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While the other system makers are gearing up for their next generation of consoles, Nintendo made sure to pay attention to the GameCube with several new games shown in their booth at E3. In this list of new games, there were both original titles, and sequels to popular franchises. If these games hit their expected release dates, it could be a banner year for the Nintendo GameCube in 2005.
Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix
For years, Dance Dance Revolution has taken the nation by storm, enticing people to dance to the pop and techno songs featured on its soundtrack, even though they may not have dance ability. This time around, Konami and co. have combined Dance Dance Revolution with the Mario universe and created Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix.
On the outside, DDR: Mario Mix seems like a typical DDR iteration, complete with the usual soundtrack. However, this game of DDR actually has somewhat of a storyline behind it, even though it?s just about the dancing when you come down to it. Basically, the music keys have been stolen and the music they have been protecting has been released. Without the keys, the music is wreaking havoc on the Mushroom Kingdom, so Mario goes on a quest to stop this from happening.
If you?ve played one version of DDR, you?ve essentially played them all. DDR: Mario Mix is no exception to this rule. There is a selection of songs to choose from with a selectable skill level, and after playing through a certain number of songs well, you can unlock even more songs to play in. While the song is playing, you must perform the specific combination of steps on the dance pad that is shown on the screen. While it sounds like a simple thing to do, the rhythms can get pretty complicated, and it may take a person who?s new at the game quite some time to get used to it.
For the longest time, both PS2 and Xbox gamers have had access to a couple of DDR games, so finally, GameCube owners can finally experience this unique genre in their home for themselves. Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix will be hitting the store shelves in October of 2005.
Mario Baseball
Through the years, Mario has starred in many different sports games, from kart racing, to golf and tennis. Now, Mario and friends are grabbing their bats as they head out onto the field in Mario Baseball, developed in a collaboration between Nintendo and Namco.
Mario Baseball combines the familiar American pastime with a few different sub games as well. Besides the normal style baseball game, Mario Baseball players can participate in a Challenge Mode, in which you can wander around and clear baseball trials of all sorts. There is also a game called Toy Field where you can hit the ball at circles in the outfield in order to win prizes. Then, there is, of course, a multiplayer mode with support for up to four different players for some player versus player action. Also, like some of the Mario sports titles, each character has their own specific power move that can be used in the game. With over 50 different characters in the game, Mario Baseball is sure to offer lots of replay value.
I had a bit of fun playing this game, really, but like all the rest of the Mario sports line, it is best played with friends. If you get 3-4 baseball fans and gather them around a TV, you could have some good fun playing Mario Baseball. If the game sounds like a winner to you, pick up a copy when it comes out on August 29th of this year.
Geist
Geist is yet another unique creation from Nintnedo. If you saw a game named Geist, the first type of game that would pop into your head is in the horror genre. Geist is, however, a first person shooter game with a slightly different approach. In most of the shooters on the market, you use either one or two players throughout the game. In Geist, you can control pretty much any character you can see (or should I say, scare).
If you?re confused right now, let me explain the storyline. You start the game as agent John Rami, a disease-control specialist. The team you are attached to is sent out to investigate a lab run by the Volks Corperation, which is suspected of creating some kind of bio-terror. During the mission, however, something goes wrong and you are captured to be used for experimentation that rips your spirit from your body. When you awaken, you discover that your new powers allow you to possess practically anything that you come into contact with, or even drain the energy of things. Now, reborn, you must find your body using all the skills that you have acquired as a specter to possess anyone whom you come across in order to help you in your quest.
Geist is possibly one of the most unique games that I played at the Nintendo booth. There is an element of strategy in this game that really isn?t found in most FPS games. Throughout the game, you must be thinking about which humans or animals can help you along your way. In one particular scene, there are two guards standing close to a trash can. To scare one of the guards, you can posess the trash can, and cause the garbage to attack him. After the guard is frightened, his ?spirit? that surrounds him turns to red, and you can possess the guard.
Of course, there will be a lot of shooting action as well, for those of you who don?t want just a strategy game. However, I wouldn?t expect the normal fare of weapons found in most shooters (such as rocket launchers and plasma guns). However, I think that this combination is one that will entice many players to try out Geist. For those of you who have a GameCube, I recommend that you go and pick up a copy of Geist when it launches in August of 2005.
Odama
One of the more quirky games shown at the Nintendo booth was a game called Odama, being developed by game studio Vivarium. For those of you who have never heard about this unique creation for the Nintendo GameCube, Odama is closely related to pinball, but the reality of the game is a bit more complicated than that.
The storyline of Odama follows a great general named Yamanouchi Kagetora, who creates the way of Ninten. This philosophy is one that puts the greater good ahead of the needs of individuals. He trains his army with this philosophy, and finds out that groups of soldiers can band together to face even the most terrible enemy. After Kagetora?s father is killed by his arch nemesis Kendare, Kagetora decides to take revenge with his army of 30 soldiers and a secret weapon ? the Odama.
So what is the Odama, you might ask? It?s simple, the Odama is a giant ball that rolls around on the battlefield (that just happens to be shaped like a pinball game), and crushes anything that is in it?s way, whether it be friendly or not. The player controls both the soldiers, using the voice commands given in the game, and the Odama, using the gigantic flippers located at the bottom of the battlefield.
Playing through Odama is a bit more complicated than you might think. You not only have to make sure that the Odama knocks down only your enemies (you can just as easily kill your own men with it), but you must also coordinate your men with voice commands given through the GameCube microphone accessory, which thankfully clips to the GameCube controller. You can give your army commands such as left, right, go forward, and back up, as well as an assortment of other commands with the microphone, but you must learn to control those two things in harmony, or you will fail to move forward in the game.
At the end of the day, Odama is essentially pinball with a twist. To say it is a challenging game would be stating the obvious too lightly. Odama can be extremely challenging, but I found in the demo that the more you try it, the more natural the control style becomes. While it may be quirky and difficult, hopefully it will be received well when it eventually hits the states. No release date has yet been set for Odama.
Battalion Wars
For those looking to get their RTS fix on the Nintendo GameCube, look no further than Battalion Wars from Kuju Entertainment. Where most RTS games give you an overall view of the action, where you control your army as essentially a God-like entity, Battalion Wars puts you right at the front of the action, allowing you precise control of your troops? movements and attacks. From footsoldiers, to light armored vehicles and even tanks ? you control it all in third person. With over 20 unique missions, Battalion Wars is certain to keep you occupied for quite some time.
In Battalion Wars, you control the soldiers in an alliance between the Western Frontier and the Tundran Territories in their quest to destroy the armies of the evil Kaiser Vlad, who controls an army of gas-breathing Chemical Shock Troops. Because the nations are weakened by the prolonged war, victory seems out of reach, but this is something you must overcome, or both of the nations of the alliance will fall into darkness.
Battalion Wars plays like most other military-themed games. You start out by taking command of a small troop, but in later missions, your group becomes larger. Each troop is grouped by the different types of weapons they use, from normal infantry, to infantry with rocket launchers, light armored vehicles, etc. One button on the controller is used to cycle through all available troop types, and then you can choose which specific soldier or vehicle in that category to take control of. There are also different commands that can be issued that gather your troops towards you, or order them to attack the enemy. In Battalion Wars, you don?t fail if the one specific character you?re controlling dies, but you do have to ensure that you keep most of your troops alive through the conflict.
The game moves pretty well from what I played of it, but it is quite challenging to be sure. Many times I found myself getting slaughtered in the game, simply because I didn?t think before I went in. The game provides you with a handy radar screen, which can be used to identify how many enemies are close by, so you can use that information to dispatch your troops accordingly. Throughout each mission, there are sometimes sub-missions that you must accomplish, which always keeps you moving around. Overall, this was a very fun game that I would recommend to those who want to play a good RTS for the GameCube. Battalion Wars arrives in stores on September 19th. |
