Nintendo.

That name stirs up a lot of emotion for pretty much every gamer. And rightfully so. Hiroshi Yamauchi and the rest of Nintendo Co. Ltd. did an outstanding job of bringing console gaming to the level it's at today. Unfortunately, we all know how Nintendo missed the boat with the Nintendo GameCube. But will Nintendo bounce back from their GameCube woes? Possibly. This year's E3 will have a lot to say about that. Revolution had better have on-line multi-player and DVD, or once again, it will be playing third fiddle to the PS3 and Xbox:360.

But enough with the rumors. It's time to look back at yester-year. Back when gamers would go to the arcades to meet up with friends, or head over to Timmy's house for an all night session of Super Mario Brothers. And, most importantly, a look at why, oh why, Nintendo will weather the storm of the console wars, no matter what the others throw at it.

Let's start off with something near and dear to my heart. Music. Everyone likes it in some form or fashion. We carry it around with us. We listen to it at work. We take it in the car. We listen to it to help us sleep. We use it for all sorts of things. And we reward people for it, or at least we're trying to.

But what about all those great songs that backed Nintendo games? Well, have no fear those great doots and hoots are no further than Google. I searched "Nintendo Music" and returned 4,690,000 hits! One of the hits, Nintendo Midi Music, has a great selection of music. From Zelda to Kid Icarus, Super Mario Bros. 3 to MegaMan, you can find just about every game on this site. I love it. I think I'll put on my Nintendo-themed desktop now.

Another hit, and truly a bit more impressive, is the Blindfolded Nintendo Piano Player. WOW, does not describe it. I sat through the entire 10 minutes awestruck, which is not easy to do. Even my boss at work recognized the songs. She had me e-mail her a link so she could pass it on to her son!

While we're on the subject of musical interpretations, let's not forget the choirs. Being a 5-year veteran of South Alabama show choirs, I know how much work and time usually goes into just 2 or 3 performances at the end of the year. And these guys and gals did it a capella!!! *Stands and claps* Outstanding job to all of you (especially the guy brave enough to yell out 'MORTAL KOMBAT')!!

But enough with the music! What will Nintendo bring to the table in the future? Well, at this year's E3, Nintendo really seemed to announce a bunch of nothing! Now don't go calling for my head just yet. Yes, I watched their news conference via the web. But to be perfectly honest, I'm not impressed! Let's take a look at some of what Nintendo actually did at E3.

Nintendo Micro
Where did this come from? Yes, I love the stylish look of it, the small size, and the back lit screen. But really, do we need ANOTHER Gameboy? Unless it's going to support mp3, it's just another play for Nintendo to try and suck the last little bit of cash out of a tired game system. Please, but the boy to rest and join up with the rest of the gaming industry.

Nintendo DS
Finally!!! Nintendo does something with an on-line multiplayer. With the ability to connect to pretty much ANY wifi hotspot, it seems that the DS may be the system to watch for Nintendo this year. And with games now starting to take advantage of the touch screen feature (Animal Crossing DS), DS might be able to compete with the Sony PSP (YEA RIGHT!).

Nintendo Revolution
Well, There's not much to talk about. All Nintendo decided to bring to E3 was the shell of the Revolution. While promising backwards compatibility and a service that will allow you to play ALL of Nintendo's games, even those from the good old days of NES, Nintendo decided not to "reveal it's hand just yet". Not even a glance at a controller. No one knows what to think of this move by Nintendo. But everyone IS placing them squarely behind Xbox 360 and PS3 in the next-gen console wars.

Any way you look at it, Nintendo is here to stay. The question everyone should be asking themselves now is, 'Will Nintendo continue to disappoint, or will it begin a new Revolution in the gaming industry? Nintendo was last place in the last console battle, will it be last again, or will it blow everyone away? We shall see, we shall see...
-UAB Tech Guy