Damn! My feet hurt, my back hurts and I am in massive need of caffine (thank goodness for all the free Coke!), but I have returned from a busy, busy day of E3. After ate lunch, I went off to see what SOE had brought to the show. While showing off a few titles, I focused on the most interesting of their PC titles: Pirates of the Burning Sea and The Agency. Pirates of the Burning Sea is actually essentially finished - the developer would have shipped what they have here as the finished product had SOE not stepped in and given them another year to make the game perfect. Allowing you to live out your wildiest pirate adventures in a MMO setting, Pirates made an impressive showing at E3. Custom flags and masts, an ever-changing world that can change between PvP and PvE at any moment as well as an economy that is solely held up by the players, and a battle system that involves much more than just clicking and pressing hot keys round out the Pirates experience I was shown today.

The Agency, a FPS/3rd person hybrid MMO, was shown in true playable form, as it was actually a movie file of the developers playing it that was shown. After a brief breakdown of the gameplay - which includes Operatives that will work for you even when you aren't playing so even when you don't play you won't get far behind friends - we were shown the gameplay video. With stylish graphics that are more over-the-top and unique than realisitc and refined controls, The Agency looks like, if it can captialize on all the genre-pushing ideas the developers have, could be the next big thing. But enemy A.I., gameplay balance and spreading the experience too thin with too many options are concerns I pulled from my experience today.

After that, I went off to the Barker Hanger, which is the closest thing to the old E3 of booths and games that is here. I was able to get my hands-on quite a few awesome titles, but as the media room is about to close (I am always having this problem!), I will short list them for now.

Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles (WII) - Graphics are above average for a Wii title, the new Zapper controller is comfortable and effective for the gameplay. Not sure how much depth is in this game, but my small taste did perk my interest.

Zach and Wiki (WII) -Vibrant graphics and 3D point-and-click adventure controls seem perfectly suited for the Wii. Gestures are used to interact with the world with more than just clicks. As long as the puzzles and characters stay interesting, this will be a winner.

Hellboy (360, PSP) - The 360 version is shaping up decently, with gameplay that will satify both the hardcore and casual gamer. Interactive environments are fun, combos are varied, graphics are decent though some of the textures could use some work. The PSP version, surprising, looks pretty good, with some really crisp textures. Gameplay isn't as solid though, as it feels a lot like every other beat-em-up on the system.

4 minutes before I get the boot, so I have to cut this short again. Sorry, but expect more tomorrow!

Labels: Capcom, E3 2007, Konami

Good morning! Your E3 rat has returned for another day of sniffing out news and bring you all the impressions and hands-on reports he can. I need to catch myself up from yesterday, as I was rushed out of the media room before I could finish my thoughts, but at that same time, I have a meeting with SOE real soon and need lunch, so here's a small catch up bit to last you until I return!

Condemned 2 - simply amazing. Easily the most impressive game I have seen in playable form here so far. We were shown around about 25% of the first level, steered by one of the developers. The game opens after the main character (the same one from the first game) and his homeless friend being kicked out of a bar and are now off to find more booze. New to the series are context sensitive moments where if you hit the A button quick enough, you'll interact with the cut scenes. These are generally very simple gestures, such as shaking hands, flipping someone off, etc. I didn't get to see what happens if you don't press the button, though it doesn't seem to be wholly detrimental to your experience.

While the graphics, even in its unfinished state, were very slick. Textures were varied and detailed, frame rate was silky smooth and the physics were accurate and impressive. But what really impressed was how enemies took damage. Depending on where you hit them and with what, enemies would bruise, cut and bleed. You can also break arms and disable your enemies, the key, I was told, to taking on multiple enemies at once. Environmental kills are also making a return, but are far easier to pull off now.

After seeing more of the first level, we were shown the improved forensics parts. You will be called upon, at more random times this time around, to discover why and how someone died, much like in CSI. You will be given essentially a form to fill out, answering questions such as 'who is the person dead?' and 'where is the murder scene?' Your cursor will highlight certain objects, wounds and other items around and you must select from a menu what the answer is to your questions. For example, when answering who the dead person was, we looked at the face and determined it was a male, looked at the uniform to determine he was a police officer, then looked at this badge to figure out who he was. I felt like I was playing Phoenix Wright - a grand compliment!

Finally, we were shown a survival mode dubbed 'bum fight.' This is exactly what it sounds like - you against waves after waves of enemies until you die. I was told this mode actually came from developers playing around, testing A.I. and after a few hours, they decided it was so fun to make it an accessible mode. It is basically a way to 'crack skulls for 15 minutes' I was told - nothing wrong with that! You can set the parameters of the fight, since as how many enemies at a time, what weapons are available and what enemies you want to fight (all of which are unlocked as you complete levels in single player).

A few more notes to wrap Condemned 2 up. Multiplayer is going to play a big part, with a promise given to us that the same stale multiplayer will not be simply rehashed in Condemned 2 - they plan on exploring the possibilities the game world they have created allows. What that means I wasn't able to find out, but it is nice to at least hear a developer willing to branch out and take a risk or two.

All in all, this game is nothing short of amazing in its demoed form and as long as the development team keeps pushing forward and pushing the envelope of game play as they showed yesterday, Condemned 2 will easily be a huge hit when it drops.

Before I go, I want to make a few comments regarding Ubisoft, once press conference I am watching right now. Much like everyone else, Ubisoft is jumping on the casual bandwagon hard, with more than a dozen new DS titles coming out soon. Lots of new animal with a 'Z' at the end games coming, including Dolphinz and Tigerz. A line of games to cater to preteen/teen girls is on its way as are the My Coach series of self-help titles. Jam Sessions was shown off and looks just as interesting and creative as it did a few months ago. One Wii game was show, Nitro Bikes, which looks to take the Excitetruck experience back to the bikes, with fast, arcade action and much welcomed online play.

Then the big guns came out. The new Brothers in Arms next-gen title, Hell's Highway, was shown in playable form and looked quite good. Graphics were crisp and gameplay was tight, varied and extremely realistic. Also shown in playable form was Assassin's Creed, which simply stole the show. Breathtaking visuals, superb sound effects (voice, effects and music) and the gameplay looked to take the Prince of Persia formula to new highs with more interactive environments and a greater sense of improvision in how you accomplish a task as well as get to where you are going.

Well, Ubisoft is over and lunch is waiting. Expect more updates as the day continues!

Labels: E3 2007, SEGA

Back again! Its been a few hours since I posted last and a whole lot has gone down in that short amount of time. I sat in on a few more press conferences and enjoyed a private showing of SEGA's upcoming titles not shown at the no appointment necessary Barker Hanger.

I know some of these are vague and missing detail, but I only have 20 minutes of computer time so I gotta go fast!

First off, EA. The EA press conference focused not on the entire lineup but nearly exclusively on casual games. Which is no surprise considering their newly formed division, EA Casual Games, was only just announced to the public. As is no surprise, the majority of the games shown off from their casual divisions were for the Wii. We were treated to live demonstrations of Boogie (Wii), EA Playground (Wii), Smarty Pants (Wii - working title) and blocks title coming out of EA's partnership with famed director, Steven Spielberg.

Boogie is shaping up quite nicely, with very slick visuals that do not give off that PS2/XB/GC stench and fun, if not goofy and embarrassing, gameplay. We were given a live demonstration, showing off not only the dancing - which involves flailing around like a bird having a seizure - and singing - a man with a thick accent is the perfect singer for the Pussycat Girls' "Don't Cha" - but also the replay ability of the game. Our demonstrator showed off a video he had made earlier in the day, which included his dance moves and voice, using a 3D effect. I wasn't sure this title was going to show any appeal outside of the younger set, but if the final game is as solid as what was shown off, Boogie could quickly become a sleeper hit.

EA Playground, announced a couple weeks before E3, was finally shown off to the public. On its surface, it is a Wii compilation of many of the games kids play at school, such as dodgeball and tetherball. But dig a little deeper and you will find new games such as Kicks - the odd combo of soccer and volleyball. The two games shown off - dodgeball and tetherball - were completely controlled with the Wiimote with only the most necessary of controls. I'm not sure how much depth and lasting appeal one may be able to pull from this game, but again, the younger and casual set should have a ball.

Smarty Pants is a quiz show game that brings in gesture controls for things such as ringing in - done by raising your hand, spinning the wheel - you actually have to crank it up, and tug of war of two players tie when ringing in. Not much else is known about this title, but if the questions are plentiful and the quick, gesture-based mini-games interesting, Mario Party may have some competition for the ultimate Wii party title.

Finally, the block title (I can't remember if this actually had a name or not) is an interesting puzzler that can be bested described as Jenga on crack (or Jenga meets dominoes if you don't like crack). You have your Jenga-style towers and blocks, but along with those are special blocks that explode, shoot goo or are cows. Yep, you read that right - cows. There will be around 20 character blocks once the game is finished, along with many, many puzzles, multiplayer and a puzzle editor so you can make all the crazy levels you want!

After EA, I went over to the Loews Hotel to check out SEGA's games. I wasn't allowed to touch anything, so no hands-on any games, but I was given a thorough walkthrough for the titles I saw. First off was Sonic and Mario at the Olympics. I was shown the 100 meter dash, long jump and shotput. Each event using the Wiimote and/or nunchuck to control your characters, such as pumping your arms like mad to run and swinging the Wiimote much like in Rayman Raving Rabbids to throw the shotput. The game is being developed to not be over-the-top, but as realistic as possible - despite the obvious irony. Single player and multiplayer are in the works, as well as an online leaderboard (sorry, no true online multiplayer). Unfortunately, SEGA wasn't privy to details about the WiiFit board, as it would be an obvious addition to the gameplay, but alas, it seems for too late to implement it at this point.

Damn - my time is nearly all spent and I still have some much to talk about. Okay, fast recap for now:

Condemned 2 - the best game I have seen in action so far. Looks to be a complete blast.

Iron Man - looks nice but not quite sure if the gameplay will translate into fun over multiple hours.

Stranglehold - definitely worthy of the the hype.

Blacksite Area 51 - big bosses look awesome, squad gameplay appears simple yet effective.

Silent Hill 5 - for real, though not really graphics were shown, just a teaser trailer.

Metal Gear Solid 4 - new trailer is so bad ass it hurts.

And I'm out of time! More tomorrow (or tonight if I can)!

Labels: E3 2007, EA, SEGA

*NOTE: Sorry for any blurry pictures, I don't have the best digital camera!!!

Hello! As most of you know, E3 kicked off this morning in sunny Santa Monica, California and your very own Tony Peters (from the U.S. team) was on hand. Kicking everything off was Nintendo's press conference. Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo's President and Chief Operating Officer, MC'd most of the event. Instead of putting the focus simply on games, the PC was filled with statistics, graphs, videos, news clips, etc. involving the DS, Wii and Nintendo as a company.

The main focus of these was on not only Nintendo's place in the gaming industry as a whole as well as how Nintendo is faring with the 'casual' and non-gaming crowd. Fils-Aime spoke on how the 18-24 demographic has been steadily growing, as has Nintendo's grasp of the female gaming crowd. As the DS recently passed the 40 million units sold around the world mark, Flis-Aime was ready to place the Wii, sold out for the entire 33 weeks it has been on the market (though rumors of that having more to do with Nintendo than consumers still ran rampant), at the top of the next generation console war, claiming it shall overtake the lead soon.

But politics aside - its the games you want to hear about and the games I want to talk about! The first announcement was not a game, but an accessory - the new Zapper. This new controller houses not only the Wiimote, but the nunchuck as well. The Wiimote sits on the front facing forward, as one would imagine it would, and the nunchuck connects to the back. As the bottom of the Wiimote is now covered by plastic, the trigger has been moved to a natural gun position on the actual Zapper. It was revealed that Capcom's upcoming Wii shooter, Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles, would take advantage of the controller, as well as SEGA's Ghost Squad and EA's Medal of Honor: Airborne. Medal of Honor is special, as it also supports 10 Wii-specific gesture motions to work with the zapper (what these are weren't revealed). The best part about the Zapper may be the price, coming in at a paltry $19.99 USD.


Following that was a reel of upcoming third-party titles for both the Wii and DS, including Namco-Bandai's Soulcalibur Legends (Wii), WWE Smackdown Vs. Raw 2008 (both), Dragon Quest: Swords (Wii) and Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (Wii). These were just quick looks at Nintendo's support of the third-party developers who have been flocking projects to Nintendo systems recently.


Following this was a few pictures and short clips of Super Smash Bros. Brawl. While no new gameplay information was shared (nor was Sonic announced as a playable character - you know Mario can't win a foot race with the 'hog, so they have to bring the fight to his turf!), one truly important one was: the release date. Brawl will be kicking Wii butt on December 3rd in the U.S.



Then we had a recap of Nintendo's online presence (or some would say lack there of) before receiving a few tasty online treats for the coming months. Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker (DS), Madden NFL 08 (Wii), Medal of Honor: Airborne (Wii - up to 32 players!)and FIFA 08 (Wii) will all support online gaming! The EA online games are extremely important, as they show that Nintendo is finally opening up their online plans to third-parties. Let's hope other companies will be allowed to follow suit just as fast!

Next up, we were treated to Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass as it was played by a Nintendo fan on the big screen, followed by another fan playing Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. Neither play-throughs were short and lacking in new details, but I do admit I was pretty jealous to be watching others play. Both titles are shaping up quite well and I can't wait to get my hands on them in the coming days!

Now comes the biggest news to come out of the PC. Are you ready for this? Coming to the Wii early next year is Mario Kart Wii. This racer will be fully playable online and the series is about to receive a change in how many people can play the game - what that means was not revealed, but it sounds like Mario Kart is about to finally see some real gameplay changes (sorry, but two people karts doesn't cut it).

Bundled with each copy of the game will be a wheel controller, but unlike Monster 4x4, this wheel does not appear to just be a cheap Wiimote holder. The pictures of it show a trigger button on the back, one for each side, and though the picture does not show it, a press releasing accompanying the PC says it does indeed house the Wiimote and is not a stand-alone controller.

Fils-Aime turned over the MC duties to Nintendo's president, Satoru Iwata, who shared his journey through gaming and how accessible it has become over the years. This was followed by videoes of one lucky family who was able to play Super Mario Galaxy and talk about. New levels, including a pirate ship, were shown as well as a glimpse of Mario in a bumblebee suit. The focus on the video was not on the game, but how gamers and non-gamers played the game and interacted with each, which kind of sucked because you know we all really just wanted more game footage!

Finally, Shigeru Miyamoto took the stage to unveil the final card up Nintendo's sleeve - WiiFit. Using a white pad, apparently about the size of a bathroom scale, that reads weight and pressure on it, you can get a workout through 40 mini-games designed to get gamers in shape. Games should range from straight, no-frills workouts, such as balancing, stretching and push-ups, to fitness entertainment such as aerobics (think simplified DDR) and blocking soccer balls with your head (an event Miyamoto and Fils-Aime dueled each other against on stage). Though hardly mind blowing, WiiFit does continue to push the boundaries of casual gaming to new frontiers and should attract even more consumers to the Wii than before!

That wraps up the Nintendo press conference. Later today I will be attending press conferences for Electronic Arts, Activision, enjoying some private playing time with SEGA before wrapping up with the Konami press conference. Speaking of the Konami PC, I was emailed today to expect an unannounced title and while this is based completely on eavesdropping (hey, they sat next to me at the Welcome Reception last night, I couldn't help not to listen!), it could be Silent Hill 5. COULD BE. All I know is when it was mentioned, a Konami PR rep didn't answer about the possibility, and I would imagine a 'no' would be in order if it were truly the answer in such a casual setting. But what do I know?

Okay - lunch awaits! Expect more updates later tonight!

Labels: E3 2007, Nintendo