Drew “Frustrated Fury” Leachman
Well, to me, Sony had the best showing out of them all. They had the games we wanted to see and the big reveal for the PSVita was a homerun. The Vita has become a day one purchase for me, and in my opinion, made the 3DS irrelevant. The price is right, and the games they showed off were looking very promising. Uncharted, Ruin, and Street Fighter X Tekken looked great. They had the hardcore games with Uncharted, Resistance, Sly Cooper, and Dust 514. The didn’t shy away from showing Move enabled games as well with Medieval Moves, Star Trek, and Bioshock: Infinite. The one thing that did peak my interest a good amount is the Resistance 3 3D television bundle. Sony is really pushing 3D technology and this move to have a PlayStation branded 3D ready TV with glasses and 3D capable game, is a smart move.
Microsoft really pushed Kinect, which I didn’t really care for. There wasn’t much there for me as far as games go. They focused more on the tech side of Kinect and not really showing off many games that used the standard controller with the exception of Modern Warfare 3 and Gears of War 3. Although, I do have to say, there were a few Kinect features for games like Mass Effect 3 and Future Solider that looked interesting. I was thinking they would show off or at least talk a little more about the live television service they announced, but there wasn’t many details other than “it’s coming.”
Of course, Nintendo was the big show. They revealed their new console, the Wii U. Yep. That’s it. Now, before I begin talking about the Nintendo conference, let me say one thing: this is completely my opinion. It doesn’t reflect the thoughts and views of ZTGD or any of its staff members. Now, I thought the entire showing was a complete joke. The Wii U looks like an HD Wii with a controller that can double as a mini TV screen with touch screen controls. The biggest problem I see with Nintendo is the fact that they are trying way too hard to innovate their controllers, that they forget that all they need to do is make some relevant games that play like a video game. I honestly couldn’t tell you who they are making this console for, the casual will say, “I don’t need another Wii with some new bells and whistles.” The hardcore will say, “It doesn’t have the games I want, and the controls are still too out there.” Now, they also showed off some 3DS titles.
Most of which we all knew was coming. Another thing I see is Nintendo constantly rehashing the same games from 15-20 years ago, slapping 3D on it, and saying it’s a new game. So we have Ocarina of Time 3D, Four Swords, Excite Bike, New Super Mario Bros. Mii (AKA New Super Mario Bros. Wii but with your Miis in the game), StarFox64 3D, and Link’s Awakening. All of these games we have seen years before, yet Nintendo is mentioning during a conference about new and upcoming games. With the exception of Zelda Skyward Sword, there was no mention of any new Wii games or features. Which means for the next 8-10 months, I guess Nintendo is letting the Wii die a slow, painful death until the Wii U comes out. OK. Now that I have got that out of my system, I can continue. Needless to say, Nintendo disappointed the crap out of me.
Now, as far as what I’m most excited for, I can’t wait to get my hands on the PSVita. It looks like something I will play continuously. Now, I’m still a little weary on the launch titles, but if they can pull out a good 2 or 3 launch titles I’m looking for, they’ll have me.
Uncharted 3 looks to be a game of the year contender and Skyrim…I have no words for except maybe “amazing.”
