Sanctum 2 review: friendly fire
Grid 2 sets world record for most expensive Special Edition
ITC rules Xbox did not infringe on Motorola patent
How an 'immature smartass' helps Shadow Warrior reboot
Call of Duty: Ghosts using voice commands for Xbox One Kinect
Star Wars Battlefront opportunity 'very exciting,' says EA
Ninja Theory announces mobile game Fightback
Sony explains why Gran Turismo 6 is not coming to PlayStation 4 (for now)
Valve forms Overwatch for CS:GO community to police itself
Joe Danger racing to PC this year
Weekend Confirmed 115 - E3 2012 predictions, Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, Dragon's Dogma
by Garnett Lee, Jun 01, 2012 6:00pm PDTE3 predictions! You love 'em! You hate 'em! You hate loving them? Whatever the case, The two Jeffs, and Insomniac's James Stevenson join Garnett to offer up plenty of forum fodder in anticipation of the big event next week. The crew tackles the big three--Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo--in the order of their respective press conferences. Does Xbox as a living room entertainment gateway give anyone goose bumps? Can Sony shake the Vita bottle hard enough to make a genie finally appear? Can Nintendo successfully answer "What would Mario do?" Of course, there's also time to talk some about the design plans for refining Diablo 3, Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, and Dragon's Dogma before wrapping it up with Finishing Moves.
Weekend Confirmed Ep. 115: 06/01/2012
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Show Breakdown:
Round 1 00:00:38 – 00:27:49
Whatcha Been Playing Part 1 00:28:16 – 00:57:34
Whatcha Been Playing Part 2 00:58:27 – 01:27:28
Listener Feedback/Front Page News 01:28:15 – 02:01:51
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Original music in the show by Del Rio. Get his latest Album, The Wait is Over on iTunes. Check out more, including the Super Mega Worm mix and other mash-ups on his ReverbNation page or Facebook page, and follow him on twitter @delriomusic.
Comments
Overrun Mode, where a team of Locust battle against a team of COG in a mix of Beast and Horde modes from Gears of War 3. There are character classes with access to specific equipment and entrenchments.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwW7IsS-bN8
Looks just TOO DAMN FUN. :D
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"OH CRAP"- Assassin creed 3 ship battle at Sonya's conference, you just knew they were going to board that ship. Yet somehow the highlight was this fire the canons moment during a storm. Whewww intense.
-sadly is it me or does Revengance look pretty damn good!!!
"oh crap..." AC3 liberations yeah Sony doesn't get it I want to play ratchet and clank, not clank it's the B team crew and you can tell.
- Sony and this book project not that the idea is awful (even though it is pretty bad) more that the eye toy works ohh say 1 out of every 5 tries in a perfectly lite room.
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Too much to go over, so just watch the three(!) videos and comment.
If you're like me, you're going to want to prepare a pillow under your jaw. Safety first!
War Games
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCiGiVqgqTA&feature=g-user-u
Spartan Ops
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nn89_AXCRUY&feature=g-all-u
Infinity
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsNWkjP65Cg&feature=g-all-u
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Discuss
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But if you really look for it, there's actually a lot of good stuff to be found at this year's E3. It's just all shown in side interviews and show floor videos.
Hell,l the Wii U's lineup actually doesn't look bad when you consider that the next Hideki Kamiya game (Viewtiful Joe, Okami, Bayonetta) is going to be exclusive to it. On top of that, the actual gameplay videos and descriptions of Zombie U look REALLY interesting - it seems to be sort of a survival horror RogueLike or something - like a more polished version of Day Z. Also regarding Nintendo, Reggie just confirmed that Fire Emblem: Awakening is headed to North America... by mentioning it off-hand to a random reporter who had to tweet it to get the word out. One of my top games at E3 so far has been Dishonored - which has an excellent gameplay demonstration at G4's website.
I understand that when you show off games at the conferences it has to be in a way that will catch the public eye, but it seems to me that this too often betrays the true nature of what each company has in store. To me the press conferences might be starting to lose their relevance in the shadow of the real meat of E3.
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At first I was like, 'oh great, so much for differentiating yourself from Call of Duty in tone'. But the more I've seen it demoed, the more I realize it actually does approach things differently.
Jeff talks about this alot, COD's problem with always being dialed up to 11. There are no peaks and valleys, it's just one long peak and eventually you get numb to it. Eventually huge moments that should feel amazing and epic feel like 'meh'.
The Medal of Honor demos have quite a bit of down time. There's quiet periods where you're not shooting anything and nobody's shooting you. It builds up tension before the inevitable release in a fire-fight. At first you don't notice it, because everybody walks away from a short demo remembering the big moments... but once you get over those, you realize the quiet moments, and how they help set the table.
Combine that with a more polished presentation than the last MOH and yeah, I'm interested now.
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WANT.
G4TV
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmOogPD2ROI
Gametrailers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyLPvFFScXU
We all knew this kind of cronyism existed - but no one's ever been so blatant about it.
And of course *all* the journalists (including Shack) will take it without a second thought.
Shameful.
Just shameful.
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MS: D-
Sony: D
Nintendo: D
E3 has been completely shit this year.
Nobody has anything interesting to offer.
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I don't care about Pikmin, but it looks good for what it is.
I DO love me some 2D Mario, so seeing a new NSMB game AND Paper Mario was great IMO.
Scribblenauts is the game I would be most excited for, but I'll want to see how it evolves as far as gameplay mechanics. If it's just a big-screen version of Scribblenauts or Scribblenauts 2, that would be disappointing.
Really disappointed that they didn't go into more detail with the online network, cause what I've seen so far from the Nintendo Direct conference doesn't have me convinced.
They also conveniently forgot to mention that the controller takes 2.5 hours to charge and runs out of batteries in 3 hours at full brightness.
http://www.nintendo.co.jp/n10/e3_2012/wiiu/index.html
You can play while it's charging, thank god, but it may as well be wired. It would be cheaper too.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjlt1DY27s8
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If this game isn't the launch window killer app for the WiiU, it can only be because humanity no longer knows what fun is.
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If they do not announce and demonstrate an online network that offers the same feature set and polish as Xbox Live and (to a lesser degree) PSN, it will be irrelevant.
More players will choose a game because of the online network their friends are on and how well it brings them together to play and compete. If Nintendo cannot steal people away from Xbox Live and PSN, then third party sales will continue to suffer and third parties will abandon the platform again.
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I was very impressed by the game's visuals on a technical level. The lighting in particular looked lightyears better than Halo Reach. The sound design was also quite impressive. I like the way mood and tension seem to build as Chief progressed through the environment. Little details like the Elite shoving the Grunt out of the way are a very nice touch.
However, I do have a few.... concerns. Namely, the new enemies.
Now, I of course will reserve all judgement until I actually get to play the game, but based on the footage we've seen these new enemies look far more "annoying" than "fun" to fight.
Little critter/insect things that swarm you and shoot plasma bolts.... when are little critter things EVER fun to fight?
Then General Griev... er, I mean, that big robot guy with the energy skull hidden behind his armoured faceplate shows up. From what I can see, he alternates between standing still (while being shot), teleporting around at lightning speed, and charging at the player in a straight line. None of this looked enjoyable to me. Beyond that, there seems to be a distinct lack of feedback when you hit these guys with your weapon. It looked like he juct continued on with his animations and behaviors in exactly the same way, weather the player was hitting him or not.
All in all, I think what we saw today looks very promising, but it did leave me with a few doubts about these new enemies we'll be facing :-/
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I found the Far Cry 3 and Assassin's Creed 3 demoes, while exciting at first, ultimately a bit disappointing. Battle Royale looked pretty good, although I don't see the charm and personality of each character come through which I find to be a big part of a brawler like that.
I have no interest in the Vita, so Black Ops Declassified and AC3 Liberation didn't do anything for me, and I found the Wonderbook section to be a really low point
Overall though, I think they did a good job, but with no big surprises.
I grade it a B :)
PS I'm worried about The Last Guardian :(
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Endless amounts of military based shooters.
Sports games.
Dudebro permeating everything - even Tomb Raider.
What happened to a little variety in the genre?
Creatively, the video game industry is dead.
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Way to underwhelm Sony.
Are there *any* games that aren't third person shooters featuring a dude with brown hair?
Oh yeah - sports games.
Every year I say E3 can't get any worse, and every year I get proved wrong.
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- Solid but predictable game lineup. (nearly all same titles from last year)
- Lack of major surprise announcements
- Boring new IPs
- Uninteresting multimedia features
- Kinect (Enough said)
- Fairly amusing South Park reveal with Matt & Trey
- Usher.
Grade: D -
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I'm hoping the Avengers game is in use with the full Marvel U license, so we can have Skrulls instead of the third rate clones from the Avengers movie.
And that new game Watch Dogs had an interesting premise at least.
By comparison the presentation ended with a thud after the COD demo, without much reaction of palpable excitement from the crowd.
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My big concern for Sony is that rumors have surfaced regarding a deal with Gaikai to provide a service for streaming PS1 and PS2 titles, which in some respect would kind of negate the supposed value of "transfaring." Isn't it a hugely more clumsy idea to have developers code 2 versions of a game, when you could potentially have gamers pay for a service to stream PS3 games they buy to a Vita? And that said, doesn't it suggest that original Vita games perhaps be related to console counterparts, but have totally original content. A sort of Chocobo trainer, or a gun modder or something for your fps.
Also I'm going to say something unpopular about Diablo 3: It is boring and repetitive. I like playing games single player, and maybe that's coloring my view. But at some points the environments become a little to "gamey" and simplified in an absurd kind of way. The pattern of killing looting, and selling your loot is too fast, and constant in a way that is disruptive.
And basically the story telling is actually horrible, and incredibly full of cliches and bland characters. Young girl can't control mysterious power. Premonitions that explain plot objectives. Cartoonish bad guys that create red herrings and then kid nap your friends. The CGI is stunning to look at, but its poorly utilized, compared to say Warcraft 3. The lore is cheesy and full of infamous labeled fantasy gobbledygook.
And I think worst of all for me, the story isn't at all about these character classes that you choose from. Leah is a terrible character and she is the center of the plot. There's apparently nothing to distinguish the Monk campaign from the Demon Hunter campaign outside of their being different combat classes. Its not like Warcraft 3 where the Warden and the Demon Hunter are classes that also relate to actual characters from different parts of a fictional world. To me a great Blizzard game is able to draw a distinction between single player and multiplayer, and exploit the strengths of each---and I don't get that from Diablo 3. It is addicting, but its also kind of tedious and simplistic.
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Criterion is basically making Burnout Paradise again, just this time with real cars and cops.
I have no problem with this. Plus, the Autolog features sound HOT. Instead of working your way up the Blacklist of AI opponents, you're working your way up the Blacklist of your friends. Aw yeah, I'm topping that thing for sure. :D
Not every game needs a tablet - A "pro" controller is being sold. (Separately of course)
Features of the Wii-U included: Always being online. Never alone.
Friends commenting on your games as you play. LIterally, text bubbles coming up on the game screen while you're trying to play. (I think it should be called the Grief-U from now on)
Fuck *all* of that.
They're trying to make it a social device.
I just want a console that with fun games.
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Not a poster was stirring for their minds were all set
On gaming and gifs by the hundreds and more
To see what press conferences would have in store
The GAFfers were warm, all snug in their beds
While visions of megatons danced in their heads
And I, in my boredom, began to compose
An ode to E3, in terrible prose
When all of a sudden, with palpable glee
"E3 is right here, on Spike TV"
The voice of Geoff Keighley enlivens the still
With the promise of games that he would fulfill
"My body is ready!" shout Nintenbots with joy
The Xbots counter "The Wii's just a toy!"
Sony fans cheer for the Playstation brand
And pray the Vita removes its head from the sand
Then the conferences start with a flash and wubwub
And disappear faster than the WiiU stick nub.
We argue and bicker over the best game of show
But at the end of the day, there's one thing we all know
We all love to play, that much is for certain
And love seeing what's happening behind the curtain.
So before we see the Xbox green light
Happy E3 to all and to all a good night!
"Baltimore-based Big Huge Games, the subsidiary of 38 Studios responsible for Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, was caught up in the company's complete meltdown and suddenly shuttered at the end of May.
However, for the Big Huge employees, the sordid tale may have a happy ending. They found themselves in need of work at exactly the same time that Epic Games (Gears of War, Unreal) found themselves looking for more talent. On the Epic Games website, studio president Michael Capps explains the solution to both companies' problems: Epic Baltimore."
http://kotaku.com/5915330/amalurs-developers-saved-are-now-an-epic-studio
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2.) What game do you think will command the most hype coming out of E3? My pick is The Last of Us.
3.) What game do you think has the biggest chance to disappoint? Assassin's Creed 3.
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I bought the 360 for Halo. I STAYED on the platform and buy things multi platform for the 360 and watch Netflix and HBO on 360 because of Live and what MS has done with the console as a whole. Sure it would be nice to have another exclusive or two, but there's more quality gaming content on the console between exclusives and multi plats and downloadables than anyone can possibly truly play through and /or afford to play.
We didn't ask for these things on our consoles, but now that we have them, we really do want them. People are using them in crazy numbers/hours per user (up over 80 hours a month on the console on average.) I don't know that I would buy a console that was just a console now.
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Let's face the facts microsoft is simply Nintendo with 3rd party support and little to no 1st party instead of vice versa.
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I'm honestly surprised that all these video services came to the Xbox first - the PlayStation is usually the machine more associated with video content. My PS3 has been almost more valuable to me as a video-playing set-top box than as a game console. I own both consoles, but I would honestly much rather use YouTube (which is getting a Vita app), HBOGo, and other services on the PS3 than on the 360. That might just be personal preference though.
I think apps and service stuff could be what sets the Vita apart too. With the right apps it could even become a decent cheap tablet alternative. I think the rumors have already started that Sony might unveil an eBook app for instance - a Kindle app would be ideal (turn the Vita vertically). One of my favorite features of the PSP early on was the podcast RSS catcher. Those things along with email, good advancements to the web browser, and an RSS app (like Fliboard), could go a long way towards making people carry their Vitas with them more often.
It's all well and good for Xbox to go on and on about being a media service, but it seems like we're getting the same games (Halo, Forza, GOW - none of which I'm interested in) every year. They're not going casual, but they're certainly trying to reach a wider audience at the expense of some gamers.
The only interesting game MS has had come out this year was Witcher 2.
It would be nice to see some surprises for the 360, but I doubt we're going to get any.
It really does feel like MS is spinning its wheels until next year and the next gen machine.
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Ummm...2 fun games versus vaporware, and you're sticking with the vaporware? If TLG ever comes out, I'd be inclined to agree with you. Until then, that's a silly, horrible example.
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