Cubed Table | E3 Predictions Part 1: Mario, Zelda, Metroid and Mario Kart

A Cup of Freshly Brewed Nintendo Tea

Can you introduce yourselves to our readers?

Adam: Hi, well, I'm Operations Director here at Cubed3, and work as Senior Editor, overseeing a lot of the content that flows onto the site.

Javier: Hallo! I'm a feature writer at Cubed3, formerly a software engineer and a game designer!

Rudy: Hey everyone, I'm Rudy, review and feature writer on Cubed3.

Mario's Re-entry - From Galaxy to Ground

Adam: (Gulps) 3D Mario is one of the key games, obviously and I personally hope for something that is a mix of styles, like Super Mario 3D Land.

Rudy: Well to be fair, I'm hoping a game in the vein of Super Mario 64 or Super Mario Sunshine, a return to the ground for the Italian plumber. That's how I liked my 3D Mario best, so not a mix of genres, for me.

Javier: I'm certain 3D Super Mario Bros. U will be impressive. It is, after all, by the same team that brought us the incredible Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2.

Adam: Which is the same team behind the great Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat.

Jorge: It's interesting you mention Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine. Do you do you prefer the more open world approach to 3D Mario, compared to perhaps the smaller/linear Super Mario Galaxy?

Rudy: Don't get me wrong, I absolutely loved the two Galaxy games, but felt that two games of the exact same flavour in a row felt a bit like much in the end, whereas a more open world Mario hasn't been around since, 2003?

With the power of HD machines allowing for more grand environments, I would like to see Nintendo taking the idea of open world Mario up to the next level.

Javier: I'm glad you guys brought this up. I've always favoured the more open design in Galaxy versus the shorter more linear form in Galaxy 2, and love the very open design of Super Mario 64. However, I thought Super Mario 3D Land was genius. You have short, focused platforming sequences set inside larger areas with optional exploration.

Rudy: 3D Land was well suited for portable gaming in that regard Javier, but for a home console Mario, I wonder if that's what's best?

Javier: I'd love to see a new game in the Super Mario 64 style as well. Really, I'm sure whatever the Mario team does will be brilliant.

Adam: I always loved the challenge stages.

Jorge: I agree on Super Mario 3D Land, definitely, in the sense that it felt perfect for portable play. Could it be a little too linear for the living room, perhaps? I think I prefer a mixture of genres like Adam said; more open but perhaps a little more clear what the goal in mind is. In Super Mario 64 I felt really lost at times, some stars were incredibly difficult to find.

Rudy: The feeling of not being told what to do is exactly what I loved about it. I like to be free to figure out what star to collect first or not. But that's just an opinion, and I admit that it's good to have things a bit more streamlined to suit as many tastes as possible!

Jorge: My main issue with Super Mario 3D Land though is that it felt a little too "Mario" in terms of aesthetics and look. I know it's unlikely we'd ever see a futuristic or gritty Mario, but perhaps they do need to mix the themes up a bit more.

Breaking the Zelda Cycle - A New Adventure Awaits

Jorge: I do worry about Nintendo revealing the next "new" Legend of Zelda too early, like they did with Twilight Princess many moons ago.

Rudy: The final game ended being too different from the first reveal, didn't it?

Javier: If I remember correctly, they had just begun the planning phase as of E3 last year, when they showed the Wii U Zelda tech demo.

Jorge: There was so much content in the earlier trailers of Twilight Princess that didn't make the cut: big giants, epic forest battles, unused dungeons and much more.

I've actually been playing through Twilight Princess over the last month, it's been five years! I love the darker and more moody tone perhaps compared to Skyward Sword. But Nintendo definitely need to give the series a shake-up overall.

Adam: I think revealing that the new Zelda for Wii U is in development takes some of the shine off the Wind Waker release, to be honest, which is a shame as it's bound the brilliant in its own right.

Jorge: That's true Adam, it would take the shine off both new Zelda games, but maybe a very tiny teaser would be excellent way of finishing Nintendo Direct.

Javier: I'm all for Wind Waker HD and A Link to the Past 2. "Megaton" reveals never hurt though, and a sneak peak at Zelda U would surely be megaton.

Jorge: Reveals aside, what sort of Zelda game would you all want in the next major release - a return to Hyrule or perhaps something new?

Personally I would love to see Link taken to a brand new world, maybe a Termina-esque parallel land where Zelda, dare I say it, is the enemy. Ganondorf would be the peaceful King of this new land.

Javier: Minimalism! Take the game back to its roots, all the way back to the very first Legend of Zelda. Bring it back to what makes the game great. Shadow of the Colossus is a good example of minimalism, focusing on the core gameplay and letting ambience accomplish the rest.

Jorge: I'd disagree actually regarding minimalism; I think Zelda's stories and dungeons are perhaps a bit too minimal. The NPCs are far too 1987 than 2013!

Javier: Minimalism also implies streamlining though. If I see one more "You got a blue rupee" or one more "You got a twig" popup message, I'm going to go crazy.

Jorge: That's true actually. Though I always chuckle when informed that a Blue rupee equals five Hylian.

Adam: Now here's something controversial - I'd love a serious styled Zelda, with turn-based fights like classic Final Fantasy: O

Javier: Go home, Adam, you're drunk! (laughs)

Rudy: Like they said the new Zelda game is going to be a big shake up for the series. What I would personally like to see is a new approach to dungeon exploring and the likes, like they said countless times they'd do.

Something perhaps like a Metroid structure? You get items in certain dungeons that won't allow you to beat that dungeon until you use it in another one, then having to come back to progress through it... A sort of Super Metroid structure if you like, but in a vast open Hyrule.

Jorge: I love the Metroid approach to Zelda, Rudy; there could be so much scope to actually using these items and tools instead restricted to their dungeons and gathering dust.

It would be great to see the story unfold in that same structure too, gradually picking out the pieces of this world you're in to find that actually... it was all a dream. Ha!

Rudy: (Laughs) A sort of Link's Awakening 2 then? Not a bad idea.

Adam: Yes, I like Rudy's idea, but still, there's scope for two Zelda lines, I reckon!

Javier: I'd love a Link's Awakening 2 in a Castlevania: Symphony of the Night or Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow style.

Jorge: Oh Link's Awakening, such a great Zelda! It shows as it wasn't made by the main Zelda team if I recall correctly, more of an experiment.

I still weep at that ending over a decade later (laughs).

On the Final Fantasy note you mentioned earlier Adam; I would love for them to build on the story in a Square Enix way. With Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword, there was a connection to Link's friends but the NPC relationships still feel shallow.

Adam: That's very true and part of the reason why I didn't get really drawn into Twilight Princess. Skyward Sword was slightly better, though, and I could definitely feel some of the influence from the former staff that worked on the Oracle games.

Javier: I feel like that's quantity versus quality though, which is why I brought up Shadow of the Colossus. A few moments in a dark cathedral looking at the cursed girl is more effective than hours of poorly written dialogue and over-wrought drama.

A lot of what makes games like Super Metroid and A Link to the Past is the ambience. When you stamp all over the ambience with endless cutscenes, it's just not the same.

Skyward Sword had some very good moments, though. The characterizations were well done. Skyward Sword was a good first (small) step toward changing up Zelda, I think.

Jorge: There definitely was that sense of "human" to some of the Skyward Sword characters. Hoping they do expand into the storyline (looking at you, Miyamoto) in the next big Zelda, but what about the current crop? What do you think we'll see in Wind Waker Wii U?

Rudy: I'd personally be surprised if they made any changes to the original game, to be honest. Seeing the way they treated Ocarina of Time, and did NOT include some of the great ideas that were dropped during the development of the N64 version when they finally had the occasion, not even including an orchestrated soundtrack when they frankly could have.

Javier: I pray they add some content to the end game, specifically the dungeons they cut, and they tweak the Triforce fetch quest.

Jorge: Do you think they will do something as, presumably well within budget, like an orchestrated soundtrack?

Javier: Yes!

Jorge: I wonder actually how many dungeons were cut actually, three or four perhaps?

Javier: Three, if I remember correctly?

Jorge: Because if follows in the usual Zelda structure - three dungeons, big twist, then it should be followed by four or five more before the end. There were two, post twist.

Adam: Wouldn't it be great to have a sort of "Master Quest" mode?

Jorge: A Master Boat mode would be great, very close keyboard slip there!

Rudy: The first Legend of Zelda on NES had three quests!

Remixed dungeons once you beat the main game would be great. It would be good for the game mode when you play Link in his pyjamas for the whole game (laughs).

Jorge: And the dialogue is changing to reflect that too, Rudy! "Call yourself the Hero of Hyrule when you can't even get out of bed?"

Rudy: (Laughs) I'd forgotten about that one!

Jorge: Talking control - with Wii Remotes plus Nunchuck, do you feel that it would be supported and do you prefer it over traditional control?

Personally it's Wii Remote plus Nunchuck all the way for me, button press feels like a step back in some ways.

Rudy: If it's implemented well and makes sense within the context, then yes, it's an absolute must.

Javier: I'm guessing they'll support both. Easy answer!

Rudy: But otherwise I quite liked the gameplay in Ocarina of Time 3D, having all these shortcuts on the touch screen, so having both options would be ideal to me.

Jorge: Definitely, or some freakish hybrid where you tape the GamePad to your arm! (laughs)

Adam: That brings up quite an interesting question of how many people still use the Wii Remote plus Nunchuk combination with Wii U, because I've not used it once since launch.

Javier: I haven't either. I have used it with Dolphin though! The Wii Remote + Nunchuck combo really is comfortable, though.

Jorge: I've only used it for Nintendo Land and for classic controller support, but other than that it's been GamePad all the way.

Rudy: Same as Jorge for me, plus with the multiplayer mode in ZombiU, where it worked perfectly. Other than that, I didn't get to use that combo very much.

Rudy: Wii Remote plus Nunchuk works wonders for first person games in my opinion. Best alternative to keyboard and mouse you can find on consoles. Loved the setup in the Metroid Prime trilogy for Wii.

Bringing Exploration Back to Metroid

Jorge: Speaking of Metroid, do you think Samus will make an appearance at E3, say from Retro Studios?

Javier: How about F-Zero from Retro Studios? How about anything from Retro Studios?

Adam: Metroid Dread returns...hopefully!

Jorge: That's a good point Adam, I think they hinted at something along those lines in recent years if I recall?

Watching your speedrun of Super Metroid Rudy, I would love a classic 2D-styled game built in-house by Nintendo - it sure has been a while!

Rudy: We know Retro Studios is up to something already. Is it Metroid? Hard to say. I certainly hope we'll be seeing something Metroid at E3, whether it is for Wii U, or a more side-scrolling approach on 3DS like you said Jorge.

Javier: Metroid for 3DS, sides-scrolling.

Rudy: Yup with gorgeous 2D sprite based graphics, with an incredible sense of depth!

Super Metroid still has the best aesthetics in the series for me. I'd like to see a return to that style, albeit with higher resolution assets of course.

Javier: A Super Metroid throwback, à la Link to the Past 2, would be a good way to wash out the bad taste left by Metroid Other M.

Jorge: Metroid Other M? Never heard of it (laughs). We all seem to love classic Metroid, but did you enjoy the Prime series and would you like to perhaps see a Metroid Prime 4 or some sort of origins story?

I enjoyed Prime 2 and Hunters, but didn't quite get into the FPS adventure Metroid in quite the same way.

Javier: Sure, I loved Prime. I'd love to see another Prime. I'd also like to see a 2D game and also something completely different.

Rudy: Definitely. Think it belongs best on a home console though. A HD Metroid Prime with the same kind of control as Metroid Prime Trilogy on Wii would be absolutely perfect indeed!

Jorge: Let's just hope Nintendo don't neglect the Metroid series going forward.

Circuit Breakers - Nintendo Maintain Mario Kart Momentum?

Javier: I'm hoping for Mario Kart... in HD? Mario Kart has been such a stable franchise for so long, since N64, that it's difficult to think of it being other than Mario Kart with some tweaks.

The latest dirt is that Mario Kart U might actually be Mario vs Sonic Kart. How's that for crazy?

Jorge: Mario Kart is my absolute favourite Nintendo title, full stop. But I feel they've been too stuck in their ways with the latest entries. As much I love Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart Wii, I'm hoping they'll have at least 32 new and 32 classic tracks, plus throw in a track builder for good measure!

I'd be a bit wary about Mario vs Sonic Kart, but wouldn't mind a few Sonic characters included as characters in Mario Kart, not the other way round.

Adam: Although I might get tired of Sonic and Mario crossovers!

Javier: Considering how good Sonic Transformed was and how good F-Zero GX is, I'd be excited to have Sega helping out on a new Nintendo racing game!

Jorge: I do see what you mean about Mario Kart being a stable franchise, and the mechanics are just spot on. But I feel there is still room to grow - the extended/single lap tracks in Mario Kart 7 were a good start, however.

Rudy: Massively multiplayer online battles for one thing. Mario Kart was perhaps the most stable online game to play on the Wii, so I hope they continue with that tradition of little to no lag. That would be great in itself. Adding voice chat and why not video support through the camera on the Wii U gamepad? That's not unheard of in Mario Kart; look at Mario Kart Arcade GP, which had online support in Japanese arcades.
Then like Jorge said, some form of customisation option, such as, a track designer that would let you share them online. That would be fantastic.

Javier: Agreed - online is the area Nintendo can most obviously improve on, across the board. They've had a good start with Kid Icarus Uprising and Luigi Mansion 2: Dark Moon. They need to take it further with their Wii U offerings.

Jorge: The Mario Kart Arcade GP camera would be ace, Rudy! I can imagine some hilarious online battles if they enabled it. Nintendo seem to be growing more open to online communication between strangers so hopefully they would include that sort of feature.

Rudy:  Let gamers watch other races online, also - now that would be good.

Javier: That is a good feature. I'd like that!

Jorge: That would be excellent, especially with tournaments! Plus extensive Miiverse support: save video replays, leader-boards, challenge time trials straight from a post, for example.

Javier: Nintendo needs to go one further, not just tournaments but persistent online leagues. Can you imagine logging in every day to check on the standings, maybe do some shop talk with team mates and opponents, and trade for new gear?

Adam: What do you guys think about adding in an adventure side, rather like Diddy Kong Racing?

Jorge: Would love an adventure mode; that would be a great feature to include and it's what made Diddy Kong Racing stand out for me back in the Nintendo 64 days. Could even throw in a cheesy story about Doctor Eggman and Bowser teaming up to take over the entire world's racing circuits. I kid you not!

Rudy: Diddy Kong Racing, how I loved that game. It's true that on the solo side, the Mario Kart games remained pretty shallow. Mario Kart DS introduced mission mode, which was great in my opinion, and that was a step in the right direction, but that was dropped afterwards.

An adventure mode in the vein of Diddy Kong Racing would be awesome.

Adam: See, that's the thing, Mario Kart has gone off the boil for me in recent years, and I've not really sunk my teeth into one since the days of Mario Kart 64 and Mario Kart Advance, something seemed lacking in more recent efforts.

Jorge: It's an area of Mario Kart I've been hoping for ever since - it added so much more depth and replay value compared to simply completing grand prix circuits. Agree with Rudy, more missions like Mario Kart DS and hopefully they'll boost that through DLC/weekly challenges.

Jorge: In some ways Mario Kart 7 seemed like a rushed release, they stripped back a lot of what made Mario Kart DS great - single solo races, challenges and more.

Jorge: I am wary that they might play it safe with Mario Kart U.

Rudy: Yeah, they did this to a couple games on 3DS. Mario Tennis was another example. It's not in their best interest to do so on Wii U again, so let's hope they act reasonably this time.

Jorge: Definitely, big names can see a console for sure but we could potentially end up with some shallow experiences.