So today I traveled to the Nintendo World Store for the The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass launch event. I thought I'd do I little write up so people can get an idea of what happened.
My buddy Jesse and I took the subway up from the NYU campus and arrived at the Nintendo World Store at about 12:30. Since the event wouldn't start until one, we decided to look around a bit. They had a lot of Zelda merchandise on display, including two special Zelda DS lites. One was silver with a yellow triforce on the lid (pictured), which was not for sale, while the other was green and gold, which was priced at $279 (evidently sold before I could take a photo of it).
Zelda Shirts, Hat, and... Pencil Case?Gold Zelda GBA SP Signed By Shigeru Miyamoto and Some Sort of BookMiscellaneous Zelda StuffSilver Zelda DSGoron Link FigureLink and "Ganandorf" FiguresFour Swords/Wind Waker FiguresLink and Epona StatueThey also had the Master Sword and Hylian Shield on display that Shigeru Miyamoto came out with at E3 a few years ago. It was behind a barrier and a security guard was right next to it. I think Nintendo sees it as their own Mona Lisa.
Master Sword and Hylian ShieldPhotos of Miyamoto with Sword and ShieldAs the event began, we made our way back down to the DS Bar where we tried out the Phantom Hourglass battle mode (every DS in the store had Phantom Hourglass on it). We both signed up for the tournament, and had a chance to ask the event planner a couple questions. The grand prizes for the tournament and the costume contest were copies of Phantom Hourglass along with a crimson/black DS lite signed by Eiji Aonuma! We really didn't think either of us had a chance to win though, as we heard some store employees saying how some of the people who had entered had imported the Japanese version.
Also, they're thinking of holding a similar event for Super Smash Bros. Brawl, though they won't have any sort of tournament until next year.
The first of three trivia questionairres was announced, and I managed to grab one.
Unfortunately, I didn't know the answer to "In the Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, what happens if Link throws an empty bottle into the Great Fairy's fountain?" and I wasn't able to get either of the other two trivia sheets. The winner of each trivia round won a copy of Phantom Hourglass
At 2 they announced that Phantom Hourglass would be on sale until 4 'o clock. Not having brought my DS to college with me, I decided not to purchase the game.
Line of People Waiting to Purchase Phantom HourglassAround 2:30, the tournament finally got underway. We were split into two brackets, and Jesse and I were both in the second bracket, so we got our pictures taken with Link while we waited. I was expecting "Link" to be the cartoony Wind Waker/Phantom Hourglass version, but instead, he was the realistic Twilight Princess version, complete with mask!
Round 1 @ the DS BarRound 1 @ the DS CircleRound 1 FinalistsLink and JesseLink and ILink in an Epic PoseFinally our bracket was called. Unfortunately, I was seated at broken chair the DS Bar, while Jesse was over at the DS Circle.
Jesse vs. His Round 2 Semifinal OpponentDuring our tournament he costume contest began. There were some really gorgeous costumes, including a 1987-esque Link. Since I had just a little time between rounds, I was only able to get this one shot. (
Joystiq has good shots of them)
The Costume ContestAmazingly, each of us reached the bracket final, where I ultimately defeated him by 4 points.
So I was then pitted against the winner of the first bracket, a guy wearing an awesome Phoenix Wright "OBJECTION!" t-shirt. It was close, and I thought he was going to beat me going into the 3rd round of the battle, but I managed to beat him by one point!
We each received a copy of Phantom Hourglass, and I was told my signed DS lite would be shipped to my home (I'll post photos when I get it). We had our pictures taken, so look for me in a future issue of Nintendo Power!
That was essentially the end of the event, so I went over to the sales counter and reserved a copy of Super Smash Bros. Brawl (that box art is official by the way). There were a couple of Twilight Princess t-shirts on the counter behind the cashier, and when I asked how much one was, they gave me one for free!
Video Screen Showing SSBB Box ArtAll in all, it was an excellent event, though I think the two guys dressed in Naruto garb may have been a bit confused.
EDIT: My Prize!Well, I was stupid enough to forget to bring my camera home with me this weekend, so the only photos I have of my signed DS lite are taken with my computer's iSight cam. Sorry about the quality, but here are the photos!
DS lite Photo 1DS lite Photo 2
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