How Donkey Kong and Bowser Joined the Skylanders Roster
When we sat down with Activision and Nintendo to see a hybrid Skylanders amiibo figure, we didn't know what to expect. But the first thing we wanted to know about the partnership between the two companies that was announced at E3 2015 was how it came about. Before today, you could have seen the two companies as competitors in the toys-to-life video game category.
"When we were first developing Skylanders, we knew Nintendo would be a key partner from a platform standpoint," Activision CEO Eric Hirshberg told IGN. "Nintendo was actually one of the first groups outside of Activision that saw Skylanders. And even in those early meetings back then it didn't take long for a bunch of people to start imagining the possibility
Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem Coming 2016
Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem will release in the West for Wii U in 2016, Nintendo revealed at E3 today.
For more on the new Fire Emblem, check out what we know about its weapon balance updates, and the My Castle Mode.
For more Nintendo news, head over to the IGN E3 Hub.
Mitch Dyer is an Editor at IGN. He hosts IGN Arena, a podcast about MOBAs. Talk to Mitch about Dota 2, movies, books, and other stuff on Twitter at @MitchyD and subscribe to MitchyD on Twitch.
AMD Unveils Its 300 Series of Graphics Cards
Chipmaker AMD announced its newest lines of graphics cards, the R7 and R9 300 series.
The cards will be on sale beginning on Thursday, AMD said during its live presentation.
All of the cards in the R7 300 series will run DirectX 12 and have a new feature AMD calls "Framerate Target Control." The card can run "hundreds of frames" while only displaying 60 fps. The major benefit touted by AMD for this new feature is the ability for the cards to run cooler while still maintaining a beefy frame rate.
Fire Emblem: Fates Coming 2016
Fire Emblem Fates — called Fire Emblem If in Japan — is coming to the West in 2016. Nintendo revealed the 3DS game’s upcoming release during its E3 Digital Event today.
Fire Emblem If will be sold as two separate games in Japan. Nintendo did not address how Fire Emblem: Fates would be sold in the States.
For more Nintendo news, head over to the IGN E3 Hub.
Mitch Dyer is an Editor at IGN. He hosts IGN Arena, a podcast about MOBAs. Talk to Mitch about Dota 2, movies, books, and other stuff on Twitter at @MitchyD and subscribe to MitchyD on Twitch.
Metroid Prime Federation Force Announced for 3DS
A new Metroid game in the form of a cooperative multiplayer is heading to the 3DS in 2016 as Metroid Prime Federation Force, Nintendo revealed during its E3 Digital Event today.
The game includes Blast Ball as a mini game mode, a new 3v3 multiplayer game that was revealed during the 2015 World Championships this week.
Be sure to stay tuned IGN's E3 Hub for more on Nintendo and E3 news.
Jenna Pitcher is a freelance journalist writing for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter.
E3 2015: Hyrule Warriors Confrmed for the Nintendo 3DS
Legend of Zelda and Dynasty Warriors mash-up Hyrule Warriors is coming to the Nintendo 3DS in Q1 2016 as Hyrule Warriors Legends, Nintendo announced during its E3 Digital Event today.
The announcement confirms last week’s leaked footage of the 3DS version on developer Koei Tecmo's YouTube channel. According to Nintendo, the handheld version is a reimagining of the original Wii U game from Nintendo and Koei Tecmo.
Tetra and King Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule, both from The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, are set to join the game and anyone buying the 3DS edition will get these characters on Wii U.
Hyrule Warriors was released last September, and it was awarded a 7.0 in IGN's review. Be sure to stay tuned IGN's E3 Hub for more on Nintendo and E3 news.
The Legend of Zelda: Triforce Heroes Revealed for 3DS
Nintendo has announced The Legend of Zelda: Triforce Heroes, a co-op multiplayer adventure game for up to three players that's coming to 3DS in Fall 2015.
In a brief presentation, Zelda Producer Eiji Aonuma and Director Hiromasa Shikata gave an overview of how co-op will work in the new game.
The Zelda series has experimented with multiplayer gameplay in the past, but Nintendo wanted to make this iteration less focused around competition. "I wanted players to cooperatively enjoy more serious Zelda gameplay elements, like solving puzzles and going through dungeons," Shikata said.
The new footage shows off a totem mechanic, where Link can pick up his other two companions so they can stack up to reach higher places, activate switches, and hit weak points on taller enemies.
Shenmue 3 Smashes Kickstarter Target in Just 9 Hours
Shenmue III has been successfully funded on Kickstarter, smashing through its USD $2 million target less than nine hours after the campaign went live.
Sony showcased Shenmue III and revealed the game's crowdfunding campaign today during its E3 press conference.
"We can unfold the continuous story," said creator Yu Suzuki. "Shenmue III will be the story you have waited for. The fate of Shenmue is in your hands now."
The campaign began with several USD $10,000 pledge opportunities (one of which came with the original jacket worn by Masaya Matsukaze during Shenmue press events 14 years ago, and the other an invitation to a dinner party in Japan with Yu Suzuki) but they're all gone.
E3 2015: Kinect Games Will Not Be Backward Compatible
Microsoft won't be bringing Kinect titles to the Xbox One.
Xbox boss Phil Spencer told IGN that as the Xbox One will essentially be simulating Xbox 360 software, the system is unable to access any peripherals such as external storage units or Kinect.
Xbox One backward compatibility is available now for preview members and everyone this holiday. For a list on what 360 games preview members can access now, IGN has you covered.
Sony’s 2015 E3 Press Conference Review
You have to give it to Sony: they know exactly what the fans want. At tonight’s press conference, the crowd spent a great deal of time shaking its head in disbelief; they actually did it. While its momentum came and went in peaks and troughs, for the most part this was a terrific conference from a publisher with a remarkably confident grasp on its brand and its brand’s future. A publisher that, at this stage of popularity, can afford to shrug its shoulders, look at a Final Fantasy 7 remake and say: “well, why not?”
The first hour of Sony’s conference was a ridiculous excess of mic-drops, and the first announcement set the tone. The Last Guardian not only exists, but will be coming next year, and there was some gorgeous footage to prove it. The significance of The Last Guardian as a living, breathing thing can’t be understated: like fellow fan-wet-dreams Half-Life 3 or Beyond Good and Evil 2, its existence had become mythic. That the publisher threw it in as the opener spoke volumes to its confidence heading into the show.