1 post tagged “microsoft”

    Not sure how to feel about the stripped down, industry friendly E3 this year. This time the public is relegated to the sidelines forced to watch imbedded videos like the rest of us unfortunate shlubs have to do year in, year out. Which can be a good thing as content is worth more than parlour tricks. With a shorter, leaner show developers and manufacturers needed to show polished products. The big hitters delivered for the most part, on everything but a major announcement.

Microsoft's yawn-inspiring opening gave one thrill, new footage from Mass Effect. Bioware is inspiring the same fan loyalty as production houses like Blizzard and Id have developed through immersive storytelling and gameplay. The combat will be squad based, real time with the ability to pause and issue commands. To be released in November.

    In my opinion, the big news regarding the 360 is the no-news surrounding the red ring of death. As a consumer, I'm more inclined to spend for a PS3 than a XBOX 360 as the latter has been plagued by system-killing technical problems. I don't want a doorstop upon end-of-warranty. I want a faithful system that will play as last gen consoles did. Forever.

    By the way, anyone really care about the Halo 3 special Edition 360? Would have been more impressive with a bit more room to grow (20 GB). Oh, and maybe the fucking game?

    Gears of War coming to PC. Not a shocker. Cliff Bleszinski's announcement that it will contain new maps, campagin chapters and even bosses (?) exclusive to the PC platform. And DX-10 compatibility of course. I'd expect this exclusivity will be short-lived as loyal fans of the game will be jonesing for the right to partake in the new content.

Sony's PS3 had a great outing after last year's controversies and dubious marketing strategies. Nah, you knew they'd mess up somewhere.  In an age of terabyte hard drives, why the fuck are we still quibbling about 20, 60 and 80 GB drives in our consoles? Is it 1998? C'mon, if you want these damn things to be an entertainment hub, at least place a decent sized, decent performance drive in the box.

    LittleBigPlanet was salivating. God I need to play this. It seems like any 4 year old with a lot of caffeine and sucre flowing through their veins could imaginate such devices. The gameplay showing the construction of a tank made me squeal.

    Devil May Cry 4. Swords, guns, Dante. What else you need? Rachet and Clank, yes please! Those are obvious. One that slipped under my radar that I really am itching to try is Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. It seems to be a combination 3rd person shooter combined with platformer mixed with the goodness of flicks a la Indiana Jones. Heavenly Sword is code for 'we don't talk about Assassin's Creed anymore' Well, not all of us :) Perhaps the AI and collision detection issues in AC can be settled. The voice acting and delivery and targeting lightning needs improvement so as not to ruin immersion in the game as well.

Nintendo is staying the course. Staying with tried and true IP, they are expanding gameplay options for them. Super Mario Galaxy is looking like the Wii game to need. Mario flying around in a bee costume, beautiful color palette and varied environments, it seems to have everything you want in a Mario game. Unsure if you will get want you want in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, that being online play. An omission of details regarding this may be speculative that it's being left out in the cold. Dragon Quest Swords will leave Japan paralyzed by sick calls and time off work. And Samus will roll, roll, roll in Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. Admittedly, I'm not too impressed by the trailer. Seems to have a lot of enemies stuck in place, waiting for you to shoot them, like a static Duck Hunt.

    When I first saw the exercise pad for Wii Fit, I thought 'Who the hell can do anything on such a tiny surface?' and 'Will my fat, laborious body snap the damn thing in half?'  I remain dubious, however some podcasters who had a chance to demo the surface feel its large and sturdy (can't remember which though honestly-a lot of same-day coverage this week).

Multiplatform. I came home to Jenny saying 'Oh my god, you have to see this Star Wars trailer!' We agree on Force Powers. They are good. I would use mine to pull down a Star Destroyer, she would likely Jedi Mind Trick me into getting several fluffy kittens. Resident Evil 5 creeps me out with a strange, Rwanda-like feel. Unreal Tournament III, am I the only one who like Bio-Cannons? No wonder I'm frag-bait. Still one of my favorite FPS's and its getting some tweaks, including a hoverboard.