.: The Official Microsoft E3 Press Conference Thread of Blowouts and Megatons :.

[QUOTE="juradai"]

Is it me or am I the only one confused about the Crytek/Microsoft team-up? It's being reported as a "Live-action" game. How will that work? It looks pretty interesting, it's just I don't know what it really is. Will it be like a simulation strategy game?

lordreaven

Overall, this was a pretty awful press conference with the negatives far outweighing the positives.

• -No new games announced/Megatons
• -Kinect looked terrible and uninteresting.
• -The games for Kinect were basically rip-offs of Wii Sports, Wii Fit, and other stuff Nintendo has already done. Where is the creativity?
• -No Rock Band 3 Demo, instead we get some dancing game crap? WTH Harmonix?
• -New Xbox 360 "slim" looks like a PC tower.

• +Gears looked like Gears
• +Halo looked like Halo
• +Fable looked like Fable
• +Call of Duty looked like Call of Duty

C-

I'm still surprised that we know the launch date, final name and launch lineup for Kinnect, but we don't know pricing. That can't be good.

So yeah the start was good. I'm interested in Black Ops, Fable 3, Gears 3, Reach, and so forth just like the next guy. But then the train went right off the track. The conversations were so forced (I was going to mention that about the Gears 3 demo but the Kinect stuff was far worse so I forgot about it until just now). They made a big deal about video chat without headsets on a console, which their competition was doing for years. I'd be a lot more excited about the ESPN thing if it wasn't just a ESPN3 port, and my ISP signed on for that last year. The MS Kinect games were underwhelming, the msot complex being Joy Ride, and complex is a relative term. They seriously are just copying whatever Nintendo puts out. The Ubisoft fitness program could actually work. People act FAR too excited when they play games. Skittles could be the next great meme. Love how they give out free 360's to the media and get a standing ovation, and people wonder why gaming journalism has serious issues. Star Wars seems like the most complex "real" game using Kinect controls, and it seems to just be a rail shooter for the most part - the only time you move is when you did a force dash, even with nothing in the area.

I think I'm always disappointed in these kind of conferences because I forget that it's been years since these were geared towards people like us, and I only remember afterwards. It's geared towards investment analysts and newspaper writers who cover no other gaming news all year, and of course it was most definitely geared towards the people walking through Times Square. They quickly got the "necessary evil" of their core games out of the way, then totally went for the pitch to people who don't play games. Oh well there's private game showings later this week I guess.

I'm still surprised that we know the launch date, final name and launch lineup for Kinnect, but we don't know pricing. That can't be good.

rragnaar

Five hundred and ninety nine US dollars!

Yeah I was unimpressed, it was an ok press briefing but nothing special or exciting really. I would take a free a new 360 though :lol: Kinect ehhh can't see myself buying one for that lineup. If my old 360 Launch dies again I would buy the new version I guess. Overall blah, bland, boring, andsleepy yawn.

-Kinect looked terrible and uninteresting.Dutch_Mix

Horrible.

EDIT: Out of line comment removed.

Mime UI just isn't doing it for me.

Also, technical question... when you play Forza 3 with Natal, how does it handle braking, gas, and shifting? Does it watch your feet?

I'm still surprised that we know the launch date, final name and launch lineup for Kinnect, but we don't know pricing. That can't be good.

rragnaar

Isn't it $180 or something? That's the number I see floating around right now, but I think that's the rumor. I don't recall them mentioning anything about the price, but maybe they're waiting to see what Sony does before making their move.

I'm still surprised that we know the launch date, final name and launch lineup for Kinnect, but we don't know pricing. That can't be good.

rragnaar

People are pointing out that GameStop updated their Natal page to reflect all the new info on Kinect, but left the $150 price there. Hrm.

Horrible.

If you're still excited about Natal, aka: "Mime UI", take a long hard look at yourself. You're not a gamer, so why are you posting on these forums?

Also, technical question... when you play Forza 3 with Natal, how does it handle braking, gas, and shifting? Does it watch your feet?

Dire_Weasel

I thought that Forza 3 was just a tech demo. The short sequence just struck me as an "avoid the cars" minigame than anything else.

Kenetic sucked so bad. That whole part of the press conference was so boring. Gears 3, MGSR, and 360 slim were the only cool parts

Gamestop says $150.

Horrible.

If you're still excited about Natal, aka: "Mime UI", take a long hard look at yourself. You're not a gamer, so why are you posting on these forums?

Also, technical question... when you play Forza 3 with Natal, how does it handle braking, gas, and shifting? Does it watch your feet?

Dire_Weasel

Also, the Xbox Dent is worrisome. It's clearly not compatible with the old 360 HD. It looks like you'll need a transfer cable to move your old content to the new one.

I'm glad that it's now quiet and has built-in wi-fi, but those were launch features on both the Wii and the PS3.

Horrible.

If you're still excited about Natal, aka: "Mime UI", take a long hard look at yourself. You're not a gamer, so why are you posting on these forums?

Dire_Weasel

The only thing that really impressed me during this conference was MGS rising, the rest was rather mediocre IMO.

Gohansephiroth

My thoughts exactly.

I vote that we all play nice and steer clear of trying to determine who is and who isn't a gamer.rragnaar

How about Tru G@mer? Gots to hip it up.

A $150 price tage for Kinect? Hmmm... $99 would have had me sold instantly, especially if it came with the sports games bundle. I think $59 is extremely steep though but there are games that I play now that I waited for a sale to be promoted before buying so it will have to work that way when I buy some of these games for the kid's.

MGS Rising looks like a dumbed down Ninja Gaiden with a silly cutting gimmick.

[QUOTE="Dire_Weasel"]

Horrible.

If you're still excited about Natal, aka: "Mime UI", take a long hard look at yourself. You're not a gamer, so why are you posting on these forums?

juradai

I'm a gamer and I'd like to see Kinect fulfill its potential and be implemented in a variety of games.

[QUOTE="juradai"]

Is it me or am I the only one confused about the Crytek/Microsoft team-up? It's being reported as a "Live-action" game. How will that work? It looks pretty interesting, it's just I don't know what it really is. Will it be like a simulation strategy game?

lordreaven

[QUOTE="juradai"]

[QUOTE="Dire_Weasel"]

Horrible.

If you're still excited about Natal, aka: "Mime UI", take a long hard look at yourself. You're not a gamer, so why are you posting on these forums?

QuistisTrepe_

I'm a gamer and I'd like to see Kinect fulfill its potential and be implemented in a variety of games.

Ok, sorry. Everyone's a gamer. For some reason I'm finding this "Games as Mime" really repellent. Maybe it's just the way it's being presented.

MGS Rising looks like a dumbed down Ninja Gaiden with a silly cutting gimmick.

QuistisTrepe_

Ok, sorry. Everyone's a gamer. For some reason I'm finding this "Games as Mime" really repellent. Maybe it's just the way it's being presented.

Dire_Weasel

Yeah I'm not sure what to make of that Crytec game either. I never played Mount & Blade either. I am interested to see more of it though.Archangel3371

My initial reaction was, "Oh, Crytek is making a RPG?":?

How can anyone takeanything positive said bythe gaming pressabout the MS conference when they got free consoles? Briberies are nothing new but this is a pretty blatant attempt to buy the press off.

The core stuff like Halo and Gears look good although a bit samey, Kinect is probably one of the worst names they could have picked aside from "flail" or "spaz", I had hope out of MS and Sony, somebody would at least TRY to bring something more inspired than copying wii sports. I would have expected them to go slim at $199 but they didn't, which might have been their biggest mistake to build momentum, it just wasn't a compelling conference but then the gaming press might say otherwise after the free hand-outs.

How can anyone takeanything positive said bythe gaming pressabout the MS conference when they got free consoles? Briberies are nothing new but this is a pretty blatant attempt to buy the press off.

The core stuff like Halo and Gears look good although a bit samey, Kinect is probably one of the worst names they could have picked aside from "flail" or "spaz", I had hope out of MS and Sony, somebody would at least TRY to bring something more inspired than copying wii sports. I would have expected them to go slim at $199 but they didn't, which might have been their biggest mistake to build momentum, it just wasn't a compelling conference but then the gaming press might say otherwise after the free hand-outs.

EvilTaru

Boy, I'm sure glad neither Nintendo or Sony have ever done anything like that before.

With the Wii getting off to such a great start this gen, this is just the way things are. You can't blame Sony or MS for wanting a piece of the action. With the enhanced technology that MS and Sony's console bring to the table, motion control games will only improve. Something had to be presented, too much time and money have been invested. Like every other E3, all we're seeing is potential, nothing of substance.

So, if you've ever used any sort of "VR" rig, you'll notice that there's a big inherent problem with the interface: there is no physical feedback.

For example: in that sword fight with Darth Vader, you'd take a swing, and even though it looked like DV blocked you, your arms would follow right through. At that point you've got a contradiction between what you see on the screen and what you're acting out in the living room.

This sounds like a minor flaw, but it's not, really. The only scenarios that you can represent with something like the Wii, the Move, or Kinect are ones in which your movement wouldn't be impeded by what's happening on the screen. With Kinect it's particulariy problematic because you can't even add a bit of haptic feedback to the controller as you "hit" the virtual object; the user isn't holding a controller.

[QUOTE="juradai"]

[QUOTE="Dire_Weasel"]

Horrible.

If you're still excited about Natal, aka: "Mime UI", take a long hard look at yourself. You're not a gamer, so why are you posting on these forums?

QuistisTrepe_

I'm a gamer and I'd like to see Kinect fulfill its potential and be implemented in a variety of games.

So, if you've ever used any sort of "VR" rig, you'll notice that there's a big inherent problem with the interface: there is no physical feedback.

For example: in that sword fight with Darth Vader, you'd take a swing, and even though it looked like DV blocked you, your arms would follow right through. At that point you've got a contradiction between what you see on the screen and what you're acting out in the living room.

This sounds like a minor flaw, but it's not, really. The only scenarios that you can represent with something like the Wii, the Move, or Kinect are ones in which your movement wouldn't be impeded by what's happening on the screen. With Kinect it's particulariy problematic because you can't even add a bit of haptic feedback to the controller as you "hit" the virtual object; the user isn't holding a controller.

Dire_Weasel

The Star Wars part wasn't a competent presentation to begin with. I wouldn't judge the finished product off of that which will be several months from now. The Stormtroopers were lining up and waiting to get killed and vehicles were exploding for no reason.:lol:

[QUOTE="EvilTaru"]

How can anyone takeanything positive said bythe gaming pressabout the MS conference when they got free consoles? Briberies are nothing new but this is a pretty blatant attempt to buy the press off.

The core stuff like Halo and Gears look good although a bit samey, Kinect is probably one of the worst names they could have picked aside from "flail" or "spaz", I had hope out of MS and Sony, somebody would at least TRY to bring something more inspired than copying wii sports. I would have expected them to go slim at $199 but they didn't, which might have been their biggest mistake to build momentum, it just wasn't a compelling conference but then the gaming press might say otherwise after the free hand-outs.

dvader654

How would anyone even pretend to be objective after receiving a $299 console for free? In any other industry this would be a serious ethical issue, I'm not sure why you would try to play this down, we might as well deem it ok to have gaming press on the payrolls of publishers, just as long as "they do their jobs well".

[QUOTE="dvader654"][QUOTE="EvilTaru"]

How can anyone takeanything positive said bythe gaming pressabout the MS conference when they got free consoles? Briberies are nothing new but this is a pretty blatant attempt to buy the press off.

The core stuff like Halo and Gears look good although a bit samey, Kinect is probably one of the worst names they could have picked aside from "flail" or "spaz", I had hope out of MS and Sony, somebody would at least TRY to bring something more inspired than copying wii sports. I would have expected them to go slim at $199 but they didn't, which might have been their biggest mistake to build momentum, it just wasn't a compelling conference but then the gaming press might say otherwise after the free hand-outs.

EvilTaru

How would anyone even pretend to be objective after receiving a $299 console for free? In any other industry this would be a serious ethical issue, I'm not sure why you would try to play this down, we might as well deem it ok to have gaming press on the payrolls of publishers, just as long as "they do their jobs well".

This never happens with any other company.

[QUOTE="EvilTaru"]

[QUOTE="dvader654"] Give some people credit, getting something for free doesn't instantly turn you into a mindless zombie. I understand that they will be happier as they leave, but if they do their jobs well (which I know is the part that is worrisome) it shouldn't matter. QuistisTrepe_

How would anyone even pretend to be objective after receiving a $299 console for free? In any other industry this would be a serious ethical issue, I'm not sure why you would try to play this down, we might as well deem it ok to have gaming press on the payrolls of publishers, just as long as "they do their jobs well".

This never happens with any other company.

Just because it has happened beforedoesn't make it ok, and I hope neither Sony nor Nintendo would resort to giving away free stuff in their press conferences just to buy these guys off, this is why "game journalism" is such a joke.

I don't know whether you're trying to debate whether the gaming press should adopt some minimum standard of ethics or you're just trying to play devil's advocate and argue for the sake of arguing.

[QUOTE="EvilTaru"]

[QUOTE="dvader654"] Give some people credit, getting something for free doesn't instantly turn you into a mindless zombie. I understand that they will be happier as they leave, but if they do their jobs well (which I know is the part that is worrisome) it shouldn't matter. dvader654

How would anyone even pretend to be objective after receiving a $299 console for free? In any other industry this would be a serious ethical issue, I'm not sure why you would try to play this down, we might as well deem it ok to have gaming press on the payrolls of publishers, just as long as "they do their jobs well".

I'm telling you if you workfor afinancial institutionand someone gives you anything of cash value over $50, thatfinancial institutionprobably has it in its policies that you must refuse to accept it. What world do you live inwhere every other industry wouldhave such a blatant disregard for ethics?

[QUOTE="QuistisTrepe_"]

[QUOTE="EvilTaru"]

How would anyone even pretend to be objective after receiving a $299 console for free? In any other industry this would be a serious ethical issue, I'm not sure why you would try to play this down, we might as well deem it ok to have gaming press on the payrolls of publishers, just as long as "they do their jobs well".

EvilTaru

This never happens with any other company.

Just because it has happened beforedoesn't make it ok, and I hope neither Sony nor Nintendo would resort to giving away free stuff in their press conferences just to buy these guys off, this is why "game journalism" is such a joke.

I don't know whether you're trying to debate whether the gaming press should adopt some minimum standard of ethics or you're just trying to play devil's advocate and argue for the sake of arguing.

I don't know whether you're intentionally trolling by insinuating that Nintendo nor Sony have ever done something like this before. This kind of thing happens in every industry. Film, recording, you name it.

There's no harm done from MS insuring that all the game reviewers have a Kinect-compatible X360.

[QUOTE="Dire_Weasel"]

So, if you've ever used any sort of "VR" rig, you'll notice that there's a big inherent problem with the interface: there is no physical feedback.

For example: in that sword fight with Darth Vader, you'd take a swing, and even though it looked like DV blocked you, your arms would follow right through. At that point you've got a contradiction between what you see on the screen and what you're acting out in the living room.

This sounds like a minor flaw, but it's not, really. The only scenarios that you can represent with something like the Wii, the Move, or Kinect are ones in which your movement wouldn't be impeded by what's happening on the screen. With Kinect it's particulariy problematic because you can't even add a bit of haptic feedback to the controller as you "hit" the virtual object; the user isn't holding a controller.

QuistisTrepe_

The Star Wars part wasn't a competent presentation to begin with. I wouldn't judge the finished product off of that which will be several months from now. The Stormtroopers were lining up and waiting to get killed and vehicles were exploding for no reason.:lol:

I was just kind of using it as an example, but I think it's fair. The first thing people tend to think of when they see the move controller is "lightsabre".

Games where the motion of your virtual limbs are interrupted by onscreen objects just won't work with the current implementation, and it's being strongly implied by certain marketing videos from Microsoft and Sony that it will. Many of them involve wielding swords or your fists.