6/05/2009

E3 09 Roundup

Eee, I've been committing to a few too many things lately, so this won't be as elaborate as I had planned.

Aside from the conferences I watched and summarized, there were other behind doors and non-filmed conferences from the likes of Konami, Capcom, Shigeru Miyamoto, and Square-Enix. This is where things like the next console Zelda title were hinted at. Many trailers were premiered this week, a lot of game play was showcased, and many things received greater explanation. So let's take a look at some of the incredible things that came out of E3 this year. You can also see many of these on the console of your choice.

Many of the major announcements (like God of War 3 and Assassin's Creed) I already highlighted in my previous blogs, so this time I'll be looking at everything else. There are plenty I'm ignoring, but I'm trying to point out the big titles (and will certainly be passing over games like Super Star Petz or whatever).

Here's a quick reference to my other E3 posts:
Sony
Nintendo
Ubisoft
EA
Microsoft

Spore Hero for the Wii. An action adventure game with the full creature creator from the PC game to use to make your hero.

Tekken 6. I shouldn't have to say anything else. If you don't already know what that is, then you probably aren't interested.

Arcania. A new take at the Gothic series. PC, 360, PS3.

Mafia 2. PC, 360, PS3

Demon's Souls A gorgeous looking PS3 RPG from SCEA and Atlus, that will hopefully play as well as it looks.

A Boy and His Blob - a new look at a classic game.

Ratchet and Clank Future: A Crack in Time for the PS3

White Knight Chronicles - PS3 RPG from SCE; might be worth getting a PS3 for.

Nostalgia - a great looking RPG for the DS from Tecmo

Rogue Warrior - PC, PS3, 360; Bethesda game based on the books by Richard Marcinko.

Muramasa: The Demon Blade - Nintendo Wii, very stylized JRPG.

Tatsunoko vs. Capcom - Wii

Magna Carta II - from Atlus for the 360

Alpha Protocol - think Mass Effect but with spies instead of aliens

Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny for the PSP, now with Kratos fighting action!

Warriors Orochi 2 for the PSP

Bayonetta - sexy female gun slinging action

The Agency - MMO espionage for the PS3

Saw - You know, of intense horror torture is your thing

Batman: Arkham Asylum - one of the most anticipated games of its genre, complete with Mark Hamill Joker

Overlord II: the first was a lot of fun, but very clunky. I played the demo last night and while they certainly fixed some things (they added a much needed mini-map), there are still some problems with the controls. Also I got stuck on a DEMO, which is not a good sign. In this one you topple the Roman Empire and club baby seals to death.

Astro Boy - DS, Wii, PS3, PSP

Quantum - action adventure game from Tecmo

Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier

Fat Princess - Never has there been so much controversy over a "save the princess" game; rescue your overly large beloved princess and capture your enemy's.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - PS3 and 360, with help from Hideo Kojima.

DC Universe Online - the other highly anticipated title of its genre.

Ace Attorney Edgeworth - Aaaah I can't wait! I hope it's out in time for my birthday, or at least Christmas.

Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 - all those boobs are just for the PS3

Heavy Rain - mystery thriller for the PS3

Alright I think that about does it. Most of the rest I've already talked about in my conference posts. Hopefully with everything you've found plenty of games to look forward to! I know I have!
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6 comments:

Jacob B. said...

Who do you think "won" this year? I haven't seen a consensus on one console yet, but instead everyone saying "[insert console name] won by a mile!".

I think everyone brought out good games and if Natal actually works Microsoft won, but that's a big "if." They don't exactly have a great track record on hardware.

If Natal doesn't work, I honestly believe Nintendo pulled it out with some of their game announcements, especially that Metroid trailer.

Although the FF14 moment was one of the few "WTF?!"'s I had during the conferences.

June 6, 2009 at 1:48 AM
Kris said...

The FF14 announcement was quite the WTF. 13 might be out by now if they weren't wasting their time with another MMO. If the one they have now isn't working out (which, I assume, is why they feel the need to make another), then I don't think another one is really the way to go. But whatever. I do really wish they would stop putting it in the numerical series; for some reason that really irks me. Although I don't know anyone who actually considers 11 as part of the numerical "series" anyway.

Who won? I don't really know. Natal was very impressive, but from what I've read, it has plenty of problems right now that will have to be fixed for it to be successful. By the time we got to Sony's motion control, I was less impressed because I'd already seen it twice by then. And really, it's essentially what Nintendo is doing, it just captures the movement in a different way.

I said before that I didn't give a crap what Sony was announcing. I still don't really care. I'd like to play Last Guardian when it comes out, and that's about it.
The Uncharted game looks really fantastic, but it's not something I'll play. MAG is an impressive concept, but fails to impress visually or with its gameplay. I'm tired of God of War. But the Assassin's Creed demo got me really pumped.

Nintendo was SO much better than last year, but I'm not personally interested in any of those games. Kingdom Hearts and Golden Sun on the DS are about all that grabbed my attention. Super Mario Galaxy was a good game, but I got bored with it. The new Metroid looks gorgeous, but I'm not into the series.

For Microsoft...most of the things I'm looking forward to weren't shown during their conference. Alan Wake looks interesting, but not something I'll play (looks a lot like Silent Hill, which I also admire, but won't play...I scare very easily). Halo I'm interested in but...not enough to get really excited. My fiancee will get them, and I'll play around with it a bit then watch him beat it. Natal, if it works right, will be brilliant. Milo though is just a bunch of tricks, and isn't a true AI; it's still neat though.

It was EA who showed me what I wanted to see. Mass Effect 2, Dragon Age Origins, Star Wars MMO. Alpha Protocol (from Obsidian) was absent from the conferences, but still had an E3 presence.

So...I really don't know. I think they all did well. I think they all had a good balance of games shown that appealed to every kind of gamer. Nintendo did have a big chunk of deja vu however (showcasing motion plus...again...with Wii Sports Resort...again). They all had surprises (Natal, Metroid, motion control). It's hard to pick a "winner." But Natal will definitely stand out in people's minds for a while.

Thanks for stopping by!

June 6, 2009 at 10:09 AM
Jacob B. said...

Apparently Squenix's plan is not to replace FF11, but have FF14 run in conjunction with it. I'm not sure how that will work exactly. There's only so many FF fans who want a MMO based on that world, and I'm not sure if they're willing to pay monthly for two different games.

The Star Wars MMO has me really pumped. I know it was just a demo but I can't help it. I don't even play MMOs but this might be one I'm willing to shell out a monthly fee on.

I'm will you on a lot of games, though. There were games I have no interest in but awknowledge they were good announcements. For the first time I might pick up a Splinter Cell game, though. That looked great.

Oh, and even though this is my first time commenting I've been a reader of the blog for a while. :) Gotcha on RSS. I can't remember how I came across your blog (I think it had more to do with the anime talk than video game) but it's one of the few I actually follow.

June 7, 2009 at 1:44 AM
Kris said...

Oh I see! Well I'm glad you decided to comment. Did you come from Darkstar Studios, I wonder?

If Square is going to run both MMOs...yeah I don't see that working out well either. I could see people switching from one to the other, but not playing both.

The Star Wars MMO is certainly the first real MMO I've ever considered playing. I was a big fan of Knights of the Old Republic, so something else set in that era has me excited.

And I agree with you that the new Splinter Cell looks fantastic. I'm just not into sneaky spy assassination games like that or Metal Gear. ...but I do like Assassin's Creed for whatever reason, but that's a totally different kind of game really.

Will be getting back to the anime reviews soon! I have two sitting here that are halfway written already.

June 7, 2009 at 2:27 PM
Jacob B. said...

Sorry, I got busy. ^^;

YES! It WAS Darkstar Studios! I'm glad you said that, because I had not bookmarked that comic and lost it. I'm saving that sucker right now...

On Splinter Cell I'm not really into those games, either (primarily I luvs me some RPGs, plus I'll play a few games from other genres, like Gears) but I just finished Tenchu on the Wii and with that fresh in my mind this just looked so much more appealing. :)

On Star Wars I never played the KOTOR but I have it, sitting there, begging me to open it. I really should. On this new game I'm sure it can't possibly live up to the hype of the trailer but regardless I'm about willing to put down $15 a month anyway. I guess I just have to experience it personally to have my heart broken.

And yay on anime reviews! I got so behind on my anime I'm still trying to catch up from the 90s! I'm so far behind on what's even being made that your reviews help me learn about the new stuff. :)

June 14, 2009 at 5:29 AM
Kris said...

I thought so! I saw you had a webcomic, so I figured you might have seen it at DSS.

Anyway, I'm a RPG whore, too. I do play other things on occasion, but I go nuts for a good RPG.

Knights of the Old Republic was a GREAT game. The sequel was good too, in its way. The combat engine was improved, but the story fell a little flat, and the ending was awful. Classic Obsidian take over.

The MMO...the cinematic is VERY impressive. Just remember that the game itself has a more cartoony look to it.

I didn't even get into anime until I graduated HS, so I have a LOT of anime to catch up on, new and old. Right now I'm watching Gun Buster, from 1988! But this week I'll be reviewing Gankutsuou, which is much more recent.

June 14, 2009 at 2:04 PM

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