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Kirby? Mario? Zelda? It's a Nintendo gameplay video-splosion!
OK, so last night's Nintendo TGS keynote may not have had a mountain of relevant info for us stateside. But it had a lot of moving images we've not seen before, and we'll take that entertainment over boring old information any day of the week. We've got all the good parts just after the break with new screens from Super Mario 3D Land and Kirby's Return to Dreamland, plus video of those two, and clips of Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword and Mario Kart 7. Can human beings overdose on joy? We pray that they can not.
Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword will last 50-100 hours, Nintendo claims
Hope you brought a change of tights. During the 3DS-centric press conference Nintendo is currently holding in Tokyo, Shigeru Miyamoto kicked things off with the decidedly unportable Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. While showing off the game's features, Shiggy apparently said that the game would last between 50 and 100 hours. Lest your tan pants, green boots and stupid hat get a little ... musty, you may want to bring spares. Update: Nintendo confirmed that number on the official twitter account. Also, we say "apparently" 50-100 hours because the presentation was entirely in Japanese and we can't technically speak the language. Technically speaking. But since Miyamoto added the game has been in development by a team of 100 for over five years, the exorbitant length would make a lot of sense.
$70 Zelda: Skyward Sword bundle includes gold Wii Remote Plus
You'll need a MotionPlus or Wii Remote Plus to play The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. If you don't already have one, don't worry: Nintendo will offer the game in a $69.99 bundle, which includes the limited-edition gold Wii Remote Plus first seen at E3. If you don't want the fancy (and exclusive) Wiimote, the game will still be available as a standalone, for $49.99. The initial print run of both versions, out November 20, will include a CD of performances from the upcoming Zelda 25th anniversary concert. So don't make too much noise when you go to that concert, or you'll ruin our CD. Thanks!
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword out in North America on Nov. 20
Nintendo's latest Zelda adventure, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword for Wii, will fly to North American shelves on a giant bird November 20th. That date falls within the "Holiday" timeframe announced at E3, making this the rare occasion that a Zelda game hasn't been delayed recently. Nintendo's announcement did not mention whether the game would be packaged with a Wii Remote Plus. MotionPlus-only games typically ship either with the MotionPlus attachment or the Wii Remote Plus, which has the extra motion sensor built in. The Wii Remote Plus has been in all hardware bundles since November.
Nintendo celebrates Zelda's 25th with new website
To celebrate 25 years of Octorok abuse, Nintendo has launched a commemorative website. The Zelda 25th Anniversary site is home to a mess of goodies aimed at your nostalgia core, including an interactive history of the series, some wallpapers and a video of the 2011 E3 keynote where a live symphony played music from the games. For you more artistic types, Nintendo is also asking for your Zelda-themed Flipnote Studios animations, with the best entries receiving top billing on the Zelda 25th site. You can also send in a paper drawing, if you prefer, but we don't know if that'll actually make it onto the site. Flipnote Studios, as you may recall, is available as a free download on the DSi and DSi XL. Nintendo will take submissions from now on through September 9. The 25th Anniversary site is live right now, so click over if you're looking to take a trip down memory lane. Or, if you're like us and have had enough, feel free to sign our petition. If we don't help the Octorok, who will?!
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword will offer item upgrades
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword will feature an item upgrade system, as revealed in the above Gamespot interview with Nintendo of America's Bill Trinen at Comic-Con. After 13 minutes of discussing the game's art style and motion controls, Trinen drops the bomb about the shield, explaining that while Link begins with a traditional shield, he can craft different ones throughout the game by combining rupees with artifacts left behind by defeated enemies. Trinen said upgrades will apply to Link's beetle, shield and "other items," which we guess would include his sword, bow, whip and slingshot, but probably won't be applicable to the game's graphics.
The Legend of Zelda celebrates 25 years with a symphony
The Legend of Zelda is 25 this year, and Nintendo is celebrating its birthday the way any young, virile adult would want, with a trip to the symphony (Don't tell Nintendo a bar would be cheaper). The Legend of Zelda 25th Anniversary Symphony Concert is scheduled for October 21 at Los Angeles' Pantages Theatre, featuring complete symphonic renditions of the series' classic songs as chosen by composer Koji Kondo. A full tour of the show will begin in 2012. The concert will feature a 70-piece orchestra, much like the one we saw during Nintendo's E3 presentation, above. Tickets for the Pantages concert will go on sale August 1, ranging from $35 to $150, depending on how much you appreciate your childhood.
Dive through the clouds with Link in the latest Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword trailer
We've seen an awful lot of Link sporting goofy farmer clothes in The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, but the latest trailer plays on key nostalgia factors. Green tunic? Check. Z-targeting? You bet! Losing Zelda to "evil forces?" Of course. And there's a bonus, too: big birds!
Nintendo's Comic-Con lounge stocked with Mario, Zelda, Rhythm Heaven, and more
To keep you from ever having to look at an actual comic at Comic-Con, another game company has announced its lineup of playable demos. You'll be able to play a great deal of Nintendo's recent and upcoming 3DS lineup, most of its Wii lineup ... and Dragon Quest Monsters Joker 2 on DS. Nintendo will have both a normal booth at Comic-Con, #5135, and a "Nintendo Gaming Lounge" at the adjacent Marriott Marquis & Marina hotel. This "Gaming Lounge" will feature playable demos of Super Mario, Kid Icarus Uprising, Mario Kart, Metal Gear Solid Snake Eater 3D, Shinobi, and more 3DS games. In addition, you'll be able to try The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, Rhythm Heaven, Fortune Street, and more on Wii. Bring your DS and/or 3DS when you go. From 4-6 pm on July 21, Nintendo will host a Pokémon Black/White meetup. The Lounge will also have a giant Pokédex 3D AR marker of Reshiram for you to take commemorative pictures with, and a "gallery" of oversized AR Cards. There will even be downloadable maps for Dragon Quest IX!
With Wii U, Mario will use two screens and Zelda won't look like this
Yoshiaki Koizumi, producer of the Super Mario series, has his team working on a new Mario game for the Wii U, even though he didn't know what Nintendo's new console would even look like prior to its unveiling at E3. In an interview with Wired, Koizumi said now that he knows what the Wii U can do, he wants to "create a console game where two people are playing at the same time but can't see each others' screens." You know, much like how the internet operates, but without all those messy tubes. Legend of Zelda producer Eiji Aonuma also spilled some secrets about the HD demo Nintendo used to show off its new graphics -- mainly, don't believe everything you see. "You probably remember that when we introduced the GameCube, we showed a somewhat realistic Zelda demo," Aonuma said. "And what we actually created was the cel-shaded Wind Waker. So when we show a graphic demo, people think, 'Oh, this is what the next Zelda will look like,' but that's not necessarily the case." Secrets and lies, Nintendo. Secrets and lies.
Reggie demos Skyward Sword on Jimmy Fallon, says Wii U coming after April 2012
Continuing his week of video game-themed coverage, Jimmy Fallon played host to Nintendo's Reggie Fils-Aime last night. Check out the video below to see The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword in action, and to hear Reggie talk up the Wii U, which will apparently launch "in 2012, after April."
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword preview: Swinging for the skies
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is the Zelda game I wanted on Wii five years ago, when the console launched. I don't mean that to say it's not good, because I sure had a great time playing it. I mean that to say that the "Wiimote as a sword" gameplay in Twilight Princess was gesture-based and awful, whereas Skyward Sword features excellent, near one-to-one control thanks to the required Wii MotionPlus. I lift the Wiimote, and Link lifts his sword. I slash diagonally, and he slashes with me, imperfections and all. In fact, aside from some seriously rough graphical edges -- literally! jaggies ahoy! -- The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is exactly the right Zelda game for Nintendo's soon-to-be-succeeded Wii console and it's oft-misused controller.%Gallery-125901%
The Legend of Zelda symphonies to be held across the country for franchise's 25th anniversary
Shigeru Miyamoto has announced that to celebrate the 25th anniversary for The Legend of Zelda, a series of concerts will be held across the country. These live symphonies will also produce a soundtrack, available to anyone who picks up The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword and registers with Club Nintendo, free of charge.
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword set for holiday 2011
Taking to the stage at Nintendo's E3 keynote at the Nokia theater in Los Angeles, Shigeru Miyamoto announced that The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword will arrive on Wii during Holiday 2011. This represents a new release window for the MotionPlus-enabled adventure, which was pushed back until after the launch of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D.
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword's music hides a secret in plain sound
Here's something for all the Zelda continuity conspiracy theorists. FPAwesome was reversing the sound on YouTube videos one day, as we all do when bored, and discovered a big secret in The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword's GDC 2011 trailer. The background music, which sounds at first like a totally original composition, is actually "Zelda's Lullaby" in reverse! GoNintendo extracted just the audio, which you can hear after the break. Is it a clue about the storyline of Skyward Sword, or is it the work of a playful composer? That's another one for the conspiracy theorists, as is the possibility that the back-masked music is a form of mind control. [Thanks, Sean]
Protect your slingshots with an authentic Zelda treasure chest (with sound!)
Are you looking for a quick-and-easy storage solution for the adventure-ready knick-knacks you've got laying around the house? Oh, sure, you could probably just tuck that slingshot, Deku stick and empty bottle into any old Rubbermaid tub, but if you're looking for a more authentic way to put things into other things you need a real-life Legend of Zelda treasure chest, complete with brief musical interlude. (You know the one.) You can follow the instructions posted on Instructables to make your own Hylian lockbox, and check out the video after the jump to see (and hear!) it in action. Just be sure that you make everything to scale -- if you make the chest too large, you're going to have to put something way more awesome in it.
Reggie admits that Nintendo is 'juggling two big balls'
Speaking to IGN on the current state of the Wii -- which has seen few first party releases lately -- Nintendo president Reggie Fils-Aime admitted that the company has "pushed out some Wii launches so that [Nintendo] could focus on our handheld business." Fils-Aime was referring to the launches of Pokemon Black/White and the 3DS, saying that Nintendo is "already juggling two big balls" and that adding more to the company's plate would have proven "a little bit challenging." Fils-Aime reassured Wii owners that "there's content coming, and we'll be sharing more, certainly, in the weeks ahead." He added that there will be new content released before E3 and that there will be "more news" revealed at the expo this June. Finally, Fils-Aime teased The Legend of Zelda's impending 25th anniversary, which was briefly mentioned by Satoru Iwata during Nintendo's GDC keynote earlier this month. "All I can tell you," said Fils-Aime, "is that it will be different than what we did for Mario, and it will be just as special." If it's anything other than free ocarinas, we'll be disappointed.
Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword gameplay shown to GDC attendees
If you've been following along with Satoru Iwata's GDC keynote, you'll know that he showed some new gameplay footage from Skyward Sword. Here's your chance to see it.
Video: The Legend of Zelda ... if it was more like The Breakfast Club
This trailer, from the same people who brought us Inglorious Plummers, takes us back to a simpler time -- a time of cassette tapes, flannel shirts and the passing of empty containers between loved ones.
Iwata: Zelda Skyward Sword expected to launch after Ocarina of Time 3D
It seems that the hero of Hyrule will remain bound to Nintendo's forthcoming 3D handheld in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time before turning his sword skyward at some point after, the company's third quarter financial report indicates. "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time has been in the process of being remade for Nintendo 3DS, and this Nintendo 3DS version is expected to hit the market earlier [than Skyward Sword]," Nintendo head Satoru Iwata states in the piece. Though Skyward Sword apparently won't launch until sometime after OoT (which is expected sometime after June's E3, outside of Nintendo's "launch window"), the report also reveals that Miyamoto's team is currently "entering into the final completion stage" of the Wii title. That being the case, we'll expect a much more impressive demonstration of the game at Nintendo's E3 presser later this year.
