Nintendo held its E3 media briefing yesterday. The factory that built Mario focused on its efforts to remove the barriers between expert and novice gamers. Nintendo is well known for this approach, releasing games and gaming consoles such as the Wii and DS that appeal to veteran gamers and casual gamers alike

Nintendo demonstrated an enhancement for the Wii Remote called the Wii MotionPlus, which plugs into the base of the Wii Remote and helps to enhance precision and create a realistic motion experience. The publisher also revealed Wii Music, Wii Sports Resort, Animal Crossing: City Folk for the Wii as well as Grand Theft Auto Chinatown Wars (Rockstar Games), Spore Creatures (EA) and Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades (Activision) for the DS.

“Much has been reported about the ‘expanded audience’ for games, but what’s really at play is an expanded experience,” said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “People of all ages having fun together—whether in the same room or from remote locations—puts smiles on faces and drives millions of new players into video game entertainment.”

Nintendo took the opportunity to reveal that the Nintendo DS is still dominating the portable category with over 20 million units sold in the US and over 70 million worldwide.

Wii Sports Resort is the sequel to the popular Wii Sports and the first title to make use of the Wii MotionPlus accessory. The game will be released in spring 2009 and includes Sword Play, Power Cruising and Disc Dog. It will come packaged with the Wii MotionPlus accessory and a Wii Remote Jacket.

Animal Crossing: City Folk immerses players in an animal-filled community where they can chat to locals, fish, collect fossils or even venture into the new town. You will also be able to bid for friends’ items using WiiConnect24 or visit friend’s towns and talk to other players using the new WiiSpeak microphone. You will be able to buy the WiiSpeak microphone separately for $29.99 to voice chat with your Wii Friends.

Wii Music enables players of all skill levels to play over 60 different instruments including the violin, steel drums, electric guitar and even a cowbell. Use the Wii Remote and Nunchuk to play music, there are no mistakes but players can improvise and send new arrangements to their Wii Music friends. Wii Music will hit stores across North America in time for the holidays.

For an in-depth look at the conference head over to our previous coverage.