Hello everybody. It is now time to cover the rest of “The Big Hitters” that were lucky enough to appear in Nintendo’s January 2015 Direct.
First off, we have the announcement of the release date for Nintendo’s new Nintendo 3DS XL. From the first mentioning of its name a few months ago I have been nothing but bitter about it. Mainly it’s due to the fact that my lovely Nintendo 3DS XL was less than a year old at the time and it was nowhere near ready to retire. Having just purchased a Wii U in June after Nintendo’s kick-me-in-the-face awesome showcase at E3, I was just beginning to really enjoy knowing I could play any game Nintendo threw out there. I had finally reached a point of tranquility that was, to my dismay, short lived, as Nintendo smashed my happy-place into a bajillion pieces by announcing this new addition to the 3DS family. Just kidding, I’m not that bitter about it… And I am happy to say I have since warmed up to the idea. I probably won’t be jumping on board the new Nintendo 3DS XL happy train until much later, or maybe never. It really depends on its exclusives.
But anyway, during the January direct, Nintendo showed off two breathtakingly beautiful themed new 3DS systems as well as two regular colored systems. Here is a picture if you’d like to see.
To go with the name of the system, Nintendo has cleverly (it’s not that clever) given the red system the name “new Red” and the black system “new black”. The bottom left is the glorious Majora’s Mask themed new 3DS that sold out within minutes. The bottom right is the equally beautiful Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate themed new 3DS.
Apparently, the new Nintendo 3DS will not be coming with an AC adapter which I think is a stupid idea. What were they thinking? Beats me. Luckily, the AC adapters can be purchased for less than 10 bucks.
As of right now, the only exclusive game for the new system is Xenoblade Chronicles 3D. The new Nintendo 3DS makes its way into stores on February 13th, 2015.
The next big hitter is Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate for 3DS. This new game comes packed with tons of new dinosaur/monster/giant things for you to slay. And if I remember correctly, there are also Mario and Luigi cats too… I remember that part of the video when Nintendo first announced it. It was definitely something else. I have not personally had a lot of experience with the Monster Hunter games. I do own 3 but I found it a little frustrating. Or maybe I just suck. Either way, I will always remember when I was teamed up on by a giant Toucan monster (that’s its name right?) and a Great Jaggi. That wasn’t fun. P.S. It was actually the Qurupeco.
Next lets take a moment and discuss Nintendo’s new IP by Intelligent systems, Code Name S.T.E.A.M. According to siliconera, the “S.T.E.A.M.” in Code Name S.T.E.A.M. stands for, “Strike Team Eliminating the Alien Menace”. That is definitely appropriate as that is exactly what Code Name Steam is all about. When Nintendo first announced this new game, I didn’t really know what to think. What could a game that has Abraham Lincoln, aliens, Tiger Lily (Yes, from Peter Pan), a lion named Lion, all in a steam-punk themed world be like? Up until just recently, I had no clue. Now I know, it’s actually pretty awesome. (More on this in an upcoming review of the Code Name Steam demo that is now available in the North American Nintendo eShop.)
Code Name Steam is set for a March 13th, 2015 release.
Finally, Xenoblade Chronicles X! Evidently, the world of X is absolutely gargantuan and it’s a good thing too. What’s better than having a huge open world to explore? Is it the crisp HD graphics or perhaps the ability to see miles and miles away. The Jan. 2015 direct showcased more of the gameplay. Most of the trailer was three people running across the wild planet their ship crashed on. In addition to the running, there was a great deal of jumping too. One of the most impressive moments was when the player jumped right off a cliff miles and miles above the ground. Seems like it was a really long fall. Wonder how that worked out. I’m pretty impressed by it because by doing so, they’re telling the viewers that this world is filled with endless possibilities. Xenoblade Chronicles X does not have an official release date yet.
That concludes “The Bigger Hitters” coverage of the January 2015 direct. I hope you enjoyed it. For my next blog post, I will be writing my first review for this blog. My game of choice? Code Name Steam demo! Thanks for reading!
Happy gaming,
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Disclaimer: New Nintendo 3DS Faceplates Image || New Nintendo 3DS XL Systems Image || Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Image || Code Name Steam Image || Xenoblade Chronicles X Image
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