Adams Briscoe
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E3 booth tours: Nintendo
So the conference has come and gone, but Nintendo was arguably the hardest booth to penetrate at E3 this year. They had the longest line of the entire show on Friday, and some rumors on the floor say it could have been E3's longest line in history. Either way, we've gone to the trouble to bring you a little bit of the inside and outside action of the Nintendo booth. Enjoy!
PC impressions: Crysis
We first got a sneak peek at Crytek's Crysis during Microsoft's keynote address earlier in the week. The demo level looked gorgeous, but on the show floor, I got to see something that almost looked better. Beautiful outdoor scenery was incredibly dynamic and encompassed everything.
E3 Vox Populi: What are your thoughts on the PS3 prices?
Sitting in long lines an hour deep or more gives a person the opportunity to bond with his fellow gamers pretty easily. That's what the Joystiq crew did while hanging around the show floor yesterday. The big question: What did you really think about the prices for the PlayStation 3?Brandee / PMS Clan: "Unacceptable. Period. Everybody works hard for their money."
Ryan / Student: "I paid $499 for a console already so I guess I can't say I won't buy the PS3. I wouldn't trade in my 360 though."
Carinda / Gameinatrix.com: "Never, never, never, never."
Andra / Gameinatrix.com: "Not at launch, I'll wait for a price drop but will probably get it."
CheapyD / CheapAssGamer: "I kept looking for a PS3 game that was worth $600 today and I couldn't find one."
E3 booth tours: Magic the Gathering
These guys were almost hidden in the West Hall near our blogging setup on the show floor. But as you can see, Magic the Gathering has quite an interesting setup. During the time I checked it out, they were having a tournament for their multiplayer game.
E3 booth tours: Atlus
They're not as big as Sony, Nintendo or Microsoft, but Atlus has a cool booth construction definitely worth taking a quick peek at.
E3 booth tours: Sony
In an ongoing attempt to bring E3 as close as possible to you, the reader, here's a brief look into the Sony booth. Enjoy!
Gamer/pianist makes sweet music at BradyGames
And blindfolded, no less! Apparently they were short on blindfolds though, considering that they had to use a T-shirt. Either way, this brave musician tapped out tunes to Super Mario and many others in front of an audience.
Game immersion and you: TV Fighter
With the Nintendo Wii interface, gamers are beginning to recognize the importance of a this new level of innovation. However we are also beginning to understand that it's going to take some time for developers to bring this type of immersion into a more unambiguous experience for everyone.
Tucked away within the bowels of E3 was SDW Games and their TV Fighter. As you can see from the picture, the gamer controls it with boxing gloves. Theoretically, this could have been really fun, but what is it about cheaply made peripherals that seem to completely take away the experience?
Overheard at E3: Teamkilling is fun
While waiting in line (for a very long time) to play Battlefield 2142, I overheard these two chaps talking together since they were on the same team.
Left gamer: "This game is so much fun."
Right gamer sees a random teammate and mows him down while giving a hearty laugh.
Right gamer: "Yeah it is!"
Left gamer: "... that was totally me."
PC impressions: Battlefield 2142
Any FPS gamer on the PC knows that Battlefield has a reputation. In this latest title, Battlefield 2142 tries to build upon that reputation and set itself apart as a wide-scale futuristic title focusing on team play.
DS impressions: Harvest Moon DS
The beautiful thing about Harvest Moon is that once you've played it, the formula never changes. Bringing it to the DS is a no-brainer though. Thankfully we have some interesting developments to this installment of the farming simulation.
DS impressions: Freedom Wings
Some games soar on the Nintendo DS. But once in a while you see a title that chokes under its own design. Freedom Wings is one such game that has the potential to be great, but nose dives all too fast.
Geometry Wars superstar shoots for millions
As I'm walking through the packed lobby of the Los Angeles Convention Center heading toward the West Hall, I see a huge Xbox 360 setup with a screen the size of a theater canvas boasting Geometry Wars. Some attendee is blasting his way past a score of 3.5 million.
This is not an uncommon sight. A big crowd is always hanging around it, soaking up the radiation and shouting out encouraging cheers to whoever is playing. The featured score above is a far cry from what we've seen lately, but it's interesting to watch the efforts of various industry people (or booth babes perhaps?). We'll keep you posted if a record-breaking high score shows up!
Hands on with DDR Mobile
One of the sleeper hits at the Konami booth is something that's hardly noticeable at all. Having only about a two square yards of space, Dance Dance Revolution Mobile for cell phones is something that deserves an honorable mention.Some DDR veterans may think this is taboo, but playing it on-the-go with a cell phone is surprisingly lucid. The demo I got my mitts on had such songs like Paranoia and B4U on it, totally revamped for the mobile platform.
If you play on light or standard mode, you may even be able to get away with using the familiar center controls. However the real action starts when you up the ante to hard mode and use the number pad. Even digits mark the arrow directions, giving both thumbs enough room to cross from side to side. If you're the type gamer who embraces cell phone games, then this is something to keep an eye out for.
E3 booth props from day 2
We have some more images from the show floor that speak volumes about the energy here at E3 (and the money these companies are spending). I've seen more than one attendee make a strange face at some of these, so hope you enjoy.
