GDC full of news ...

I contemplated going to GDC this year. I've been trying to get back into the gaming industry, and while I'm working to finish my degree, GDC, DICE, E3, and other such gatherings are great places to network. I'm embarrassed to say that in my younger days, I didn't fully appreciate the opportunities that such events offered, and as a result, I've fallen out of contact with many former colleagues and acquaintances over the years (with a couple notable examples). I've been working to make more contacts, and keeping them up to date, and E3 should go a long way towards that goal this year.

Anyway, I would have gone to GDC if my school schedule would have solidified sooner, but as it turns out, two of my instructors didn't get around to deciding if THEY were going until the last minute, so I wasn't able to get down to California. Turns out that GDC was uncharacteristically high on news this year. Normally, companies hold back until E3 in May, then blow the doors off the place with major announcements and product unveilings. While this year is still going to be huge for E3, with three major consoles all having their cloak of secrecy dropped, companies were suprisingly talkative at GDC this year.

The biggest surprise was no doubt Nintendo, who is normally annoyingly secretive, revealed that not only is their next console (codenamed Revolution) going to be backwards compatible with GameCube software, but that the Nintendo DS handheld will be going online before the end of the year, through an online service Nintendo vows will be free. They also mentioned that Revolution will have built-in wireless as well, and probably connect users through the same online service. Sounds like Nintendo has taken notice of Microsoft's dominance in online gaming, and is looking to take a chunk of that market. How attractive is Xbox Live going to look when it costs $50 a year, but Nintendo's offering is free? It'll all come down to software, of course, but that's pretty compelling in and of itself.

Of course, Nintendo revealed some software news as well, with the big surprise (well, confirmation, anyway) being a version of Animal Crossing for Nintendo DS, wireless enabled. This could very well be the killer app for Nintendo DS, showcasing not only wireless, but the touch-screen as well. Nintendo also announced Mario Kart DS, which was stated as supporting 8-Player LAN (no mention of online, which is a shame, since there's little difference), and capped the announcements with a new Legend of Zelda trailer that stunned everyone.

Basically, Nintendo said all the right things. Reggie Fils-Aime gave some interviews over the course of the week, backpedalling on what is being written off to translation errors on Iwata-san's earlier statement about Revolution possibly alienating third-parties. Essentially, the way it was meant to come across is that some of Revolution's features might make straight ports of games more difficult, so developers will be challeged to create new game experiences for Revolution (and Nintendo DS, incidentally).

The news wasn't all Nintendo, though. Sony was rumored to have a closed-door session with Sony execs to show off the PlayStation 3, and Xbox head J. Allard gave a keynote which focused on the idea of the "HD Era" of gaming, and even gave away 1000 Samsung HDTV's! (Now I really wish I'd gone to GDC!) Overall, GDC looks to be a pretty good indicator of the level of announcements we're going to see at E3.

(My buddies over at Planet GameCube have more information on Nintendo's big reveal, and for some recaps of the keynotes, check out Alice's Wonderland.)