[HTML1]

As part of its E3 2015 activities, Nintendo revived the Nintendo World Championships, which pitted eight players against each other in a showdown to see who’s the best Nintendo player across a handful of games. However, the event wasn't just about testing players’ skills; Nintendo used the Championships as an opportunity to but also about show off some new games, too.

One of these new titles is a Nintendo 3DS game called Blast Ball, an online first person shooter in which players load up in mech suits and shoot at a giant ball into an enemy goal. Blast Ball is a 3v3 multiplayer game that lets players shoot both the ball and each other, charge up their weapon for an extra powerful shot, and sacrifice themselves to help their team.

Nintendo didn’t provide much information beyond the initial reveal, although it sounds like the new game is a part of Nintendo’s recent push into eSports. As games like Dota 2 and Call of Duty continue to find great success in the eSports industry, it’s not surprising other game companies, especially Nintendo, are interested in nabbing a piece of the pie. In fact, it seems like Nintendo’s resurrection of the Nintendo World Championships is a big part of that push.

More details about Blast Ball are forthcoming, including the release date and price. It’s also not clear if E3 show-goers will have an opportunity to play the new 3DS game at the event.

It’ll be interesting to see how well Blast Ball is received on 3DS, and if it truly does become a part of Nintendo’s eSports arsenal. To date, the biggest competitive games are played on PC, with only a few console titles - most notably the Halo series - making strong headway in the eSports space. The handheld eSports market is fairly open, and Nintendo may be looking to snatch up a ton of market share early, before competitors like Sony’s PlayStation Vita enter the fray.

Doing so, however, will be a risk and a challenge, as it would mean that Nintendo is using time and resources in an effort to establish a new, unproven eSports market. But if the company is successful, the gaming giant may see a massive return - and 3DS gamers could see other eSports titles hit the scene in the near future.

What do you think of Nintendo’s new Blast Ball game for Nintendo 3DS? Let us know in the comments.

Source: YouTube