Nintendo confirmed today that The Legend of Zelda will be the only playable game at E3 and will be the company’s focus at E3. Sadly.
Nintendo will transform its booth at the E3 video game trade show next month in Los Angeles to immerse fans in the world of the newest game in The Legend of Zelda franchise – playable for the first time ever at the show. To ensure attendees are able to truly experience the freedom of exploration the game offers, The Legend of Zelda for Wii U will be Nintendo’s focus of the show this year, and will be the only playable game in Nintendo’s booth via extended demos.
At E3 this year, we’re treating people to an immersive Zelda experience,” said Scott Moffitt, Nintendo of America’s Executive Vice President of Sales & Marketing. “By giving attendees extended hands-on time with this remarkable game, they’ll be able to get a much deeper understanding of something new for the franchise.”
Now while I’m as excited as the next guy for this game, considering it has been pushed back until 2017 this seems like a stupid decision.
Nintendo’s kickoff to the E3 show happens at noon ET on Tuesday, June 14th, when Nintendo of America President and COO Reggie Fils-Aime introduces Nintendo Treehouse: Live, which will be dedicated to a day of live-streamed gameplay of The Legend of Zelda. This will be the world’s first in-depth look at the game, which will also include commentaries by Nintendo developers.
The Legend of Zelda gameplay will be streamed from the E3 show floor via Nintendo’s channels on YouTube and Twitch, as well as on http://e3.nintendo.com. The stream will include game coverage and behind-the-scenes info.
Series Producer Eiji Aonuma has said that this new installment in The Legend of Zelda franchise will be a clean break from the conventions of previous games, removing boundaries that forced players to follow a set path and introducing new gameplay that has not been experienced in previous games in the series.
As someone who has never been to E3, and this year will be no different, the lack of other playable demos is not a huge deal personally. However Nintendo had better be showcasing a ton of other Q3 and Q4 games in video form. This decision doesn’t preclude that possibility, but it doesn’t get my hopes up.
