Posts tagged E3 08 at Joystiq

Posts with tag e3-08

Joystiq E3 hands-on: Tomb Raider: Underworld

Comments (39) by Richard Mitchell Jul 23rd 2008 9:55AM

Filed under: Nintendo DS, PC, Sony PlayStation 2, Sony PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360, E3

click to embiggen

The room is stuffed with a handful of game journalists. It's dark. Drifting from the (very nice) speaker system are the sounds of ocean waves lapping against a boat. On screen, Lara Croft stands on the wooden deck wearing scuba gear. Thrifty girl that she is, it looks like Lara didn't want to spring for a wetsuit with legs in it. Apparently not worried by the deep cold of the ocean, she dives into the water. It's time for me to play Tomb Raider Underworld.

Gallery: Tomb Raider: Underworld E3 08

Continue reading Joystiq E3 hands-on: Tomb Raider: Underworld

Castle Crashers, Galaga Legions, more on XBLA in 4-6 weeks

Comments (26) by Richard Mitchell Jul 17th 2008 7:00PM

Filed under: Microsoft Xbox 360, E3

During our guided demo of Microsoft's upcoming stable of XBLA games, Microsoft's Scott Austin informed us that all the games on display would be available in the next four to six weeks on Xbox Live Arcade. All of 'em. If you've been reading the impressions on Joystiq, you'll know that this a reason to be excited. For the record, the XBLA games being shown by Microsoft are:

We expected Microsoft to show off some cool XBLA games at E3, but we weren't expecting four to six weeks of win.

Joystiq E3 hands-on: Silent Hill: Homecoming

Comments (12) by Richard Mitchell Jul 17th 2008 5:30PM

Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Adventure, E3

A few things. First, I love the Silent Hill series. Second, E3 really isn't the venue for demoing a Silent Hill game. Even in Konami's relatively quiet meeting room, it was impossible to hear any dialogue or music in Silent Hill: Homecoming -- headphones were available, but they were broken ... grrr. Considering that the soundscape of any given Silent Hill game is responsible for half of the atmosphere (arguably more), it makes it hard to judge how the game feels. So, you'll just have to settle for a look at how the game plays.

Gallery: Silent Hill: Homecoming (5-21-08)

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Covenant playable in Halo Wars

Comments (30) by Richard Mitchell Jul 16th 2008 7:00PM

Filed under: Microsoft Xbox 360, Strategy, E3

While spending some quality hands on time with Halo Wars at E3 (hint: it's good, more on that later today), Microsoft's Jim Ying, who was guiding our demo, gave us some great news for Halo fans (there are lot of them, you know). The Covenant, the alien race hellbent on humanity's destruction, will be playable in Ensemble's upcoming Xbox 360 real time strategy game Halo Wars. The only question that remains now is whether or not the parasitic Flood will also be playable. We asked, but Ensemble isn't talking. For the moment, we'll just have to be satisfied knowing that we can finally slake the Covenant's (Grunty) thirst for blood.

Midway at E3: Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe

Comments (18) by Mike Schramm Jul 16th 2008 4:30PM

Filed under: Features, Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Fighting, Interviews, E3

Scorpion vs. Batman. Catwoman vs. Subzero. These aren't exactly matchups players have always dreamed of, but Midway is going to do their best to cram two disparate universes into one with Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, the very first Mortal Kombat game on the next-gen systems. Here at E3, Joystiq got to sit down with Brian Lebaron, senior designer for the game, and we talked about why it's OK to set the Flash on fire, why Bizarro probably won't be in the game, and what Midway is doing to Toasty uppercut the fighting genre.

After the break, find our hands on with the game, as well as details from our chat with Lebaron. When MK vs. DC comes out, you'll finally be able to find out whether Liu Kang's kicks can catch the Flash in the jaw.

Continue reading Midway at E3: Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe

Ratchet and Clank: Quest for Booty $14.99 this summer

Comments (8) by Mike Schramm Jul 15th 2008 3:18PM

Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, E3

The newest iteration in the terrific Ratchet and Clank series is going for quality over quantity -- Sony has announced that the game will release for $15 on the PSN sometime this summer, and will feature "a shorter game at a lower price." The game will describe what happens to Clank after the end of Ratchet and Clank: Future, and will serve as a "great introduction to what R&C is all about."

No official date yet ("just this summer"), but looks like some good and cheap Ratchet and Clank fun.

Nintendo selling 200k DSs a week, 700k Wiis a month

Comments (9) by Mike Schramm Jul 15th 2008 12:30PM

Filed under: Nintendo Wii, E3, Business

Nintendo has announced at their press conference this morning that they're still selling 200,000 ~~Wii~~ DS systems a week, and 700,000 systems a month. As a comparison, the Xbox 360 sold 520,000 units during the Halo 3 release last year, when it last beat the Wii. So Wiis are still selling like hotcakes, and Nintendo brags that it's not even a holiday season -- they say they're keeping up these sales all year long.

Very impressive. Of course, the games aren't selling quite that well, but in terms of systems, Nintendo just keeps on rolling.

Update: It appears we misheard Reggie. Nintendo is selling 200k DS systems a week, not Wiis. But they are still selling 700k Wiis a month, and both system sales figures are pretty astounding.

Hands on: Gears of War 2 multiplayer

Comments (44) by Richard Mitchell Jul 15th 2008 10:00AM

Filed under: Features, Microsoft Xbox 360, Action, First Person Shooters

Microsoft held a special Gears of War 2 reception at E3 on Monday, giving eager journalists a chance to play the game's multiplayer modes and test their mettle against other journalists. We're proud to say that we managed quite well against our competition, slamming active reloads all the while, though that's perhaps beside the point. You all want to hear about Gears 2, not about how awesome we are at it. Read on for our hands on impressions.

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Will Wright's exemplar user-created Spore creatures

Comments (10) by Jem Alexander Jul 15th 2008 8:15AM

Filed under: Nintendo DS, Mac, PC, Simulations, E3, Galleries

Click for higher resolution

Fancy seeing a selection of the 1.589+ million Spore creatures created so far? This batch of crazy critters was hand picked by Will Wright himself as an example of how crazy, imaginative and realistic Spore's creatures can be, if the players are creative enough. Click the image above to begin the tour, which includes the following:

Scarily realistic (or so Mr. Wright says) humans
A set of walking teeth
Living vehicles
A Chocobo, from the Final Fantasy universe
The Weighted Companion Cube, back from the dead with a slight weight problem
Robots

Gallery: Will Wright's Favorite Spore Creatures @ E3 2008

EA 2008 E3 Press Conference photos look grEAt

Comments (4) by Jem Alexander Jul 15th 2008 6:15AM

Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360, E3, Mobile, Galleries

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We sat in the EA Press Conference, happily snapping away to bring you a selection of screenshots and slides that we thought hilighted the event pretty well. Images span from the newly announced SimAnimals and EA Sports' new All Play franchise to id's RAGE and Valve's Left 4 Dead. A couple of shots from the impressive looking Mirror's Edge and Dead Space also make an appearance. Be sure to stop back later for some of Will Wright's favorite Spore creatures, including a Chocobo and some robots. Seriously.

The gallery begins here, if you'd like to step this way ...

Gallery: EA E3 Press Conference 2008

Banjo Kazooie coming to XBLA later this year

Comments (41) by Jem Alexander Jul 14th 2008 3:02PM

Filed under: Microsoft Xbox 360, Adventure, E3

The original N64 classic, Banjo Kazooie, will be coming to Xbox Live Arcade this Holiday season. Along with Banjo Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts, Rare fans will now have two platforming games to look forward to. Though one will include a little more vehicles than the other.

Analyst: PS3 will keep outpacing Xbox 360, MS may announce price drop at E3

Comments (133) by Alexander Sliwinski Jun 13th 2008 10:07AM

Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Business

Although the information isn't as solid as if 30 Helens agreed, EEDAR analyst Jesse Divnich believes the PS3 is going to keep increasing its sales and that Microsoft will announce a price cut for the Xbox 360 at E3. He foresees the PS3 gaining momentum and claims Metal Gear Solid 4 will actually have a greater impact on the console's hardware sales than Grand Theft Auto IV did.

Divnich also believes that Microsoft will announce a price cut at E3 next month, speculating the console could also get a new hardware SKU with added features. He claims if Microsoft does cut the price, Sony will respond with a drop of its own within two months. We're currently gathering up 30 Helens to see what they think.

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Activision not attending E3 2008

Comments (16) by Alexander Sliwinski May 1st 2008 7:00PM

Filed under: Business

Activision told GamingNexus, and we've since confirmed, that the company will not be attending E3 this year. A representative for the company tells us that, after careful consideration, it will not participate in any official E3 activities this year.

The key word there is "official," which sounds to us like Activision will have a presence around the show, akin to Gamecock's EIEIO event last year. Though it's not ready to share exactly what the plans are, we'll certainly have more on this at a later date. Other notable companies missing from the current E3 list are: Blizzard/Sierra (which goes hand in hand with Activision now), Atlus, Majesco and NCsoft.

... oh, and if you're wondering what the picture above of Jamie Kennedy is all about, you missed one of the great disasters of E3 '07.