Nintendo's 2016 Plans: A 1-Up or A Game Over?

     Nintendo has had a pretty stellar couple of years. The most stellar was probably their 2015. With a constant release of awesome games, along with awesome DLC and  Amiibos being a huge thing, it would be almost crazy for Nintendo to slow things down. Luckily they aren't.

      The current president of the company, Tatsumi Kimishima, is promising that 2016 will be a big year for Nintendo. He is making some pretty huge promises five to be exact that will help improve the companies sales and content. Right off the bat, he is promising to be very big on smartphone gaming as well as branching into other media like TV and anime. The president is also promising to try new concepts and new ideas instead of sticking to old ones. Nintendo is really thinking outside of the box, the console box.
     Nintendo's theme for 2016 seems to new, which is great. For a company to survive and stay as productive and relevant over the years it is important to always try to come up with new ideas. It keep s things fresh and it keeps people interested. In Nintendo's case, it was needed. Again, most of 2013 through 2015 was them trying to help improve Wii U and 3DS sales. The low sales of the Wii U and the 3DS were a product of using old outdated methods of marketing. Luckily Nintendo understood that and have made improvements and sale improvements were shown.
     There are a couple of things I'm excited for with seeing Nintendo's mission plan for 2016. One is the expansion of games in smartphones. Mobile gaming has not only become a huge trend but it has made itself known to  be a new form of gaming that is here to stay. We've seen this, sadly, with Kim Kardashian Hollywood and the over 200 million dollars it made. It's is a smart move for Nintendo to utilize this. Kimishima has promised that we will see Nintendo characters in mobile games. We sorta was introduced to this with Pokemon Go which is coming out this year, hopefully.
      Another is information about the next console Nintendo is working on, the NX. It is suppose to be the hub of what Nintendo is striving for this year as it is rumored to be connected to the internet, handheld, PCs, and smartphone. We are suppose to get information around E3, but since they seem to be planning on releasing it this year as well we need the information on it now.
      Bottom line it is refreshing and interesting to hear that Nintendo is going to do some big and innovative things that are new and very different. Will it work? There is a huge chance that it will as well as a huge chance that it won't. The good thing however is that Nintendo is gambling big. The 2016 plan is suppose to give them if it is pulled off an extra 100 billion yen. Let's see if that will happen in the end.

How do you think Nintendo's plan will work out in 2016?

Games We're Checking For in 2016

2016 is here and that only means one thing. No, that not that resolution to lose weight or quit smoking, video games. 2015 was kinda ok. We got Fallout 4, Star Wars Battlefront and Bayonetta is finally in Smash Bros. 2016 is looking to be even bigger and better. Here's a list of games we cannot wait to play this here, or at least hope they won't be delayed and we'll actually get to play this year...

Star Fox Zero

It's nice to see that the Star Fox series isn't gone, forgotten, and only relevant in Smash Bros games, sorry F-Zero. we were teased about a new potential Star Fox game all the way back in E3 2013 when Shigeru Miyamoto showed us a small demo in a Nintendo Direct. Star Fox Zero plays a lot like the earlier Star Fox games like Star Fox and Star Fox 64. It also incorporates a bit of mechanics from the cancelled Star Fox 2 for the SNES like the leg Airwing. Miyamoto states that Zero isn't a reboot, but more of an reimagining of the Star Fox 64 game where each mission is more episodic than 64's cinamatic approach.

Yooka-Laylee

We all remember playing Banjo-Kazooie on the N64. We also missed playing it after Rare was bought be Microsoft and haven't done much with the franchise. Yeah we did eventually get Nuts & Bolts but it wasn't the B&K that we weren't used too. Well fortunately Platonic Games, former employees from Rare, has heard your cries. As stated above the gameplay of Yooka Laylee is very reminiscent to Banjo-Kazooie as its your traditional 3D platformer where you will have a ton of things to collect. It even has you transform into various things, like Banjo-Kazooie. When it ended its Kickstarter, it made over three million, so it's an understatement that people are dying to have this game.

No Man's Sky

No Man's Sky is simply beautiful and stunning. The game pretty much involves you exploring different planets in search for material and lifeforms.You are dealt with an enormous sandbox of planets and star systems to explore all which seems to be individual and running independently in real time. As almost as the universe you are exploring in the game, the possibilities of what you can do in this game is endless.

Legend of Zelda Wii U

There is not much that can be said about this game as Nintendo has been pretty much hush about it. All we know is that the thing of the new Zelda game is all about exploration. Zelda Wii U is pretty much going back to the roots of the original Legend of Zelda game where the its just you exploring a large Hyrule map, except this time the map is much, much larger. Zelda Wii U gives us what is possibly the largest map of Hyrule in the series ever.

Doom

It's been awhile since we had a new game in the Doom franchise. A matter of fact almost twelve years. The game has been in development ever since 2008. Years went by and people got worried that the game was probably cancelled. The folks at iD decided to start everything from scratch in 2011 and that is how we got this. They've seem to have gone back to the basics and there is nothing wrong with that at all. It plays like old Doom and looks like new Doom. What's more to ask?

Uncharted 4

If you're new to the Uncharted series it is basically you, as Nathan Drake, going through exciting levels where everything is action packed and there are always surprises at every turn. Nathan's almost like an Indiana Jones, that steals. This time around Drake has been out of the thief business for three years. He is now getting back into the business after his long lost brother suddenly shows up. It is supposedly the last Uncharted series Naughty Dog will be working on so if that isn't a reason to buy I don't know what is.

Cuphead

I'm pretty much excited about this myself. Cuphead gives us a return of the shoot em' up genre. It's pretty as well with the classic 1930s cartoon animation. Seriously, it's like Mickey Mouse meets Contra.

Final Fantasy XV

Believe it or not, we've been waiting for this game for so long. The current and fifteenth installment of the series was once suppose to be Final Fantasy Versus XIII, which we thought we would never get after many postponements from Square Enix. Well we can now have a sigh of relief as it is now here and it is definitely will be releasing in 2016. Like Zelda Wii U, XV will be all about exploration. You and your party will be traveling across a huge map full of destinations and secrets that you will find and explore. What's different than the other series is that artistically the world you are in is a mixture of our world and the fantasy world, meaning that you'll be able to see giant admantoise  as you're driving down a highway and will actually encounter goblins, a staple enemy of the series, in caves. We were able to play a demo earlier and it was ok. Can't wait to play the whole thing in its entirety.

The Last Guardian

After years of postponement and tears of hope we have our prayers answered. Not much has been heard of this game for so long, we even thought that this game would be quietly cancelled, until it was recently revealed at E3 in 2015. The game has been in development hell since 2007. Helmed by director Fumito Ueda, Guardian will look and play just like popular and well renowned games Ico and Shadow of the Colossus. You're a boy who has to navigate and solve puzzles through a giant ruin with this giant dog-chicken creature.

Dark Souls III

Unlike a lot of these games listed, we weren't really waiting for years or a long period of time to finally get to play Dark Souls. That doesn't mean that people have not been clamoring for another game in the series. Being the fourth installment Dark Souls III pretty much plays like its predecessor II, which I don't know how good that is being so damn hard. What's new to the series is a new gaming feature Ready Stance in which you can deal more damage to an enemy as well as faster combat gameplay. So if you like the last Dark Souls game, or just like dying over and over again I think you would love this.

What games are you looking forward to playing the 2016?

Nintendo E3 2015 Digital Event: The Good, The Bad, and The Woolly World of Yoshis

Hi guys, more E3 goodies! Welcome to part 3 of my thoughts on what was presented this E3. Microsoft wowed us, Sony's press conference was cool, How did Nintendo do this time around?

Good

Star Fox: Zero

Star Fox is back! We've been waiting to hear, and see, more of this game since Shigeru Miyamoto sorta announced it a while back. We see it now and it is glorious. There are a few changes to the gameplay. You will need to use the gyro on the gamepad in order to steer your airwing. The "new" feature on the airwing is that it can transform in to a walker mode, enabling you to go around in certain areas in the game and even defeat certain bosses in a different way that you would in flight mode. Also new is a new transformation mode for the landmaster where it flies around and a new gyrowing where you can explore by dropping a little robot to search an area.

Super Mario Maker

Nintendo has been taking notes form the Kaizo Mario videos on the internet. What's more fun than playing a Mario game than making a Mario game? That's kinda what Super Mario Maker does. At first when I saw this game last year I wasn't really interested in it, but hearing about what they added in the game just make this game sound like something I need to get. Super Mario Maker leaves you and your with complete control making a Mario Stage. You can do crazy trollish things like put enemies in blocks and even put coins or power-up in cannons and even Lakitu clouds to give someone the biggest mind fuck ever. It's also cool to see enemies that weren't in earlier games be designed with those graphics, like an 8-bit Boo or Super Mario World Chain-Chomp.

The Legend of Zelda: Triforce Heroes

This game looks fun. Being inspired by the Four Swords games, Triforce Heroes will incorporate multiplayer by having you play multiple versions of Link in order to solve puzzles in dungeons and save Hyrule. The game also features costumes that have features like having you not take damage with every hit.

Fire Emblem Fates

The theme of Fire Emblem is strategy. You make the wrong moves and something bad happens. Fates plays with that theme and makes it more drastic by having certain outcome in the game's story, more than the other games. Visually-wise the trailer and the game looks cool.

Xenoblade Chronicles

The trailer looks epic. Nuff said.

Animal Crossing Happy Home Designer

This is a nice spin-off of the Animal Crossing series. You are an interior designer and you have to coordinate your neighbors' homes from the inside out. What sets it apart from the main Animal Crossing series is that it gives you more customization when designing your house, allowing you to move carpet and other things where in the previous games the carpet would just be there and you can't move it.

Yoshi's Woolly World

This game gets cuter everytime I see it. You can even compare it to Kirby's Epic Yarn for the Wii, it's its own game. I've been praying for a completely different Yoshi game that wasn't a rehash of Yoshi's Island and we got it here. I can't wait to play this. Also this is the only game that makes me want to buy Amiibos.

Mario & Luigi Paper Jam

This game looks cool. They took the magnificent artstyle of Dream Team and combined it with the awesomeness of Paper Mario: Sticker Star, sorry for being the only one who liked that game, and made this. My biggest worry is that the Mario & Luigi series is usually off and on so hopefully this will be an on. They have so much potential not to mess this up.

Bad

Metroid Prime Federation Force

When we heard that maybe we could see a new Metroid game, we weren't expecting something like this. This just feels like your generic 4-player co-op shooter with Metroid stamped all over it. Quit fooling around and give us a real Metroid game. We deserve it.


Meh

Hyrule Warriors Legends

I know, why would I put this on the list? Well,it's cool that the game has gotten enough popularity that Nintendo decided to make a 3DS version, but I feel like even with the new Wind Waker stages would be enough to get people's attention, and make things feel new and fresh, especially given the fact that Techmo went all out with the Wii U version's DLC. Where can they go to now?

Genei Ibun Roku FE

This is the Shin Megami Tensei and Fire Emblem crossover. It looks very beautiful, but it looks like one of those generic pop and anime. Not sure if that rubs me the right way. I'm sure the gameplay is good, but I can't get over how anime-ish the game seems.

Animal Crossing Amiibo Festival

This looks like Animal Crossing's answer to Mario Party which was Nintendo's answer to Monopoly, except that Mario Party was a bit funner and have minigames.

Mario Tennis Ultra Smash

The Mario Tennis series just keeps getting duller and duller. No amount of mega mushrooms will fix that.

The link for Sony's Press Conference is here!
The link for Microsoft's Press Conference is here!