e3 2012
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E3 2012: XL COO on ArcheAge, CBT4, and coming to America
This is one of those good news/bad news ArcheAge articles. The good news is that XLGAMES' sandpark title is absolutely coming to the West. The bad news, though, is that we still don't know exactly when. XL didn't have an official presence at this year's E3, but the firm was kind enough to set up a private interview with COO Suk Woo Choi away from the hustle and bustle of convention ground zero. We talked at length about CBT4, game systems, and the challenges inherent in localizing ArcheAge for Europe and America.
ZombiU is all about survival, but failure is pretty cool too
Ubisoft's ZombiU for Wii U combines common survival horror elements, like inventory management and limited ammunition, with FPS elements like shooting at things in first person. As a survivor in your standard issue zombie apocalypse, you must search and loot bodies to find necessary equipment, while taking out zombies with whatever weapons you have handy. Putting the backpack on the WiiPad forces you to be very alert about both screens, to work quickly, and to be nervous.The WiiPad acts as a scanner, allowing you to ping for items, which are then highlighted on the main screen. You can use it to hack keypad locks, typing numbers quickly and frantically so you can get back to shooting. It also acts as a sight or scope for weapons, allowing you to aim with the gyroscope and line up the shot on the screen.The coolest feature of ZombiU has absolutely nothing to do with the touchscreen. When you die (and you will, since one bite does the job) your character wakes up as a zombie, and you respawn into another randomly generated person in a nearby safehouse, with a quick caption popping up telling you that new person's name and age. My first character was male; after he died, I woke up as a 23-year-old blonde woman.Those zombies representing your shortcomings continue to stalk around the area you died, and you can find them and kill them, thus erasing the evidence of your inability to survive the zombie apocalypse and getting the items back that were left on the body. It's kind of like going back for your body in a roguelike game, except your body is also going after you. It's an interesting gimmick, and it's more interesting because it's a game design gimmick in a lineup rife with interface gimmicks. And the interface gimmicks are also neat! Now, about the name ... %Gallery-157199%
Snakebyte tablet gaming controller for Android and iOS hands-on
If you're a mobile / tablet gaming enthusiast, you may get tired of swiping your fingers across the Retina display or using the on-screen controls. Snakebyte is looking to lend a hand with its upcoming game controller for Android slates and the iPad, so we went hands-on here at E3. The accessory plays nice with tablet PCs running Gingerbread or Ice Cream Sandwich and Apple's portable device outfitted with any iCade-compatible apps. Dressed in a soft-touch coating, the peripheral feels great in the hand and the base is much like a PS3 controller. The unit connects via Bluetooth and pairing it with your mobile gaming device of choice is a breeze. When performing said set-up, you can select from five different modes to suit your needs including gamepad / controller, keyboard and mouse, solo keyboard, solo mouse and iCade mode (iOS-only). You'll always know which setting you've chosen thanks to an LED indicator on the front side of the kit. Touting eight hours of battery life, the gaming accessory charges via USB and will include a simple stand for your slate. Interested? You'll be able to snag one for $40 at the end of July. For now, though, take a peek at the gallery below for a closer look. %Gallery-157503%
Exploring the world of Dishonored with lead designer Ricardo Bare
Last week, Arkane Studios revealed the first gameplay footage of Dishonored, which showcased the game's unique Steampunk style. At its E3 2012 booth, Lead designer Ricardo Bare detailed the world of the October release, detailing the game's narrative and abilities.
NBA Baller Beats: best basketball-controlled music game of E3
The unimaginable weirdness of NBA Baller Beats finally became a reality in my mind today, as I saw, and played, the ball-dribbling Kinect rhythm game for myself. In practice, it works out to a sort of blend of Dance Central and Guitar Hero, in that you see instructions coming down a "lane" at you, directing you to dribble the ball with your left or right hand.Gestural "moves" show up to transition from one hand to another, or to dribble through a leg, or perform a fake, or a (partial) pass, all to the rhythm of the licensed soundtrack, which included songs by Busta Rhymes and Gorillaz, among others.But of course the big difference between this and those games is that you are bouncing a basketball instead of dancing or hitting buttons. I can see this being an excellent tool for teaching someone this fundamental basketball playing skill, within an exciting, clever rhythm game package. I say this as someone who could clearly use a few hours of practice, as evidenced by the video above.
E3 2012: Hands-on with Neverwinter combat
Neverwinter MMO. Action-oriented combat. Free to play. How perfect does that sound? Pretty perfect, which is probably why Perfect World Entertainment's handling it. In fact, Perfect World and Cryptic Studios are doing such a good job that some of the game's art and lore is being worked in as canon! Go on, you can use that as a talking point to get your friends to read this article at your next pen-and-paper Dungeons and Dragons game. Massively's own Eliot Lefebvre took on the game at PAX, so follow on past the break and I'll try to work off of his observations based on my experience at this year's E3.
Miiverse messages will be subject to moderation before posting
You'll be able to communicate with friends using simple text and drawings through Nintendo's upcoming Wii U (and later 3DS/smartphone) Miiverse service – but Nintendo, famously concerned with keeping profane or otherwise improper communication away from younger users, has some safeguards in place for this seemingly more open system.Speaking to Hero Complex, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata revealed plans to implement three forms of filtering for Miiverse content. The first is algorithmic – automatic content filtering. The second is really, really hardcore: having a moderator read all posts before they're published. Finally, users can flag inappropriate content.Iwata didn't say how long of a delay the moderation would cause, but he suggested "personally, I think 30 minutes should be acceptable."
Take a virtual stroll through PDP's E3 booth
If peripheral maker PDP's booth had a theme at E3 this year, it was to be as bright and colorful as possible. From "Rock Candy" controllers in a rainbow of colors to glowing controllers, headsets and even HDMI cables, everything was designed to stand out on drab, utilitarian entertainment centers everywhere.%Gallery-157459%
Understanding Sony's lessened focus on 3D at this year's E3
During last year's Sony E3 press conference, the company spent quite a bit of time talking 3D. Several titles were on the horizon with 3D support, including main entries in series like Uncharted and Killzone. Since then, the company toned down its approach to 3D integration.Sony Senior VP of Product Development and Worldwide Studios Scott Rohde doesn't see the change as so stark. "It's just not necessarily the focus and newsworthy. Last year it was," he told Joystiq during an interview this week. Due to an internal initiative within Sony last year, 3D became a main talking point of its E3 showing – that's simply no longer the case, Rohde said. "A couple years back, even three years ago, because PlayStation is a big pillar in the overall Sony structure, Sony and Kaz [Hirai] came to us and said, 'Hey, we know that you guys can make a big impact by showing a lot of things on 3D.' So we're sort of the fire starter, if you will," Rohde said.Now that the fire's been started, however, it doesn't look like PlayStation has to keep it going. Beyond God of War: Ascension, Sports Champions 2, and LittleBigPlanet Karting, no other 3D titles have been announced for the PlayStation 3. Rohde chalks that up to Sony's internal development studios having autonomy, despite company-wide initiatives last year. "If it's going to enhance an experience, then absolutely. But if it's not core to the experience, then it's not gonna be a focus," he said.But if that's the case, and internal studios aren't embracing 3D on their own, it stands to reason that 3D wasn't the success story Sony hoped for. As you might imagine, Rohde doesn't agree. "I don't look at it that way, because it enhances some games better than it does others," he said. Rohde compared it to 3D in film. "I'll show up and I'll watch some in 3D or some not. Honestly, for me, it almost depends on when movie times are. If it's a convenient movie time, I'll go see the 3D one, right? But it's kind of the same thing – the same thing is kind of occurring with games as well."
E3 2012: Exploring the freedom of LotRO's Riders of Rohan
Saddle up, pard'ners: Riders of Rohan is coming! Lord of the Rings Online's fourth expansion in its full equine glory at this week's E3. At Turbine's booth, we got a first look at the expansion's highly touted mounted combat and were able to ask the crew some of our burning questions about the differences between the editions. It's apparent that Riders of Rohan has a ton to give LotRO subscribers. Turbine's chosen to release the east side of Rohan first, leaving out the west side for future development. The expansion features customizable mounts, impressive graphical upgrades, a slew of customization options, new NPCs, new content, and even a new orchestral soundtrack. Without further ado, let's dive in to explore the freedom of Rohan!
Star Trek and some hardcore Gorn
The gorn will be a primary antagonists in the upcoming co-op-centric Star Trek game from Darkness 2 developer Digital Extremes. The humanoid lizards of the Gorn Hegemony are quite agile in the new game, a significant departure from their appearance in the "Arena" episode of the original Star Trek from 1967.The race may come off as blood-thirsty killers in the new Star Trek, based off the JJ Abrams reboot of the space exploration franchise, but that's not how we remember them. The gorn are featured in one of the two most famous fight scenes in the original Star Trek series. Captain Kirk's fight with a gorn doesn't exactly hold up against Yuen Woo-ping choreographed fight scenes in modernity, whereas his fight with Spock during the vulcan's pon farr is hilariously awesome.We asked the developer during E3 if there would also be a Kirk v. Spock fight featuring the classic music in the game, but our question was deflected with shields at full power.We've placed clips of both amazing fight scenes from the original Star Trek after the break.
Welcome to the Hawken E3 party
Turns out I didn't need to worry about finding the Hawken E3 party. First, it was in the Luxe, a grandiose hotel in the same plaza as the Los Angeles Staples Center. Second, the electronic billboard directly below the Luxe insignia read "HAWKEN" in bold white letters, a building to the north had the game title and Machinima symbols emblazoned in lights across one side, and a bumping party overflowing with people in Hawken swag spilled out onto the Luxe's second-floor balcony.Welcome to the opulent stage of high-profile pseudo-indie development.Hawken, its developer Adhesive Games and parent company Meteor Entertainment, are not representative of the standard indie community, but they carry that already nebulous label in a vague, but real, way: Meteor is the publishing arm of Adhesive and it has only one client and one focus, Hawken."First of all, we're no EA," Meteor Entertainment's Paul Loynd told me at Hawken's June 5 E3 party, hosted by Machinima. "And we only have one game. This is our thing. We're excited to be working on Hawken."%Gallery-157434%
E3 2012: RIFT 1.9, Storm Legion, and beyond
RIFT players, Trion loves you. You thought you knew that, but you haven't seen developers champing at the bit trying to figure out whether marketing will allow them to spill all the cool beans that are in store for you. Trion works very hard to crank out quality content at a quick pace, and RIFT players are going to see it in spades. At E3 this week,we got some information not only on 1.9 but also on RIFT's first full expansion, Storm Legion.
Crytek's Ryse still in the works, Kinect will be 'part of it'
Ryse, an Xbox-exclusive action game from Crytek, isn't ready to be shown beyond the concept trailer released during E3 2011. I asked Phil Spencer, corporate VP of Microsoft Studios, about the game's progress since Microsoft revealed its partnership with Crytek two years ago under the banner of "Codename Kingdoms.""We're just not at a point right now to show the game, and instead of ... we're still working with Crytek, we're still extremely committed to the relationship, but we want to make sure that we're putting our best foot forward every time we show the game," Spencer said. "You'll see more about that game, no doubt."Ownership of Ryse was rumored to have shifted between studios, from a downsized and redirected Crytek Budapest to Crytek's Frankfurt studio. Ryse is alive and well, Spencer assured, though I got an inkling that the brutal, first-person combat shown in the initial trailer may not be entirely relegated to Kinect when we see it next. When asked if Ryse was still "a Kinect game" as before, Spencer replied, "Kinect will be part of the game, absolutely."This year Microsoft highlighted several more games that are "better with Kinect," even when you're slouched in the couch. The most prominent example comes from Capcom's mech action game, Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor, which pairs several seated gestures with a traditional controller.
Engadget goes hands-on with Wii U's Pro Controller
Our friends at Engadget are kinda way, way into tech. Perhaps you didn't know (you probably did). Anyway, they got their hands on Nintendo's Wii U Pro Controller this week and they've got this handy video above with their impressions. Spoilers: it's kinda similar to an Xbox 360 controller. Shock!
Nintendo Wii U Pro Controller hands-on (video)
Although we managed to get our mitts on the Wii U and updated GamePad here at E3 following Nintendo's keynote, the recently unveiled Pro Controller turned out to be harder to find. We were thankfully able to visit the company's amusement park massive booth on the show floor where we discovered the wireless peripheral, along with a GamePad, tethered to a demo of the upcoming title, Rayman Legends. Join us past the break for our initial impressions in text and on camera.%Gallery-157452%
Seen@E3: Todd Howard's hostile takeover
We were so busy covering E3 2012, we barely noticed a smiling Todd Howard commandeering Joystiq.com (see it after the break!). Thankfully, freelancer Tyler Colp spotted the takeover and alerted us to it. We think we've removed all of Howard's hidden messages, commanding all to buy Skyrim, but we can't be BUY SKYRIM BUY SKYRIM BUY SKYRIM.
Fire Emblem: Awakening coming to North America
After a 3DS software showcase in which no new 3DS software was announced, Nintendo surprised us all by tweeting confirmation of a North American release for Fire Emblem: Awakening, the 3DS iteration of the popular strategy role-playing series. There's no release window, but Nintendo promised "more info to come" -- we'd expect a press release in the morning.Turns out Twitter was the real news source the whole time, and this whole E3 thing was a red herring.
More NFL Blitz possible, but fans have to ask for it
In January, EA Sports released a reboot of Midway's arcade football game, NFL Blitz. Basically, I loved it, so when I sat down for a chat with EA Sports executive vice president Andrew Wilson, I asked him if we would see more NFL Blitz. "I would say so," he responded."I think what we've come to realize is we need to build games fans want to play," Wilson said. "We just want to hear that fans want to play it. We don't want to be the brand anymore that just puts it out because we can. I think NFL Blitz was a great value, so will we do it again? Absolutely. When will we do it again? When fans tell us it's time for the next one."
Activision talks Skylanders Giants and the future of the franchise
We had a quick chat with Mike Graham, a design producer at Activision, about Toys for Bob's extremely popular Skylanders franchise, and the second release in the series, Skylanders Giants. Graham kindly let us in on the reasoning behind the new game and bigger toys, and what other possibilities might be in store for Skylanders. We also hear a little bit about where Spyro now fits in the Skylanders universe (That purple dragon that the whole series is based on? Remember him?) Turns out he's still in there, even if his name has been taken off the title for now.
