Bad news for Splatoon fans, technical problems have forced Nintendo to postpone the game’s first Slatfest event in North America.
The “Cats Versus Dogs” Splatfest was originally scheduled to take place tomorrow, June 20, but Nintendo has revealed that a “matchmaking issue” during the first Splatfest in Japan resulted in lengthy wait times and restricted players from joining matches. The consolemaker said they are “working on a solution,” but a little more time is needed to get it working perfectly. The Splatfest will be rescheduled for a later date, which will be announced “soon”:
We have decided to postpone the first North American Splatfest. We’ll have details on a new date soon!
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) June 19, 2015
Even though tomorrow’s Splatfest has been postponed, Nintendo still plans to add the Bluefin Depot map to the game at 10:00 PM (Eastern Time).
In a year when big hitters like Microsoft, Sony, and Bethesda gave exciting, extraordinary E3 presentations that included a smooth blend of new tech, surprise reveals, and gorgeous gameplay videos, the reverse is true for Nintendo. The company, who gave up on live E3 presentations two years ago, delivered a lackluster Digital Event that sought to highlight games due out this year or early next year. This effectively ruled out showing any new footage from the still untitled Legend of Zelda Wii U, despite the fact it was revealed at last year’s E3. Not content with backing itself into a corner with this decision, we were told that the company’s new platform, the NX, would also not be touched upon. Yet, given how meager-looking the titles were for the Wii U, it has led to rampant speculation that the company is holding upcoming games back for its next console.
In summary, Xenoblade Chronicles X was shown. Again. Super Mario Maker was shown. Again, and not just from E3 2014, but also from the Nintendo World Championships. Yoshi’s Woolly World was shown. Again.
3DS owners fared far better, with the announcement of new games such as The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes and Hyrule Warriors Legends, a port of the underrated Wii U game. There was also a new Paper Mario-esque title, Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam, and an odd Samus-lite Metroid game, Metroid Prime: Federation Force.
There were a few surprises for the Wii U, but not the good kind, and certainly not the ones fans wanted or expected, such as Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash or Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival (which is, essentially, Mario Party with Animal Crossing characters). The initial reaction to the presentation was best summed up by our good friends over at Nintendo Life:
As a Wii U owner and general advocate for Nintendo, I was not as angered as many who chose to vent their anger on social media, but after Sony and Microsoft made pitch-perfect presentations, to say I was disappointed in Nintendo’s efforts would be an understatement. Nintendo President (and part-time puppet) Satoru Iwata seemed equally aware of the reaction from gamers and fans around the world, taking to Twitter to reassure them the company was listening: “Thank you for watching until midnight. We take the various opinions for this year’s Digital Event very seriously. I would like to continue our efforts to be able to meet more and more of your expectations in the future.”
Unlike many armchair CEOs calling for his resignation, I personally think Iwata has steered Nintendo through a stormy chapter in its history, and is obviously aware that more change may be needed. With that in mind, here are five suggestions on how Nintendo can improve for next year.
E3 is over, but there’s plenty of news to catch up on. I absorbed as much of it as I possibly could, and now I’m going to spend some time trying to forget about certain games so that I don’t pine over them for months!
The E3 bundle is over at Humble, but there are still some good sales to be had! Pick up Napoleon: Total War for $2, Killing Floor 2 for $23.99, and Homesick for $13.49, among many others.
And, of course, there are tons of great deals in the Steam sale today. Get Goat Simulator for $2.49, The Stanley Parable for $3.74, Among the Sleep for $4.99, and The Escapists for $12.05. There are only two more days left in the sale, so keep checking!
There are some really great shirts for sale today!
Another announcement you might have missed during Nintendo’s E3 Digital Event was Metroid Prime: Federation Force. The game, which retains the Prime series’ first-person adventure style, places a heavy emphasis on co-op missions. You and up to three teammates will work to eliminate enemies and complete missions.
When you’re done with your alien genocide, you can relax and play a game of “Blast Ball,” a three-on-three competitive game that requires players to blast balls into each others’ goals. Kind of like soccer with a giant ball. And arm cannons.
Metroid Prime: Federation Force is set to invade 3DS systems in 2016.
During their E3 Digital Event, Nintendo announced the newest entry in the Zelda franchise: The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes. The game, which comes to the 3DS this Fall, retains the same birds-eye view seen in classic titles and, more recently, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds. Cooperative gameplay is a focus here, as each player controls one of three differently-colored Links. You’ll need to rely on teamwork, as all three Links share the same health. The Links can also hop on each others’ shoulders to create a Totem pole in order to reach inaccessible areas and solve puzzles.
Outfits will also play a role in the game. You’ll need to equip Link with different costumes in order to utilize their abilities. The Lucky Loungewear, for example, increases your odds of not taking damage after getting hit. Additionally, the Big Bomb Outfit allows you to carry and toss large bombs as if they were their smaller counterparts.
Beatbuddy: Tale of the Guardians continues to find new oceans to explore. The rhythm side-scroller will be released for the Xbox One, alongside the previously announced Wii U version, this Summer.
If you’d rather not wait that long, developer Threaks has also informed us that Beatbuddy is available now for the Android-powered Nvidia Shield microconsole. Priced at $5.99, its available through the Google Play Store.
Two new Xbox One games were added to the Xbox Games Store today, and both involve hardcore racing action, although one goes much faster than the other.
If you’ve ever hopped on your bike and cruised down the street pretending to be Lance Armstrong (you know, before the whole drug scandal), then you might be interested to know that Tour De France 2015 is now available for the Xbox One from Cyanide Studio and Focus Home Interactive. Players will race through the French countryside in all 21 stages of the Tour as they compete for the yellow jersey and a three-second mention on SportsCenter.
This week’s other new racing game is Quantum Rush: Champions, from German developer GameArt Studio. Rocketing around the track at 1,000 MPH (sure beats a bicyclist’s top speed of 50 MPH), this futuristic racer will include “extensive” customization options and a wide variety of weaponry.
More information about both games can be found after the break.
The 2015 E3 Expo might be over, but we’re still digging through everything we saw. For example, during Sony’s E3 Press Conference, Capcom announced the addition of two more fighters to the Street Fighter V lineup. Cammie, who first appeared in Super Street Fighter II, and Birdie, who we haven’t seen since Street Fighter Alpha, will be mixing it up with the already-announced Ryu, Chun-Li, Charlie, and M. Bison.
Additionally, the PlayStation 4-exclusive online beta program will roll out from July 23rd to July 28th. The only way to get access to this online beta is to pre-order the game through select retailers or through the PlayStation Network. But there will be more beta programs taking place throughout the year, so stay tuned!
Street Fighter V will hit the PS4 and PC in Spring 2016.
E3 is over, but there’s plenty of news to catch up on. I absorbed as much of it as I possibly could, and now I’m going to spend some time trying to forget about certain games so that I don’t pine over them for months!
