The Official "Console War" and Video Game Thread

[TheDeviot]

E3 is nearly upon us again. Here's the press conference schedule so far:

Monday 6/4/2012:
Microsoft - 1pm EDT/10am PDT
EA - 4pm EDT/1pm PDT
Ubisoft - 6pm EDT/3pm PDT
Sony - 9pm EDT/6pm PDT

Tuesday 6/5/2012:
Nintendo - Noon EDT/9am PDT

Anybody looking forward to anything in particular? Most of the known stuff I'm interested in is coming out soon, (Fall of Cybertron, Darksiders 2, LEGO Batman 2) so I'm mostly looking forward to the surprises, along with more info on God of War: Ascension, Resident Evil 6, LEGO LOTR, Sly 4, Tomb Raider, The Last Guardian, Devil May Cry & Assassin's Creed 3.

Hopefully Nintendo will have something along the lines of Metroid for Wii-U, as the only known title I'm curious to see is Pikmin 3. Skyward Sword really soured me on Zelda (honestly for the 1st time), and I'm Marioed out. Maybe the rumored Metroid/Starfox crossover from Retro Studios will bear some fruit.

No real interest in handhelds or PC, and my 360 hasn't been used in months. Wii-U hasn't grabbed me yet-I presume that will be the major focus of Nintendo's showing, along w/some updates on 3DS titles. (NSMB2, Luigi's Mansion 2, new Castlevania, etc...)

I'd be surprised if M$ doesn't unveil the 720/Durango, and push more Kinect titles, and spend the majority of either their opening or closing pimping Halo 4.

I don't think Sony will unveil their PS3 successor, but if they do, I think it'll just be a quick "Here it is" and nothing more. I initially thought to expect a PS3 price cut announcement, but after Sony's recent financial reveals, and the recent statement saying they're looking for the Playstation brand to help ease their $$$ woes, I wouldn't count on it.

I wouldn't expect anything on the next Xbox or Playstation this E3 at all. I think Sony is probably going to focus mostly on improving Vita's mindshare so I think their conference will mostly be about new Vita games, probably followed
up with more PSN news, and a few PS3 exclusives.

Microsoft will probably be talking up Kinect, and briefly go over the videogaming aspects of Windows 8, as it will also run on Tablets/Smartphones. They'll probably talk about updates to Live!, and show a couple of 360 versions of multiplatform titles.

Nintendo will obviously talk up the Wii U. I hope to see some more in terms of lapsed franchises like F-Zero, and Starfox. Maybe the Metroid/SF crossover by Retro rumors are true. Who knows? Last year they said they were looking to partner
with another company to improve online. My wishful thinking hopes it's Valve, as they already got Steam onto the PS3, and it would be insane competition to Live, as it offers almost everything Live does for free.
They'll probably close out with 3DS games, and redesign news.

The only other major stuff I'd like to see is The Valve conference (Maybe Gabe was trolling us, and Half-Life 3 is coming) as it will likely talk L4D x Payday, and the new Counter Strike.
Other stuff would be updates on Doom IV from iD, the PC exclusive from Epic that Cliffy B hinted at, the non BETRAYAL X-Com game, and I'll probably look at EA's summit only because I want a little more info on the Battlefield 3 expansions.
I'll also be interested in seeing how well the Wii U versions of multiplatform games stack up. I also want to see if there are any indie/non AAA mid tier sleeper games that might interest me.

[TheDeviot]

Just a reminder today (5/27) is a free bonus XP day for Battlefield 3 (Windows edition)

[Fendi]

Another One and a Half Hours for Lord of the Rings Online! I just read and watch the review about one of the Best Free to Play game around the net. So far I'm having fun with Alien Swarm and Team Fortress 2 games.

[markatisu]

Just another reminder to everyone that E3 is next week. New games, and the full reveal of the Wii U and its launch details

I will be interested to see what Sony has, the Vita is literally dying at retail and at times this year the Wii is outselling it in Japan (which is a horrific thing). Sony needs to do something now, they already lost the Next Gen war to MS and Nintendo, to lose badly a 2nd time to Nintendo in the handheld war would be damaging.

MS can just cruise for another year, the Xbox 360 is still selling and has most of the popular 3rd parties on board. It can go another year without needing a new system.

Conference List has not changed, most of these will be streaming from IGN and G4 and also shown on G4TV and possible Spike TV

MON: Microsoft
9:30 AM (PT)/5:30 PM (GMT)

MON: Electronic Arts
1:00 PM (PT)/9:00 PM (GMT)

MON: Ubisoft
3:00 PM (PT)/11:00 PM GMT)

MON: Sony
6:00 PM (PT)/2:00 AM (GMT Tuesday)

TUES: Nintendo
9:00 AM (PT)/5:00 PM (GMT)

[Hordaiquiri]

I will be interested to see what Sony has, the Vita is literally dying at retail and at times this year the Wii is outselling it in Japan (which is a horrific thing). Sony needs to do something now, they already lost the Next Gen war to MS and Nintendo, to lose badly a 2nd time to Nintendo in the handheld war would be damaging.

I wouldn't mind seeing them announce a large price drop like Nintendo did with the 3DS. I'd pick up a Vita if that happened. I'm going to anyway, for P4G, but I'd like to spend as little as possible.

I'd like to see more on the Wii-U and the new Smash Bros. Not much else I'm looking forward to, except more on The Last of Us, Aliens: Colonial Marines, Borderlands 2.

[Fendi]

XBox Conference, a real disappointment. =(

[markatisu]

XBox Conference, a real disappointment. =(

Yup, this sums up my feelings on it. The South Park game was the best part about it, loved how Matt and Trey trolled while on stage.

[Southzen]

After the massive stock crash as the show opened, Sony better really bring it.

[markatisu]

Nintendo just announced they are going all out, they will have a separate conference just for the 3DS on Wednesday night. Rumored is a bigger 3DS redesign and obviously this leaves tomorrows press conference for the Wii U

The presentation will be hosted by Scott Moffitt, the Nintendo of America Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing, and will focus exclusively on 3DS software. The presentation itself is taking place at 6-7 p.m. PT/9-10 p.m. ET at the Los Angeles Convention Center, and is going to be live-streamed by Nintendo.

[Fendi]

Yup, this sums up my feelings on it. The South Park game was the best part about it, loved how Matt and Trey trolled while on stage.

http://i.imgur.com/dlxXI.gif

Agreed. But the eye candy for me is South Park (As you explain above) and Tomb Raider, almost like Uncharted like. I really want to see the concept though.

Assassin Creed in Virginia?

[markatisu]

Holy crap Ubisoft, Watch Dogs looks freaking fantastic. Its like Person of Interest the video game and those graphics....very impressed.

[Hordaiquiri]

Holy crap Ubisoft, Watch Dogs looks freaking fantastic. Its like Person of Interest the video game and those graphics....very impressed.

I was about to post the same, this is the first thing I've seen today that completely caught my interest. Looks promising!

[Fendi]

Watchdogs look promising to me, Ultimate Net Troll for me, with a little mix of Co Op Saints Row the Third.

[markatisu]

Ubisoft release schedule, Assassins Creed III and Rayman will be at Wii U launch.



I might flip systems to get ACIII depending on what the Wii U's tablet brings to the game (if it even uses the tablet, might just be a duplicate of the PS360 version using the Pro pad)

[vertigoink]

Ubisoft release schedule, Assassins Creed III and Rayman will be at Wii U launch.

http://www.gonintendo.com/content/up...2_6/ubirel.png

I might flip systems to get ACIII depending on what the Wii U's tablet brings to the game (if it even uses the tablet, might just be a duplicate of the PS360 version using the Pro pad)

If rumored specs are true it will look markedly better than the PS360 versions. In all honesty as someone who freelances for Insomniac and had worked on 360 projects for other devs before, I was a bit disappointed at what Microsoft brought to the table- it almost seems as if they are trying to take Nintendo's role catering to the casuals and Nintendo is taking their role as appealing to hardcore AND casual markets.

[wolfsfang]

Sony already has me excited just by their opening video compilation thingy

[markatisu]

Sony already has me excited just by their opening video compilation thingy

Sony always does good openings, they have the past 4 years. They need all the help they can get though with the Vita completely bombing in sales and their stock crashing to lowest levels in almost 30 years

- - - Updated - - -

If rumored specs are true it will look markedly better than the PS360 versions. In all honesty as someone who freelances for Insomniac and had worked on 360 projects for other devs before, I was a bit disappointed at what Microsoft brought to the table- it almost seems as if they are trying to take Nintendo's role catering to the casuals and Nintendo is taking their role as appealing to hardcore AND casual markets.

I agree, I heard someone say that MS conference today made the Wii Fit E3 conference from a few years back look hardcore

[He-Dad]

If rumored specs are true it will look markedly better than the PS360 versions. In all honesty as someone who freelances for Insomniac and had worked on 360 projects for other devs before, I was a bit disappointed at what Microsoft brought to the table- it almost seems as if they are trying to take Nintendo's role catering to the casuals and Nintendo is taking their role as appealing to hardcore AND casual markets.

Ive been a Nintendo fanboy since I was 9 years old and got my first NES so I hope so. It would be nice to have a Nintendo that is being used by someone besides my 6 year old. The adult games are somewhat lacking on the Wii so a few years ago I broke down and bought a PS3. While I love it, I would love to be supporting Nintendo more. Now that I know AS3 is a launch title I'm even MORE excited to get the Wii U!

[wolfsfang]

Wonderbook looks like fun

[markatisu]

The new God of War looks pretty awesome, though what is this like God of War 7 if you count the PSP games that are just as good as the PS2/PS3 ones

[He-Dad]

Star Wars 1313...****....AMAZING looking. M rated Star Wars with incredible graphics......have I died and gone to heaven?!?! Real game play footage looks epic!

[MegaGearMax]

March 2013 is going to be heavy! Tomb Raider one week, God of War: Ascension the next!

The Last of Us looks awesome! The girl in it looks an awful lot like Ellen Page and at first I thought that the announcement was that she'll voice Elle after all. However, she's voicing another game. Halo 4 looked cool too!

Looking forward to Darksiders II and Dragon's Crown!

The new God of War looks pretty awesome, though what is this like God of War 7 if you count the PSP games that are just as good as the PS2/PS3 ones

Yep...God of War 7 if you count the mobile phone game. Seven games in Eight years!

In canonical order....

God of War: Ascension was officially announced on April 19, 2012 for the PlayStation 3 with an announcement trailer. The trailer is narrated by Linda Hunt. It tells about a time during Kratos' life before he was made the "Ghost of Sparta" when he was not yet bound in blood. The game will be a prequel to the entire God of War series.

God of War: Chains of Olympus was first released in North America on March 4, 2008 for the PlayStation Portable followed by a limited edition PSP bundle pack released in June. Set in the time of Kratos' ten years of service to the gods, Kratos halts a Persian invasion of the Greek city of Attica, and learns that the world has been plunged into darkness by the god Morpheus. Learning that the sun god Helios has been abducted, Kratos investigates and prevents the machiavellian plan of the goddess Persephone to use the Titan Atlas to destroy the world and as a result Olympus.

God of War was first released in North America on March 22, 2005 for the PlayStation 2. Kratos is introduced as having been the servant of the gods for ten years, and is tasked by Athena with finding Pandora's Box, the key to defeating Ares, the God of War. Through a series of flashbacks it is revealed that Kratos was once the servant of Ares (who saved the Spartan and his army from annihilation) in battle, and tricked him into killing his family, forcing his metamorphosis into the "Ghost of Sparta." Kratos eventually locates the Box, and after finally killing Ares, ascends to Olympus to become the new God of War.

God of War: Ghost of Sparta was first released in North America on November 2, 2010 for the PlayStation Portable with a limited edition PSP bundle and an exclusive pre-order offer released simultaneously. Set after the events of the original God of War and prior to God of War: Betrayal, Kratos, the God of War, is still haunted by visions of his mortal past and embarks on a quest to discover his origins by finding his mother, Callisto. Learning that his brother Deimos was taken by the gods and then imprisoned by the God of Death, Thanatos, Kratos decides to find and save his sibling. Although successful, Thanatos engages the brothers in combat, and kills Deimos. Kratos then kills Thanatos in turn, and returns to Olympus, now enraged at the gods.

God of War: Betrayal was released on June 20, 2007 for mobile phones. Taking place between the events of God of War: Ghost of Sparta and God of War II, Kratos is framed for murder and rampages across Greece, seeking the true assassin. Kratos succumbs to bloodlust and kills Ceryx, the son of the god Hermes - an act that alienates him from his fellow gods. Betrayal is the only game in the series to be released as a 2D side-scroller and released on a non-Sony platform.

God of War II was first released in North America on March 13, 2007 for the PlayStation 2. Betrayed by Zeus, Kratos is saved by the Titan Gaia, who states Kratos must now find the Sisters of Fate. The Sisters can change his fate and prevent his death at the hands of Zeus. Kratos is ultimately successful, and learns from a dying Athena (who sacrificed herself to save Zeus and thereby preserve Olympus) that he is the son of Zeus. Kratos then joins forces with Gaia and the Titans in an attack on Olympus.

God of War III was first released in North America on March 16, 2010 for the PlayStation 3 with an "Ultimate Edition" available for pre-order with exclusive content. Kratos engages both the gods and former allies the Titans in an epic series of battles across the Underworld and Olympus. Aided by the spirit of a revived Athena and Pandora herself, Kratos eventually defeats the gods and opposing Titans.

[markatisu]

Thanks for providing the order, I got confused after the latest PSP games came out and then were released on the PS3

Last of Us looks interesting, its kind of like Uncharted meets Splinter Cell or 24

So far the conferences have been Ubisoft>>>Sony>>>>>>>>EA>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Microsoft lol

I think Nintendo is going to steal the show tomorrow tbh, the bar is not very high compared to everyone else so far in this E3

[Fendi]

Too excited after reading that EA going to release C&C General 2 on 2013. =)

[markatisu]

In just 30min...