Nintendo Outlines E3 2014 Plans, Forgoes Press Conference

At E3 2014, Nintendo will offer a series of new channels to communicate news directly to its key audiences. This includes a new format for unveiling news: the Nintendo Digital Event; a Super Smash Bros. tournament; a slate of live game demos from the Nintendo booth; and an opportunity for fans to play Super Smash Bros. for Wii U for the first time at their local Best Buy – all under the unifying banner of “Play Nintendo.”

Super Smash Bros. Invitational

2014 will see the arrival of not one, but two new Super Smash Bros. games: Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. To commemorate this occasion, Nintendo is inviting 16 Super Smash Bros. players to the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in Los Angeles to compete in a Super Smash Bros. for Wii U tournament. Fans in the audience and watching a live stream online will see new Super Smash Bros. characters clash with existing favourites in action for the first time. More important than declaring a winner, however, this event is a celebration of all things Super Smash Bros. More information about the 16 invited participants in the tournament, the identity of the announcers, and how fans of the franchise can view the tournament in person and via webcast, will be communicated shortly.

Nintendo Digital Event

Every year, Nintendo looks for the best way to show its games and share its news with fans, media and other key audiences. In 2013, Nintendo decided to forgo a traditional press conference and use a video – in that case a Nintendo Direct – to share its news from E3. The company is building on that approach at E3 2014 with the “Nintendo Digital Event,” a new kind of video program that will reveal and provide further detail about the gaming experiences on the way for Nintendo platforms in 2014 and beyond. The Nintendo Digital Event will air at 12pm ET on Tuesday, June 10th.

Nintendo Treehouse: Live @ E3

This year, Nintendo will offer fans a deeper look at it’s biggest games of E3, with information directly from the source. The “Treehouse,” the Product Development department at Nintendo of America, will provide game demos live and unscripted from Nintendo’s booth. This new program will be live streamed during all hours of the E3 show.

Super Smash Bros. Smash Fest @ Best Buy

In 2013, Nintendo expanded its E3 activities outside of the walls of the Los Angeles Convention Center by letting fans play some of the games being played on the show floor at participating Best Buy stores. The partnership between Nintendo and Best Buy continues in 2014 and will mark the first time that fans have had the opportunity to get their hands on Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.