There was a lot of information to digest from Nintendo president Satoru Iwata in the latest episode of "Nintendo Direct" this morning, perhaps most notably, the new Legend of Zelda game, and an HD revamp of Wind Waker.
But to take away the focus on Zelda for a moment, the President finally Iwata finally promised that more information is on the way for another more recent, but still beloved Nintendo franchise, Smash Bros.
The game is under development for both the Wii U and 3DS platforms, and there will be some sort of connectivity or cross play between the two systems. However, Iwata admitted that the new title is "a huge development undertaking" and the company needs "more time" before they can give eager Nintendo fans more information.
Apparently, the time needed is about six months, as Iwata promised screens for the new Smash game would appear at this year's E3 in June. But with games of this magnitude, I wouldn't be surprised if something managed to sneak out before the show.
It was revealed over the summer that Namco-Bandai was taking over development from Nintendo for the new brawler chapter, marking the first time that Nintendo wasn't in control over the game.
The last thing heard from the game's lead developer, Masahiro Sakurai, was the plan to cut back on third-party characters, though he didn't mention removing any third-party specific fighters from game to game. In his most recent interview with IGN, the developer admitted that characters like "Snake and Sonic joining were fantastic. It made many fans happy, and it broadened the Smash Bros arena," he said. "However, introducing more non-Nintendo characters willy-nilly will lose the focus of the game, so I also recognise the need to narrow it down."
As far as where the game stands now? "The game system itself is complete, so we don't want to make it 3D or introduce complicated controls just for the sake of it," he said. "However, I am thinking of ways we can introduce a slightly different, fun experience all the while keeping the usual frantic game play."
