From what I gather, Microsoft's new strategy moving forward is turning their six year old hardcore gamer console into a $450 family friendly HD Wii. Aparently they've come to the conclusion that families around the world long for motion capture on-rails games, because Microsoft's conference only made it more abundantly clear that Kincect is the one trick pony they are willing to bet on. And what does Microsoft's lovely fan base get to keep their apetites occupied for the time being?...Halo, Gears, Forza....wait what? Is this 2011? Because I feel like I was just blasted back a few E3's. I was honestly expecting a lot more from Microsoft. The only shining light of the entire conference for me was their streaming content strategy. They are being very smart to bypass the whole Blu-ray media wars altogether and move right into streaming content. That's obviously where the entire entertainment industry is moving and Microsoft has shown they will continue to be the leader on that front. Still though, after it was said and done, Microsoft's conference left me quite dumbfounded. How could they suddenly put content for their fanbase on auto pilot?

As always, Nintendo gets a little crazy for yet another E3. While they certainly didn't show that they really understand what the hardcore gamer wants, they did show that the potential is certainly there...and have about a year and change to prove it. As soon as I saw the abillity to bring a game from the tv screen to the controller, a lightbulb went off in my head. For any gamer competing for tv time, this is certainly a game changer. A true console experience in the palm of your hand. I'm actually really glad they didn't make it completely portable, thus forcing companies to still make full sit down console experiences. Another lightbulb went off after seeing the Wii U controller extend the game environment beyond the tv screen in a full 360 degree motion and even provide multiple perspectives at the same time. It's innovations like this that keep me coming back to Nintendo time and time again. I was really worried Nintendo would try and play follow the straggler on Micrsoft's Kinect, but instead they showed me exactly what I didn't even know I wanted.

Of course, the giant question before E3; what will Nintendo do to make the 3ds relavent? While I wasn't completely surprised, between Kid Icarus, Paper Mario, Mario 3ds, Luigi's Mansion 2, Mario Kart and ****c remakes of old I think all the content people expected on launch and more will finally be there by the end of the year. Myself however have gotten burned by Nintendo handhelds too many times in the past. I'll be waiting until the better redesign of the 3ds comes out;which given what happened with the DS will probably some time next year. Overall, while I'm still skeptical of the Wii U and future of the 3DS, I'm excited by their potential. They just have to work out the kinks over the coming months to really win me over.

Sony had a lot to prove this year. While Nintendo and Microsoft both choose straddle the hardcore/casual line, Sony has decided to take the biggest risk of all, to stick to its guns. Nintendo sure does talk a lot about how software makes the system, but Sony actually shows how software makes a system. They came out guns a blazing with Uncharted, Resistance, Metal Gear, Sly, Twisted Metal, and The Last Gaurdian exclusives. There's really something there for everyone in that batch of games. PSP Vita was just the icing on top of all this, and with the game lineup and price point it looks like Sony is serious about battling Nintendo this go around. If Nintendo doesn't hurry up I might actually have to buy the Vita instead of the 3ds at this point. While some might be not happy about the PS3 Move support, Sony isn't really forcing anyone to use it, but rather offering it as another way to play games available. I don't see why they'd stop supporting that despite how jaded gamers are about motion controls. Sony seems to be in the best position for the time being. Guess we'll have to wait a year and see how this all plays out to know for sure.

Until next time my gamer friends!