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Almost 2 months later- was the Nintendo E3 Direct a better method?

If only the trailers had more "oomph" into it. Mario Kart 8 didn't have a punch, to me, and same with SSB, other than the Megaman trailer - I exploded.
 
Iwata talking about Bayonetta's new hair style was like the weirdest thing ever.

So, no, the Nintendo Direct was not a good idea. At least not with Iwata hosting it.
 
E3 sells systems now?

I thought games did. And those games aren't out yet. So what's the point of this comparison?

It's the same, one recorded and the other one live and awkward
 
Just preaching to the choir. Mainstream game press barely even mentioned the Direct before going back to PS4/X1 talk.
 
Hmm, I'm divided. Given what they had to show, maybe it was. Still, it was very underwhelming and I don't think is a good replacement in general.
 
The announcements Nintendo had wouldn't have been more exciting on a stage, so I'm not sure. It certainly didn't help them though. The Direct was impossible to watch too.
 
LordGouda said:
E3 is also like saying, "With these trailers we show, you'll see why you should get [insert console]!"
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But people won't buy a system unless those games are out (and they won't be for a long while) so we can't measure WiiU's performance based on his E3 direct.

It was different this time for Sony and Microsoft because their systems aren't out yet, but the whole show thing it's basically the same for me IMO
 
I was really exited for it then.....it was terrible.

I think it hurt them actually I was going to buy a Wii U then after seeing that direct I decided to pass for a year or two and get a PS4 when it is released instead.

They need to go back to the regular format next year what they did gave even more spot light to Microsoft and Sony.
 
Hmm it was likely cheaper

So perhaps if Nintendo was sure they wouldn't gain anything from a proper show, then maybe?

Certainly didn't change anything though
 
I feel that it was slightly worse. I'm sad that there will never be another Twilight princess reveal reaction from Nintendo again.
 
Speaking from a GAF perspective, it's produced less memes and .gifs than previous years. So you can take that as a win or a loss, I guess.


I've seen much less mainstream coverage of the WiiU and its games compared to past years but I'm not sure that was because of the general apathy towards the system right now or because the Direct wasn't a big enough spectacle to make the news compared to the usual from Sony and MS.
 
I was surprised by their E3 Direct, I was expecting to get my mind blown, cause it seemed Nintendo had a lot to prove with the E3 Direct to show that approach was better, though I did notice Epic Yoshi Yarn was missing... cant say I'm interested in it though.
(Still upset over no Metroid... :( )

Considering what they shown, it was probably better they didnt do a E3 presentation, but if they had the content, I still like a press conference. Even though logically, I'm getting the game footage straight away, but the hype is sort of gone as a result.
 
Also, what was the fan/consumer benefit of the e3 ND being a live stream as opposed to a fully pre-recorded video or a press conference? Was all of that stuttering and heartache worth it for them to show Iwata roaming around the show floor for two minutes, something that few people would ever care to see? Never mind that I enjoyed that segment.
 
Frodo said:
It did get the message across, did it not?

I honestly couldn't care less if they make a live on stage announcement or a pre-taped Nintendo direct format one, as long as there are games to be shown.
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I like that Nintendo Directs have a rewatchable format and are kinda designed that way. Whereas rewatching a live press conference is kinda boring.
 
There's nothing really wrong with the direct e3 method, you just have to reveal games that actually get people buzzing.

The Mega Man reveal would have got cheers from a crowd though.
 
It would have worked just fine if they had planned a more interesting presentation.

There wasn't any massive bombshells that get people buzzing.
 
IdreamofHIME said:
Um, I don't think that's true.
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they showed off more games, but their annoucements of previously-unannounced things was kept to art academy and tropical freeze for the wii u. that was only one less than sony though. microsoft brought the big guns as far as unannounced games went.
 
Besides the crappy stream, there was no difference to me between it being an ND and if it were an event. At least with the ND you skip the filler BS. If they actually showed an innovative new 3D Mario and a Retro Studios game that wasn't Donkey Kong, people would have talked about Nintendo at E3 much differently.
 
ElectricKaibutsu said:
Besides the crappy stream, there was no difference to me between it being an ND and if it were an event. At least with the ND you skip the filler BS. If they actually showed an innovative new 3D Mario and a Retro Studios game that wasn't Donkey Kong, people would have talked about Nintendo at E3 much differently.
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Retro made the game that THEY WANTED TO MAKE, and after its reveal, "Donkey Kong Country" was a Twitter trending topic Worldwide. People are very excited for that game, and the fact that Returns has done brilliantly on the Wii, and is doing well on the 3DS will reflect that. Truthfully, I think many people are underestimating Donkey Kong's popularity, and I wouldn't be surprised to learn that Tropical Freeze is a success.

Super Mario 3D World's showcase was brilliant, and that game deserves far more love and appreciation - They managed to pack so many talking points into a well-crafted clip, lasting just under 100 seconds. It's far better than the Internet gives it credit for, and it's rather clear in the Developer Direct that they are deeply passionate about this title. I break down the SM3DWorld E3 clip HERE.
 
Given what they had to show at E3 I think it avoided them getting absolutely demolished by the press saying that they had a bad conference. Even with bigger titles I think they would have gotten bowled over. It allowed them to save some face while still showing new stuff.
 
Looking at the announcements i think they could have had a decent conference. To be honest games wise the sony conference kind of sucked. They could have 5 minute demoes of the holiday games and an onstage showing of 101 by kamiya would have been great for that game, so no even if the direct was full of games we knew about they got thrown under the bus by the press without the e3 spectacle

Of course the E3 reveal for DKCR probably would have had many on gaf seething having an actual build up to donkey kong. Imo that was the one good thing about that direct. Even if something is dumb and disappointing its over in 3 minutes
 
No because the stream lagged and it made me instantly turn it off.

Yes, content wise. It was better than listening to executives brag about sales (tbf MS didn't do much of this, they focused on games).

When it comes to big announcements like new systems I'd rather have a live conference, seeing the audiences reaction and the speakers is excellent. Jack Tretton's emotions were priceless this E3.
 
No.

If they want to stick with that format in the future they've really got to fix the Directs, they're way too awkward now and they cater pretty much exclusively to hardcore Nintendo fans. If the presentation had been better I wouldn't have such a big problem with it.
 
They didn't have much to say or show in terms of something exciting and new.

Probably would have been booed off the stage when they announced Retro was working on another fucking Donkey Kong.
 
Vire said:
They didn't have much to say or show in terms of something exciting and new.

Probably would have been booed off the stage when they announced Retro was working on another fucking Donkey Kong.
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"Another" as in a second one???

As opposed to "another" Metroid game which would be a 4th one???
 
The Direct blew because Nintendo had a shitty stream. And also it was not very surprising at all...

They should hold a stage show next year though, since they won't have the sales to talk about charts and shit. Should be all about games.
 
I still prefer it. Give me information without all the bullshit that E3 encompasses.

If you cut out the live play throughs, stats and long intros and just give me new game news, new game footage/info and a reel of upcoming games- I'll be happy. But since you have to watch someone from Ubisoft play Assassin's Creed 4, or a guy creepily trying to hype up Infamous...I just stop caring.

Though I am a bit of a straightforward kind of guy, so I can get why people like the hype and buildup. It would be pretty badass to stand on a stage at E3 and announce something like a $399 price point to an excited crowd.
 
I'm still 50/50 on it
It definitely missed out on a lot of attention (they weren't gonna get any of that this year anyways against 2 new consoles) and the overall spectacle of a normal E3 conference but there will be more Directs this year, possibly even bigger than that one in terms of announcements. I like seeing direct feedback with a live audience but this years E3 Direct had no filler and was straight to the point.
 
Crimsonclaw111 said:
The Direct blew because Nintendo had a shitty stream. And also it was not very surprising at all...

They should hold a stage show next year though, since they won't have the sales to talk about charts and shit. Should be all about games.
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And they have some titles well underway then that will be more suited to raise eyebrows but people will bitch that they already have seen them before.

I don't personally think 2014 will have the better games than the rest of 2013 for the Wii U but it will have the more "exciting" games for many and would elicit a decent reaction from a live audience.

Especially when they reveal Wart for Smash.
 
People saying “no” would've said their conference was terrible. Not sure if they realise that therefore, a Direct is the least terrible option.
 
The core crowd would have trashed them had they had a press conference. Compared to shiny new XB1 and PS4, they had nothing to show (
not intended as a slight to their showing at E3
). I think they were a bit damned either way but they would have gotten more mainstream media coverage had they had some type of stage event.

With recent sales numbers, I think any larger audience conversation, whether positive or negative, is good for Nintendo since it helps at least spread awareness of WiiU.
 
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