Van and I were fortunate enough to attend E3 this year down in Los Angeles, and although most of the good stuff was shrouded in secrecy behind closed doors, we were able to try out what we could on the showroom floor. If I’d have to classify the show’s vibe, I’d say the ESA took a line drive down the middle, between the spectacle of E3’s of the past and the invite-only reduction seen in the last few years. There was enough foot traffic and crowds to know what was hot, yet the lines were not long enough that you had to pick what to see and what to bypass. So take a look at what we saw and played.
New Super Mario Bros Wii
NSMB Wii was Nintendo’s olive branch to the hardcore for 2009, since their other debuted must-haves (Super Mario Galaxy and Metroid: Other M) won’t be out until 2010. The fresh take on the classic platforming formula moves to the Wii with a Zelda: The Four Swords-like approach to multiplayer. We were able to try out one of the 4-player levels in its cooperative, but mostly competitive, 2.5-D sidescrolling mayhem. As always, the controls were solid (what Mario game isn’t?) and the action was intense. However, it was more fun trying to screw with your rival buddies, flinging each other into pits and bouncing on heads, than it was trying to navigate the level honorably. I’m assuming the final package will include every bit as much gameplay as the single player DS campaign did, and coupled with multiplayer, it looks to be quite the party game this Fall.