ShareThis
Ah yes, E3 is a-coming. You can smell it in the air. You can sense the anticipation in every gaming-centric website as if everyone’s birthday was arriving at once. The predictions and false leaks are coming so hard that they might clog up your Internet pipes. When the Electronic Entertainment Expo rolls around, the hype train rolls so fast it breaks the lightspeed barrier. It’s a huge, neutrino fusion-powered locomotive whose wheels defy friction and whose tracks are laid only as far as your mind can imagine. Why do you look forward to E3? Is it the new games? The trailers? The commentary? Whatever secret desires lie deep within your heart, you know that only one solid week of video game announcements and content can satiate them.
And here I am, one voice among many that seeks to command your attention for a moment leading up this spectacle. Who am I? I’m just some person on a Nintendo website. I’m words on a page, in a column, on a screen. Why should you listen to me? Why should you be concerned about my opinions on video games? Listen, I’m not here to answer questions that are best left for you to decide.
As we approach E3 every year, it’s good to go in with some healthy skepticism and openness. Will everything you want to be announced happen? Absolutely not. Will you be disappointed if you wish unlikely events? Probably. Does Nintendo personally owe you the announcement of a certain game or revival of a certain franchise? No, it does not.
But should you be excited? Of course! E3 is a truly exciting time to be a video game fan. It can be more than a marketing event. We’ve collectively decided to get together and discuss what could otherwise be a boring financial conference with optimism and love for our hobby. Game companies have fed off our enthusiasm and turned E3 into something worth seeing and reading about. We’re soon to revel together in amazement at what the next year has to offer. We’re witnessing the unveiling for the work of many talented people. They’ve waited months– maybe even years– to show us their art. We’re happy to receive it.
“I’m delivering happiness directly to your soul!
Er– so what’s my point so far? I think it’s something like this… We should be excited for E3, but we shouldn’t place the entire burden of our expectations on Nintendo. I think it’s fine to hope for a new F-Zero or new Metroid (please, for the love of the Chozo, I hope so). However, we often end up enjoying the things we never even knew we wanted. Before E3 2014, nobody was expecting something like Splatoon. And look at it now!
Nintendo has always surprised us with the best of games, and I’m willing to give the company the benefit of the doubt. I don’t believe Nintendo is in as tight of a position as it was a couple years ago at E3. This year isn’t as important for its business. We’re at a point where Nintendo realizes its place in the gaming market and plans to embrace it until the next chapter. Next E3 will be a doozy. This year, I expect to be a lot of fun. Remember, the Nintendo Directs and the Digital Event aren’t meant to sway the mass market to Wii U and 3DS. They are made specifically for us, the faithful Nintendo fans.
I’m not posting any predictions this time, and for good reason. Robert has already given some solid predictions for E3 2015, anyways. I am more seeking to prepare myself emotionally and financially for the announcements to come. That sounds awfully crazy, doesn’t it? Emotionally preparing yourself for a media press conference? Hey, we’re all friends here. We can admit to one another that we consider Nintendo’s annual event to be a holiday.
If your game isn’t announced, the one you’ve been festering in your heart for years… please don’t take it personally. Not every game in the world can be created. Somebody gets paid to make these kind of decisions for the best interest of Nintendo, not for the best interest of the user xxIceClimberFan1998 on the Nintendofanz.net forum. If a new Metroid isn’t announced, I will be quite disappointed for a time. But then I will feel okay when I see all of the other awesome games and experiences that Nintendo has to offer. Many folks want to turn E3 into a time for complaining when it should be a time for cheering.
And honestly, Nintendo will never have an E3 showing worse than 2008. Never.
Enjoy E3, everyone!
