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Wind Waker HD, Redefining Zelda, And Third-Party Collaborations Show Wii U Means Business Jan 23rd 2013, 19:31 Since it first debuted in October 2001, Nintendo Direct has been used for many things, from detailing Miiverse to delivering some of the most important details about Wii U (namely, its price and release date). Despite being only just over half an hour in length, the Direct event broadcast this morning offered up a more exciting glimpse of Wii U's future than any previous attempt at doing so, including last year's E3. I found it difficult not to walk away from Nintendo's 2013 E3 press briefing feeling disappointed. Nintendo chose to focus almost entirely on launch games, and while there were many solid games to be shown -- New Super Mario Bros. U, Batman: Arkham City, Mass Effect 3, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, and so on -- there wasn't much in the way of innovative uses of the GamePad, or exciting new, original games. One of the few games that at least partially fit that bill, The Wonderful 101, was largely snubbed during the briefing, which instead at one point had a painfully scripted conversation with Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot. It wasn't until the Nintendo Direct event in September that we learned Bayonetta 2 would be a Wii U exclusive, which is precisely the sort of announcement the company needed to be making if it wanted to win over hardcore gamers wary of the notoriously meager third-party support its systems have touted in the post-SNES era. Ni no Kuni Review: Expect the Expected Jan 23rd 2013, 00:01 In case you haven't noticed, we at 1UP have been a bit wary about using the term "Japanese RPG" within the past year or so. With experiences like The Last Story, Xenoblade Chronicles, and Dark Souls eroding our preconceived notions about role-playing games from the East, the term "JRPG" is rapidly losing the meaning it once had -- especially now that American creations like Costume Quest, Cthulu Saves the World, and Penny Arcade 3 have adopted certain design tropes once associated with another country. But even as the exciting world of genre classification continues to spin into total anarchy, some developers take no issue with delivering the expected; both Dragon Quest and Pokemon stand as excellent examples of developers continuing to iterate on a limited, time-tested formula, all while offering up enough new ideas to sustain the series. These two series may rely on ideas unchanged for decades, but they do so in a manner that keeps players engaged and addicted. The Cave Review: A 21st Century Adventure Jan 22nd 2013, 21:53 I really don't need to tell any of you adventure game fans that we're in the midst of a genre renaissance. This past year has seen a wealth of titles that present many different takes on one of gaming's oldest genres. From Telltale's award-winning adaptation of The Walking Dead, to iOS showcases like The Room, to beautiful sleeper hits like Kentucky Route Zero, those looking for narrative-based puzzle solving have no shortage of options. But each of those games I just mentioned come from relatively young voices in our medium, despite their respective levels of quality being more reflective of seasoned creators. It's with that in mind that we enter The Cave, Double Fine's latest straight from the mind of adventure game pioneer Ron Gilbert. For the Maniac Mansion/Monkey Island creator's latest tale, we're immediately introduced to an omniscient, devious, and hilarious narrator who also just so happens to be the titular cave. As our Sherpa on this downward quest, The Cave himself (itself?) provides many of the game's most memorable moments, and is immediately a strong contender for 2013's best new character. In the spirit of Maniac Mansion, the first decision the player makes stems from choosing a trio of heroes to send into the dark depths of Gilbert's world. These adventurers range across all genres -- a Time Traveler, a Buddhist Monk, and a pair of creepy, Shining-inspired kids are all at your disposal. Each of the seven tortured souls has a specific reason for journeying into the cave, which is conveyed through single-frame paintings that you find scattered throughout the environment. As you descend deeper and deeper, you'll realize that each character may or may not represent one of the seven deadly sins, and parsing out their darkly-comedic backstories is one of the true joys to The Cave.

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