Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Let's Talk | 40 Comments

Another Nintendo Direct is in the books! After more than two months, a new presentation was finally delivered, and it covered a whole bunch of topics. We finally got our first glimpse at Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem, and received a big update on the new Fire Emblem game for 3DS. There was also major DLC news for Smash Bros. and Mario Kart 8 (including the game’s free 200cc update!). Plenty more was shown of course.

What’d you think of it? Are you pleased with what was shown? What is your personal highlight? How do you feel about Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem, which seems to be getting mixed reactions?

I’ll kick off the discussion with my own thoughts.

This Nintendo Direct really delivered in my view, especially if you kept your expectations in check. With E3 2015 only two months away, I wasn’t expecting much in the way of brand new game announcements. That’s why it made no sense to me that people were predicting that Star Fox for Wii U would be shown. Star Fox is the sort of game that you need to hold on to for a big event like E3.

Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem is one of the biggest game that appeared during Nintendo Direct. Even though it was reconfirmed at last year’s E3 that the game was still in the works, it was nice to finally see a visual confirmation of this. I’m actually a tiny bit surprised that it wasn’t revealed at this year’s E3.

There are a lot of mixed thoughts when it comes to Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem. Right now, I’m in the “positive” group. I do like what was shown. Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem is getting a fair amount of comparisons to Persona, and I don’t mind that at all personally – especially since I played (and adored) Persona 4 Golden last year. We still barely know anything about it, so I think it’s too early to make any sort of absolute judgment.

I could probably write up a whole bunch of thoughts about this week’s Nintendo Direct, but then this post would end up being way too long! That being said, the news about Smash Bros. and Mario Kart 8 was exciting. The Yoshi amiibo is adorable. And hey, the Wii U Virtual Console is still alive thanks to the introduction of N64 and DS titles! It’s about time.

Now we want to hear from you. Let’s talk about this week’s Nintendo Direct! Sound off in the comments below. Just like last week, I’ll be stopping by the comments section and replying to some of your thoughts. Let’s keep the conversation going!

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Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, Let's Talk | 65 Comments

It’s been awhile since I last hosted a Discussing Everything session. There’s a reason for that: I’ve been thinking about how to proceed with it going forward. I believe I’ve found somewhat of a solution, though that means ending Discussing Everything to pave the way for something else.

This is where Let’s Talk comes in. I know – it’s another incredibly uncreative name for one of our features. Despite that, I’m hoping that we’ll be able to generate some interesting discussions with this new initiative.

The idea behind Let’s Talk is actually very simple. Each week, we’ll have one post dedicated to a particular topic – almost like a forum post. I’ll kick off the discussion in the main post, and then you guys will be able to follow up with your own thoughts in the comments. I’ll be replying to some of the responses, and other staff members may chime in as well. You guys can also respond to each other comments.

Basically, I’m trying to generate focused discussions. I also want Let’s Talk to be a place where everyone can interact with each other in a positive manner!

So why should you participate? Well, for one thing, hopefully you’ll find it entertaining! If you love talking about Nintendo like me, perhaps some of the topics we bring up will interest you. We’ll also be selecting at least one response per week that will be highlighted in the following week’s post.
With that out of the way, let’s move on to this week’s topic!

Let’s Talk #1: what is your favorite Nintendo game?

Note: we’re opening things up, so this can be any game made for any Nintendo system.

I’ll get things started. This answer tends to change for me occasionally. Sometimes I feel like I’d go with games like Super Mario Galaxy 2 or Xenoblade. But when it comes down to it, I’d have to choose The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

Ocarina of Time is really what jump-started my interest in gaming. For one thing, it was the first console title that I truly owned and completed on my own. I’ll never forget going to Best Buy and picking up my GameCube, which included with a copy of The Legend of Zelda: Collector’s Edition (it also came with a CD player – random, right?). Even though it was technically a N64 title, my brain didn’t really know that, and I was very impressed with the graphics at the time. Getting immersed in the world, travelling across Hyrule, and taking on the various dungeons still fills me with plenty of memories. Like many players, it was amazing stepping into Hyrule Field for the first time!

Now it’s your turn. What is YOUR favorite Nintendo game? You can choose to do whatever pleases you with your response. It can be short, long, or anything in between. Whatever! Just go for it. Let’s have a nice discussion and talk about the games we love!

I’ll be checking up on the comments over the next few days. We’ll be featuring one of your responses in next week’s post, which will also include a new topic to talk about!

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