Nintendo this past weekend upped the anticipation factor for next week’s launch of “Super Mario Galaxy” by inviting none other than Buzz Aldrin himself to help promote the Wii game.
The legendary moonwalker didn’t just grab one of the Wii’s motion-sensitive controllers and start waving it around. No, the astronaut, who is now 77 years old, donned a uniform and went zero-Gs with a costumed Mario character at Zero-G Corp. in Vegas.
Watch the video: E for All opens its doors // Event details
Matt Degen reporting from Los Angeles:
Among the most popular games at E for All are two music-based games that has kids — and adults — living out their wildest rock-star fantasies.
**Watch video coverage from the show**
The first is actually the third edition of the wildly popular “Guitar Hero” game, in which you “play” with a faux guitar rather than a gamepad to match harmonies. This third rendition is dubbed “Legends of Rock” and features songs by bands like the Rolling Stones and Kiss. It launches on Oct. 29 for Xbox 360, PlayStation 2 and 3, Wii, PC — and even the Mac.
Watch the video: E for All opens its doors // Event details
Matt Degen reporting from Los Angeles:
As noted in my previous blog on initial impressions from the first day of the first E for All in Los Angeles, Nintendo was the big fish in the relatively small pond of the LA Convention Center’s South Hall.
I chatted up Nintendo PR manager Eric Walter on the convention and what he sees ahead for Nintendo, both this week at E for All, and into the busy holiday season.
Q: It’s as if there is a magnetic field around Nintendo’s booth that’s attracting the gamers. What’s the big draw?
A: It all comes down to the games. We wanted to bring these games to the fans. Two of our biggest titles are “Super Smash Bros. Brawl” and “Super Mario Galaxy.” This is the first time fans have seen them. There’s also the Zapper (a gun-like control that debuts Nov. 19). Games on the Wii with the Zapper give a deeper level of immersion.
Q: After seeing it earlier this year at E3, I was hoping we’d see Wii Fit here. How come it’s missing?
A: It’s a little too early (to show).
Q: Bummer. When can consumers expect it on shelves?
A: 2008.
Q: Can you get any more specific?
A: No, sorry. Not at this time.
Q: Well, I’m looking forward to it. The early version I saw was extremely impressive, and I think it will draw a lot of people.
A: Absolutely. My mom is going to go nuts for the yoga — and my mom hasn’t played a game since I was a kid.
That’s the question that Nintendo is asking at MyWiiStory.com, a new site set up that allows families and individuals to tell how Nintendo’s motion-sensitive video-game machine has changed their life.
Shameless self-promotion? Maybe — it certainly won’t hurt Nintendo’s efforts to further take hold of the casual game market and appeal to folks who don’t consider themselves “gamers” — but it is kinda cool to read family tales on life post-Wii.
Here is one excerpt from the site: “I’m a 46-year-old mom, never really played any video games. My kids are now 25 yrs, 22 yrs and 19 yrs old. I am having a Wii party on the 21st of this month. We sent out invitations and I have about 15 women coming to try to play Wii.” — Sue Leone
This is also another shining example of the potential for user-generated content. In this instance, not only are families able to publish their stories on what I imagine will be a popular Web site, but the cause also helps Nintendo, in that they get the best kind of advertising that money can’t buy — positive word of mouth.
Thanks to Register videographer Greg Magnus, here are two videos from last week’s E3 Media & Business Summit. The video-game conference was much smaller this year but it remained an event where big game companies, such as Nintendo, made big announcements. 
My favorite? The upcoming Wii Fit game and the balance board accessory, as mentioned in prior posts. These videos were shot during last Wednesday’s press conference. Once you watch them, I think you’ll get it.
First up: Shigeru Miyamoto (the Japanese game designer who created Mario, Donkey Kong and The Legend of Zelda) shows off the new game and the many exercises, ur, games you can play with it.
Then Reggie Fils-Amie, Nintendo of America’s President, gets his body-mass index number.
Spotted Crave Entertainment at E3 highlighting several games including the upcoming Brunswick Pro Bowling.
Crave, based in Newport Beach, felt that Wii Bowling was a bit too cartoony so it added more bowling realism to the new game, being released Aug. 14.
The company talked to professional bowlers and the industry (Brunswick is one of the bigger names in bowling). And developers made sure the experience felt more authentic so players are not haphazardly tossing a ball down the lane and getting strikes (like I do when I Wii bowl).
A slight twist of the wrist will affect the ball’s curve. Different balls weigh different amounts and roll differently. And if the alley is too slick, the ball reacts. There’s also a career mode, where each game gets more difficult, said Kevin Yomchinda, Crave’s lead tester for the game.
“It’s definitely a game bowlers can use to practice for the real thing,” promises Kevin.
The game is expected to be in the $20 to $30 range.
Reporting from E3 in Santa Monica….
Not many people can get access to the annual E3 video-game fest. And this year, it’s been harder then ever as organizers shrunk down the event to minimize party crashing.
But two Aliso Viejo residents not only got to go, they got to play Nintendo games on stage during Wednesday morning’s big Nintendo press event. Meet Jackie Goehner and Michael Damiani, who run the Zentendo.com, a fan-ish site with news out of OC.
Jackie demonstrated Metroid Prime 3: Corruption on the Nintendo Wii, while Michael played Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. How cool is that?
Since the boyfriend-girlfriend team are such big Nintendorks, they are pretty active in the game community. Michael headed up some Nintendo forums and both were part of the Wii Ambassador program last fall, getting to play with the Wii before everybody else.
That’s when Nintendo asked if they wanted to demo the games at E3, said Michael. “They wanted gamers,” he told me when I bumped into the couple during lunch.
Jackie admits that Michael is more into gaming then she is but she is a pretty good shooter. “I wasn’t too nervous,” she said. “I just thought, ‘Hey, I’m just doing what I love to do.’”
Reporting from E3 in Santa Monica….
Lots of new games coming out for the Nintendo Wii and DS. But for gadget freaks, the new toys were a highlight: The Wii Zapper, the Wii Wheel and the Wii Balance Board.
The Wii Wheel is coming out with the new version of MarioKart for Wii, which has a release date of first quarter 2008:
And then there’s the Wii Zapper, a $19.99 gadget that lets you piece together the Wii-mote and the nunchaku controller. It’ll be available for upcoming Wii games including Medal of Honor, DragonQuest and Smackdown vs. Raw.
But, imho, the most unique gadget was the balance board, which will supplement the new Wii Fit games. While hard-core gamers may shrug over Wii Fit, I thought it definitely appeals to the neo-gamer — seniors, women, all ages. As Reggie Fils-Amie, Nintendo of America’s President, pointed out during the morning press conference, one-out-of-three Nintendo systems are purchased by women as compared to one-out-of-five in the video game industry.
The new balance board looks like a thin, white bathroom scale, held up by Shigeru Miyamoto in the photo above. (That’s the Shigeru Miyamoto, the Japanese game designer who created Mario, Donkey Kong and The Legend of Zelda). Miyamoto, now Nintendo’s senior managing director, said this was the game he was interested in introducing. The board senses balance and movement so when you sway back and forth, you could be shaking your hips to hold up a hula hoop. Or move your head to bop a soccer ball aimed at you. For all the yoga fans out there, balance is key and there’s a game just for yoga lovers.
And it can take your BMI to see how fat you are. Looks like Reggie is overweight.
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