e3-2008
Latest
Microsoft talks Xbox Live integration in Windows 8, says service will be 'pervasive' across devices
Microsoft's already brought Xbox Live integration to Windows Phone 7, and it looks like you can count on some similar, if not deeper, integration in Windows 8 as well. Speaking to The Seattle Times, Microsoft VP Mike Delman said that "Live has been successful on the Windows Phone," and that "Live will be built into the PC. It will be the service where you get your entertainment." Delman went on to add that "Xbox Live will the pervasive media service across devices," and that "whether it's us or Apple or anybody else, people want to be able to navigate through multiple devices in a certain ecosystem very seamlessly so we're committed to that." As you might expect, however, he was still fairly light on any further specifics, but he did say that assets like Live and SkyDrive will be unified, and he promised that Microsoft will have plenty more to show at next year's E3 -- according to Delman, "you will not just see consoles and handhelds at this show next year, this show's going to morph into other devices."
Preview: Dead Rising 2: Case Zero (XBLA)
Capcom is doing something pretty interesting with the release of Dead Rising 2. Prior to its August 31 launch, Capcom will put out Dead Rising 2: Case Zero, an Xbox Live exclusive prequel sans co-op that takes place two years after the original and three years prior to the second game. In short: it's distilled Dead Rising 2 on a much smaller scale.
ESA fees increased 1,700% during Min-E3 years, should lower now
The Entertainment Software Association increased its membership fees by 1,700% during the last two years of downsized E3s (2007-2008), apparently to compensate for revenue that the old E3 used to bring in. Gamespot discovered the shocking percentage while digging through the lobbying group's annual accounting to the IRS. The massive fee increase may have a little something to do with why Activision, LucasArts and others decided to leave the organization.We contacted the ESA to find out if this year's rebirth of the "classic" E3 format would reduce membership fees. CEO Michael Gallagher wrote us: "The positive restructuring of the E3 Expo allowed us to revisit the ESA's dues structure. It is our hope that this new model will make the ESA an attractive and accessible option for small and mid-sized publishers so we can more fully represent our industry's diversity." So, we'll take that as a "yes." Now we wait to see if the reduction brings back the companies that left and, just possibly, welcomes new publishers to the flock.
NC Interactive leaves the ESA
It looks like the Entertainment Software Association has struck another company from their membership page. GamePolitics has confirmed with ESA Senior VP Rich Taylor that NCsoft's US division, NC Interactive, has joined a list of 6 other companies that parted ways with the ESA in 2008:We can confirm that NCsoft decided not to renew its ESA membership. We respect their decision and remain committed to serving the public affairs needs of the computer and video game industry.NC Interactive's departure will mean that they don't have to fork up any more hefty membership fees, which GamePolitics initially saw as the most likely reason behind the split -- they mention that the company also shied away from an appearance at this year's E3. In a follow-up, NC insists that their financial situation has nothing to do with their decision to leave the organization.Although some big names like Activision, Vivendi and LucasArts are among the companies that left the ESA in 2008, they still have most of the industry's important players, such as Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo, and EA. Now, if 2009 goes anything like this year, then we might start to have doubts about the ESA's future -- but there's something to be said for the current financial climate, and their situation might improve a little further down the track.
Top 5: Nintendo's Biggest Surprises
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/nintendo/Nintendo_s_5_Biggest_Surprises_Throughout_History'; This week's press conference from Nintendo was like Reggie himself coming to your door, clutching a bouquet of awesome announcements, and saying "I'm sorry about E3." Indeed, I can't help but think that just one of the awesome titles announced in the past week could have prevented much of the animosity hurled at Nintendo following their ho-hum presentation at the summer exhibition. But then again, Nintendo has always been one to surprise us. They've made good moves and bad, interesting decisions coupled with utterly clueless assumptions, and made us wonder what the hell they were thinking while amazing us with what they're capable of. Here's the Top 5 biggest surprises unleashed by the Big N. NEXT >> #ninbutton { border-style: solid; border-color: #000; border-width: 2px; background-color: #BBB; color: #000; text-decoration: none; width: 100px; text-align: center; padding: 2px 2px 2px 2px; margin: 2px 2px 2px 2px; } .buttontext { color: #000; text-decoration: none; font: bold 14pt Helvetica; } #ninbutton:hover { text-decoration: none; color: #BBB; background-color: #000; } The Top 5 is a weekly feature that provides us with a forum to share our opinions on various aspects of the video game culture, and provides you with a forum to tell us how wrong we are. To further voice your opinions, submit a vote in the Wii Fanboy Poll, and take part in the daily discussions of Wii Warm Up.
Vest to allow WoW players to feel the pain
You know, our characters take a lot of punishment on a day to day basis. We may get roasted in hellfire, sliced nearly in two, buried alive, or disemboweled in the course of a regular game day. Yet through it all, our characters just keep coming back for more. Haven't you sort of wondered how our characters must feel at the end of a long day of punishment like that? Haven't you ever wanted to feel just for a moment, what they go through? Okay, neither have I. In fact, I'd have to say that I'm allergic to pain. But just in case we ever get the bug, here comes the next evolution of the good old rumble pack: The TN games 3rd Space Vest which uses a system of 8 pneumatic cells to deliver blows with varying levels of force based on action in game. Sure, technically rumble force vests aren't exactly new. In fact, this one came out back in March. But as our Sister Site Massively mentions, it's WoW-compatible. Specifically, it's being demo'd with WoW at the E for All Expo.Before you make plans to see how it feels to forget to activate your Tears of the Goddess though, be warned: It currently only sells in the UK. Of course, if they're demoing it at E3, maybe they'll get us a version out here sooner or later.
Bungie's Superintendent sighted, announcement hinted at
We find it indicative of the quality of the past Electronic Entertainment Expo that the biggest piece of news out of the event was not a new high-profile game, or a console redesign -- but rather, the "major" announcement that was not actually announced. We speak, of course, of the Bungiegate pseudo-scandal, in which the announcement of a new project (teased by the Halo developer in the weeks leading up to E3) was pulled from the Microsoft presentation, and was promised to be revealed at a later date. Judging by a recent update on Bungie's site, we're guessing that date is quickly approaching.The enigmatic Superintendent, whose tidy countenance appeared in the pre-E3 teases for the new project, recently reared his head in a Bungie news update, along with a few Howard Hughes-esque demands to "KEEP IT CLEAN." Between the reappearance of the immaculate mascot and hints in the developer's latest weekly update that "dawn is about to break," we think it's safe for the Bungie fanatics among us to ready their anticipatory fingers for a lengthy F5 session. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
Rumor: Old E3 to return?
60,000 gamers crammed together in one sweaty convention center. Women in skimpy outfits, paraded like pieces of meat. A gigantic, deafening, cacophonous din.Yep, the old-style E3 really was glorious. But in all seriousness, it seems as though most of the internet would kill for a return to the old format. Whether it's because of the muted reception to this year's horribly empty E3 Media and Business Summit, or simply a hangover from Nintendo's ill-received press conference, the majority of fans want E3 to return to being the spectacle it once was. Significant industry figures seem to agree.And now, it might just happen. Kotaku claims that the idea of returning to the E3 of yesteryear and opening the doors to the public has been officially proposed, and is currently being discussed by the ESA board, the folks who organize the event. Maybe the "old E3" won't just be a story we tell our grandchildren, decades from now. Most of E3 2008 will stick in many people's memories for literally weeks. Who can forget Reggie revving that jet ski, or Nintendo suits playing fake instruments, or Cammie and her wrist? Still, at least there was Mega Man 9 and Pikmin.
Will Wright calls E3 a walking corpse
The latest bandwagon that people seem to be hopping onto is the "Let's bash E3" express. We've had our own prognosticator proclaiming that the video game expo is past its prime, and now Will Wright is joining in by delivering a couple of swift kicks to the ribs. Then he backed over it a few times with his car before driving to his giant Scrooge McDuck pool of money and diving in.In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, he calls the ailing conference "the walking dead" and says that the recently slenderized version of E3 from last month was "such an abrupt end to what was E3..." At least he could have bought it flowers or something while he was busy pronouncing it to be a living corpse. The nerve of some people.We're just about to get some shuteye before launching into the crazy realm of PAX 2008, and we'll see if E3 does indeed look like a zombie in comparison. Maybe all it needs is a little makeup.[Thanks, Jonah]
Cammie: Nintendo 'disappointed' with E3 performance
For Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America's executive VP of sales and marketing, July's E3 media briefing was the perfect opportunity to cast a new spell. With most of Wii's casual ownership tuned out (c'mon, you think grandpop was glued to G4?), the press conference should have marked an effort to dazzle Nintendo's wavering "core." Allow the fans a whiff of another classic sequel, and all would have been right in their hearts. Instead, well ... you know what happened."I would say the message is we were disappointed with our performance at E3. There were titles like Wario which we think will be really fun titles that we should have showcased," Cammie recently admitted to VGChartz, adding, "We were excited that Mr. Miyamoto made the commitment that Pikmin is coming. It would have been nice if we could have said that on stage." Points for honesty?
Nintendo finally admits E3 was a disappointment
During an interview with VGChartz, Nintendo's resident wrist-hurting, Shaun White-introducing marketing lady, Cammie Dunaway, commented that Nintendo's E3 showing was a bit of a disappointment. You don't say?"I would say the message is we were disappointed with our performance at E3," commented Dunaway. "There were titles like Wario which we think will be really fun titles that we should have show cased." Yes, we'd have to agree. It was certainly the best game we played at the show. But what about this Pikmin 3 business? "We were excited that Mr. Miyamoto made the commitment that Pikmin is coming," she said. "It would have been nice if we could have said that on stage. But, we think it was a good recognition for us that we care for our core fans, and not just the new people who are now discovering Nintendo." E3 2008 was a pretty big deal. We had lots of hands-on impressions, as well as new screens and video to talk about. Check out our live impressions from Nintendo's keynote here, as well as some of the big news right here.
Nintendo sends Thank-You note to E3 attendees
click to embiggen We received a nice letter from Nintendo of America today, thanking us for our attendance at their E3 2008 media briefing (we think the community has already sent their messages to NoA). At first, we were excited to have authentic signature from famous Nintendo executives Reggie Fils-Aime, Cammie Dunaway and Denise Kaigler (we like to collect them like pokemon). Our excitement then quickly turned to utter disappointment (some would call that appropriate). As it turns out, every attendee got the same letter, complete with the same signatures in the exact same spots. After we discovered the names were stamped on, their eBay value immediately dropped from US $0.01 to three pieces of hair and a first-print of Daikatana.
GayGamer's E3 scrapbook series
The boys over at GayGamer.net put together a video scrapbook of serious questions they asked members of the gaming press during E3. The series features folks from several of your favorite gaming blogs, sites and magazines. There's no embed code and we referenced a couple of these during the week, but here they all are in one neat, perfectly trimmed, little package with a link to each episode: Part 1: Who won the E3 press conference war? Part 2: What character or franchise do you hope you never have to see again? Part 3: E3, GDC or Pax? Part 4: Would you rather sleep with Marcus Fenix or have your Gamerscore reset to zero? Part 5: Best game of the show? Part 6: Worst game of the show? Part 7: What is your E3 pet peeve? Part 8: Do you manscape? GG tells us they'll be doing another video scrapbook at PAX in a couple weeks and asking the same type of hard-hitting introspective questions of random attendees. We definitely had fun with this and hope to see them do it again.
Fallout 3, Electronic Arts clean up at Game Critics E3 Awards
Fallout 3 from Bethesda Softworks nabbed the coveted Game of the Show award today from Game Critics -- a panel of judges comprised of editors from various online/offline publications (including Joystiq's own Chris Grant). Fallout 3 also took home the award for Best RPG at the show.Electronic Arts brought home 5 awards including Best Action/Adventure game for Dead Space and Best Original Game for Mirror's Edge. The Xbox 360 platform was at the top of the award count with 8 for the console, including a Best Action Game win for Gears of War 2.
All our E3 2008 impressions are belong to you!
We thought it'd be best to start off the month of August by cleaning house and collecting all our E3 impressions from around the Joystiq Network into one easy-to-peruse guide. In case you missed anything (and there's a pretty good chance you did), check out all of our impressions from E3 2008.Multiplatform Age of Booty (E3 hands-on) Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway (E3 hands-on) Dark Void (E3 hands-on) Dead Space (E3 hands-on) Fallout 3 (E3 hands-on) Far Cry 2 (E3 hands-on) Flock (E3 hands-on) HAWX (E3 hands-on) Left 4 Dead (E3 hands-on) Mega Man 9 (E3 hands-on) Mirror's Edge (E3 hands-on) Neopets Puzzle Adventures (E3 hands-on) Puzzle Quest Galactric (E3 hands-on) Red Faction: Guerilla (E3 hands-on) Resident Evil 5 (E3 hands-on) Sonic Unleashed (E3 eyes-on) Silent Hill: Homecoming (E3 hands-on) Stormrise (E3 eyes-on: Stormrise) This is Vegas (E3 impressions) Tomb Raider Underworld (E3 hands-on) Tom Clancy's EndWar (E3 hands-on) Wheelman (E3 impressions)
The Joystiq E3 2008 Awards
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/The_Joystiq_E3_2008_Awards'; With E3 over and done, it's time for outlets everywhere to start organizing their Best of E3 awards, and the Joystiq network is no different. Thus, we present to you Joystiq's E3 2008 Awards. Find out what the Most Devestating Megaton was. Discover which company walks away with the Annual Least Like EA Award. Of course, you'll want to find out what Joystiq picked as their game of the show as well.Check out Joystiq's E3 2008 Awards!
Zero Punctuation apparently missed the actual E3
This week's Zero Punctuation makes us wonder: What E3 is Yahtzee talking about? Perhaps things seemed different from the outside, but this year's show actually saw a slew of original titles -- shockingly enough, many from the maw of EA. Sure, there is some serious sequelitus going on (and certain outlets really need to stop riding RE4 v2 RE5's rooster), but we were pleasantly surprised by some of the new IPs. Oh well, no sense in trying to convey some semblance of reason here. Carry on with the amusing hate.Check out Yahtzee's NSFW take on E3 after the break.
Fuel for debate: More E3 'best of' award winners announced
Everyone has an opinion – especially when it comes to which games at this year's E3 were the very best. IGN voiced its yesterday; today we have the results of what we're sure was heated voting at 1UP, GameTrailers, and G4's X-Play. Okay, we're not totally sure the voting was heated, but we can only imagine it was given the chairs thrown voices raised around here over our nominees (you don't even want to know what went down during the selection of our winners). We've got the results after the break. Discuss.Source – 1UPSource – GameTrailersSource – X-Play
IGN announces E3 award winners
And the winner is ... gamers! Well, that's the conclusion we came to after witnessing the sheer amount of top-notch games trotted out at this year's E3. While we're finalizing the official Joystiq E3 2008 Awards (coming soon – there was a lot of blood confetti to clean up in the judge's room) we'd like to offer, for your list-reading pleasure, IGN's picks for the Best of Show in various categories. You can read the entire list after the break. Let us hear what you think of their choices in the comments, and, for nostalgia's sake, check out our award winners (and losers) from last E3.
Jumpgate Evolution combat maneuvers shown in walkthrough videos [updated]
Netdevil is a firm believer that the MMOG genre is missing the galactic action-packed and fluid experiences that compare to Freelancer and Wing Commander. What is not lacking is the marvelous economic system found in EVE Online; however, when it comes to combat in space there's a lot to be desired and growth potential. Netdevil is setting out to fill that void with Jumpgate Evolution. We get a look at its current form in this two part developer with Associate Product Manager, Tim Hodges from E3-2008 courtesy of GameTrailers.com. Unfortunately, what we loved about earlier builds that showed off the first action cockpit view is absent but not removed. Several landscapes and bases show a sense of scale and some combat aspects from the game. The videos don't reveal much detail, but for being in such an early state of development it looks okay. Jumpgate Evolution is due out sometime in spring 2009, and the alpha is underway and there's no official word on when the beta will start. However, beta signups are live on the official website. The second video is available for viewing after the cut.
