E3: Day 2 Synopsis
As the second day of E3 comes to a close, I must warn you that I write this article on a minimal amount of sleep. Sleep deprivation can do funny things to the brain. Even though most people would argue that poorly functioning brain cells would probably improve my writing, I apologize in advance for anything that seems like utter nonsense and blabbering idiocy.
E3 in general is a sensory overload. When you haven’t slept, it’s somewhat surreal. I was only able to visit the show for a short time on day one, so my plan for today was to spend the first half of the day getting some good video footage (which I have…but it will take some time to upload and I must get sleep as soon as I publish this, so please bare with me) and the latter half getting in some play testing.
I had a 10:30 invite to Capcom’s private lounge, so after the opening hordes of video game hungry spectators plowed their way through the doors, I casually strolled over to Capcom. Their lounge wasn’t incredibly special, but since so few were granted access, there was plenty of game availability. As an added bonus they had free food. As an added subtraction, at 10:30 their free breakfast food was gone and the free lunch food was wrapped up and heavily guarded, so I starved.
I play tested a number of games, and I promise some more in depth first look reviews soon. As a quick recap, I played “Lost Planet 2” (Xbox), “Tatsunoko vs. Capcom” (Wii), “Spyborgs” (Wii), “Resident Evil Degeneration” (Wii) and “Dark Void” (Xbox). They also had “Resident Evil Archives” (Wii), which is a re-port of the first RE for the Wii and “Marvel vs. Capcom 2” (for one of those two systems, sorry I can’t remember which). They also had some handheld versions of many of these games and a cool model of the jet pack from Darkvoid.
After that, I got lunch. Lunch was a soggy turkey sandwich and some pasta salad – but it was free, and since I starved at Capcom, it was welcome. Following lunch I had a much anticipated private interview with the makers of “MadBalls in Babo Invasion.” That’s right, MadBalls – those spongy gross looking balls we loved so much in our childhood. The interview went well and they even gave me a free Oculus Orbus which I can use to gross out my wife. I’ve got tons of in depth review on the soon to be Xbox Live game, and I’ll tell you this – it’s definitely interesting and has a lot of promise.
For the next few hours I wandered around watching game trailers and in-game footage while doing my best to videotape it. Even though video cameras were allowed, a number of game companies got upset when I filmed their games. Of course, the media teams that had a hot hostess got to film all they wanted. I guess that’s what I get for being a short, hairy, Jewish guy.
I’ve got a whole bunch of games to review – and a whole bunch more to play tomorrow. I did get a little time with the “Professor Layton” sequel for the DS and a number of EA sports games like “Madden 10” and “Grand Slam Tennis.” I had a pretty long play session with the “Dead Space” prequel as well.
All in all it was a successful day. The Booth Babes were out in full force (and yes, I got some more pictures, but please, don’t tell my wife), fully costumed animal characters that would scare a small child kept trying to hug me, and one media reporter decided he was better than the rest of us and could therefore drive around the convention on a Segway. I walked and now my feet hurt.
I also managed to attend a screening of the “Star Wars: The Old Republic” trailer. Wow. Sure the trailer was impressive, but that’s not what was “wow.” They pumped up the sound so loud, the ground shook beneath me. A deaf person probably would have thought we were in the midst of another earthquake. On top of that they threw out Sith and Jedi t-shirts to the crowd. I almost caught one, but to do so would have required me to engage in combat with a thin Asian woman. I’m not saying I didn’t try. I’m just saying I’m not strong enough to pummel a thin Asian woman. I have the battle scars to prove it.
Stay tuned for more updates tomorrow and hands on reviews of all the games played.
