We’re getting ready to liveblog the Nintendo press conference! The unveiling of new hardware, a new Zelda… we’re going to have a bunch of things to talk about. There’s a lot of big news today, and you can check back with us here to make sure you get it LIVE!
8:30AM – Just like last year, they’re doing pre-show trivia. Some of the factoids are kind of interesting. Apparently more than 177 million Miis have been created worldwide since the launch of the Wii.
9:00AM – The lights are going down! Let’s do this!
9:01AM – Here’s Reggie! Good morning, Reggie! “For gamers, this is the best time of the year.” 9:02AM – “The headlines seem to spin on technology, but this morning, let me adjust that… the only thing that matters is the experience.”
9:03AM – New Legend of Zelda trailer for Wii 9:04AM – It’s a little cartoony looking, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. Here comes a video presentation from Miyamoto on the game.
9:06AM – Wii Remote and Wii MotionPlus (plus nunchuck) will be used to use your sword and shield. It sounds like it’s going to be on rails. That’s not exciting at all.
9:07AM – Bill Trinen is on stage, and it looks like he’ll be playing Skyward Sword here. Okay, it’s not on rails. Phew.
9:08AM – Bill can’t really hack it, so Miyamoto “warps” from the video and appears from behind the curtain on stage. Haltingly in English, he instructs Bill to just handle the speech, while Miyamoto plays the game and discusses it in Japanese. 
9:10AM – This is actually looking prety cool. It’s all on a 1-1 movement with the sword and shield, and it all plays into each other. To fight the plants, you have to cut them in the same direction as their mouths. Also looks like return of the sword beam by charging it up by holding it skyward (heh), or spin slashes by slashing with both your hands.
9:12AM – Miyamoto twirls his sword in a circle to confuse an enemy and get access to a locked door. Behind it, enemies come at Link guarding themselves with helmets or with their weapons, requiring a slash in the appropriate direction to get around their guard.
9:13AM – Link has some new moves, like a sprint, and new items, like a whip. First on display though… a slingshot. Either it’s not that accurate, or Miyamoto’s not a great shot. 
9:15AM – After that, the classic bomb, and the bow. Miyamoto is having some problems with them, and Trinen hits us with a reference to Apple’s wifi failure from a couple weeks ago.
9:16AM – Next up, that’s no boomerang! That’s a remote control beetle! A mechabeetle!
9:17AM – Now, as mentioned, the whip. This one looks cool! It moves organically with the Wii remote, and Link can use it to grab weapons and enemies.
9:19AM – Miyamoto says they’ve been spending a lot of time on the polish, and we won’t see it until 2011. Can’t wait!
9:20AM – It’s a gameplay montage. Firing the beetle to grab bombs, catching hearts with the bow and arrow, and a cliff dive! This one looks like fun. And this is just the top line, Reggie says. The goal is to provide new experiences for everyone.
9:22AM – Introducing “titles that are squarely based on universal appeal.” – Reggie
9:23AM – Talking about arcade games and sports games, like Madden and NBA Jam. But he teases up a new Mario sports game.
9:24AM – Here comes Mario Volleyball! And hockey! And dodgeball! And basketball! It’s Mario Sports Mix, coming in 2011. Already 2011 is shaping up to be a big year for Nintendo. But what about 2010?
9:25AM: “Last December, we set the all time record sales record for a video game system in a given month.” Wii owners actually play their systems more often than other console owners according to NPD, Reggie says. He adds that intent to buy a Wii is also greater than other consoles combined.
9:26AM: Reggie’s using the term “Bridge Title.” Here comes Wii Party. It’s a party game with 13 modes featuring Miis, 70 minigames. There’s like, three people clapping. 
9:27AM: Reggie highlights the performance of Just Dance. Here comes Just Dance 2.
9:29AM: Golden Sun: Dark Dawn for the Nintendo DS. Here comes a trailer! Looks like lots of traditional top-down 2D RPG action. Turn-based battles in full 3D. 
9:31AM – Golden Sun: Dark Dawn arrives this holiday season. But forget about that, here comes GoldenEye!
9:32AM – Exclusively for the Wii, with local and online multiplayer. Featuring Daniel Craig instead of Pierce Brosnan. Bunches of multiplayer modes including paintball and You Only Live Twice. It hits this holiday.
9:33AM – Here comes Disney Epic Mickey, exclusive to Wii. It “sets a new tone and new direction for Mickey.” Warren Spector takes the stage to talk about it. He’s joined by Adam Creighton, producer on the project.
9:35AM – The game will tap into 80 years of “forgotten” Disney history – “Wasteland.” It’s a ‘quest zone’ where Mickey can get supplies and learn what he needs to do to progress. The game isn’t just about the cartoons, it also features things from the theme parks like the Tiki Room and the Swiss Family Robinson treehouse.
9:37AM – Mickey can use paint and paint thinner to control the world. Players can change the world to save it. “Play style matters.” How Mickey changes the world affects how characters treat him. “Do you use paint to turn enemies to friends, or do you simply defeat them?” 
9:40AM – “Travel Zones” are 2D platformers inspired by classic Disney cartoons. They’re showing us one inspired by Steamboat Willie. This looks awesome.
9:41AM – e3.nintendo.com has an interview with Warren Spector conducted by Satoru Iwata.
9:41AM – Reggie namedrops Masahiro Sakurai. He mentions Super Smash Bros., and Kirby. Looks like a new Kirby game. He hasn’t had a starring role in 7 years. Here’s the trailer for Kirby’s Epic Yarn. Oh wow, it looks like it’s all made out of yarn and fabric. 
9:45AM – Dragon Quest IX talk coming up, talking stats. 120 Mini Quests, 900 items, 300 monsters, randomly generated treasure maps.
9:46AM – Dated for arrival in the U.S. on July 11.
9:47AM – August 31 – Metroid Other M. Here’s a trailer. Lots of gameplay footage. It’s 2.5D, sort of? 
9:50AM – It’s “traveling into emotional corridors that haven’t been explored before.” 9:50AM – Here comes a Donkey Kong Country game trailer. Developed by Retro Studios, it’s a 2D sidescrolling platformer.
9:50AM – It’s got some neat graphical effects, and it’s the original team of Donkey Kong and Diddy, featuring the mine cart levels that folks hated. Donkey Kong Country Returns – “going back to the jungle this holiday.”
9:52AM – “With all the names we’ve mentioned, you may feel your gaming memories sliding into the past. But we’re going to close today, by throwing you into the future of gaming… 3D play, with Nintendo 3DS is on the way.”
9:53AM – No glasses, and “ample game content” on the first day on the market.
9:54AM – It’s rising from the stage, and it’s blue. Here comes Satoru Iwata to talk about it.
9:56AM – 2 screens, one of them with 3.5″ a widescreen display, analog stick, two cameras on the outside. There’s a slider on the side of the device to adjust the 3D depth. Also includes a motion sensor and gyroscope.
9:57AM – A touchscreen and 3D screen don’t get along well, Iwata says, so the smaller bottom screen is the only touchscreen. It’ll feature graphical improvements that “might cause some excitement in the development community.”
9:59AM – It can also take 3D pictures, and play 3D “Hollywood movies.” They aren’t announcing specific plans this week.
10:01AM – Project Sora, from 2009, was an initiative specifically to develop 3DS games. The big launch title? KID ICARUS. WHAT?? “Sorry to keep you waiting,” Pit says.
10:02AM – This looks outstanding, kind of like Sin and Punishment. And the system itself? Super powerful, this looks like a Wii game. Truthfully I’m getting chills. This is an exciting development. And of course, Eggplant Wizards CONFIRMED.
10:05AM – 3DS periodically searches for Wifi spots and other 3DSes “without you knowing.” The hardware supports automatic communication regardless of the software being played.
10:06AM – No charge for online access on the 3DS.
10:10AM – Here come 3rd party devs to talk about their experience with the 3DS. There’s lots of support coming. Capcom, Konami, etc. They’re teasing DJ Hero 3D, Kingdom Hearts 3D, Saints Row, Madden, Dead or Alive, Ninja Gaiden, Street Fighter, Ridge Racer, Professor Layton and even Metal Gear!
10:19AM – And now here comes hundreds of models with 3DSes strapped to them, for people to try out, and Wiis rising from the floor for folks to try the new Zelda. Neat! And with that, we’re done. Thanks for check it out! Stay tuned later for the Sony keynote!
[photo credit] Kotaku.com
If that image is representative of how the final game will look then Epic Mickey has made a huge leap forward. The original graphics just plain sucked. Also, Zelda still looks like an early build…
I think they’re definitely going to take some more time on Zelda, but I think it still looks pretty good. It’s kind of evocative of Wind Waker, which I LOVED, but it’s kind of in-between that and Twilight Princess.
You know, I’m going to say it right now: Kid Icarus Uprising is going to be one of my Games of Show.
Epic Mickey looks so rad.