Nintendo is taking its new Smash Bros. games very seriously, which is what they should be trying to prove to fans, as any Smash Bros. player worth their c-stick will tell you. Well, they’re going to try to prove it during E3 by allowing you to play the game at Best Buy stores during the show and hosting an invitational Smash Bros Wii U tournament.
You can get all of the known info on the event by watching the bananas Reggie Fils-A-Mech video Nintendo put together that will surely spawn 1,000 more “my body is ready” memes, but the short version is that Nintendo is planning a similar strategy to last year’s E3, where they didn’t have a traditional E3 media briefing.
Whether they’ll have a media briefing this year is still unknown, but it’s unlikely, as they’re having a “Digital Event” at 12PM ET on June 10, which will probably be a news briefing video stream similar to their semi-regular Nintendo Direct streams. Then, there’s the “Smash Fest” at Best Buy stores around the US where you can demo Smash Bros., and they’ll be streaming a Smash Bros. Wii U tournament live from the Nokia Theatre L.A. during E3.
If this tournament is Nintendo trying to tell the Smash Bros. tournament scene, which was largely turned off by Smash Bros. Brawl, that Nintendo appreciates them, it’s a step in the right direction.
On top of that, they’ll also be streaming live video every day from the Nintendo booth to let Nintendo Treehouse, Nintendo of America’s Product Development arm, show live game demos of what they’ve been working on and more.
Nintendo may be behind in the graphics department, but I really do love what they’re doing with their media strategy. I’ll see you at Best Buy in June. Yes, that is a challenge.
(via Polygon, image via Nintendo on YouTube)
- We already learned a lot about Smash Bros. from its dedicated Nintendo Direct
- You can watch the replay of that event right here
- While you wait for E3, enjoy the Super Smash Wars mashup of Star Wars and Nintendo
Published: Apr 29, 2014 11:01 am