MARIO KART DOUBLE DASH!!
© 2003 Nintendo

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E3 2003: Nintendo - Part One

Nintendo has always been known for having incredible lineups in their booths at E3. While the year 2003 didn't have a new GameCube Mario, Metroid, or Zelda game adorning the booth, Nintendo still had quite a few high-quality titles that packed showgoers in and kept the booth rocking throughout the show. Once again there was a great mix of Game Boy Advance and GameCube titles that Nintendo fans will be more than happy to play.

MARIO KART DOUBLE DASH: Everybody loves MARIO KART, and it was evident by the lines that formed to play the game. That said, the game put some new twists on the game by giving you a choice of driver and gunner, which can be swapped on the fly. Each character has their own driving stats and own set of weapons that can be used. It makes for a much more interesting game, but I got schooled on the showfloor. The LAN-play that allows for 8-player will become a staple of college life this fall.

FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLES: Where to include this? Squaresoft or Nintendo? Well, I think it belongs here with Nintendo publishing this eagerly anticipated title. The game stresses cooperative multiplayer gameplay through use of the Game Boy Advance Connectivity. Your stats and inventory are displayed on the Game Boy screen, as well as other vital info. Also, one person has to keep a life support system centered around your group. It looks to be a ton of fun when it is finally released.

CONNECTIVITY: Okay, this isn't one game, but multiple. Nintendo was showing a lot of titles that stress connectivity between the Game Boy Advance and the GameCube. One of these was THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: FOUR SWORDS for the GameCube that lets you play four-player old-school Zelda by using Game Boys as controllers. PAC-MAN FOR NINTENDO GAMECUBE has one player using a Game Boy as Pac-Man, this player can see the whole map on his screen. Meanwhile, the other three players are ghosts that can only see a portion of the screen around where they are on the map. Ultimately Nintendo has some really cool ideas for this feature, now the community must embrace it.

PIKMIN 2: Captain Olimar has returned to the planet of the Pikmin, but this time he has brought an assistant. This allows you to play as both characters (alternating control) or playing with another player cooperatively. There are new types of Pikmin added into the mix as well and it should make for a great sequel for fans of the original quirky game.

F-ZERO GX: Nintendo's high-speed racer makes its appearance on GameCube, with a counterpart version also hitting arcades. In the GameCube game, you'll be able to customize your futuristic racer and save it to a memory card to take into the arcade. With over 8,000 different combinations, there should be quite a bit of variation in the racers. With a company like Sega developing the game for the Big N, you know the racing elements will be top-notch.