Some gamers are under the impression that Nintendo does not bother to publish hardcore titles in favor of more family-oriented titles such as Wii Sports. While it is indeed true that Nintendo does commit a lot of their resources to titles that will appeal to a wide demographic, every now and again a unique title comes along that is designed specifically for the core gamer. Come this September, Samurai Warriors 3 will hitting store shelves courtesy of Nintendo and Tecmo-Koei, and one thing is certain - this is definitely not your average Wii game.

By choosing from one of 35 different characters, players will advance through action-packed stages full of challenges and enemies. Each character has their own unique skills and arsenal of weapons, and this can be upgraded by collecting gems scattered throughout each stage. Perhaps even more interesting though, is that each character offers a different perspective on the story.

One of the game’s modes, entitled Murasame Castle, players fight alongside of Takamaru to solve puzzles and uncover the mystery of the castle. This mode is inspired by the Famicom game, The Mysterious Murasame Castle. Players can also battle cooperatively through Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection in this mode.

Samurai Warriors 3 has already been released in other major regions of the world and is due for an American release on September 27. -Matthew Blundon

Samus fans are chomping at this newest spacefaring adventure, this time brought to you by Team Ninja, the people responsible for the Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive games. Don’t worry, though. Everybody’s favorite blonde bounty hunter isn’t going to be slashing enemies with swords or playing volleyball. Instead, she’ll be traversing a giant 3D space station called the Bottle Ship in 3rd person. The game promises to delve deep into our heroine’s colorful backstory, specifically dealing with her relationship with the Galactic Federation military and her former commanding officer, Adam Malcovich.

The game looks beautiful, as one would expect from the developers of Xtreme Beach Volleyball, and it features an interesting control scheme. Players hold the Wii Remote NES-style most of the time and can attack enemies merely by facing their general direction. For more precise aiming, or to interact with or notice specific environmental features, you need only point the Remote toward the screen, and Samus’ viewpoint will instantly change to a Metroid Prime-style 1st person view. From here, Samus is unable to move, but she can lock onto target and fire missiles. It’s a unique gameplay device.

The only knock against Other M is that it doesn’t use the Nuchuck, even though Samus is traveling in 3D space. Exactly how much of a hassle this will be is currently unknown, but it’s a minor sticking point for what otherwise looks like an incredible Metroid experience. Fans have been clambering for a new 2D Metroid since Fusion on the GBA, and Other M looks like it will fill that niche quite well. I guess we’ll find out for sure on August 31st, when the game hits store shelves.

Would you like to know more? Try Jonny’s E3 impressions, Neal’s E3 impressions, and Aaron’s Media Summit impressions. -Zach Miller