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No Metal Gear Solid 4 demo for PSN
Kojima Productions revealed in its latest podcast that it has no plans to release a downloadable demo of Metal Gear Solid 4 on the PSN. Host Ryan Payton stated: "I can tell you, as of right now, we don't have any plans of uploading this demo on the PlayStation Store." Instead, those interested in catching an early glimpse of Snake's next espionage game will have to do so at E for All in Los Angeles. Michael Shelling added: "[E for All] is going to be your one chance to actually play it prior to it launching next year."Considering the immense hype behind the game, it seems Konami is confident that it can simply release the game without a demo. Certainly, there are very few that need to be convinced of its quality.[Via Joystiq]
Blue Mars - blurring the boundary between MMOG and virtual world
Does the name Kazuyuki Hashimoto ring a bell? He was Chief Technology Officer for Square USA for five years, was Vice President of New Technology and Platforms at Electronic Arts for 4 years, and spent seven years as the Senior Vice President of R&D at Square where he worked on the CG segments and cutscenes in the legendary Final Fantasy VII. Along with Li-Han Chen - whose background includes Project Manager (Sony Online Entertainment), VP of engineering (AtGames Inc), Senior Programmer (Squaresoft), Senior Programmer (Dreamworks) - Hashimoto heads up the Honolulu-based Avatar Reality Inc, and their new MMOG, Blue Mars.
Metal Gear Solid 4 to appear at E for All [Update]
E for All increasingly seemed like a joke. Microsoft and Sony, in addition to a number of other high-profile third party publishers have opted out of attending this new consumer game show. However, Konami will be attending the show and one of the games they have scheduled to appear is Metal Gear Solid 4. How it will be shown is still unclear. It could be on video, or it could be playable. If a playable MGS4 is present at the games show, it might almost be worth attending the show. Almost.[Update: A playable demo will be offered. It will be based off the TGS demo. With Smash Bros. and MGS4 both playable at the show, it seems like E For All has finally pulled off a decent showing.]
E For All not for Sony, others
IDG Entertainment is running into a little trouble crafting "a follow-up to the now-defunct E3 Expo." Firing Squad is reporting that Sony Computer Entertainment will not be attending the upcoming E For All Expo.Along with the major console maker, publishers NCSoft, Sega and Capcom will also be missing the October show, according to FiringSquad. The show won't be a total bust, though: Nintendo and EA will be there, along with THQ, Konami, Namco, Intel and NVIDIA.These losses are a pretty major blow as the new show tries to become a must-attend event. Any show that's going to replace E3 is going to have to quickly build up to a critical mass of publisher attention to draw in the press and consumer interest that makes an expo work.
Another E3 organizer goes E for All
Carolyn Rauch, former Senior Vice President of the Entertainment Software Association, has been named VP of event development at the International Data Group World Expo. Rauch's move follows in the footsteps of Mary Dolaher, a former VP for ESA who early last month became CEO of IDG World Group.The E for All Expo is being organized by IDG World Group in the shadow of the ESA-organized E3 (now shrunken like an iPod to the E3 Media and Business Summit). Don't expect competitive words or sentiments, as IDG is managing E3, but two figures from the glitz-era E3 handling E for All is further proof the public event is trying to retain the atmosphere the formerly extravagant convention.The ESA recently appointed Michael Gallagher as the new head of the ESA.E for All, with Nintendo as its flagship, is coming to the Los Angeles Convention Center October 18 to 20. The invite-only "Min-E3" is July 11 to 13 in Santa Monica.
The WSVG can send your guild to the Blizzard offices
Not feeling satisfied with the answers you're getting from the CMs? Want to take your issues to the source? The WSVG Guild Challenge is giving guilds a chance to win a trip to beautiful Irvine, California, home of the Blizzard headquarters. The winning guild will get to tour the offices and have lunch with members of the development team, as well as be there for the WSVG event at E for All in October. The competition will be held in both Louisville, Kentucky and Dallas, Texas, and it will be a great way for your guild to show some skills in IRL games and in game events. The events give guilds a chance to battle in game in an all out Gurubashi Arena free for all as well as 5v5 arena tournaments. Outside the game (I know, as if there is such a thing) guilds can Sumo wrestle their way to the top, as well as compete in a jousting tourney and guild versus guild Tug-O-War. Brush off your raiding skills in the BYOC $30,000 tournament during the day, and then stay for the Guild Challenge at night. Then make sure to let WoW Insider know about the experience so we can share your victory with the world. Register for Louisville or Dallas soon so your guild can reign supreme.
Tip a 40 to the homies, this used to be E3 week
We are gathered here today, not to remember E3's death on July 31, 2006, but rather its life. A life which we would have celebrated this week if it weren't for its untimely passing. In the words of 20th Century wordsmith P Drs, we take a moment to remember: I tip my 40 to your memoryTake a drink, and IStop to think, and II know one day soonWe'll be, we'll be hangin out It is hard to imagine that the event so many loved to hate to love is actually gone now. Right about now journalists, industry folk and the legions of fanboys who scored a pass would be preparing to fly to Los Angeles tomorrow and get settled into our ghetto hotels before the madness of Wednesday. The sweat, the ecstasy and the pounding beat of thousands of speakers vying for consumer industry attention. But, like a tweaked-out twink on a three-day bender, the party couldn't last. The scene became too much for the big publishers and they decided to scale it down, keep their party tight and in private hotel rooms. Abandoned and with no place to go, with no more support, E3 passed. And so, we lost a good friend.But let us not forget that left behind are PAX, E for All and Min-E3. Two events geared for the masses and one ultra-exclusive meant to take E3 back to its roots. Get the journalists who didn't make their business cards with mom's HP inkjet in to the cover the event. It is sad to think many will not know the joy and exhaustion caused by E3, but in time the pain will fade, like all pain does, and the happy memories will remain. We miss you E3.
2007 E3 attendee list lookin' bleak
Remember those suffocating crowds and the completely non-game-related overload that eventually caused a restructuring at E3? If not, we certainly do, and you won't find us complaining about a more focused approach for 2007. Of course, toning down the antics inevitebly leads to less attendees, and such looks to be the case for the July convention in Santa Monica, CA. Reportedly, a paltry 32 companies are signed up to take part in this year's festivities (larger list after the jump), but big-timers such as Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, Electronic Arts, and Square Enix (just to name a few) will still be making the hike. Still, going from some 400 exhibitors to less than 40 in a single year should make for a very different experience when July 11th rolls around, and considering that "only 3,000 to 4,000 invitations" will purportedly be sent out, getting a little hands-on time with an actual game will hopefully be less of a chore for the ones that get in.[Via ArsTechnica]
E for All expo ticket prices set
Though mention of Gamepro's E for All Expo may prompt you to envision a discreet gathering of drug dealers or a wild party where people bash each other over the head with giant foam letters, the truth is that entertainment will be the only thing being distributed. With Nintendo acting as a "flagship" for the October event, many expect it to replace the glitz and clamor of E3, with the exception of it being open to all. All with at least $50 in hand, of course.Speaking to Gamespot last week, IDG World Expo vice president and show organizer, Mary Dolaher, revealed the exact pricing of the different entry tickets. How Mary Dolahers many dollars are you expected to part with, exactly? Single day tickets for Thursday and Friday will set you back $50, whereas single day tickets for the weekend go for $75. A four-day pass is set at $110. Though the precise scope of industry support for the expo has yet to be seen, there are probably more terrible ways to spend $50 in a day. The E For All Expo will run in Los Angeles from 18 October to 21 October, with general admission tickets going on sale in June.[Via GamesIndustry.biz]
E for All advertised at Macworld Expo
IDG World Expo, the company that puts on the Macworld Expo, is already advertising its Tea for Two Expo E for All Expo at this Mac convention with stacks of fliers greeting show visitors. (We hope there's a Mac games audience here this week; is that the reason for the fliers? Is IDG Expo just trying to reach show-goers on the way to the iPhone?)Of course, it's hard to predict the show vibe of the EA Expo E for All Expo, but these cards and their edgy Halloween font scream "attitude to the max" or maybe just "quick turnaround." If E3 died because it cost exhibitors too much to cause a scene -- waving shiny models at retailers and the media -- here's hoping that E4EVR E for All reigns in some of the hype. Nah, who are we kidding? If it's aimed at a consumer audience, won't that just be an excuse for more noise?See the full fliers after the break.
E for All Expo takes the reigns, stays in Los Angeles
Those of you so deeply saddened and hurt by E3's sudden departure can take heart, as there's a new trade show coming to town, and hopefully it'll be half as good as the tried-and-true Electronic Entertainment Expo of days past. Slated to open its doors to the public and adoring media on October 18th through the 20th, the Entertainment for All Expo sports a kinder, more inviting title, that apparently hopes to focus more on the general public rather than industry insiders and advertising giants. Clearly hoping to garner more attention by continually stating that "this show is for everyone," IDG World Expo also claims that we kiddos will be able to "test drive the latest in games and gadgetry" as well as purchase things we like right on site. So while it'll (probably) never live up the expo of old, we're still down with ginormous trade shows with too much to do in not nearly enough time, and hey, now you've already got something to look forward to in October.
Gamepro expo redubbed "E for All"
The "E" referring to "Entertainment" mind you, not the easily obtainable street drug. Let's face it, the joke comparing gaming trade shows to free-for-all drug parties practically tells itself. On the topic of terrible and somewhat inappropriate jokes, Gamepro's website has officially revealed the new title for their upcoming "E3 follow-up" expo, to be held in association with IDG World Expo. Equal parts Marx and Mork, "Entertainment for All Expo" is the winning title chosen out of 3,000 entries on Gamepro's website. It certainly speaks volumes about the quality of the other 2,999. The E for All Expo is fully endorsed by the Entertainment Software Association, despite it flying in the face of E3's concerns like a shrieking bat. The event will give consumers the chance to experience all manner of games and gadgetry, allowing them to purchase some of the items they've seen on the way out. E For All will also host gaming tournaments, job fairs and Video Games Live concerts.Throbbing mass of gamers -- check. Extraordinarily loud music -- check. "No longer just for industry insiders" -- check. The evidence makes it quite clear. This is the successor to E3. Looks like members of the press will just have to make due with Min-E3 (at least it has a cooler name).[Thanks fonz!]
