The screen produced a ripple-like distortion effect, followed by a cut to the loading screen.
"There's no frame drop in this transition effect," a technical director from Sony North America frowned. "That custom chip from SGI has stronger floating-point performance than we estimated."
Entering the level.
Bob-omb Battlefield.
This was a completely open 3D box-garden world.
There was no clear finish line flag, only stars scattered throughout the area.
Miyamoto operated Mario, running through the scene, and encountered a giant black Bob-omb.
In traditional Mario games, the way to deal with enemies was to jump on them.
This time, Miyamoto didn't jump.
He maneuvered Mario behind the Bob-omb, pressed the action button, and Mario lifted the Bob-omb, which was bigger than himself.
Adjusting the direction with the joystick, he pressed the button again, and the Bob-omb was thrown, crashing into a wooden crate in the distance with a loud bang. The crate shattered, and the Bob-omb disappeared.
"Interaction," Probst whispered in the audience. "Not just interaction between the character and the environment, but also physical interaction between the character and enemies. This engine is too powerful."
Shigeru Miyamoto showcased various gameplay mechanics in the level, such as pushing crates, sliding down grass slopes, and using cannons to launch oneself.
The entire demonstration lasted fifteen minutes.
In those fifteen minutes, there were no tedious explanations of parameters, and no showy cutscenes.
It was all genuine gameplay footage.
"This is *Super Mario 64*," Miyamoto said as he put down the controller. On the big screen, the image froze with Mario holding a star and flashing a V-sign at the camera.
Thunderous applause erupted.
Someone stood up and whistled.
Miyamoto's demonstration answered a question the industry had been debating for the past year: how to make 3D games fun. Although Sega had provided some interesting examples in a few of their games, it seemed that wasn't the whole story.
At Nintendo, the focus wasn't on piling up polygons or applying high-resolution textures, but on building an intuitive, responsive play space.
After the applause subsided, Miyamoto did not leave the stage.
"Mario is just the beginning," Miyamoto said, walking to the center of the stage. "There is still much more that the N64's capabilities can do."
Probst whispered from the audience, "It's not just the interaction between the character and the environment, but also the physical interaction between the character and the enemies. This engine is incredibly powerful."
The big screen went black, then lit up again.
The white noise of waves played.
On the screen was a shimmering expanse of water.
Sunlight shone on the water, reflecting blinding glints of light.
The big screen goes black, then lights up.
The white noise of ocean waves fills the room.
On the screen is a shimmering expanse of water.
Sunlight hits the water's surface, reflecting blinding glares.
A yellow jet ski rushes into the frame; the driver, wearing a life vest, bobs up and down with the undulating waves
.
The jet ski accelerates, carving two distinct white wakes on the water.
Hitting a large wave, the jet ski launches into the air. The driver performs a mid-air rotation before slamming back down onto the water, sending a massive spray into the air.
*Wave Race 64*.
The audience falls completely silent.
Before 1996, rendering water in games had always been a developer's nightmare.
Most games could only simulate water with a single texture, or at best, add some simple pixel distortion effects.
What was shown on the big screen was real-time fluid physics simulation.
The waves didn't just have visual rises and falls; they exerted real physical influence on the jet ski.
Accelerating with the waves, slowing down against them, the jet ski tilted due to centrifugal force when turning—there was even a risk of capsizing.
The waves not only have visual undulations, but also have a real physical impact on the jet skis.
Riding with the waves increases speed, while riding against them decreases it; when turning, the jet ski tilts due to centrifugal force, and there is even a risk of capsizing.
"Water ripples, physical collisions, light reflections." A Sega engineer shook his head. "This can't be pre-rendered CG. Look at the UI in the top left corner; this is real-time footage."
"How did they do it?" his colleague stared at the screen. "Fluid dynamics calculations of this level would strain even a workstation."
"Hardware Z-buffering, combined with specific algorithmic optimizations," the engineer analyzed. "Nintendo has invested heavily in low-level technology. I just don't know how difficult it is to develop for."
On screen, two jet skis weave between buoy markers.
The rear jet ski attempts to overtake but is pushed off course by the wake created by the lead one.
In the two-minute demo, there wasn't a single line of dialogue, only the roar of engines and the sound of waves.
The video ended.
A release date appeared on the screen: September 1996.
Shigeru Miyamoto stood under the lights.
"Realistic physical feedback—this is another standard we have set for the N64," Miyamoto said. "Ladies and gentlemen, the demo area in the West Hall is ready. Go hold that controller, feel Mario's footsteps, and experience the resistance of the waves. Seeing is believing, and playing is better than watching."
He bowed slightly.
"Thank you all."
Shigeru Miyamoto turned and walked off the stage.
The venue erupted in the most enthusiastic applause of the day.
Some media reporters quickly packed their bags, skipping the subsequent third-party presentations to rush directly to Nintendo's booth in the West Hall.
Shigeru Miyamoto turned and walked off the stage.
The venue erupted into the most enthusiastic applause of the day.
Some media reporters quickly packed their bags, skipping the subsequent third-party presentations to rush directly to the Nintendo booth in the West Hall.
After all, most manufacturers provided discs with trailers and gameplay footage for the main stage presentation, so the reporters were hoping to get some exclusive content that other media outlets wouldn't have on the first day.
An editor from what looked like a startup gaming media outlet shoved his notebook into his bag and dragged his cameraman toward the exit.
"Hurry, the line for the demo is going crazy," the editor urged.
"Didn't you say we were going to the South Hall to check out Sony's third-party games?" the cameraman asked, shouldering his equipment as he followed.
"We'll go later. Right now, I just want to know how on earth you pull off that backflip with Mario," the editor replied without looking back. "Those old guys at Nintendo really know how to reel you in."
In the West Hall of the Los Angeles Convention Center, under the red and white Nintendo logo, the line of people queuing had quickly circled the entire booth.
Those people were either not that interested in the main stage presentation, didn't currently have any work to do, or their job was specifically to play the demos.
The commotion from the Nintendo booth could be heard faintly—it was the sound of players queuing in the demo area.
But in the main stage area of the Los Angeles Convention Center, the air had grown still.
The rookie new media reporters, eager to churn out first-hand playtest reports, had already left for the long lines in the West Hall.
Those remaining in their seats were mostly veteran media personnel, dressed in formal attire or shirts emblazoned with their magazine logos.
Senior editors who had attended the inaugural E3 last year appeared composed this time around.
Thanks to the surge in magazine sales and GG revenue brought on by last year's detailed coverage, the teams sent by major gaming media outlets to Los Angeles had more than doubled in size this year.
They now had clearer divisions of labor: newcomers were sent to the demo area to battle it out in queues, while the veterans stayed at the main stage to capture the industry trends revealed by major manufacturers at their press conferences.
A senior editor from *Computer Gaming World* stuffed his empty coffee cup into the trash bag under his seat and took out his digital recorder to test the microphone.
"Those guys running off to line up for Mario are going to regret it," he said to a colleague nearby. "Consoles are important, sure, but the technological iteration of the PC platform is the real highlight this year. The adoption rate of Win95 has exceeded everyone's expectations."
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