I know not very timely but The Dark Knight was so good that it overrided any E3 talk. Looking around the blogs seems there is a lot of negative E3 talk, yeah it was disappointing in so regards but forget that. This is going to be a generally positive (well some areas have to be criticized) look at E3, which if you look at the games, was a great show.
First the conferences:
Microsoft - Probably the best one. Started off exactly how conferences should be, lots of demos of upcoming major games. RE5 was my favorite, but Gears 2 blew me away as well. Then the conference went to hell, that movie eye toy ripoff game, yikes. They had some really good announcements though like the Netflix deal, a revamp of Xbox Live and more. To top it off it had the one major announcement of E3, FFXIII. We used to get announcements like these all the time, but at this E3 this was the only one. It was an unbalanced conference, so I give it a C.
Nintendo - What in the hell. If you took all the worst predictions I had about this conference and multiplied them by 10 it still would not match the horror of what happened on stage. The whole conference was like a giant middle finger to anyone who plays the types of games we do. Instead they get this chick to act like a overly enthusiastic mom, their new crowd I guess. Whatever they showed nothing in terms of great new games for the holiday, only Animal Crossing and that is a niche game on its own. Motionplus did not have a good demonstration. Wii Music was terrible, it looks like a joke of a game. Worst conference I have ever seen. I give it an F
Sony - This was a solid conference but almost too safe, it ultimately became boring. They should plenty of games, but instead of full demonstrations (of which they only did Resistance 2) they opted to show trailers, and many CG trailers, what in the hell. Little Big Planet was the highlight of the show and that was done as a substitute powerpoint rather than discussing the game. So many games MIA, Killzone 2, White Knight, Team Ico project. It was a well structured conference but lacking any surprises. Even the GoW 3 reveal was poor cause we knew it would be shown but I though we would see a glimpse of an actual game not a CG movie clip showing nothing, might as well just put a logo on screen. I give it a C-
Ubisoft - Actually one of the better ones cause it just showed games. It loses a ton of points for having a major section devoted to games like Dogz and Monkez. But they showed a mind blowing demo of Prince of Persia. I give it a C-
Konami - Props for actually showing games, too bad most of them were eh. Castlevania DS looks incredible but the fighting game demo was boring. SH5 was interesting. The Rock Revolution demo was the worst thing I have ever seen at E3, yes worse than Wii music. I give it a D.
Capcom - Yeah what the hell was this. Nothing shown, just a talk about the Lost Planet movie. Since NOTHING was shown it gets an FU. A new rating I just came up with.
So yeah the conferences were bad with no real revelations of any kind. Maybe we got too used to having rand new consoles coming out, every bit of news was major cause we were heading into the unknown. That time has passed until the next console cycle. For now its all about the games and if you did focus on that there was plenty to be excited about during E3. I will present the game with a sort of stock like review, stock goes up if the E3 showing was impressive, stock goes down if it did not impress.
The Games:
Resident Evil 5 - We got plenty of videos of this baby in action and it looks phenomenal. One of the best looking games at the show, the action is taken up a notch, co-op doesn't seem that bad. Sure there are some questions like is this just RE4.5, will co-op in single player hurt the game. I dont know the answers yet but the demos were great and the new trailer made my inner fanboy jump with joy. March 13, my new obsession begins. ^
Little Big Planet - This game keeps getting better and better each time it is shown. Every time i have a concern about LBP being a solid platformer it shows me a level that puts my mind at ease. We saw levels that had this SMB feel to it, we saw enemies which you can defeat by bouncing on their heads, we saw levels that are not levels at all but music simulators. This game can do anything it seems. The community aspects were showcased in the GS demo and it looks very impressive. This is shaping out to be a legendary game, I can feel it. ^
Gears of War 2 - I want a 360 for this. The graphics are unreal, the action looks top of the line and that setpiece with the giant monster taking out the building, holy crap. Thats how you do fights on a giant scale. Looks very very impressive, one of the best games at the show. ^
Fallout 3 - One of the surprises for me. Yeah it maybe just Oblivion with guns but its guns that can shoot out teddy bears!! The G4 demo blew me away, so much carnage and destruction, it looks fun just to find ways to kill enemies. Not to mention there is a monstrous world to explore, which is something i love to do. This is a day one purchase for sure. ^
Resistance 2 - You know what, not the showing I would have hoped. Maybe I missed something cause I did not see much of anything on the multiplayer aspect which to me is the most interesting aspect. The single player campaign does look good but that monster scene was done poorly when compared to Gears, it looked slow and predictable. I have no doubt the game will be great I just dont think they showed anything worthwhile. v
Killzone 2 - Now this is looking more and more impressive each time I see it. It is the best looking game by far, its still unreal in my mind. At points the game looked slow and boring but previews say its very fun to play. Plus the multiplayer reveal was very impressive, reminds me a bit of TF2. This may turn out better than R2. ^
Infamous - I am so very excited, the city looks like it has depth and detail to it, almost like a GTA game and not like say a Hulk game. I am impressed by the action and the freedom the game seems to have. Very excited for this one, great showing at E3. ^
Star Wars Force Unleashed - I was sold on the name alone but now I am a believer that this will be a stellar game. It does not look sloppy like past SW games, it has more of a Jedi Knight feel to it but taken to another level. I am sooo hyped now, not only is it an original SW story it seems to be a great game as well. ^
Dead Space - An original game by E3 that looks *gasp* good?! Well it does, it has high production values, has the action of a RE4 but mixed with actual horror. Set in space with all sorts of creepy monsters it looks stylish, interesting and fun to play. Now on my radar. ^
Wii Music - Here I was expected a great music game that allows you to be like Rock Band but with a ton of different instruments. Instead it seems like in this game you just wave around the wiimote in the desired manner and music magically happens. There will be no scoring, no beats to follow, just mindless dumb waggling. CRAP. v
Wii Sports Resort - I dont play much of Wii Sports but it was interesting as a pack in. I doubt I would want to pay for a full game with only a few more minigames added. I do want motion plus though... anyway this did not show me anything impressive. v
Animal Crossing - I hear this is an extremely addictive game. But I dont think you can show that, especially not at E3. Its a poor E3 game but I bet its a ton of fun. --
Bionic Commando - I still am unsure about this game. You swing around, that looks fun but something seems off about the world and the controls, just doesn't look right. Nothing at E3 made it seem any different. v
Fable 2 - I think I have to see more videos but what I saw was Fable 1 with jump in jump out co-op. But I heard there are better videos showing a more open world. Combat is still very much Fable, just mindless hack and slash with some spells thrown in. I enjoyed the first but it was nothing special, it can go either way with this one. --
Far Cry 2 - A gigantic FPS world, interesting. Whats more interesting is that its more of a sneak around mess with the environment type game rather than just run and shoot everything type game. I am looking out for it. ^
Sonic Unleashed - WOAH!! The GS stage demo blew my sonic fanboy head away, the sonic level looked like a dream come true. But then that dream turned into a nightmare as werehog took over, looks like any average action game. I am buying it for the sonic levels alone, which impressed me greatly at this E3. ^
Ghostbusters - Looks ok, the game at least has more going for it that most movie tie in games but its missing that AAA polish the best games has. But who am I kidding, we are buying this cause its ghostbusters 3. --
Deadly Creatures - What started as a joke has turned into something to look out for. The sense of scale in this game is impressive, you feel tiny as gigantic humans walk past your dirt home. Fighting other insects doesn't look terrible, it looks like a load of fun. I think the oddball concept adds some charm to the game, I liked what I saw. ^
Silent Hill 5 - Looks better than I thought it would be. The boss fight they showed was impressive for a SH game. But the talk of a mission structure scares me. I was slightly more excited for this game so I guess thats a ^
Prince of Persia - WOW!! Thats how you do a reinvention. Huge open world, what looks to be fluid combat, and the graphics look gorgeous. One of the more impressive games of the show. ^
Castlevania fighting game - Ugh I hate the concept but it did not look like a complete disaster as I thought it would be. Still looks like something I would not pay to play though. --
Sim City Creator - I love Sim City, wiimote controls would make it very easy to play on a TV. Add all sorts of new animations and destruction modes like a giant ball you control with the wiimote and I am sold. ^
DC Online - I dont care for MMO's and this was not impressive. v
Dark Void - This one came out of nowhere. At first glance it looks like an average boring third person shooter but then he takes off to the sky on a jet pack, hijacks an alien spaceship and uses it in air combat, woah. I am curious now. ^
Golden Axe Beast Rider - :lol: no. v
Mirror's Edge - I was wondering if this game was on rails, it almost seemed that way but then they picked up the controller and started playing and I was mesmerized. Very excited for this one. ^
NBA Live - A dream come true, daily stat updates and scores added to your franchise to mirror the real world. This is what I want in a football game, make it happen. ^
Mercenaries 2 - You can call for a nuke in real time, its a must see. I loved the first, I am sold on the second. ^
Brothers In Arms - Where is this game, wasnt this game shown like 100 years ago. Didn't it look very impressive. Did something happen cause it looks like it took a big graphical hit. Not only that the gameplay looks slow, telling your teamates where to go every three seconds doesn't help either. v
Wario Land - Sexy 2D gameplay, I want. Runs really smooth, great animation. Hopefully a good game. ^
Motorstorm 2 - Very impressive, visually and content wise. I may give this one a try. ^
There are so many more games that I still need to check out. A special mention to some great looking downloadble games coming soon like Ratchet Quest for Booty, Fat Princess, Mega Man 9 of course, that Winterbottom game, even Flower looks interesting. Then there are the hidden games like Heavy Rain that they did show backstage, which I hear was amazing. I didn't even cover portables, the DS once again has a killer lineup of games.
There is something for everyone, the amount of games coming out this and early next year is staggering. How can anyone complain. E3 showed off the goods, yeah I know we already knew about 99% of the games at the show, that OMG world is ending megaton E3 we used to know maybe is gone but as a showcase for future games its still impressive.
Now for my awards:
Best graphics - Killzone 2
Biggest surprise - FFXIII going to 360
Best game you probably missed - The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom
Most Innovative - Little Big Planet
Most improved sequel - Prince of Persia
Best hardware news - Wiimotion plus (cause it affects games, while most other news was about multimedia)
Best trailer - Resident Evil 5
Most embarrising moment - TIE Nintendo shows Wii Music / on stage Rock Revolution demo
Where the hell was this game (game had to exist already) award - Alan Wake
Best company showing - TIE EA and Sony (EA had an excellent showing, very suprised. Sony's first party lineup looks like its all quality, very impressive)
Best 360 exclusive game - Gears of War 2
Best Wii exclusive game - Wario Land
Best PS3 exclusive game - Little Big Planet
Overall Game of the Show - Resident Evil 5 (runner-up Little Big Planet)
I mean, I'm only slightly interested in Animal Crossing because its not my kind of thing. I had the Cube game for about a month. Played it, thought it was neat for a bit then lost interest. So its great and all that it outsold Halo or whatever, but...is that supposed to make me like it as much as something like Halo, Metroid, etc?
And Nintendogs I could care less. A lot of gamers are unfamiliar with it, as you say, because its not their thing. Its like trying to get me to listen to Madonna CD's because she outsold Opeth, for example.
I think what Dvader was saying by the "niche" thing, is that its not a big epic game that takes you on a grand adventure or anything like that. Not "niche" in a sales kind of way. Odd would probably be a better term.
Again you could say that you played game X and lost interest for instance I still haven't completed Bioshock like my friend and we're both of the opinion now that Bioshock is boring and not worth completing.
Having a game sell well doesn't mean that you have to like it. What are the best selling games? The Sims? Pokemon?
But you can't sort of ignore them and pretend that they are not a big deal when in real terms: the terms that count to business and gaming IS a business. These titles overshadow a game as hyped as something like Halo.
Animal crossing is being portrayed as some casual non-game phenomenon unique to the wii, when it's actually years old, sold 3 million on GC even and is enjoyed by gamer and casual alike. The DS version outsold Halo 2 and 3 by over a million and a half. This is not a franchise to be sneezed at and characterised as niche. You could even say that more gamers have experienced animal crossing wild world than Halo 3 and that would be the truth. If you buy a DS you're a games player just as sure as buying a dvd player makes you a dvd watcher.
No one is saying that you HAVE to like it, but no one is saying that you HAVE to like Halo or GTA, or Mario. It's the same principle, you're just using your own personal tastes against someone elses.
Calling it odd is strange because it's more mainstream and popular than a lot of other large franchises too. Guitar Hero is odd to me as are rhythm games in general, so is using an oversized plastic guitar with multicoloured buttons. But I wouldn't call it odd or niche. That's mainstream shit.
You can say "Animal crossing isn't my thing" or "I'm not really interested in it", but you can't sort of marginalise or ignore the announcement of new iteration of a huge selling, well loved, franchise.
Yeah, I'm in that group. I've played the GC Animal Crossing for over a year. I then upgraded to Animal Crossing: Wild World and played that nearly everyday for 2 1/2 years! I'd still be playing it if my DS didn't break. Now I'm back to playing the GC version again. Animal Crossing: City Folk is at the top of my "most wanted" list this year. It's funny how addictive that game can be for some of us.
You can have summer fireworks shows too. Or maybe you can be lucky enough to have a UFO crash land.
AC is a game you are supossed to play in short doses, like between 20 minutes to 50 minutes a day, just to check what is happening because things change. But it's important to note that it actually works on a 1:1 real time clock and calender. Turn the DS on a night and it's night, tur the machine on early morning and it's early morning and the characters will respond accordingly.
When I first played AC I thought I had made a horrible mistake, not knowing that the game opens up the more you play. The only thing I didn't like was that you have a limit to expanding the rooms in your home. If there was no limit I would still be playing today decking out every room with my own cool stuff.
Wiiconnect 24, having new items downloadble is going to make this game run for years with me.
I'm really addicted to collecting all of the items in the game. About six months ago, I looked in the recycle bin in ACWW and there was a rare Starfox Arwing Statue! It even plays the SNES Starfox music when you touch it! Things like that are what keeps me coming back daily. I still want to find the elusive Pikmin statue; maybe I will in AC City Folk.
Yeah, a month is not nearly enough time to spend with any AC game. It takes at least six months to a year to fully appreciate what the game offers.
I agree with the Ninendo themed wallpaper and furniture. That would be nice. ACWW does have the blue Nintendo bench, but that was pretty lame.
Speaking of Nintendo themed items, I downloaded all of the Super Mario items from Toy's R Us: Star Man, Flag Pole, 1up Mushroom, Warp Pipe, Fire Stick, and the Question Block; all of them have their own chime/music too.
Man, now I want my DS Lite back! I'd have one too if it weren't for that damn expensive college tuition.
I'm missing a ton of stuff but I see the same goods on sale at tom nooks shop and Redd's tent everyday so I stopped going. My town is weed town now.
The clerk at my Toy's R Us was really cool, and was an AC fan as too. He set the machine to send me each item, so that I wouldn't have to waste time getting doubles (the machine was usually set to "random," he said). I made the main room of my house "Super Mario" themed, and even have the Mario and Luigi outfits that can be purchased at Able Sister's; they're called Big Bro and Li'l Bro shirts, hats, and mustaches.