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So to kick off the start of E3, Microsoft as always takes the lead and starts off the show with its Press Conference. Microsoft held no punches and gave the crowd what they wanted to see right from the start. From the time the lights dimmed and a video started playing and all signs pointed to Halo 4. From the cinematic video you get to see that Master Chief has a new enemy with this new enemy also comes new weapons. The video goes straight into some game play action. At first glance everything pretty much looks the same HUD wise. Its almost as if Bungie did not leave. After about a 8 minute game play demo we get to see another face we haven’t seen in a while. Good old Sam Fisher. Once again we jump right into the action. Lots of classic stuff in the game along with some new. With Xbox Kinect, you can use your voice to get your foes attention. If you don’t have a Kinect your really not missing anything.
Check out the rest of the recap below,
Up next was EA Sports, basically showing us what’s new to Madden as well as FIFA 13. To me these games have been basic visual upgrade year after year. This year Madden gets a bit of an upgrade with a new engine as well as Kinect voice commands. Yuuuuppp thats right, this year you can call out your plays in Madden in stead of searching for them. I for one love this feature mainly because I run about 22 plays when ever I am playing offense so just saying them instead of picking them gives me more time to read the defense. As for FIFA, you can use Kinect to adjust your team mates. While both games have quite a few upgrades, if your an avid fan of either “football” game then be sure to pick them up. Once thing that was not talked about but could be seen during EA’s presentation on stage was that EA Sports was making a comeback to the NBA seen with NBA Live 13. We should have more news as details emerge on this title.
Fable fans rejoiced as we seen footage of the next Fable game. Fable Journey is a Kinect game that puts you into the game. It allows you to cast spells with you hands to defend yourself. There really wasn’t much shown but I gather you play the game by moving your head in the direction you want the character to move. After this video we got to see a teaser from the guys at Epic games and the next installment of the Gears saga. Gears of War: Judgement is the next title to continue the story from where Gears of War left off at.
Here is where things went a bit off. I am an big sports fan. I can understand the MLB service as well as the NBA service. My issue is with the ESPN deal. I don’t see why it’s super important to have this services on your console. Most homes have cable/satellite, so with the addition of ESPN to Xbox seems a bit unnecessary. Why you may ask. Well for one why would I want to watch ESPN using my Xbox that I could just tune in on my DirecTV. I mean in all honesty a majority of cable internet providers aren’t partnered with ESPN so home still won’t be able to use this if they fall into this category. All in all it’s something for a few people. Other networks that will be joining are Univision, Nickelodeon, Paramount and Machima. As for Zune Music, it is no more. It has been rebranded as Xbox Music. Another service that Microsoft is bringing in that I feel probably won’t get much use is IE (Internet Explorer). A lot of people tend to use Chrome or Firefox before we they use IE.
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Following that headache was something soothing, first was Tomb Raider. This game when first shown last year was something I myself was in love with. These guys are really hitting the spots with details, from water effects to how a tree sways in the wind. As Alexis would put it, Hunger Games, since Lara was doning a bow and arrow in the demo. We can’t wait to review it. Another exciting addition to the Xbox 360 is the Nike+ Kinect Training. This is for all the guys who wanna lose weight and meet their fitness goals. I for one will be using this, especially since I already have a Nike+ Fuelband. They also teased the new Dance Central 3. Then Microsoft turned the presentation into a free Usher concert.
Since Usher preformed, I felt like the show ended on a high note. Boy was I wrong, they still show a bunch of other games. Like Resident Evil 6, while the game looks good, I don’t feel it was good enough to show on this stage. Same with Wreckteer fun game, wrong place. A random intro video for Lococycle, while it left me wanting more. They should’ve made a bigger highlight/sizzle trailer of all these games rather than waste time showing them, and shown more dominate games. When they did end the show, with Call of Duty Black Ops 2. With actual gameplay, and boy was it good. Its a direct sequel of the first Black Ops so fans of that series like myself should enjoy it.
Among all the things shown, the only things that really stood out were Halo 4, Splinter Cell: Black List, Tomb Raider and Call of Duty: Black Ops 2. Everything else just felt like fillers. Like Ascend New Gods which looks like a God of War clone. Or South Park: The Stick of Truth, which kinda sounds like its gonna be like Costume Quest. Wreckteer was a game we seen at PAX East. With the addition of services like NBA and MLB while I see it is great to get people away from their computers and back in front of the television. Not EVERYTHING needs to be done on your television. Microsoft to me held an OK press conference. Its pretty much felt like they catered to just one or even two types of Xbox 360 owners. Those who love Action/Shooters or Kinect game fans. All in all please step it up next year.
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