Steve’s Take

Right out of the gate:

The Legend of Zelda: The Skyward Sword – Nintendo hits hard and fast with a new Zelda title. Looks pretty awesome, still more gesture based than actual 1:1 movement, even with Motion Plus support. Still, it looks awesome! Thumbs Up!

Mario: Sports Mix – I’ve always hated these “multi-sport” packages. Everything is just too shallow to be fullfilling. I’ll have to take a pass. Wait? Is that DK playing hockey? Even handed gesture.

Wii Party – Snore! Thumbs down!

Just Dance 2 – I would post a picture of me shooting myself in the head, but… i’m too lazy. Thumbs down! Somebody stop Ubisoft! PLEASE! Stop them before they do any more damage.

Golden Sun: Dark Dawn – Golden Sun was pretty awesome. This one is for the DS, it too looks awesome. Thumbs up!

Goldeneye 007 – No wonder Nintendo and Activision wouldn’t let Rare offload this one to Xboxlive. Remastered, re-imagined using the Daniel Craig era James Bond, and looking as hype as ever. Exclusive to Wii this holiday season. Thumbs up!

Disney’s Epic Mickey – this Warren Spector created project has been floating around for ages. We finally get a glimpse, and it looks pretty damn good. Nowhere to be seen is the old gritty steampunk Mickey that was teased in concept art an eternity ago. Thumbs Up!

Kirby’s Epic Yarn – Wow, everyone loves Little Big Planet it would seem. Kind of cute i guess, and i’m sure my daughter would eat up the cross-stitch graphics. Even Handed Gesture.

Dragon Quest IX – Ahhhh yes, the game series that made it mandatory to release games on non-workdays in Japan. Coming to the Americas in July, probably to be ignored. Thumbs up!

Metroid: Other M – This looks awesome! Team Ninja has crafted the game i’ve been wanting since super Metroid all those years ago. And it’s only a month and a bit away! Thumbs up!

Donkey Kong Country Returns – Oh by, another DK spinoff with family games and some supid dru… wait… What? This looks absolutely fantastic! It’s Donkey Kong Country, only with a 21st century lick of paint. And it’s coming this year! WOO! Thumbs up!

The Nintendo 3DS – OK, new hardware reveals are always a little vapid for me. this was no exception. Only one game is actually shown, and there’s no clear indication of how well the 3D actually works. Seeing is believing i suppose. Even Handed Gesture

Kid Icarus: Uprising – If nothing else, We know the 3DS can stand toe to toe with the Wii for graphical horsepower, and that’s no small feat! Looks pretty slick, but the gameplay seems to be more shooter-based. Still, it’s Kid Icarus, and it looks sharp! Thumbs up!

A ton of 3DS montages close out the show, promising some great titles from some great developers, including Hideo kojima’s Metal Gear Solid!

Well, for the first time in this generation, it finally feels to me that someone is steering the ship over at Nintendo HQ. In spite of my lack of interest in the 3DS, there were some damn nice titles on display, and Nintendo is warmly embracing those fans who’ve been longing for a classic return. If E3 of last year was them turning the ship around, this years was full speed ahead. Loved the lack of casual shovelware (although Ubisoft never disappoints in that regard).

Final Grade: B+ (would be an “A” if they had a decent host)