20 Years Since Nintendo's Space World 2000
Where the GameCube got its name! Also: a quick history of Hideki Konno, Indie World thoughts, toddlers playing Mario Kart, and more.
Not gonna lie, there might have been a moment where I wasn’t gonna follow through with doing this for another week. Happy to have not let it slip, but it’s been a BUSY week. First off - hey you - subscribe?
In this edition, I’ll look fondly back on Nintendo’s Space World 2000 (with direct quotes from 2000 Billy Berghammer - who was in attendance in Japan!) and then do a quick hit on Luigi’s Mansion Director (and overall Nintendo superstar) Hideki Konno. But first, here’s some thoughts on Nintendo’s Indie World presentation this week as well as the crucial update in what my kid is playing.
First Things First: New Indie Switch Games Are Rad
Nintendo hosted an Indie World stream on Tuesday, which is where Nintendo partners with a bunch of independent developers (and sometimes Microsoft) to show off and reveal games. This week’s show was prolific in the fact that SIX games came out right after the video. That assortment is stacked in its own right. Some quick notes on those games:
Spiritfarer: A cozy management sim about dying with spectacular artwork. I played a demo of it back at PAX East and it blew me away. You guide a ship around an ocean, ferrying furry animals to the afterlife. It looks emotional and beautiful. I look forward to playing it.
Manifold Garden: MC Escher first-person puzzler on acid. I’m an hour or so into it and really digging it. The puzzles have been tough but fair, usually making me feel smart as opposed to dumb, which is a challenging balance to nail.
A Short Hike: I’ve heard this described as “2D Breath of the Wild with an Animal Crossing vibe.” It’s been on my to-play list for a while and I’d rather play it on my Switch than PC, so sweet!
Takeshi and Hiroshi: A cute narrative-driven game about an older brother making a video game for his younger brother to play. I played the first chapter and it seems like the younger brother is sick and if this ends with the younger brother dying, I’m not gonna be thrilled.
Raji: An Ancient Epic: I played a demo of this a few weeks ago and it was really promising. It’s an Indian-inspired adventure made by Indian developers. That’s neat. Also the game looks fun as hell.
Evergate: 2D puzzle platformer that I thought was just Ori for a second. Haven’t tried it yet, but it looks neat.
Anyway, all six of them seem super dope. I hope to play more of them soon.
Want to know more? Welll….
This Week in Planet GameCube
20 years ago this week, NWR/Planet GameCube founder Billy Berghammer went to Space World 2000.
And boy oh boy - was that a wild show. It was the coming out party for the GameCube. They announced the name, showed off a ton of demos (some of which would live in infamy). There’s a lot to sift through on that linked event page, but here’s some choice quotes. Remember: this was the year 2000.
On the GameCube name…
As far as the name is concerned, I love it. Gamecube. It says what it is. It’s a box full of love. You can sit in the message boards and forums and debate it all you like. But that’s what it is. Gamecube is going to be a name you’ll remember. It's a cube that plays game. Easy. Fine.
On Metroid being shown… (this was just a quick video demo; nothing hinted at the first-person Metroid Prime)
Looks like the true Nintendophiles have been heard on this one. Samus will be making her way back onto the big screen. The tunnel sequence of Samus running with 20-30 spider-ish enemies chasing her just makes my stomach growl for nourishment. Samus has never had it this rough. I am ready.
On the Zelda demo (it was realistic, showing a fight between Link and Ganondorf. We were a year away from Wind Waker being shown)
Ganon and Link going at it. Hell yeah. There’s a lot happening in a little time frame. Look at how the clothes and hair of each of the characters flow in this. Do not doubt that this title is fully in the works. I doubt the final battle between Ganon and Link would look like this. Maybe this isn’t even Ganon. Maybe like a pre-boss or something. Ganon was a lot larger than Link in the N64 version.
My favorite part of the Demo is the part when Ganon (or whoever) gestures to Link to “bring it on” and Link tosses his shield aside and goes at it. Tingles and goose bumps were rampant at this point. C’mere Ganon….got a little present for ya! And look how large the environment is. Zelda on the N64 was unbelievable….but this….oh man.
On the early Luigi’s Mansion footage shown (when it wasn’t completely spelled out as a brand new game)
I think the main surprise at the show was the fact that Mario wasn’t shown on the game play demo. Yes Mario was in the “Mario 128” demo, but that doesn’t count because that was just a demo. The second Luigi popped his head up made people go entirely nuts. In a ghost house no less. From what I’ve heard this is in game footage.
Luigi is playable? What is Luigi’s role then? That was my question to Shigeru during the round table discussion. Oh course, it was completely dodged. I expect will see the return of the Mario Brothers. Something is going on here. Luigi is in a Ghost house. And damn does it look beautiful. The ghosts were incredible. Looks like boo got a total make over. It’s more creepy, and more, dare I say…realistic looking. Maybe that’s where the “maturity” will be. Mario better get more than cake this time around.
Stuff My Kid Is Playing
He’s still into the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater demo. What can I say: he’s totally mine. We actually passed the controller back and forth. He’s still not good at it, but it’s cool that he enjoys just playing around with it.
This week’s revelation might have been the fact that, after months of watching me playing Mario Kart Tour on my phone, he has now decided it’s his turn to play. I feared this day would come. With that being said, I might have to delete Mario Kart Tour from my phone for my wallet’s safety. That kid would figure out how to go gacha-crazy.
Relatively low-key week of this-is-probably-too-much-screentime-but-I-work-from-home-and-I-have-to-live game time for the boy. The weather has been nicer (as opposed to the oppressive heat and rain of the previous week), so we haven’t sat down and fiddled with the Switch much.
Nintendo Developer of the Week
Hideki Konno is currently in charge of mobile game development at Nintendo, but his legacy is vast and wonderful. He was 21 years old when he strolled into Nintendo in 1986, already a fan of the Famicom. His first major project was Doki Doki Panic. 80% of you are probably like “hey fun fact: Doki Doki Panic became Super Mario Bros. 2 in America!” And you’re right. It did! The Super Mario Bros. 2 we all grew up with in the States was Konno’s first game. He worked on course design.
The next few years are a murderer’s row of classics. He directed Ice Hockey on the NES and then worked on Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World. He created Mario Kart with Super Mario Kart, and then before bringing Mario Kart to 3D on Nintendo 64, went and completed his 2D Mario mastery exam by directing Yoshi’s Island.
After that run, Konno began his ascension to what I dub “Nintendo Producer Heaven.” A lot of Nintendo’s core talent from the NES and SNES have gone there. It’s where they transition from being more of an overall manager to portions of Nintendo’s library. On the Nintendo 64, Konno closed out his time working on Yoshi’s Story and F-Zero X.
Another game he worked on on the Nintendo 64 was a Luigi prototype that eventually became Luigi’s Mansion, a launch title on GameCube (that was shown off for the first time at Space World 2000!). That was the last game he directed.
Konno was largely in charge of the Mario Kart and Nintendogs franchises for the first decade of the 2000s. When the decade turned, Konno helped bring out the Nintendo 3DS. While consoles are always a large team effort, Nintendo will usually have a specific developer as the main producer. Konno took that role for the 3DS, which honestly is probably why, when Nintendo entered the mobile phone game space, he led that team.
Over the the past five years, Konno has been the producer for most every major Nintendo mobile game. He was there for: Super Mario Run, Fire Emblem Heroes, Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, Dragalia Lost (which is way better than you probably think it is!), Dr. Mario World, and my beloved Mario Kart Tour. I can only assume he’s making the mobile Zelda Picross game I’ve been craving for years now.
There is a part of me that laments that Hideki Konno is just working in the realm of iOS and Android devices, but if the dude’s happy with that, awesome. Just on the basis of his output from 1988 to 1995, he’s an absolute legend. He was instrumental in Super Mario Bros. 2, 3, and World, as well as Yoshi’s Island. And then there’s his Mario Kart work! Anyway - thanks for all the fun, sir.
Anyway, I’m probably going to have way too many reviews up in the next week or so. PGA Tour 2K21, [REDACTED], One Line Coloring, hopefully Moon. Late August got very busy!