This is a quick and dirty breakdown of Microsoft’s 2013 E3 Press Conference. As such, we shall eschew many of the bells and whistles that we normally append to our work. You can watch the highest points of the conference in it’s entirety in the following link:
Microsoft E3 2013 Official Coverage Channel
First and foremost, we have a release date of November 2013, with an astoundingly high price of $499, which begs the question as to whether or not Microsoft was paying attention to the sales from last generation. Especially given the relatively underwhelming horsepower under the hood, this seems to be a massive mistake. UPDATED: And Sony is dropping the PS4 to a cool $100 less. Ouch.
Hardly news, but the year has again confirmed that Phil Spencer is a gigantic douchebag. This is not news, it simply bears repeating. This man needs to never, ever haunt a stage again.
Ryse: This looked amazing the first time, and it looks like the extra development time has been put to good use. Rome is a beautiful concept for a setting, and a highly under-utilized one. This was absolutely one of the high-points of Microsoft’s conference, but it did raise two questions. Is it Ray Stevenson’s fault that we think all Romans have that not-posh English accent? And will the Y in Ryse be explained? All jests aside, this game is pretty, but the combat looks awfully clunky and the camera looks unfortunately tight, and it’s hard to classify the game-play outside the realm of all quick-time events all the time. I’m all for cinematic game-play, but this camera just won’t hunt. It’s also so chock-full of Greco-Roman stereotypes that I’m expecting a ‘Fight In the Shade’ moment.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0il2l-B_WwaXkmJde1d8CpJE6FLVhQBA[/youtube]
Killer Instinct Reboot: People have been begging for this for years, at least somewhat justifiably. Hopefully the actual retail release won’t come with awkward, offensive rape references. Jesus, Microsoft, you cannot catch a break.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBUyUfHzxDE&list=PL0il2l-B_WwaXkmJde1d8CpJE6FLVhQBA&index=38&oref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DqBUyUfHzxDE%26list%3DPL0il2l-B_WwaXkmJde1d8CpJE6FLVhQBA%26index%3D38&has_verified=1[/youtube]
Xbox LIVE Policy Shift: A Gold Account for Xbox Live applies to the console, not just to an account – meaning that everyone on the console gains the benefits. This is the closest thing to good news in this entire conference.
Panzer Dragoon psuedo-sequal Crimson Dragon: I suppose someone is excited about this somewhere, but the trailer is weak at best. It looks like a glorified arcade title, and given today’s hiccup, I suppose we might have to hope that the audio won’t serve as $5 DLC.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_GDszac6X0&list=PL0il2l-B_WwaXkmJde1d8CpJE6FLVhQBA&index=28&oref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D9_GDszac6X0%26list%3DPL0il2l-B_WwaXkmJde1d8CpJE6FLVhQBA%26index%3D28&has_verified=1[/youtube]
Dead Rising 3: Much less arcade in feel than its predecessors, featuring SmartGlass support in a meaningful way. They have refreshingly normalized the tone a bit, but there is no word on whether or not the controls have been improved beyond the franchise standard “about as convenient as turning a doorknob with a polish sausage.”
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLPKIW81wNA&list=PL0il2l-B_WwaXkmJde1d8CpJE6FLVhQBA&index=5&oref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DgLPKIW81wNA%26list%3DPL0il2l-B_WwaXkmJde1d8CpJE6FLVhQBA%26index%3D5&has_verified=1[/youtube]
The Witcher 3 Looks absolutely stunning, and the engine equally so. It seems out of place at a console press conference – based on the engine for the previous outing I have concerns about government owned-and-operated supercomputers being able to run it.
DICE’s Battlefield 4: Battlefield looks amazing as always, that’s no surprise. There is certainly a focus on the single player content this time around. The timed exclusivity of the map packs moving from Sony to Microsoft is something of a shift, but given Microsoft’s market penetration, not an unexpected one. I will be interested to see movement on this front in the coming months.
Below: Certainly one of the most convincing messages behind this title and the console as a whole is the developer of Superbrothers: Sword and Sorcery EP and Jim Guthrie providing the backing tracks.. This looks amazing. This looks unfortunately amazing. This looks like maybe Xbox ONE’s Game of Show.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wuR9lOnGNo&list=PL0il2l-B_WwaXkmJde1d8CpJE6FLVhQBA&index=18[/youtube]
Blacktusk: I don’t think I’m alone in the following sentiment: Uh, what? That wasn’t even a real trailer. Also, you can focus on a development studio in a trailer if you’re, I don’t know, Irrational Games or Gearbox or Bungie or pretty much anyone bigger than Blacktusk.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90SRDi07iCI[/youtube]
Halo 5: Ok, this one got me. It was gorgeous, and the reveal twist was effectively handled. I even had the moment you wanted me to have, the “Holy &$*( It’s Master Chief!” moment, shortly before I had the “Why the heck is Master Chief wearing rags and a hood in the middle of the desert where no one could see him?” moment. But the gamer audience is jaded, we know we shouldn’t think about this game until you’ve shown us gameplay.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZipoIbBDf-c&list=PL0il2l-B_WwaXkmJde1d8CpJE6FLVhQBA&index=7[/youtube]
Titanfall: This was a winner. Respawn Entertainment, helmed by industry vets Jason Ward and Vince Zampella (and staffed by almost all of the Infinity Ward team that still had consciences), couldn’t make a bad game if they tried. This was a very effective presentation, featuring very clean game-play concepts and demonstrated beautifully. It’s not a surprise that it’s going to be good. What is surprising is that it’s going to be a console exclusive.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnOxE4i1-XA&list=PL0il2l-B_WwaXkmJde1d8CpJE6FLVhQBA&index=4[/youtube]