Back when I used to work in a video game store, I would only recommend Sony game machines to people because they were the best selling platform at the time. Their strength back in PS and PS2 eras was the amount of 3rd party support they received. Back then, I would have said that they had the same problem as Microsoft has now - a lack of first party exclusives that you couldn't get on a competing machine. I guess Sony agreed with me...
They opened the show with a video of the latest Uncharted game: Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception. I don't own a PS3, but this is a series that could easily convert me. The level on display took place on a ship. After some stealth action, Drake gets into a firefight with the baddies on the boat, and inadvertently causes the ship to start to sink. It then becomes a race against the water to get out of the boat. The visuals looked great, the action intense. And, most importantly, you can't play with Drake on a non-Sony made console.
They also showed Infamous 2, which was a bit odd since it was going to be released a day later (the conference was on June 6, the game was being released on the 7th). This is another top tier title that can only be played on a PS3 - it just seems like the time should have been used to hype a game that was at least a few months out.
Sony announced plans on releasing "affordable" 3D capable monitors and glasses. While I'm not too keen on the whole 3D movement, this could really push 3D TVs into widespread adoption. Basically the PS3 is probably the device most responsible for Bluray winning the last format war, so if Sony can give us a 3D TV and glasses that you don't have to sell organs to be able to buy them, the more likely it is to end up being the "standard." Especially since they went on to announce that many PS3 games in development will be 3D compatible.
Sony announced that the God of War PSP games would be released as a compilation for the PS3. They also gave a date (Sept 27) for the Ico/Shadow of Collossus collection.
Ken Levine from Irrational came out to basically say that he used to think Playstation Move was bullshit, but after having a sit down with Sony and having them show him how he could use it, he's changed his mind. So basically Bioshock: Infinite will have Move functionality.
2K games bored me by having Kobe Bryant come out and play NBA 2K12 with the Move controller. I don't really like sports titles, so this part of the conference could have been amazing to some people. I would have chosen this segment to take a piss break.
Sony's big announcement had to do with their new handheld: the PSVita which is set to be released "fourth quarter 2011". I was never interested in the PSP, but I have to say, this machine looks pretty damned cool.
It has a touch screen, a touch sensitive pad on the back, front and rear facing cameras, "sixaxis" motion sensing, and all the interface buttons of your typical Playstation controller. The machine will play games from cards not unlike the DS game cards, as well as downloadable titles.
They showed a new handheld Uncharted game for the system. The graphics were impressive, and they went out of their way to show off the various control options the system offers. You could control Drake the traditional way with the joysticks and buttons. During a sequence where he was moving from handhold to handhold, you could "draw" on the touchscreen the path you wanted him to take, and he would do it automatically. The game looks like an easy "must buy" for the system.
One of the other cool segments showed the PS Vita version of Mod Nation Racers. With the track design feature, you could draw the track on the touch screen. You could use the touch screen to place environmental objects like trees, lakes, buildings, etc. With the rear touch pad, you could manipulate the terrain: pressing on the back of the system would create a hill.
The PS Vita will also share some cross compatibility with the PS3. There will be games you can buy (a copy for each system, mind you) for both machines. You can then start your game on the PS3, save your game to "the cloud," and then take the PS Vita version with you on the go to pick up where you left off.
The machine looks impressive, so what about the price? Sony announced that they will release the machine in 2 versions: WiFi only for about $250, and 3G/WiFi for $300. This makes it very competitively priced with the 3DS, and the announcement was met with cheers. Sony then announced that the exclusive partner for their 3G network would be... AT&T. The cheering died off, and actually a few boos were thrown in for good measure. Guess AT&T's offer was too good to pass up, despite legions of customers bitching about that network in the days before IPhones went network agnostic. Still, kinda harsh to get booed at your own press conference.
So what's the grade?
I'm going to give Sony a B+.
Sony has a lot of top shelf, exclusive software in the pipe for this year. And the PS Vita announcement was huge. I almost gave them an A and would have given them the edge over Nintendo. My reasoning was, originally, this: Sony is giving us a lot to be excited for now, while Nintendo was building excitement for the future. After letting it sit (for more than a month), I remembered something - the release "window" for the PS Vita.
Any of you financial nerds will know what I'm talking about. "Fourth quarter, 2011" does not mean that the machine will release this year - it just means that it'll be out by March of 2012 as the "fiscal year" is what they're talking about. It's only a difference of a few months, but if PS Vita isn't dropping for holiday 2011, the launch may be a bit lukewarm (ask Nintendo how launching the 3DS in March went). Also, their choice of AT&T as their wireless partner seems ill advised.
So there you have it - my opinion is that Nintendo "won" E3 2011. I'm bummed that the Wii is dying, but excited for what's on tap for 3DS, and can't wait to see what they do with Wii U.
Sony did a great job, and this may be the year I break down and buy a PS3. Hell, they may get me to forsake Nintendo's latest handheld for theirs.
Microsoft, I'm sorry. You shit the bed this year. Kinect looked like crap... and don't even get me started on the "actors" you had showing off your Kinect titles. I got so many douche chills watching those guys playing Kinect Madden Football... ugh... flashback.
Ok... now that I finally got E3 out of my system, maybe I'll post more regularly. In shorter form so people don't get bored while reading. Or with up to date news... you know, something interesting for a change.
