Nintendo Direct (UK) 15.01.15: Not-so-live Impressions

It's January. Let's watch a Nintendo Direct!

• 00:32 - Thanks, Iwata! Okay, what have we got here?

• 00:37 - Dynasty Warriors? Well, it's not the Mushroom Kingdom Warriors I was hoping for, but... (I think I'd totally play that actually. :D Hyrule Warriors is surprisingly enjoyable so far). 
• 01:03 - Huh? That guy looks weird. Still have no idea what this is. Man, imagine if it was another Odama game. (Almost picked that up last year. It seems hard as balls though, especially after seeing the NWR guys playing it.).

• 01:14 - Oh, shit. It's one of those paintings from The Day of the Doctor. Is that a Zygon?
• 01:27 - Welp, it's a strategy game anyway. Looks like for 3DS.
• 01:34 - Grid-based combat confirmed. This must be Fire Emblem X uh, Shin Megami Tensei, was it? JiliK: SRPG expert.
• 02:12 - It looks pretty nice anyway.
• 02:19 - Nope, this seems to be another Fire Emblem game altogether.
• 02:51 - It's another game from the Fire Emblem Awakening team. I should really give this series a go. The GBA version I already have on my Wii U would probablly be a good start.
• 03:31 - Nice to see Iwata looking better. I've totally tuned out of his Fire Emblem pitch though. :D
• 03:52 - A puzzle game now. Puzzle and Dragons?
• 04:12 - Puzzle and Dragons Z. Mysteries abound, made of a deep energy (energy). Foes all around... *ahem*

• 04:20 - Oh, this game's just fucking Bejewelled? No thanks.

• 04:37 - Aww shit. Mario!
• 04:46 - Damn it Nintendo, the New Super Mario Bros. music is not a way to sell me on anything. Bah Bah!
• 05:22 - Yeah, this is totally just Puzzle Quest. Tried it, but I'm not sure even Mario's going to get me into it.

• 05:29 - Oh, it's a retail bundle? They can't be charging full price for this, can they? Those games should €10 a piece on the eShop, at most.
• 06:49 - They're being bundled on the eShop too. Yeah, that doesn't bode well for a low price. So, Pokémon Shuffle?
• 07:04 Holy crap! It's ANOTHER Bejewelled clone!

• 07:16 - With RPG battles! What the fuck, Nintendo? :D 
• 08:16 - Waiting for the other gross, freemium shoe to drop.
• 08:34 - And there it is. Items and turns available to buy on the eShop. I can't imagine this will require them as much as many other free-to-play games, but still: ewww.

• 08:55 - Wait. Did Iwata say Wii instead of Wii U there? This is Wii U home screen. I see some Wii-bannered Wii titles though. Downloadable Wii games finally?
• 09:07 - There we go! Dare I ask how these are going to be priced? :D Not sure there are too many Wii games I still need to pick up really. I've got a heaving shelf of them already, unless these are being upscaled. (I bet not though.)
• 09:15 - I've got to say, the amount of milage Iwata's getting out of that "directley" motion is impressive.
• 10:03 - Nice to see they're offering Metroid Prime Trilogy as (probably) one of the first titles. Not sure I'd be up for that without the ability to run it through Dolphin though. Kirby's Adventure though? Absolutely.
• 10:40 - Oh. These are all out soon. I'm going to say, €29.99 with no upscaling.
• 10:50 - Okay, €19.99; Not too bad. And half-price for the first week too. Shit, I'm totally going to buy Metroid Prime Trilogy, aren't I?
• 10:57 - Punch-Out, Sin and Punishment 2 and Pandora's Tower too. Crap, really shouldn't have bought that last one on release day. Still haven't played it. I didn't even get offered the freakin' coins Club Nintendo were supposed to be giving out for owners of the full Project Rainfall trifecta, pretty much the only reason I bought it in the first place. ♫ Nintendo Direct Rants... with JiliK ♫ 
• 11:09 - Shibata now. No word on any potential upscaling. I'm not going to hold my breath for it.

• 11:08 - Man, this Shibata amiibo is even worse than Rosalina.
• 11:39 - Okay, the next round of amiibos. (He says, like someone whose bought into this dumb toy line, hook, line and sinker. :D) Yeah, don't think any of these are for me though. I do have Toon Link, Sheik, and Rosalina pre-ordered though (screw that guy).

• 11:58 - Yes! Now that's what I'm talking about. Didn't really care for the Smash Bros. Mario and Peach amiibos. These look great though. Damn it, these freaking amiibos are going to break me.
• 12:03 - March 20. That's before the Smash Bros. ones they've just announced. There's going to be let up on these things is there?
• 12:18 - Okay, that's cool. These Mario ones are going to be interchangeable with their Smash Bros. counterparts. Now, if only they'd release a decent Link one. I want the spinner in Hyrule Warriors, but that pee colum. Ugh.
• 13:08 - Yeah, Mario Party 10; Time for a snooze. :D

• 14:47 - This amiibo mode is super weird. Doesn't turning Mario Party into (pretty much) a physical board game remove what little that series has going for it in the first place?
• 15:08 - I guess that Mario Party 10 box art is okay, but for true artistry in box art, I go to Amazon.fr:

• 15:21 - Bandai Namco. I wonder what this is. Man, this'd be a strange place to see Tekken x Street Fighter popping up. :D
• 15:29 - Those look like SoulCalibur characters. Oh no. This can't be another SoulCalibur action game, can it?

• 15:34 - Oh no.
• 15:49 - Free-to-play too. Super. Also, are they echoing that guy. Also, why is he wearing sunglasses?
• 16:20 - Project Treasure. Hmm, those characters sure look a lot like SoulCalibur ones.
• 16:38 - Ah, Splatoon! Really looking forward to this.
• 17:55 - Cool-looking hub, plus customizable characters.

 

• 18:24 - Really like the look of these shopkeepers. That squid guy is rad as hell.
• 19:46 - Okay, Xenoblade Chronicles X now, by the looks of things.

• 20:29 - Whoa, the environments look fantastic here.
• 20:59 - Peter Jackon's gonna be pissed about them ripping off his giant worms though.
• 22:10 - A 2015 release? Sounds about right, given how many times they've shown it off at this stage.
• 22:45 Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars. That's um, certainly a name. Can't say I remember this from E3 though.

• 22:52 - Oh, this is a Wii U game.
• 23:44 - But how many Strange Coins can I get for each star? What about just Glimmer? (and that's everything I know about Destiny)
• 23:49 - Seriously though, this seems like a cool, very Nintendo-ish of way of rewarding custom level creators. I wonder if they'll do the same for Mario Maker? I don't know though, I think people would be pretty pissed of they had to grind somehow for a bullet bill or a p-block.
• 24:11 - Oh snap, cross-buy on Mario vs. Donkey Kong. Well, sort of.
• 24:45 - It's been so long since I've been on Miiverse.
• 25:01 - No thanks, Shibata. I'm good. I guess these guys must be new community managers or something.
• 25:09 - Ooh, New 3DS talk. I think I'm finally going to bite on the XL version of this. Hopefully the price won't be too crazy.

• 25:36 - Hm, I guess I'll go for the blue. Is it weird that they don't have the XL in white? Is it not hardcore enough?

• 25:46 - Oh, that's Majora's Mask. Man, I was all set to pre-order that, but of course, the collector's edition is limited to GAME, who're already sold out and the Nintendo UK store, who won't deliver here. Amazon.fr, you're my only hope.

♫ Nintendo Direct Rants... with JiliK ♫

• 26:07 - Faster downloads on the new 3DS? Man, that original hardware must have been not great.
• 26:43 - Yeah, it's the lack of need for the frankenstick that's finally got me off the fence on the 3DS. Well, that and this is probably the last hardware revision.
• 27:04 - Good to hear this still has DS support too. I was a bit worried they'd be tempted to yank it out to cut costs somehow.

 

• 27:29 - Ooh, those Mario ones on the second row look neat.
• 28:05 -  Looks like I won't need them though. The faceplates are only for the regular size New 3DS. D'oh!

• 28:22 - Just like my Japanese Animes. (sorry) Wait, didn't they just add Crunchyroll to the Wii U. Can't they just do that on 3DS?
• 28:28 - Oh, it's for Nintendo-based anime. I wonder if that F-Zero stuff from the GBA days will show up eventually.
• 28:57 - It's free? Yeah, okay. I wonder if they'll bring this to Wii U.
• 29:15 - Codename S.T.E.A.M.
• 30:21 - Not really my type of game, but the Fire Emblem amiibo compatibility is nice.

• 31:43 - Oh, Namco. This may be an even worse release than that free-to-play SoulCalibur Legends game I'm envisioning. C-stick controls are the only selling point here as far as I can see. Why didn't they include 3D in the original release, you know, back when there were still people who cared at all about 3D.

• 32:40 - That's a cool looking 3DS.
• 34:09 - I should get on that Monster Hunter demo. It seems like a franchise I might be into, but I've just never gotten around to it.

• 34:29 - For a second there, I was convinced he was about to announce a Monster Hunter Puzzle Quest clone. I would have thrown this entire PC out the window.
• 34:58 - Oh man, that Monster Hunter 3DS is an XL too. I think it'll be outside my price range, but it's tempting.
• 36:28 - Damn it, Monster Games, where's my Wii U ExciteTruck? :D

• 36:34 - Whoa, spoilers! (Probably)
• 37:11 - "The time has come" Finally.

 

• 37:18 - Majora's Mask. Haven't seem much footage of this up to now, but this looks like a substantial graphics overhaul.

• 38:31 - Can't say this Majora's Mask 3DS is doing it for me though. Not that I'd be able to order one anyway, Nintendo UK Store.
• 38:52 - Okay, February 13 for the New 3DS.
• 39:06 - One last game...
• 39:15 - Hell yeah, V.Dev! Wait, who?

• 39:31 -  This may be the most generic shooter I've ever seen. Don't worry though, devs, those sparks and bullet holes make it look totally legit. (These guys wouldn't be caught dead playing using white New 3DS XL. No, sir.)
• 39:39 - IronFall: Invasion - also possibly the most generic name ever. 60 FPS on the 3DS is pretty neat though I guess.
• 40:37 - And that's a wrap.