E3 2010 Day 1 Wrap Up
It’s 12:40am Wednesday morning. I’ve gone through the vast majority of the photos and video we shot opening day as my legs gain most of the feeling back into them before forcing them to a repeat performance in about 9 hours. There was a lot to take in, mostly a lot of highs, a lot of hurry-up-and-waits and a smattering of overpriced cafeteria food.
Of the big three E3 2010 focuses, we were able to see them all and experience two. After over three hours of waiting in line, even with media access, we were able to pick up and see just how well the Nintendo 3DS functioned and whether it has lived up to the rumors and speculation. The easy answer is that it DOES create a pretty engaging 3D gaming experience without special glasses, but its not perfect. Click over here to read a more detailed impression of Nintendo’s new Golden Boy.
Microsoft paraded out Kinect, their full body motion sensing device that, so far, puts much of the Wii’s capabilities to shame. We spent some time with the team from Ubisoft’s Your Shape fitness title for the Kinect and was surprised to find that the motion detection is fluid, almost lag free and a relatively natural way to interact with the console. Even if my 6’6″ body couldn’t be completely detected (I was probably just standing too close).
The Move controller was Sony’s attention getter. Didn’t get the chance today to get our Move on, but others we talked to claimed it felt more accurate than the Wii controllers, even if it does make the player look like he’s waving a fairy’s lollipop around to play.
Got the chance to play a good deal of Marvel Vs. Capcom 3. MvC 2 has been one of my personal favorite arcade fighters for many years and number three didn’t disappoint. Capcom slipped a little bit of Street Fighter 4’s style into both the gameplay and the visuals to keep the title playing as fresh as it did back when a fistful of quarters still meant something to gamers.
Flipped on over to Disney’s showing and amidst the tween soon-to-be-child-star karaoke games was Tron. A slew of titles for a myriad of systems including a more traditional first person brawler with driving elements for the 360 and PS3 and a more casual style light cycle title for the Wii that had us giggling like school girls trying to force one another into the others’ light wall.
Just before making the long trek back to the Geek-mobile to brave L.A.’s notorious traffic (and avoid the sports fans heading next door to the playoffs) we happened by Bandai/Namco’s booth to play a title that may never otherwise see the light of day. 4 Joysticks surrounded a tabletop plasma screen and gives players the unique experience of multiplayer Pac-Man. Pac-Man Battle Royale is, so far, just a concept meant for arcade play (bars, pizza joints, what remains of the arcade industry) that pits up to 4 players, each a different color Pac, against each other. The rules are simple: Avoid the ghost monsters, eat the Power Pellets to eat the ghosts and any of your opponents who haven’t ingested their own Power Pellets without being eaten by the same. It’s fast, furious and a total blast to play in a group. Namco told me the unit was one of only 4 that existed and as of now, they aren’t certain what the future of title will be. Even so, it’s a perfect way to celebrate the Pie Shaped, Pellet eating prince’s 30th anniversary and one that shouldn’t be passed up should you happen upon it.
So now it’s 1:20am. Having some video difficulties, so those will have to wait till tomorrow. I’ve gotta be up in 7 hours. I can hear Star Wars: The Old Republic, Force Unleashed 2, Zelda: Skyward Sword, Dead Rising 2 and Metal Gear Solid Rising drilling into the back of my head. There’s only one cure for that, and it’s not more cowbell. Sorry legs, but it means more E3 and more walking. See you tomorrow.
