Nintendo released a
DVD in November 2002 to allow gamers to watch
video clips and
commercials of upcoming
Nintendo GameCube and
Game Boy Advance games from the comfort of their own homes. The
DVD comes in a paper sleeve with
Samus Aran on the front and is available free at retailers, comes as a pack-in in the December 2002
Nintendo Power magazine, or comes with preorders at some retailers.
Best Buy, for example, gave the
DVD away in their
Metroid Prime preorder package.
The DVD opens with a montage of new GameCube games set to a techno remix of the classic Super Mario Brothers theme. This montage then transitions to the main menu. The first page of the menu highlights Nintendo's first and second party games: Metroid Prime, Star Fox Adventures, Super Mario Sunshine, Animal Crossing, and Mario Party 4. Choosing a game opens up a submenu that accesses a game trailer, video clips, and in some cases some neat extras. Metroid Prime's menu features a look at the Metroid saga and gives the basic plot of each game in the series plus video clips. Super Mario Sunshine's menu includes some game hints, such as how to collect hidden blue coins.
The next two pages of the main menu showcase third-party games, such as James Bond 007: Nitefire and Super Monkey Ball 2. Third-party games only showcase a single trailer.
Also accessible from the main menu is the Game Boy Advance menu, although its offerings are limited. Viewers can choose to watch a commercial for the animated Kirby: Right Back At Ya! series, a commercial for Super Mario Advance 3, or a basic trailer of upcoming GBA games (such as Metroid Fusion and Kirby: Nightmare in Dreamland). Also available is the commercial for the E-reader device.
The DVD also includes some DVD-ROM content in the form of Samus Aran icons and a customized Metroid Prime web browser. This content is also available on the Nintendo website for those without DVD-ROM drives. Like any good DVD, this disc has some hidden content lurking in the shadows. Accessing the main GameCube logo on the main menu will unlock footage of games for 2003, such as the new The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and F-Zero game.
If you're a fan of downloading tiny video clips from gaming websites, this DVD will save you time, bandwidth, and eye strain by presenting all that promotional content in quick-to-load and easy-to-see format. It's worth a look or two, but not for repeated viewing.
References:
Watching the DVD