Welcome to part 2 of Khyron's Post E3 commentary. Next up is my review of Nintendo's press conference...

Post E3 - Nintendo Press Conference

The graphics war between the Xbox 360 and the PS3 is certainly heating up. So how will Nintendo compete with these two power-houses? Simple, by not competing at all. Instead of trying to top the high-end graphics arena, Nintendo is betting that what gamers want isn't more photo-realistic effects--rather innovative gameplay is what "next-gen" should mean.

So what will provide this revolutionary new gameplay experience? The Wii. It may have a unfortunate name, but this small box of innovation promises to give gamers something new later this year.

So let's see what Nintendo had to say about the Wii or, rather, what they didn't have to say...

The Good~
If you're looking for the next big thing in graphics, look elsewhere. Comparatively, the games shown on the Wii are almost indistinguishable from the Nintendo Gamecube. That said, the release line-up is shaping to be one of the best in console history.

Not the biggest fan of the more kid-friendly genre of the 1st party Nintendo titles, I was most impressed by Ubisoft's new shooter, Red Steel. Using the Wii's motion sensitive remote, it allows for the most realistic sword fighting experience in video games. The thought of online sword fighting using the Wii-mote sounds quite enticing. But for nostalgia fans, a slew of new Mario, Zelda, and Donkey Kong titles are more than enough reason to invest in the Wii.

If I were to point out the one key point of Nintendo's conference, it'd be the controller. I'm not sure if the motion sensitive remote will stay entertaining beyond the initial gimmick (I'm not big on swinging my arms around when wanting to relax with a good game), but it does have a lot of possibilities. Case in point, the new Zelda title. When using your bow and arrow, you will actually get to pull back with the controller simulating a real life bow. Then, with a built in speaker on the controller, you will hear the arrow travel from the remote to the TV's speakers--creating a sort of semi-3D audio experience. Also, the demonstrated sports game showed what could quite possibly become the most fun looking party game in a while. Swinging around the controller to simulate a tennis racquet is enough to warm even the most calloused gore-hound.

Also, and much opposed to Sony's conference, the amount of games coming out for Nintendo's mobile platform, the DS, is indeed impressive.

The Bad~

Nintendo's biggest fault in their press conference was the lack of info on some of the most important aspects of the Wii. The controller is cool, and it was nice to see it in action, but its not like it's something we haven't seen before. I was most disappointed at the lack of a definite release date and price.

Also, Nintendo was rather tight-lipped at one of the Wii's most anticipated features: the virtual console. For nostalgia fans, this company sponsored emulation (similar to Xbox Live's Arcade) will allow gamers to download a library of old school titles from several developers. This is one of the most interesting parts of the Wii, so I was disappointed there was little to no mention of it in the conference.

The Bottom Line~

The biggest advantage Nintendo had over Sony was the crowd reaction. Whereas Sony's conference was rather bland, the Nintendo crowd was eating it up.

Nintendo has always been an innovator in the industry, and it appears that this generation will be no different. And although the Wii may be a bit gimmicky with graphics far from cutting edge, its rumored comparatively low price should mean another hit on Nintendo's hands.

Final Grade: B+