The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2010 (E3) just happened this week (June 15 – 17) and so many announcements came out of it. Microsoft and Sony took the opportunity to show of their alternative control scheme which was their answer to the Nintendo Wii. Microsoft Kinect is controller free gaming in that the Kinect camera maps the player’s body and place them in the game. Sony’s Move is similar to the Wii control scheme however it also uses the Playstation Eye (a camera) which increases the accuracy of the controls. Both of them looks like to have potential to grab the casual gamer. Sony showed off some core games that can use the Playstation Move. Killzone 3 and SOCOM 4 used the Playstation Move controller in game. Sony is really trying to grab the entire market by bring in the casual while not angering the core gamers.
In my opinion, I feel like the Playstation Move controller has bigger potential for gaming compare to Microsoft Kinect as it uses controllers (with buttons) in addition to a camera. The main problem both of these control scheme have is that both of these are add ons. Unlike the Nintendo Wii, the Move and the Kinect both have to be purchased separately from the console and the cost can really add up. The move controller is going for 50 USD for the main controller, 30 USD for the sub-controller and 40 USD for the camera. The Kinect is rumor to go for 150USD. This is an expensive proposition especially to the casual gamer who do not invest so much of their income on video game entertainment.
This year, it seems like Nintendo went back to their roots for the conference. There were not many casual games they showed off. Instead they announced and showed off a new Zelda, a new Kirby, a new Donkey Kong, a new Golden Sun and the biggest of them all a new Kid Icarus! Some of these franchises haven’t seen a new game in their series for years!! This has definitely please the most rabid Nintendo Fan. Besides the announcements of new games, Nintendo showed off the next generation DS, the 3DS. It is just like the DS however the top screen is a 3.5 inch widescreen that has 3D screen technology built into it. This allows 3D gaming without the glasses. According to the people on the show, it WORKS! They include a 3D slider that allows the user to change the intensity of the 3D effect of the game. It can even be turned off. Other features that they added to the hand held are a gyroscope (for motion gaming), a slide pad, 3D camera (facing outwards), a camera (facing the user) and a retractable stylus. They have mentioned that the design of the 3DS is not final and will becoming out before March 2011.
I was shocked at how many publishers and games were coming to the 3DS. Metal Gear, Saints Row, Street Fighter 4, Kingdom Hearts, Star Fox 64, Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Mario Kart, Animal Crossing and more! This show how confident the publishers are on the platform. This is a complete 360 compare to the support shown for the launch of the original DS. With all this support the 3DS will be a hit out of the park when it launches.
Some of the games that really enticed me at the Conference are Kirby: Epic Yarn, Epic Mickey, Golden Sun: Dark Dawn, The Witcher2: Assassins of Kings, Fable 3, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, El Shaddai:Ascension of the Metatron and Enslaved: Odyssey to the West. There are just not enough time or money in the world for me to play all of these! This years E3 was great. I enjoyed a lot of the games that were shown off (however Microsoft conference was a little too much First Person Shooter Heavy). I am looking forward to the Tokyo Game Show and I know that Nintendo and Sony still have some games up their sleeves. Till E3 2011!!
Lawrence Jung 