Hands On: Nintendo’s 3DS, Kirby, Donkey Kong, And Zelda

The Nintendo E3 booth was busy with media and fans today at the Los Angeles Convention Centre. Luckily, we were able to spend time with the Nintendo 3DS the newest Wii titles announced at Nintendo’s press conference.

See after the break for our reactions to the games.

Augmented Reality on the Nintendo 3DS

Can you believe a fire-breathing dragon comes through the table?

Natalie says: We had plenty of time with the 3DS and the quality of the 3D screen is still astounding. I played an augmented reality game that used the 3DS’ two external cameras. I pointed them at a piece of paper with a question box on it. Looking at the screen, I shot the targets that popped up. Instead of moving just the handheld, I had to move around to hit the target. As the targets “emerged” from the table, the table on the screen would bulge and distort. Very cool.

The final challenge was to to kill a dragon. I dodged and weaved in the real world to avoid the dragon’s virtual fireball. Fun and a good proof of concept.

DM says: I love seeing the 3DS take advantage of augmented reality. The PSP also has plans to do this with the addition of a camera attachment, but the 3DS has the benefit of having it built in and using a 3D environment. AR may be the future for the way we interact with the world on our phones or some other technology. By the time we get there, kids will have no problem using it because the 3DS will have given them the experience they need.

Kirby’s Epic Yarn

Natalie says: Playing the first level of the game, I got a good sense of the game play and the look. It’s a cute looking game with all the cloth and yarn elements done expertly. The enemies when killed disappear as a tangle of yarn and thread. Kirby and his sidekick have to cooperate to finish the game. You can throw each other at enemies or up higher to catch treasure or gems. Kirby also has a wool whip which can break boxes or grasp onto buttons in the world and swings around. The best use of the whip, in my opinion, is to pull back elements in the world like drawing back a curtain. Super fun and don’t let the cutesy elements deceive you into thinking it’s a kids’ game. I think the further levels will be just as tough.

Donkey Kong Country Returns

DM says: My initial reaction to this yesterday was that, after more than 10years, we’re seeing a new Donkey Kong Country that looks and plays exactly the same as the old Donkey Kong Country. Some hands on time taught me two things:

1. The graphics are improved and use three dimensional space better, even though it is still a basic side scroller. It’s good to point out that the original game looked pretty darn good for its time. There aren’t massive improvements for the new one, but that is partially due to development devisions and Wii graphics restrictions.
2. The gameplay is almost exactly the same as the original with two-player co-op. The original was fun and the new one is fun.

Now that I’ve had my play time, I just can’t hate on a game that revisits something that was so much fun the first time around. Nintendo loves its family games and Donkey Kong is a perfect example of that category without pandering to either kids or adults.

Natalie says: We played a mine cart level in two player mode. It was just as tough as you remember from the old game. Be prepared to throw your controller if you’re playing with a second player–perhaps at him.

Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

Flick of the wrist and out comes the whip.

DM says: I felt bad for Nintendo at its press conference when something interfered with the one-to-one motion control between the Wiimote and Link’s sword. My time with this latest title in the franchise confirmed that the sword, whip, and carrier beetle do work rather well with the Motion Control Plus system. I particularly enjoyed using the nunchuk as my shield and bashing back projectiles with a targeted punch of my fist.

Zelda fans will find the new additions a lot of fun and it feels like anyone new to the franchise will find it easy to pick up the game with the simplified control structure of single click access to your inventory.

That said, I haven’t returned to the kingdom of Hyrule in quite a few years and I don’t know enough of the plot of Skyward Sword to want me to go back there quite yet. So the gameplay alone isn’t making me love the latest Zelda. And I’m not the kind of guy to play a franchise game just because it exists.