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Editorials 
E3 Predictions.
- By Travis
Coats
Ah, at long last the Electronic Entertainment Expo is almost upon us. Every year thousands of excited video game journalists descend upon whatever hapless city that is hosting the expo in a frenzied mass, eager to see what is next in the world of gaming. I am happy to announce that I am one such journalist, and this will be my first E3. To say I am excited is an understatement. I have been a Nintendo fan for as long as I can remember, and I welcome the dawning of each new Nintendo console with open arms. The GameCube is the next machine in the long legacy of excellent Nintendo hardware and I am practically drooling in anticipation of getting my hands on it. In fact…no, if I don’t stop now ill never get to the point.
As you may have noticed this editorial is entitled “E3 Predictions”, and its purpose should be pretty self-explanatory. What I am going to try to do is guess some of the details of the GameCube games that are going to be shown at this year’s exposition. Basically for each game I will speculate as to what the game will be like, and after E3 when all is revealed, we will know how close I was. Yes indeed, the guy who thought Al Gore would be President, and that Sega would stay in the hardware business is going to attempt to predict the games of tomorrow. So I’m 0 and 2, but they say the third time is the charm right?
Also for the purpose of maintaining my sanity I will only be covering GameCube games in this editorial, as the Game Boy Advance will have six billion or so titles shown this year and one man can only do so much. Besides lets face it, this year belongs to the GameCube and I think that’s the one you want to hear about more. As appropriate to my genre I will also cover only sports, racing and fighting games. I don’t really want to take away any of the other staff member’s fun, and anyway they would probably beat me over the head with a stick if I tried. So with that said let’s get to it.
1080 2
Now I know there have been rumors saying that this game will not make an appearance at this years E3, but I am going to go out on a limb here and say that indeed it is. Left Field studios is rumored to be developing an unnamed snowboarding game and I just have a hard time with the idea that it wouldn’t end up being called 1080 something. With SSX: Special Edition coming as well the 1080 name alone would provide adequate competition even if the game didn’t.
All Star Baseball 2002
This one seems a little easy to predict. In what shouldn’t be a trend for GameCube sports games (but probably will be in the beginning) this will be a direct port of the PS2 original. The rosters might change a bit but I seriously doubt that it will have any features exclusive to the Cube. I’d love to be wrong about that but we shall see.
FIFA 2002
Port, port, and port again. Which is sad really. The FIFA series absolutely rocked on N64 and I would love to see an original version for the GameCube. Perhaps for the 2003 version, but I’m not holding my breath for anything unique to the Cube on this one. I don’t even think this game will be announced at E3 come to think of it. I just included it because I’m a fan of the franchise.
Madden 2002
This is another easy one. Information has already been leaked that this game will be a direct port of the previous game for PS2. Although It does feature finer looking detail in some areas like faces. My prediction? It will have better control than the PS2 version thanks to the GameCube’s excellent controller setup.
Mario Kart
There has been zero news on this game, and if you have been following Nintendo for any amount of time then you know what that means. The game is coming, just when is the question. The Game Boy Advance version was mysteriously delayed for some reason, and I’m of the mind that it was held back so it could launch with the GameCube one. I honestly believe these two games will be the first to showcase the interconnectivity between the two new machines. If Mario can’t sell a new feature then who can?
NBA Courtside 3
The first two games were amazing. Left Field Studios certainly has a knack for creating an enjoyable basketball game. I predict that there will indeed be an announcement of a new Courtside game in some form at E3. Who knows what it will entail, but if it does exist it will truly display the power of the next generation Nintendo.
NFL Blitz and NHL Hitz 2002
Not much to predict here really. Blitz has always been one of the best arcade sports experiences ever made. That shouldn’t change for the GameCube iteration of the franchise. NHL Hitz however will be new at least as it its based on hockey instead of football. I’m positive these two games will be very similar in all aspects from gameplay to graphics. Not much of a prediction true, (more like common knowledge) but I can’t really come up with anything compelling for this one. Perhaps NHL Hitz will have a small fighting mode for the sake of authenticity.
Ready 2 Rumble 3
As successful as the first two games were I would be very surprised if Midway didn’t announce this game for every platform under the sun, including the Nintendo GameCube. If I am right and this game is announced, I’m betting that instead of Michael Jackson as a secret playable character this time they will use Madonna... just kidding.
Ridge Racer V
It’s coming in some form. IGN has said as much and there’s no reason not to believe them. In what is becoming rather apparent, the GameCube is going to have an enormous amount of ports in it’s first year. This game should prove to be no exception. Hopefully there will be some graphical updates from the previous version. I am expecting at least a video showing of this one.
SSX: Special Edition
With this one it’s hard to voice any solid speculation. It is confirmed as headed to the GameCube, and believed to have extra features such as additional levels and updated graphics. In what is entirely my opinion and prediction as well, I think this game is going to pale in comparison to the new snowboarding game from Left Field, be it actually called 1080 2 or otherwise. Aside from that I suppose it will be playable.
Soul Calibur 2
Warning!!! Crazy and wild speculation alert!!! If any of my predictions has the potential to make me look silly it would be this one. I just figured I might as well take the chance. Yes, I think that despite what Namco may have said, they will indeed announce games for the Nintendo GameCube and this will be one of them. Probably nothing more than a port of a PS2 or X-Box original, but one can hope.
Super Smash Bros. 2
Two words, Kid Icarus! Honestly if Pit isn’t in this game I will be completely surprised, and I am sure I’m not alone in that. This is perhaps the most fun to speculate about as there are so many different characters Nintendo can use for new fighters. Let’s see, I expect Toad to be added as well, and possibly Wario and Peach. But this isn’t about possibility. This editorial is about certainty! Ok, here we go…villains, and lots of them. Ganondorf and Bowser just to name a few. Although odds are Nintendo will keep SSB2 full of nothing but heroes since it is a family franchise, I would still love to see some of Nintendo’s “darker” characters in the game. Since I’m having so much fun I will venture one more. Nintendo won’t keep this exclusive to their characters. In fact I wouldn’t be surprised to see a Rareware face or two in there like Diddy Kong or Banjo-Kazooie.
THQ WWF Title
Hmm, this game is another easy one. When a formula for success is so perfect you really don’t want to mess with it much. I’m guessing this game is going to make some appearance at the show, but I doubt it will be playable. Regardless it should feature all the things that made its predecessors great, but with far better visuals and audio. If they alter the gameplay too far, they will probably end up ruining the experience.
Tony Hawk 3
Everyone say it with me now… port! Seriously though if Neversoft helms this game like the last two then that isn’t such a bad thing. They improved upon everything with the previous games over the originals, and given the Cube’s slightly increased power compared to the PS2 it should be amazing indeed. I believe an announcement of this game is about all we will get though.
Wave Race
At last, the mighty Wave Race. This is quite possibly the game I am looking forward to the most on this list. To start I believe this game will be playable. Also it will include the original four racers plus an additional four, and their jet-skis. As far as tracks go there should be at least ten. I don’t think I even need to speculate about the water effects. If any game can show off the graphical horsepower of the GameCube than this would be it. X-Box and PS2 beware…
Well there you have it. Speculation galore! Looking back I sure do have some zany ideas for what to expect, but it certainly has been fun. Now I know I missed some games but sometimes it’s better to be surprised, and frankly I don’t want to take all of the magic out of it. Now all that is left to do is wait. Wait to see if I should consider joining a psychic hotline thanks to my wonderful knack for prediction, or wait to see if I’m just blowing smoke out my nose as usual. Either way in less than a week we shall know, and I for one am eagerly looking forward to it.
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QUOTE: |
| "Yes indeed, the guy who thought Al Gore would be President, and that Sega would stay in the hardware business is going to attempt to predict the games of tomorrow." |
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