Nintendo Direct Rundown: Games, Games, Games!

You’ll have to watch this morning’s Nintendo Direct to really feel the excitement (embedded below), but essentially, it’s a fantastic day to be a Nintendo fan, and a wonderful time to be a Wii U owner.

First, let’s get the non-game news out of the way. Now, I love my Wii U, but of course, like anything, the thing isn’t perfect. My main issue (which rears its ugly head every time the console is turned on) is just how slow the damn thing can be. It seems to take forever to move between menus on this system, and if you’re trying to return to the menu from inside a game, well, you may as well hit the restart button.

Nintendo knows about the speed issues, and is working to fix them. Two system updates are on the way (one due this Spring, one this Summer) that will address these problems, along with adding new functionality to the machine.

As Nintendo mentioned previously, Miiverse (which everyone seems to love) is still coming for smartphones. In the Spring, you’ll be able to access the service via your phone’s browser, but dedicated applications are in the works, so that you’re always just a tap away.

Along with the upcoming Spring update is (YES!) Virtual Console functionality for Wii U. The service will (strangely) launch with just NES and SNES titles, while GBA games will be added sometime in the future (hmmm… what about all of the other stuff on the Wii VC?). Pricing will be equivalent to the Wii Virtual Console Versions, and (lamely) if you’ve already purchased a title, it’ll cost you another $1 (or $1.50 for SNES) to get it on your Wii U. Hopefully for that, they come with some added functionality (fully customizable controls have already been revealed), and the ability to play the games on JUST the GamePad.

Now, the good stuff.

First, Zelda. In a completely unexpected piece of news… we’re getting two of them! Remember how AMAZING The Wind Waker looked when it came out all the way back in 2003? Well it’s about to get a lot prettier: this Fall, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker is going HD. Featuring improvements to gameplay and (hugely) to graphics, you’ll also be able to play this one on just the GamePad. This looks like is an absolute must buy.

It was also revealed that a Wii U specific Zelda title is in the works, set to “rethink the conventions of Zelda”. This one won’t be ready for some time however, so Wind Waker HD will have to do for now.

Everyone’s favourite Italian has two titles in the works for the Wii U. A new version of Mario Kart is in development, as well as a new Mario platformer, which will also be playable in 3D. Both games are set to be revealed at this year’s E3 convention (which hopefully means a holiday release).

The team behind the underrated Kirby’s Epic Yarn is at it again, but this time it’s Yoshi’s turn. The director of Yoshi’s Island and Yoshi’s Story is supervising the development of this one, which is Yoshi’s first starring role since 1998. Yarn Yoshi looks pretty damn… well, pretty.

We all knew that Pikmin 3 was coming, and Nintendo kindly treated us to some new screenshots during the presentation. They look beautiful, and I can’t wait to get my hands on the game. Check them out in the gallery below! A ‘camera’ mode was also revealed for the game, which lets you shoot from the perspective of the Pikmin, using what else but the Wii U gamepad. You can then share them to MiiVerse. No word yet on whether or not you’ll be able to apply cheesy filters after the fact.

Those are the biggest titles, but a few others were revealed via trailer, including what appears to be a Fire Emblem / Shin Megami Tensei crossover, a new title from Monolith Soft, and a new trailer for the cool looking The Wonderful 101. Check them out below.

Game and Wario and a new Smash Bros. were also mentioned, but need to be further in development before being officially revealed.

So what do you think Wii U owners? Excited? Shout out below!