The annual E3 Press Conference is easily the biggest gaming news event of the year, but not everyone is able to follow the video streams and news coverage live and attempting to catch up afterwards can be overwhelming. Fortunately, PlayStation LifeStyle is here to compile and list the news for the folks at home, which we’ll update as the show continues.
Microsoft:
- MW3 DLC coming exclusively to 360 for a limited time. Read More >>
- Halo 4 teased
- Halo: Combat Evolved being remastered in HD
- Kinect coming to Mass Effect 3, Ghost Recon, EA Sports titles and the next Fable.
- New, new Xbox Experience to have full Kinect support
- Bing with voice search coming, but won’t be able to search the internet
- YouTube and UFC coming to 360
- Kinect Fun Labs announced, coming from Buzz! dev Relentless Studios
- Dance Central 2, Kinect Sports Season 2 announced
- Crytek’s Codename: Kingdoms renamed Ryse
Rating: C+ With the 360’s core line-up rather weak in the run up to E3, we were hoping that a slew of new games would be announced. Unfortunately, Microsoft’s selection was rather weak, with gamers only given a fleeting glance at Halo 4. Kinect remained the centrepiece of the show, with announcements clearly aimed at casual gamers.
EA:
- Mass Effect 3 demoed
- Sports games with Kinect shown
- Battlefield 3 release date, beta announced Read More >>
- Insomniac Games’ multiplatform title, “Overstrike“, revealed Read More >>
- Need for Speed: The Run to feature on-foot chases
- EA Sports Football Club revealed – a live service that allows users to connect and compete with one another
- Star Wars: Old Republic teased
Rating: C Insomniac’s new game made the show worth watching, although lack of real gameplay made it rather disappointing. The rest of the conference was rather bland and repeated what was already known.
Ubisoft:
- Rayman Origins revealed as 2D family game
- Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Online to be a free game
- Far Cry 3 announced, returning to the jungle Read More >>
- Gearbox Software developing Brothers in Arms: Furious Four Read More >>
- The Adventures of Tintin: The Game announced as movie tie-in
- ManiaPlanet, a brand dedicated to allowing customization options to PC games revealed.
- Trackmania, a racing game, Shootmania, an FPS, and Questmania, an RPG.
- Raving Rabids coming to Kinect
- Just Dance 3 coming to PS3, 360 and Wii Read More >>
- Assassin’s Creed: Revelations gameplay footage shown Read More >>
Rating: B+ Ubisoft started strongly, with Far Cry, Brothers in Arms and Ghost Recon all looking very good. From there it went downhill, with cheesy jokes and casual games dragging on. Luckily it ended with a bang, with Ubisoft showing Assassin’s Creed.
Sony:
- Sony Apologizes For PSN Outage Read More >>
- CinemaNow’s Instant Streaming Access Heading To PlayStation Network Read More >>
- Chloe and Elena Returning to Uncharted Read More >>
- New God of War Collection Announced Read More >>
- Uncharted 3 E3 Gameplay Footage Read More >>
- Resistance 3 Sharp Shooter Bundle Announced Read More >>
- Brand New PS3 Television and Glasses Announced Read More >>
- Medieval Moves: Deadmund’s Quest Announced Read More >>
- Sly Cooper 4 Unveiled At Sony’s E3 Conference Read More >>
- Move Support for Bioshock Infinite Confirmed Read More >>
- Ken Levine Teases Vita Bioshock Title Read More >>
- Dust 514 Announced to Be First PSN Exclusive Cross-Platform MMO Read More >>
- Everybody Dance and Start the Party 2 Moving Its Way to PS3 Read More >>
- NGP Officially Named Read More >>
- Star Trek PlayStation Move Announced with Exclusive Treats Read More >>
- PlayStation Vita is AT&T Exclusive Read More >>
- Mt. Fuji Stage to be Exclusive to PS3 Version of SSX Read More >>
- PS Vita Priced, To 3G or Not to 3G Read More >>
- Idol Minds Announce Ruin, A Cross Compatible “Social Action RPG” With Cloud Saves Read More >>
- PS Vita Set to Release This Year, Christmas Sorted Read More >>
- 80 Titles in Development for Vita Read More >>
- New Modnation Racers Announced For Vita Read More >>
- LittleBigPlanet Finds New Life on PlayStation Vita Read More >>
- Street Fighter x Tekken on The PS Vita Shown on Video, inFamous’ Cole To Join in Read More >>
Rating: B The most announcements of any conference, Sony’s was jam-packed with reveals. However, other than the surprisingly low price of the PS Vita, none rivalled the megaton announcements of the years before. No Agent, Twisted Metal or Last Guardian was disappointing.
Nintendo:
- Zelda: Link’s Awakening is now available for 3DS on the Virtual Console
- Ocarina of Time 3D will launch next week
- Zelda: 4 Swords Adventure will be a free download in September
- Zelda: Skyward Sword will launch this holiday for the Wii, limited edition Gold Wii Remote will accompany this launch.
- Later this year a 25th Zelda Anniversary Symphony Concert will tour around the word.
- Mario Kart 3DS, Star Fox 3DS, Super Mario 3D, Kid Icarus Uprising, Luigi’s Mansion 2 announced
- eShop finally available for the 3DS
- Pokedex 3D out now for free
- Wii U blowout Read More >>
Rating: A- Announcing a new console meant that Nintendo were pretty much guaranteed to have the best show. Add in a spattering of top 3DS titles and a strong list of third party support for the Wii U, and the conference was a hit. But with graphics failing to beat the PS3, a terrible name and an odd control interface, the show was far from perfect.
