E3 2009 Nintendo Keynote Conference recap

Metroid: Other M was announced in the Keynote at E3.

With the Nintendo Keynote Conference at E3 now behind us, it’s time to take a look at what they came out with. Compared to most, it’s hard to actually hear word of what Nintendo and its many developers are going to come out with next. This year there were some recaps of technology and things already mentioned from last year and in the past few months. But knowing Nintendo there are still going to be surprises down the way.

Coming in Holiday 2009 we’ll see a new kind of Mario. New Super Mario Bros. for Wii will enable players to have up to four people play with them. You can carry your friends, throw them at enemies, and of course battle for who wracks up the most coins and extra points. At the end of each level, you’ll be ranked as to who is doing the best. I was even surprised to see a new item thrown into the mix, the Propeller Suit.

WiiFit has been selling so well, with the balance board, it’s no wonder Nintendo wants to keep the franchise rolling. In WiiFit Plus, you’ll become your own personal trainer where you can target specific areas you want to work out. Additionally, there will be 15 new balance games, and 6 new strength and yoga activities. The game will be packaged with the balance board, but it will also be available separately. Gamers even have the chance to run a mile in Mario’s shoes by being able to jump over pipes, and dodge rolling balls in a platform like level.

As mentioned before, there were some recaps. And one of them was the WiiMotionPlus, which will be coming out with the game WiiSport Resort on July 26th. This will have games such as archery, shooting hoops, and even some Frisbee throwing.

Several games are going to come packaged with a WiiMotionPlus accessory. Expect Tiger Woods PKG Tour 10, Red Steel 2, and Virtual Tennis.

And for many gamers, although the sports games are great, everyone knows we’re all looking forward to some RPGs. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Crystal Bearers will use the new accessory. But much to our surprise, it was revealed that there is going to be an exclusive game from Square Enix. Kingdom Hearts 358/2 days is also going to use the WiiMotionPlus. Release dates for either game are unknown as of now though.

With the DSi recently released and the sales increasing slightly for the DSLite, there are several games slated for release this coming year. A new Mario and Luigi RPG is coming this fall. Mario and Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story takes the title quite literally. The plumbing brothers turn micro size and explore Bowser’s insides.

A series that has been quiet for the past six years is now getting a new game on our little handheld. Gold Sun DS was announced, but no release date was given. Several other DS titles were announced, hoping to extend the net of people playing the DS. James Patterson’s popular series Women’s Murder Club is going to see a DS game to be released on October 13. They are hoping to attract fans of the series and broaden the player market. Style Savvy has already been released in Japan. It’s a clothing design game that allows girls to design clothes, walk the runway and dress their models.

Downloadable content has been picking up in popularity, and many developers are pushing for more people to purchase such games. For the DSi, Flip Notes Studio will be released sometime this summer; it’s a game in which the player can create their own movies. A Mario vs. Donkey Kong game will be available June 8th for download. Mario vs. Donkey Kong: March of the Minis allows the gamer to design levels from the ground up. You can even upload the levels to friends and using the Nintendo Wi-Fi.

Following the popular WarioWare franchise, expect the micro game, WarioWare: DIY or Do it Yourself to follow the customization route. Players will control what the characters look like, along with the levels and even the challenges.

And a new addition to the downloadable content will allow people to use DSPhoto to upload their pictures taken and edited directly to Facebook.

Satoru Iwata announced a new accessory called the WiiVitalitySensor, which you place your finger in and it measures your pulse. It can show the player how fast their heart beats when they’re nervous, resting, or any other range of emotions. Release dates and uses for this accessory were not announced at this time, however.

Another Mario title was announced for the Wii, which will be another 3D game. Super Mario Galaxy 2 will return us to the planet hoping universe. But it appears that the game will also include Yoshi as a buddy to help you jump to new heights.

Coming soon will be some very excellent looking Wii exclusives. The Conduit will be released this June within the next few weeks—an exact date was not given. Expect Resident Evil: Darkside Chronicles and Dead Space: Extraction to also be released solely for the Wii.

But the most surprising game that was not expected was a new game from a very popular series from Team Ninja. Metroid: Other M is slated for release in 2010. Gameplay looked to be in both third and first person. Players will get a deeper look at Samus Aran’s story and who she is.

Although they announced several great looking games, there was still no word on a new Legend of Zelda game using the WiiMotionPlus. Hopefully that’ll come in the future, but otherwise there’s a long list of games coming out from both third party developers and of course the Big N themselves.