40 replies to this topic

[D~N]

So, with only a few days to go until E3, is anyone here excited? I usually get a little excited this time of year, it's like the crhistmas of gaming news. Anyone have any predictions, optimistic, realistic, or otherwise? As usual, I'm highly anticipating any Nintendo news, and I can't wait to see what they have to offer for the new Wii U. A new IP would be nice, and bioshock infinite-U would make the show for me.

So, what do you hope to see?

[Game Master JRPomazon]

Hearing more about the Wii U sounds interesting. The last thing I would want to see would be anything related to a PS4 since I just got a PS3 only a month ago.

[Nevermind]

I'm keen to see if there is any news on Zone of the Enders.

[Sir Deimos]

This year won't really be good.

Microsoft will shove more Kinect in front of everyone. They'll talk how wonderful it is (disagree). And they'll show off Halo 4 because it's their only noticeable exclusive. Don't expect any "720" announcement.

Sony will also be kinda lame. They'll be polishing off the Vita and trying desperately to convince people it's worth the money. They'll also likely show off their Smash Bros wannabe. Seeing how the company is better off with exclusives we'll likely get at least 1 interesting reveal. Everyone will be too disappointed by the lack of The Last Guardian to care.

This year Nintendo will be king shit. Expect a fuckload of Wii U news. Expect some awesome 3DS announces. Hopefully they'll be showing off some amazing first party Wii U launch title.

And then you get the individual developers. Maybe a few interesting reveals. All I know is Square Enix BETTER have a lot of Versus XIII to show off.

The only thing I'm looking forward to is the Nintendo press conference. But I'll watch the other two too.

[Veteran]

Gutted I won't be home next week to watch the conferences online. Ah well.

Only thing I want is a Wii U name change, which is a tad unlikely. And maybe a bigger 3DS as the current one is criminally small.

[Egann]

Well, I don't really think there's any shame in being more excited about Nintendo than everyone else. I mean, seriously, Kinect and Windows 8 integration? Titles for the Vita? Who really cares?

Nintendo

I'm hoping to see Nintendo announce the final hardware for the Wii U and, while Hyrule HD would be nice, at this stage in the game it would be so far away from the final product it wouldn't be worth it. It'd be better for the console to see some third party titles.

As for the 3DS, I doubt Nintendo will do anything but announce more titles for it, which is majorly disappointing because it's the console I'm also thinking of getting AND it's also the console that needs the most work. On the hardware front, the 3D cameras are a joke; they need to be at least 1.3 megapixels, and the main screen is dinky. On the software front, it *needs* to be able to play video from the memory card. Ten minutes just doesn't cut it.

Nintendo should consider integrating the 3DS with Youtube, so that 3DS owners have a way of sharing and viewing 3D videos online, but this is a pie in the sky kind of thing.




Sony

Titles for the Vita, maybe if they feel like it support for PSOne Classics, but I doubt it. Sony undoubtably thinks of PSOne Classics as an albatross around their necks; the licensing fees for all the new consoles are ridiculous and fans (rightly) ridicule Sony for putting Championship Bass on PSN while leaving out games like Tenchu. I bet Sony's looking for a way to quietly kill the brand.

Sony does need to do something to fix the Vita, though. Presently, the 3DS is outselling all other consoles in Japan, while the PSP is outselling the Vita. Not good signs.

We are NOWHERE near PS4, though. Sony *might* show us some concept sketches, but even that's doubtful. Sony knows that the instant they even talk about PS4 demand for PS3s will evaporate, never mind that a PS4 will probably launch at $800.

Microsoft

Kinect, XBox Live integration, titles, possibly Windows Phone. Since Windows 8 is almost here, Microsoft will be pushing it like crazy and, if you haven't heard, WINDOWS 8 SOUNDS LIKE IT WILL BE A GODDAM NIGHTMARE. STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM IT. JUST TO OPEN THE START MENU YOU HAVE TO "THROW" THE MOUSE INTO THE CORNER, AND ONCE IT'S OPEN IT TAKES UP THE WHOLE SCREEN LIKE A TABLET APP.

[DarkJuno]

Really, this will be Nintendo's year to take the cat home and be king, and to be honest, other then 2009 and 2003 their conferences have always been the most fun and energetic to watch. Microsoft is too hit & miss with their track record and Sony's sorta just there blurting out info and not really caring much about presentation, save the occasional amusing bit like Kevin Butler. The WiiU has a ton of potential, far more then the Wii did/does, and the dueling words of developers saying it's awesome (Gearbox) and others saying no (Epic) is only adding fuel to the fire of hype, though we need to remember nothing is official and everything is hearsay 'till next week. It's also the biggest thing that could fall flat on its face, but those pictures of the circle pads being changed to proper analog sticks is already a good sign that they are keeping their ears open to suggestions and complaints. 3DS is in a better position now, though it's about time for them to do a re-tool or start talking it up more - they did patent what essentially looked like a 3DS XL late lasst year, so who knows. Sony needs to do something about the Vita similarly to what Nintendo did with the 3DS last year, because while it's doing "okay" it's not meeting projections at all. Neither did the 3DS, but there was a marked improvement in sales once the price drop hit and games people actually wanted came out. Similarly, it might be too late to save the overall sales goal, but cushioning those last few months should help a bit. Microsoft needs to do something other then push Kinect. Holy crap, yeah Halo 4 but geez.

It'll be an interesting year. People seem to overlook that even with that big loss for last fiscal year, Nintendo is still in a much, much, much better position then Sega was when it launched its next gen console earlier then everyone else, both financially and in the public eye, so it'll be something to keep an eye on.

[Leo Crimson]

Found this rather interesting article: http://www.bbc.co.uk...nology-18319429

[DarkJuno]

Double post bumped for Nintendo's WiiU teaser today - Kotaku and other blogs and/or news sites ahve all the news, but in short:

In short, new Classic Controller-esque "Hardcore" gamepad that basically says "Rip off our controllers huh? Fine, we can do that to you too! How do you like that? Huh? HUH!?!?"

A lot of really sensible design changes to to the Tablet controller that addresses the quibbles of the people who actually picked it up and played with it last year (as opposed to all the internet denziens who just said things without touching it).

As expected, while Nintendo is finally diving ehadlong into accepting that the internet and on-line gaming exists, they're still pretty much doing things their way and using the Mii's and whatnot for it. It kidna seems silly to not just copy X-Box Live/PSN, but really, we shouldn't be at all surprised they didn't bother going that way. On one hand, they tend to do very well when they go their own way, but when things go wrong, they also know when to put the brakes on and "do it right" as opposed to certain other companies who ahve to get it beaten into them.


Hmmm, looks like E3 will be even more interesting.

[DarkJuno]

So, Microsoft Conference. And yeah, I'm double posting 'till someone breaks in.

That was very...dull. Tomb Raider still continues to look very very good though I'm beginning to wonder how long they can believably have Lara be in an "Oh Crap" panic state and be an action survivor when she tears people's throats out with her bare hands. RE6 looks like modern RE, which can go either way, and the South Park game looks interesting. New Gears is Gears, and Halo....even though I'm not the biggest fan, I'm actually somewhat worried it looks more like "CoD in space" then whatever regular FPS it was before. Eh. Black Ops II looks fun but nothing new, and so on and so forth. Splinter Cell Blacklist looks like a return to form of the original SC trio, not that Conviction wasn't fun, but still.

Pretty much a whole lot of nice things but really, really dull and the game reveals don't do a good enough job of making people forget about all the dull stuff in the middle. Ending on BOII was also incredibly anti-climactic.

Well. Come on EA, you're next after lunch. Though now I wish tomorrow was my day off sicne it's Nintendo I want to see live, but hopefully the next three will be better then....this. Still, come on 360 owners, speak up when you can, I don't own one so I can only speak to what I know.

Edited by DarkJuno, 04 June 2012 - 01:15 PM.

[DarkJuno]

Holy crap, EA was awful. Crysis 3 and Burnout Need For Speed looked fun, and the new proper non-Facebook SimCity looks intriguing, but ugh. I'm not the biggest FPS fan in the world but Medal of Honor just seemed so bland and samey, though it's probably just fine for what it is. All the EA Sports stuff was just bland and basically highlighted how they only ever just change/add one thing every year and do nothing more. Also have to point out the obvious backpedeling of Dana White with EA now doing the UFC games - I'm pretty sure he said something along the lines of rather getting beaten up by all the guys in the locker room then letting EA make the official UFC game.

All right Ubisoft, the bar's pretty damn low, so come on. <.<

[Veteran]

The new Wii U controller pleases me.

This post contrasts nicely to one of mine from 5 years ago.

[Sir Deimos]

So far I am depressingly underwhelmed. I really hope Ubisoft has an awesome new IP set up to shock and awe.Edit: Watch Dogs was the shining star in Ubisoft's mediocre offering. Oh man. That game looks amazing.

Edited by Synile, 04 June 2012 - 06:21 PM.

[DarkJuno]

Thank you Ubisoft!

Not much competition, but that's what you do at an E3 conference - show off more exciting stuff about already known games and pull the sheet off of ones no one even remotely expected. Assassin's Creed III has amde me a believer again after Brotherhood and Revelations soured me, and the open world aspect is definitely a needed shot in the arm for the franchise. Rayman Legends was something I wanted because Origins was awesome anyway, but damn that was some very well done WiiU controller functionality with the rhythym based platforming - and I'm pretty sure that was the AC theme they were playing. Just Dance 4 isn't my thing but it looks fine, as does Shootmania.

ZombiU I am looking forward to though it's just a CG trailer, so being cautious on that one. But Watch_Dogs looked amazing. Open world game where you're basically a sort of tech saavy Bond villain with that interesting bit at the end that implies something about either co-op or sharing a world? Hmm. Total must buys for me.

All right Sony, let's keep up the momentum and not end today on a downer.

[Steel Samurai]

Holy shit watch_dogs looks awesome.

[Leo Crimson]

Loved the new Halo trailer, especially the live action part with the whole Infinity thing.

[Sir Deimos]

Alright Sony. The Last of Us gameplay looks solid. Quite interested. Oh, and Beyond is something I am INCREDIBLY excited for. Quantic Dream does wonders.

What does everyone think of this Wonderbook business? I think there is a lot of potential here.

[DarkJuno]

Good show Sony, even if that middle portion brought everything to a screeching halt.

Gotta say, despite the really terrible presentation, the idea of the Wonderbook is cool and pretty intriguing. There can be some very good and very cool stuff from that, and it's a different idea. While I have my issues with Heavy Rain I appreciated what it was trying to do, and I now hope beyond all belief that Beyond is more of a game then that one ebcause I'm majorly interested in it. The sea faring portion of ACIII was something new and unexpected, and God of War Ascension was......more of the same and really kind of mediocre, other then Kratos apparently being a force user. It's probably fine for what it is, but after three (5 if you count the PSP ones) games of basically the exact same thing over and over again and without the genuinely interesting character concept from the first, it's going to have to do a lot more to make me want it beyond a casual sale price pick-up. The Last Of Us looked awesome in-game and I already like the two characters just from the two teasers and this gamepaly bit we've gotten. Playstation All Stars is.....exactly what it is, for better or worse. Probably a decent game I'll get since why not.

All right, so now we just have Nintendo tomorrow morning for the WiiU software, then Nintendo again later that evening for just the 3DS games - plus apparently a third super-secret one on Wednesday that's not really a secret? This was the meeting where they unveiled both Brawl and the initial Skyward Sword concept art in the past, so it's worth noting and keeping an eye on.

[SL the Pyro]

Didn't get to see the first few conferences, but I have stuff to say about the latest three:

-EA: Woke up halfway through it; sports stuff, naturally. I can't give an honest opinion on these since I'm not a huge fan of sports games, but really, how many times do they have to remake Madden? From what I heard, this panel wasn't well-received at all; on the main stream site, the rating was flatlined at the minimum for the majority of it.

-Ubisoft: First one I watched intently, and to my surprise, they delivered. Several new games, completely with actual gameplay. It was impressive for something that wasn't one of the big three. They might be this E3's saving grace if Nintendo blunders.

-Sony: Ehhh... a good effort to be sure, but they're still shoehorning stuff that not a lot of people care for. A couple of good games and demos, but it was pretty obvious that no one liked the Wonderbook (or "Blunderbook", hey-o); the ratings went from top all the way to bottom in a hurry during that part. Sony clearly still doesn't get that they won't get anywhere by just outright copying what their competitors just do plain better. It doesn't help that they didn't showcase half the stuff they said they would (would it kill you to just tell us upfront that you're running behind?).

I'm awaiting Nintendo's conference with bated breath. They left a lot for us to watch for last time, so I'm expecting to see a fair bit of progress. Especially on SSB4 and Luigi's Mansion 2.

Edited by SL the Pyro, 05 June 2012 - 01:06 AM.

[Toan]

"NintendoLand"?

So much for this E3.

[TheAvengerLever]

Man, Nintendo really disappointed. I can see what they were trying to do, but they should know by now that everyone wants to see first party titles.

[canas is back]

well we still have a couple of days, maybe there will be something big.

[SL the Pyro]

Yeeeah, Nintendo started out good, but after the first half-hour it was clear that they had run out of steam. We'll see whether they redeem themselves or not during the 3DS panel tomorrow.

[TheAvengerLever]

At this point, I'm expecting them to highlight third party support on the 3DS as well.

[canas is back]

Perhaps it's because people complained that Nintendo had crappy 3rd party support for the wii.

[Sir Deimos]

I liked the focus on social media gaming. Hopefully that actually does something interesting, instead of something that could have been interesting wrapped up in stale... uh... something stale.

[DarkJuno]

You know, while Nintendo's Conference was certainly disappointing and underwhelming, it was by no means bad. We've had epically bad E3's from them before, and this wasn't close, it just felt like it was missing the last "Wow!" game to close the show, and really feels like it left everyone hanging. Nintendoland's a good idea for this console's Wii Sports-esque "tech" demo, and I really wish that Paper Mario adopted that beautiful handcrafted paper look for its graphics then the cel shaded flatness, but it's really not the showstopper game ender it should be. Certainly not as bad as ending on Wii Music a few years back, but...hrnk.

Pikmin 3 looks excellent, and New Super Mario Bros. U looks like it'll be fine if nothing original or new, and that's really all for their own games. I like the third aprty support, but other then the new Scribblenauts and ZombieU, not feeling it sicne we already have msot of those games on other consoles. It's really just Aliens: Colonial Marines that might be worth getting on the WiiU with the promise of the radar and whatnot, plus it's not out yet. The lack of a new Star Fox or F-Zero or anything really hurt the conference. I still think the WiiU's got tons of potential as some of the demos began to show off, but they ahven't shown it off at all.

Still, better then Microsoft's boring conference by miles, but Sony actually edged them out. At the very least, the groan worthy portions with WiiFitU and Just Dance were emrcifully short and didn't drag on like Wonderbook.

Ah well. Time for some hands on demos in stores before I make up my mind, though the promise of eventually getting Nintendo games is absically the divide between getting it at launch or waiting like I am with the 3DS.

Speaking of which, what's this about a 3DS XL...?

[Egann]

If Nintendo had a 3DS XL planned, they would have announced it. Shame, too, really. I was actually hoping Majora's Mask 3D would be announced at least, but no. Can't say I'm suprized; the 3DS is doing respectably, even if the hardware is a bit underwhelming, but the Wii U is completely new and needs to be sold to the public. Refresh the 3DS when it actually starts to peter out NEXT E3.

And boy did they sell that Wii U. The concepts look great, so it all boils down to execution.

EDIT: And I was wrong about Sony and PSOne Classics. Still months behind where it should have been. And Microsoft...let's not go there.

Edited by Egann, 05 June 2012 - 09:16 PM.

[Veteran]

Someone needs to get their act together and invent wireless power. Screw physics. Batteries lasted longer in the original Gameboy than all handheld devices of today.

[Toan]

We'll see whether they redeem themselves or not during the 3DS panel tomorrow.

Spoiler alert: They didn't. :/