E3 2009: Nintendo Announces Golden Sun DS, Shows Several RPGs

UPDATE: Trailers for Crystal Bearers, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, and Golden Sun DS up. Still waiting on Bowser's Inside Story vid.

During Nintendo's E3 press conference this morning, the company showed off several RPGs for both their Wii and DS systems, both from Nintendo itself, as well as several from RPG giant Square Enix.

As the only representation for the Nintendo Wii, Square Enix's Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers received some time in the spotlight, gaining a new trailer, but still silent on a release date. The game continues to look interesting, but may not appeal to fans of the older Crystal Chronicles, as it appears to be heavily story-driven.



Next, Nintendo gave us another look at Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days for Nintendo DS, the latest in Square Enix's Final Fantasy meets Disney crossover ARPG series. It is slated for a release in North America sometime this September, and will apparently feature the English version Hikaru Utada's song 'Passion,' known as 'Sanctuary' and used in KH2.


Nintendo then took some time to announce Mario & Luigi RPG 3 for North America, receiving a name-change to Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story. M&L3 features classic 2D sprites with timed elements in battle. The story follows Mario, Luigi, and several other citizens of the Mushroom Kingdom as they get trapped inside Bowser's body. It will be reportedly available in North America and Europe sometime this fall.

Finally, Nintendo's big RPG announcement came that they would be resurrecting the GBA RPG franchise Golden Sun with lazily-named Golden Sun DS. It will feature full 3D graphics (think the Final Fantasy DS remakes) and a new story. Details are scarce at the moment, but it was announced that we will have the game sometime in 2010.



It should be noted that The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks was also mentioned, but no new footage nor a release date were given. It will apparently be playable on the show floor, so there is a good chance to see the game's release in the near future.

Overall, though Nintendo failed to show Microsoft up in terms of technology and innovation (plus the incredibly embarrassing pulse tracker peripheral), their selection of new game announcements was very impressive.

I personally would have liked to see the new Golden Sun get the Wii treatment over the DS, but I guess I'll take what I can get. Also, if Nintendo is bringing that over, what's the deal with ditching ASH and Soma Bringer (which are exceptionally well-developed titles)?

But all in all, not a bad show, Nintendo. Not bad at all.