I know I've been blogging about Nintendo a lot lately, but the keynote has come to pass and lo-and-behold: 3 of my 6 predictions have come true. We now have a new peripheral which gives the Wii Remote 1 for 1 motion controls (something that it should have had to begin with), more games that use the Balance Board peripheral and a new Animal Crossing. We also have Wii Music which is essentially a music rhythm game for people with no knowledge of music or rhythm - You don't need to be able to play an instrument, but you *are* guaranteed to look like an idiot. Seeing Shiggy & Pals waving their electronic wagglesticks to the very disjointed tune of Super Mario Bros was an embarrassment comparable to seeing your grandparents dancing to The Electric Slide at a wedding. But nevertheless, I soldiered on.

The presentation itself was full of so much slap-happy glee that it was almost physically painful to watch, especially that horrible woman whose unrelenting grin almost convinced me that I was watching a commercial for Male Enhancement pills. I have to hand it to Nintendo: They've really hit the nail on the head with their market demographic, both in product and presentation. Take out all talk of technology and you'd think these guys are selling Prozac.

I think it's very clear at this point that Nintendo doesn't care about any audience other than non-gamers. Now, I use the term 'non-gamer' because quite frankly I'm sick of referring to these people as 'casual gamers.' Why? Because they aren't gamers: They're soccer moms and children and businessmen. They are the kind of people who view video games as merely another source of cheap thrills: To them, the experience of playing games is just an alternative to paying for an overpriced movie ticket and seeing 'Meet the Spartans'.

By the same token, I'm just as sick of the term 'hardcore'. As I've said before, I want Nintendo to resume making games for GAMERS. Today they've made it quite evident that they don't intend to do that, and instead they will continue to cash in on peripherals. Reggie (or 'THE REGGINATOR' as his new monicker seems to be) even had the gall to suggest after the event that they "haven't forgotten about the hardcore", citing the fact that they announced Animal Crossing. Not only is the association of Animal Crossing with the term 'hardcore' absolutely hilarious, but it also shows how ludicrous the demands for 'hardcore' games are. I don't consider Zelda, Metroid or Star Fox to be 'hardcore games', but they are games made with gamers in mind, which is more than I can say of anything that came from Nintendo this morning. Regardless, Reggie did mention that he "couldn't possibly show everything we have in store," so who knows? Maybe Starfox Wii is just around the corner. But for now, Nintendo wants to get more press. Let's face it: Nintendo is well aware that while the gaming community might turn the other cheek at their E3 offerings, the mainstream media is going to eat it all up, crowning Nintendo once again as the indisputable masters of "innovation." Whatever. Let's just hope that Nintendo uses their success for good and not evil.