E3 Key Notes: Sony Was My Favorite
Disclaimer: I’m not qualified to write about E3 in a professional, unbiased manner. I’ve never been a big Xbox fan, kinda wanted a Wii, was always a little “meh” about the Playstation 2, and owned an under-used GameCube. We bought a PS3 back in January, and since then I’ve been watching Sony more closely. Other than that, I’ve got little to no idea about everything prior our purchase, console regardless, except for the big names. Galaxy, Gears, Killzone, you name it, I’ve barely watched it, let alone been hyped about it.
So now that you know that you’re not going to get an unbiased, qualified, professional review, let’s start! 
Not being an Xbox fan, I can say that I was rather bored throughout their keynote. Seriously. The speaker I felt wasn’t great, and the games they were showing off didn’t matter to me. Even the upgrades to Live, I couldn’t really care about. The bombshell about Final Fantasy 13? Yeah, didn’t see that one coming (I’m still playing through Final Fantasy 10, so it’s not like I’m the biggest fan, always liked the NES & SNES games though).
Overall, I feel that Microsoft delivered what people wanted. I find it funny that Nintendo re-iterated a famous Henry Ford quote, “If I’d asked my customers what they wanted, they’d have said a faster horse.” So instead of giving their customers just re-iterations of current franchises, they went a different route. Re-iterations aren’t necessarily bad, but okay.
Nintendo also seemed well aware that others were copying their innovations. Sony may be partially guilty, but the 360’s hands are very red at this point. The Xbox’s whole “me too” attitude was, when looking back, a little disconcerting. A Singstar-like game, an Eye-toy like game (You’re In The Movies) and Avatars (looked a lot like Mii’s). That’s fine, I’ll pass.
Now Nintendo’s keynote was good. It wasn’t great, unless you are a pure casual gamer, then it may have been wonderful. Reggie was great, as always, and being the former Nintendo fanboy, I can’t help but miss the lack of hardcore support on the system.
That being said, the new WiiMusic, WiiSports Resort, and the 1:1 motion sensing is going to sell quite well. I can’t help but feel a bit of remorse for those that bought into the Wii on the Metroid, Zelda and Mario games alone. While they are great franchises, nothing aside from “they are working on stuff” was announced. Brawl & Galaxy aside, there’s been nothing lately that I’m aware of (see disclaimer in the first paragraph) to satisfy the gamers that want to stay with the Wii but want games that aren’t being made for the system.
Sony, for me, was much more watchable. People have stated that the presenter wasn’t great, but I’ve got to say, I chuckled more as he presented than at either of the other 2 keynotes. It was also much more exciting, and you could tell that when the intro music started.
Resistance 2 looks like something I may have to get. Playing co-op with 8 of my PSN buddies is something that at least warrants a solid rental attempt. Little Big Planet, especially what was displayed for the customizations, was quite amazing. The note I wrote to myself read as follows, “Little Big Planet – wow. Customizable and awesomesauce all in one “.
Also announced was the PS3 greatest hits line. $29.99 for a copy of the following games: Resistance, MotorStorm, Warhawk, Call of Duty 3, Fight Night Round 3, Need for Speed: Carbon, Rainbow Six: Vegas, Assassin’s Creed, Elder Scrolls IV, and Ninja Gaiden Sigma. A little rich for my blood, but not much I can do at this point. At least it’s a start!
Then they started on the PSN stuff. I thought that the info for PS3 was rather short, but ah well, let’s see where they’re going. Then they announced Single Sign On for the PSN. Being able to log into your Playstation account from any computer and send messages to your friends, view stats and trophies (I would surmise), it all sounds great. Can’t wait for it.
Then the games for PSN were announced. The Ratchet & Clank Future: Quest For Booty looked pretty good. Then I found out it’s a $14.99 title. That’s sweet. Shorter than a retail game, but with focus on the goodness. I’ll check that out
They also announced Crash Commando, Fat Princess (I couldn’t help but chuckle – I’ll probably get that, although I have no idea what it’s about!), the PAIN update, Flower (no idea), and Ragdoll Kung Fu (interesting, but not my style). Definitely a bevy of options, and they look great.
Now, at this point, I will remind you again of the disclaimer in paragraph one. Why? Because this is the first real footage I’ve seen of Home, and it totally demolishes, in my opinion, Microsoft’s offering of avatars and a Live hub update. All I could think is, “This needs to be out now!“. I bet everyone has thought that before me, but it doesn’t make it any less wanted.
They also announced Movie & TV support over the PSN. Rentals as well as purchases. I know, it’s not NetFlix. Well, if you’ve seen the streamable content of Netflix, you’d know that it’s no biggie. The lack of NBC-Unversal content is upsetting (Heroes I like, PSYCH is my favorite), but with Fox Film, MGM, Lionsgate, Warner Bros, Disney, Paramount, Turner and Funimation, I think we’ll be okay. The fact that it’s coming out tonight is even cooler, and is available in HD if you prefer. You can also copy the content to your PSP – that’s pretty sweet.
Then they had SOE come out and show off DC Universe Online. While I like how it looks, I’ve got a spotty record of being pleased with SOE’s offerings. We’ll see how it progresses, but good grief, it looks like they’re covering their bases. Defintely would be interesting to fight alongside the Joker against Batman, or vice-versa.
Life With Playstation sounds great too. I believe it’s news, weather and a few other things. I had a short meeting at work at this point, so I missed some content here, but I know it’s coming out this month, for free, and I’m looking forward to it.
Content that I may have missed while in my meeting would go here.
Then they announced a PSP bundle with Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters, National Treasure 2 and a few other goodies, due out this fall for $199.99. I don’t own a PSP, they look nice, and after seeing Valkyrie Chronicles, I wouldn’t mind looking into one. Especially with the connectivity support the PSP is receiving for the PS3.
The PS2 apparently is being bundled with the new Lego Batman this fall, as well as an animated DVD, for $149.99. 9 years old and still selling, that’s not a bad feat, now is it?
Then they went back to the PS3. They are upgrading the 40GB, non-backwards-compatible model to contain an 80GB hard drive, for the $399.99 price. They didn’t mention phasing out the current backwards-compatible model, but time will only tell. So we’ll have a 20GB, 60GB, 40GB, 80GB, and 80GB. No possible way to be confused now, is there?
Quick first paragraph disclaimer again, as the following are some more game overviews.
Next they showed off a few more games. First they played a montage, and I must say, the new Prince Of Persia looks SWEET!. Then they got into inFamous. Now that looks like my type of game. Seriously. That was never on my radar before (see disclaimer), and now it’s pretty much front and center. My thoughts were, “Infamous… wow… that looks like my type of game… wow. Simply… wow.” I’ll be buying that for sure (well, as long as the reviews are non-horrific). It’s due out in Spring 2009.
They had a trailer for God Of War 3. While I haven’t played any of them (apparently, you haven’t read the first paragraph disclaimer if this surprises you), I understand people’s enthusiasm. I hope it’s good, and I hope you like it. 
The final announcement was something new. Something unheard of, and apparently, “only achievable on the PS3″. That would be MAG. 256 players structured into 8 player squads, on 2 different sides. Character advancement (MMO? CoD4 style?) and automatic squad leader assignment. I know that what they showed was CG, but it doesn’t take away from how awesome it looks.
Overall, an interesting E3. My first one I really watched (was always a PC gamer before), and though I know lots of people are calling it a dud, I found that if I ignored the chat rooms, the experience was much more pleasurable (seriously, there’s some real idgets in this world that like to do nothing but complain.)
I also got to watch it in HD (today) as I signed up for the IGN Insider year subscription. The video was streaming great in HD, and I had few, if any, video hiccups. I also picked one of my favorite, long forgotten characters I always liked as my icon. Edge from Final Fantasy 2.
A Night Off… Or Is It An Off Night?
I’m just exhausted today. Tonight especially.
So much so that I just couldn’t seem to get into MGS3. It’s the first night my wife and I have had without any kids around, and she’s just wore out. So while she was sleeping, I thought I’d game a bit.
Well, it didn’t go so hot. After getting through one part (where you meet Ocelot for the 2nd time), and then going on forward, my desire and my gameplay just went downhill.
Guess I’ll try it another night.
Tomorrow, though, we’re going to go see Wanted.
Our first night we can get out without the kids, and we’re taking it!
What I’m Playing – In “Bad Company” – 06.30.2008
I thought I would be in a slouch at the start of the summer. Niece and nephews around, I didn’t think I’d have time for any gaming.
Apparently, I was wrong. Very wrong.
Of the 4 kids visiting, we have the oldest, my 16yr old nephew, and his 12yr old sister. And he has a PS3, and even brought a few games with him for his 6 week visit.
In short, they both like to play games. A lot.
Personally, I’m still trying to play through Metal Gear Solid 3. That’s kinda at the forefront, but it’s not the simplest game to play when you’ve got others in the room. I can barely play it when my wife is around, as it’s easy to get distracted and miss parts of the story. But I’m not giving up
Considering I’m playing it for the story, it’s basically in a holding pattern until my niece and nephew leave at the end of July. I don’t consider it on the back burner yet, but that may change. I may play it some, but it seems to be a scarce thing. And, I won’t start on MGS4 until I finish 3, so that game, as much as I want to play it, is still back burnered.
My nephew seemed interested in Battlefield: Bad Company, so I got that from GameFly and it came in on Saturday. I thought it over, and ended up buying it for about $47 after using a coupon (my account is being canceled tomorrow). I thought we’d be able to game together more with it, especially since I hear the multi-player is sweet. Turns out, he just kinda likes it, but then again, he hasn’t taken an initiative to play it yet. That’s going to change this week, I’ll see to that.
So now, I have more going on than I can seemingly keep track of in my head. Here’s the updates:
Games I’m currently playing:
1. Battlefield: Bad Company – PS3
2. Need For Speed: Carbon – PS3
3. Metal Gear Solid 3 – PS2
4. Heavenly Sword – PS3
5. Final Fantasy X – PS2
6. Katamari Damacy – PS2
Games I’ve back-burnered for various reasons:
1. Castlevania: Lament Of Innocence – PS2
2. Champions of Norrath: Realms of EverQuest – PS2
3. Gran Turismo 4 – PS2
4. MotorStorm – PS3
Games that I can’t wait to get to:
1. Metal Gear Solid – PS1
2. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots – PS3
3. Ninja Gaiden Sigma – PS3
Games that I’ve recently completed:
1. Heavenly Sword – PS3 – 06.11.2008
2. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty – PS2 – 06.09.2008
Music Makes The People Come Together
My niece and nephew are up from Arizona until the end of July, and we’ve been spending some quality time together, especially on the PS3. We were able to get everyone in the living room last night, so we had to pick a good party game.
So we finally pulled out SingStar Pop for the PS2.
Let’s just say, it’s a rather depressing game if you don’t have vocal skills. Especially when a 12 year old and 16 year old can smoke you. At the end of each line, it shows a short comment on how you performed – I didn’t do well at all (unless, of course, you count awful and bad as good).
So, after making a fool of myself for the sake of others (you didn’t think I’d play that game without a really good reason, did you?), and after my wife got distracted by an audio book on iTunes, we changed out games.
And, I might add, to one I don’t particularly stink at.
Guitar Hero 3 is one of those games that I never thought I’d really like, but after getting into it, it’s just a blast to play. Solo or with others, it’s been a lot of fun. Even my wife’s played through it on easy. I, personally, have moved up to medium, and I can almost play on hard (I’m working on it, believe me).
So, I started to play after everyone went to go stare at iTunes, and my nephew wandered back in and asked to try it out. Truth be told, he didn’t do bad at all. His dad was a guitar player and did some singing, and his son is now proving that those qualities have been somewhat passed down – but let’s not forget the following:
Guitar Hero 3 != Playing Electric Guitar. We know that, let’s move on.
What’s great is that he’s proving to be more musically inclined than we ever thought. After swapping back and forth for a bit, and teaching him about the game, he got much better. Not too shabby for a 16 year old, after about 30min to an hour.
His sister, on the other hand, had much more trouble. She’s 12, and I don’t think she’s made it through a full song yet. I really don’t see this as her type of game, but I won’t stop her from playing it, either. She can sing good (thanks again for reminding me that I can’t, SingStar), but her skills with finger movements aren’t anything amazing – yet.
We’ll see what tonight brings – maybe we’ll get the wife in there and let her play “Through The Fire And Flames” on easy. She’s a bit rusty, that should get her back into top form, I’d think 
And, if all else fails, maybe I can get some MGS3 time in. I’d like to get to MGS4 eventually, but I’m not going to rush it. I’d rather have fun with everyone while they’re around, but if nobody is, well, it’ll be Snake time
What I’m Playing
Here’s a current list of games that I’m currently playing:
1. Metal Gear Solid 3 – PS2
2. Katamari Damacy – PS2
3. Need For Speed: Carbon – PS3
4. Heavenly Sword – PS3
5. Final Fantasy X
Games that I’ve gotten into that are currently back-burnered for various reasons:
1. Castlevania: Lament Of Innocence – PS2
2. Champions of Norrath: Realms of EverQuest – PS2
3. Gran Turismo 4 – PS2
4. MotorStorm – PS3
Games that I can’t wait to get to:
1. Metal Gear Solid – PS1
2. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots – PS3
3. Ninja Gaiden Sigma – PS3
Games that I’ve recently completed:
1. Heavenly Sword – PS3
2. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty – PS2
As you can see, I’ve been spending time getting to know the Metal Gear Solid franchise. It’s been very interesting, and well worth the time played. I’ve only completed 2 games recently, MGS2 (great game) and Heavenly Sword (hard to put down, it’s still in the current list as well as the completed).
I’ll post updates, exciting as they are, as the list changes
Missing The Most Wanted
I ordered a few games a couple of days ago. Of them all, the first I jumped into was one I’ve been waiting for a long time. I’ve just never found a good enough deal to bite – until last week.
So I snagged Need For Speed: Carbon
I’ve played for a few hours thus far, and I have to say, I really miss Most Wanted. That is easily my favorite NFS game, and while Carbon isn’t bad, it just isn’t as good as I was hoping.
I do like the wing-man aspect, owning the areas, and I think the races are decent. But so far, it’s been done all at night. Cop chases are just things to do for fun or get into in a race, not part of the storyline – yet. And what’s with the “would you like to save” thing popping up all the time? That wasn’t in Most Wanted, was it?
I like the game, and I’ll keep playing it, but I am really thinking about picking up NFS: Most Wanted for the PS2, as the Gamecube version looks hideous compared to the PS3 NFS, but that’s also using Composite cables, and not component.
Regardless, I can only hope with the recent announcement of Need For Speed: Undercover that they go back to what made Most Wanted great.
I won’t even get started on Pro Street.
And So It Begins…
I finally got to start MGS3 last night.
I can already tell that this is going to be a great game. And I’m so glad I waited to get into it until I had the DualShock 3. It makes a world of difference, and it’s causing me to think about replaying MGS2 – that’s probably going to happen after I finally play MGS4 here in another month or so.
Until then, Snake Eater is more than enough, as it’s everything good about films and gaming, combined into one. I can’t wait to continue the adventure!
