Nintendo smashes E3 with 2018 lineup, details about Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Nintendo opened its activities for the annual E3 2018 video game trade show with a bang – and a smash. Showing world-first footage of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Nintendo shared details about the latest entry in a series with sales of more than 40 million units worldwide. A new game built for the Nintendo Switch system, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate lets up to eight players square off in action-packed battles that are all about smashing beloved video game characters off the screen. Legendary game worlds and fighters collide in the ultimate showdown at E3 2018, which runs through June 14 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Nintendo made its announcements during its Nintendo Direct: E3 2018 video presentation, which can be viewed at https://e3.nintendo.com.
“At E3, we’re showing how Nintendo Switch continues to redefine play, with the broadest range of games people can enjoy together anytime, anywhere,” said Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America’s President and COO. “Fans who’ve debated which Super Smash Bros. fighter is the best now have the chance to settle their differences once and for all, pitting familiar faces against fresh challengers on stages both new and old. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let’s Go, Eevee!, and the arrival of Epic’s Fortnite on Nintendo Switch demonstrate the strong momentum Nintendo Switch continues to have through 2018 and beyond.”
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will include every single fighter ever featured in the series’ nearly two-decade run, making it one of the biggest crossover events in gaming history. Fans can enjoy returning favorites like Ice Climbers and Pokémon Trainer, as well as newly announced fighters like Ridley from the Metroid series and Inkling from the Splatoon series. The game supports a variety of controller options, including Nintendo GameCube controllers (original or newly designed), Joy-Con controllers or the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller. With Nintendo Switch, players can throw down whenever and wherever they like in Handheld or Tabletop mode while enjoying online play.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate combines many stages and new items, with gameplay that makes it easy for players of all skill levels to jump in. All current Super Smash Bros. series amiibo figures are compatible with the game, and any fighter’s amiibo figure from other series will also be supported. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is set to launch on Dec. 7, exclusively for Nintendo Switch. It is being developed by Nintendo, Sora, Ltd. and BANDAI NAMCO Studios, and is directed by Masahiro Sakurai.
Nintendo also announced that Fortnite, the Battle Royale phenomenon from Epic Games, is available for Nintendo Switch – TODAY. Players can download it for free from the Nintendo eShop, then test their mettle in thrilling crucibles of combat. The action never stops with Fortnite on Nintendo Switch, where players can build and battle together anytime, anywhere. Team up online with friends in the same room or around the world. Weekly updates and new gameplay modes will keep the action fresh for seasoned Fortnite players and newcomers alike.
At its E3 booth this week in the Los Angeles Convention Center, Nintendo will give attendees their first chance to play Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let’s Go, Eevee!, two Pokémon games launching for the Nintendo Switch system on Nov. 16 at a suggested retail price of $59.99 each. Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let’s Go, Eevee! are a new way to experience Pokémon that lets players adventure with their partner Pokémon in the vibrant Kanto region, discover fresh and exciting Pokémon encounters and Trainer battles, as well as share the adventure cooperatively with a friend anytime, anywhere on one Nintendo Switch system. Players can even transfer Kanto region Pokémon into the game from the Pokémon GO app. These games serve as an entry point to the Pokémon series for newcomers, but they also provide fun and engaging experiences for Pokémon fans of all ages. A new accessory, called Poké Ball Plus, comes with Mythical Pokémon, Mew and is sold separately from the games. Poké Ball Plus includes a pressable analog stick and button, so players can control the new games entirely with the accessory, if they want. Nintendo is announcing two bundles, in which players can get Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! or Pokémon: Let’s Go, Eevee! with one Poké Ball Plus at a suggested retail price of $99.99 each.
Other upcoming items announced during the Nintendo Direct include:
- Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Expansion Pass owners also will gain access to Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna ~ The Golden Country to be released on Sept. 14. In this new story mode, players uncover the full history of Jin and the fall of his homeland, Torna, which existed 500 years before the events of Xenoblade Chronicles 2 . This new storyline also will be available as a stand-alone retail package on Sept. 21. Full purchase details can be found at Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna ~ The Golden Country.
- Super Mario Party: Inspired by the original Mario Party board game play, the beloved series is coming to Nintendo Switch with new mini-games and play styles that make use of the Joy-Con controllers. Super Mario Party includes features like character-exclusive Dice Blocks that add depth to players’ strategy. Up to four players take turns rolling the dice, and individually race across the board searching for Stars. In Toad’s Rec Room, new gameplay links two games and two Nintendo Switch systems for side-by-side fun. The game launches Oct. 5.
- Fire Emblem: Three Houses: A new episode of the Fire Emblem series comes to Nintendo Switch for the first time in spring of 2019. The player can maneuver the main character freely and interact with other characters to build relationships and gather information at various points within the game. This turn-based tactical RPG will put new strategic twists on battling, with formations of troops supporting individual units on the battlefield. Players will get to know three main characters – Edelgard, Dimitri and Claude – who play key roles in the story.
- DAEMON X MACHINA: A new fast-paced mech action game from Kenichiro Tsukuda is coming to Nintendo Switch in 2019. Players take their customizable Arsenal powered suit on a variety of missions to thwart the enemy at all costs. They can choose and equip their Arsenal with a multitude of weapons, obtain more from downed enemies and swap them on the fly to suit their strategy in the face of ever-changing threats.
- Overcooked! 2: The kitchen mayhem returns in this sequel from Team17 and Ghost Town Games that’s brimming with even more recipes, characters, kitchens and co-op madness. Bake, barbecue or broil with up to three other players in wireless local and online play modes. Save the world from clumsy cooking when the frantic food-juggler arrives on Aug. 7.
- Killer Queen Black: Redesigned from the ground up, the acclaimed arcade extravaganza that became a multiplayer phenomenon is coming to Nintendo Switch. Players can hop on a snail, hoard berries or wipe out the enemy’s queen to claim victory for their team in Liquid Bit and Bumble Bear Games’ Killer Queen Black, when it launches first on Nintendo Switch later this year.
- Hollow Knight: Venture through the beautifully hand-drawn, mysterious landscapes of a vast forgotten kingdom in Team Cherry’s Hollow Knight, an action-adventure filled with gripping combat and haunting secrets. Hollow Knight on Nintendo Switch also includes the new items, areas, characters and bosses from the currently released contact packs – all available today.
- Octopath Traveler: Players can take another early look at Square Enix’s upcoming fantasy epic when the Octopath Traveler Prologue Demo arrives June 14 in Nintendo eShop for Nintendo Switch. Play the demo, then use the save data transfer feature to carry your choices into the main game, once purchased, where players can live the stories of each of the eight travelers and freely explore the world of Orsterra. Octopath Traveler is scheduled to launch on July 13.
- More great games are coming in 2018, including Dragon Ball FighterZ and Dark Souls: Remastered from BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus from Bethesda Softworks, Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate from Capcom, EA Sports FIFA 19 from Electronic Arts and Starlink: Battle for Atlas from Ubisoft, which includes characters and content from Nintendo’s Star Fox franchise that are exclusive to the Nintendo Switch version of the game.
To celebrate E3 2018, Nintendo eShop will offer savings on select digital games that helped make some of the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate game’s fighters famous, as well as other great digital games on Nintendo Switch and the Nintendo 3DS family of systems. The sale kicks off on June 14 at 9 a.m. PT, and runs until 8:59 a.m. PT on Thursday, June 21. The full listing of digital games on sale will be posted to https://e3.nintendo.com/sale on June 14 at 9 a.m. and can be purchased directly from the website for download or in Nintendo eShop.
As always, people can keep an eye on https://e3.nintendo.com for all of Nintendo’s latest E3 updates, including today’s Super Smash Bros. Invitational 2018 and the final round of the Splatoon 2 World Championship, and lots of gaming details on Nintendo Treehouse: Live | E3 2018.
Remember that Nintendo Switch and the Nintendo 3DS family of systems feature parental controls that let adults manage the content their children can access. For more information about other features, visit https://www.nintendo.com/switch/ or https://www.nintendo.com/3ds.
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