Today, at a Nintendo Direct presentation, Link to the Past 2 was unveiled as a 3D graphics enhanced traditional Zelda game. This is the first time we've had a new game of this kind since Minish Cap.

A year ago, Miyamoto commented on the idea of a remake to the SNES classic Link to the Past, saying that he'd much rather see a follow-up title than a simple 3D-ification of the classic. Of course, for news starved Zelda fans, any news is good news.

Turns out, follow-up means sequel! The new game will utilize its new platform in some unique ways — while predominantly a "2D" game, the player can shift perspective by becoming a drawing on a wall, and move within the third dimension to solve puzzles. There will also be new layers of depth, heightened by the 3D effects of the device. 3DS owners can find a 3D enabled video demonstrating these features later today on the 3DS eshop.

In other Zelda news, Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages will be available on the 3DS store May 30, complete with game-linking features. Huzzah!

This morning at 9 AM EST, Satoru Iwata addressed the general public on the future of the Wii U. Along with a decent amount of news, we learned that a new Zelda that "rethinks conventions of Zelda" is in development. Also, an HD Wind Waker will come this Fall.

On the full page version of this article, you can see a direct transcript of the English translation of Zelda series director Eiji Aonuma's presentation, as well as Iwata's follow-up remarks.

Most notable of the details revealed are that the new Zelda will revisit ideas like linearity in dungeon completion and the idea of playing alone. If they're willing to make Zelda a multiplayer game (beyond, perhaps the extend of Four Swords), we may be in for something legitimately new. There is also some mention by Iwata that we will get to see some of the challenges the Zelda team will face soon, as in an Iwata Asks, though this could be a mistake of language.

As for the Wind Waker HD release, it sounds like the game will be adapted to the Wii U control scheme and potentially given a slightly-more-than-cosmetic overhaul on the level Ocarina of Time received with its 3DS release. My only fear is that the true beauty of Wind Waker may be lost behind bloom effects and soft lighting as seen in the released screenshots (which are not necessarily of the HD remake, but rather of a test case put together by the Zelda team while experimenting with Wii U hardware).

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This morning Nintendo President Satoru Iwata announced two new entries into the Pokémon series: Pokémon X and Y for the Nintendo 3DS, coming October 2013 worldwide! For the first time in the franchise's history, there is a simultaneous (or near-simultaneous) release date for most major markets. For a text-heavy RPG, this will be a great accomplishment of localization. Hearing this news was well worth my waking up early.

The announcement is unusual for the quantity of information we were given. Rather than the usual slow trickle of title, followed by vague screenshots and silhouettes of new Pokémon, we had a full trailer showing gameplay, starters, and version-exclusive legendaries. There is a lot of room for speculation in said trailer, and I have a few ideas.

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Nintendo made the Wii U available for Club Nintendo Platinum members to play last week. I attended!

The GamePad controller is light, easy to manipulate, and not as obtrusive as it seems at first. Ultimately, my fears about the controller’s usability are gone. Yet, based on the selection of games I tried, I fear that Nintendo will be the only company to ever use a tablet controller effectively, as was the usual case for the Wii and DS. We've already seen the DS introduce a second screen, and there's not much else that can be done here that the DS hasn't already attempted.

The GamePad does not need to exist. None of the games demonstrated a clear need for this controller.

The tablets' companion piece, the Pro controller, needlessly messes with standard controller layout. It swaps the positions of the right A/B/X/Y buttons and the right analog stick, which is not impossible to get used to, but it begs the question: Why? The same question applies to everything about the Wii U.

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E3 was underwhelming this year. There were few real surprises, besides Ubisoft's Watch_Dogs, and maybe The Last of Us and Pikmin 3. Now, two weeks later, there’s very little of the typical post-E3 energy left.

By or at next year's convention, Sony's Orbis, and Microsoft's Durango will be unveiled. New consoles mean new dev kits, new engines, new assets, and new opportunities for old franchises to shine once more, plus a chance for new IP to establish itself. As such, this year was laid back, with developers and publishers afraid to get too ahead of themselves. They focused on the retailer, stockholder, and investor angle of the show. As a core gamer, I feel like I’ve nothing to be excited about.

I've provided some light commentary from the perspective of a gamer who wants real games — not pandering, not investment advice. Let us hear about the games that struck you most.

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