E3 is the world's premier trade show for computer and video games and related products. The show is owned by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), the U.S. association dedicated to serving the business and public affairs needs of the companies, publishing interactive games for video game consoles, handheld devices, personal computers, and the Internet.
This week, E3 is upon us, Computex just ended and we predict how much misplaced anger will be aimed at the Microsoft press conference!
We will have our reactions to the Microsoft and Xbox press briefing at E3 2013.
The PLUGHITZ Live crew brings you our reactions to the Electronic Arts (EA) Press Event from E3 2013.
The PLUGHITZ Live crew brings you our reactions to the Ubisoft Press Event from E3 2013.
The PLUGHITZ Live crew brings you our reactions to the Sony Press Event from E3 2013.
A lot of people have defended that fact that I have continuously called out E3 on their lack of organization and relevancy in the gaming space with each growing year. Say what you will, but the facts do not lie. The convention grows more frustrating each year to attend and big names are stepping out and delivering press events on their own, to bigger media attention and coverage. Last year on our show, I even said that eventually we'd see gaming become part of the Consumer Electronics Association's (CEA) annual event, the International Consumer Electronic Show (CES). Well, either Shapiro heard me talking about it or I am less "out there" than everyone is saying, because the framework for a gaming showcase at CES is taking place starting next year.
The CEA announced that over 40 different companies will show off the latest in gaming technology and hardware at CES 2014 in Vegas this year. Dubbed the CES Gaming Showcase TechZone, this will add to the two handfuls of TechZones already existed in the 1.9 million square feet of showfloor, and will be the prime destination where gaming meets business. Like I've said in the past, business is where gaming matters and it is less important for these companies to cater to the "hardcore gamers" who fill forums across the Internet when literally billions of dollars exchange hands at CES. The CEA will also be giving the Gaming TechZone over 10,000 square feet of space in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center to show off their goods, "from mobile, online and HD gaming, plasma HDTV to surround sound and power conditioning hardware."
Karen Chupka, Senior VP of CES, said in their press statement about this addition,
The Gaming Showcase at the 2014 International CES is a must-stop destination for the latest gaming trends from around the globe. The 2013 International CES saw unmatched innovation in gaming technology with the launch of NVIDIA's Project Shield, the Oculus Rift, the Sifteo and the Razer Edge. We look forward to witnessing the bleeding-edge gaming technologies that will be unveiled at the 2014 CES.
As Chupka has mentioned, we saw the big names at E3 show up six months before the big gaming event, at CES 2013. Now with CES actually incorporating gaming as a highlighted showcase, I'll expect to see more big things come out of the event for gaming. A list of exhibitors include heavy-hitters like AMD, Innex, Intel, Logitech, Nokia, Nvidia, Orbotix, and Sony. We'll also see a huge focus in mobile gaming, naturally, as the CEA said revenues increased in that space by triple-digits in both 2011 and 2012. Plus, with the launch of next-gen happening over the holiday season, there is sure to be a load of new products to go along with the new hardware come January.
When you think about it, this all makes sense. CES is the largest technology event in the world, with media attending from 150 countries across the globe. Having that same group of 35,000+ attend a second event, six months later, that's only about gaming is just not in the cards anymore. Now it's time for a professional organization to take over gaming and make the convention the best it can possibly be. I can't wait for Vegas this year.
read more...Since Nintendo didn't hold a big press conference this year like Microsoft and Sony, largely to them not having a console to release, what was Nintendo doing during E3 this year? Aside from holding several private events to talk about games (Bayonetta!) and future roadmaps for the Wii U and 3DS, the company also chose to announce that they are taking on a new path in their gaming world.
During an analyst briefing, Nintendo said they are pushing forward with their first free-to-play game some time before March of 2014, their fiscal year. As of right now, we are unsure as to what platform, or even what game it will be. What we do know is Nintendo said that there will be a big focus on DLC, expansions and free-to-play titles moving forward, which they hope will improve digital sales on both the Wii U and 3DS.
What we also know is what franchises the F2P game won't be for: Mario and Pokemon. Nintendo's CEO Satoru Iwata commented specifically on those two franchises, saying that they "already have good relationship in those brands" so they see no need in trying something uncertain in them that could potentially cause disaster.
David Gibson, an analyst who was in on the briefing, said,
Nintendo plans to boost digital sales with launches like new super luigi u but also the first free to play game. Nintendo free to play game will be released this fy but will not be Mario or Pokemon game as already have good relationship in those brands. FY is fiscal year ending march 2014. Nintendo analyst briefing comments earlier were from President Iwata and FTP game platform not clear but was said when talking about WiiU
This could either mean we'll see a brand new IP that is free to get started with, a resurrection of another, older franchise or even a successful brand that will take on the F2P beast. Either way, it's definitely new territory for Nintendo and could lead to future success if done the right way. At any rate, it's time to speculate. What game would you like to see free-to-play? Let us know in the comments below.
read more...Even though Valve's absence from E3 this year spoke volumes on the lack of relevancy the show is becoming with each passing year (regardless of how crazy Gabe Newell gets over the same time span), the company was still able to announce some news that gained some attention. This would be much like last year, when they announced Counter-Strike: Global Offensive during Microsoft's press briefing.
This year, however, Valve announced a pretty big Steam update that will include some features gamers have been wanting for a while. And, if you've been running the beta client, you would have seen these features come and go over the past couple of months.
First up is the new Trade Offers feature. Bringing some in-game economy features from Team Fortress 2, among other, into the full Steam platform, Trade Offers will allow you to send a trade request to other Steam users, outside of a game. You will be able to trade any items from any inventory in any of your Steam games and users can then choose to accept or reject any offers made. As of right now, this will be limited to your friends list, but Valve has said they will incorporate the entire Steam community in the near future.
The second big update is Item Gifting. As it stands, you can gift games that you purchase to pretty much anyone with an email address. However, it is still not possible to gift away inventory items, like TF2's Premium Upgrade item. Instead, you currently have to trade for the item, and only can do so in games that feature a trading system. Now, Item Gifting will let you choose in-game items and cosmetics to send to your friends, or even strangers if you wanted to.
The update should be rolling out soon, so keep looking back for the infamous Steam pop-up box about an update.
read more...I know I don't speak for everyone, but I am growing a little bit tired of zombie/horror games. It feels repetitive at this point, and nobody is bringing a fresh idea or concept of gameplay to the table. So when I first got wind of Outlast, from the description I thought we'd be in for another redundant iteration of shooting, running, hiding, hunting and gathering. Thankfully, I was wrong in the best possible way.
Developer studio Red Barrels takes the horror genre to a whole new level with their latest creation, Outlast. For those unfamiliar with the game, you play the role of one Miles Upshur, a journalist who has stepped foot into the Mount Massive Asylum, which houses convicted felonies who are mentally unstable. Upshur's mission is to unveil and expose the harsh reality of the treatment of these convicts and the only weapon he has is a camera. That's right, no guns, knives or clever Solid Snake tactics here; a camera is your only weapon of false defense. And, even though Upshur's motives are pure, the convicts are not very happy to have the presence of an outsider roaming about through the hospital and each inmate will react to your character in a different way.
Now, other than having the power of megapixels to defend yourself, what makes this game so different? Red Barrels hired on real-life neural psychologists in order to accurately portray the reactions and behaviors of mentally insane humans.
Philipp Morin, Red Barrels co-founder, said in an interview,
Working from real-world profiles and information has allowed us to portray a wide variety of behaviors to represent the patients in a realistic way. It's helped us validate ideas for the nature of the experiments that players will see in the game.
The information gathered from the doctors plays into the game in several ways. While some patients will see your character and go absolutely nuts, others will simply pay you no mind at all, and it will be up to you to determine who is safe to investigate and navigate around. Oh, and the best part about the entire experience is that not only do you merely have a camera, you also have the fighting and survival skills of a journalist (read: none). You better pack your running shoes, because if you get too close to the wrong inmate, it's off to the races to find the nearest maintenance shaft or closet to hide in.
So, while this may not be a hide-and-wait, run of the mill zombie shooter Manhunt game, this game will surely scare you on a more mental level. Literally. Want to see some of the insanity before you decide if you want to play it yourself? Check after the break, as we have the official trailer from the studio along with some live demo gameplay, courtesy of IGN. The game is slated for PC and PS4 only and will launch sometime this year.
read more...Regardless of one's opinion of the Microsoft press event at E3, one thing for sure: Xbox was still committed to its 360 users. To prove this, they announced a huge variety of new Xbox 360 titles that will be releasing over the next 12 months, plus a bunch of free content, games and other exclusive offers. To round out their emphasis on the 360 before jumping into what everyone wanting to hear (and bash) about, the Xbox One, Microsoft also announced a brand new, redesigned Xbox 360.
In keeping with the look and feel of the Xbox One, the new Xbox 360 E model takes on a more box-like body, as opposed to the Xbox 360 S, which tapered off in the center from both sides. The Kinect also got a slight rehaul, and while it is nothing like the Kinect 2, the minor tweaks made to the frame really bring the full look together. Best of all, the new 360 is slimmer, quieter and does look a little sleeker than the previous one. Upon announcement, Microsoft made the console immediately available, although some retailers may take up to a week to get the product in-store.
On the commitment to the 360, Microsoft's Yusuf Medhi said,
Xbox 360 offers unrivaled value - with more great games, an Xbox Live community with 48 million members, and a compelling line-up of apps, sports, movies, TV and music. We've taken all we have learned these past eight years and engineered a new Xbox 360 console that is elegant and accessible to anyone. There's never been a better time to experience everything Xbox 360 has to offer.
Considering that the Xbox 360 S had no major flaws with it, I'd have to agree that now is the best time to upgrade your 360 console. I know I already picked one up, and you should too, at The Microsoft Store. The only downside is that you cannot buy a 250 GB version of it, with the Kinect bundle. The redesigned Xbox 360 is available for the same prices as the existing console: $199.99 for the 4 GB console, $299.99 for the 250 GB edition and $299.99 for the 4 GB Kinect Bundle. Luckily, I'm moving my hard drive into a new one as soon as it gets to my door step. How about you?
read more...It has been 8 years and 2 consoles since the last proper installment of the Kingdom Hearts series, premiering in 2005 on the PlayStation 2. Well, the wait is nearly over as Square Enix announced at Sony's press conference that Kingdom Hearts 3 is currently in the works.
Little is known about the game through the presentation, but there is information known outside. The title is in a VERY early stage of development because resources have been dedicated to work on Final Fantasy XV and Square almost turned down development when Disney asked. Thankfully the company decided to continue the series and the third full installment in the story is set to be the completion of Sora's mission to recover his world from the Heartless.
Outside of the story, we do know that this will be the first installment to jump the PlayStation ship and will be featured on Xbox One. So, while it is very surprising that the PlayStation 3 has been totally skipped in the series, it is even more surprising that Square is opening this franchise up the Xbox players as well.
Hit the break to check out the trailer to see what we know so far.
read more...Ubisoft showed off a casual-ish title during its press conference, The Mighty Quest for Epic Loot. The concept is simple: get and keep stuff. Sounds like a simple premise, but in reality the process is not exactly that.
First, pillage castles. Make it successfully to the center of a castle full of traps and enemies and plunder the loot room. If you don't succeed, however, the castle owner wins and gets loot instead. Now, how you succeed in a castle is up to you. There are 3 character classes that allow you to fight up close and personal (The Knight), from across the room (The Archer) or a combination of the both (The Mage).
Second, defend your loot. Build castles with devilish traps and tons of enemies to protect your own loot stash in the center. Once complete, the castle will be available to others to enter and try and make it out with YOUR stuff just like you have done to their stuff. From the site, "Remember, a house is not a home until it can kill intruders in at least 7 different ways simultaneously!" Sounds like a challenge to me.
The game is, of course, a free-to-play setup with premium items available for real money. Since the game is currently in closed beta, the easiest way to get in is to make an initial purchase that will get you in immediately. If you don't want to pay any money to get into a beta program, you may also sign-up and wait to be chosen. Neither choice will hurt their feelings.
I am currently awaiting my beta key anxiously. This type of game is right up my alley.
read more...Since Activision fired the Infinity Ward founders, who went off and formed Respawn Entertainment, the newly formed company has been pretty quiet. The only real news out of the company was the unsurprising news that they had partnered with Electronic Arts to publish their upcoming title.
Well, it is time to take a look at the title, named Titanfall, here at EA's press conference. The game is, as expected, a first person shooter, as that is what Jason West and Vince Zampella do best. The game is not what any of us would consider to be "modern" warfare, as the opening sequence took place on a hover ship and our commander, as it seems, is in a mech suit. We also seem to have long-fall boots, or an equivalent, paired with jetpacks. Another expected departure from their norm.
The ability to jump into one of these mech suits, known as a Titan, is an interesting gameplay mechanic. Obviously the Titan has a lot more power than a standard person would, but it is huge and cannot fit everywhere you might need to go. You also don't have the overall mobility you would have without it, giving you reasons to both wear and not wear these suits.
What is no departure for Jason and Vince is the sprawling and beautiful map. The world is immersive and realistic and incredibly detailed, which is something the Call of Duty franchise was known for before their termination. Whether or not you are into the FPS genre, there is no doubt that this title is a perfect way for Respawn to enter the market.
The game comes exclusively to Xbox One in Spring 2014.
read more...Since announcing the closure of PlayFish social games, there was a lot of question about Electronic Arts' commitment to their social, casual and mobile studios. While PlayFish will be responsible for mobile games going forward, it was assumed that EA's other social studio, PopCap, would be taking over. EA emphasized that point during their E3 press event by announcing Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare.
It is certainly an unusual move for a publisher to emphasize more casual gaming titles at their E3 event, but as gaming continues to move toward causal and social, I suspect we will see more of this in the future, E3 or not. It was good to see PopCap and Plants vs Zombies on-stage, as it is one of the few casual franchises I have personally enjoyed.
So, what is new in this tower-defense series? A shooter. Yes, Garden Warfare is a shooter in the vein of Team Fortress 2. The title has a lot of the aspects of TF2, such as different classes each with its own special abilities, all designed to work together and even be needed together. It also maintains the personality of the PvZ franchise, being a little cartoony and really silly. It is exactly what has always made the series so fun and it is good to see they maintained the feel.
Keeping with traditional PopCap trends, you have the ability to take your plant or zombie and customize it. Choose from lots of new characters with new powers and create a unique character with hundreds of available items and customizations. Once you have your character, enter into a 24-player battle or join friends for a 4-player online co-op.
Here is the thing that is most surprising: it is a console title and it will be on Xbox One and Xbox 360 first.
read more...Every year Microsoft seems to have one thing up its sleeve that no one really saw coming. In 2009 it was Project Natal (now Kinect), then we saw a redesigned Xbox 360, last year we had SmartGlass. This year, Microsoft showed another project, Project Spark.
Using Spark, Kinect and SmartGlass you can easily create entire videogame worlds with little to no experience. In fact, during the presentation, we were witness to an entire world being born, rules created and players interacting with enemies, all within minutes of taking the stage.
The most interesting aspect of the platform is the multiple targets. You are able to develop for almost any modern Xbox platform: Windows 8, Xbox 360 and Xbox One, though no mention was made of Windows Phone 8's Xbox platform. This system is definitely a great way to introduce interested children to the gaming development world, as well as a quick and easy way to prototype an idea for any sized development team.
As of now, there is no known release date associated with Project Spark, but that is not unexpected. Any time Microsoft shows off a "Project" it is usually a VERY early preview, with many changes coming over the coming months or years. With Project Natal, for example, THE thing that everyone wanted was never released, much to everyone's disappointment: the painting system. All we know for sure about Spark is that it will evolve between now and release.
Hit the break for a gallery of some of the incredible things created with Project Spark.
read more...One of the big things to come out of the Microsoft press conference was Xbox One's focus on social. At the initial reveal event we learned that Microsoft would be integrating Skype into their next generation of Xbox, making up for the loss of Windows Live Messenger. Many people have found conversing through Xbox Live to be a convenient way to keep up with family, so bringing that feature back is important.
In switching to games, which was the focus of their event, Microsoft looked at the way people use their consoles and attempted to make those things as easy as possible. One thing that has gotten more popular is sharing video of gameplay. Currently you have to get a capture card and hook your Xbox or PlayStation through the box and into a computer to record your gameplay.
Microsoft is making this process easier by incorporating the ability right into the console. Now, using your Xbox One and Xbox SmartGlass, you can record, edit and publish your videos without even hooking up a single extra cable. Do you want to add commentary as well? No problem - use your headset or Kinect microphone and record everything happening around you right into the video.
Now, what if you want to share your gameplay live? Well, Microsoft has you covered there as well. Through a partnership with Twitch TV, you can use your Xbox One to connect to Twitch LIVE to broadcast whatever is happening on your console. From the docked dashboard you can see your viewership, invite friends and even see the chatroom. If you have your headset or Kinect, everything you say can be broadcast as well, giving commentary or game chat. Again, this really simplifies a process that more and more gamers are doing: broadcasting their games.
The last major social enhancement made for Xbox One is something I predicted several weeks ago. People were unhappy that the Xbox One was not going to have any backwards compatibility, but I decrypted the code. Xbox Live has been completely rebuilt, preventing older games from being available on the new console. Why block old games? Well, the old Xbox Live platform had a limit of 100 friends which was engrained into the fabric of the network. By replacing the infrastructure of Xbox Live, we can now have as many friends as we want. Take that, Facebook!
read more...We all knew going into E3 2013 that it was all about the battle between Microsoft and Sony for the hearts and minds of the Internet. Microsoft had set themselves up for trouble when they did not fully explain that their initial Xbox One launch and media event was a media event, gaining them a lot of flack from bloggers who were not smart enough to understand announcing too many games 19 days before E3 was a bad move. Sony got a lot of flack in February for not showing hardware, but time tends to erase memories.
After the announcement event, Microsoft continued to put their foot farther down their throat by emphasizing the always-on Internet connection and publisher opt-in used-game policy. People took to the Internet in droves to complain about the console needing to be on the Internet. No, I'm not kidding - that is exactly what happened; people complained on the Internet about their console needing the Internet. I'll let you absorb that information for a moment while I change topics.
Microsoft did exactly what anyone with a brain would expect at their press conference: focused on games. In fact, save for during the recap of everything Halo that has been announced, the word television was not said. The game lineup was great and the presentation went very well. Sony's conference, on the other hand, went the other way. The initial focus on media content certainly undermined their own statement that PS4 is not a media device. That aside, their game lineup was also great, with a number of exciting announcements. All-in, the gaming comparison was pretty flat.
One big announcement that Sony did make was that there was no used game policy. The crowd went nuts. Well, as it turns out, that wasn't entirely true. In fact, it wasn't true at all. The PS4 has almost the exact same used-game policy that the Xbox One has - a publisher opt-in program. If a publisher wants to prohibit you from trading, sharing or selling your used games, they have that option. All Sony was saying is that their FIRST PARTY titles have chosen not to opt-in. Microsoft, on the other hand, has not officially stated whether or not their first party titles will opt-in to their program. So, now that we have the information here, again the presentations are pretty flat.
Sony did take a legitimate stand against the always-on Internet connection, stating that the console does NOT have to check-in ever. Now, people on the Internet (yes, we are unfortunately back on this topic) will find this exciting, but let me argue the other side for just a moment. Many games already institute this policy on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Let's take Tiger Woods, for example. If the console doesn't have Internet connection, you cannot earn status points for your club nor other connected-achievements. This is because modern games often have global economies, whether it be in career scores, item process or other statistics. By running the economy locally without any interaction with the rest of the world, the whole economy can be affected when you return. There is also the case of hacking, which often takes place offline, but let's focus on the positive aspects.
By taking these opposite stands on the Internet requirement, Microsoft and Sony are officially going after different types of gamers. Sony is looking for players who don't have constant Internet connections; either people who live in places where there is no Internet connectivity or people who tend not to pay their bills and get shut off. It also means that they don't place a lot of value on the PSN, which we have kind of always known. Microsoft, on the other hand, has placed great value on Xbox Live, as they have for a decade, encouraging games to take advantage of a global economy and a persistent global world. These network focuses will result in a different type of exclusive game and a different type of gameplay for non-exclusives on each console.
The one announcement out of Sony that seemed to be glazed over was the requirement for PlayStation Plus for multiplayer gaming. We all knew it was a matter of time as there is only one type of business model in free. You can sell dollar bills for 90 cents for a while and generate A LOT of revenue, but there comes a point where the dollar bills run out and you have to change policies. If you need an example, ask MetroPCS how it worked for them. Many PlayStation gamers have claimed it would never happen and if it did they would leave Sony.
So, the question is now: which type of game are you interested in: persistent global world or self-contained gameplay? Let us know in the comments below.
read more...Live from the LA Sports Arena, Sony's Jack Tretton will show off the new PlayStation 4 hardware. Let's be honest - this is the moment we are all waiting for from this E3. Will we have another Big Bertha, or will this console shine right from the beginning? You will definitely want to tune in to find out.
Shortly after the event, join our team LIVE for reactions on a special F5 Live: E3 Wrap-Up Show.
Hit the break for coverage from E3 2013!
read more...Live from the Los Angeles theater, Ubisoft's Yves Guillemot shows off what is in store for the company over the next 12 months. Including Assassin's Creed IV and Splinter Cell Blacklist, this is bound to be an action-packed hour of videogaming goodness.
Shortly after the event, join our team LIVE for reactions on a special F5 Live: E3 Wrap-Up Show.
Hit the break for coverage from E3 2013!
read more...Live from the Shine Auditorium, Electronic Arts' Peter Moore will put on display the company's next year worth of important titles. With a peek at Battlefield 4's multiplayer and Need for Speed: Rivals, plus a look at the work from EA Sports, this is one not to miss.
Shortly after the event, join our team LIVE for reactions on a special F5 Live: E3 Wrap-Up Show.
Hit the break for coverage from E3 2013!
read more...Live from the Galen Center, Xbox's Don Mattrick and Phil Spencer will complete the Xbox One announcement started 19 days prior, this time with a focus on gaming. With live gameplay from Forza 5 and a new title from CryTek, you won't want to miss all of the excitement here!
Shortly after the event, join our team LIVE for reactions on a special F5 Live: E3 Wrap-Up Show.
Hit the break for coverage from E3 2013!
read more...