Miyamoto also let slip the fact they’ve started work on new Pikmin and Zelda games for the Wii, claiming they’re looking at ways to reinvigorate the Zelda franchise. He also let slip that they’re working on new Mario titles but no clarification on whether this is a sequel to Galaxy.
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