Ahahahahahahahaha

This...this is just too much.

Maybe it's because I'm neck-deep in Dynasty Warriors 8, or maybe it's just because I never thought something like this would happen because the last time something like this was pitched, it was turned down.  Maybe it's just because that last piece could truly mean this is Panic Mode Nintendo doing whatever the hell they can to try and spur sales.  Or maybe it's just because they picked honestly one of their least ideal franchises to add the Warriors treatment to.  I don't know what it is, but whatever it is, it just makes me laugh when I try to wrap my head around it.

There's practically no information on the game - even the logo hasn't been created, nor is "Hyrule Warriors" necessarily the final name of the product.  So there's really not even that much for me to talk about beyond speculation.  As far as speculation goes, well, I'm not really sure what to think.  Being a Dynasty Warriors game means having access to -everyone- who is a unique character (and potentially even some who aren't), but being a Nintendo game means not...usually getting to be the bad guy.  So Ganondorf might seem like a lock for the actual game, but I'm wary on saying he'll be playable.  He should be, by all means, but I'm not sure.  I can't imagine them saying "Oh, here's a Dynasty Warriors game where you only play Link" and being able to keep a straight face, but I also don't know quite how many characters they can scrounge up.  Malon?  Zelda?  Shiek?  ....Tingle?  Perhaps the different -kinds- of Link over the years with different attacks based on the game, but even that's a bit boring.

It'll be interesting to find out about as it gets further along in development, as that trailer was clearly not from finished product footage.  Beta at the -latest-, though I'm willing to bet it's still pre-beta.  I guess if I'm taking a guess as to a release time, I'll say....Summer?  Seems long enough to finish it up and put it out the door, depending on the amount of work involved, but what do I know?  I can't see it taking til next Holiday season if it's meant to be a stop-gap between now and the next -actual- Zelda game, but it's clearly not ready yet either, so it's a hard guess.  Still, Summer is what I'm going with.  Who knows, maybe I'll have bought a Wii U by then!  Probably not, but I think this pretty much confirms a purchase in the future unless it just looks -really- bad somehow.  I...don't see that happening.

the only real worse candidates that I could think of were Star Fox and Metroid - can you imagine the dumb?

3DS Finally Set to Catch-Up in December

Way back when the Nintendo Wii U was being discussed in terms of Online Functionality and the like, a couple things were made of note for the future.  Those were, specifically: the Nintendo Network which was Nintendo's apparent attempt to bring their console into the future present-day 2010 with an account system rather than the Friend Code system that was pre-historic when it was new, and Miiverse which I only -tonight- figured out what it was, thanks to even more research than I'd done previously.  Which was more than a cursory glance.  They were things to make note of because not only were they Nintendo's main forays into a connected ecosystem, but they were guaranteed from the start to -not- be Wii U exclusives.  Not only mentioned for 'future Nintendo consoles', but teased for the 3DS as well as integration through web browsers and mobile devices.

It was announced that those additions are finally being made to the 3DS in December when the Nintendo Network and Miiverse come to the 3DS proper.  The Network is pretty self-explanatory, but Miiverse is a different beast entirely.  At first, I was under the impression that Miiverse was the WaraWara Plaza that you see whenever you boot up your Wii U, which would be really neat on the 3DS, but that's not it.  Miiverse is, for all intents and purposes, an Activity Feed that goes a little above and beyond.  Games, so long as they're programmed to do so, can display choice Miiverse posts not only between people, but during specific times during a game.  The video example shows 'helpful hints' from others popping out after repeated deaths and also little notes for every level on Super Mario whatever.  It's meant to be ubiquitous instead of something that you just have to 'check', and I admit it sounds cool....but none of the game already out will be patched to support it, I'm sure, so it's nothing to get excited for now I don't think.

The sudden killing of Swapnote also makes a little more sense as Miiverse has individual tabs for specific games and whatnot, which can be used for 'official word' from developers and whatnot instead of sending out notes through SpotPass.  I mean, sure there were child predators using it and succeeding in Japan, but that's like shutting down Skype for doing the same thing because you know it happens.  Still, Miiverse is not going to fill the same niche as Swapnote, especially since I don't think you can make private posts to one person in particular(?), but no one can be choosey on the Nintendo front unfortunately.  It is neat, however, to see that the Nintendo Network is coming to the 3DS officially and it'll be 'unified' with the Wii U (purchases and whatnot are still tied to the consoles, but Friend Codes will be dead, dead, dead so baby steps) since it means I can finally set up a NNID for whenever I end up picking up a Wii U on the cheap.  Since I'll want one for the Wii games at least, if not the allure of playing some N64 games on what amounts to a handheld device.  Since...that's going to happen eventually?  Right?

I mean, I hope so, because I would love to play some Ogre Battle 64 on that nice little tablet

Sega and Nintendo Are Getting Cozy

If you've been paying attention to Wii U news at all in the last day or so, then you've seen the above screenshot.  You know what it is.  You know -why- it is.  So you know why I'm using it - not only because it's like the only damn screenshot flying around (I believe), but because it's already created a little bit of a buzz on its own merits.  For those in the dark, the above is a screenshot or concept shot of Sonic:  Lost World, the newly announced Sonic game that will launch exclusively for the Wii U and 3DS at some point in the near-to-far future.  However, what it represents is something far bigger than just one game, no matter how good or not the game itself will be.  Personally, based on Generations, I'm hedging towards "really good", but we'll just have to see on that one.

Sonic:  Lost World is the first of a three-game exclusivity deal titled as a "Worldwide Partnership" that Sega and Nintendo have decided on with regards to the Sonic franchise.  This was announced during the Nintendo Direct from the other day and, as mentioned, made something of a splash considering Lost World -seems- like it's going to be a big-deal Sonic game.  Of course, Sonic games coming out exclusively on Nintendo consoles isn't anything new - look at Sonic and the Secret Rings, Sonic and the Black Knight and Sonic Colors, all exclusive to the Wii, with at least Colors being fairly well-regarded.  So to find out that they're running with that (ha!) still isn't much of a surprise, even after Generations skipped the Wii (and I believe the 3DS version wasn't quite full-featured).

The second game of the three-game deal, you might be wondering?  Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games for the Wii U.  It's the fourth installment of that particular franchise that I really don't see how it has seen four iterations.  It's...probably going to release sometime around Winter.  Moving on...

Switching gears for -just- a moment, and offering a nice little segue in the process, another part of the Nintendo Direct was the announcement that the 3DS' Virtual Console is getting more classic Game Gear games.  And classic in this case actually means classic, and not 'classic'.  With just about every Sonic game that came out for the device announced - Sonic Blast, Sonic Drift 2, Sonic Labyrinth, Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and the tangentially related Tails Adventure - and a few other things to write home about surely - Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, Shining Force II:  The Sword of Hajya and Vampire:  Master of Darkness - it's more than a little bit of a welcome development.  Announced all at the same time, it sort of elevates it by that much more, and makes me wonder how Sega can manage to get that many games up at once (or at least lined up at once), given how....difficult it seems to be to actually populate the Virtual Console.

Getting back to that third game that was mentioned as part of the deal, you're probably wondering what it is.  Truth is, we -all- are, since it's yet-to-be-announced and is likely going to be an E3 hold-over (even though Nintendo still isn't going to have an official E3 presser, just an obvious presence).  But simple knowing that it's going to be -something-, and that it's going to involve Sonic in some fashion leaves the door wide open to a whole network of possibilities.

From my little bit of investigating and a little bit of my own thought, one prominent theory seems to be a Mario Kart/Sonic All-Stars Racing Cross-over.  Which, I personally think is rather brilliant.  For some reason, to me it's felt like the Mario Kart series has been going a little downhill, though I'm not quite sure if I base that on my own personal opinion or opinions I've gleaned from portions of the internet.  Still, regardless of quality or lack thereof, the Wii U has not yet seen a Mario Kart game and with Nintendo's pro-crossover stance (as evidenced by Pokemon X Nobunaga's Ambition, Fire Emblem X Shin Megami Tensei, etc.) combining what are, in fact, two actual popular franchises into one with the added effect of that extra impact seems like a no-brainer.  Who -wouldn't- want to hop into a vehicle as Knuckles and Dash past Bowser, for instance?  Or, maybe even drive Luigi right past Sonic to pick up a last-moment first place?  It's definitely the thing I would expect from the last game of the deal, but we won't hear anything about it til about E3.

Now, my own personal hope would be for something a little more....inspired.  Which is a funny thing to say since my idea is basically Sonic Generations, but with Sonic -and- Mario, but, hey, Generations was pretty damn inspired, really.  Both franchises have seen shining installments in side-scrolling and fully 3D games and doing a mash-up of their various levels and styles would be something to see, especially since you have to find a happy middle ground for their clashing design philosophies.  Since Sonic is 'Gotta Go Fast', meaning he's got to have a longer track to go on than most of the classic Mario levels could offer, perhaps they could do a sort of system where all levels of a zone are connected end-to-end (as they are in the game, really) so Sonic speeds through an entire zone in a go rather than just 1-1 or 3-2.  Alternatively, having Mario bounced around by bumpers in a 3D, brightly-lit Casino-themed level from one of the Sonic installments with badass music in the background just brings some sort of sensation of joy to my brain and I'm not sure why.

If nothing else, that just goes to show just how open speculation can be on this sort of thing since details are very very sparse and we're just given a few things that are, likely just meant to inspire certain avenues of thought.  I know people are already thinking Lost World might be in the vein of a Mario Galaxy-type game because of the look of that single screenshot and Nintendo's involvement, and hell, that might actually be a good idea.  And even if the third game is 'just' a Mario Kart/Sonic All-Stars Racing Cross-Over, well, that's not a bad deal at all.  Of course, the game doesn't -have- to involve Mario at all, but it would seem a bit silly to announce two Sonic games...roughly at the same time, which is what they'd do, so unless he's partnering up with a different character (which isn't a bad thought), then look for -some- sort of Mario involvement.  Just one more reason to eagerly await E3, I suppose.

Sega also announced Yakuza 1&2 HD for the Wii U in Japan only and I couldn't think of a way to integrate that since it means nothing for North America, goddamnit Sega

Bonus Post: No Nintendo E3 Conference This Year

The title of this one basically says the big part of it - Nintendo's not holding a big E3 spectacle like usual this year.  Instead, they're going to focus on doing more and more little Nintendo Directs up to E3, while also holding the things around E3 that they -usually- do.  Make no mistake, Nintendo isn't eschewing E3 completely, but simply the only thing that we generally associate with E3 in the big presser event.  You know, the thing we look forward to every year, that people make up Bingo cards for, drinking games for, and generally cluster up with to hold little E3 parties over, whether it be in person or (far more commonly) over mass-party areas like IRC and the like.  The thing that is kind of a big fucking deal regardless of whether or not it actually 'is' a big deal.

On the one hand, I get it - Nintendo Directs instead of E3 Presser Event means that most of the E3 stuff that we don't care about "here's how awesomely/poorly this thing sold" and the like, gets filtered out because they're holding a private press event to do just that sort of thing.  Therefore, all you get in the Directs then, is the condensed 'awesome' from what would have been the E3 event.  That's the theory of it, at least.  In theory, because of that, we as gamers sort of win out because we don't have to sit through the boring to get to the great for Nintendo, and I'm sure we're all hoping for something great from Nintendo.  The Wii U could really use it, and use it in a bad way if they want a boom of sales rather than the Nintendo inevitable slow-burn.  Not like, "Here's footage of the new, not Wind Waker HD Zelda" but more like "Here's the Wii U running Grand Theft Auto 5 with an exclusive character that joins the other three with his/her own missions and integration into the story".  (Which won't happen, I'm arguing magnitudes, obviously)

On the other hand, fuck all that.  Call me traditional if you must, but I just prefer the whole big E3 Presser thing because it's been built around in such a way that the stuff surrounding it is almost more important than it is.  I mentioned E3 parties, Bingo cards and the like - there's not a whole lot you can do for those based around Nintendo Directs.  For one thing, Directs are generally announced like...very shortly before the actual event.  If I had to put any amount of time on it, I'd have to say a week at most, and what are you going to do in a week?  Well....a lot, probably, since you can make a Bingo Card in one night, but the point is that there's no real time to sit and anticipate and stew beyond the initial bout of it.  Look at the difference here - Sony and Microsoft have E3 pressers, obviously, where they will be showing off a bunch of stuff for the PS4 and NeXtBox.  We know this.  We've known this for months.  The rumors are flying left and right, speculation is broiling constantly at a fever pitch about what's going to be there and what isn't and what big megaton announcements could happen.  And we know when they're going to happen.

Some non-specific Nintendo Directs that'll happen sometime around E3?  How in the world will we know what to be ready for?  On one hand, I suppose that carries its own excitement since it'll spring up and likely be big anyway, but on the other hand it's a lot more frantic, a lot less known and a lot less enjoyable.  "Oh, they're probably going to show Smash Bros. sometime" is not the same thing as "I wonder if Gabe Newell is going to walk out on stage at the Sony Presser again".  Which isn't to say, I guess, that Gabe Newell couldn't just....show up during a Nintendo Direct either for surprise factor.  I suppose hat is really killing it for me is the complete lack of structure for it all that we know about.  Obviously it's structured on Nintendo's side and I just like that whole thing being transparent, rather than a surprise.  It was just hard to get excited for it since they've already announced a lot of what they were going to show at E3 (meaning less room for big surprises) and now it's even harder because I don't know when they hell they're going to talk about the things they were going to show off at E3.

Regardless, the low-key approach is going to work for Nintendo based on the fanbase, the fat-cutting and the potential for surprises.  Also the threshold for working Nintendo fans into a lather is "show a new Mario or Zelda", apparently.  (Look at reactions for Link to the Past 2 if you think I'm oversimplifying it too much)  Being that there's the chance for Wind Waker HD footage, LTTP2 footage and/or footage of the new, ground-breaking Wii U Zelda on top of guaranteed Smash Bros. roster reveals and footage, there's going to be a lot of clamor about how much Nintendo won E3 without actually doing E3.  (Ignoring that they're still at E3, on the show floor and everything)  Hopefully these Directs mean that they're not going to wait til after June 9th (Animal Crossing's release date) to announce something megaton for the 3DS, however.  (Like a new model or a price drop.  Both of which would rattle my fucking ire like crazy if it happened days after I plop down $220 for the XL that I'm only getting because it's not washed-out Red or Blue)

seriously, why would you release that so goddamn close to E3, what are you doing, Nintendo

Nintendo Announced Some Things

Yesterday saw yet another Nintendo Direct wherein Nintendo saw it fit to throw even more things on the 3DS, finer-tuning their laser focus while....mostly ignoring the Wii U still.  Which is kind of the exact opposite priorities they should probably have at the moment considering the 3DS can probably carry on its own momentum for a while, whereas the Wii U needs help desperately, but hey, what do I know.  I'm sure it doesn't have anything to do with the disparity of success between the -other- things in the respective markets or anything like that.  Regardless, like most Directs, there was some reiteration of some points while also providing a few rather large announcements that deserve a mention.

The biggest news, certainly, is that a sequel to The Legend of Zelda:  A Link to the Past is in the works for 3DS.  Yes, a sequel.  A direct sequel.  In Legend of Zelda.  (Yeah, it's happened before, but that was a -while- ago)  Or at least a game that takes place in the exact same world as A Link to the Past, albeit with a brand new story, new dungeons and the like.  Something else that it adds that I'm a little undecided about is Link's ability to turn paper-thin and walk along walls which is, obviously new to the series and a decided reference to Paper Mario.  While it is an interesting mechanic, I can't help but look at it, scratch my head and say "Why? because it is...more than a little confusing.  It seems superfluous at best and the only thing I can figure is that it's the answer to the "Dark World" transformation that, for a little while, turned Link into a bunny.  But that was not a mechanics thing and it wasn't permanent, so I don't even know what to think.

Those aren't the only sequels that are now heading for the 3DS however!  Joining LTTP2 is yet another Mario Party and a sequel to Yoshi's Island, also known as "That game with Baby Mario".  And yes, Baby Mario returns and yes, he probably cries very horribly once again.  Possibly.  From what I can tell, there is damn near no information on either game except a screenshot of Yoshi's Island 2 (probably not the title) showing Yoshi with Baby Mario on his back in an area similar to the original with a slightly different aesthetic.  One comment states that it looks more watercolor than crayon which is very astute.  Yoshi's Island, I can understand since that was a game that people liked, despite its issues, but when has Mario Party been relevant after the first three iterations?  No online play was mentioned which probably means there will be none which means....there is very little incentive to buy it unless you are constantly around people who have 3DSes and you all want to play what amounts to a board game on them, I suppose.

It's not like there wasn't -any- Wii U news announced at this Direct thing, however!  Next week, the oft-mentioned Spring System Update is hitting, which brings a lot of little improvements to the Wii U's overall workings.  Faster Load times, the ability to boot right into Wii Mode and some fancy things with downloading games and updates for said games in the background are all included as well as the actual, really real Wii U Virtual Console.  As in the platform that will allow you to buy NES, SNES and eventually GBA and N64 (and possibly other systems) games and play them with full integration to the Wii U's features, including the ability to play directly on the tablet to free up your TV.  Also Miiverse stuff, which I suppose is good since it is apparently to thank for Earthbound getting a VC release.  Apparently a flood of Miiverse posts and the like wanting Earthbound is what inspired them to do that.  That's...you know, probably not true, since doing something like this isn't a magic wand type of deal, but it's nice all the same.

Of course, the bit I'm most interested in, if you couldn't tell, is that the Animal Crossing 3DS XL Bundle is coming to NA, which is the thing at the top of this post.  It's not exactly what I want, and I know I'm going to be disappointed by New Leaf, but I want a 3DS XL and my only other options are Washed-out Red or Blue, maybe pink, and the special Pika-Nipples Yellow unit.  (Seriously, I bet you can't unsee it now)  So I figure, I'm getting New Leaf, I'm getting a 3DS XL and that one's not -bad-.  Besides, the version of the game is digital, coming pre-loaded on a 4 gig SD stick (that is easily moved to a bigger stick which is exactly what I'm going to do), so I'll be able to have it available whenever in case I feel like just hopping into it for a bit between Harvest Moon sessions.

There were a few other announcements, but those are the main ones that grabbed me in any way, so they're the only ones I'm really concerning myself with bringing up.  It seems pretty divisive, with either people being in the "oh shit the is all of the amazing at the same time" camp or people being in the "meh" camp about it.  With the people from the former camp being absolutely disgusted at the people in the latter, it seems.  Obviously, I'm more in the latter camp since even a sequel to my favorite Legend of Zelda game only has me wary instead of excited, but maybe that'll change when we start getting some more information about it.  Still, I guess it's a successful Direct, since they've finally convinced me to part with 220 of my dollars come June 9th, and I'm probably going to pick up a few 3DS games between then and now in preparation for when I actually get my system.

Oh, Right, There Was a Nintendo Direct Thing

So, because Nintendo is in panic mode because they are not used to selling less than a hojillion (it is a number, totally) consoles at any given moment in time, despite the Wii U's sales being...well, completely reasonable for what it is, we have some new announcements.  New announcements that are....mostly unnecessary.  Popular media might be saying that Nintendo is 'failing' with the Wii U (which is impossible to tell at this early juncture and it pains me to have to make this a fucking point to talk about) and while they're perhaps not advertising it well enough it is, as I said, selling fine enough.  Remember, once upon a time the 3DS was considered "failing" as well and boy oh boy, that happened, didn't it?  Really, I think Nintendo's panic is stemming from a sense that there is actually competition now - let's face it, the Wii was in its own league in more ways than one so they haven't been on this front in a long time.  But they decided to enter a different ring this go around and I don't think they were prepared for it at all.

If you've got the muscle, then you might as well flaunt it, is the thought process I'm going with here and while Nintendo's 'muscle' is a little flimsy with me, I am not in the majority here.  So let's go over that first and get it out of the way.  Possibly the only thing I would care about in all of this is the above-pictured Yoshi's Island game that is, clearly, being helmed by the Kirby's Epic Yarn team.  It looks absolutely wonderful for what it is, and while I don't really hold a particularly different spot for the Yoshi's Island games over any of Nintendo's other series, it's good fun and with this art style, I can only hope to see some real good things.  Kirby's Epic Yarn, from what I was told, brought some rather neat things to the table, really taking hold of that fabric universe concept and running with it.  Maybe I'll find out myself one day if I pick up a Wii U and a copy of the game, but that's basically all the information that I found about it - It is a Yoshi game and it is being done up in Epic Yarn style.  And that's probably enough for now.

Actually, I lied.  If there was -anything- I cared about at all from the Nintendo Direct, it would be the news that Xenoblade Chronicles is probably (definitely) getting a sequel for the Wii U, of course.  I am in the slightly awkward position of knowing absolutely nothing about any of this, however, beyond the fact that I friggin' -want- to play Xenoblade Chronicles and the only thing standing in my way is owning a Wii outright (or, again, a Wii U) and the game which currently retails for $50 if you can find it in a store and good luck with that.  My excitement stems from the dangerous, perilous place of being told that it is, in fact, a fantastic RPG.  That sort of information had led me astray in the past (no, I'm not linking it this time, you know what I'm talking about) and it could very well be the case here.  But....I doubt it, considering the team that's behind the games.  So if anything, I'm just glad they're getting a push to do what they do - make good RPGs.  Hopefully one day I will be able to say I have played both.

Another 'no info, just a thing that says it's happening' tidbit was the announced Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem game which is, yes, Shin Megami Tensei and Fire Emblem in the same game.  Why?  I don't know.  How?  Beats the hell out of me.  There was absolutely no information beyond a thing showing that they were in this thing and that development is 'in progress'.  Personally, I'm not at all -what- kind of sense this makes....because it's not really striking me any right now.  Maybe it's just because I've been considering both series by their previous years, but both seemed to have been in a transition away from Consoles, moving on to handhelds.  Indeed, the latest entries to -both- series are being released on the 3DS in the coming future and the last console releases for either series was in 2007 (Fire Emblem on the Wii) and 2003/4 (SMT 3:  Nocturne) respectively.  So to combine them both -and- put them on a console is a little wonky.  Perhaps it's because of the off-screen play that kinda sorta makes it like a handheld that you can't take anywhere, but that's flimsy.  It all is, kind of.

Speaking of flimsy, after all the hurr-durring and grumbling about Sony's line of HD up-makes, I'm seriously waiting for some people to eat crow after The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD became a thing.  Because this is the exact scenario, and it's not even one that Nintendo's new at.  Excusing the 'Nintendo selling the same game to you over and over again' (more on that in a moment) meme, I need only point at The Legend of Zelda:  Ocarina of Time 3D and Starfox 64 3D to show that Nintendo has absolutely no qualms pimping out their old titles with shinier graphics.  Yet you never ever hear those titled 'cash-grabs' or anything of the sort.  It's a bit petty of me to harp on, I realize, but well, somebody's gotta.  Anyways, aside from the announcement of Wind Waker HD, there was a little bit said confirming the existence of a new Zelda title for the Wii U in development that will 'challenge the old conventions' to sort of reinvent the series a bit, but that's literally all that was said about it.  There might be info about it at E3, but I would highly doubt it.

Finishing out the Wii U news from the direct, the important bits, at least, it was mentioned that the Virtual Console is headed towards the Wii U proper, for full implementation rather than simply from Wii Mode.  There is a slight caveat here, however:  if you're planning on being able to off-screen play your favorite Nintendo or Super Nintendo games that are supported, then expect to pay for the privilege.  It should be noted that when the Virtual Console launches, it will only support Nintendo and Super Nintendo titles and not all of the ones that the Wii's Virtual Console supports.  Because Backwards Compatibility isn't just a flip to switch and we've all been aware of that already, but I somehow think people will manage to be patient, considering it's Nintendo behind this which isn't unfair at all, no sir.  Anyways, if you've purchased an NES game or SNES game through the Wii's VC then you've probably already played it by now and if you want to use it in Wii U, as mentioned, you'll have to pay for that.

Now, I've heard tell that this is because the VC games are packed in their own individual emulators, thus it requires a new emulator for the Wii U which is incomparably stupid, for the record.  It seems like a smart enough idea at first - packing the game with the emulator basically all-but ensures that it'll work with it because they've obviously been tested with one another.  That's fine.  It does, however, completely kill the possibility of a quick-n-dirty solution in the future and, if there's anything we've learned from the combined efforts of the VC and the PS1/2 Classics over these last years, it's that if a quick-n-dirty doesn't exist, neither does the game anymore.  Developers simply don't have time, nor the drive, to put anything into repackaging old games that sell for a pittance, and even signing off on making it a thing and paying a slight cost is far too much to ask in many cases.

So what does this mean?  Well, if that's the case, then don't expect to see much of the meager selection of the NES/SNES games on the Wii's VC to make the jump to the Wii U's VC, for one.  They might get a good portion, hell they might surprise me and get more than half, all-told, but there's no way the Wii U's VC will be 1:1 for the Wii's.  Beyond that, thanks to the $1/$1.50 Wii U tax (For NES and SNES respectively) either expect similar things for the next Nintendo console (which is admittedly -years- away), or expect that the next this whole thing comes around, there won't be even an option - Wii U mode or bust.  For what it's worth, it seems like the extra dollar and change has been built-in to the pricing of the NES/SNES games for the Wii U VC (NES games run around $5 on Wii VC, and will be $5-6 on the Wii U, SNES generally run $8, will be $8-9 on the Wii U VC) so at least Nintendo (probably) isn't singling out the folks who have actually supported them previously with these purchases and demanding an extra buck for a full-featured experience.  Of course, if they were, who would honestly raise a fuss about it?  I'm genuinely curious on that.

On top of that, Nintendo basically made a lot of promises to unveil some Mario things at E3, Super Smash Bros. U and probably elaborate on some of the already mentioned pieces here.  So really, they're flaunting their big guns for no other reason than they can.  Mostly because, if we've heard right, E3 will be a big deal for Sony and Microsoft as well and Nintendo just loves trying to steal thunder whenever possible.  Well, they generally succeed at that anyway, so it's not really 'trying' so much as it's Nintendo not letting anyone else have a fair shake.  It's good business to be sure, but it's also just kind of a dick move.  A mountain of dick moves by this point.  Yet every other company is 'the jerk company', always trying to screw over everyone else, including you, up-charging you for the shiny new thing and offering what is clearly sub-standard service.  Nintendo never does that, clearly! 

Some Nintendo Online Bits Detailed

So, the big big question about Nintendo's newest console, for me at least, is how will the Online Side of it go?  Just my luck - Nintendo decided to do a Nintendo Direct showing off some of the features in....well, not a complete way, but at least a good introductory manner to tide us over while we wait for some more details.  I've heard tell that there are actual Wii U units out there already, likely for review purposes (not to mention Demo Stations), so we'll be getting some impressions in short manner.  Not -of- the Network, of course, but hopefully with how it might be set up, since the console comes with an instruction manual which is a very, very foreign concept, apparently.  Still, what -is- there is sufficiently meaty to pick at and go over and for some reason I am very, very curious about the console, so I'm just going to roll with that interest to its natural conclusion, whatever that may be.  I've sort of talked myself out of wanting one two or three times already, but it has some sort of pull that I can't quite explain.  Perhaps simply that I've been without a Nintendo console for so long, being that my last one was the N64.

The first thing the video covers, and perhaps the one thing that I'm really a little confused on still, or at least really not sure on, is the WaraWara Plaza, which is the Home screen basically.  Or...one of them, at least.  I think standard will be that the WaraWara Plaza (Which is an extension of Miiverse?  I guess?) will be on the TV where the standard Wii Menu screen, with buttons in rows will be on the Gamepad, though they can be swapped if so desired.  Basically what it is is a thing that shows off Wii U games that....exist?  Are getting played a lot?  It's not really clear what the criteria will be for showing up, but I'm assuming it's not based solely on what you yourself own.  While also showing them off, they also show off a few comments that people are making about it which are randomly picked and probably not universal.  So if your buddy Roger says "These zombies are super fast" about ZombiU and it comes up on your Wii U screen, it's probably not coming up on -everyone's- screen.  It's just a way to get you interested in games that are out there which is admirable, but again, I'm curious as to how it'll actually work.

Next up, the thing that's all at once amazing and terrible is the Wii U Chat system that they showed off which is not terrible for bad reasons but for amazing ones.  You see, the Gamepad will make use of its microphone and video camera to offer a video chat service through the Gamepad itself, meaning you can theoretically do this while watching something on TV, like a popular movie or TV show should you desire, but not while playing a game.  It's pretty standard all told, but what elevates it is that you can use the stylus that comes with the system(?) to draw on the screen whilst speaking.  I'm not sure just what anyone expects this to be used for that is not vulgar and hilarious, but if anyone has a really viable instrumentation, feel free to speak up.  I'm just picturing 90% of Wii U Chat conversations containing "Stop drawing penises on me", though maybe this will be deterred by the fact that the screen will -only- be showing the drawing and the other person, so you would technically be drawing penises on yourself in their perspective.  It's all very confusing, I guess, but I'm sure you were thinking the same thing when you heard it first.

What is particularly distressing about the whole of it is that that video attempts to summarize the Ninendo Direct, yet doesn't mention the Nintendo Network in a way that is more than cursory.  So, knowing that, I went to watch the Nintendo Direct myself and...well, I am -still- confused.  I read a Joystiq article (that I'm not linking because I don't wanna) that stated it would basically work like the 3DS, in that it'd be a friend code, but a universal one which is not ideal in the least, especially so for a Console that will be around for five or so years at least.  But there was a little hubbub in the comments linking to other articles that said Alphanumeric code that you create, meaning a tag, meaning like everyone else has.  So when I watched the Direct, I expected to walk away with complete knowledge of just what the hell, so I would know who is right and who is wrong about the situation.

I did not.  I still don't know if it's a code that you pick, or that's assigned to you.  I would assume you pick it since you have to provide your Name, Address, Date of Birth, Gender and Email Address as well as a password, which seems rather silly to provide for Nintendo to just spit out a 16-digit Number Code that you'll use from then out.  Especially when they speak of it as being a unified code that you'll be able to use on PCs and Mobile devices to fiddle with your account, and one that will eventually go to the 3DS and be used with future Nintendo Hardware products.  But that's my issue - I shouldn't have to assume anything.  It's Nintendo's onus at this point to shout from the rooftops "WE HAVE A MODERN-DAY NETWORK STRUCTURE!" since it will be, in fact, their first time at it.  If they actually do it!  That there's still no official statement definitely outlining it in stone this late in the game is worrying, but hopefully not indicative of the quality that the Nintendo Network will provide.  With any luck, there'll be -another- Nintendo Direct like next week that will further detail online bits, hopefully using one of their own online games as an example to show off how to set up a game and this and that, since that would be really helpful and really reassuring.