This Week in Nintendo History: August 23rd to August 29th

Howdy folks, and welcome once again to our weekly look back at the history of Nintendo. This week we'll take a look at Mario, dolphins, Metroid, and more. It's a pretty good week with some fun filled facts. Let's jump right into it.

First up this week we'll travel to August 23rd, 2005. Pac 'n Roll was released for the Nintendo DS. Pac-Man (who has been put under Golvis' sphere curse) must save Pac-Master's family from the evil Golvis and Ghosts, with their evil plot to turn Pac-Land into Ghost-Land. This was a bit of a mash up between Marble Madness gameplay and Super Monkey Ball. The touch screen was used to control a 3-d version of Pac-Man while he traveled around various levels.

Space World on August 24th, 2000 was the site of one of the biggest reveals of the year. Nintendo lifted the curtain on their next console and the world was introduced to the Nintendo Game Cube. A little over a year earlier Howard Lincoln, NoA's chairman, had announced Project Dolphin which would become the Gamecube, but it wasn't until this day that it was officially revealed. Rather than standard sized DVD's like the other consoles of its generation, the Gamecube used proprietary 8cm DVD's that would be the subject of debates for a number of years. It also made some innovations to controllers with the C stick and analog shoulder buttons. Probably the most famous feature of its controller was the giant green A button that had not been seen until that time. The launch for the system was also the first time that Mario was not present in the starring role of a game. It would end up not being a very big success commercially, but paved the way for the next generation for Nintendo and the advent of the Wii. The last game released for the system, officially, was Madden NFL '08.

August 24th, 2006 would be the first time that Final Fantasy III would be released in America. This would be the first time that the game was released outside the country of Japan. This version of the game was also the first of Square Enix's 3-d remakes of Final Fantasy games on DS, and would soon be followed by the ever popular Final Fantasy IV. The DS release of the game would make some changes to the game to improve playability. Things like the job system would be rebalanced, new abilities would be added and the initial job for the player would be changed from Onion Knight to Freelancer. Job specific abilities would also be added if a character had fully mastered a certain job. Final Fantasy III would also make use of Nintendo's Wi-Fi Connection allowing players to send mail to characters, as well as other players. This remake would sell over 500,000 copies in Japan during its first week in stores and has sold more than 1 million copies to date.

Let's move to the year 1997, more specifically, August 25th, 1997. This was the day that third person shooters would begin to gain popularity on consoles. On this day in history GoldenEye 007 was released for the Nintendo 64. This game, based on the popular James Bond story, and developed by Rare, featured four player split-screen multiplayer and one of the most popular death match modes in a shooter to date. It was well loved by fans and has a Meta Critic score of 96%. GoldenEye 007 is on many players most wanted lists for the Virtual Console, but it has been stated many times that the possiblity of it coming to download services is small.

August 25th, 2002 saw the release of the first true Mario adventure for the Gamecube. Super Mario Sunshine was the first, and only game in the main Mario series to release for the GameCube. It has been received to very differing opinions among Nintendo fans. In the game Mario was framed for committing a crime he did not do. He is sentenced to cleaning up the entirety of Isle Delfino, home to the Piantas. The main gameplay element, which is the cause of the wide variety of opinions, revolves around Mario using a water pack to clean up the environment and help him reach areas otherwise inaccessible to him. As of June 2006 it had sold more than five and half million copies worldwide and placed 46th on Official Nintendo Magazine's Top 100 Games of All-Time.

Fast forward one year to August 25th, 2003 and the release of F-Zero GX. This was the fifth game in the popular racing franchise and the first in the series to include a "story mode" where the player assumes the role of Captain Falcon who must complete various racing missions to proceed through the story. It retained the series high speed, frantic hover racing action, but increased the overall difficulty of the series considerably. It is considered by many to be the best racing game to release on the GameCube. It featured thirty different pilots who could compete on twenty different tracks throughout the game.

Also on that day Pokemon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire were released for the Game Boy Advance. This was a pretty standard pinball game that featured two tables and four different modes of play.

Super Mario Sluggers stepped up to bat on August 25th, 2008 for Wii. This was the second baseball game in the Mario franchise and featured some Wii specific controls, such as swinging the Wii Remote to bat or pitch. In order to unlock all the characters and stadiums, Mario must complete a series of challenges against various opponents. If successful another character or stadium would unlock. There were 41 different characters from the Mushroom Kingdom that were playable. The game received very fair reviews, but none were overwhelmingly good. The lack of online play and the fact that it came out after Wii Sports and its baseball game contributed to those reviews.

Let's go back to August 27th, 2007 and the release of one of the best games so far on Wii, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. This final chapter of the Prime trilogy was released to very positive reviews and it considered by many to still have some of the best controls for a shooter on Wii. It was praised for its gorgeous visuals, solid controls and excellent storyline. It was one of the first games in the series to feature a large amount of voice work, even if Samus herself did not speak and even featured an online element. Players were able to trade tokens with each other that would enable them to unlock bonus features such as concept art and movies. This game is be re-released on a single disc with the first two games in the trilogy as Metroid Prime Trilogy on August 25th, 2009.

Developer 5th Cell was founded on August 28th, 2003 by Joseph M. Tringali, Jeremiah Slaczka and Brett Caird. The company develops games primarily for Nintendo's Wii and DS systems. They are most well known for the Drawn To Life series, as well as Lock's Quest an the upcoming game Scribblenauts. When asked what kind of games he wanted the company to be known for Jeremiah Slaczka, the company's Creative Director said, "Innovative games – we want to be known as a company that produces AAA content you can't get anywhere else from anyone else. So far, with both Drawn to Life and Lock's Quest, I think our products have lined up with that vision. We've completely switched our company's focus to original titles now. We don't do licensed games or work for hire anymore."

Star Fox Command was released for the Nintendo DS on August 28th, 2006. This game returned the series to its air combat roots after a couple of previous missteps. It was also the first game in the Star Fox series to feature online play. Up to six people could join together in local wireless play.


There you have it, another week of history is in the books. What do you think? Have you enjoyed this article? Is there anything coming up you know about that you want to see in the article. Leave me a comment and let me know.

This Week In Nintendo History: August 16th to August 22nd

Howdy guys! It's time once again to explore the deep, dark depths of the history of every one's favorite video game company, Nintendo! This week we've got the blue bomber, Samus, kart racing, and the man in green. It's not safe to go alone, take This Week in Nintendo History.

August 17th 1983 saw yet another Game & Watch game, this time it's Popeye. This version of the game had you moving Popeye left and right to avoid Bluto's punches and countering with a punch of your own. Of course all the while you were trying to rescue Olive from his clutches. You were not only trying to win the game, but do it by getting as many points as you could by hitting Bluto, knocking him into the ocean and rescuing the girl. This Game & Watch game also featured an alarm clock.

It was all about the Virtual Console on August 18th, 2008. The original Mega Man was released for the NES on the system. If you haven't played this game you need to go and download it right now. It was the start of one of gaming's most classic franchises and set the stage for many games to come. Also released on that day was Neo Turf Master for the Neo Geo.

Another big day for the Virtual Console on August 20th, 2007. Super Metroid, arguably many people's favorite iteration of the series was gifted to the world when it was released on Nintendo's classic download service. Alongside Samus' return was Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master and Neutopia for the TG-16. If you're more into the brain thing you could have gone out that day and picked up your copy of Brain Age 2: More Training in Minutes a Day for Nintendo DS. This was the second game in the brain training franchise and it had you completing puzzles and challenges in order to help keep your brain strong.

Game & Watch saw another release on August 20th, 1984. The G&W version of Donkey Kong 3 was released. While it shared the same name as an arcade version of DK3 it was completely different in terms of gameplay. The G&W version of the game was a two player affair where one player would control Donkey Kong and the other would control the human Stanley. They were both attempting to protect their gardens from bees with water guns, and shooting the insects would cause them to fly closer to the other players garden. You scored points if the bees reached the opposite side.

August 21st, 2000 was a sad day in the history of gaming. Earthbound 64 was in development for the Nintendo 64 DD, the ill fated CD attachment to the N64. On that day, the game was cancelled. It would be revived five years later and released on the Game Boy Advance, but you would only be able to play it if you lived in Japan. The game never saw release in America.

The Nintendo 64 saw the sequel to one of the first games dedicated to skating, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 was released for the N64. Originally designed for the Playstation and ported to other consoles it was very similar to the original. If you've played a Tony Hawk game before, you know what to expect.

The Nintendo DS would see some of the first use of it's Wi-Fi system on August 21st, 2006 when Tenchu: Dark Secret was released. Tenchu is a stealth action game where you were tasked with taking out enemies using various items in your inventory, as well as things found in the environment. It was one of the first games to take advantage of the Wi-Fi system and allowed you to trade items with players around the globe.

Japanese gamers were given the beginning of one of Nintendo's most popular franchises on August 22nd, 1992. That was the day that Super Mario Kart raced on the Super Famicom in Japan. Players got their first taste of three dimensional racing and flinging turtle shells at other cars. The game used the Mode 7 system which allowed the designers to create the feeling of a three dimensional race, when in actuality you were static and the environment moved around you. This series has gone on to spawn several interations over every console since the Super Famicom and has been played by millions of gamers worldwide.

Our last piece of history, is a big one. On August 22nd, 1987 players finally learned that it was not safe to go alone. Link burst onto the scene in The Legend of Zelda for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Since then Link has grown to be the second biggest star in Nintendo's history behind the famous plumber and has been in a large number of games. He's been around to launch consoles, fight Ganon and save the Princess for over twenty years and he's still going strong. This game featured a huge overworld populated by near endless numbers of enemies, memorable dungeons and a huge inventory of items. There are few that have owned a Nintendo console that haven't played this game at some point. Well excuuuse me, Princess!

So there you have it. Another week of history is in the books. I hope you enjoy this article and if there is anything that you know of coming up soon that you would like to see included in this article please drop me a line and let me know. You can find a link to my email address over on the right side of the page. Let me know what you think.

Iwata Is Hoping For a Big Holiday

“In September, which people overseas call ‘back-to-school,’ people start to pay more attention to home consoles. If we can convey the appeal of Wii Sports Resort to existing customers then, it will surely contribute to the sales of hardware and generate good momentum toward the holiday season. So we feel that Wii Sports Resort will drive hardware sales mainly in Q3 from October to December. Last year, we had some internal discussions about the close launch period of Mario Kart Wii and Wii Fit but we ended up launching them with the hypothesis that several major title launches in close proximity can produce a synergetic effect. As a result, it went very well. This year we hope to do well again as we will be launching three ten-million class titles consecutively, and would love to hear that ‘Holiday 2009 was the best one ever for Nintendo!’”

Source: Nintendo Everything

Nintendo has big plans every holiday season, as do most game companies. We're seeing a lot of them shift games out of the holiday season this year into the first quarter of next year to avoid the rush and hopefully generate a few more sales. Nintendo has New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Wii Fit Plus, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, Metroid Prime Trilogy, and Wii Fit Plus all scheduled to come out before the end of the year. I can see all of those potentially being big sellers so Mr. Iwata may have a lot to look forward to.

I can say without a doubt that New Super Mario Bros. Wii will be the biggest seller of all those games. The DS iteration of the game is still on the NPD best seller list every month and the game has been out for three years. Mario is a huge force in the gaming world and any time a title with his name on it comes out it sells huge. Wii Fit has a bigger install base than the PS3. The updated version this year has made some additions that many people will welcome and it will warrant a second purchase for people who have been happy with that product.

I'm looking forward to all of those titles, and will be out on day one buying Metroid Prime Trilogy and New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Which holiday offerings from Nintendo are you looking forward to?

Metroid Prime Trilogy Will Not Use Saves From Metroid Prime 3

It was officially announced today that the new Metroid Prime Trilogy will not use save files from Metroid Prime 3.

"Due to the way the game data is allocated for production and the changes that we made in the source code, we were unfortunately unable to carry over the save file compatibility from MP3 to Trilogy." - Mike Wikan, lead game designer at Retro Studios

That just means that if you've played those games before you'll have to play through all of them again, which isn't a bad thing. Most Nintendo fans have played them and will play them again to try out the Wii specific controls that you didn't have the first time around.
This won't be an issue for me as I've never played the first two games in the series and I never finished Metroid Prime 3. I'll be picking this game up and playing through it as I've always been interested in the franchise, but didn't like the Gamecube controls for the first two games.