Top 5: Nintendo's Biggest Surprises
by Kaes Delgrego 
{ Oct 6th 2008 at 12:51PM }
This week's press conference from Nintendo was like Reggie himself coming to your door, clutching a bouquet of awesome announcements, and saying "I'm sorry about E3." Indeed, I can't help but think that just one of the awesome titles announced in the past week could have prevented much of the animosity hurled at Nintendo following their ho-hum presentation at the summer exhibition.
But then again, Nintendo has always been one to surprise us. They've made good moves and bad, interesting decisions coupled with utterly clueless assumptions, and made us wonder what the hell they were thinking while amazing us with what they're capable of. Here's the Top 5 biggest surprises unleashed by the Big N.
The Top 5 is a weekly feature that provides us with a forum to share our opinions on various aspects of the video game culture, and provides you with a forum to tell us how wrong we are. To further voice your opinions, submit a vote in the Wii Fanboy Poll, and take part in the daily discussions of Wii Warm Up. 
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
samfish @ Oct 6th 2008 1:07PM
"This week's press conference from Nintendo was like Reggie himself coming to your door, clutching a bouquet of awesome announcements, and saying "I'm sorry about E3.""
You know what? Fuck Reggie. NOA has really started to suck in the last year or two and I'm kind of wondering if that's because of him.
I mean, really? Now we're not getting Disaster?
Fatal Frame is in doubt?
No Captain Rainbow?
Continuously squatting on the people BEGGING for Mother 3?
No Starfy after 5 successful games in Japan?
Up yours, Reggie. Maybe after you pull your head out of your ass, you can get back to kicking them.
guttertalk @ Oct 6th 2008 2:17PM
Where did they say we're not getting Disaster in North America? Last I heard, it was dependent on sales in Japan.
And when was Fatal Frame put in doubt?
I'm disappointed if these are true, but at the same time, if we're talking about subpar games that had just potential, then I'm fine not getting them.
However, if they're good or great games that don't sell well, that's a different, sad story.
Mr Khan @ Oct 6th 2008 3:45PM
I think Disaster will be released in North America, but that is all determined on how well it does in Europe.
So pay attention, Euros. If you don't buy it and this game totally bombs (like in the low 100ks or less) it's your fault we don't get it.
If it does decent, it'll get a low profile release here.
Reggie more or less said that FF4 wasn't being published by them in North America, and that somebody else would have to do it, which given Tecmo's current condition is a very bad sign for that game ever getting out of Japan, even though the other 3 games all got out of Japan within 4 months of release.
Kaes Delgrego @ Oct 6th 2008 4:21PM
@samfish:
Yikes! Not a fan of the Reggie, I take it! :) As president and COO of NoA, it's hard to pinpoint exactly what he does. But if we're to assume that he is largely responsible for all that's happened in the States since his reign, he's inarguably done something right (at least from a sales point of view). Even if he's the sole factor responsible for pushing the casual stuff, the Wii's success has allowed smaller titles to have a fighting chance. If the Wii were performing at the same level as the GCN, I doubt a developer like those who are porting the brilliant Cave Story would make an already big risk even bigger by releasing it for a comparatively small user base.
I guess what I'm saying is that in most cases, the yin and ying deal holds true. I'm very happy with the direction the Wii has been going, and I've not many reasons to complain (unless Rondo of Blood stays in Japan and the WiiWare Castlevania never materializes ... then I'll be FURIOUS!)
Either way, thanks for reading and writing! :)
wakachamo @ Oct 7th 2008 4:20PM
Samfish, I couldn't agree more with you.
NoA really needs to get their shit together.
schuyler @ Oct 6th 2008 1:12PM
wouldn't that make the snes the only nintendo system to get only 1 zelda game when all the others got 2...
Kaes Delgrego @ Oct 6th 2008 1:23PM
Yeah, I kind of excluded Majora's Mask ... don't get me wrong, it's an awesome game with the unique clock system and crazy fantasy town. I just didn't think it was a huge improvement over Ocarina of Time ... in fact, it kind of felt like TLoZ: OoT 2. And I was referring more to the fact that it was such a surprise since it was past the midpoint of the GameCube's lifespan.
Sonic_13 @ Oct 6th 2008 1:47PM
"This week's press conference from Nintendo was like Reggie himself coming to your door, clutching a bouquet of awesome announcements, and saying "I'm sorry about E3.""
What was wrong with E3? Nothing.
We got the announcements of several great new games, voice chat, and an excellent new, ultra-precise motion adapter. While it may not have matched the level of awesomeness brought forth by E3's like 2006 (which I doubt ANY future gaming event could live up to), it was by no means a failure.
Kaes Delgrego @ Oct 6th 2008 4:09PM
Very valid point. I wasn't quite in the 1 H@TE NINTEND0!!1 crowd post-E3, but I did feel quite underwhelmed. I was just making the point that this event knocked Nintendo's presence at E3 on its rear end. Thanks for reading! :)
Sonic_13 @ Oct 6th 2008 5:12PM
Ah, ok. Fair enough. This definitely did blow E3 out of the water.
Anyways, keep up the great top 5 lists!
Kaes Delgrego @ Oct 6th 2008 7:03PM
Thanks so much, Sonic_13! That means a lot to me. :)
Mr Khan @ Oct 6th 2008 3:50PM
I certainly remember being convinced by all my friends that GC was going to be Nintendo's last console.
Really, if you tried to interpret Super Mario Sunshine kinda deep, you could read Isle Delfino (Dolphin Island) as Ilse Del Fino (Island of the Finish, or something close to it)
We read it as a prophecy of doom back in the day.
SegaPleaseMakePanzerDragoonWii! @ Oct 6th 2008 4:04PM
Great article. Although, the Tupac/Biggie analogy was off, seeing as they were both essentially friends (or at least aquaintances with mutual respect) in the time back before the feud began. I can remember Tupac talking about Biggie staying at his place for a while, and the two of them being friends. But yeah, Sega on Ninty, it still feels weird to me after all these years.
Kaes Delgrego @ Oct 6th 2008 4:10PM
Thanks for the kind words! And iunno, every time I hear "Hit 'Em Up," it's hard to imagine a time after that when they were amiable with one another!
Hamster @ Oct 7th 2008 8:38AM
Yeah 2Pac and Biggie were good friends. In fact Hit Em Up has the line "Biggie remember when I used to let you sleep on the couch". I think it was after 2Pac got shot (not fatally) and people around him convinced him that Biggie and Bad Boy Records were responsible that they turned on each other.
Also, I still don't think Nintendo should have sold Rare. After all, they didn't need the money, but they did need games. All the ones they could get. And even now, I still wish Rare were with Nintendo. Banjo-Threeie would be awesome on Wii, not the butchered, unrecognisable mess it is on the 360.
Kaes Delgrego @ Oct 8th 2008 10:43AM
Yeah, I'd have to agree with you there. I'll withhold judgment until I actually take it for a spin, but removing nearly all of the platforming aspects of BK is like taking the ice cream out of a sundae. Who knows, maybe it'll be awesome. I'm just bummed that we may never see another true BK adventure, regardless of console.
cmdrpwn @ Oct 6th 2008 5:16PM
The Zelda bit has no place on the list. There was two Zeldas on NES, two on N64, and an innumerable plethora on GBA. If anything, the SNES's single Zelda title was the aberration against the norm, not the other way around.
Now, the real surprise concerning TP was how much of an incredibly kickass game it was, especially compared to its predecessor, which hinged on the semi-mediocre.
In all honesty, Twilight Princess marked the end of the old Nintendo for me, they haven't done anything to change my mind the last couple years. Couldn't care less about Disaster, looks like profoundly boilerplate pap.
Eric @ Oct 6th 2008 11:01PM
There were actually five Zelda discs for GameCube, three of them being original games, rather than re-releases.
The Wind Waker, of course, followed by Four Swords Adventures (sure, not your typical Zelda game, but it wasn't the same as the GBA game), and then Twilight Princess.
Antonio @ Oct 6th 2008 11:06PM
Hmmm some of these are dubious. The cel-shaded Wind Waker was a far greater surprise than Twilight Princess' announcement IMO. And your criticism of Majora's Mask as "OoT2" is specious. The masks gave the game a completely different feel. That criticism fits TP much more MM.
Blood in MK2 definitely belongs lower on the list. It was a big shift in policy for Nintendo, but not the biggest surprise in the company's history.
What about the return of Square? That was a biggie to me, especially when you consider Hiroshi Yamauchi played a role in it.
And one final nitpick: I'd say Rare came into their own with DKC on the SNES and it continued with their N64 releases.
Kaes Delgrego @ Oct 8th 2008 10:50AM
Very fair, Antonio. I guess (excluding Rare) I was focusing on the positive. I would classify Celda as more of a "shock" than a "surprise." I just never assumed that we'd see the gorgeous Zelda on GCN, and when they unveiled it at E3 2004, I was completely floored.
The return of Rare was surprising, but it was assumed to happen for a long while once a few people with chips on their shoulders at the top retired or left.
And re: Rare on SNES, you're right. That was the start of their semi-celebrity stage. The point I was making was that during the N64 era, they kept the system afloat. There were a few decent other second and third party games, but they just kept cranking out hit after hit. At the time, it seemed like it would never end.
ohmybob @ Oct 7th 2008 12:55AM
What about man hunt on wii?(sure it's somewhat censored, but take into consideration of how you use the wii mote and nunchuck)
That being on Nintendo is the biggest surprise to me still. Madworld sort of too
Kaes Delgrego @ Oct 8th 2008 10:53AM
That's a good point. To be honest, though, I feel like that belonged more to the mainstream media than gamers. Not many gamers seemed to have actually played it. There was a big stink over it in politics and the news, but not many of the people who would be playing it and thus actually matter (you and me) seemed to give a hoot.
TiE23 @ Oct 7th 2008 1:02AM
It'd be nice to make some games for the Wii for a change. I haven't turned my Wii on in weeks... and I've only had it since May.
ohmybob @ Oct 8th 2008 6:52PM
You know that actually makes it more surprising though. Look at it like this if you will.
BCR was actually supposed to be a wii game, but Nintendo turned them down because of the one famous part in the game. Motion controls on a nintendo game for swinging a bat, doing puzzles on zack and wiki, shaking on wario land, that's what I expect from Nintendo. Actually using motion controls to simulate a murder though? How did they give the OK for that(not that I have an issue with it, but it's shocking for nintendo still)
What makes it all the more surprising is that Manhunt 2 wasn't even a really popular game. Them saying no to it wouldn't have got them bad press or hatred from nintendo fans, it would have gone over well. How exactly does a game that isn't even going to be a big seller on the Wii get this type of special treatment? It just makes no sense at all. I also believe that Nintendo kind of regrets it, because it's one of those "huh, this is on nintendo?" games. If MH 3 ever came out I doubt Nintendo would allow it again. Using their motion controls to actually feel like YOU are the actually committing these murders is just something completely shocking for this company. I really shouldn't have even mentioned madworld though, because that's a way less extreme example