E3 2012

Wow I can't believe Nintendo came with a new console and not one killer app to sell it? In other news PIKMIN 3!!!

And for all the talk pre-E3 of "Nintendo is going to invest more in online", I really saw little talk in the way of online, other than connectivity with your friends, which begs the question - if none of your friends are online via Wii U, what's the point/benefit?

I was shocked by how little they had to say, it didn't feel like a new console unveiling/launch/whatever

It was all just a bit boring

The Wii U specs are rather pathetic (from Eurogamer.net):

  On 6/5/2012 at 8:43 PM, Joyrex said:

I'm starting to think Nintendo's too late to the game. This might be it for them.

Unless they bring some kind of magic to the online part then they may have a hard time convincing people to buy their new console.

Buuuuut then on the other hand, Nintendo has a bunch of hardcore fans who buy their consoles just for Mario and Zelda (I might be one of them) and all their other first party stuff - and these first party games sell MILLIONS! So if they can sell a bunch of consoles to these hardcore fans and catch a bunch of casual gamers in their net again then they're pretty much made. Also, it will without a doubt sell a ton in Japan.

Also, timely Matrix reference, Lego City Undercover.

peter molyneux suggested that the content creators haven't gotten to grips with the new hardware. In terms of the WiiU games still looking on par with this generation of consoles. So, maybe Arkham City didn't impress because it's just a straight port.

The fact that wii u is going to be seriously underpowered didn't really come as a surprise, the tech demo from last year that was supposed to wow everyone looked like shit.

I'm surprised nobody really mentioned Sony's conference last night - I thought they had a pretty good showing, starting off with Quantic Dream's newest game Beyond: Two Souls (they made Heavy Rain and the amazing Kara tech demo), and finishing with the amazing looking The Last of Us. I think out of all three, Sony at least showed the most new IP and reinforced their mantra of "never stop playing" by actually showing games people would want to play.

Looks like Portal 2 on PS3 is also getting more DLC in the form of Move support (that will be interesting), as well as 20 new levels. I'm a bit concerned the DLS is being made by someone else other than Valve though...

  On 6/5/2012 at 11:13 PM, Gocab said:

The fact that wii u is going to be seriously underpowered didn't really come as a surprise, the tech demo from last year that was supposed to wow everyone looked like shit.

"Looked like shit" is a bit harsh - underwhelming, for sure, but technically it was solid, with exactly what we'd expect HD Nintendo games to look like.

Ok, it's a bit harsh, but it's nothing the ps3 or 360 couldn't run as a straight tech demo. Tech demos tend to look better than what we get in gameplay, in my experience.

  On 6/5/2012 at 11:25 PM, Gocab said:

Ok, it's a bit harsh, but it's nothing the ps3 or 360 couldn't run as a straight tech demo. Tech demos tend to look better than what we get in gameplay, in my experience.

True, very true. Hadn't thought about it that way.

Watching this just made me sad, as it's better than anything Nintendo showed (albeit it's a render, and not actual gameplay footage), and it's just a fan made project:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=P50d9xsLzB0

Nothing about The Last Guardian? :(

  On 6/5/2012 at 11:37 PM, Enter a new display name said:

Nothing about The Last Guardian? :(

Not a peep. Not a good sign, and probably means it will be delayed even further, if it comes out at all.

  On 6/5/2012 at 11:40 PM, Joyrex said:

  On 6/5/2012 at 11:37 PM, Enter a new display name said:

Nothing about The Last Guardian? :(

 

Not a peep. Not a good sign, and probably means it will be delayed even further, if it comes out at all.

It has probably been cancelled. Didn't the director leave the company?

He did :(

  On 6/5/2012 at 11:15 PM, Joyrex said:

I'm surprised nobody really mentioned Sony's conference last night - I thought they had a pretty good showing, starting off with Quantic Dream's newest game Beyond: Two Souls (they made Heavy Rain and the amazing Kara tech demo), and finishing with the amazing looking The Last of Us. I think out of all three, Sony at least showed the most new IP and reinforced their mantra of "never stop playing" by actually showing games people would want to play.

Yeah, I was pleasently surprised by Sony's press conference. Beyond looks beautiful but I can't help but feel that it'll end up being just as fucking insane as Indigo Prophecy/Fahrenheit did. That game started out brilliantly and ended up with your main character flying around in a church... yeah...

The Last of Us looks quite intense. If they can keep the same level of suspense each time you meet enemies then I'm sold. I don't have a PS3 but I'll definitely tip my hat in its direction.

I usually don't care for first party stuff (except from Nintendo's stuff) so I'm more interested in Watch Dogs and Assassin's Creed 3 than anything else.

  On 6/5/2012 at 11:43 PM, Squee said:

  On 6/5/2012 at 11:40 PM, Joyrex said:

  On 6/5/2012 at 11:37 PM, Enter a new display name said:

Nothing about The Last Guardian? :(

 

Not a peep. Not a good sign, and probably means it will be delayed even further, if it comes out at all.

 

It has probably been cancelled. Didn't the director leave the company?

Yes, but he keeps working on the game daily under a contract.

I'm at E3 right now, watmm meet up?

Watch Dogs looks great, but I couldn't help but think, why couldn't they save this for the next generation consoles? The current consoles will be lucky to get the framerates of the gameplay video they showed. However, fuck playing games from an office chair.

  On 6/5/2012 at 11:15 PM, Joyrex said:

Looks like Portal 2 on PS3 is also getting more DLC in the form of Move support (that will be interesting), as well as 20 new levels. I'm a bit concerned the DLS is being made by someone else other than Valve though...

Single or multi player?

The Last of Us looks potentially even better than Watch Dogs.

Anybody have any idea how these sorts of games are functioning, technically speaking? The dynamic dialog and action elements?

with this game and Pikmin 3, I could justify getting this console. you could go on a great RTS stretch, hopefully they have some nice RPGs coming that use the control pad. it seems like a very chilled way to play games, just swiping your fingers and light motion detection. shit I'm lazy.

[youtubehd]Mr4D4YZQ9uY[/youtubehd]

  On 6/6/2012 at 1:28 AM, The Overlook said:

The Last of Us looks potentially even better than Watch Dogs.

 

Anybody have any idea how these sorts of games are functioning, technically speaking? The dynamic dialog and action elements?

As far as dialog goes, I think they just put different audio files in a bank and then program the trigger to randomly select one, or select a particular one based on other elements. I'm no programmer, though.

Yeah, that sounds pretty rational though.

Either way, I'm all for a good narrative; it's one thing most modern games lack. Fuck sand boxes, drama engines, treadmills, motion sensing, or social media.

Edited to add: DLC, too. All of these popular trends in gaming are destroying the artform and the fun factor.