{"id":923,"date":"2011-06-06T09:36:29","date_gmt":"2011-06-06T16:36:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bytica.com\/?p=923"},"modified":"2011-06-06T12:03:43","modified_gmt":"2011-06-06T19:03:43","slug":"e3-2011-microsofts-xbox-presser-live","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.bytica.com\/?p=923","title":{"rendered":"E3 2011: Microsoft’s Xbox Presser, Live"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

E3 2011 KICKS OFF TODAY, and Microsoft’s Xbox press conference is about to start. Looks like there’s already been one leak in Halo 4 <\/em>and an HD remake of the original Halo<\/em>, but we’ll have to wait for official confirmation sometime in the next 90 minutes. Let’s see how this goes down: <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

9:31:<\/strong> Live demo of Modern Warfare 3<\/em>. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Please Reconnect Controller.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d This is off to a flying start. The level is set underwater with a SEAL team tracking a sub. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

9:37:<\/strong> We’re still going with Modern Warfare 3<\/em>. They’re in the sub, they’re trying to disable a missile launch. Outside the sub, the view of the city is pretty impressive \u00e2\u20ac\u201c aside from the striking image of a city on fire, the entire harbor (and I’m assuming this is supposed to be NYC, but I can’t be sure) is filled with warships. It reminds me of the Pearl Harbor level from Pacific Assault, except outside Manhattan. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

9:41: <\/strong>Attack of the Muckety-Mucks! MS VP comes out for the usual introductory schpiel. Innovation! Interactive! We’ve got all the buzzwords you need!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

9:43: <\/strong>And now, for \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 Tomb Raider<\/em>? Seriously? The second demo of Microsoft’s E3 press conference is for a new Tomb Raider<\/em>? <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

9:46: <\/strong>You know, I’ve had it with the water-on-the-camera effect. Yeah, I get that Lara’s in the water and splashing around. I’m still tired of having my view futzed that way. I guess this is Microsoft’s way of saying \u00e2\u20ac\u0153if you like Uncharted, we have games like that as well\u00e2\u20ac\u009d? <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

9:49: <\/strong>Peter Moore for EA Sports. Predictably, there’s going to be a Kinect connection for four games: Tiger, Madden, FIFA <\/em>and one more they’ll reveal later. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

9:51: <\/strong>Wow, just like that, Moore is gone, and Ray Muzyka from Bioware is onstage talking about Mass Effect 3<\/em>. And it’ll support Kinect. Live demo time! <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

9:56: <\/strong><\/span><\/span>Ubisoft’s back with a trailer for new Tom Clancy game: Ghost Recon: <\/em><\/span><\/span>Future Soldier<\/em><\/span><\/span>. This trailer’s kind of fun, with the action frozen and the camera floating around. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

9:58: <\/strong>Oh, god, Ubisoft rep. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Hi! I have an impossibly thick French accent and have never given a presentation before.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Thankfully they hand it to a proper demo guy who’s talking about a feature where you can pretty much dismantle a weapon into all its various parts, which the audience is really excited about. And this is somehow connected to Kinect, although I’m not really sure why. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:01: <\/strong><\/span>Xbox Live time. For the 8729<\/span>th<\/span><\/sup> time, we’re going to be shown \u00e2\u20ac\u0153an innovative new way to experience entertainment.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d I’m not really sure if they’re demoing a new interface, or Kinect, or new partnerships. Well, at least one partnership: YouTube will be integrated into Xbox Live, which is nice, although everything has YouTube integrated these days. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:04: <\/strong>Ooh, Bing will be integrated into Xbox Live. ZZZzzzzzz. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:07: <\/strong>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153It’s time to come together.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d That means it’s time for a casual-oriented trailer showing a couple at home using Xbox Live to browse all their entertainment. Guys, you tell us this EVERY YEAR. You have to actually have to DO IT. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:08: <\/strong>Dude from the UFC is on stage introducing a new ultimate fighting game. I have to admit, the whole ultimate fighting thing makes me feel old. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:10: <\/strong>Microsoft’s Phil Spencer comes out to talk about UFC and ESPN and other partners. I have to wonder, does these companies ever care that some of these VP presenter-types come across amazingly slick and borderline creepy? But apparently, from this point on, everything we see will be Xbox exclusive, which should get interesting quick. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:12: <\/strong>First up, Gears of War 3<\/em>. A short trailer, and then Cliffy B takes the stage to talk about it. Joining him to play onstage, Gears voice actor Ice-T. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:15: <\/strong>So far, this all looks like the usual Gears <\/em>gameplay. Which, for a lot of people, I assume will be great. I enjoyed the first Gears<\/em>, but didn’t play the second because I’m a PC snob when it comes to any game that involves shooting. But this is a big outdoor boss battle, and looks fun enough. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:17: <\/strong>Trailer from Crytek: new game called Ryse. <\/em>Set in Rome, featuring gladiatorial combat, clearly Kinect focused. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:20: <\/strong>Halo <\/em>time. First up, the remastered HD version, called Halo: Anniversary<\/em>. Hey, can they redo the library so it’s not so ridiculously boring? <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:21: <\/strong>Whoops, that’s it for Halo <\/em>for now. Up next, guy from Turn 10 is talking about Forza Motorsport 4<\/em>. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:24: <\/strong>Lionhead’s Peter Molyneux to talk about the next generation of Fable, <\/em>subtitled The Journey<\/em>. Gee, I wonder if it will have Kinect support? Let’s see if this trailer tells us. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:26: <\/strong>Of course it’s Kinect supported, as the demo guy is driving a horse by simulating using the reins and now conjuring magic spells. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:28: <\/strong>Welcome back, creepy slick VP guy! And he’s talking about \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 Minecraft<\/em>, combined with Kinect? That may be the most interesting thing we’ve heard so far. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:29: <\/strong>This might be the family-friendly part, as Kinect Disneyland Adventures <\/em>(apologies if I got that name wrong) is announced. It’s a virtual theme park, which I imagine a lot of young’uns might like. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:33: <\/strong>OK, this has been a pretty bland conference so far, but Microsoft pulls an old trick out of the bag: play the Star Wars <\/em>theme and people get excited. This is for a new Kinect Star Wars game, where the whole lightsaber thing is a no-brainer. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:34: <\/strong>I want to congratulate Microsoft and\/or LucasArts on not demanding the guy demoing Kinect Star Wars <\/em>dress up in some hokey Jedi garb. That may have been the best restraint they’ve shown so far today. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:37: <\/strong>Tim Schafer! And was he introduced by the voice of Cookie Monster? Apparently so, as the game he’s working on is Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster. <\/em>I just don’t know how to feel about Tim Schafer making a Sesame Street game. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:42: <\/strong>Welcome, Kinect creative director Kudo Tsunoda, complete in cardigan and sunglasses. I’m sorry, everything about this screams insincerity. It’s impossible to to feel like you’re being held hostage at a sales pitch. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:44: <\/strong>Wow, when Kudo said \u00e2\u20ac\u0153finger tracking,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he did this really creepy thing with this fingers. I say this because, when you see it as an animated .gif on forums for years to come, you’ll know where it came from. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:45: <\/strong>Seriously, did this other demo guy just say \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Kinect, plus finger tracking, equals awesome!\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Did HE REALLY JUST SAY THAT OUT LOUD? This is embarassingly bad. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:49: <\/strong>Kinect Sports, Season 2. <\/em>You know, if you don’t have a Kinect, this press conference really hasn’t done a great job convincing you you’re missing out. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:53: <\/strong>Harmonix’s Kasson Crooker, introduces Dance Central 2<\/em>. No big news there — it was the most successful Kinect game, of course there’s a sequel on the way. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:55: <\/strong>MS VP guy comes out to wrap up all the stuff we didn’t care about. Bing and YouTube, Kinect Adventures, etc. Let’s see if they save a Halo 4<\/em> trailer for a big finish. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:57: <\/strong>Sure enough, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153the dawn of a new trilogy for Xbox 360\u00e2\u20ac\u009d \u00e2\u20ac\u201c Halo 4 <\/em>trailer. Holiday 2012. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10:59: <\/strong>And that’s it. Really an underwhelming presentation. Lots of sequels we knew were coming, lots of bland stuff about Kinect and Xbox Live. C+<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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