First off, at this period of time I would say that my clock was totally screwed up. I had been there for 24 hours already, slept a few hours, and still didn’t feel normal. Also, the lack of Mountain Dew in Japan did drive me partially insane. Bocari Sweat (Japanese Sports Drink) didn't quite do the trick. I met up with the guys from Tendo Box, and we were headed to the Makuhari Convention Center a little early.

We sat outside the convention center for about 3 hours prior to the Press show. It was about 90° and about 150% humidity that day (which was pretty much the norm for the entire trip). I don’t think any of us early goers gave a damn about the temperature. Regardless if we were melting out in the sun. We had our minds set on one thing. Project Dolphin.

Because of the heat they allowed us into the convention center a little early. We got our International press credentials, and were pointed to the area where we were to sit.

As I sat in anticipation of the Press show, my heart and mind raced. I couldn’t believe we were going to see the “Next Generation Nintendo”, Project Dolphin in some sort of capacity. Oh yeah, and there was this GBA we were to be able to play as well. We were given these one ear-piece receiver mind melting devices to listen to the interpreter. I set up my tripod, and got all of my other recording devices ready.

The lights dimmed. Then the music began. It was on.

The Gameboy Advance

First bit of hardware we got to see was the Gameboy Advance. We got to see the Silver and blue version. People gasped. Myself included. Very sleek looking. And as far as I’m concerned, and extremely powerful little handheld. I’ll go into what I thought about the games in their profiles, but as far as this part in the show was concerned, I thought it was a slick looking system. A March 21, 2001 release in Japan, and a July release in the US was okay in my opinion. I was personally hoping for a simultaneous release, but concidering how much money the GBC is bringing in at the moment I am not surprised. $90 for one of these bad boys isn’t bad either.

Mobile Adapter GB

They then showed the Mobile Adapter GB unit (mobile phone unit). There was no talk about this item hitting the US, but personally I would like the opportunity to hook up my cell phone to my GBC or my future GBA to play or trade people online. It should be interesting to see if Nintendo decides to release this item here. There aren’t a whole lot of children in the US that have cellular phones.

One thing to note was the fact that a lot of adults were seen playing Pokemon on their GBC’s. Where ever we were there were tons of people playing Pokemon. The cell phone accessory should be a big seller in Japan. Also a good chance for Nintendo to test the waters for futher network connectivity.

The Unveiling of…?

The music started and then the Joanna Dark wanna be’s came out on stage and started moving about. They moved a horizontal box in the middle of the stage, and blam…we got our first glimpse of what was now, officially be known…Gamecube. Or GAMECUBE as we are supposed to type it. A little arrogant? Well I would be.

If you watch the video…listen to the response from the crowd…it’s excited…but theirs this air of, “what the hell is that thing.” At first I was rather indifferent. Then I started screaming like a freak. I think I was just trying to keep composure. From 15 yards out it was hard to really tell what this thing really looked like. At first I didn’t know if I liked it. After further review, I’ll take a silver one please. With a side of Wave birds.

One note...Why is it not exactly cube shaped? That would make a lot more sense. Also, I'd like the ability to remove the handle completely. If I were to carry my Gamecube anywhere, I probably wouldn't carry it around by the strap. It would be in more of like a dufflebag, with Discs, and Controllers, and more. Plus I doubt parents would want their kids carrying around a $200.00 system in the open either. Kids getting their Gamecube's ripped off. I can see it now. If I were in Grade school all over again....(harp noises)...

As far as the name is concerned, I love it. Gamecube. It says what it is. It’s a box full of love. You can sit in the message boards and forums and debate it all you like. But that’s what it is. Gamecube is going to be a name you’ll remember. It's a cube that plays game. Easy. Fine.

In America, we call 'em Big Balls

I felt like I was going to pass out as it was, and then the Gamecube demo began.

First off was the Meowth’s party footage. Yea. Like you weren’t expecting it. Just a technology demo, but you know deep down inside Pokemon will pretty much launch with GBA. What is interesting to note in this footage is what all is going on in this scene. There are tons of different Pokemon dancing and carrying on. Pretty much doing different things. Completely vibrant colors and wonderful visuals. This was basically, if you didn’t know, the WB theme redone on Gamecube hardware. Still none-the-less regardless if you don’t like Pokemon, pretty damn cool.

Wave Race - One word to say on this.

W-E-R-(fu$%#ng) -D!

My jaw hit the floor at this point. Dolphin Cove never looked better. Granted, this was a tech demo, and rumor is that Wave Race will look much better when we see the final version of this game. Whatever…just thinking about this game makes me shiver with anticipation. At that moment when you see our version of the video you can hear me scream, “Oh…my….” And right at that exact moment when I would say the name of the man upstairs….you guessed it. I filled these shorts with goo. And plenty of it.

The concept of playing the sequel to one of my all time favorite games drives me mad. Seeing it in person made me almost lose bodily function. I saw only 4 Jet Skis on screen in this demo. I hope in the real version there is at least 8 in a race. 4 racers is too little. And I want a full 8 in the circuit as well as multiplayer. There is no reason not to.

Graphically this demo is wonderful. The racers and environment look excellent. I would have to agree with a fellow WR junkie Justin Nation in that I would have liked to see big ass waves. That’s what really separated the real racers in the original. Overall I was impressed, and excited. I am curious if Wave Race will be Nintendo’s next tech-demo game. I wouldn’t mind seeing what Pilotwings would look like on Gamecube.

Metroid. Looks like the true Nintendophiles have been heard on this one. Samus will be making her way back onto the big screen. The tunnel sequence of Samus running with 20-30 spider-ish enemies chasing her just makes my stomach growl for nourishment. Samus has never had it this rough. I am ready.

This game looks like it could be mind blowing. How about Zelda in Space? Lets just hope Nintendo can stay true to the series. But really. Do you have any doubt?

Rouge Squadron 2. Wow. Hey, I predicted a Star Wars title…and here it is. Thank god it’s old school Star Wars. This video coupled with the video offered up from IGN makes any Star Wars gamer nuts. This is Star Wars at it’s best. Thank god it’s not Jar Jar Krap Kart.

This looks like the MOVIE! That’s all I can say. Rogue Squadron was impressive as it is, but this drives me insane. With all that’s been brought to the table on this, I hope there is online play. Notice all of the X-Wing and Tie fighters in this demo, and the demo IGN posted. A Gamecube fully loaded with a broadband connection and a little love from Factor 5, there could be some serious online multiplayer mayhem.

Zelda. Ganon and Link going at it. Hell yeah. There’s a lot happening in a little time frame. Look at how the clothes and hair of each of the characters flow in this. Do not doubt that this title is fully in the works. I doubt the final battle between Ganon and Link would look like this. Maybe this isn’t even Ganon. Maybe like a pre-boss or something. Ganon was a lot larger than Link in the N64 version.

My favorite part of the Demo is the part when Ganon (or whoever) gestures to Link to “bring it on” and Link tosses his shield aside and goes at it. Tingles and goose bumps were rampant at this point. C’mere Ganon….got a little present for ya! And look how large the environment is. Zelda on the N64 was unbelievable….but this….oh man.

Luigi Demo. I think the main surprise at the show was the fact that Mario wasn’t shown on the game play demo. Yes Mario was in the “Mario 128” demo, but that doesn’t count because that was just a demo. The second Luigi popped his head up made people go entirely nuts. In a ghost house no less. From what I’ve heard this is in game footage.

Luigi is playable? What is Luigi’s role then? That was my question to Shigeru during the round table discussion. Oh course, it was completely dodged. I expect will see the return of the Mario Brothers. Something is going on here. Luigi is in a Ghost house. And damn does it look beautiful. The ghosts were incredible. Looks like boo got a total make over. It’s more creepy, and more, dare I say…realistic looking. Maybe that’s where the “maturity” will be. Mario better get more than cake this time around.

Joanna Dark. Yea. A render. It is interesting. Because Perfect Dark isn’t even out in Japan yet. I’m sure it’s coming though. Online death matches! Clan PlanetN2000? Oh yeah baby, I’m all over that concept. With the new broadband adapter it’s a no brainer. Bring it.

After looking at the footage, I was rather curious about the titles Nintendo chose to show in Japan. It seemed that Nintendo was targeting America (and the rest of the world) a little more with the specific titles they decided to show. I’m surprised there wasn’t a football game showed. That would have made the show extra Americanized. Metroid was a bigger hit in America. Perfect Dark had not even been released in Japan yet, and was a huge hit in America, and the rest of the world. Star Wars anything sells like hot cakes in the US. Wave Race was a cult hit in America, and Zelda, Mario, and Pokemon were world wide phenomenon. Maybe I am reading a bit too into this, but it concerns me that the Japanese gamer may not be turned on by this line up. I, as an American hardcore gamer am totally thrilled by this selection of games. I just hope the Japanese are just as excited about this as the rest of the world is.

The Controller

I never thought I would like a controller as much as I like the N64 controller. Well I was completely wrong. The one thing I really wished I could have done was get my hands on it. I like pretty much everything about it. The camera stick was an excellent innovation in my opinion. Plus, technically, it doesn’t have to be just a camera button either. Instant dual stick controller. Note: Not dual shock. You see, this controller my friends…is what we call in the industry…”innovative”. Say it with me Sony…”Inn-ova-tive”. Thank you.

The A,B,X,Y layout is going to take some time to get used to I’m sure, but then again, how long did the N64 controller take you? Hell at least it's new. I just can't wait to get my hands on this thing. Unfortunately we never got the chance. I did try though. You bet I did.

I am extremely happy with the controller. Could some please give me a "Hell-yeah-yuh" for Nintendo including a D-pad on this? Thank Gawd. As I have bitched many times...it sucks to play a puzzle game without a D-Pad. No more worries.

One slight complaint though is the Z-Trigger issue. I don't care too much about the fact that that the Z-Trigger is in a totally different place, but why don't they have 2 then? One on the left side of the controller as well? It seems to make the controller unbalanced. In my opinion, there's no reason not to have another trigger. Give the Z-Trigger a brother, or sister perhaps? Make the controller whole again.

The Power, the Media, and The GBA

As far as the specs are concerned I am very happy. Nintendo is creating a system that is all about one thing...Making a system that completely streamlined to play games. Look at the Mario 128 demo. The green bar that measures how taxed the Gamecube hardware is. It barely moves.

The Gamecube disc has more than enough capacity to hold enough data. I would like to know if the disc can be layered though. I don't mind swapping discs, but if I don't have to...fine by me. I am a little ticked off that Nintendo did decide to go caddy free. I don't want to scratch these discs! Maybe I'm anal, or a little clumsy, but protecting your discs is a pet peeve of mine. One nasty scratch can ruin a very good game.

The relation between the GBA and the Gamecube was always known, but seeing it all hooked up really opened my eyes to how cool this will all be.

As Miyamoto said during the press preview, the GBA will be a perfect compliment to a football game. After seeing what the GBA can do graphically, at least in a football game it's going to lay Sega's VMU play calling to waste. With the size and resolution (as well as beea--utiful glorious color) it looks like players routes will be detailed. VMU text play calling sucks. Especially when you have like 40-80 plays to know. How about having a little stand you could put your GBA in? Hopefully Retro Studios is ready to take on Sega's NFL2K1, and Madden on PS2 next year.

The end of the beginning is not the end

The lights came up and the show was over. We were ushered upstairs to the international press area where we could take pictures of the GBA, and grab our media packs.

On my way back downstairs I ran into Peter Main. I only met him briefly at E3, and pretty much didn't think he would have remembered me. But then again, some white dude with wacked out blondish-brownish hair grinning his freakin' head off kind of stands out in a group of Japanese.

Peter asked me what I thought of the whole thing. I kinda' went into the "everything's blurry but really neat" mode like when I met Shiggy for the first time. But I do pretty much remember what I said.

"Peter, that was the coolest thing I ever have seen. I knew I would be blown away, but I didn't think it was going to be as impressive as it was. It was worth the wait."

And to be quite honest, I had no idea it would have been this cool. But then again, it was almost the same feeling I got when I saw Mario 64 for the first time.

But I would say that it was better. I love my N64, and will never say anything less about it. But there were many things I hoped that it would do. A lot of that could have been brought to us if we would have gotten the 64DD here in the states (and it would have been a success). The online concepts, and large writability we things we used to ponder and dream about in the days of the N64HQ. And I still want the freakin' system to recognize what color controller you have, and display it on the screen in Multiplayer games like hockey, soccer, or Football. C'mon! It was supposed to be in Wayne Gretsky!

Face to face with Game Cube

We were then unleashed to check out all the systems up close for more picture opportunities of Gamecube. There was one model that was just sitting out. There were about 15 people crowded around with cameras. I finally got to see a Gamecube really upclose.

I loved it. I was ready to nab it. At this point in time, I believe I could have made it out with one. But out of respect for Nintendo and grave utter fear...I'll just keep replaying that dream in my head.

They had other Gamecube systems set up with there parts displayed. At this point in time I must note...I was pretty much at overload mode at this point. I sat and looked around the convention center. I was emmersed into the Next Generation of Nintendo. It was pretty incredible.

The GBA, Hands on

All the GBA Kiosks were available for play, so I had to at least play a few of the titles. A played Mario Kart, Konami Adventure Racing, Pinobee, and my favorite new game featuring a line...Kuru Kuru Kuru Rin. I was more than impressed with the GBA, and it's playable software. It felt more than natural in my hands, and I will pretty much guarentee that I will be importing one of these slick bad boys next March. I do think it's well worth it for what this handheld is capable of. Hopefully the import won't be too pricy. I'm predicting $150-$200. That's pretty nasty. But for one of these...

I was there until they pretty much kicked me out. I think I was pretty much glazed with "duh-ness". More like a deer in headlights. But it was time to go. On my way out I glanced at the turned-off N64's and GBC's. What was beautiful about the whole thing was the fact that Space World hadn't even begun yet. But that's a story for another day...