E3 big 3 roundup

[godspeed4476]

the lara croft

boobies

looks nice

[Somebody]

Can 4 Hyped Titles (Finally) Deliver With Gameplay? Hands-on @ E3

 

Killzone 2

It's the most hyped of the bunch, but it's not necessarily the best. Killzone 2 still looks fantastic, visually-speaking. The controls are tight, and the art direction, with nearly all color drained from the shattered environments, is gorgeous. Whatever time Sony has spent fine-tuning the look and feel of this game has been well-spent.

 

Too bad the gameplay feels stale. Nearly every moment of the demo we played was a heavily scripted vignette, complete with a computer-controlled teammate who knows how to kick or shoulder open doors (apparently, you skipped that part of boot camp), tells you where to go, and occasionally stands in a doorway, silently challenging you to throw some friendly fire into his back. The opening firefight of the level we played was particularly aggravating, since the enemy machine gun positions on a bridge are manned by an infinite number of soldiers. No matter how many headshots you pull off, another target is going to warp into existence. Your teammates are apparently disabled, or afraid of explosives, because they keep yelling at you to grab a rocket launcher that's right next to them, and hit the boxes of ammo that have been placed, dubiously, right behind the machine gun nests. The bridge blows up, and you can proceed, knowing that in a few minutes your unique ability to aim a rocket launcher and pull the trigger will be literally indispensable.

 

Bottom Line: An impressive shooter, but aside from the stunning graphics, there's nothing revolutionary to see here.

 

Spore

Two years ago, Spore was being demoed in a small, private room, and everyone was blown away. This year, it's playable, and after spending an hour with the full Mac version, we have good news: Somehow, Spore is better than all of the hype.

 

Every single aspect of the game seems to be customizable, from the look of each building in your city to the notes, instruments and rhythm of the soundtrack. Plenty has been written about Spore, but it bears repeating: Will Wright, legendary creator of Sim City and The Sims, has outdone himself. Spore feels not only addictive, but morally challenging. During the Creature stage, when your evolving species is meeting other creatures, you can choose to be social or aggressive. After the first act of genocide, I never wanted to kill again, which is saying a lot for a first-person shooter addict. It's not that the violence is frowned upon—although Darren Montgomery, senior product manager for the game, did say that Spore is harder when you're always aggressive—but it's not glorified. And the skull and crossbones that popped up on the map when I'd wiped out a species said it all. Of course, that's just one aspect of a game that looks bigger, more epic and more mind-expanding than any game to date. If that sounds like hyperbole, you haven't played Spore.

 

Bottom Line: An unprecedented, landmark accomplishment that's worth waiting another six years. Lucky for us, it's showing up in September.

LittleBigPlanet

It was one of our favorite games last year, and it's as giddy and ingenious as ever. Like Spore, the emphasis in LBP comes with user-generated content, since players can spend an unlimited amount of time crafting whole levels, which can be downloaded and played by others.

 

But also like Spore, the reason this game works is because of the tools provided by the developers. From the stencils you use to paint your creations to the characters' outfits and adorable, toothless belly laughs, this game manages to be cute but also ridiculously smart. The controls are intuitive, allowing you to resize and rotate an object quickly. And all of the creative features aside, the gameplay is more fun than it needs to be, with small touches like the smooth-zooming camera and slightly reduced gravity of the leaping characters, to make multiplayer less frantic and jumps less punitive. And without blathering endlessly about how innovative, unique and downright cool this game is, we'll resort to a cliche: You have to play it, to believe it. After two E3s of LittleBigPlanet, we've crossed over from believers, to zealots.

 

Bottom Line: Another rare example of much deserved hype. Forget Metal Gear Solid 4 and the Resistance franchise—if there's a reason to buy a PlayStation 3, this is it.

 

Too Human

The mother of all delayed games, Too Human, an ambitious action RPG game, was originally slated for the PlayStation. The first one. It debuted at E3 nine years ago, but the developers were forced to head back to the drawing board multiple times. We tried the Xbox 360 version two years ago, and it was interesting—a kind of updated Smash TV—but definitely not as revolutionary as its makers, Silicon Knights, were promising. Now, the game is headed for stores in August, and it's once again playable at E3.

 

We'll avoid talking about the developers' plans to release a full trilogy, because this game will be lucky if it achieves even moderate success. With a month to go, the graphics are buggy, with few textures to speak of, and the ones that are there popping in and out. The gameplay is almost unbelievably boring. During a fight with one boss, a machine interpretation of the legendary monster, Grendel, any notion of this game breaking new ground was shattered. The villain's weakness? A pulsing red area, that happened to be squarely in the middle of its chest. While it lumbered after me, with no hope of catching up, it occasionally launched some flying bad guys. The fight was long, slow, and repetitive, a throwback to a previous era of gaming. It was also uninspired, which is particularly disappointing for a game with this much creative bluster. Who cares if the story is about a lone god defending humanity against an increasingly robotic pantheon of fellow deities, when smacking around endless hordes of enemies is this boring?

 

Bottom Line: The worst has happened: Too Human finally showed up, and it's just another game. If it had shown up unannounced, it might have been a sleeper hit. But with nine years of promises behind it, this game is a major disappointment—and a cautionary tale for the rest of the industry.

[SchizoidFreud]

The top 10 sleeper video games of E3

 

The big video games of the E3 Media and Business Summit have been blasted across magazine covers and websites for the past few months, but the show still offers a large selection of lesser-known games that are worth a look—even if they lack the marketing muscle of the blockbusters.

 

LEGO Batman, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment (publisher), TT Games (game developer)

 

 

TT Games reached its pinnacle with LucasArts’ LEGO Star Wars II a few years back, or so we thought. After playing its new LEGO Batman game, all the minor complaints about the recent LEGO Indiana Jones game were forgotten. With a huge cast of superheroes and villains, this dark-but-still-cute game isn’t just for kids. It’s the Batman game that fans have always waited for. LEGO Batman is a deep experience with 18 hero levels and 18 villain levels. As Batman and Robin, the cooperative (two players working together) objective is to stop a jewel heist. As Catwoman and one of her cohorts, the goal is to steal those diamonds. There are also free-roaming vehicles like the Batmobile to mix up the

 

Tom Clancy’s Endwar, Ubisoft, Shanghai Studio

 

 

A lot of focus has been placed on Ensemble Studio’s Halo Wars to introduce the real-time strategy (RTS) genre to gamers, but what’s easier than barking commands to your troops with your voice? EndWar has the polish of a game that’s been given time to be perfected. I was shown this title exclusively behind-closed-doors last year in Santa Monica and it’s come a long way. From early on the voice commands actually worked. The entire game can be played without a controller. And that’s not just a gimmick, it actually works as a fun gaming experience. Once word-of-mouth on this one spreads, a whole new audience will be introduced to the RTS, where players move simultaneoulsly.

 

Ultimate Band, Disney Interactive Studios, Fall Line Studio

 

 

While both Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero World Tour are guaranteed fall blockbusters, I think there are plenty of homes that might not have the money to invest in all of those peripherals (costing anywhere from $99 to $169). Disney’s Ultimate Band allows four players to simulate the experience of playing the drums or guitar without needing special controllers. The licensed pop songs should appeal to tweens and Disney’s made sure the E10+ game is family friendly. It’s also a game that encourages kids to get off the couch and get into the music.

Dead Space, Electronic Arts, Redwood Shores Studio

 

 

In space, no one can hear you scream. That’s the tag line from the original Alien, and although Sega and Gearbox Software are working on Aliens: Colonial Marines, I can’t help but think about that original horror film when playing Dead Space. There’s something especially scary about being alone in space on a giant ship filled with aliens. It’s a premise that even Hollywood doesn’t attempt very often, and rarely gets right. I think EA had me at “strategic dismemberment,” but the gameplay is inventive, especially when traversing those zero gravity rooms. And the assortment of creatures that populate the ship’s dark hallways are more than formidable.

Left4Dead, Electronic Arts, Valve Software

 

Speaking of horror, Left4Dead takes thrills to the other side of the genre — the big Hollywood summer popcorn movie. With four-player co-op, this game’s pace is frenetic and fun. The fact that playing together impacts the game’s world and the story dynamically is great, not that you’ll have much time to notice that. There’s so much thrown at players that living another minute is about all they’ll have time to concentrate on. With its blend of excellent visuals and addictive multiplayer gaming, Left4Dead should follow in the footsteps of last year’s The Orange Box.

 

Infamous, Sony Computer Entertainment America, Sucker Punch

 

 

With Sierra’s Prototype now “on hold,” Sucker Punch will offer gamers the chance to become a superhero or a villain. Morality will play a role in this graphic novel-inspired epic, which is a far cry from the developer’s Sly Fox family fare. The central character, Cole, is trapped within a quarantined Empire City, which seems to have more problems than Gotham City on a bad day. Cole’s superpowers will manifest as the story progresses, and based on the choices he makes on his quest, he will become famous or infamous. What Sucker Punch showed of this 2009 was impressive, including one of many supervillains that populate the world.

Borderlands, 2K Games, Gearbox Software

 

 

Gearbox Software knows a thing or two about guns. And Borderlands serves up more weapons than even Scarface could handle. Through its proprietary technology, Gearbox offers gamers over 500,000 guns to choose from. Each weapon comes with special features, like acid or electricity, to finish off enemies with some pizzazz. Aside from the guns, this open world Pandora (the planet’s name) offers four-player cooperative gameplay and expansive environments to explore. It’s exactly the type of playground gamers should flock to for long hours of entertainment.

 

Mirror’s Edge, Electronic Arts, DICE

 

 

Having proven themselves with the Battlefield franchise, a team at EA-owned DICE has set out to do something no developer has done before. Mirror’s Edge is a first-person action game that revolves around running, jumping and climbing – not gunplay. It’s like the opposite of EA’s old Black game. Sure, there are guns in Mirror’s Edge, but the entire game can be played without ever picking one up. Players control Faith through rooftops and under ground to deliver messages in a future world controlled by a police force. It’s looks and plays unlike any other game I’ve seen.

Dark Void, Capcom, Airtight Games

 

 

Ed Fries, former head of Microsoft Game Studios, is back in gaming and his team is working on a game that offers some pretty cool new gameplay options. Fans of Crimson Skies will find plenty of in-air action in Dark Void, but it revolves around a jet-pack. The action takes place in an alternate universe, where a ordinary cargo pilot is thrust into an interplanetary war. One of the things that stood out in this game – aside from the in-air cover system – is the ability for Will to fly to a saucer, avoid its turret, and then open the capsule to expose the alien. While the ship’s zooming through the air, Will fights the alien, throws him off, and then jumps into the cockpit to use this new weapon. If Airtight can deliver this type of control and innovation throughout the experience, I’m in.

Fat Princess, Sony Computer Entertainment America, Darkstar

 

 

Sony has released some innovative game on its PlayStation Network, including PixelJunk Monsters, but Fat Princess literally takes the cake. It’s a cute and cuddly-looking game (think Animal Crossing) that turns into a bloodbath. Multiplayer gameplay allows teams of eight to 32 adorable characters to do for Nintendo-style characters what “South Park” has done for rudimentary animation. The demo inside Sony’s Gamers’ Lounge featured a twist on the Capture the Flag mode. The game starts with each side’s princess in the enemy base. To win, the enemy must carry the princess out and back to their base. As much fun as it is to slice through the other team with swords and fire flaming arrows at them, it’s often a better strategy to feed the enemy princess cakes and treats so she’s too heavy to carry back to safety. This game’s as fresh as it is bloody. And it’s amazingly addictive fun.

[AtheK]

left4dead sould have been showcased rather then viva pinata

[SchizoidFreud]

E3 08: An 11-step Recipe For A (Mostly) Crap E3

 

 

So E3 '08 is finally over, and what a largely underwhelming week of drama and disappointment it was. But every show is a mixed bag and every show has its own personality, so over the next few pages you'll find our rundown of what happened, what was important, and how it affected our overall impression of the show this year. Snark and cynicism abounds!

 

Nintendo might not be a games company any more

 

 

It was a press conference to crush the souls of even the most innocent, but Nintendo's lack of first-party hardcore content wasn't in itself the biggest problem. Much more disturbing was the company's attitude afterwards. Reggie claimed not to understand the traditional Nintendite's disappointment in the face of Animal Crossing. Cammie told core players to "Keep playing Mario Kart". Shigsy admitted that the discordant, embarrassing mime-fest of Wii Music was indeed a "musical toy", and therefor better than a videogame. Even the Pikmin 3 announcement was quietly sneaked out during a later interview. And of course, GTA: Chinatown Wars on DS was great news, but the speed with which it was glossed over spoke volumes.

 

And those games that the Mario and Zelda teams are working on? Consider that Miyamoto later referenced the Touch Generations series while saying that "With Zelda, we have to consider how to make it accessible for new gamers to pick up and play and enjoy just as hardcore gamers have." Is that past-tense "have" an indication that the age of Ninty's consideration for the core gamer is over? We'll probably have a better idea later in the year, but right now it feels like Nintendo has already packed its bags and is just waiting for a tactful moment to tell us how it really feels.

 

Of course, the company has been around for a lot longer than it has been making videogames, and it has every right to change its focus to more lightweight, electronic amusements at this point if it wants to. Given its current success with the casual market it's entirely possible that hardcore gaming is now just a passing phase in the company's long history. But things used to be so good, Ninty. Remember? Remember the good times? We were so happy back then! Don't throw it all away now!

 

Microsoft says "Me too" to everything

 

 

Avatars, a bland, grey new dashboard with more than a hint of Sony's XMB, a Primetime game channel dedicated to game show-style content, Scene It: Box Office Smash, a two hit combo of motion control and Singstar in Lips, You're In The Movies, which looks exactly like a first generation EyeToy game… Oh Microsoft, why are you doing all of this? Your core audience is a huge one, and is made almost entirely out of the sort of people who have always and will always play videogames. RROD aside, you were already delivering everything they could ever want. You had it set.

 

All of the effort and money you put into this new line-up won't matter a jot to them. And trust us, the 'expanded market' is not sitting around reading the games press and weighing up which console is best for casual games. If it’s put in front of them at a party, they’ll play it, but waiting with baited breath for the moment the Xbox caters to their needs they most certainly are not.

 

Sony bumbles along uneventfully

 

 

It's been traditional - and entirely right - over recent years to dub each big games show as "the one where Sony really has to pull it out of the bag". Usually it hasn't happened, but at least it's been a consistently entertaining experience along the way. The blend of showboating delivery, varied hardware initiatives and a gleefully oblivious mindset has been a crowdpleaser ever since the PS3 was announced, even if we didn't really care about what was being said. At E3 '08 though? Everything was just a bit dull.

 

Of course, Sony is aware that it's now in Nintendoville, circa 2003, and thus a more humble attitude is needed. But things have been improving for the big black slab of game lately, and we're now finally ready to get excited again. This E3 could have been a welcome turning point if Sony had pulled out the stops, but all we got was a stream of games that we already knew about, some barely relevent PS2 news and more talk of downloadable TV and PSP connectivity. It was brilliant to have God Of War III officially unveiled though, even if the Chains Of Olympus manual did blow the surprise a while back.

 

Very few surprises, very little enthusiasm

 

 

Three platform-holder conferences which ranged from uneventful at best to downright depressing in the case of you-know-who. Some decent third party games, but very little we hadn't already seen. Enough eight-year-old-girl-focused game ranges with 'z' in the title to sink Godzilla. All these things and less combined to make E3 '08 a turgid excitement-vacuum which no-one looked to be taking seriously.

 

Journalists seemed to drift along on a slow-moving stream of boredom, paddling with oars fashioned from the purest "Meh". And worse, the exhibitors themselves just didn't seem to care. Capcom dedicated its entire conference to the Lost Planet movie. Miyamoto disregarded the show as unimportant for core game announcements. Microsoft held back on unveiling a frickin' Bungie Halo game because it didn't seem necessary given the bland competition. And Kaz Hirai didn't even bother turning up. Apathy surrounded, penetrated and bound the show like the very Force itself, and you'd have had trouble filling the gap between expectation and reality with a (LittleBig) planet.

EA actually looks like a good prospect for once

 

Okay, so this one was a bit of a surprise. EA has of course been steadily improving its in-house and publishing output over the last year or so, but just check out the quality and diversity of the current line-up. Dead Space, Mirror's Edge, Spore, Dragon Age: Origins, Mercenaries 2, Rock Band 2, Crysis: Warhead, Valve's Left 4 Dead, id's Rage and a KOTOR MMO, all coming from the former McDonald's of videogames? Unthinkable! We're starting to feel a little dirty just typing this, so we're going to move swiftly on.

 

Third-party Wii developers seem to be getting their act together just in time for Nintendo to lose the plot

 

 

Madworld, The Conduit, Dead Rising, Deadly Creatures, Spore, Fatal Frame IV and Mushroom Men are all coming for the Wii. Reggie take note, these are the games putting smiles on our faces. Your moribund excretion of nonsensical, happy-fun-time pap-core just drove us perilously close to heroin abuse.

 

Next-gen continues to be brown and grey

 

 

Fairly self-explanatory. If games can create any kind of reality for us to enjoy, why are we still obsessed with the visual dirge of a nigh-monochrome gritty realism which isn't even that realistic if you take the time to look out of a window?

 

The old is more exciting than the new

 

 

Videogames are horribly trend-driven at the moment. The cool new ideas are so damn cool that everyone's rushing to share in the same coolness as everyone else. And as any elitist will tell you, that makes cool things very uncool indeed. So obsessed is the industry with user-generated, fully connected, community-driven, digitally distributed, Naruto-licensed brown and grey co-op shooters for the expanded casual market that it's actually brilliantly refreshing when a videogame is happy just to be a videogame.

 

Capcom were our boys for that this year. In Street Fighter IV, Resident Evil 5, Mega Man 9 and Bionic Commando: Rearmed we had a collection of unashamed, unpretentious 'proper' games that were bright, brash, just wanted to make us happy, and had their roots back in the days when gaming was all about that philosophy. Hats off to you sirs, hats very much off. If Nintendo had actually bothered to show off Wario Land Shake at its conference, it could have shared in some of this glory. But no. It didn't and so it can't.

 

Videogame execs shouldn't be allowed on stage any more

 

Seriously, cut the pie charts and just let GLaDOS introduce all the game footage.

The most earth-shattering announcement of the show was a port of an already-known game which probably barely even exists yet

 

 

Final Fantasy XIII moving to the Xbox 360 was big news, but we can't help feeling that in previous years it would have been just one jewel in the E3 crown. As it turned out, it was the only talking point which earned more than five minutes discussion. An FMV sequence with a new platform logo shouldn't overshadow the whole rest of the show, surely?

 

The future relevence - and existence - of E3 is more uncertain than ever

 

 

Since E3's downsizing, journalist and gamer enthusiasm for the show has been disipating faster than a mouse fart in a hurricane. The decidedly subdued nature of the event this year, coupled with the quiet popping of damp squib announcements throughout, now has media and public alike wondering if it's all worth the effort. Increasingly prolific, company-specific showcase events aren't helping the pro-E3 cause one little bit.

 

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:roflroll2:

[THE DIRECTOR]

all where sh*t..... not impressed with any conference.

[MarketTantrik]

The recipe for crap article is downright howlarious !! Nice find BBB !

[CarbonCore]

Bonus round E3 postmortem

 

Part 1

[gt]37163[/gt]

 

Part 2

[gt]37168[/gt]

 

N'gai trying hard to hide that he's Sony fanboy

and failing

 

[MarketTantrik]

Penny Arcade's E3 2008 roundup

 

 

:roflroll2:

[MarketTantrik]

Ctrl-Alt-Del's love for Nintendo

 

[SchizoidFreud]

lolololol :roflroll2: