E3 2008 Coverage

[Yuen Fei Lung]

When the PS2 launched in Japan, it's true that they hardly had any good games but you have to remember how popular the machine was. There were gamers who actually went to Japan to buy the PS2 before it even came to America... and if I recall one of the only games available for the PS2 was that odd fireworks game. When the PS2 launched here in the States shortly thereafter you had games like Twisted Metal Black, Jumping Flash and Mortal Kombat 3. I never felt the PS2's price tag was unreasonable but that's just my feeling on it.

Haha! 3DO! That's a name I haven't heard in quite awhile. Yeah, I remember wanting one of those a long time ago but that was impossible given the price tag. Remember the Atari Jaguar? I actually owned one of those... worst system I ever owned. What was I thinking?

I can tell you that the XBox 360 is a good unit with a great library but the technical issues will annoy you. Like I said before, I'm on my 3rd unit and the referb unit they sent me back is having a lot of problems reading discs and (at times) locking up. Which means that I will again be sending my 360 back to Microsoft at the beginning of August.

[Omega Amen]

Nah, I played through the first couple levels

I am glad you admitted you do not know what you are talking about when it comes to the content in Resistance.

but I kind of got tired with the whole overused "Year 20XX and the DELTA TACTICAL OPS FORCE must stop aliens/demons/robots from taking over Earth!"

You're right. I am glad Gears doesn't involve some Delta Force fighting a bunch of aliens trying to take over a planet. And I have never met a bunch of alien/robots in Half-Life or Half-Life 2 trying to take over Earth. They clearly stayed away from that for originality. Thank you, Epic and Valve. [/sarcasm]

(BTW, I really like Gears and Half-Life 2, but I just had to point that out.)

*moves past the Valve fanboy stuff.*

It's all going to eventually be available for torrent anyway. XD

I agree. But you are missing the point I am trying to make. I cannot recall any TV series, Movies, or other video franchise that decided to make themselves exclusive to a digital download store.

That just seems strange to me. Video content, unlike games, are not tightly bound by hardware and the operating system software libraries. So by nature, they have a much wider selection of distribution channels to take advantage.

So why even bother going exclusive to one store? Sure, they could have made a deal with Sony, but that does not even benefit Sony that much.

I just find the idea really weird and perplexing.

[Bobtheduck]

Dude... I have to say, as for non-gaming stuff goes (and we know how much people hate having anything other than games on their gaming system) Sony's video service just took a ginormous somethingrather on Microsoft's... Not that I'll ever buy anything there (maybe I'll Check out that Xam'd if I see more on it and it looks at all interesting)

I just hope they have all of School Rumble there someday (They have a deal with Funimation, so I can hold out hope) or maybe Kodocha... And I hope it's like half or less the cost of the DVDs, because FUni overprices their DVDs... Maybe I was spoiled by ADV's 40 dollar boxsets...

[Etoh*the*Greato]

Anyways, the more the cross game franchises the more it gets closer to one console it seems, unless you go with something like nintendo, innovative people.

Which I think is a bad idea. I doubt gamers will get the "one console to rule them all" that everyone dreams of because even the games industry doesn't want this. One console means a death to competition which breeds better games. I mean just look at the rivalry between Sony and 360. These guys are both pumping out great games just to compete with each other.

[Nightshade X]

Dude... I have to say, as for non-gaming stuff goes (and we know how much people hate having anything other than games on their gaming system) Sony's video service just took a ginormous somethingrather on Microsoft's... Not that I'll ever buy anything there (maybe I'll Check out that Xam'd if I see more on it and it looks at all interesting)

Well, even more than that... the reason why I love my PS3 so much is that it's so versatile. There's so much more that you can do than just play games on it that it almost completely justifies the cost. I like to think of it like this: if you bought a PS3, you just bought a relatively inexpensive computer, if you know how to unlock its potential.

I know that a lot of people won't be able to do that, or don't really care or even see it like that, but that's how I think about it.

To piggyback on someone elses' post (not sure who made it), it's not that I think that the 360's games suck... because they don't. There are a few games that I wouldn't mind playing on it. However, I can't justify buying one because of its many technical issues. So... once Microsoft finally addresses them, I'll gladly buy one. For now, I'm... eh... mostly Sony.

Wii? Not too interested in anything but Brawl and Mario Kart, and that's not enough for me. I need at least 5 games that I'd be interested in buying for a system before I get it.

[Raiden no Kishi]

To hell with all of these new systems.



I'm buying a Sega Nomad.

Hey, I used to have a Nomad. It never let ME down. In fact, it was pretty cool. I wish I still had it.

.rai//

[Etoh*the*Greato]

I still have my gamegear and my ONE game for it. Shining Force: The Sword of Hajya. It was the whole reason I got a gamegear!

[Mr. SmartyPants]

You're right. I am glad Gears doesn't involve some Delta Force fighting a bunch of aliens trying to take over a planet. And I have never met a bunch of alien/robots in Half-Life or Half-Life 2 trying to take over Earth. They clearly stayed away from that for originality. Thank you, Epic and Valve. [/sarcasm]

Lol, I never denied that Gears didn't involve that. Heck, Gears is probably the quintessential game to feature every single one of those cliches. The thing is that it's not an FPS and it definitely brought or at least modernized stthe cover system.

And all my previous arguments are invalid when it comes to Valve games. They're started it way back in 1998 and their games have awesome backstory.[/more pure valve fanboyism]

[Etoh*the*Greato]

Plus, what ever flaws they may have TF2 makes up for.

[Bobtheduck]

I still have my gamegear and my ONE game for it. Shining Force: The Sword of Hajya. It was the whole reason I got a gamegear!

If that's the game I think it is, I agree... That's the game that made me want a gamegear, but I never got one. I borrowed a friends and played that game all night.

Well, even more than that... the reason why I love my PS3 so much is that it's so versatile. There's so much more that you can do than just play games on it that it almost completely justifies the cost. I like to think of it like this: if you bought a PS3, you just bought a relatively inexpensive computer, if you know how to unlock its potential.

I use the PS3's multimedia capabilities extensively, but I was a gamer first and foremost. I loved the extras, but I preached their virtues because I expected year 2 and 3 to be something more than I've been seeing... In any case, there's always TGS for me... Plus, I got Metal Gear, and that was my priority 1... As long as there's Uncharted 2 (I had a hard time somtimes on MGS4 because the animations in-game weren't up to par with Uncharted, and I've seen some of the prettier PC games, and can say they don't come close) and WKC (soon?) and Valkyria Chronicles and such, I'll be fine. Plus I will be importing FFXIII, having some Japanese friends help me translate it, haha, I'm really happy to have the ONLY region free console this gen... That's ONE thing I can say.

Since we brought up the multimedia, I have a few complaints... I wish it had a better browser... The built in browser is really bad. Better than not having one (360) but when the Wii does a multimedia function better than the PS3 (Wii has a proper browser, Opera), that's not acceptable, though granted I believe you have to pay for it on the Wii (could be wrong, don't quote me on that.)

Besides the browser, I'd like to see:

Multiple log-ins for local multiplayer... Playing resistance and seeing "Bobtheduck blasted bobtheduck with a rocket while bobtheduck sat on bobtheduck's lap picking his nose" gets kind of annoying.

Resize function for video, or even a global resize if at all possible... I have an SD TV with worse than normal overscan, and I'm not often allowed to use the HDTV (mostly when I get blurays from netflix that my Parents want to see)... I can't watch anything, for instance, with subtitles because they get cut off... I love it when games let you adjust this (absolutely needed in things like Pixel Junk Monsters), but even playing MGS1 was difficult because it'd cut off some of the subtitles in the corners...

A Title zoom on bluray subtitles and menus... Um... Yeah... They're like pt 5 fonts in over half of them... Not so much a PS3 complaint as a high def in general complaint...

Universal voice chat for all offline games... Granted, I just use skype for this now, it'd be nice to do it from in the PS3, since my PS3 owning friend doesn't have his PS3 and his PC in the same room, and it would be cool to be talking while we played seperate games, or even the same game (I'd love to guide him through MGS4)

I'm not all that excited for MAG even though it'll draw some of my shooter fanboy friends... I'm ok with Resistance 2, of course, because that's sort of our Halo, and that's how I get friends to play with me. Little Big Planet... I go back and forth with that one

I stand by everything I said about not liking the direction the game industry is headed... Since it's the field I'm getting into, and since I had dreams of helming a cinematic, narrative centered game, and I felt the same way as Cliffy B (though for very different reasons) that these games are kind of on the way out... MGS4 sold because it was MGS4. I hope time proves me wrong, and that the people in charge (investors) think there's just as much room for shaking your butt on a balance board as there is for interactive TV shows like MGS4 (though I'll admit I'd NEVER make cutscenes that long, as much as I loved MGS4) but if the trend I see becomes the norm, I don't think I'm really gonna stay interested... My kind is no longer needed, and I'll see this age to the end (see what I did there?)

Of course, if my type of games are no longer viable, I move to RPG maker... I just hope Enterbrain makes a PS3 version that takes advantage of the harddrive and is more like RPG Maker 2000 (I'd rather have more WYSIWYG options than have to learn a programming language like Ruby, myself) than it is like VX and DEFINITELY not like the first PS2 RPG maker...

If the next RPG maker is 360 exclusive... i'll buy a 360, plain and simple. That would be the application that would make me go over. If it was multiplatform, I'd hope you could share between the two versions (PS3 and 360) and if it's wii only, then I'll realize that Enterbrain has lost their minds and won't give them another thought.

Hmm... Here's looking forward to TGS.

[Bobtheduck]

*double post*

[Mr. SmartyPants]

Plus, what ever flaws they may have TF2 makes up for.

TF2 is everything that all the other Multiplayer FPS games will never be: Pure awesome.

[Etoh*the*Greato]

I'll definitely give ya Valkyria chronicles. I'm prett jealous of that one, because it's so dang pretty.

[MangArtist]

Ooooo! Zis is good news for me! Heh heh. Still want to get a PS3 for Ico 3, though.

[Nate]

I've not had a SINGLE problem with my 360. If you do get an error, Microsoft will fix it for you for free. =)

That's the thing: I don't want Microsoft to fix it for me for free. I want them to make the console better so that they don't have to fix it for me for free. I don't want to buy a 360 only to turn right back around and send it off to a repair shop. That kind of defeats the purpose of buying a console, which is to y'know, play games.

Most of their better games are only good at best, whereas I'm finding other titles on other systems to be what I consider some of the best gaming experiences of my life. (Metal Gear series, Bioshock, anything that Valve makes, COD4, etc) I can't speak the same for the Wii.

I think most of Nintendo's better games are fantastic, there's just not enough of them. Super Mario Galaxy was a pinnacle of gaming and an absolute masterpiece, but the problem is I beat it and now I basically feel like, well, I don't need to play it again for a while. Brawl is great, but the single-player on it is fairly lacking. Mario Kart Wii has BS computer AI, so it's really not as fun as Double Dash. Metroid Prime 3 was really good, but I haven't done much with it lately.

That's the problem. Nintendo releases really good first party games, but the rest of the library is mostly trash. The Gamecube had the same problem.

The other problem is we're just not in Nintendo's target demographic. Nintendo is focusing on the "casual gamer." Super Mario Galaxy was glossed over at last year's E3 to focus on...Wii Fit. No real gamer gave two hoots about Wii Fit but that was what Nintendo pushed. Sadly the people that are fans of Mario, Zelda, Metroid, and of course Earthbound, Nintendo doesn't care about at all. They're a minority.

This is why no matter how many gamers get frustrated with Nintendo, Nintendo will continue to turn a profit.

In any case, there's always TGS for me...

[Kingdom]

Being a Wii owner, i'm sortof jealous of the other consoles titles. But, i think if it were like 7 years ago, I would be very displeased and very jealous. But, now and where I am at in life I don't really let it bother me. I have fun with the Wii, Fairy princess plays it with me and its great.

But, im happy with the titles coming out so far.

And still need to get
Mario Kart
And
WiiFit = for motivation to get in shape I heard it works.

[Etoh*the*Greato]

Ooooo! Zis is good news for me! Heh heh. Still want to get a PS3 for Ico 3, though.

I'm not certain Shadow of the Colossus counts as an Ico 2. It was the same world, sure, but I think it was it's own separate story line with nods and strong links to Ico.

[TriezGamer]

That's the thing: I don't want Microsoft to fix it for me for free. I want them to make the console better so that they don't have to fix it for me for free. I don't want to buy a 360 only to turn right back around and send it off to a repair shop. That kind of defeats the purpose of buying a console, which is to y'know, play games.

I dunno if it helps any, but my 360 has never needed repairs and I play it at a moderately heavy play load. Had it for almost a full year.

[Kingdom]

Has anyone looked at Conduit? I think this game has a lot of potential.

http://wii.ign.com/objects/142/14248157.html

Just wondering if anyone else was looking at this, or was interested.

Also make sure you check out Castlevania: Judgement - E3 Footage

http://www.gametrailers.com/player/36752.html

http://www.gametrailers.com/player/36755.html

Yes, I know it is a fighter game, but it looks like you can run all over.

[Bobtheduck]

k, nate, it took me forever to figure out what your pic was about...

TGS... Teen Girl Squad... I just wasn't think in terms of titles...

If Team Ico shows up for TGS, THAT will make me happy with it.

[Yuen Fei Lung]

That's the problem. Nintendo releases really good first party games, but the rest of the library is mostly trash. The Gamecube had the same problem.

The other problem is we're just not in Nintendo's target demographic. Nintendo is focusing on the "casual gamer." Super Mario Galaxy was glossed over at last year's E3 to focus on...Wii Fit. No real gamer gave two hoots about Wii Fit but that was what Nintendo pushed. Sadly the people that are fans of Mario, Zelda, Metroid, and of course Earthbound, Nintendo doesn't care about at all. They're a minority.

This is why no matter how many gamers get frustrated with Nintendo, Nintendo will continue to turn a profit.

Yep, I totally think that's how most hardcore gamers view Nintendo. It is rather frustrating that they seem to forget about hardcore gamers but at the same time, I understand that they want to make money.

Here's an example of how much the Wii appeals to people who aren't even gamers: My friends parents (age 46 and 50) played the Wii once at a relatives house and then decided to buy one. I find the Wii to be a very fun system but how it appeals to such a wide demographic of ages is simply beyond me.

I really was hoping for some sort of annoucement of a new Zelda at this years E3... but Nintendo had a pretty weak press conference all in all. Still, they're doing something right I'd gather since they continue to make money.

[Kingdom]

Well, what I gathered from E3 this year is hints of them making core titles for the "core" gamer. concrete hints.

Yea, I know many are disappointed at Nintendo, but I think they are more into the world being able to play games.
And I see nothing wrong with it. But the world might like games as well.
I am a hardcore gamer, I guess, but it doesn't mean I only deserve games made for me.

I think they are coming out with some great titles, and I know im excited.

I ain't just trying to protect nintendo since im a big nintendo fan, just enjoyed everything they done with the wii so far but everyone thinks different so I am open to hear what others have to say.

[Etoh*the*Greato]

I noticed this year that the word "hard" dropped out of the game industry's term for us. We're just "core" now. As for Nintendo, I simply do not think we are their demographic any more. It would be like complaining that disney doesn't really reach you and your views. They can't, because you're simply not what their aiming for. They want the kids who are malleable and whose parents have deep wallets.

[Nate]

Well, what I gathered from E3 this year is hints of them making core titles for the "core" gamer. concrete hints.

Oh yeah, Animal Crossing is SO TOTALLY for hardcore gamers. e.e

Yea, I know many are disappointed at Nintendo, but I think they are more into the world being able to play games.
And I see nothing wrong with it. But the world might like games as well.
I am a hardcore gamer, I guess, but it doesn't mean I only deserve games made for me.

I don't think anyone here is saying "Nintendo should make games for us and only us!" What we're saying is Nintendo needs to pay at least SOME attention to us. We're not asking for a full Thanksgiving dinner, we're asking for just a bone, and Nintendo won't even give us that. That's the problem.

I've seen more people on gaming sites, who love Nintendo, saying that they're ready to sell their Wii, because there's no justification for keeping it. Yes, Brawl and Twilight Princess and Metroid Prime 3 and Mario Galaxy are all fantastic games. But for someone who's beaten all of those, their Wii is just collecting dust. Maybe they bring it out for a Brawl-fest with their buddies, but the point is people aren't playing it because there aren't any NEW games that appeal to them. Plus Nintendo seems to have taken a crap on the Virtual Console by not bothering to release any games that anyone wants.

I think they are coming out with some great titles, and I know im excited.

When? When are they coming out with some great titles? We don't even have a sliver of a hint. "The Metroid and Zelda teams are working on something." Okay, great. Got a screenshot? Got a guesstimate of when a release date is? No? Well that's not freaking news, now is it? Even if they said "These games won't be out until 2012" well at least we'd have SOMETHING. But they won't even give us that.

I love Nintendo's games but as a company they're simply the worst.

[Kingdom]

If I really have to post all the games that are coming out, I will, but you could search them yourselves.

I know i'm satisfied with what they are bringing out. I been looking at The Conduit, Animal Crossing, Castlevania Judgement, Force Unleashed(with a vrs. mode), I haven't beat Mario Galaxy, and I DON'T know anyone who has!

I see a bright future and I see many new things happening with the MotionPlus which I think is a good Idea.
Read that If you want information.

I am not sick of Brawl, and I'm not sick of Mario Kart.( Maybe that's who I just am)

They said they are working on a Pikmin 3, that is HARDcore for Nintendo, I guess the question is what are the titles you all want another Mario ? or what? I don't know.
I have fun with all games, and happy that anyone can play them.
I don't look down at the fact me and my dad have fun playing some of the games.

My GF plays them all so I used my dad as a example and yes it is true we play games together.

And i get enough of my Hardcore gaming in.

But Like I said before some people will be satisfied some won't.
We all are different.

[Aedin]

Did they have a Jumping Flash game for the PS2?

[Yuen Fei Lung]

Did they have a Jumping Flash game for the PS2?

Not that I know of... if there is one, I'd love to play it. Jumping Flash was such a fun, original title.

[LiquidOcelot]

I noticed this year that the word "hard" dropped out of the game industry's term for us. We're just "core" now. As for Nintendo, I simply do not think we are their demographic any more. It would be like complaining that disney doesn't really reach you and your views. They can't, because you're simply not what their aiming for. They want the kids who are malleable and whose parents have deep wallets.

That's definitely true!

Nintendo's main target is different from Sony or MS. They are more about casual gamers. It is rather disappointing that they don't seem to care very much about hardcore gamers. Hehe, I used that word. Anyways, I got my Gamecube mainly for the Resident Evil series and well I also enjoy the Zelda series.

They said they are working on a Pikmin 3, that is HARDcore for Nintendo, I guess the question is what are the titles you all want another Mario ? or what? I don't know

Well at least for me. I don't have a Wii yet. Maybe if they announced a new Zelda then I would be interested. But, it would probably take more than that.

Anyways, I've read interesting things about the Wii. People you would not expect to be video gamers are getting the Wii. I guess it has a lot to do with Wii Fitness. Even some older people are getting the Wii.

But, I had heard that their E3 conference clearly wasn't very impressive. Who knows maybe they will show more at the TGS.

In a way though I am glad that Nintendo is still doing well in the videogame industry. Despite being a Sega fan long time ago. Because, I don't want the video game industry to "shrink". And, I hate MS. Sorry for MS fans. It's just the way I feel. I'm not one to say their console is bad or anything. I just don't like MS.

[Mr. SmartyPants]

The Conduit looks like it will fail because it's a typical sub-par FPS.

Animal Crossing is an annoying game and no way a console seller.

Castlevania Judgement looks kinda stupid.

Force Unleashed is not Wii Exclusive.

Nintendo's E3 this year absolutely FAILED. They showed NOTHING worth anticipating over.

[Nate]

If I really have to post all the games that are coming out, I will, but you could search them yourselves.

Oh there's no need to. I've seen the release schedule up to the end of the year. I think maybe ONE title out of the fifty or so on the list qualifies as "hardcore," that being Rebel Raiders. And I'm not even sure about that one. The rest is crap like Bratz World, Spongebob Squarepants, and The Price is Right. Yes, I'm aware Lego Batman is on the list, and that'll be an awesome game more than likely, but it isn't a hardcore game, and I'll get it for PS3 anyway because that one will have the best resolution.

I haven't beat Mario Galaxy, and I DON'T know anyone who has!

Wow, all your friends must suck at games then. I beat it a week after I got it, and got all 242 stars two weeks after that. And that's with working a full time job.

I see a bright future and I see many new things happening with the MotionPlus which I think is a good Idea.
Read that If you want information.

I already know all about Nintendo's "Oops we didn't do what we were supposed to with the system originally so now we're going to charge you boatloads more money to do what we should've done in the first place!" Nintendo is awesome about making gamers shell out cash for their stupidity. They did it when they made the N64 and forced gamers to pay for an Expansion Pak. They did it when they made the Game Boy Advance with the "Holy crap I can't see this screen even two inches away" and then forced gamers to pay for an SP. Hell they even did it with the DS by making the DS Lite. Game Boy Micro? Game Boy Pocket? Let's not forget the Game Boy Color, oooh, four colors!

The MotionPlus isn't a ripoff, just like the GBA SP wasn't a ripoff. But it really is sleazy of Nintendo to not deliver what they promise and then force us to pay MORE money to get what they promised originally.

I am not sick of Brawl, and I'm not sick of Mario Kart.( Maybe that's who I just am)

Probably, but I don't play much multiplayer, and the single player of Brawl and Mario Kart is pretty repetitive, and the BS rubber band AI of Mario Kart made me not even want to bother with 150 cc, which is unheard of for me in a Mario Kart game...I've always beaten all the Mirror tracks, even in the original game.

They said they are working on a Pikmin 3, that is HARDcore for Nintendo,

I like how you added the "for Nintendo" part. It proves my point completely. By the way I don't see how anyone could consider Pikmin hardcore by any stretch of the imagination.

I guess the question is what are the titles you all want another Mario ? or what? I don't know.

I want some new IPs, or I want some new games for the old ones. I liked Metroid Prime 3 overall, and I'd love to see another Metroid game. I want another Zelda game like Wind Waker. I want games like God of War and Grand Theft Auto on the Wii. I don't like FPS games, but there needs to be more FPS games on the Wii.

And that's the problem. The Wii is the absolute perfect system for FPS games, it's the next best thing to a keyboard and mouse. So why is the 360 the king of FPS games on consoles? It makes zero sense. Except for the fact that Nintendo doesn't care about hardcore gamers, which I've said, meaning they're not going to bother with FPS games, but there's a bigger problem.

Nintendo are complete morons when it comes to online.

The 360, Xbox Live, is literally perfect for online gaming. It's easy, it's quick, and it's fun. The Wii however is a load of trash. Friend codes? Ugh. The worst idea Nintendo has ever had (well...wait, worse than Virtual Boy? Tough choice), and the reason why the Wii will never, ever, EVER mean anything to hardcore gamers. Online gaming is huge, and Nintendo refuses, absolutely refuses to make it easy and painless. Why? Because "ZOMG tEh CHILDRENZZZZZZZZZZZ PEDOS WILL KIDNAP YOUR CHILD OVER THE INTERNETS." That's bull]I have fun with all games, and happy that anyone can play them.
I don't look down at the fact me and my dad have fun playing some of the games.[/QUOTE]
I'm not saying "You can't have fun playing the Wii! Stop having fun and complain!" If you like your Wii, hey, awesome! Congratulations. The problem is most gamers, like myself, have a dust collector right now and we're pretty angry at Nintendo for it. It's the Gamecube all over again, a good first party game comes out and the system gets worked out for a few weeks, and then it's back to the old Playstation while the Nintendo does nothing for a year until the NEXT first party game comes out.

It's just absurd. Nintendo was saying back before the Wii came out "We're going to give gamers a reason to turn on their Wii every day!" Well, I guess that can be chalked up as another lie from them. Same as "You'll be playing Earthbound on the Virtual Console!" and "The Virtual Boy will blow you away with its awesomeness!"