E3 ’10 Predictions!

We all know that E3 doesn’t REALLY start until Nintendo’s conference, but I’m still wasting some time before Microsoft gets to show me their version of casual gaming with a terrible product name: (Insect! Er, Knicted! or something… ), so here are my predictions for this year’s E3, and a place where we can all talk about the stupid things that all 3 companies do!

Getting the obvious out of the way:

Microsoft:
– Kinect is a stupid word.
– Gears of War 3 will be shown, I’m hoping it’s more like GoW1 and less like 2.
– Kinect / Natal still looks silly.
– Milo will be back and creepy as ever.
– Halo: Reach campaign will be shown, and will be awesome.

Nintendo:
– Zelda will totally be sweet and I might forgive Nintendo for 30 minutes of sales charts because of it.
– Pikmin 3 will rock.

Sony:
– Everyone in the media will instantly forget they ever played Wii Sports Resort and pretend like Move is something new.

Less obvious guesswork:

MS:
– MS will try to show some core games working with Nat…Kinect, using a controller while also tracking body lean and head movement.
– bunch of core game sizzle trailers to make us feel like us real gamers haven’t been forgotten.
– MGS Rising footage for the omgz the Xbox has MGS! Shock value
– Connect Fit, nuff said.

Nintendo:
– Wiimote pointer controlled Starfox.
– New Retro game (though IGN’s insisting that it’s a new Donkey Kong game, which wouldn’t have been my first guess…).
– Zelda Wii controls super awesomely and is very beautiful.
– 3DS totally owns PS3’s version of 3D for the sole reason that it doesn’t require stupid glasses and a screen that’s unviewable to anyone not wearing them (not needing to buy a whole new TV is a plus, too).

Sony:
– Going to try very very hard that Wii isn’t 300 times better than Move at FPS games.
– Another Play, Create, Share game? I dunno.
– PSP2 will have 2 analogue sticks… Probably…

Update: I’m pretty sure the 3DS will be able to play virtual console games (not sure if it’ll be the same store or separate, since it would require different emulators, hoping it would just be the same, like the PSP and PS3), but the 3DS SHOULD be able to play n64 games in 3d, since it’s emulating them, and there’s not all that many on the store, so it wouldn’t be hard to test them all.

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65 Comments

  1. Siempiee

    kinect should be named Project Natal
    it sounds many times better than kinect!

    brad, are you more a nintendo guy than xbox of playstation?
    or does it just sounds that way^^

  2. fancypantsfan250

    Didn’t I hear at one point that Project Natal would be renamed the Wave? Better name if anything, IMO. What’s this about “Kinect?”

  3. Brad

    I would have taken Wave over Kinect, or Kinetic…

    I have and play all three systems, but I honestly just get more excited for them since they keep so secretive for the rest of the year.

    Plus, they’ve already shown off good casual gaming with Wii Sports, super accurate motion controls with Wii Motion Plus, and practically invented local multiplayer with Mario Kart, Goldeneye, Smash Bros… It’s just not very fun to watch a company do nothing more than show off how they can be like another company.

  4. WJUK

    Well, saw the MS conference. Sort of (was playing games at the same time XD ).

    Didn’t catch the start of it, but it seems they spent a long time on Nata- *ahem* Kinect. I can see the potential if they get the motions correct, but I think marketing to the casual market will make or break it. That and having a good quality bundle.

    The Xbox slim was no surprise either, since it was leaked earlier.

  5. negativeinfinity

    a virtual console on the 3DS does sound appealing right now. but only if the games are transferable between the wii and 3DS. I don’t want to have good games locked up on one system!

  6. Brad

    Heh, yeah, apparently Natal didn’t sound stupid enough.

    Nah, it sounds like Nintendo’s realized a lot of the mistakes they’ve made with Twilight Princess and want to really shake things up, especially with the dungeon design. There’s a few rumors out there that actually sound pretty legit to me, but until Nintendo confirms it, they’re still rumors.

    And yes, Zelda has some sort of timeline, so games are either sequels or prequels 😛

    • FairlyObvious

      @DS- You have to also remember the name of the hero changes by user. He’s Link when I play, but he’s Brad when Brad plays.
      Miyomoto said he wanted gamers to feel like they were the hero while playing it, therefore the legend is about Zelda but YOU are the hero, cheesy as it sounds . . .

      btw did Brad mention the whole fitness demonstrator getting two inches shorter in the same day according to the 360?

  7. Neverwinter

    @DS: Okay, another few reasons why the games aren’t called the Legend of Link is because…

    1-The acronym for Legend of Link is LOL. See the confusion?
    2-See Brad and FO’s posts
    3-So, Link’s name shouldn’t be on the cover of every copy because it just doesn’t make sense to me, and though he does deserve the fame, he usually is looked on as a “knight”. I have yet to read any historical text where a man in the Middle Ages, Prehistoric Era, or modern day is accredited for being the only one who defeated the enemy. Also, imagine this:

    The Legend of Link: A Link to Past.

    Kinda redundant, eh? To fix that (and because Zelda was a pretty name), Shigeru Miyamoto (the guy who created the series) used the name Zelda. So there you have it!

    BTW, Zelda Wii 2010=Epic Win!

  8. Frubban

    Okay. It didn’t get deleted because of it’s length…( Sorry ’bout that :/ )

    Instead, it’s marked as spam, when i try to edit it(to delete misspellings)…

    Okay, let’s just say it’s spam and everyone is happy.

    @Neverwinter: It wouldn’t be LOL, it would be LoL. Huge difference.

  9. jesus_minime

    super accurate motion controls with Wii Motion Plus,

    come on brad, seriously? have you played wii sports resort? the controller needs to be recalibrated every 10 seconds!
    wii motion plus does not work, or at least for the few games i played on resort. i honestly couldn’t stand the game.

    *prepares for lashback*

    i enjoyed wii sports too an extent. with that game, Nintendo took into account that their motion sensing hardware wasn’t the greatest. now they make this new motion plus thing. it could be awesome, they just made they game thinking that their new hardware would be amazing. it wasn’t, and it didn’t; resort.

    EDIT:
    just realized you weren’t talking about resort when you said that.
    wups, oh well, my rave of resort.

  10. Brad

    That’s only when you leave auto calibrate on and have IR sources all over your house. Turn it off and WM+ is surprisingly consistent. It all depends on the game design, of course. If Move requires pointing, like a sword or whatever, the ball can’t track which way you’re pointing, only where it is in space. The Wiimote knows where it’s pointing, and if you design the game around pointing at the screen, like Red Steel 2, you never have to re-callibrate in the entire game, which would actually be completely impossible to do with Move.

    Edit: That’s a problem with the software, which is actually fixable in the menu, not a hardware problem. Nothing wrong with the data, and I still insist that WM+ gives more core game related data than Move, which is more about digital puppetry than aiming.

  11. Frubban

    Hmm… seems my comment still got deleted. Well i just wanted to say: Zelda has no timelina. This has been officially declared by nintendo.

    Now start working on Fancy Pants for Wii/Wii motion plus!!
    And it had to be 3D!! …xD

  12. Brad

    Well, I didn’t delete it, but it might have gotten spammed by being too massive… Anyways, Nintendo has said that there is one somewhere, but gameplay trumps everything. There are some pretty good guesses at a coherent timeline out there, especially a video that I was trying to find and link to. Most of the recent videos have referred to a Hero of Time, meaning that the different worlds at least sometimes acknowledge each other. But, at the end of the day, they are all just tales…

  13. FoonySlugminni

    To tell the truth, I’m not very excited for LoZ, although anything from Nintendo is pretty interesting. I’m just excited for PPPIIIKKKMMMIIINNN!!! 😀

    Oh, and F-Zero for Wii.
    And a De Blob sequel.

  14. Frubban

    Yeah i tried to explaine the storyline, and keep it short, but… i ended up having a prequel to a sequel of the time before Link goes back in time in the sequel of a prequel of a sequel of a prequel of a sequel of a prequel of a prequel… yeah, something like that. And there existed monsters created by Ganon before Ganon was even born. Plus that he actually not only got sealed away, but died in Twilight Princess AND in Windwaker…

    And nintendo said there was oa storyline, but later they said there actually was no storyline at all, they were just connected somehow(paralell dimensions? O.o).

    Well, now i’m going to bed, bye^^

  15. abluecrate

    1. In my opinion Nintendo can’t really stand up to the 360 or PS3. It’s because the Wii and DS will have a great game every once in a while, but it’s very rare. IMO.

    2. The Portal 2 conference was taken out but Valve announced they will be releasing a “surprise” Which some people have been saying will link Half Life and Portal since Black Mesa and Aperture… It’s too hard to explain.

    3. CRYSIS 2! Crysis 2 is going to be shown off at E3. Now it’s going to be coming to the consoles. It’s not gonna be good as the PC version, since the hardware difference. But I believe it’s gonna be amazing.

    4. There are also some other games that are being announced that look quite interesting such as Bulletstorm, Gears 3, Black Ops, Homefront, and Fable III.

    5. Oh yeah, about Halo: Reach, for those of you who’ve played the beta, it’s just another Halo with a little pizzazz and graphics update.

    Well after that I’m gonna go play Red Dead Redemption which is truly amazing.

    *Edit: How can I forget Fallout: New Vegas

  16. wingdemon

    only two games i care about Halo: Reach,and the new LoZ. i try to keep my list simple. sure if Portal 2 is unveiled (maybe they surprise us by unveiling Portal 2 anyway) then i add that to my list to. :).

  17. DaxterSpeed

    The thing that can make Move big is that it utilizes the power of a camera and a control. This enabling more active “active” playing.

    Seen some vids of Move demos, and they seem pretty awesome. Now I just want to see someone game publisher make a great game for it.

  18. Frubban

    Xbox and Playstation release “pretty good, i guess” games more often, while nintendo releases “W00t epic!!” games, but more rarely, like LoZ and Metroid… at least that’s what i think.

    Btw, i remember now, that a long time ago there was something about a new zelda game, but i totally forgot about it later.
    It was a leaked picture where Link had no sword, but he had a girl with him, who looked like the Master Sword in human form… so yeah, i guess that’s the next Navi/Midna…

    And i’m looking forward to the next Pikmin game^^

    Too bad i have allmost no money at all…

  19. Neverwinter

    Skyward Sword looks pretty awesome. Haven’t seen much of the 3DS, but I’m sure it will please a lot of Nintendo diehards…*ahem* like myself. Holiday season is going to be suitably epic. This, in my opinion, is what will reinvigorate the Wii since I’m guessing a lot of crappy games fought for the spotlight. 2010 just keeps getting better and better.

  20. Brad

    @Frubban: Considering the further Kirby has gotten from stock Kirby gameplay, the better the game is (Kirby Canvas Curse is still one of my favorite DS games), Epic Yarn looks to shake things up nicely. All the moves are handled by button presses (double tap to turn into a car, hit jump again in the air to turn into a parachute or whatever), instead of only after you ate an enemy, quick lasso instead of slow suction attack, etc.

    @Minifig3D: Really? That Star Wars demo was epic fail looking. AND pre-rendered… AND on rails. Plus, unless you’re holding something, the system can’t tell exactly where your hands are, so it’s probably just interpreting your swipes (aka, waggle).

    @DaxterSpeed: If you’re cool with narrowly defining ‘epic’ as, ‘tons of stuff going on in the background as I shoot these 3 guys here’, then sure, there’s enough background action set piece shooters to last a guy a lifetime. Personally, I’d much rather DO epic things.

  21. Minifig3D

    I actually have not yet seen the starwars demo. I was only hoping…

    If Kirby ever gets a PC adventure, I would be all over it. Console games are just so expensive. Sounds really cool though!

    Are there any PC games there that you think are good? I know LEGO Universe announced that they would be at E3, and that game is on my wishlist.

  22. Minifig3D

    “There’s very few games for the PC that you can’t get for consoles”.
    This is true, but sadly not the reverse. Otherwise I would totally be playing Smash Bros Brawl or Little Big Planet on my laptop right now.

  23. Frubban

    @Brad
    Nooo!! That’s exactly what should NOT happen. He can’t eat anymore…
    Now he’s just a cotton transformer. ;_______________________;

    EDIT: Ok, that looked very weird. I don’t like this font. You can’t even make proper “;__;” smileys…

    They’re just making a game with something pink and call it kirby, because they know Kirby-fans will buy it.

    @Beeman
    It seems you are outside way to much. Go play some video games.

    …is he gone?…Hmpf! I’ve never liked those non-geeks. Ò.ó

  24. wallross

    There really can’t be a debate about PS3/360 is better than the Nintendo Systems. There really marketed for a different type of gamer.
    Lot’s of the Nintendo games are more of the basic, jump in and play, kinda gameplay. While the PS3 and 360 are for the more advanced games. You can’t really play Modern Warfare 2 on the DS, because it’s really not suited for a console with a stylus. And Mario on the PS3 would be tricky, because it’s not suited for the control set.

    • Brad

      If by more complex you mean holds your hand through a theme park ride and gives you gold stars instead of being something to master, then sure, the HD twins are more complex.

      Guess you never played Metroid Prime: Hunters, Moon, or Dementium, on DS? stylus aiming is incredibly slick. Funny how Nintendo improves HOW you play the game, while everyone else improves what’s going on around you out of your control while you play the game.

      Everything that’s wrong with gaming nowadays is summed up by one gameplay demo during SOCOM 4, where a bunch of stuff was blowing up in the player’s face, then when he finally got back to the actual game, his squad had already killed all of the baddies for him. So complex it plays itself 😉

      Not sure how anyone can say the Wii is underpowered when most of those CPU cycles are being wasted on a ton of stuff that has no effect on the player whatsoever.

  25. abluecrate

    I hope they show off OnLive a bit. If anyone ever heard of that, it’s a console for the computer that can run any game from any platform from the use of a marketplace sort of like steam. I think it’s gonna be pretty cool.

    You can’t really compare consoles because really it’s the games that come out for them that you have to compare. Because if Halo came out on the PS2 and PS3 it might have a larger fanbase.

  26. kromblite

    Skyward sword looks phenominal, though I know many LOZ fans will be groaning at the partially cartoony style. The director of LOZ sure knows how to make an entrance!

  27. FoonySlugminni

    The 3DS looks awesome, what with all its new games and features, plus there are some awesome games coming to the Wii… But this was a bit of a letdown, where the hell was Pikmin 3!? That was the only reason I started to follow E3 2010, and yes, there were many exciting things there this year, but none of them were Pikmin 3! That makes me sad…

  28. Brad

    @Frubban: If that were the case, everyone would wear pirate eye patches, because they are awesome. But alas, I cannot give up 3d, despite the awesomeness.

  29. FreedomForAll

    Gah, now that i’m here, i’m trying to keep up with the posts and comments. (I have never played any of the LoZ games.. mostly because they aren’t on the PS3 ._. and as I recall never had been for the PS2.)

    @Neverwriter – Yes I have. Computer game or something like that, right? I’m guessing it’s an MMORPG.

    What really sucks is U3 won’t be released until next fall. Supposed to be “graphically superior” to U2 (possible?)

    In not really E3 related news, evidently there is not only an Uncharted movie in the works but a Legend of Spyro too? no… Prince of Persia was already bad enough considering it was basically the same names and the plot line was completely different from the Sands of Time… no sand creatures…
    I mean the movie was “ok” but in the end I was wondering why (formally just known as “Prince” but now has the name “Dustin”? What?) didn’t just take on the old guy.. it’s not like hes pulling off parkour moves throughout the movie rebounding off walls and what not.. gah…

    While i’m completely off topic on movies (my bad ._.) I would like to bring up the sequal the TRON! TRON LEGACY! YESH, FINALLY. supposed to use CGI that surpasses Avatar or something like that… BUT WILL BE INSANELY AWESOME!

    (Is there something for this in the forums?) I had recently watched the new Percy Jackson movie… big fan of the books but the movie was TERRIBLE! Completely different.. I hated it. Percy finding out he was the son of Poseidon happened during capture the flag in the woods. And the camp seemed way too small… the cabins were supposed to be bigger and in a U-shape corresponding to the seating arrangements of the… gah >.< again, same names, different freaking movie.

  30. hamcheese362

    i think kinect looks really cool. i’m not watching e3 but from wut i am seeing the 3ds will be awsome and so will kinect… btw is that for the ps3 or 360?

    @freeforall:join the forums!!!

  31. Brad

    @Frubban: Dispite the panels being avaiable only within the last few months? Nintendo had to announce the 3DS before E3 because the company wad set to announce the panels shortly after, so Nintendo wanted to get the jump on them.

    The glassesless 3D from seven years ago only fit in laptops and was basically terrible and ghosty. 3D still cameras are just now hitting the market. This specific tech is at the utter cutting edge of adoption. If you want to insist that Nintendo could have done 3D earlier using other tech, well they already did – with the Virtual Boy.

    Then again, the tech isn’t that big of a deal. Being able to play Star Fox and Ocarina of Time with MUCH better graphics and in 3D is, however, a very awesomely big deal.

  32. Hyydghe

    yes, but its only a big deal.

    or do you want to sit in front of your TV with sunglasses?

    i think, i not.

    for a game, its a better idea because the glasses would not

    encumber you at relexing.

  33. Minifig3D

    The Tanooki recently posted that their favorite game at e3 so far has been some no-name game called Limbo. Anybody here heard of it?

  34. Brad

    @Minifig3D: I saw Limbo at GDC this year, but I’m really not a fan of procedural animation. Wasted opportunity for some slick hand drawn animation, I’d say.

    @jesus_minime: Not as awesome? Not? Really…? Have you seen the concept art (the redesigned game shown at E3 sticks much closer to it), the Steamboat Willie sidescrolling level, their attention to detail with brining Mickey’s animation to 3D, know who Warren Spector is, heard him talk about how much of a passion he has for games and everything classic Disney?

    Epic Mickey is set to be one of the most awesome games around. Especially for complete animation nerds like me.

    Played the demo for the latest Ratchet and Clank games, the Clank levels were pretty neat, but the Rachet section were just one big jumbled mess, with some of the worst sound mixing and grasp of platformer gameplay I’ve seen in a long time (opinionated Flash developer is opinionated!). Maybe I should play the older ones first?

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