Custom Picks - Nintendo's New First-Person Shooter

*DISCLAIMER* The following is purely an opinion piece. I do not claim to know what the real plans are that any video game companies mentioned in this article have planned for their franchises.

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Welcome to Custom Picks, a series of speculation articles about different games for companies to release. Nintendo, Sega, Capcom, Ubisoft, Square-Enix; if they have games everyone is waiting for, those games are up for discussion.

With Nintendo’s NX a little under a year away, everyone is speculating about what they are going to do next. Everyone has ideas about what their next console should be capable of and everyone says they need to have more third-party games, more first-party games, revivals of old franchises, and new IPs. But when it comes to exactly what games should be on there, fewer people are willing to say exactly what.

So, the first few articles in Custom Picks will be about Nintendo and what possible games they could release to get gamers excited about the NX, and maybe breathe new life into some old franchises along the way.

One of the biggest genres that have had a gap on Nintendo consoles lately is first person shooters. On the Xbox and PlayStation, games like Call of Duty, Battlefield, and Halo have been giving gamers their adrenaline fix for a long time and people want that particular fix offered from Nintendo for them to even look at their consoles. Fans have asked for both a story driven single player focused title like Duke Nukem 3D or Doom (at least, the early versions of Doom) and a competitive multiplayer shooter like Call of Duty. Franchises that fans have suggested be used for it have included Metroid, Wild Gunman, Geist, and Sin & Punishment.

So, what first-party or third-party titles could fit this category?

First Party Titles – Geist: Resurrected & Metroid Prime Hunters 2

For a single player title, a sequel or remake to the GameCube game Geist would be an eye catching title. Geist is one of the few M-rated titles published by Nintendo and it was a first-person shooter with a unique mechanic. After an event in the story, the main character is left as a spirit who can possess other people, animals, or inanimate objects and use their abilities or equipment to progress through the stage. So, you could possess a soldier and shoot your way through a level, possess a dog to tear someone apart, or possess a keypad on a door to open it up if it's blocking your way. In today’s gaming climate, an M-rated supernatural-themed first-person shooter actually published by Nintendo is sure to turn some heads.

For a more multiplayer themed experience, an interesting pick would be a console-based sequel to the DS game Metroid Prime Hunters. Some people would argue that the Metroid Prime games are more of an adventure series than a shooter series, but the potential is there for a competitive shooter, especially with Hunters. Hunters introduced several other playable characters alongside Samus, confirming that she is not the only important character in this universe. All of these characters had their own unique appearances, weapons, and abilities. For a competitive shooter in the Metroid universe, a character select screen could let you choose between different bounty hunters to play as to match different playstyles. Different weapons could be available in a map but your character would still have their own unique equipment. Different modes can be selected from mainstays like Deathmatch, Capture the Flag, or Virus mode, to possibly a Bounty mode where the characters chase after one target and the one who takes them down wins the match.

Third Party Titles – Call of Duty: Ghosts II & TimeSplitters 4

This may seem like more of a standard pick because Call of Duty is one of the most popular shooter franchises out there, but it’s because it’s one of the most popular that it would make such a good choice. If gamers want a game like Call of Duty, perhaps the best thing would be to just give them Call of Duty. Giving them the experiences they can have on other consoles along with the experiences they can’t get anywhere else is key to having a successful console.

But for a less standard pick, a more eye-catching title would be one that a lot of people are asking for, TimeSplitters 4. TimeSplitters 2 and TimeSplitters: Future Perfect were cult hit games because of their quirky style, humor, and variety of environments. Because the game centers around time travel, it could take place in 1942 in one level and 2053 in the next. For the game to be canceled over something as simple as what character to put on the box art, the issue could be resolved with some outside help and the game could be released. Perhaps Nintendo could step in and do for TimeSplitters 4 what they did for Bayonetta 2, securing it as an NX exclusive to make sure the game sees the light of day.

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What did you think of these Custom Picks? What first-person shooters would you add to Nintendo’s lineup? Make your voice heard in the comments below and thanks for coming.

10 Game Releases That Could Make Smash 5 Bigger Than Ever

With Corrin and Bayonetta now added to the DLC roster for Super Smash Bros. 4, the game now has its complete roster. No more DLC announcements. These are the last ones for this game. Those fans that had someone in mind that they wanted to see make the Smash roster will have to wait to see who makes it in Smash 5 (after Sakurai takes a long break first. He’s earned it.).

When it came to the characters that made the roster for Smash 4, some people complained that some more representation was needed in different areas, whether they were asking for more female characters, more villains, more characters from a certain franchise, or whatever. To maximize a character’s chances of making it in the roster, it helps to be relevant around the time the game is being developed, so for some of these concerns, maybe some new games should be released.

For this article, I will list ten ideas for video games that, if made and released before the next entry in the Super Smash Bros. series, may allow for more or different characters to get a chance at the roster. Focus will mostly be on the upcoming NX home console and whatever their next portable console will be but there are a couple of Wii U entries here too.

1.       Super Mario NX: Wart’s Castle

One of the games that everyone says Nintendo’s upcoming console, currently codenamed the NX, should get on or around launch is a new 3D Mario game. Some people say that Super Mario Galaxy 3 could be this game, but a lot of people are asking for a game more similar to Super Mario 64, with a large open hub world with secrets to uncover that can branch out into different levels to explore. To take this a step further, what if this game featured the prominent return of a character a lot of people have been asking to make a return for a long time? What if, instead of Bowser, the main villain in this game was Wart from Super Mario Bros. 2?

There have been some people online who have pointed out that a lot of the characters from Super Mario Bros. 2 have been seeing very few appearances in the Mario series. A new game would bring these characters back into prominence, even more so if that game was a launch window title for a new Nintendo console. The game could include SMB2 enemies like Phantos and Pidgits and the SMB2 bosses like Mouser and Tryclyde as area bosses, and at the end of the game the final boss is Wart, having crossed from the dream world into the waking world in a quest for power. The game could even take place at a new castle that Wart has taken as his new base of operations.

2.       Donkey Kong NX

There are were a few franchises that Nintendo fans were underrepresented in Smash 4 and Donkey Kong was one of them. Several fans of the series were hoping to see Dixie Kong (a female character) or King K. Rool (the series’ main villain) added with Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong, but they were passed over. A new game in the series could help to assert that other characters in the series could be worth consideration for a Smash roster. This new game could be portrayed in two ways. The first is a 2D platformer similar to Donkey Kong Country 2, where Diddy and Dixie have to save Donkey Kong after he gets kidnapped by King K. Rool (or some other villain who could be given the spotlight). The second is a 3D platformer similar to Donkey Kong 64, where a villain threatens Kong Island and DK, Diddy, and a bunch of their friends have to stop this threat to their home.

3.       The Legend of Zelda Wii U/NX

A new entry in the Legend of Zelda series is coming soon. What has everyone wondering though is if it will be a Wii U exclusive or will it also be available on the NX. Whatever it releases on, just like every other Zelda title to come since the N64 era, this game is likely to have a stand-out character that will grab everyone’s attention. With Shiek, Skull Kid, Vaati, Midna, Ghirahim, and more, whichever new character the new Zelda game gives us is likely to grab a lot of attention and likely to have a lot of people asking for their inclusion in Smash 5.

4.       Metroid Prime Hunters 2

Metroid is another series that has a lot of people calling out how underrepresented it is in Smash. A problem here could be how the Metroid series has been handled in the past. While everyone loves Samus Aran and she is in no way a bad character (Other M aside), the series has focused so much on her that no one else is major enough to warrant an appearance outside the series. The only other major character from this series is Ridley and when it comes to Smash, Sakurai has stated that Ridley would be too big to accurately portray as a Smash fighter. Maybe that is what they are attempting with Federation Force, to give someone besides Samus the spotlight.

Another possible solution could lie in a sequel to the DS game Metroid Prime Hunters. While the game’s execution had some problems, it had an interesting concept. Gamers could play as not only Samus, but different bounty hunters as well, with their own unique sets of weapons. A sequel to this game on the NX or even Nintendo's new handheld could allow some different characters to rise to popularity, more so if they are given expanded stories and abilities from what they were given in the first Hunters game.

5.       Pokken Tournament

Pokemon is one of Nintendo’s largest series, both figuratively and literally with about 700+ creatures at this point, and that shows with Smash 4 having six Pokemon characters in its playable roster. The popularity of a certain Pokemon plays a large factor in their chances at making the Smash roster and, while the anime surely does a lot for a character’s image, another thing that could help is a fighting game specifically for Pokemon characters.

With Pokken Tournament soon to be released for home consoles, we get to see Pokemon battles Tekken-style, especially with Namco Bandai as the developers. Players not only get to see different Pokemon in matches, but also how their moves can be applied in ways that the main series games don’t show. Not only could this boost some monsters’ popularity, but also affect how their moves are portrayed if they make it into a game like Smash.

6.       F-Zero NX

With only one character in the Smash roster with Captain Falcon and no new games in the series in a very long time, F-Zero is not only one of the most underrepresented franchises in Smash, but in Nintendo in general. It may not be a stretch to say that a lot of people know Captain Falcon more as a Super Smash Brothers character than an F-Zero character. The best fix to this problem would be to create a new game in the series and the debut of a new console would be a good opportunity to re-introduce gamers to this long-dormant franchise.

Not only that but the same kinds of abilities that the Super Smash Bros. games gave to Captain Falcon could also potentially given to other characters in this series. A re-imagining of the F-Zero series could potentially make it as an over-the-top, adrenaline fueled, sci-fi racer, where everyone important has super-fast racing machines and outrageously crazy attacks.

7.       Fire Emblem: Warriors Across Time

This entry isn’t so much about adding new characters as it is narrowing down who and how many to focus on, because Fire Emblem now has six characters in its part of the Smash roster. This suggestion isn’t so much a new Fire Emblem game as it is a spin-off game like Hyrule Warriors. Giving Fire Emblem the Dynasty Warriors treatment like The Legend of Zelda got would bring in characters from across the series from the classic games to the modern era. From there, developers might be able to focus on which characters would seem popular enough to bring back into Smash.

8.       A returning old or obscure IP

This one isn't so much a specific game as it is a general idea, but it is worth mentioning.

Nintendo has a large roster of IPs available for their use and to add some more variety to their roster, a very good thing to do would be to revive one of their older IPs and bring it into the modern era. Kid Icarus got that treatment and most of the people that played it agree that it was a great game. Not only was Pit given new abilities and equipment and a nuanced personality, but the series was also given a new world to explore and new characters like Viridi, Magnus, and Hades. A revival of an old series like Ice Climber, Mysterious Murasame Castle, StarTropics, or any other lesser known or classic titles, would open up whole new series to use and update their characters in the process.

This could also apply to more recent obscure games as well, like Dillon’s Rolling Western, Disaster: Day of Crisis, and Code Name S.T.E.A.M. A major game in these or other series for either consoles or handhelds would give Nintendo a reason to introduce a different IP into the Smash roster.

9.       A new original IP

Speaking of different IPs, while it would help Nintendo to revive one of their old or obscure IPs, creating a completely new one wouldn’t hurt either. It’s become sort of a running joke online to say that Nintendo only has three or four titles that they regularly use, and some of the people that make those jokes want to see Nintendo make, not necessarily new gameplay styles, but new worlds with new characters and deep stories. Though the two could go hand in hand, it’s the latter that they’re paying more attention to. What kinds of games the public wants Nintendo to make is a topic for another day, but as far as Smash is concerned, it could only benefit from having a new property to explore.

10.   Nintendo vs. Capcom

This is technically a third-party game, but since pretty much half of the game is Nintendo content, it counts here. The amount of fan-made rosters you can find online for a Nintendo vs. Capcom fighting game show that a lot of people want this to happen. Seeing Nintendo’s all-star roster against Capcom’s all-star roster, while potentially bringing back some obscure characters from both companies, would only drum up a lot of publicity for both developers. As far as Smash goes, this game could give Nintendo’s characters (and Capcom’s characters that cross over into Smash) new attacks, new interpretations of old attacks, and new personalities.

These were only ten out of a lot of potential suggestions, so what do you think? What game do you think should be released before Smash 5 to make it the best Smash game yet?

10 Nintendo Series That Could Use Adaptations in Other Media

In an article I wrote a long while ago on a video game review site, I talked a lot about Nintendo and the difficulties they were having with their public image (and in a way, still are having). Some of the topics mentioned were how the Wii U has been doing this console generation, the scarcity of Amiibo figures, and their handling of Let’s Plays on YouTube. Towards the end of the article, I mentioned a comparatively minor issue, but one that stands out when you think about it.

Except for the Pokemon series and character cameos in movies like Wreck-It Ralph and Pixels, Nintendo doesn’t really do much with their characters and franchises outside of video games. Movies, TV shows, comics, official merchandise; there was a flood of it in the 80s and 90s and still a little bit in the early 2000s, but now, the flood has slowed down to a trickle. Seeing these franchises and their characters in other ways besides just the games can expand the influence these characters have on pop culture.

For this article, I will try to figure out just how some of Nintendo’s big franchises would work with adaptations to other kinds of media. I’ll be focusing on three main types: movies, TV shows/anime, or comic books/manga, how they would be presented in these mediums, and how likely they may or may not be for certain mediums.

1. Super Mario Bros.

When it comes to Nintendo properties to adapt, this would probably be one of the most obvious. Super Mario is so big that even people who don’t play video games have at least heard of it.  This franchise has already had comics, a few animated series, and that one movie from the 80s, but with a new age, people are probably ready for new adaptations. It has a basic story of two heroes (Mario & Luigi) rescuing the princess (Peach) from a monstrous villain (Bowser) in a magical land filled with magical power-up items, a wide variety of landscapes, and crazy creatures.

As long as producers don’t tweak the setting too much, like they did with the 80s movie, an animated Super Mario Brothers movie or show could work in modern times. As far as something like a comic goes, Archie Comics already has comic book series based on Sonic the Hedgehog and Mega Man. It may not be too much of a stretch to imagine them producing a Super Mario comic series.

2. The Legend of Zelda

The Legend of Zelda is another obvious one that we may get from Nintendo if they decide to adapt their properties. The game is a story about a battle between good and evil in a medieval fantasy kingdom and a story like that could easily be adapted to movies or TV, especially in this day and age with works like The Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones being such big successes and Warcraft being one of the latest video games to get the summer blockbuster treatment.

I won’t say much about comics here since, in a way, it already has some recent comics in the form of the manga adaptations by Viz Media. Not all of the games have been adapted (no Twilight Princess or Wind Waker for example), but some of them have. In those Viz manga though, the writers give Link a bit more of a personality besides the silent protagonist from the games and speaking lines to match beyond his usual grunts and yells. If the producers of a movie or animated show decide to have Link talk, they may want to take some notes from these manga.

3. Metroid

As one of Nintendo’s more mature and action oriented series, the story of intergalactic bounty hunter Samus Aran seems like a perfect fit for a summer blockbuster or an action-packed comic series. Seeing Samus Aran in live-action exploring a planet and battling monsters with her Power Suit’s various weapons would be a big treat for viewers, whether they’re fans of the Metroid series or they just love action movies. As a TV show, it may not work as well. The Metroid series up to this point has mostly had Samus as its only prominent character, so producers would have to change a lot about it to make it work. Not to say that a Metroid TV series would be a bad idea, but there would be some changes that fans would have to accept.

4. Star Fox

Star Fox would probably be one of the best Nintendo properties to adapt. The game is about the Star Fox team, led by Fox McCloud, piloting their Arwing space jets to fight against the forces of Andross and other forces that threaten the peace of the Lylat System.

As one Internet reviewer pointed out, a Star Fox movie would be an action filled space fight story, like a sci-fi version of Top Gun starring anthro animals. A premise like that would easily work as a TV show or a comic book as well. They could have Andross as the main villain for the first movie or the first season, then bring in other villains or create new ones for the team to fight in subsequent ones.

5. EarthBound

EarthBound, known as Mother 2 in Japan, could make for an interesting animated series. Colorful and lighthearted on the surface, but with a deep story and dark themes underneath, the general story is about a brave kid with psychic powers going on an adventure in the modern world to save it from an alien menace, helping people along the way and meeting up with other kid heroes, meeting up with other kid heroes and helping out people along the way. It could be worked as a sort of cross between Adventure Time and Teen Titans, with focus on both the different environments and action-packed combat.

6. Animal Crossing

The Animal Crossing games as they are would probably make an okay slice of life series. You’re a person moving to a quiet forest town inhabited by different animals, and become the mayor of the town if you’re playing New Leaf, but otherwise, there’s no real plot. The games continue with you making friends with the townsfolk, participating in town events, improving the town, and generally enjoying small town life. A manga or comic could even be possible with this kind of premise. This, however, may not make for a very interesting movie unless things were changed or characters are added to create a type of conflict.

7. Kid Icarus

The way Kid Icarus is presented with its recent game Uprising, it seems good for just about any kind of adaptation. With another story pitting the forces of good against the forces of evil, the flights through the sky our angelic hero Pit takes when assigned a task by Palutena followed by his traveling on the ground towards his objective are filled with action and the dialogue between Pit and Palutena or the several other characters in the story has lots of humor and personality. The basic plot is simple enough that kids and younger teens can follow it without a problem and the personalities of the different characters in the plot are complex enough that older teens and adults can still be engaged by them.

8. Fire Emblem

This may actually be one of the tougher series to adapt and still keep original. Focusing on a war between different kingdoms in a medieval fantasy world in its different incarnations, Fire Emblem places focus on the interactions between different characters as they fight through different battles. The problem here may be in how people not familiar with the series may see it. With its setting it can easily be compared to other medieval works, like Game of Thrones or Nintendo’s own Legend of Zelda series. If a producer doesn’t emphasize how it is different from these other works, it may be seen as a copy of these other series. An adaptation of Fire Emblem can still potentially be good, but a studio would have to really work at making it stand out.

9. Xenoblade Chronicles

This is a game series that may be hard to adapt, into a movie anyway. For a TV show or a comic, it might work, but not for a movie. It has a very deep story and engaging characters, but that may be the problem. The Xenoblade games have such long stories that stretch over such a long time period that adapting them to movies would mean cutting out significant portions of it or splitting it up anthology style. An anime series or manga would probably be able to tackle this without sacrificing too much of the story.

10. Splatoon

As Nintendo’s most recent big hit, a lot of people are talking about Splatoon. The game turned shooters upside down with its non-traditional gameplay, eccentric characters, and colorful atmosphere (figuratively and literally). The game is split between two different gameplay compnents: the single-player mode and the online multiplayer mode. In multiplayer, you have two different teams competing against each other in Turf War battles or other game modes. In single-player, you guide your character through several different stages to recover the Great Zapfish stolen from the city of Inkopolis before the city runs out of power. Whether an adaptation focuses on one of these or a cross between both, Splatoon could make for an interesting anime, comic or western animated show.

These are only ten of various Nintendo series that Nintendo has available to work with and there may be a follow-up article here discussing more Nintendo series. What do you think? Which Nintendo series do you think should expand outside of video games? Let me know in the comments and thanks for coming.