[dropcap]E[/dropcap]very year, there are two events run by GamesDoneQuick. Starting today (July 2nd) Summer Games Done Quick will be underway for an entire week. This 24/7 live stream shows highly skilled gamers playing a large number of games with the goal of finishing or completing the game in record time. An average marathon raises over $1 million!

All of that’s well and good, but what’s it all for? Well, GamesDoneQuick supports two major charities. Their Winter series is partnered with the Prevent Cancer Foundation. However, Summer Games Done Quick supports Doctors Without Borders, for which they are raising money this week. At this point in time, they actually have $138,168. This is only the first day!

Wait, Speedrunning? What’s that?

Speedrunning is a challenge gamers often put themselves up to. The goal is to achieve something in a game as quickly as possible. Depending on the game and the runner, it could be just to get to the end of the game. On the other hand, some games are more interesting when you’re trying to complete them or reach a specific objective (like all dungeons or all bosses). There are even some runs where the goal is specifically to AVOID upgrades that would normally be required or make the game faster.

In order to accomplish the given task, speedrunners will do anything they have access to. This means that runs often include various sequence breaks, glitches, and basic exploits. If playing a game casually pits the player against the developer, then speedrunning pits players against the game system, itself. The best part is that this has a strong community to itself that is more than happy to help newcomers out.

In fact, this strong community means that commentators usually have a lot of history with trying to break the game, themselves. This ensures that commentary rarely ever drags. If there’s nothing interesting to say in the run, the people on the couch usually have plenty to jab at each other about. It’s often a lot of fun to watch and even take part in.

What About the Games?

The games, of course, are what we watch Summer Games Done Quick to see! So what are they playing, this year? The marathon kicked off with Nier: Automata. Since then we’ve seen classics like Luigi’s Mansion, Metroid Prime, and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (the last of which wound up being a new record). At the time we’re writing this, they’re playing Okami HD. More importantly, they’ll also be playing a bunch of other really awesome games, including:

• Crash Bandicoot
• Super Monkey Ball (a wonderful run to watch)
• Donkey Kong 64
• Jet Set Radio Future
• I Am Bread
• Banjo-Kazooie
• Pokemon Heart Gold/Soul Silver
• Doom (2016)
• Super Meat Boy
• VVVVVV
• Kirby: Planet Robobot
• Jak II
• Shadow of the Colossus
• Portal
• Chrono Trigger
• Crypt of the Necro Dancer
• Metroid Fusion
• Final Fantasy VII
• Dark Souls 3
• Earthbound

It’s a lot of games and it’s only a small sample of what they’re going to play, this week. On top of that, there will be some major events like a race of Super Metroid and a relay race of the Super Mario series. Classic series like Mega Man, Sonic, and Zelda will get many entries along the way. You can find the full schedule for the live stream here.

So Where Can I Watch Summer Games Done Quick?

If you want to watch SGDQ 2017 for yourself, the best place to do so is on their main website. Donations go towards Doctors Without Borders and also give you a chance to win some cool swag and even influence the marathon, itself. (Did we forget to mention that donation incentives help decide how certain runs are played? Seems like an important detail.) You can also check this stream out on the Twitch channel.

[dropcap]N[/dropcap]intendo is following the success of the Nintendo Classic, and will release the Super NES Classic later this year. The console is set to release on September 29th, 2017 with at least 20 games pre-installed. The mini system will retail for $79.99 and will come packed with fan favorite games such as Mario kart, Star Fox and more. You can find the full list of games below.

REDMOND, Wash., June 26, 2017 – The Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo’s follow-up console to the legendary Nintendo Entertainment System, launched in 1991 and introduced what many consider some of the greatest video games of all time – classics such as Super Mario World, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Super Mario Kart, Super Metroid and F-ZERO.

On Sept. 29, this beloved console is coming back to stores in the form of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition. The mini system, which contains 21 pre-installed classic games and can easily be plugged into any high-definition TV using the included HDMI cable, will be available at a suggested retail price of $79.99. And for the first time, players who pick up the system can enjoy the intergalactic adventure Star Fox 2, the sequel to the original Star Fox game that was created during the Super NES era but never released … anywhere!

“While many people from around the world consider the Super NES to be one of the greatest video game systems ever made, many of our younger fans never had a chance to play it,” said Doug Bowser, Nintendo of America’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “With the Super NES Classic Edition, new fans will be introduced to some of the best Nintendo games of all time, while longtime fans can relive some of their favorite retro classics with family and friends.”

The Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition has the same look and feel of the original system – only smaller – and comes pre-loaded with 21 incredible games:

Contra III: The Alien Wars™
Donkey Kong Country™
EarthBound™
Final Fantasy III
F-ZERO™
Kirby™ Super Star
Kirby’s Dream Course™
The Legend of Zelda™: A Link to the Past™
Mega Man® X
Secret of Mana
Star Fox™
Star Fox™ 2
Street Fighter® II Turbo: Hyper Fighting
Super Castlevania IV™
Super Ghouls ’n Ghosts®
Super Mario Kart™
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars™
Super Mario World™
Super Metroid™
Super Punch-Out!! ™
Yoshi’s Island™

All of these games would be considered classics by anyone’s standards, and some of them in particular – Secret of Mana, Final Fantasy III, EarthBound and Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars – are massive role-playing games that can take dozens of hours to complete. Even for super fans who have played all of these games multiple times, the inclusion of the never-before-released Star Fox 2 game will offer them something entirely new to enjoy – if they can unlock it by proving their skills in the original Star Fox game. (Well, they only have to complete the first level – we didn’t want to make it too hard!)

Included with the Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition are one HDMI cable, one USB charging cable with AC adapter and two wired Super NES Classic Controllers, perfect for playing multiplayer games. Having two controllers will make it easy for two players to dive into multiplayer action right away. Some of the games with multiplayer options include Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting, Super Mario Kart, Contra III The Alien Wars and Secret of Mana.

The Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition launches on Sept. 29 at a suggested retail price of $79.99.

For more information about the Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition, visit http://www.nintendo.com/super-nes-classic.

[dropcap]A[/dropcap]lthough most gaming companies such as Microsoft and Sony are focusing on making their hardware compatible with 4K Gaming, Nintendo is not concerned with that market. Reggie Fils-Aime, President of Nintendo America, recently said that the 4K Gaming market is a bit “too limited”. Reggie recently gave an interview with the Verge on Nintendo’s stance regarding 4K Gaming and Fan Feedback.

On 4K Gaming:

The Nintendo mission is to reach as many consumers as possible and to have them engage and have fun with our [intellectual property]. That’s what we try and do. So inherently, we go for a more mainstream audience. Inherently, we want our products to be affordable. We want our products to be easy to pick up and experience, low learning curve. We want our IP to shine as we deliver these experiences.

That’s the way we approach it. And so, what that means is, a sweet spot of $300 for the Nintendo Switch, a platform that has Mario and Zelda and Splatoon. Going against a more limited consumer pool, a higher price point, requiring investments in other ways — 4K TVs, what have you — that is a strategy that for us, candidly, is a bit too limited.

On Fan Feedback:

We certainly look at what our community is saying. But arguably, if all we did was listen to our community, we would be creating content against a handful of [intellectual property] with a handful of feature sets, because that’s typically what the consumer focuses in on. Things that they know, things that they’ve seen before.

 

[dropcap]E[/dropcap]ver Oasis is a new role playing action game from Nintendo and the developer Gezzo who are responsible for the Mana series and rebuilt multiple Legend of Zelda games for the 3DS. The game’s release date is June 23rd, 2017 and will be for the 3DS.

In the game, you explore the desert and go through puzzling dungeons. While exploring and fighting, you will also gain valuable resources to build up your town. The water spirit Esna aids you in building the town. Once you recruit allies, you can equip them with skills and weapons so that they can help you with boss fights. Leveling up your allies helps to build up your town and increases their usefulness in dungeons.

Below is a brand new trailer for Ever Oasis from E3 – the Ever Oasis Demo will be available on the Nintendo 3DS North American store at at 12 PM PT / 3 PM ET. You may pre-order the game right here.

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]his morning, Nintendo got their own E3 fun underway with a video presentation. Nintendo is known for using this time for their biggest announcement. However, this year feels different. Nintendo may be structuring their show around a different set of priorities. Regardless, the Nintendo E3 2017 Spotlight was all about the news. So let’s run through these announcements quickly.

Nintendo E3 2017 Spotlight Games

There was short sizzle reel at the start of the presentation showing off a few games we already knew about and one new(ish) title. All but two of these were left out of the rest of the presentation, so reminding us of their existence makes sense. These games were:

• Arms
• Splatoon 2
• FIFA
• Pokken
• Rocket League (the new one)

Xenoblade Chronicles 2

Nintendo wants us to buy that this game is coming out this year, but we don’t think anyone believes it yet. Still, we got a new story trailer and some treehouse footage on it, later. The game looks like it runs just fine, already. They said it needs a little polished.

There will be some customizability to each character’s weapons and abilities, but we’ll likely see more of that game as we get closer to the end of the year. It’s still slated for Holiday 2017.

Kirby

Did you want a new Kirby game? How about a new co-op Kirby game? How about if we put it on the Nintendo Switch? Kirby is getting a new game on the Nintendo Switch with co-op and everything. It looks interesting, but the trailer is all we’ve got to go on, so far. Slated for 2018.

Pokemon

They gave Game Freak a little time to talk. They showed more footage of Pokken Tournament DX and dropped a little bit of a bombshell on us. Game Freak is working on a Switch Pokemon RPG. It’s not a rumor anymore. It’s confirmed. However, it won’t be ready for at least a year, so probably don’t lose your cool, just yet.

Metroid Prime 4

Another little bombshell for us. Metroid Prime 4 is in development for the Switch. Nintendo knows we want it. Now it’s just a matter of time until it gets any real info.

Yoshi

Because we didn’t have enough cute, Yoshi is coming to the Switch in a title that reminds us a bit of Yoshi’s Story. There’s some gameplay that shows a focus on flipping the camera to the other side of the screen to see more stuff, but that’s all we really got. It’s slated for 2018, as well.

Fire Emblem Warriors

Finally, we got a story trailer and some character reveals. Characters so far are from Shadow Dragon, Awakening, and Fates. There was also Treehouse footage of the game, but if you know the Dynasty Warriors gameplay, there’s little new, here. The game comes out in Fall of 2017.

Skyrim and Zelda DLC

No, we didn’t get a release date for Skyrim. Really, they just reaffirmed what we saw in Bethesdaland. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild got a trailer showing off DLC Pack 1 content. The Master Trials includes the Trial of the Sword, Amiibo armor sets, Master Mode, Hero’s Path, and more. They also teased the story content for the second DLC Pack: The Champions’ Ballad. The story will involve them.

We also got a release date for the first DLC pack. It’ll be available on June 30th. Finally, they announced more Zelda Amiibo, being the four champions from Breath of the Wild. These will work in Breath of the Wild and Skyrim, of course.

Tournaments

Hey, did you know Nintendo was doing tournaments at E3? You should check those out, they’re gonna be great! — Reggie Fils-Aime.

Yeah, Splatoon 2 is tonight. Pokken DX and Arms are both tomorrow. We’ll be tuning in, of course! Arms releases in three days. Splatoon 2 comes out next month. Pokken Tournament DX comes on September 22nd. Good selections there, Nintendo!

Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle

If you saw them at Ubisoft, there’s nothing new, here. There was coverage at the Treehouse stream, but we’ll be able to look into that later in its own article. This game deserves a real analysis. It still comes out on August 29th.

Rocket League

This got its own two-minute segment to announce it coming to the Switch. There will be cross-network play for it, which is exciting. We think Rocket League will do really well on the Switch. Rocket League should be out in Holiday 2017.

Super Mario Odyssey

Super Mario Odyssey pulled a bait and switch on us. We thought it was a Monster Hunter trailer, at first. Mario popping out caught everyone off-guard. They didn’t say anything about the game during the spotlight, keeping it to just a trailer. The trailer reveals a few new levels, the moons–which replace stars, in this game–and a new ability. Mario can toss his hat onto other people and things and even baddies. This allows him to possess them for a variety of effects. Finally, they gave us a release date! Super Mario Odyssey will release on October 27th, 2017. This is much earlier than we expected.

Nintendo E3 2017 Spotlight Final Thoughts

That was the end of it. No other words. The Mario trailer faded into credits and they immediately began the treehouse live stream. Overall, all of these games were exciting. Even the ones we saw none of were titles we were really waiting a long time for. It’s a bit of an exaggeration to say Nintendo “won” E3, but we think they showed out strong.

The Spotlight was not intended to reveal everything. It was more for their biggest announcements. If you want more gameplay and more information about each title, the Nintendo Treehouse live stream is going. This is where Nintendo will make smaller announcements and explain a bit about upcoming games.

You can check out the Nintendo E3 2017 Spotlight in the video below, if you so choose. We’ll be keeping an eye on Nintendo’s live stream for any interesting new infor in the near future.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2mZS_p4A7Y

[dropcap]D[/dropcap]eveloper Andrew Shouldice and publisher Finji (publisher of Night in the Woods) announced Tunic during the recent PC Gamer E3 show. TUNIC is an action adventure game about a tiny fox in a big world. Players will explore the wild, discover exciting ruins, and fight all sorts of creatures. The game features a similar play style as vintage Zelda games. Tunic will be released for PC, Mac and consoles sometime next year.