Nintendo most assuredly pleased its fanboys this year, as they announced a whole slew of games at their press conference.  It was a nice change of pace compared to past years when they focused heavily on the casual gamer.  Thankfully that was cut to a minimum this time. What follows are my thoughts on the highlights of the Nintendo 2010 E3 Press Conference: 

Zelda: Skyward Sword - The first game announcement today was certainly a big one.  The graphics look to be about the same quality as the Twilight Princess but the big difference is the control scheme.  You control Link's sword with a Wiimote and Link's shield with the Nunchuk.  The concept is neat, but I can see myself getting tired really quick from constantly moving my arms around.  The controls in the on stage demo were not working correctly.  Wii Motion Plus is supposed to be "1-to-1" control, but that was not the case here.  Why blame the control issues on wireless interference?  People are going to be using wireless devices constantly at home when they are playing the game next year.  Can we expect the same wireless interference then?  Control issues aside, the game will please all Zelda fans. There are some new items as well, such as a remote controlled beetle that can be used to pick up and drop items, and a whip (which seems pretty cool!).  I don't consider myself much of a Zelda fan, but I will certainly try the game given the opportunity. 

Mario Sports Mix - Two things I dislike most in video games: Mario and sports games.  No thanks. 

Wii Party - Yay! More crappy mini-game collections.  Aren't there enough of these already? 

Just Dance - No thanks.  I can't dance. 

Golden Sun: Dark Dawn - I enjoyed the first 2 games (but never finished the 2nd).  The graphics on this one look pretty awful.  One of the big appeals of the first 2 Golden Sun games was the impressive graphics and detailed monster summons (similar to Final Fantasy games).  This one has monster summons but they don't look that good in 3D.  Worth a rental at least. 

Goldeneye 007 remake - It’s not the same without Pierce Brosnan.  Not a fan of the Daniel Craig Bond movies.  I wonder how the original Goldeneye holds up today?  The biggest appeal was the 4 player split screen deathmatch because that was one of the only games (if not the first game) that supported 4 player split screen.  Now that we can play games online, split screen is a thing of the past.  Seems exactly like the N64 original, only with better graphics and textures.  We'll see how this game turns out.  I know a lot of people have been clamoring for a new Goldeneye game. 

Disney Epic Mickey - Seems pretty interesting.  I really like the visual style of the game, especially that side scrolling level based on the Steamboat Willie cartoon.  It literally looked like you were playing the cartoon itself.  I wonder if any characters from Song of the South will be found in the "wasteland" they mentioned in the on-stage demo?  I'm guessing NO since that is to controversial to even release on DVD. 

Kirby's Epic Yarn - The style of this game is extremely unique.  Its like everything is made out of yarn and the textures are so accurate that the yarn looks real!  It looks as if they made an 8-bit game for the NES, but updated with today's graphics.  I can't say this is a game for me, but it certainly looks beautiful. 

Dragon Quest IX - I know its popular but I've never gotten into the DQ series.  The only one I've ever played and finished is Dragon Warrior and that was a LONG time ago.  The multiplayer stuff in DQIX sounds cool, but I am rarely (if ever) around people with their DS's turned on.  This feature is extremely popular in Japan since everyone plays DS (and PSP) on the trains to work/home/school.  I will probably give this a rental at the very least. 

Metroid: Other M - The gameplay looks to be fantastic.  Sort of a mix of classic style gameplay and the 1st person views of the Metroid Prime series.  The only thing I'm not so keen on is the story and unknown human characters that have been shown in past trailers. 

Donkey Kong Country Returns - Never been a fan of Donkey Kong.  Never ever played a Donkey Kong game and do not desire to.  Don't like the character and don't like monkeys/apes/gorillas, etc.  This is another game that looks like it could have been made in the 90s on SNES.  Very classic look to it. 

Nintendo 3DS - There isn't much to say about this until you experience the 3D yourself and I have NO idea how that is.  I have heard it is pretty impressive, but we'll see.  The bottom screen is a touch screen, just like the DS now, but the top is a larger 3.5" widescreen and it has the 3D effect.  There is a slider on the side that lets you adjust the intensity of the 3D.  You can even turn off the 3D effect completely.   There is also an analog nub on the left side, which seems to be similar to the analog nub on the PSP.   That's about all I know at this point.  Will need to read up on this, but I am excited to try it out. 

Kid Icarus Uprising - To go along with the 3DS, Nintendo announced a game developed exclusively for the new handheld system, a new Kid Icarus game!  I've never played the original Kid Icarus game, but this game seems pretty cool.  I really like the style of the characters, and the game looks much, MUCH better than 3D (polygons I mean) games running on the original DS. 

Nintendogs & Cats (3DS) - Yay! I'm more of a cat person myself. 

Iwata announcements - at this point Iwata announced several game studios that are developing games for the new 3DS system.  I didn't catch them all because of the fuckin Nintendo fanboys at the press conference that wouldn't shut up.  Dear Nintendo Fanboys: shut up and let me listen to Iwata speak!  I did hear a new Kingdom Hearts game is coming and a new Resident Evil game (sweet!). 

At the very end, Nintendo released a torrent of booth babes that had 3DS systems chained to their waists so that everyone in the audience could try them out (since there is no way to show off the 3D effects on-stage).  I've heard a few comments from people that were there, and the 3DS seems quite impressive.  I'll reserve judgment until I try it for myself. 

Overall, Nintendo had a much better press conference this year than in the past several years.  It seems that Microsoft took the Nintendo role this time around, and focused on their casual family-centric games using the Kinect gimmick.  And Nintendo took the Microsoft route and announced exclusive game after exclusive game.  Personally, I'm really only looking forward to Nintendo 3DS and Kid Icarus